The Singer

(Today's story is based on Matthew 6, 9, and Luke 12 from the Jesus Storybook Bible.)

People loved to be near Jesus. Sick people, well people, happy and sad. Worried people who worried about all kinds of things. "What if we don't have enough food? Or clothes? Or suppose we run out of money? What if there isn't enough... and everything goes wrong?"

Jesus' heart was filled with compassion for the people. So he sat the people down and spoke to them. "See the birds over there?" he said. "Where do they get their food? Do they have cabinets full of food?" The people laughed. "No," said Jesus, "They don't need to worry about that. Because God knows what they need and feeds them."

And likewise he spoke of the flowers, receiving their beauty from God: "They do not need clothes-- God clothes them in royal robes... not even a king is that well dressed!" The people felt a great burden lifted off their shoulders.  

"Little flock," said Jesus, "you are more important than birds! More important than flowers! The birds and the flowers don't sit and worry about things. And God doesn't want his children to worry either. He loves to look after the birds and the flowers. And he loves to look after you, too."

Jesus knew that God was always watching and loving the world he made. Though people had forgotten the song, the birds and the flowers still remembered their song of praise: 

"God made us. He loves us. He is very pleased with us. It was why Jesus had come into the world: to sing them that wonderful song; to sing it not only with his voice, but with his whole life,  so that God's children could remember it and join in and sing it, too."

How to Pray

Jesus teaches people about prayer; paraphrase of The Lord's Prayer, from Matthew 6.

IN THOSE DAYS there were some Extra-Super-Holy People (at least that's what they thought), and they were called "Pharisees." Every day, they would stand out there in the middle of the street and pray out loud in big Extra-Super-Holy Voices. They really weren't praying so much as just showing off. They used lots of special words that were so clever, no one understood what they meant.

People walking by would stop and stare, which might sound rude -- except that's exactly what the Extra-Super-Holy People wanted. They wanted everyone to say, "Look at them. They're so holy. God must love those people best."

Now, you and I both know they were wrong -- God doesn't just love holy people. But the people walking by weren't so sure. Perhaps you did have to be really clever, or good, or important for God to love you. Perhaps you had to know lots of difficult, clever words to speak to God.

So one day, Jesus taught people how to pray. He said, "When you pray, don't pray like those Extra-Super-Holy People. They think if they say lots of words, God will hear them. But it's not because you're so clever, or good, or so important, that God will listen to you. God listens to you because he loves you.

"Did you know that God is always listening to you? Did you know that God can hear the quietest whisper deep inside your heart, even before you've started to say it? Because God knows exactly what you need even before you ask him," Jesus told them.

"You see, God just can't wait to give you all that you need. So you don't need to use long words or special words. You don't have to use a special voice. You just need to talk.

"So when you pray, pray in your normal voice, just like when you're talking to someone you love very much.

Like this . . .

Hello Daddy!

We want to know you.

And be close to you.

Please show us how.

Make everything in the world right again.

And in our hearts, too.

Do what is best -- just like you do in heaven,

And please do it down here, too.

Please give us everything we need today.

Forgive us for doing wrong, for hurting you.

Forgive us just as we forgive other people when they hurt us.

Rescue us! We need you.

We don't want to keep running away and hiding from you.

Keep us safe from our enemies.

You're strong, God.

You can do whatever you want.

You are in charge.

Now and forever and for always!

We think you're great!

Amen!

Yes we do!

You see, Jesus was showing people that God would always love them -- with a Never Stopping, Never Giving Up, Un-breaking, Always and Forever Love.

So they didn't need to hide anymore, or be afraid, or ashamed. They could stop running away from God. And they could run to him instead. As a little child runs into her daddy's arms.

(taken from The Jesus Storybook Bible, written by Sally Lloyd-Jones)

Jesus the Healer

Today's story is from the book of Luke, chapter 8 (paraphrased from The Jesus Storybook Bible). There was a man named Jairus whose daughter was sick. He went to find Jesus, desperate to see his daughter live. He fell at Jesus' feet. "Please!" he said, "My daughter..." Jesus knew. He said, "I'll come."

They must hurry. But there were so many people! Jesus' disciples helped clear the way for them to get through. Then, suddenly, Jesus stopped. "Who touched me?" he said. His friends said, "There are many people, what do you mean?" Jesus had felt power going out of him.
Finally, an older woman, bent low to the ground, said fearfully, "It was me! I thought if I could just touch the edge of your garment, I would be healed." Jesus looked at her. He had compassion on her. His friends said, "We need to hurry!" But Jesus always had time. "Jesus reached out his hands and gently lifted the woman to her feet. 'You believed,' he said, wiping a tear from her eye, "and now you are well."

Just then, Jairus' servant came up and said, "It's too late, your daughter is dead." But Jesus said, "It's not too late," and they continued on towards the house. When they arrived, everyone was crying. Jesus said, "I'm going to wake her up." At this, they laughed bitterly. Jesus went into her room. He sat on her bed and took her hand. "Sweetheart, it's time to wake up." And he pulled her up gently out of death. She sat up, rubbed her eyes, and looked around her sleepily. "Give the little girl something to eat" he said.
Jesus healed many other people, too: he made deaf people hear and blind people see. He made lame people walk. "Jesus was making the sad things come untrue. He was mending God's broken world."

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Jesus, you are the gentle and powerful healer that our very beings long for.

If You are True, Help us Know You!

After Jesus was baptized, he went into the desert to be alone (today's story is from Matthew 4, Mark 1, Luke 4-6, Paraphrased in the Jesus Storybook Bible). He needed to be alone with his Father.

While he was in the desert talking with his Father about the rescue plan, thinking about how he would have to die in order to rescue us, an old enemy came up to him, the one who had tempted Adam and Eve to mistrust God. He said, "Are you really God's own Son?" He wanted to do the same thing to Jesus that he did to Adam: lie and deceive, and then accuse.

Satan, the snake, said, "Poor you. God must not really love you. You don't need to die. Do it my way." But unlike Adam, Jesus said, "No! I will do what God says." And from that moment, everything changed.

Jesus would fight against Satan and his lies, and he would win, and defeat sin and darkness and tears. He would suffer, but he would win!

Jesus left the desert. He went to gather his disciples, twelve men who would be his helpers. Who do you think he chose? Wise and powerful people, smart people?

He chose poor fishermen. One day he was walking by the Sea of Galilee, and he called to some brothers and friends who were mending their nets. "Come, follow me, " he said.


Their boats needed to be put away, and the fish were still in them... but they just left everything and followed him. He was not like anyone they had ever met.
And meeting Jesus would change all of them forever.

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Jesus, you are the only perfect man. You did not believe the lie that we all believed, that God doesn't really love us. You trusted God completely, even to death when you were innocent, to give us true life. We recognize that there is something different about you. Help us to hear your voice saying, "Come, follow me." Help us to hear you, to get up, and to follow you. You know the things that we need to leave behind in order to do that. It might be trusting in ourselves and our own understanding,  seeking security over everything else, making our family our god... or something else.

Reveal yourself to us, just like you did to the fishermen. If you're real and true, help us to know you.

The Rescue Begins

Welcome to my Easter blog. We have 40 days until Easter (April 5). To prepare our hearts. To know the story of Jesus: his life, his death, and his resurrection. I hope you will join me. We're using the "Jesus Storybook Bible" if you want to read it yourself (I have extras if you'd like to borrow one).
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Our story starts up again with the New Testament. Jesus' cousin, John, was a special man chosen by God to prepare people's hearts for Jesus (Matthew 3, Luke 1,3; John 1).

John's father Zechariah sang when he was born, knowing that God was fulfilling his promises to his people to send a Rescuer:

"Because God loves us with a  Never Stopping, Never Giving Up, Unbreaking, Always and Forever Love-- Heaven is breaking through! 
He is sending us a Light from Heaven
To shine on us like the sun
To shine on those who live in darkness
And in the shadow of death
To guide our feet into the way of peace."

John was unusual. He lived out in the desert, ate locusts and wild honey, and wore clothes made of camel hair. He said, "prepare your hearts for your King and Rescuer."  Good news. But it also made people sorry they'd run away from God. They wanted to be clean and in good relationship with God.

So they came to John. He baptized them in the river, a symbol of a new life. Many people came to John. One day, even Jesus came to John.

Why would Jesus come to repent and be baptized? He was the only clean one, with a perfect relationship with God.
John said, "Who am I, to baptize you?" 
Jesus said, "This is what my Father wants." Not only did God become Man, but he also identified himself with us sinners.



And when he was baptized, a voice from heaven said, "This is my Son. I love him. I am very pleased with him. Listen to him." And so the great rescue began...

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Jesus, you are a totally different kind of King than we expected: gentle and humble, giving yourself instead of grabbing power. If we were alive during the time when John was announcing the news of your coming, we would go down to the river with your people and say, "Yes, we want to be ready for this Rescuer and King."

Today, the news of what you did to rescue us has spread all over the world. And we also want our lives to be ready to receive you, the humble and glorious King!

Thank you that you made it possible for us to be included in those sweet words from our Father, "I love you. I am pleased with you." We can't earn those words, and often we can't even earn them from our biological fathers. We are shocked that our Heavenly Father God speaks those words to us, us who have messed up the world and messed up our lives and relationships and hurt our Father.

You are like our older brother, searching for us and bringing us back home to be welcomed by our Gracious Father.