Week: Holy Spirit Adventures
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
Holy Spirit, like the disciples in the upper room on the day of Pentecost, we’re patiently waiting for You to fill us with Your power and with Your presence. We’re ready for You to send us on new adventures.
We REJOICE and celebrate God’s goodness with this week’s memory verse:
Read by Vera Lynn
Deuteronomy 31:6
Be strong and brave. Don’t be afraid and don’t be frightened, because the Lord your God will go with you. He will not leave you or forget you.
Deuteronomy 31:6 (NCV)
God, help us to remember Your Word.
Today we’re REFLECTING on what happened as Paul and Barnabas entered a new city. They’d started telling people about Jesus and large crowds had come to hear their message. Everything seemed to be going great, until…
Read by Vera Lynn
Acts 13:45,46,50,52
Seeing the crowd, the Jewish people became very jealous and said insulting things and argued against what Paul said. But Paul and Barnabas spoke very boldly.The Jewish people stirred up some of the important religious women and the leaders of the city. They started trouble against Paul and Barnabas and forced them out of their area. But the followers were filled with joy and the Holy Spirit.
Acts 13:45,46,50,52 (NCV)
Paul and Barnabas were excited when they arrived in this new town, but before too long people started bullying them and they were chased away again.
Sometimes when we talk with our friends about Jesus, not everyone likes what we say. It can be really hard if people are unkind or make fun of us because we follow Jesus. However, today’s story gives us hope because although some people didn’t like what Paul and Barnabus had to say, lots of other people did. These people decided to start following Jesus and they were ‘filled with joy’ and filled with the Holy Spirit too.
Let’s press pause and talk about today’s question, which is: Why do we think some people are unkind or make fun of people who are Christians, people who follow Jesus?
How do we feel about telling our friends about Jesus? Is it something that we’re excited about or do we find it hard? However we feel, let’s ASK God to help us.
Lord Jesus, we ASK you to give us courage whenever we have opportunities to tell other people about you, or invite them to come to church with us.
In Luke’s gospel, Jesus encourages his followers to, ‘Ask God to bless anyone who curses you, and pray for everyone who is cruel to you.’ (Luke 6:28, CEV) This isn’t as easy as it sounds, is it? Let’s ASK Jesus to help us.
Lord Jesus, we know that you love everyone, and we know that you want us to love everyone too, even those who are unkind to us or who make fun of us for being a Christian. You know how we feel about this right now, and we ASK you to heal us where we feel a bit hurt, give us strength where we feel a bit weak, and give us more love for those who don’t yet know you.
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.
Acts 13:45,46,50,52
Seeing the crowd, the Jewish people became very jealous and said insulting things and argued against what Paul said. But Paul and Barnabas spoke very boldly.The Jewish people stirred up some of the important religious women and the leaders of the city. They started trouble against Paul and Barnabas and forced them out of their area. But the followers were filled with joy and the Holy Spirit.
Acts 13:45,46,50,52 (NCV)
What word or phrase stood out from today’s Bible verses?
And now, let’s say YES to God together.
Holy Spirit, we say YES to going on adventures with You. And we say YES to loving others with the love that you give to us.
After enjoying this time with God and each other, let’s say our memory verse together:
Deuteronomy 31:6
Be strong and brave. Don’t be afraid and don’t be frightened, because the Lord your God will go with you. He will not leave you or forget you.
Deuteronomy 31:6 (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.
Chris lives in Melbourne, Australia with his wife and two boys. He works for 24-7 Prayer Australia and Red Church and is also a professional musician. When he’s not working or drumming Chris enjoys going on long hikes in the mountains with his boys and playing table tennis.
Vera Lynn is 10 years old and lives in Phoenix, Arizona, USA with her parents, sister, and dog Max. Her favourite hobbies include reading, knitting, sewing, and embroidery. She is very creative. Her favourite book is The Voyage of the Dawn Treader in the Chronicles of Narnia series by CS Lewis.
