w/c 26th June

Our reading this week is Matthew 10: 24-39

²⁴ “Students are not better than their teacher. Servants are not better than their master. ²⁵ Students should be happy to be treated the same as their teacher. And servants should be happy to be treated the same as their master. If those people call me ‘the ruler of demons,’ and I am the head of the family, then it is even more certain that they will insult you, the members of the family!

Fear God, Not People

²⁶ “So don’t be afraid of those people. Everything that is hidden will be shown. Everything that is secret will be made known. ²⁷ I tell you all this secretly, but I want you to tell it publicly. Whatever I tell you privately, you should shout for everyone to hear.

²⁸ “Don’t be afraid of people. They can kill the body, but they cannot kill the soul. The only one you should fear is God, the one who can send the body and the soul to be destroyed in hell. ²⁹ When birds are sold, two small birds cost only a penny. But not even one of those little birds can die without your Father knowing it. ³⁰ God even knows how many hairs are on your head. ³¹ So don’t be afraid. You are worth more than a whole flock of birds.

Don’t Be Ashamed of Your Faith

³² “If you stand before others and are willing to say you believe in me, then I will tell my Father in heaven that you belong to me. ³³ But if you stand before others and say you do not believe in me, then I will tell my Father in heaven that you do not belong to me.

Following Jesus May Bring You Trouble

³⁴ “Do not think that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I did not come to bring peace. I came to bring trouble. ³⁵ I have come to make this happen:

‘A son will turn against his father.
    A daughter will turn against her mother.
A daughter-in-law will turn against her mother-in-law.
³⁶     Even members of your own family will be your enemies.’

³⁷ “Those who love their father or mother more than they love me are not worthy of me. And those who love their son or daughter more than they love me are not worthy of me. ³⁸ Those who will not accept the cross that is given to them when they follow me are not worthy of me. ³⁹ Those who try to keep the life they have will lose it. But those who give up their life for me will find true life.

Prayer for the week:

Dear God,

Help us to be the best that we can be,

To be wise in the worst of times,

To endure through the struggle,

Amen

In school:

We were visited by Delana from Christian Youth Outreach on Monday and we all med for worship outside. Delana based her worship on the Bible passage Matthew 6: 26-27

²⁶ Look at the birds. They don’t plant, harvest, or save food in barns, but your heavenly Father feeds them. Don’t you know you are worth much more than they are? ²⁷ You cannot add any time to your life by worrying about it.

We started by listening to bird song. Then Delana spoke about hummingbirds. We thought about how they had adapted and learned to hover in one place to drink nectar from a flower. 

We also thought about how birds protect their hatchlings at night. She compared it to how we must look after our younger friends and then they will grow up to look after their younger friends and so the cycle will keep going. 

In school we also thought about lots of different birds and how God knows every one. He also knows us individually. 

Questions to think about at home:

Have you ever been baptised or seen someone baptised? What happened?

Have you ever made a fresh start at anything? What happened?

Is there anything you would like to have a fresh start at now?