When Jesus started his work, he decided to choose twelve special helpers. We call them the Apostles. Well, I’ll bet a lot of people thought they knew just what kind of people Jesus would choose. This was a very important job, so what kind of people do you think Jesus might have chosen?
There were so many fish that Simon called to his partners and asked them to bring over another boat. They also filled that boat with fish. I think this story teaches us about God's blessings and generosity. We never know when God will send extra blessings to us. We might be in a place where we don't expect anything exciting to happen and then we see and are filled with God's love in a new way.
Spiders are fascinating. They have the ability to spin silk and are able to use that silk to build beautiful webs. The webs may be used as a home for the spider or as a net to catch bugs. An amazing thing to think about is that tiny spiders produce billions of miles of webs across the world - more webs than we could imagine. This is called abundance. We see examples of abundance everywhere in nature.
Jesus is the most important, true source of our light. It is the kind of light that warms us from the inside and feels like love. The light that comes from Jesus helps us find our way and from it we learn how to honor God and how to treat others with love. This is a big idea - that Jesus would give us light that would light us on the inside and shine out so that others could see our love. Merry Christmas.
People become famous for many reasons. We know of those who are famous because they invent things; others are great artists, musicians, writers, or actors; still others may excel at sports or have discovered a cure for a troublesome illness. Jesus became famous because he brought God's love to the world.
Gracious is a word that means kind and caring. Jesus chose words that were kind and people could tell by his words that he cared about them. The same is true for each one of us. We can choose kind words to let others know we care. We can choose kind words that will bring joy to others. Words are powerful. Choose them well.
Jesus said, "I am the one Isaiah was talking about. God is with me and God has lots of good news! I am here to make these things happen, just as God wants." Wow! Many, many people will be happy to hear this news! People will see that God loves them and has come to help them. But some people will not be so happy. The bully isn't going to like this.
There are many ways to be powerful in this world. To be powerful means that you have the strength and energy to make things happen. You may be strong in your body and you may be smart – strong in your mind. The Bible tells us that Jesus was filled with "the power of the Spirit" (4:14). He made things happen because he was filled with God's Spirit of Love. He taught others about God, he performed miracles and healed those who were sick. When we study his life we find that he was truly filled with power that came from God.
Long before Jesus came to live on earth, the prophet, Isaiah, spoke about Jesus, saying that he would have the "The Spirit of the Lord" (4:18) and bring good news to the poor and freedom to those held captive. Isaiah also said Jesus would give sight to those who could not see. This is called prophesy and all that Isaiah said came true. Now, when we accept the love that Jesus offers to each one of us, we are given the ability to be filled with "the power of the Spirit" - God's Spirit. We can fill our hearts and minds with God's love.
When Jesus was tempted, he found help in a book? That book was the Bible. When he said, "It is written," he meant, "It is written in the Bible." Because Jesus knew the Bible so well, he was able to use it to help him stand when the Devil was trying to get him to fall. If the Bible could help Jesus like that, it can help us too. That's one reason we study the Bible--because it can help us when we need help.