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suggests you are blessed when you are filled with self-righteousness; Jesus
suggests that you are blessed when you hunger and thirst for righteousness.
Prayer Thought: I trust that each one of us can take some time today to ponder
and meditate upon these truths. Won’t you ask yourself some tough questions like,
“what truly makes me happy? What truly fills my tank?” the answer to these
questions will determine so much about your spiritual standing and your
relationship with Jesus. If you are honest enough to find that your thinking has
become a bit warped on the subject of blessedness, take some time to review this
position and then talk to God about it.

Friday
Reading: John 3 v 1 – 21
The second reason that the beatitudes are important is that they categorically
show us how necessary it is for a “new birth”. Nicodemus, a secret follower of
Jesus, came to Jesus one night with a question about heaven and Jesus gave him
the words that have almost become cliché when it comes to people talking about
the Christian faith. The words “born-again” are words that every religion knows
Christianity holds in high value. Won’t you read the story below which Max
Lucado tells and answer the question: is a gentleman born or made? The story
speaks for itself and reiterates completely the need for each of us to be able to
affirm this born again experience in our own lives.
“[There were] two princes who were having an argument over whether a
gentleman is born or made. One prince said, “I believe that through training and
discipline anyone can become a gentleman, no matter how crude and unrefined.”
The other said, “I believe a gentleman is born a gentleman. A man is born with the
grace, the refinement, culture, and sophistication of a gentleman or he is not.” So,
their father, the king, gave them a chance to prove their positions. He gave them a
week to show him evidence to prove their points. The one who believed that
anyone, through training and discipline could become a gentleman, went to a pub
where he was surprised to see that his waiter was a cat, a regular old cat, dressed
in a tiny uniform, walking on his hind legs carrying the tray in his forepaws. He
thought to himself, “This is my proof. If a cat can be trained to be a waiter, then