Soft Like Clay

Read It:  Isaiah 64:8 (NRSV)

   8 Yet, O LORD, you are our Father; 

    we are the clay, and you are our potter; 

    we are all the work of your hand. 

Learn It:

This is some wonderful imagery about how God can use us.  I am not very good at pottery but I do know that it takes a lot of time and patience to get a piece just right.  When I was in grade school I would spend a very long time in class trying to get my pottery to look nice but it didn't ever come out well.  I have proof in the form of a Halloween pumpkin that my mother gave back to me.  It sits as a decoration at our home and it is so deformed the lid that I made for it barely sits on top and probably would fall of at any movement.  To be honest the pumpkin looks like a pumpkin you would throw away because it was sitting outside too long.  It's that bad.  My point being that God takes extra special time to care for us by molding us into the artwork that God created us to be.  The work that we do truly is the handiwork of God who first created us and gave us all things.  

Share It:

See if you have some clay or some silly putty or play-doh around the house.  Spend some time talking about the different things you can do with it and create with it.  Is it easy to get things just the way you want them to look?  What is the hardest part and what is the easiest part?  What do you think that God is working you into at this time in your life?  Are you a hard clay or an easy clay right now?  Talk about these and other things that come up during your time together.

Live It:

Take this week and go get some clay or something else that you can mold into something.  Think of what you want to make and spend some quality time putting it together.  See how it comes out and think about how much concentration you put into it and how proud you are of it (even if it isn't as wonderful as you thought or imagined in your head).

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Sought After

Read It:  Ezekiel 34:15-16 (NRSV)

 15 I myself will be the shepherd of my sheep, and I will make them lie down, says the Lord GOD. 16 I will seek the lost, and I will bring back the strayed, and I will bind up the injured, and I will strengthen the weak, but the fat and the strong I will destroy. I will feed them with justice. 


Learn It:
What a wonderful gift to be sought after by the shepherd.  In this passage God seems to take this opportunity to not rely on or use other shepherds (i.e. prophets or kings) to seek out the sheep.  In this passage God decides to take all of this into God's own hands.  The language here is wonderful in that God will seek us out...God comes to us looking for us when we are lost.  That indicates that sometimes we might stray and not realize it and God will come and bring us back into the fold.  God will help all who are injured and all who are weak.  God is here to look out for all of us that have lost the way and have been pushed aside from those who are fat and strong.  We have a God that will look out for us in all the difficult times in our lives.


Share It:
Try to think about a time in your life of faith that you have strayed from your beliefs.  How did you get back to the flock?  Who or what was it that brought you back?  This might be a good time for parents to do most of the sharing and let the children listen.  It's good to understand that faith can sometimes be difficult and that through it all, or in the end you kept or strengthened your faith.  When are times when you think your faith might be challenged or when you might have a lot of questions about your faith?  Why do you think that you might have those questions during those times?  Share these thoughts and other ideas that come up during your sharing this week.


Live It:
This week I simply want you to live out your faith walk to the fullest.  As you do, and as you realize how much freedom we have in this part of the world I want you to say a simple prayer for those who don't have the freedom to live out their Christian faith because of persecution.  Pray for them and their families and for those who persecute them.  

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Spending Your Talents

Read It: Matthew 25:18 (NRSV)

18 But the one who had received the one talent went off and dug a hole in the ground and hid his master’s money. 


Learn It:
This verse comes from the story of the Parable of the Talents.  1 Talent in Jesus' time was worth about 15 years worth of a regular workers wages.  So when the man in the parable hands his servants 5, 2, and 1 talents for them to care for, you can see a person handed this much money might be a bit hesitant to try to spend it because there is a good chance they could never pay the money back.  However, Jesus shows us that it is good for us to 'risk' using our talents (our gifts) for the master's will (God) than to hide it in a hole.  Jesus is telling all of us to use the gifts we have been given instead of hiding them or only using them for ourselves.  


Share It:
What kinds of talents (not the money kind in the story) do you have that you can use to glorify God?  What are ways that you can make your gifts 'double' as the servants did in the parable that Jesus tells?  How can using the gifts God gave you make them do more than just knowing you have them?  Do you know what gifts you have?  Do you think you have discovered all of them right now or do you think you might have more gifts from God waiting to be discovered?


Live It:
Spend this next week using the good gifts that God gave you to help others or to spread the word of God.  Gifts (talents) come in all different shapes and sizes and sometimes might not even seem like a gift.  Try to use what you're good at to help your neighbors out this week.  Maybe you'll discover a new talent in the process!

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Interactions

Read It:  Matthew 5:3-12 (NRSV)

3 “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 
4 “Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. 
5 “Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth. 
6 “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled. 
7 “Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy. 
8 “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God. 
9 “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God. 
10 “Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 
11 “Blessed are you when people revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. 12 Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you. 


Learn It:
There has always been much discussion about the beatitudes listed above.  Many people wonder why Jesus would say blessed (or happy) are those people who experience these things.  This passage is one that tends to stump a lot of people about what Jesus means by all of these sayings.  One thing you could say that these sayings all boil down to is our attitude/behavior toward God and toward our neighbors.  They don't have to deal with following certain laws or rituals but instead about how we interact with those we encounter. 


Share It:
With the idea that these qualities might be behaviors or attitudes toward God and neighbor read the passage above again line by line and try to see as a family how your responses might fit into each one.  How did you see the passage before you came up with your responses and how do you see the passage now?  Is it more confusing now or less confusing?  


Live It:
Try to pick one of the above beatitudes and try one out.  If it is one that you decided works with God then interact with God that way this week and if you chose a one that has to do with your neighbor then try to figure out how you can interact with a neighbor in that way.  

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