2 Minute Disciple

Episode 143: Matthew Chapter 20

Episode  |  April 26th, 2022  |  Season 2  |  5 mins 44 secs

audio bible, daily bible, daily devotional, personal development, self care, spiritual growth, spiritual journey, spirituality

I want my eyes open and I want to see. As my eyes open, I see this great reversal, the first are last, and real power comes from being a servant. Jesus’ cup is a cup of suffering service on the cross and I can see it all more clearly. Jesus touched my eyes and now I can see clearly that in order to live the resurrection life, I have to die to myself. I’m hard to kill, but I know that I’m better off dead to myself so that I can live fully to him. This is a hard truth to come to, but now that my eyes are open, I can see it clearly. What are you seeing from Jesus? Join the conversation in the comment section of the website.

Episode 142: Matthew Chapter 19

Episode  |  April 25th, 2022  |  Season 2  |  7 mins 12 secs

audio bible, daily bible, daily devotion, personal development, self care, spiritual journey, spirituality

Jesus shows us again what living right side up looks like, the ones who we think are the top of the heap are really at the bottom. The rich are not automatically in God’s kingdom because they are rich and children are to be seen and heard. Nice guys don’t always finish last in God’s kingdom. When we give up things now, we will get even more than that in God’s kingdom. These words of Jesus today give me a boost, they are words that I need to hear and to realize that in God’s kingdom I have a place and I belong. I can breathe easier and hold my head up a little higher knowing that I belong in God’s kingdom. What are you learning from Jesus today? Leave a comment below and join the conversation.

Episode 141: Matthew Chapter 18

Episode  |  April 23rd, 2022  |  Season 2  |  6 mins 42 secs

audio bible, daily bible, daily devotional, forgiveness, self care, self development, spiritual journey, spirituality

I saw this tweet from Bob Goff today and I thought it fit with today’s reading. “Next to grace, I bet God thinks making us need each other was one of His best ideas.” That is exactly what this chapter is about, relational health. God made us for community and Jesus gives us the road map to having healthy and thriving relationships. Everyone can benefit from the lessons that Jesus teaches here. This is where I want you to join the conversation and tell me what you learned from Jesus in this chapter. Either go to the show notes page and scroll to the bottom and type your response or if you are using a podcast platform, click on the podcast episode website link and you will see it at the bottom of the page. Please join me in conversation.

Episode 140: Matthew Chapter 17

Episode  |  April 22nd, 2022  |  Season 2  |  5 mins 41 secs

audio bible, daily bible, daily devotional, spiritual journey, spirituality

I try to put myself in the shoes of Peter in this story. I would be in shock to see Jesus in all of his glory, my chin would be on the ground like in a cartoon and I would have fallen over. I’m not sure that I could have spoken to get the words that Peter babbles out, but I know that I would have been stumbling and bumbling through that moment. I would have missed the point too until the resurrection, which would make everything click.
I am just pondering the sight of Jesus in all of his glory standing before me and as I close my eyes I can see him shining. I just want to soak it in and be reminded that Jesus is God with me and that he promised to be with me through thick and thin. I can trust him with my life and daily decisions.

Episode 139: Matthew Chapter 16

Episode  |  April 21st, 2022  |  Season 2  |  5 mins 55 secs

audio bible, daily bible, daily devotion, discipleship, personal growth, self care, spiritual growth, spiritual journey, spirituality

Who is Jesus? That is still the question that needs to be answered by followers of Jesus. This question is the heart of the 2 Minute Disciple Podcast, to discover who Jesus is so that we can follow him better. This podcast is for seasoned Jesus followers who desire to spend more time in the Gospels to get to know Jesus better. It is also for serious seekers desiring to discover who Jesus is for themselves and gain wisdom that will help them on their spiritual journey.
What is the answer to this sincere question, who is Jesus? He is the one that God had been promising that would come to rescue his people, usher in His kingdom and put things to rights. He is the one who heals the sick, raises the dead, casts out demons and sends out his followers to do the same. He is God in the flesh, not a distant God with his arms crossed waiting to zap us, but a God who walks among us as one of us. He has been the plan from the beginning and he is here. Do you believe it?

Episode 138: Matthew Chapter 15

Episode  |  April 20th, 2022  |  Season 2  |  6 mins 21 secs

audio bible, daily bible, daily devotion, discipleship, personal development, self care, spiritual development, spirituality

In this chapter, I observed that persistence impresses Jesus. The Canaanite woman came to Jesus asking him to heal her daughter, but he first ignored her and she persisted asking the disciples and with Jesus until he healed her daughter. She would not take no for an answer and Jesus rewarded her persistence that was driven by her faith in Jesus. This makes me pause and consider my own prayers, am I persistent in asking or do I give up easily. If I’m honest with myself, I do give up too easily and back off when my prayers aren’t answered in as timely manner as I would like. My faith is not big enough at times and I’m not as persistent as I should be. This woman would probably be labeled a ‘Karen’ today and most of us don’t want to be perceived that way, so we back down easily in all areas of life. In my prayer life, I see that I need to risk being a Karen to grow my faith and see God work. That is a stretch for me, but if I am to become a better follower of Jesus, I need to stretch my faith muscles and be persistent in my prayers.
What did you observe in today’s reading?

Episode 137: Matthew Chapter 14

Episode  |  April 19th, 2022  |  Season 2  |  6 mins 45 secs

audio bible, daily bible, daily devotion, personal development, self care, spiritual journey, spirituality

My biggest takeaway from this chapter is Jesus’ flexibility and ability to adapt to changing circumstances. After hearing of the death of John, Jesus planed for some solitude and silence, however, word got out about where he was going and there was a crowd of people who needed him. Instead of getting mad and sending everyone away, he has compassion on them and heals them. When supper time come, he feeds the crowds with a small meal that stretches to feed 5000+ people. He then sends his ride away with the disciples and finally gets the alone time he craves. Then he adapts by walking to his ride on the water. He calls Peter out to him and Peter is doing it and realizes it and the anxiety creeps back up, so he sinks. Jesus pulls him up and they get into the boat. Jesus did not fold under the crush of the people or the circumstances. The way that he handled these different situations inspires me to respond this way. I am reminded that I am also equipped by the Holy Spirit to be able to respond like Jesus. We saw this same way of ministry by Paul and he was able to do it like Jesus because of the Holy Spirit working in him.
I have been doing ministry all wrong for years, I tried hard to be like Jesus without tapping in to the power that I have been given, the power of the Holy Spirit. Doing ministry without the power of the Spirit only gets you anxiety and high blood pressure. This week, I want to allow the Holy Spirit to power me through and guide me just like Jesus.

Episode 136: Matthew Chapter 13

Episode  |  April 18th, 2022  |  Season 2  |  8 mins 55 secs

active listening, audio bible, daily bible, daily devotion, spiritual journey, spirituality

What is the Kingdom of God like? Jesus has been teaching that God’s new government is here and has been showing it’s power through his miracles of healing and casting out demons. He has also sent out his apprentices and empowered them to usher in the kingdom. Now we find him telling stories that answer the question of what is God’s kingdom like? The stories that he uses to describe it in this chapter are all about seeds that grow. It brings to my mind gardening, I love to garden each summer and I make all kinds of things from the vegetables and herbs that I grow. God’s kingdom is growing and it produces wonderful fruit from small seeds. The thing that stuck out to me was this question, “Are you listening, really listening?” That is such a crucial question, because of all the noise around us, we get used to tuning things out, but for the seeds to grow in our live, we need to really listen to Jesus’ words. Are we listening?

Episode 135: Interview With Sam Davis

Episode  |  April 16th, 2022  |  Season 2  |  6 mins 55 secs

I invited my friend, Sam Davis to record a conversation about what he is learning from Jesus and how it is impacting his life. I have known Sam & his twin brother Dan since they were in 5th grade and I was their youth sponsor. I am honored to have invested in them over the years. Sam is missionary with Bridges International in San Diego, CA. His passion is for every college student to have the opportunity to hear the Gospel and respond to it. Sam lives in San Diego, CA with his amazing wife, Gloria. They love to go on hikes, explore new food, and travel. Sam is a fellow podcaster, he is a host for the Bible Nerds Podcast. You can check out the links to the podcast and his website here.

Episode 134: Matthew Chapter 12

Episode  |  April 15th, 2022  |  Season 2  |  8 mins 38 secs

audio bible, daily bible, daily devotional, leadership development, personal development, self care, spiritual journey, spirituality

Something that I noticed in this chapter is that Jesus is getting criticized for every little thing and he handled it similarly to how he handled the temptation in the wilderness, by referring to scripture. I think that is such a great strategy for handling critics. I need to learn this lesson because if I got all of the criticism that Jesus got, I would scream and want to slap someone. But Jesus I think was frustrated, but he handled it with the scripture and with a calm manner. The way that he handled himself is truly inspiring and something that I am striving to do with the help of the Holy Spirit. What inspired you from this chapter?

Episode 133: Matthew Chapter 11

Episode  |  April 14th, 2022  |  Season 2  |  10 mins 9 secs

audio bible, daily bible, faith, life change, listen, repent, self improvement, spirituality

I invited my friend, Sam Davis to read for us today and record a bonus interview. Sam is a missionary with Bridges International in San Diego, CA. His passion is for every college student to have the opportunity to hear the Gospel and respond to it. Sam will be reading from Matthew Chapter 11.

Episode 132: Matthew Chapter 10

Episode  |  April 13th, 2022  |  Season 2  |  6 mins 54 secs

audio bible, daily bible, daily devotional, personal development, self care, spiritual journey, spirituality

I never really connected the dots on Jesus call for his followers to pray for workers for the harvest and the sending out of the twelve into the harvest. I have always thought of that scripture as connected to foreign missions and the starving kids in Africa that I missed the point of the harvest all around us that Jesus is sending us to. I’m not saying that we shouldn’t go to the starving kids in Africa, but not all of us can do that and there are starving kids all around us where ever we are. This is such a powerful message to us who are learning to follow Jesus. The other thing that ties this all together for me is Jesus call to be all in with him in this kingdom work. What in today’s chapter is connecting with you?

Episode 131: Matthew Chapter 9

Episode  |  April 13th, 2022  |  Season 2  |  5 mins 53 secs

audio bible, daily bible, daily devotional, personal development, prayer, self care, spiritual direction, spiritual journey, spirituality

What strikes me the most in this chapter is Jesus’ heart for those on the outside of the religious elite. He seeks out the down and out and those far from religious purity and he eats with them, has compassion on them, heals them and urges his followers to pray for them and for workers to reach them with news of his kingdom. He is not following the normal procedures of the religious elite, he is announcing that everyone is welcome in his kingdom. The question that comes to mind is if I am learning from Jesus, am I as concerned about those on the outside as Jesus is?

Episode 130: Matthew Chapter 8

Episode  |  April 11th, 2022  |  Season 2  |  5 mins 47 secs

audio bible, daily bible, daily devotional, personal development, spiritual growth, spirituality

Stay Calm, that is the theme of this chapter. We see this storm of people coming to Jesus to be healed and he calmly heals all of them. Even when everyone is coming to him and we wants to move on, he calmly goes on his way. Then comes the real storm and Jesus calmly calms the storm and the disciples are amazed and so am I. I can have a professional calm in crazy moments, but on the inside I’m still freaking out. However, Jesus’ calm is from head to toes and it comes from his reliance on God. That kind of calm is what I’m learning from Jesus. What are you learning from him?

Episode 129: Sermon on the Mount Part 7

Episode  |  April 10th, 2022  |  Season 2  |  4 mins 35 secs

audio bible, daily bible, daily devotional, personal development, personal growth, self care, spiritual growth, spirituality

This week, we have taken some time to listen to Jesus words and let them sink in to our hearts. I have been working these words into my life and I’m seeing a difference. These are truly foundational words that can help us live our lives right side up. This is not a one time fix, but these are the things that we can ponder and daily work them into our lives. The thing that makes Jesus’ words so powerful is that he lived them out and showed us what life looks like when it is lived right side up. I have been working forgiveness into my life and it has really lightened my load. What words of Jesus are you working into your life?

Episode 128: Sermon on the Mount Part 6

Episode  |  April 9th, 2022  |  Season 2  |  4 mins 13 secs

audio bible, daily bible, daily devotional, jesus, self care, spiritual journey, spirituality

Verses one through five should be the new rules for social media. It might tone down some of the sniping and canceling that goes on these days. This section of the sermon is so timely for our culture and it is a strong reminder that we are definitely flying upside down in this area today. If just “Christian” people would live this out, we would see a huge difference in the way we treat one another in our culture. I also love how the golden rule is restated here in the Message. It makes so much sense and the idea of taking the initiative to do good to others is another one that if we actually did it, we could change our communities. This is the whole reason that I am doing this podcast, so that we can look into the mirror of scripture and let it change us. I know that I need to cut the sarcasm and attitude before I point out what’s wrong with you. This is what I’m asking God to help me work on. What needs to be changed in your life?