October 9, 2025

Hey there, Friend,

It’s the Smart Edit!
The Kingdom is not someday. It’s breaking in now.

This issue — it’s by faith that we can understand things, your brain on jazz, the Presence is a deciding factor, and more.

P.S. — Umm… bird names that sound like insults (and sometime are)

Each week, we highlight a Kingdom Dynamic, a key insight into how God’s Kingdom works in real life …

Jesus is a Way Maker. We need him a lot.

The world is full of challenges, both global and personal, but God has given us a way to navigate them … faith that understands.

Hebrews 11.3 says, “by faith we understand.”

Faith is the highest form of understanding. It helps us see patterns, notice reality, and understand what’s really happening — from international conflicts to everyday struggles.

Jesus is the smartest person who walked the planet.

Faith connects us to that same wisdom. The New Testament Greek word sýnesis — understanding — literally means “putting things together.”

Through the Holy Spirit, we can see how events and circumstances fit into God’s larger plan. The Macro. This also works in the Micro of our lives.

It often takes a little time. But we will see and understand.

James reminds us that wisdom from above is pure, peaceful … (James 3.17). It is not abstract knowledge but practical understanding that works in every situation.

When we face challenges at home, at work, or in society, we can bring them to Jesus. He steps into our situations and offers understanding.

Lean on the Holy Spirit. Ask for the Father’s wisdom from above. By faith, we truly understand.

Prayer
Father, I receive your wisdom from above for all things. By the faith of Jesus I can understand things. I thank you that you know how everything works best. Amen.

SIgn up for the Smart Edit here.

We’re using the NASB for Scripture quotes, unless we note otherwise.

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I’ve been vibing with Real Jazz on SiriusXM …

Is jazz good for your brain? Studies (and experience) say yes.

Jazz stimulates mental flexibility because it’s built on improvisation, rhythmic interplay, and surprise.

When you listen, your brain tracks shifting harmonies and syncopation, predicting what might come next. That active listening keeps your mind alert and adaptive.

Classical music builds order and focus.

Jazz, on the other hand, trains intuition and creative problem-solving. It lights up the right hemisphere, where imagination and emotion converge.

Don’t just let it play in the background. Engage it. Follow the solo. Feel the tension and release. You’re sharpening your mind.

Mental Gym Music Ratings:
🎻 Classical — 10/10: Focus, memory, and order.
🎷 Jazz — 10/10: Creativity, adaptability, and brain agility.
🎤 Taylor Swift — 6/10: Emotional engagement ✅. Cognitive workout… maybe not.

Your Brain on Music: How Tunes Can Impact Your Mind (Cleveland Clinic Health Essentials)

Fully Alive: Embracing Your Identity, Belonging, Voice, and Personal Agency (Ep 330). A new birth in Christ changes everything. It’s not just a new chapter—it’s a whole new quality of life.

Follow the link to listen. The JesusSmartX podcast is also available on your favorite listening app including Spotify.

“My thoughts are higher than your thoughts.” —Isaiah 55.9

Heaven-earth jam session. Jazz players don’t just play notes. They listen and move with what’s happening in the moment. That’s a lot like life with the Holy Spirit. We know the key — God’s Word — but the music flows as we “keep in step with the Spirit” (Galatians 5.25 NIV). Life in the Spirit isn’t tightly scripted. It’s more like a heaven-earth jam session. Don’t you want to move in life with heaven’s sound?

Living intelligence from the Father. The Word of God is not static text. It’s living intelligence from the Father. Paul writes that it “performs its work in you who believe” (1 Thessalonians 2.13, NASB). Like stem cells in the human body, it carries coded information that seeks out what needs renewal, bringing a message of repair and new life. In the same way, the Word received by faith finds the broken and weary places within us. It carries Father God’s information—the very DNA of Christ—to heal, align, and re-create.

I’ll be experimenting with AI platforms like NotebookLM to create personalized “AI brains” trained on thinkers I admire — T. Austin-Sparks, Dallas Willard, Matthew Henry, and more.

By feeding the personalized, niched AI curated, original content, I can ask questions and explore their insights as if they were right there with me in a sense.

Closed-system. No internet. No existing learning models. A library of these personalized brains promises fresh ideas, new idea connections, and unexpected ways of thinking. We’ll see what happens …

Take it further here: Unlock Genus Ideas By Building Your Own Library Of AI Brains (Forbes)

Note: a genus idea is a seed of thought — a core concept that can grow, combine with other ideas, and spark fresh insights. By capturing and interacting with these ideas, we can uncover new connections and ways of thinking that wouldn’t emerge from a single perspective alone.

Coming soon. Christ’s Kingdom. Ready yourself.

Word of the week: Jabberwocky — Invented or meaningless language; nonsense. (Could this apply to some politicians? 🤔) “Toddlers tend to babble in jabberwocky, but you can usually figure out what they’re trying to say.” Source: WordDaily