MY PRAYER

JOURNAL

JERARD EVANGELISTA
Date: December 10, 2020

Journal Entry #1
T H E C O M M A N D S O F C H R I S T

( P A R T 1 )

Our lesson about the commands of Christ has taught me that

keeping the commands of Jesus begins with recognizing what

they are. Not only did it change my perspective on what it's like

receiving Jesus into your heart after, it taught me about giving up

your life on sinning and then following Jesus. He commanded us,

his followers, not to be afraid and that there's nothing evil can

do to our souls, which is our core being. The lesson included in-

depth messages relating to our duty as Christians, insights, and

progress as we incorporate Christ's commands into our lives. As

we accept Christ into our life, we are reborn and able to shine a

new light on others in this world. In fact, throughout the gospels,

we all have lived lives of sin and will often mess up. Yet, God

wants us to repent for the sins we commit and turn away from

them, not because it's the only way to live, but because we

understand the immensity of His forgiveness. It is comforting to

know that Jesus invites us to come to God and present our

request to him freely. After hearing this, I realize that following

Christ is worth aspiring to. When I look at what Jesus said, it

makes me realize that he was the preeminent teacher of love,

grace, and forgiveness. His words are enduring and mighty; He

wants us to be more like Him and follow the greatest

commandment to love one another just as He loved us.

Date: December 17, 2020

Journal Entry #2
T H E C O M M A N D S O F C H R I S T

( P A R T 2 )

I learned that this continuation of our previous lesson

elaborates further on God's commands regarding our duties

living as a Christian. As a Christian, many emphases are put on

loving each other, helping our neighbors in need, and not seeking

earthly things or dwelling in greed with them. He commands us to

be forgiving and fair towards others, share his Word, and use

these commands as a guide to live following his footsteps.

Although we aren't perfect and no one has the same likeness to

Jesus, Jesus urges us to be motivated to live like Him and

reflecting his likeness onto others despite our imperfections and

flaws. It taught me that the Bible was written not only to get to

know God but also to let us know how displeasing our human

nature is to God and show us how much we need Jesus because

there's no way can we not sin without Him in our hearts. I learned

that we these commands will light the darkness in my path as I

continue my journey in following God and living a Christian life;

free of sin and no hesitation to ask for God's assistance

whenever I'm alone or in a moment of weakness with no hope in

sight. Even if we're not perfect, God still accepts us as His own

children regardless of what we've done before as long as we

accept Him as the one and only savior in our hearts.

Date: January 7, 2021

Journal Entry #3
T H E D E A T H O F C H R I S T

To this very day, the death of Christ is not seen as a tragic or

terrible event that took place in the past. Yet, it serves as a

reminder of Jesus' unconditional love for us when he sacrificed

himself for us without any hesitation to cleanse us from our sins

and save us from dying. God's love is genuinely different than

natural human love here on Earth. I learned that God still loves us

when we're utterly unlovable because of our sins and revolting

desires. When Jesus died, he died for the ungodly, for sinners,

and his enemies. In my opinion, we have all sinned and deserve

God's judgment. That is why God sent His only Son to satisfy that

judgment for those who believe in Him. Jesus, the creator and

eternal Son of God, who lived a sinless life, loves us so much that

He was willing to be crucified on the cross to save us in his

stead. He offered sacrifice for our sins, He offered himself, in

that he could find no other as pure of a sacrifice other than

himself. I feel Jesus' tender love for us and that He truly did love

as one of his own without any doubt despite our wretched

impurities. In the end, humanity was granted salvation, as to this

day, we see Jesus' sacrifice on the cross as a symbol of our

newfound freedom from our sins, and thus, we were allowed to

repent our sins to join our Father in Heaven. This lesson has been

a memorable one for me and I won't easily forget in the near

future.
Date: January 14, 2021

Journal Entry #4
T H E R E S U R R E C T I O N O F J E S U S

C H R I S T

Christ's resurrection has been at the heart of many Christians

from all over the globe to the present. From what I've learned

from our topic about the resurrection of Jesus; By rising from the

dead, Jesus Christ demonstrated that He had cleansed the guilt

of our past and can help us in our present lives. Not only that, His

resurrection assures us that our future is safe and secure

considering both the evidence and the results that came shortly

after. His disciples witnessed the event wherein his body was

buried and sealed away and resurrected after overcoming

death. Without Christ's resurrection, we would have no salvation

from sin and no hope for our future resurrection in God's

kingdom. I learned that even so today, plenty of people believe

in the resurrection of Christ, and yet many doubt or disbelieve

regardless of what had happened. In due time, I firmly believe

that all will see and all will know soon. This lesson brings light on

the reality of what really happened on Christ's resurrection and

what it means and becomes of us as Christians. For me, His

death will never mean the end for us, yet, it's the start of our new

lives to live free of sin as Jesus intended us to live when he

sacrificed himself on the cross.

Date: January 21, 2021

Journal Entry #5
T H E A S C E N S I O N O F C H R I S T

Our lesson today talks about the story of the Ascension of

Jesus, found in the first chapter of Acts, which describes the

ascent of Christ from the Earth to the Heavenly realm after his

resurrection. The story of His ascension is fascinating and a very

vital moment for us Christians to always be reminded of

whenever we come across it. At first, He was prophecized to

leave the Earth after He completes his mission to spread his

Word and fellowship. I learned that the Ascension of Jesus is an

essential teaching that tells us that Christ physically departed

from Earth by rising into Heaven, in the presence of eleven of his

apostles. According to our lesson, it's a very crucial moment in

the Bible as the disciples witnessed Jesus leaving Earth and

spending their last moment with Him. For me, the ascension was

a life-changing moment in the disciples' lives as they bore

witness to Jesus' last miracle here on Earth and the advance of

the Gospel through the world. Not only that, it emphasized the

importance of the ascension by ending his Gospel with this event

and beginning his second volume of the future when his eventual

return finally arrives.

Date: January 28, 2021

Journal Entry #6
T H E I N T E R C E S S O R Y W O R K O F

C H R I S T

With this topic, I learned that Jesus is more than willing to

become our intercessor even after his fulfilling his mission here

on Earth. With Jesus' death, He freed humanity from the hands of

sin and shame. While faith is essential for a meaningful

relationship with God, our relationship with God also takes

shape through our care for people, the community, and creation

itself. Not only does the sacrifice of Jesus cleanse us of our sins,

but it also imparts the righteousness of Christ to us. Now when

God sees us, he doesn't see our sins; he sees the perfect life of

Christ as if we lived it ourselves. God knows what it's like to lose

someone you love. I know that He intentionally placed Himself in

this position by sacrificing His Son because He did not want to

lose us. That's how great His love is for us, shown through the

greatest gift to the world, His only Son Jesus Christ. I also

learned that we must fully understand what He has done for us,

or we will never fully appreciate who He is. If we miss out on the

enormity of His work on the cross, then we will never fully realize

how much we need Him. Jesus is not just an excellent addition to

our lives. He is an excellent solution to all our problems here in

our lives, but he is the perfect answer to all the obstacles we will

encounter in the future.