Who Do You Say That I Am Family Scriptural Reflections and Prayers for Each Day of Lent? MARK NEILSEN
Who Do You Say That I Am? Family Devotions for Lent As Christians, we have been baptized into the death of Jesus so that we can rise to new life with him. But who is he? Who is this man who was tortured by Roman soldiers, nailed to a cross to die and then laid in a tomb, only to rise again three days later? Each day during Lent these devotions will center on an aspect of Jesus as he is presented in Scripture. Each section is grouped around a theme, such as Jesus the Teacher or Jesus the Miracle-worker. This is by no means a complete picture of Christ: the Scriptures are a deep well of truth, with more in them than we could ever pull out. More than that, they are a path to prayer, and prayer is the best way to know Christ. A brief reflection and a prayer starter follow the Scripture reading. One more word about the organization of the booklet: Some families may want to do a brief reading each day as part of their Lenten devotions. Who Do You Say That I Am is set up for that purpose. Others may want to use Sunday evening as the time for weekly family devotions. Use all seven at once or use them day by day whatever best suits your family s approach to prayer. These are intentionally made brief so that children of all ages may participate in the devotions. They center on Jesus himself in the hope that all God s children may come to know better the person who came among us to show God s love for us and to bring us to the new life of Easter. Mark Neilsen Scripture quotations in this booklet are from the New Revised Standard Version of the Bible, copyright 1989 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the U.S.A. All rights reserved. 2
Ash Wednesday Addressing Our Prayer to God Who Do You Say That I Am? Jesus the Teacher Jesus was a wonderful teacher and was called Rabbi (which means teacher). A small sample of his teachings is included here, but if we listen carefully whenever the Scriptures are read, we will be sure to hear more of his teachings. Whenever you pray, do not be like the hypocrites; for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, so that they may be seen by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward. But whenever you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you. Matthew 6:5-6 Praying is an important part of life, and Jesus wants to be sure we know how to do it. God is the key to prayer. Even our desire to pray comes from God. Jesus tells us that as long as we direct our prayer to God and let God teach us how to pray, our prayers will be going in the right direction. Good and gracious God, bless the time we pray together this Lent. Help us all to get to know Jesus better and learn to follow him in all things. Thursday After Ash Wednesday Fasting Whenever you fast, do not look dismal, like the hypocrites, for they disfigure their faces so as to show others that they are fasting. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward. But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face, so that your fasting may be seen not by others but by your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you. Matthew 6:16-18 3
Who Do You Say That I Am? One way to remind ourselves that God is really the center of our lives is to fast during Lent. Fasting is eating less on purpose as a way of putting God first in our lives. Jesus reminds us that fasting as well as all other forms of religious observance is offered to God, not to make us look better in the eyes of other people. Lord Jesus, you remind us to worship God, not build ourselves up in the eyes of other people. Help us to worship you no matter what other people think. Friday After Ash Wednesday Loving Our Enemies You have heard that it was said, You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy. But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be children of your Father in heaven. Matthew 5:43-45 It s easy to love the nice people in the world, but what about those who are not so nice? Jesus tells us we must love them too. And pray for those who are mean to us, even for our enemies. If this seems hard, don t worry: it is hard. But God will help us to do it. God will show us how to love those we don t even like. But we must begin by praying for them. Spirit of Christ, we pray for our enemies, for those who are cruel to us, and for the people we do not like. May they be drawn closer to you, and may our hearts be filled with your love for all people. Saturday After Ash Wednesday Listen and Live Everyone then who hears these words of mine and acts on them will be like a wise man who built his house on rock. The rain fell, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on rock. Matthew 7:24-25 Jesus teaches that we have to do two things: We have to hear his message, and then we have to put it into practice. It is not enough to 4
Who Do You Say That I Am? just listen; we have to do. The good news is that if we listen, we will know how to live. And if we live as Jesus instructs us, our lives will be built on solid ground. Lord Jesus, we want to follow you. Help us this Lent as we listen more carefully to the Scripture and try more earnestly to live your message. First Sunday of Lent Leading Us to New Life Jesus the Good Shepherd At the very beginning of his public life, Jesus said he brought good news to the poor. The good news is that God has forgiven our sins. Jesus spoke of a Kingdom of God where mercy and love and peace would prevail. This week, we will look at the Scripture passages that tell something about our Good Shepherd. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly. I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. John 10:10-11 Sheep have a way of getting lost, so a shepherd has to watch out for them. Jesus does not lock us up in some pen, but lets us roam through the world in freedom. If we are living the way he wants us to, we help spread his life and love. If we are not, he is there for us, bringing us back when we get lost. Good Shepherd, lead us according to your path throughout this first week of Lent. Help us to be gentle with one another and love each other as you love us. Monday, First Week of Lent The Way to Love Little children, I am with you only a little longer. You will look for me; and as I said to the Jews so now I say to you, Where I am going, you cannot come. I give you a new commandment, 5
Co Cr mm ea t i u v Sa nic e mp ati le ons Who Do You Say That I Am was written by Mark Neilsen for for the Parish, 1564 Fencorp Drive, Fenton, MO 63026-2942. 1999, 2012 for the Parish. Art by Sally Beck. 1-800-325-9414. www.creativecommunications.com. All rights reserved. Printed in the U.S.A. MN4 This book, along with many other for the Parish products, is available on