Conversations with Ray Martinez

We are living in some crazy times now days, and many of us feel uncomfortable with the turning of events whether that is at a national level or local level.  God says he will comfort us. This "comfort" means in the biblical translation to "breath strong".  In other words, take a deep breath.  God promises us easy breathing to relax ourselves through his blessings.  This is a su...

Today we are talking about the real peace that comes from God; the peace of mind and the peace of heart.  We can't confuse this with the world's peace that is temporal and non-binding.  God's peace is unconditional love while the world's peace constantly accuses if we don't align with it's conditional rules. God's peace passes all understanding.  We'll talk about the difference in t...

When asked what was my greatest surprise in life, I would say it was my greatest amazement in life.  Watching my Dad pass away was difficult, but  three days before he passed, something amazing happened.  Nothing short of a miraculous event that put me at ease, and I know my mom was more than excited.  A true event that I cannot ever forget.

What was my sport in high school?  I have to say it was Judo, taught by Dick Okimoto from Colorado State University.  He taught me the art of judo while teaching me life skills that has lasted me a lifetime.  I'll share some examples.  If you know Mr. Okimoto, I want to contact him to thank him for the life lessons that have saved me many times during life struggles.

Isaiah is talking to his people, delivering a message from God.  In this message, God is basically telling his people to "open their eyes" and see what He is doing.  There is ongoing creation today, not just in the beginning of Genesis chapter 1. I'll share much about this creation today, which may help us to open our eyes for 2021.  Happy New Years!

This was Joseph's first Christmas!  We explore why the Angel told Joseph to name Mary's son, Jesus.  There is much meaning behind the name and many other names that Jesus had such as Emanuel, Christ, Jehovah, and Jesus Christ that we will explore.  We discover that Joseph was a "good man", and had 4 foundational reasons to believe that the Angel of the Lord visited him in a dream. &...

Watching other families and their siblings is intriguing to me. Some get along like best friends and others never talk to each other again after leaving home?  While growing up, I only had one sibling, my adopted sister, Mary Jane.  She came from the same orphanage that I did.  So we had things in common, but we got along great.  Like anyone else, we had our differences, but I...

This is one of the great encounters that Abraham has with God and a couple of angles.  They have dinner with Abraham and talk about Sarah having a child at this time next year.  Sarah, laughed, realizing how old she and Abraham were.  We will learn that nothing is impossible with God.  When Sarah was confronted about laughing, she denied it, but the LORD told her, "yes you did....

Thaylor Iron Rope is a Lakota Native American who loves to raps various lyrics that he creates because of his love for God.  This is something that he said off the top of his head without any preparation.  I think you will enjoy it.

My experience was with a tornado that hit Windsor, Colorado.  On May 22, 2008 right before noon, the Town of Windsor was struck by an EF3 tornado. With very little warning, the community took shelter and suffered a lot of damage.  I was on the highway driving from Denver, and wanted to retreat back after listening to the radio.  Suddenly, Denver was under a tornado warning too. &nbs...

God speaks to Abraham about what his responsibilities are.  Are we being responsible to God like Abraham did?  Mark of the promise back then was circumcision...today we cut away the fleshly life of the world, and focus on piercing our heart with obedience and responsibility to God's will, not our fleshly desires.  

I'm sharing this story about my adoptive mom.  Mom passed away on Easter night in 1994, which left me with a lot of fond memories that live in my heart today.  I shared three main points about my mom, although there are many more.  Mom worked very hard all her life and she was a caretaker of my grandmother whom I loved dearly.  Mother always had a humorous family story to tell-...

God speaks to Abram, and he falls down on the ground on his face.  While God speaks to Abram, he reveals His covenant, which contains six major commitments.  However, God tells Abram that he has to remain faithful and blameless.  We will talk about what it means to be blameless and faithful while unpacking the six promises.

Today I am sharing about what can make us miserable.  The more I talk about this, the more I realize that it is my choice in how I change the world around me.  In a cartoon, Pogo looks at himself in a mirror and says:  "I have met the enemy, and it is I."  I have to make the change in the world I live in today.

I couldn't pin down one event that I never expected would happen in my lifetime.  There are three major events in my life that are life changing for me.    Discovering my biological family in 2005, the covid-19 pandemic, and the 2020 presidential election.  You will hear my personal perspective, which isn't intended to sway anyone else.  Enjoy the conversation with me...

There is so much to be thankful for.  It's important that we know how to give thanks through our giving as well.  Thanksgiving, is giving thanks, and being thankful. In this podcast, we peruse through scriptures that teach us what we are thankful for, i.e. wisdom, circumstances, life, and peace are some examples you will hear about.

We all have our favorite cartoons that we can relate too, whether its our pets, our way of growing up, family living, or just a means of "getting away" from the tossing and turning of life today.  Some of the ones I liked were, Marmaduke, Dennis the Menace, Dick Tracy, Gravel Gertie, and the list goes on.  Humoring yourself is okay to do.  Try it.  You can also read this story...

This story was right after Jesus finished the Sermon on the Mount.  A miraculous healing just took place of a diseased man, and Jesus told him not to tell anyone about it.  Well, he did tell many people and crowds surrounded him.  I think you will find this episode chalked full of take-aways and food for thought.  

It's hard to pick one story in my life of the funniest moment of my time.  So, I share a few of them that really pops to the top of my mind that made me laugh so hard, that my stomach hurt.  My adopted mother was a great story teller that always made you laugh about the old days and how they made something out of nothing.

This is a special day for Michele Campana, celebrating many years of success, happiness and endurement through a family of loving children, husband and parents.  One of the most organized moms I know that knows how to bring ecstasy and contentment to people around her.

This really is a comforting story/statement by Jesus about building our house on a firm foundation and not on the sand.  Which is likely to stand firm when a storm comes?  It's comforting to know how Jesus "has our back" when  the storms in our life come.  The cross references helps us understand why Jesus says these things for our edification.

You know how it is when you go out to coffee with friends with no particular agenda, the craziest questions pop up. So, here’s an obvious question. What are your favorite books? I have many favorite books. I enjoy reading. So I’ll just highlight some of the books at the top of my mind that I’ve really enjoyed.  I don't care for fiction, but I have read many of them.  True stories and boo...

Jesus is teaching about "self righteous people" who may claim they have done so much for God, but their true actions are not reflective of God's love for people.  Some may get to heaven making their case for entrance, but He may say, "I never knew you."  Jesus is good about "giving the bottomline" with plenty of examples to draw a clear conclusion about His message.

I think it's harder to work for your family than it is for the "other guy".  In the family business, much more perfection is required and the learning skills are fast and steep.  My dad taught me how to "hod-carry" and eventually learning how to become a bricklayer.  The school of hard-knocks is a good teaching skill that permanently impresses you to never forget.  Family value...

Jesus paints a clear picture of what a false prophet is like.  His colorful analogy of fruits, such as grapes and other fruit trees clearly illustrates what is good and what is bad with prophets.  I like His two prong test...the person prophesying must match the Word, and it must become true.  Well, that's easy enough to identify.  Nevertheless, many people are hoodwinked by fa...