Matthew 1

Today's reading was by G.K. Chesterton and it's about loving our neighbors because they, like us are of God. A couple of things that pop out to me is the phrase "The duty towards humanity may often take the form of some choice which is personal or even pleasurable." I think when most people think of 'loving your neighbor', theres somewhat of a negative connotation. But in actuality, you can love your neighbor in simple acts that you enjoy. As Chesterton says later, "[Your neighbor] is the sample of humanity which is actually given to us." So many of us say we want to go out and change the world...but not many of us will actually be able to go out and make large changes in the world; but what we can do is right here in front of us. It's kind of like the random acts of kindness concept, or paying it forward. If we are kind, respectful, and friendly to our neighbors, they will likely remember that and change how they behave. And imagine what could happen if we were kind, respectful, and friendly to them everyday! The results would just get better and better! I think many of us don't think about the little things that we do or say in passing. Just a simple smile or holding the door for someone can change someones day. By showing them the same love that the Lord shows us, we can start a revolution! [as a side note, I've been really big on revolutions lately...women's empowerment revolutions, church revolutions, etc.] The bible passage to read today was Matthew 1. Matt1:1-17 are all geneology, and I usually dont read these because they tend to be redundant and boring, but this one is the geneology of Jesus. It tells us of how Jesus is a decendent of not only the house of Abraham, but also a descendent of the house of King David. This shows that He is not only King of Heaven, but also an earthly King. I just thought that that was kind of cool, because when Jesus was being crucified, they taunted him by calling him "King of the Jews", but what they didn't know is that he really was descendent of an earthly King that they all recognized and obeyed. The rest of Matt1 is about Joseph and his obedience to God in taking Mary as his wife and mother of our Savior.