Week: Mark's Gospel
Each day we will simply pray (P.R.A.Y.) together.
P: PAUSING to be still.
R: REJOICING with a Memory Verse and REFLECTING on some verses from the Bible.
A: ASKING God to help us and others.
Y: saying YES to God’s ways.
We start by pausing and taking a deep breath:
In and out.
In and out.
We remember that God is here, and so together we prepare ourselves to be with God.
Pause
Jesus, we hear Your invitation, and so we choose to follow You, with all our hearts, with all our minds, with all our souls and with all our strength.
We REJOICE and celebrate God’s goodness with this week’s memory verse:
Read by Annika
John 8:12
[Jesus] said, ‘I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.’
John 8:12 (NIV UK)
God, help us to remember Your Word.
Today, we’re reflecting on the very beginning of Mark’s Gospel. Surprisingly, there’s no baby in a manger, no startled shepherds and no shining star. Mark skips all of this and dives straight into the action with someone else entirely, Jesus’ cousin, John.
Read by Annika
Mark 1:4-5
John was baptizing people in the desert and preaching a baptism of changed hearts and lives for the forgiveness of sins. All the people from Judea and Jerusalem were going out to him. They confessed their sins and were baptized by him in the Jordan River.
Mark 1:4-5 (NCV)
People came from all over the place because they wanted to see John and listen to him speak and John’s message was spreading. When John spoke about God, he invited people to turn their whole lives towards God, and as a symbol of doing this, John baptised them in the River Jordan.
As they went under the water, it was like having all the things that needed to be changed in their lives washed away – all of their mistakes and the things they’d done wrong. And then as John pulled each person out of the water again, it was like they were being given a brand new life with God at the centre.
People came from all over the place to listen to John. Let’s press pause and talk about today’s question, which is: Who do we enjoy listening to? Maybe it’s someone we know who has a really interesting life or they tell great stories, or maybe it’s someone famous?
Let’s close our eyes and imagine John the Baptist speaking to us, inviting us to give our whole lives to God and to receive God’s love and forgiveness.
In this quiet moment, let’s think about how we want to respond to God’s invitation?
Some people feel that what they’ve said or done is so bad that they find it hard to believe that God will forgive them and accept them.
Father God, we ASK You to reach out to anyone who feels like this today. Remind them that nothing can separate them from Your love. Help them to receive Your forgiveness and the gift of a brand new life.
As we read the Bible again, let’s listen for a word or a phrase that the Holy Spirit might want to say to us from today’s verses.
Mark 1:4-5
John was baptizing people in the desert and preaching a baptism of changed hearts and lives for the forgiveness of sins. All the people from Judea and Jerusalem were going out to him. They confessed their sins and were baptized by him in the Jordan River.
Mark 1:4-5 (NCV)
What word or phrase stood out from today’s Bible verses?
And now, let’s say YES to God together.
Lord Jesus, we thank You for changing our hearts, and we thank You for forgiving us. We say a big YES to You, and we receive the brand new life You give to us.
After enjoying this time with God and each other, let’s say our memory verse together:
John 8:12
[Jesus] said, ‘I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.’
John 8:12 (NIV UK)
Let’s put a hand on our heart.
Father God, fill us with Your love. Help us to love You, and everything that You’ve made.
Let’s point to our eyes.
Lord Jesus, help us to see You, and to see others the way that You see them too.
Let’s point to our ears.
Holy Spirit, help us to hear You, and give us courage to do what You say.
Phil lives close to a beach in the north of England with his wife, his daughters and his dogs. Phil works for 24-7 Prayer, mostly doing Lectio stuff, and helping to run Prayer Spaces in Schools. He runs a lot, usually for long distances. He likes curry, mountains, reading books and he still plays Pokemon Go.
Annika lives in Melbourne, Australia with her parents and older brother and sister. Annika enjoys playing Cricket and Aussie Rules Football and loves going to watch her favourite team play football. Annika also learns the drums and enjoys making up her own beats!
