Shut up, Sam.

Message to myself:

“Who cares about the blood of Jesus???

People want to be known as smart, not stupid. People want to know which stocks to invest in and which ones to avoid. People want to know how to cheat on their wives and get away with it. People want to know  which schools to put their children in, and which ones to avoid. People want to know what time of the day to buy airline tickets and get a good deal. People want to know when to hit the road and avoid traffic. People want to know which candidate to vote for, and which ones to avoid. People want to know how to steal and not have the law come after them. People couldn’t care much about the blood of Jesus. Why should you? So, Sam, shut up! Even your own friends, your own family, your own loved ones couldn’t give a … about what you think, about what you say, about what you believe. So why should you even care? Do everyone a favor. Shut up! Nobody cares about what eating the apple will do to them. They just want to know what the apple taste like and how it feels to hold one in their hands, and maybe what it smells like. For a third time, shut up.”

But if I say, “I will not mention his word or speak anymore in his name,” his word is in my heart like a fire, a fire shut up in my bones. I am weary of holding it in; indeed, I cannot. (Jeremiah 20:9)

“Woe to me if I do not preach the gospel!” (1 Corinthians 9:16)

“”I am sending you out like sheep among wolves. So be as wise as snakes and as harmless as doves. “Watch out! Men will hand you over to the local courts. They will whip you in their synagogues. You will be brought to governors and kings because of me. You will be witnesses to them and to those who aren’t Jews. “But when they arrest you, don’t worry about what you will say or how you will say it. At that time you will be given the right words to say. It will not be you speaking. The Spirit of your Father will be speaking through you. “Brothers will hand over brothers to be killed. Fathers will hand over their children. Children will rise up against their parents and have them put to death. Everyone will hate you because of me. But anyone who stands firm to the end will be saved. “When people attack you in one place, escape to another. What I’m about to tell you is true. You will not finish going through the cities of Israel before the Son of Man comes. “A student is not better than his teacher. A servant is not better than his master. It is enough for the student to be like his teacher. And it is enough for the servant to be like his master. If the head of the house has been called Beelzebub, what can the others who live there expect? “So don’t be afraid of your enemies. Everything that is secret will be brought out into the open. Everything that is hidden will be uncovered. What I tell you in the dark, speak in the daylight. What is whispered in your ear, shout from the rooftops. Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but can’t kill the soul. Instead, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell.”‭‭ (Matthew‬ ‭10:16-28‬)