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 Jackson J
Philippians 4:13
I can do all things through Christ because he gives me strength.
Philippians 4:13 (NCV)
God, help us to remember Your Word.
Today, we’re REFLECTING on what happened when Jesus met a man troubled by an evil spirit.
Read by Jackson J
Mark 5:1-3,6-7a (NCV)
Mark 5:1-3,6-7
Jesus and his followers went to the other side of the lake to the area of the Gerasene people. When Jesus got out of the boat, instantly a man with an evil spirit came to him from the burial caves. This man lived in the caves, and no one could tie him up, not even with a chain. While Jesus was still far away, the man saw him, ran to him, and fell down before him. The man shouted in a loud voice, ‘What do you want with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God?’
No one had been able to help the man and the people in his own town were so afraid of him that they tried to tie him up in the local graveyard. What he really needed was peace from the evil spirit that had troubled his mind, his body and his heart for a long time.
When Jesus arrived, He wasn’t afraid by what He saw. Jesus saw the man’s struggle and finally brought peace and healing into his life.
Mark writes that the man ‘lived in the caves’. Let’s press pause and talk about today’s questions, which are: When have we been in a cave? What can we remember about it?
Sometimes other people’s problems seem so big or complicated that we don’t know what to do to help them. Or maybe we’re afraid to try.
Lord Jesus, help us to remember that You can bring peace to any problem. We ASK You to fill us with Your peace so that we can bring peace to those around us.
Lots of people today have illnesses that affect their minds, their bodies and even their spirits.
Loving Jesus, we pray for the health and wellbeing of people in our communities, perhaps those that we know are suffering right now. We ASK specifically that they would experience Your healing and freedom.
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 5:1-3,6-7
Mark 5:1-3,6-7a (NCV)
Jesus and his followers went to the other side of the lake to the area of the Gerasene people. When Jesus got out of the boat, instantly a man with an evil spirit came to him from the burial caves. This man lived in the caves, and no one could tie him up, not even with a chain. While Jesus was still far away, the man saw him, ran to him, and fell down before him.The man shouted in a loud voice, ‘What do you want with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God?’
What word or phrase stood out from today’s Bible verses?
And now, let’s say YES to God together.
Lord Jesus, we say YES, You are our source of peace. We know that we can always come to You, no matter what is troubling us. In You we find everything we need.
After enjoying this time with God and each other, let’s say our memory verse together:
Philippians 4:13
I can do all things through Christ because he gives me strength.
Philippians 4:13 (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.
Unathi lives in Johannesburg, South Africa, with her husband and 5 kids; and has a passion for seeing families thriving.
You’ll most likely find her homeschooling the tribe, reading, writing, or dreaming about the next DIY project.
She also loves good coffee, dark chocolate and hiking.
Jackson is 11 and he lives in Chichester, on the south coast of England, with his parents and his sister. He loves Pokemon (who doesn’t?), music and having fun with his friends.
