Week: Jesus' Friends & Family
As usual, 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
Let’s listen for a word or a phrase that the Holy Spirit may want to say to us from today’s Bible reading.
Read by Asaph
1 Corinthians 13:4-7
Love is patient and kind.
Love is not jealous or boastful or proud or rude.
It does not demand its own way.
It is not irritable, and it keeps no record of being wronged.
It does not rejoice about injustice but rejoices whenever the truth wins out.
Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance.
1 Corinthians 13:4-7
What word or phrase stood out from today’s Bible reading?
Jesus’ disciple, John, wrote that; ‘no one has ever seen God, but if we love each other, God lives in us, and his love is made perfect in us.’ (1 John 4:12, NCV)
Father God, thank you for loving us. And thank you that as we learn to love each other – our family and our friends, and even the people that we find difficult to get along with – You live in us. We want You to live in us a little bit more this week, and so we ASK You to fill us up with a little bit more love for others.
Jesus said, ‘I no longer call you servants… but I call you friends, because I have made known to you everything I heard from my Father.’
Lord Jesus, thank you for loving us. And thank you for calling us ‘friends’. We want to walk with You, to talk with You and listen to what You want to tell us this week, so we ASK You to be with us. Help us to learn a little bit more about what it means to be Your friends.
In today’s Bible passage, we heard the apostle Paul saying that, ‘Love is patient and kind.’ It isn’t ‘proud or rude’, it isn’t ‘irritable’. It ‘never gives up’ – it keeps loving even when things are hard.
Holy Spirit, thank you for loving us. We’re sorry for all the times this week when we haven’t been kind or patient, when we’ve been irritable or rude instead, when we’ve given up loving someone when it’s been too hard. We ASK you to grow the fruit of love in us a little bit more this week.
Let’s pause and listen for a moment. Is there someone in particular who Jesus might be asking us to reach out to and love a little bit more this week?
Let’s press pause and talk about our Sabbath question which is: As our week comes to an end, what was good about it – what are we thankful for? It could be something big or small.
As we finish our time together, let’s say this week’s memory verse one last time:
Read by Asaph
Proverbs 17:17
Friends love through all kinds of weather, and families stick together in all kinds of trouble.
Proverbs 17:17 (MSG)
May this Sabbath bring rest and joy to our hearts and our homes.
May today be a little less go, go, go, and a little more slow… slow… slow…
May we care less about things, and care more for people.
As we relax in God’s love, may we take time to listen and remember that we are all God’s children.
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.
Asaph is 9 years old. He lives in Portland, Oregon with his younger sister Adelina, father and mother. He enjoys riding his bike, camping, reading, playing flag football and watching Bible Project videos. Asaph is kind and smart and loves hanging out with friends!
