Please pray about the sixth beatitude.God died on the cross for our sins, that we would be forgiven and have everlasting life. He desired a pure heart for us. Pray that God would cause us to maintain a pure heart that we may see him. We will make mistakes but his promise of forgiveness remains. Pray that God would cleanse your heart tonight . 

Blessings, in Jesus name.

Matthew 5:8 (NIV)
Blessed are the pure in heart,
for they will see God.

Boy, do I thank God for being able to make my heart pure. Without his loving grace and through his son, our sins could not be washed away. Our hearts would not be pure.
In this beatitude, we get a phenomenal promise to see God but what helps us to have a pure heart? Having a pure heart means that we follow the guidelines that God has set before us. God desires great things for each and every one of us, God freely sets us free from sin so that we might partake in his blessings. It is up to us to live our lives in a manner pleasing to him. Maintaining a pure heart takes work and effort. Following the principles of Christ and Christian living is not an easy task on our own. God gives us the strength, courage and grace to make our load lighter. We can do all things through Christ, including maintaining a pure heart.
A pure heart allows us to see God, an unclean heart will not grant us the beauty of seeing him. Examine your heart today that you might receive the blessing of seeing God.

Please pray about the fifth beatitude.
God has an expectation that we show mercy to others. The expectation comes because he has shown us mercy and forgiven us for our sins.
Be merciful today as your father has shown you mercy.

Blessings, in Jesus name.

Matthew 5:7 (NIV)
Blessed are the merciful,
for they will be shown mercy.

When I was a kid we played this finger crushing game called Mercy. Your hands would be intertwined with someone else’s and they would bend and squeeze your fingers back as much as possible. When the pain was too much for someone to bear they would say MERCY! At the person’s mercy, the pain would end.
Part of having a Godly attitude means that we need to show mercy to others. As human beings, we will make mistakes and at times people will make mistakes against us. Forgiveness is a way to express mercy.
God wants us to show mercy to others and in turn, he will show mercy to us.
We need to be like Jesus and be merciful to others so that he will continue to be merciful to us.

Please pray about the fourth beatitude.
God wants you to hunger and thirst for righteousness. Pray that God would light a fire of desire in your heart. Pray that the Lord would show you how to recommit to him so that you would want more of him and his righteousness and less of you.
Blessings, in Jesus name.

Matthew 5:6 (NIV)
Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,
for they will be filled.

My goodness! I am the first one to admit that if my stomach is rumbling with hunger, I am ready to run and get something to eat or drink. Am I satisfied afterward? Sure, temporarily. When we are hungry or thirsty in the physical, we can experience satisfaction. The above verse is not talking about physical hunger. The verse is talking about a spiritual hunger and thirst. As we continue on our journey with God we need to thirst and hunger for his love, knowledge, commandments and a deeper relationship with him. The Lord wants us to yearn for a deeper relationship with him and for us to hunger for being more christ-like.
The satisfaction that we find with Christ is not temporary. The satisfaction we find in Christ PERMANENT. As we get closer to God we will find that we become filled in all aspects of life. We feel comforted and love. We feel an overwhelming sense of hope! Spark that hunger and thirst for Christ by seeking a deeper relationship with him.

*Comments Challenge* Give me some ways that you can seek a deeper relationship with God.

Please pray about the third beatitude.
God created you to be strong and courageous. It is up to us and practicing self-control to be able to exercise a spirit of meekness.
Carry a gentle spirit today. Become comfortable with that quiet, controlled spirit.
Blessings, in Jesus name.

Matthew 5:5 (NIV)
Blessed are the meek,
for they will inherit the earth.

Meekness is not a reflection of someone who is weak. A meek person is someone who is gentle in spirit and has an attitude of self-control. We can be strong and powerful, through God’s strength and guidance but our attitude needs to be meek. We cannot see ourselves above others, we need to recognize that we all have strengths and weaknesses. God continues to bless us because of our meekness, we are blessed with an inheritance of the earth.
All to often people take advantage of people who are quiet but it is that meekness that maintains peace. God does not want us to be quarrelsome but peacemakers. Let’s try something. Tomorrow, make it a point to be more quiet throughout the day, listen and learn from others. Acknowledge the strengths of others. Praise God for the strengths and abilities that he has given you and remind yourself that that strength comes from God. Be a quiet, gentle spirit, exercising the power that God gives you in a controlled manner. There is power in his name, God bless you this day!

*Comments Challenge* Tell me have you associated weakness with meekness?

Please pray about the second beatitude.
Keep in mind that you do not have to carry your sin as a life long burden. Confess while you are in mourning, seek the Lord’s warm embrace filled with comfort and move on to the thought that joy comes in the morning.
Blessings, in Jesus name.

Matthew 5:4 (NIV)
Blessed are those who mourn,
for they will be comforted.

This verse allows us to attach an emotion that we understand and are familiar with. We know what it means to mourn, we understand the pain that comes along with mourning. So what is the Lord saying to us in this Beatitude? God is talking about mourning in regards to our sins. Throughout life we will sin. There is a level of pain and heartache that will come along with that sin. The Lord wants us to know that in the moments when we are pain stricken over our sin, he will comfort us.
I know several women who still mourn their sins of the past. These women are good Christian women but they constantly feel the need to carry that sin with them. Part of the Lord’s comfort is that we do not need to carry the sins of our past. We can find hope in the fact that while we mourn our sins, he comforts us so that we might move on! Mourn, be comforted and move on.

*Comments Challenge* Why do you feel you hold on to past sins?