In our earthly tension between saint and sinner, faith and doubt, sacred and profane, we earnestly seek Jesus to calm our fears, comfort our spirits and forgive our sins. The Holy Spirit, through faith in Christ, propels us toward our heavenly home while fortifying us in Word and Sacrament for the joys and trials of our earthly home. In the midst of our constant struggle as believers, we need to be blessed. And so we are. The poor in spirit, the meek, the hungry, the thirsty, the merciful, the pure and the persecuted are all part of the throng that will most certainly inherit the kingdom of heaven.