Week: Holy Week
As usual, 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
Lord Jesus, as we journey through Holy Week together, we remember that You chose to suffer and die because of Your great love for us. We also remember that You rose from the dead, and that You’re alive today. We look forward to meeting with You in new ways this week.
We REJOICE and celebrate God’s goodness with this week’s memory verse:
Read by Max
Revelation 1:18
[Jesus said] I am the One who lives; I was dead, but look, I am alive forever and ever!
Revelation 1:18a (NCV)
God, help us to remember Your Word.
For the next three days, we will be REFLECTING on the day that Jesus died. We know it as ‘Good Friday’, but it didn’t seem good at the time.
Read by Max
Mark 15:25-27,33-34
It was nine o’clock in the morning when they crucified Jesus. There was a sign with this charge against Jesus written on it: The King of the Jews. They also put two robbers on crosses beside Jesus, one on the right, and the other on the left.
At noon the whole country became dark, and the darkness lasted for three hours. At three o’clock Jesus cried in a loud voice, ‘Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani.’ This means, ‘My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?’
Mark 15:25-27,33-34 (NCV)
These Aramaic words, ‘Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani’, come from Psalm 22, which was probably written by King David about 1000 years before Jesus cried them from the cross. Jesus would have read these words many times during His life, but in the minutes before He died, they became His own personal prayer – ‘my God, my God, why have you abandoned me?’ In that moment, as Jesus took upon Himself the selfishness and the sin of the whole world, He felt completely alone.
Let’s press pause and talk about today’s question, which is: When do people feel alone? If we feel comfortable, maybe we could give an example of when we’ve felt alone?
When Jesus died on the cross, He died for each and every one of us.
Jesus, thank You for taking the selfishness and sin of the whole world – the things that separate us from Father God – onto the cross with You. You experienced what it felt like to be separated from Your Father, and You did it all because of Your great love for us. Thank You that we can be forgiven, and that we can be friends with God, now and forever.
Maybe someone else came into our minds as we talked about today’s question a few moments ago – someone who we know feels alone at the moment. Let’s whisper their names as we pray.
Lord Jesus, You know what it’s like to feel alone and abandoned. Please comfort those that we’ve whispered to You, and anyone else who is feeling like this today.
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 15:25-27,33-34
It was nine o’clock in the morning when they crucified Jesus… There was a sign with this charge against Jesus written on it: The King of the Jews. They also put two robbers on crosses beside Jesus, one on the right, and the other on the left.
At noon the whole country became dark, and the darkness lasted for three hours. At three o’clock Jesus cried in a loud voice, ‘Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani.’ This means, ‘My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?’
Mark 15:25-27,33-34 (NCV)
What word or phrase stood out from today’s Bible verses?
And now, let’s say YES to God together.
Jesus, You defeated the power of selfishness, sin, and even death, once and for all (Romans 6:10) so that we can be completely free. We say YES to receiving the new, forever life that You give.
After enjoying this time with God and each other, let’s say our memory verse together:
Revelation 1:18
[Jesus said] I am the One who lives; I was dead, but look, I am alive forever and ever!
Revelation 1:18a (NCV)
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.
Joy lives in Portland, Oregon with her husband and her dog. She works for Bridgetown Church where she leads kids as they grow, learn, and have lots of fun. Joy loves gardening, summer camp, eating ice cream, and reading her favourite books, The Chronicles of Narnia.
Max is 9 years old and lives in Melbourne, Australia with his older brother and mum and dad. He often rides his bike to school and enjoys being creative by drawing or building with Lego. Max is also learning how to play the electric guitar and loves turning it up loud!
