This is my usual Sunday morning. Get to my office around 8. Get my coffee started. Do a few things I need to do to prep for Sunday morning classes. Then I have the time that I'm enjoying right now. It's a time of stillness. I can hear slight echos of the hymns of the early service, but no one else is around right now. It's very peaceful. Just me, my coffee, and God.

To the right of my computer screen there is a cross made out of nails. My father-in-law gave it too me for college graduation. I love this cross. It's abstract, but detailed. It doesn't just remind me that my Savior died on a cross or that he is now risen. What I love most about this cross is that it is raw.

There is something incredibly appealing about a Jesus that is raw and not well packaged. It makes him seem believable. I love how Jesus laughed, made jokes, and got ticked off and yelled. It's not because I think those are honorable things to do. It's because it makes him believable. I can relate to that Jesus, because I laugh, make jokes, get ticked off and yell. I can understand how he might be thinking or feeling. But most of all, I resonate with this Jesus because this Jesus understands me, my feelings, and my life.

So here is my prayer for today. Lord, may I reflect you today. Help me. I can't do it alone. May your goals be accomplished. Change hearts starting with my own. Let all people see your goodness.

So here we go. The day is starting. Let's do it. I'm ready.