Blessed

³Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

⁴Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.

⁵Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.

⁶Blessed are those who hunger and thirst after righteousness,

for they will be filled.

⁷Blessed are the merciful, for they shall be shown mercy.

⁸Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.

⁹Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called the sons of God.

¹⁰Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

     ¹¹Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. ¹²Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you. (Matthew 5:3-12)

I've thought about the Beatitudes alot recently. The meek shall inherit the earth? The pure in heart will see God? Yeah, there's no way I'm getting in then! I love to brag my opinion and what I think to everyone. Some people think I am modest and sweet, but, really I'm just distrusting and quiet. When you really get to know me, I become more myself--blunt, abrasive, opinionated, stubborn, and condescending(But on the positive side--loyal, principled, persevering, and authentic.).

I always thought the Beatitudes were pretty self-explanatory, but I took them at face value. Poor in spirit meant the people that considered the earthly things to be nothing, the meek to be they that turned their cheek, and so on. This is, of course, all correct; but, it really only scratches the surface.

The overall theme in all of them is humility and the command to emulate children. Each quality is a stepping stone, not only in ways to endure the strife and hardships of this world, but even to enter into the Kingdom and receive your divine reward for this meager amount of suffering. Every verse is designed to instruct you that there is no hope of salvation without Christ, the Pantocrator, that He is "everywhere present and fillest all things," and only those who mourn their transgressions and stand fast in the face of evil will be rewarded with Heaven.

Sometimes it is easy to say, "I am not perfect," and be done with it. This is true, but I believe this is a cop-out. Just because you are not perfect does not mean you should settle with where you are and throw your hands in the air. If you are not an expert in your field, do you not do the necessary training and education to get there? People spend hours of their free time watching TV shows and celebrity chatter, and they can tell you all sorts of information about who did what with whom and where, yet because religion isn't exciting or easy, they give up at the first roadblock. I live in awe of the countless, and oftentimes un-credited, martyrs who had the strength and fortitude to give up themselves and live only for God. Knowing myself like I do, I highly doubt I will reach that level, but it does help to know that there are people, like us, throughout centuries who have been able to fight and ascend to greater heights of spirituality than most can fathom.

In no way do the Beatitudes suggest that any of this will be easy or that you will be happy. Blessed does not mean that you will be at peace in this life or have abundant wealth or have lots of power and fame. In Luke 6:26, Jesus said, "Woe to you when all men speak well of you, for that is how their fathers treated the false prophets." In fact, the 7th verse encourages you to stand strong in the face of unrighteous persecution. If you have no persecution in your life, most likely that is a way of telling you that you have been absorbed into the world.

What do I take away from all this? I have had it too easy. I have had a few minor setbacks lately, but all in all, I have stayed hidden from evil attacks-not that I desire troubles, of course.
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I wrote this tonight at the request of a friend...

"Cocinero"

You create at the demand of some

You kill ending in the demise of others

Consistent but not predictable

You demand trust and respect

You give but do not take

You insist on seeing it through to the end

And allow for no mistakes

Hot tempers and cold nights

Your art is devoured and oft critiqued

No two pieces exactly the same

Many one night stands and a few long-term relationships

But nothing permanent with so many secrets

A blend of cultures and flavors

It is a tale for the ages.

Don't judge me and ignore the lack of punctuation, please. I am just too lazy to figure out the flow. :)