Devotional for friends // Devocional para as amigas

We are born to please someone. Usually, at first, we want to please our parents. We want to make them proud and happy. We get very sad when we disappoint them. We start spiraling down into a pit of self-pity, thinking that we are worthless and that we will never measure up to them or live up to their expectations.   We are wrong and they are wrong. We are wrong because we are not supposed to live up to their expectations or please them. We do that when we are children and have no maturity. As we grow up, we should learn that the only person we should work hard to please is God. And the parents should teach us that.   Thankfully, my parents did that. They taught me that I have only to please God; this is the only way to happiness. God is forgiving and understanding. He knows our limitations, and He is always ready to give us whatever we need to succeed in His plans. He has plans for each one of us. Do we know what his plans are? ...

  I started thinking more about suffering since the pastor is preaching about it. Moreover, I have my own share of suffering myself. I learned to love the book of Job, and learned to observe the troubles the people of God go through in their whole lives. From the beginning until the end of one's life, they have some sort of suffering. There is only one place in the Bible where it is written that suffering will be no more. It is at the very end. When God restores his creation and humanity. But, apart from that, there is none. So, I don’t know where people, including Christians, get the idea that Christians should not suffer. They should not have diseases; God must solve their problems. And so on. They might not have said with all these words, but with their actions and their prayers. Demanding God to solve, to cure, to release, to provide… God doesn’t owe us anything. You got that, right? We, on the other hand, are in debt until we come clean ...

  Should I keep quiet forever? Is silence that bad? Can’t I stand my own thoughts that I need to say out loud? What kind of thoughts come to my mind? Are they generally good or bad? If I choose to speak up, to whom would it benefit? If anyone ever. Let me be clear: It is better not to say a word than say words that will do more harm than good. What if it is the truth? I ask, why would you say it? How would you say it? The truth will come out eventually. You don’t need to lie or be rude. What we must do is to be kind. If I tell you the truth in a harsh way, will you accept, or will you only hear the harsh sound of my voice and ignore completely what I was trying to say? Sometimes, not even the kindest words won’t make it through because the listener isn’t listening at all. The listener doesn’t care about your opinion, doesn’t care about others. The listener just cares about himself. The listener just wants to say w...

Bible Project Podcast Redemption episode   The Bible Project podcast has lately dedicated itself to the theme of Redemption. We all have a plain idea of what redemption in the Bible means, or not. It isn’t an easy subject to talk about; nevertheless, they chose to expand their knowledge and pass it on. I love it. So, the whole Bible talks about redemption. But what does redemption mean? Well, sometimes, we get a coupon, and then what do we do with it? We redeem it, right? We use this word mostly in this sense. We exchange, we give something in place for something else. Back in Genesis, Abraham and Sarah got tired of waiting for God’s timing; they got worried and decided to fulfill God’s promise by their own means. Meaning, they used and abused a foreign slave (an Egyptian slave - ironic: where did they end up being slave?). Remember, God sees all, and no one stays unpunished. What happened after the child was born? Sarah got pregnant. Ops!...

  By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” (John 13:35)   I was listening to Tim Mackie’s podcast about Matthew 26. He was talking about how big a failure we all are. It doesn’t matter what we say that we will do, because in the end, we will fail, if we start counting on ourselves, our strength, or counting on other people to get anywhere. Jesus in the garden for one moment didn’t want to go through with the plan; he knew what was coming for him. He freaked out. Who wouldn’t? Were the disciples paying attention to what was going on with Jesus at that moment? No, they weren’t. They were tired and their eyes were heavy, they couldn’t stay up.   So yeah, we get tired and we fail. Did that cause Jesus to give up on them? Jesus knew who would betray him, and he knew that all of them would run away when the persecution arrived. Did Jesus get angry at them? No, he didn’t.   What did ...