The Fourth Week of March
We Read…
A common theme for this week is that God takes time to care for us. When we are thirsty, God is our water. When we are in need, God is beside us. When we turn away, God still chases after us. And when we are stagnant, God tends to us. Each of these passages reminds us about who God is and how God loves us. Sometimes, we go through a season like one of these things mentioned above. Sometimes, we experience all of these things in a week's time! God isn't afraid of our needs; God isn't ashamed to care for us. God loves us, chooses us,, and meets us where we are we are today.
Isaiah 55:1-9
All of you who are thirsty,
come to the water!
Whoever has no money,
come, buy food and eat!
Without money, at no cost,
buy wine and milk!
2 Why spend money for what isn’t food,
and your earnings
for what doesn’t satisfy?
Listen carefully to me
and eat what is good;
enjoy the richest of feasts.
3 Listen and come to me;
listen, and you will live.
I will make
an everlasting covenant with you,
my faithful loyalty to David.
4 Look, I made him a witness
to the peoples,
a prince and commander of peoples.
5 Look, you will call a nation
you don’t know,
a nation you don’t know
will run to you
because of the Lord your God,
the holy one of Israel,
who has glorified you.
6 Seek the Lord
when he can still be found;
call him while he is yet near.
7 Let the wicked abandon their ways
and the sinful their schemes.
Let them return to the Lord
so that he may have mercy on them,
to our God, because he is generous
with forgiveness.
8 My plans aren’t your plans,
nor are your ways my ways,
says the Lord.
9 Just as the heavens
are higher than the earth,
so are my ways
higher than your ways,
and my plans than your plans.
Psalm 63:1-8
1 God! My God! It’s you—
I search for you!
My whole being thirsts for you!
My body desires you
in a dry and tired land,
no water anywhere.
2 Yes, I’ve seen you in the sanctuary;
I’ve seen your power and glory.
3 My lips praise you
because your faithful love
is better than life itself!
4 So I will bless you as long as I’m alive;
I will lift up my hands in your name.
5 I’m fully satisfied—
as with a rich dinner.
My mouth speaks praise
with joy on my lips—
6 whenever I ponder you on my bed,
whenever I meditate on you
in the middle of the night—
7 because you’ve been a help to me
and I shout for joy in the protection
of your wings.
8 My whole being clings to you;
your strong hand upholds me.
1 Corinthians 10:1-13
Brothers and sisters, I want you to be sure of the fact that our ancestors were all under the cloud and they all went through the sea. 2 All were baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea. 3 All ate the same spiritual food, 4 and all drank the same spiritual drink. They drank from a spiritual rock that followed them, and the rock was Christ. 5 However, God was unhappy with most of them, and they were struck down in the wilderness. 6 These things were examples for us, so we won’t crave evil things like they did. 7 Don’t worship false gods like some of them did, as it is written, The people sat down to eat and drink and they got up to play. 8 Let’s not practice sexual immorality, like some of them did, and twenty-three thousand died in one day. 9 Let’s not test Christ, like some of them did, and were killed by the snakes. 10 Let’s not grumble, like some of them did, and were killed by the destroyer. 11 These things happened to them as an example and were written as a warning for us to whom the end of time has come. 12 So those who think they are standing need to watch out or else they may fall. 13 No temptation has seized you that isn’t common for people. But God is faithful. He won’t allow you to be tempted beyond your abilities. Instead, with the temptation, God will also supply a way out so that you will be able to endure it.
Luke 13:1-9
Some who were present on that occasion told Jesus about the Galileans whom Pilate had killed while they were offering sacrifices. 2 He replied, “Do you think the suffering of these Galileans proves that they were more sinful than all the other Galileans? 3 No, I tell you, but unless you change your hearts and lives, you will die just as they did. 4 What about those eighteen people who were killed when the tower of Siloam fell on them? Do you think that they were more guilty of wrongdoing than everyone else who lives in Jerusalem? 5 No, I tell you, but unless you change your hearts and lives, you will die just as they did.”
6 Jesus told this parable: “A man owned a fig tree planted in his vineyard. He came looking for fruit on it and found none. 7 He said to his gardener, ‘Look, I’ve come looking for fruit on this fig tree for the past three years, and I’ve never found any. Cut it down! Why should it continue depleting the soil’s nutrients?’ 8 The gardener responded, ‘Lord, give it one more year, and I will dig around it and give it fertilizer. 9 Maybe it will produce fruit next year; if not, then you can cut it down.’ ”
We Think…
What stands out to you in these verses? Does anything confuse you or not make sense?
How do these verses compare to your own experience in life or in the church?
What are you considering? What questions come to mind?
How is God like our water or like a feast?
What idols (or false gods) do people worship today (popularity, celebrities, status…)?
We Feel…
What emotions are you experiencing today? How are you making space for these feelings?
Where have you seen God today or this week? What is pointing you to God (maybe it is something in creation, a friend or adult that cares for you)?
What has God made new in your life? In your heart?
Have you ever searched for God like David describes in Psalm 63?
What does it mean when Jesus says change your hearts and lives? How has Jesus helped you do this in your own life?
We Believe…
While the Bible is split up into an Old and a New Testament, and even though there are different authors and genres within the Bible, we believe that it is one book, one big story, all centered on God's love for us. In 1 Corinthians 10, we're referring to the story of the Israelites in the wilderness. They saw God work but turned away. Yet even in their rebellion, God still chose to love them. The same is true for the people that Jesus interacts with! They see him work wonders but still turn away at his death. Yet even in their denial, Jesus still chose to love them. The stories throughout the Bible teach us about who God is, how much God loves us, and how God has called us to live in light of this. The Israelites look a lot like us! The New Testament church looks a lot like us! We remember these stories, learn from them, and learn more about how we're supposed to live in the middle of it all.
We Practice…
Reflect on what you need from God this week. Maybe you need God to remind you of where God has been in your life; maybe you need God to prune certain things out of your heart; maybe you need God to just simply be with you. Share this with an adult you trust or your small group. Then, practice being or doing one of these things for someone else. Remind a friend of the ways you have seen God work in and through them. Have a conversation with someone you love about what God is challenging you with. Offer your presence to a friend who just needs someone to talk to.
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