What's YOUR Story?

Do you enjoy reading? I do. There is nothing that I enjoy doing more than sitting on my couch with the rain falling (it does that a lot here in Oregon) and reading a realy good story. I have had a collection of favorite stories since I was a kid - here are a few of them.

Ping the Duck was my first favorite when I was little. It's about a little duck who lives on a houseboat and is always getting in trouble for being the last one back on the boat at the end of the day. One day Ping doesn't hear the call to go to the boat and is left on his own. I remember thinking what it must have been like to be all alone like Ping was.

Ramona the Pest was another favorite when I was in third grade. Could that kid get into scrapes everyday? We had a girl with "boing boing curls" in our class just like Ramona did and I always wondered what it would be like to tug on her curls and see them bounce...but being a good kid (like you all are) I kept my hands to myself!

Little Women, Stuart Little, Treasure Island, Are You There God, It's Me Margaret and The Pearl were others that I enjoyed in elementary school - then in intermediate school (5th grade)through junior high (8th grade) the reading became more complicated and I was introduced to some classic stories by people such as Shakespeare, Orwell, Huxley and others.

But do you know the most wonderful book that I can't read enough of? It's the Bible. One thing that I know about the Bible is that it is NOT a collection of fairy tales. The stories do not begin with "once upon a time." They are pieces of the world's history - and pieces of instruction on how to live our lives daily.

I think Jesus is one of the best storytellers - he used everyday things such as pearls, fields, bridesmaids, rebellious kids and lost money to help explain God to the people who came to listen. And still today we can understand what Jesus was sharing because we have these or similar items in our lives still!

Here's your challenge for this week - Read Matthew 13:44-46 - the parable about the pearl of great price.

"The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field.

When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold
all he had and bought that field.

"Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant looking for fine pearls.

When he found one of great value, he went away and sold everything he had and bought it.

Then...

Create your own parable about the Kingdom of Heaven using one of the following everyday items in your world:

• 
  
  An allowance


• 
  
  A favorite pet


• 
  
  Vacation


• 
  
  Video games, systems


• 
  
  Snow days


• 
  
  Your family


• 
  
  Favorite clothes


• 
  
  Something special in your world that you LOVE a lot!

Share it here on the blog with us! Just hit the reply button and type in your story. Don't forget to get your parent's permission before you do so!

I can't wait to read your parables!

Sunday, January 7, 2007 - The Baptism of Our Lord

This Week's Memory Verse:

2 Corinthians 5: 17(a)

"Anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person."


Jesus then appeared, arriving at the Jordan River from Galilee. He wanted John to baptize him. John objected, "I'm the one who needs to be baptized, not you!" But Jesus insisted. "Do it. God's work, putting things right all these centuries, is coming together right now in this baptism." So John did it. The moment Jesus came up out of the baptismal waters, the skies opened up and he saw God's Spirit—it looked like a dove—descending and landing on him. And along with the Spirit, a voice: "This is my Son, chosen and marked by my love, delight of my life."
Matthew 3:13-17



Have you ever been to a graduation before? Perhaps you had a graduation from preschool or kindergarten; or maybe an older family member has graduated. Graduations tell everyone present that people have finished one task and are ready to begin something new.

Jesus' baptism is like a graduation. He had been taught by Joseph his earthly dad how to be a carpenter. He learned from his mother Mary skills to take care of himself. Jesus learned from the teachers in the synagogue how to read and understand the writings of the Torah - God's holy book to the Jewish people (did you know that the Torah is a part of our Old Testament? It is!).

Jesus' baptism by John told everyone that it was time for Jesus to begin the job that God had for him. He was to be an example and share with others how God loved them and wanted people to be a part of God's family. He started a new part of his life the day he was baptized in the Jordan River.

When we are baptized - we start something new too. We become part of the family of God and are ready to take part in some pretty important promises. We promise to love God with all of our heart, to ready God's word and to learn how to listen to God. We commit to loving people and taking care of the Earth that God gave us, and to live a life that makes people want to be followers of Jesus also. Baptism is an important step to take - it is a graduation that tells everyone that you have chosen to be a world changing follower of Jesus.

Today's Task:
Today I will try to tell people by my actions and choices that I am a follower of Jesus!





The Message (MSG) Copyright © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene H. Peterson