Helping Hands. Humble Hearts
Bible Readings
Take a few minutes to read the Bible verses listed and ask the Holy Spirit to lead you in how this verse applies to you this week.
12 The body of Christ has many different parts, just as any other body does. 13 Some of us are Jews, and others are Gentiles. Some of us are slaves, and others are free. But God's Spirit baptized each of us and made us part of the body of Christ. Now we each drink from that same Spirit. 14 Our bodies don't have just one part. They have many parts. 15 Suppose a foot says, “I'm not a hand, and so I'm not part of the body.” Wouldn't the foot still belong to the body? 16 Or suppose an ear says, “I'm not an eye, and so I'm not part of the body.” Wouldn't the ear still belong to the body? 17 If our bodies were only an eye, we couldn't hear a thing. And if they were only an ear, we couldn't smell a thing. 18 But God has put all parts of our body together in the way that he decided is best. 19 A body isn't really a body, unless there is more than one part. 20 It takes many parts to make a single body.
1 Corinthians 12:12-20
Memory Verse
Philippians 2:4
4 Care about them as much as you care about yourselves
Think about a time when you needed help. Maybe you were doing a job with your family and had to pick up something heavy. Or perhaps you were riding the city bus for the first time by yourself and were scared you might miss your stop. We all need help at times!
When have you been asked to be the helper? God reminds us in Philippians 2:4 to look for ways to help others. What would you do if your sister asked for help with a craft? What if you ended up doing more of the work because your fingers handle glue and glitter better than hers? What if helping her meant you missed the chance to go to the park with friends? You might feel frustrated.
Our feelings of frustration are very real feelings, but when you choose to help someone, you are letting God take over your hands and heart. It can be a hard choice, but when we make time to help others, it is a good choice.
Amazingly, when we help others, we also learn about community. Community means living and working together, taking care of each other. God’s great design includes all of us fitting together. No one has to be alone!
There may be times when you might not know how to help others. When you see people who seem stronger and smarter than you, you might wonder what you can offer. Trust that God will show you ways to help, through your hands in doing or your heart in loving.
Prayer
God, thank you for creating me as part of your amazing world. Help me to find ways to be helpful to others. Amen.Related Resources
Sara Pot
Sara Pot is a parent of four daughters, two of whom are medically fragile with complex needs. She is passionate about the inclusive vision of belonging, and this filters into her work with schools, writing, workshops and family advocacy with children's paediatric rehabilitation services. Sara and her family live in St. Catharines, Ontario.