Week: Mark's Gospel
Each day we will simply pray (P.R.A.Y.) together.
P: PAUSING to be still.
R: REJOICING with a Memory Verse and REFLECTING on some verses from the Bible.
A: ASKING God to help us and others.
Y: saying YES to God’s ways.
We start by pausing and taking a deep breath:
In and out.
In and out.
We remember that God is here, and so together we prepare ourselves to be with God.
Pause
Jesus, we hear Your invitation, and so we choose to follow You, with all our hearts, with all our minds, with all our souls and with all our strength.
We REJOICE and celebrate God’s goodness with this week’s memory verse:
Read by Noelle
Psalm 63:3
Because your love is better than life, my lips will glorify you.
Psalm 63:3 (NIVUK)
God, help us to remember Your Word.
We’re REFLECTING on one of the many times when the religious leaders tried to trip Jesus up with a tricky question.
Read by Noelle
Mark 2:23-24,27 (NCV)
Mark 2:23-24,27
One Sabbath day, as Jesus was walking through some fields of grain, his followers began to pick some grain to eat. The Pharisees said to Jesus, ‘Why are your followers doing what is not lawful on the Sabbath day?’ Then Jesus said to the Pharisees, ‘The Sabbath day was made to help people; they were not made to be ruled by the Sabbath day.’
God marked the Sabbath – the seventh day – to be a day when we rest, do things that we enjoy and spend time together with one another and with God. The Pharisees – the religious leaders – had made it into something completely different, tangled up with lots of rules and regulations, which made life more difficult, not more restful and joyful. They said it was sinful – that it was wrong – to do almost anything on the Sabbath. For example, they even said that it was sinful to write more than two letters of the alphabet!
Let’s press pause and talk about today’s question, which is: What rules and regulations can we think of that are good, that help us stay safe and live well?
Keeping the Sabbath as a day of rest and joy is one of God’s Ten Commandments – it’s one of God’s rules for helping us stay healthy and live well.
Loving God, we ASK You to help us slow down… to rest and enjoy being with each other and with You. Thank You for marking the Sabbath – help us to remember why we need it.
Let’s be quiet and think for a moment… how do we feel? Do we feel tired, stressed or stretched at the moment? Let’s quickly ask each other.
Holy Spirit, we ASK You to come right now and refresh those of us who are feeling tired, stressed and stretched. Help them to find time to slow down and rest soon.
As we read the Bible again, let’s listen for a word or a phrase that the Holy Spirit might want to say to us from today’s verses.
Mark 2:23-24,27
Mark 2:23-24,27 (NCV)
One Sabbath day, as Jesus was walking through some fields of grain, his followers began to pick some grain to eat. The Pharisees said to Jesus, ‘Why are your followers doing what is not lawful on the Sabbath day?’ Then Jesus said to the Pharisees, ‘The Sabbath day was made to help people; they were not made to be ruled by the Sabbath day.’
What word or phrase stood out from today’s Bible verses?
And now, let’s say YES to God together.
Lord Jesus, things are busy at the moment – we’ve got a lot going on – and we don’t always find it easy to pause and be still. But we hear what You say, Jesus; ‘The Sabbath day was made to help people.’ And so we say YES to Your invitation to rest and enjoy being with God as a family together.
After enjoying this time with God and each other, let’s say our memory verse together:
Psalm 63:3
Because your love is better than life, my lips will glorify you.
Psalm 63:3 (NIVUK)
Let’s put a hand on our heart.
Father God, fill us with Your love. Help us to love You, and everything that You’ve made.
Let’s point to our eyes.
Lord Jesus, help us to see You, and to see others the way that You see them too.
Let’s point to our ears.
Holy Spirit, help us to hear You, and give us courage to do what You say.
Chris lives in Melbourne, Australia with his wife and two boys. He works for 24-7 Prayer Australia and Red Church and is also a professional musician. When he’s not working or drumming Chris enjoys going on long hikes in the mountains with his boys and playing table tennis.
Noelle is 11 and lives in Kansas City, Missouri USA, with her parents, sisters and dogs. She loves animals, playing basketball, creating art and teamwork. Noelle gives the best hugs.
