As a minister I believe the only true way to study is to look at verses in the context of which they were written. These HJD messages and the scriptures are done for that purpose. Each verse listed is a link to the whole chapter. Simply click on the verse and you will be taken to the whole chapter for further reading. I chose the translation “The Message” as it is in the language of today so we can relate. I encourage you to study with passion each verse in many translations. Enjoy and I pray this blesses you over and over.
Love, Perry
January 18th, 2026
Happy Jesus Day!
What Is Christianity?
For as long as I can remember churches and the ones I have attended were focused mostly on how many can we baptize. How many can we convince to buy “fire insurance”.
When you shrink the gospel of Jesus down to just about getting into heaven… it becomes joyless. The Gospel of Jesus is about thriving in this amazing world he gave us. It’s about stillness… peace… and the feeling that your soul is at rest. It’s also about asking things… learning things… creating things… and sharing it all with others, so they can find the same joy in this world. When you allow Jesus to create joy in this life…. in this world… his light will shine for others to see. They will begin to ask who is this Jesus? How can he bring so much joy to MY life? Christianity should be more about heaven in this life, and less about the ever after. Christianity has become more about what doctrine to believe as opposed to what kind of life to live. The sermon on the mount, the most important lessons Jesus ever taught, said nothing about what to believe… but was focused on what to do. Internal righteousness over rules… humility… justice… reliance on God not wealth… to live a transformed life of compassion and integrity that reflects Gods character. Above all of this was a theme of unrelenting love for God/Jesus… others… and mostly our enemies. A tall order for us as his followers but the only way to bring complete joy. The only way to bring peace, stillness, and a soul at rest. I Love You! – Perry
John 14:27; Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.
John 16:33; I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.”
1 Peter 5:7; Casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you.
John 10:10; The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.
Luke 6:38; Give, and it will be given to you. Good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, will be put into your lap. For with the measure you use it will be measured back to you.”
Matthew 25:35-40; For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.’ Then the righteous will answer him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?’ …
Galatians 5:13-14; For you were called to freedom, brothers. Only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another. For the whole law is fulfilled in one word: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”
Romans 15:13; “May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.”
January 11th, 2026
Happy Jesus Day!
Zacchaeus!
He must have been short and his appearance was that of a little man. When I think of Zacchaeus, I picture someone like Danny Devito. Small but with moxie. Zacchaeus was the lowest of the low in society. Someone who cheated, and abused people in the name of making a dollar. He had heard of this Jesus and wanted so much to see him. Alias, the crowd was to big so he climbed a tree to get a better look. That is when Jesus spotted him and asked if they could dine together. I think of that often these days. We place so much importance on our status in life. On living a orderly life of integrity, in an effort to impress our Savior, and earn a place by his side. We place judgement on those that live a life we consider to be dishonest or different. But then we focus on Zacchaeus. At that time there had to have been many “good” people and religious leaders there to see Jesus but Jesus noticed Zacchaeus. Why? During Jesus’s ministry he preached almost daily about looking to least of these. Telling us “the first will be last and the last will be first”. His message was… that the very people we chose to judge are the ones he came to save. Zacchaeus did not have to do anything… simply accept Jesus’s amazing grace. In turn he gained a new understanding. Maybe we should simply give ALL people a large measure of grace and watch what our Lord can do with it.
I Love You! – Perry
Then Jesus entered and walked through Jericho. There was a man there, his name Zacchaeus, the head tax man and quite rich. He wanted desperately to see Jesus, but the crowd was in his way—he was a short man and couldn’t see over the crowd. So he ran on ahead and climbed up in a sycamore tree so he could see Jesus when he came by.
When Jesus got to the tree, he looked up and said, “Zacchaeus, hurry down. Today is my day to be a guest in your home.” Zacchaeus scrambled out of the tree, hardly believing his good luck, delighted to take Jesus home with him. Everyone who saw the incident was indignant and grumped, “What business does he have getting cozy with this crook?”
Zacchaeus just stood there, a little stunned. He stammered apologetically, “Master, I give away half my income to the poor—and if I’m caught cheating, I pay four times the damages.”
Jesus said, “Today is salvation day in this home! Here he is: Zacchaeus, son of Abraham! For the Son of Man came to find and restore the lost.”
Jesus, overhearing, shot back, “Who needs a doctor: the healthy or the sick? Go figure out what this Scripture means: ‘I’m after mercy, not religion.’ I’m here to invite outsiders, not coddle insiders.”
In Christ’s family there can be no division into Jew and non-Jew, slave and free, male and female. Among us you are all equal. That is, we are all in a common relationship with Jesus Christ. Also, since you are Christ’s family, then you are Abraham’s famous “descendant,” heirs according to the covenant promises.
When the ten others heard about this, they lost their tempers, thoroughly disgusted with the two brothers. So Jesus got them together to settle things down. He said, “You’ve observed how godless rulers throw their weight around, how quickly a little power goes to their heads. It’s not going to be that way with you. Whoever wants to be great must become a servant. Whoever wants to be first among you must be your slave. That is what the Son of Man has done: He came to serve, not be served—and then to give away his life in exchange for the many who are held hostage.”
Now God has us where he wants us, with all the time in this world and the next to shower grace and kindness upon us in Christ Jesus. Saving is all his idea, and all his work. All we do is trust him enough to let him do it. It’s God’s gift from start to finish! We don’t play the major role. If we did, we’d probably go around bragging that we’d done the whole thing! No, we neither make nor save ourselves. God does both the making and saving. He creates each of us by Christ Jesus to join him in the work he does, the good work he has gotten ready for us to do, work we had better be doing.
What I’m getting at, friends, is that you should simply keep on doing what you’ve done from the beginning. When I was living among you, you lived in responsive obedience. Now that I’m separated from you, keep it up. Better yet, redouble your efforts. Be energetic in your life of salvation, reverent and sensitive before God. That energy is God’s energy, an energy deep within you, God himself willing and working at what will give him the most pleasure.
January 4th, 2026
Happy Jesus Day!
The Mission Of Love!
When she asked me about Happy Jesus Day tears filled my eyes, and a lump formed in my throat. As she hugged me she said “I didn’t mean to upset you”. I explained the burden that weighs on me. The burden that comes with this mission. A mission that others have felt, which weighed heavy on them as well. To teach LOVE. Pure… unfiltered…compassionate… love. Not just to those around us, but to the world. To teach the true meaning of the heart of Jesus. A heart that loved everyone without judgement. A heart that saw more potential in a prostitute, than in a religious leader. A spirit that looked past the behavior and saw the heart. I think of all the hatred I see daily. Hatred for the gay community. Hatred for differing political parties. Hatred for those that may be of a different race. Hatred for anyone that believes different than we do. We live in a world were everyone is more concerned with themselves, than with others. A world where we have bombs pointed at the next guy, with bombs. A world where everyone carries a gun, with the thought of having to kill another soul. The message of our Savior is more about love… than about being right. To learn the heart of Christ, means to learn to put our hatred and weapons down and become as one. One with each other. One with the world around us. One with the spirit of God. You may say I’m a dreamer. So be it! I will be happy to carry that burden!
I Love You!
Perry
Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”
“Don’t pick on people, jump on their failures, criticize their faults—unless, of course, you want the same treatment. That critical spirit has a way of boomeranging. It’s easy to see a smudge on your neighbor’s face and be oblivious to the ugly sneer on your own.
You didn’t think, did you, that just by pointing your finger at others you would distract God from seeing all your misdoings and from coming down on you hard? Or did you think that because he’s such a nice God, he’d let you off the hook? Better think this one through from the beginning. God is kind, but he’s not soft. In kindness he takes us firmly by the hand and leads us into a radical life-change.
If anyone boasts, “I love God,” and goes right on hating his brother or sister, thinking nothing of it, he is a liar. If he won’t love the person he can see, how can he love the God he can’t see? The command we have from Christ is blunt: Loving God includes loving people. You’ve got to love both.
Love from the center of who you are; don’t fake it. Run for dear life from evil; hold on for dear life to good. Be good friends who love deeply; practice playing second fiddle.
If you’ve gotten anything at all out of following Christ, if his love has made any difference in your life, if being in a community of the Spirit means anything to you, if you have a heart, if you care—then do me a favor: Agree with each other, love each other, be deep-spirited friends. Don’t push your way to the front; don’t sweet-talk your way to the top. Put yourself aside, and help others get ahead. Don’t be obsessed with getting your own advantage. Forget yourselves long enough to lend a helping hand.
So here’s what I want you to do, God helping you: Take your everyday, ordinary life—your sleeping, eating, going-to-work, and walking-around life—and place it before God as an offering. Embracing what God does for you is the best thing you can do for him. Don’t become so well-adjusted to your culture that you fit into it without even thinking. Instead, fix your attention on God. You’ll be changed from the inside out. Readily recognize what he wants from you, and quickly respond to it. Unlike the culture around you, always dragging you down to its level of immaturity, God brings the best out of you, develops well-formed maturity in you.