Serving Others Every Day
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.
1 Jesus crossed Lake Galilee, which was also known as Lake Tiberias. 2 A large crowd had seen him work miracles to heal the sick, and those people went with him. 3 It was almost time for the Jewish festival of Passover, and Jesus went up on a mountain with his disciples and sat down. 4 5 When Jesus saw the large crowd coming toward him, he asked Philip, “Where will we get enough food to feed all these people?” 6 He said this to test Philip, since he already knew what he was going to do. 7 Philip answered, “Don't you know that it would take almost a year's wages just to buy only a little bread for each of these people?” 8 Andrew, the brother of Simon Peter, was one of the disciples. He spoke up and said, 9 “There is a boy here who has five small loaves of barley bread and two fish. But what good is that with all these people?” 10 The ground was covered with grass, and Jesus told his disciples to tell everyone to sit down. About 5,000 men were in the crowd. 11 Jesus took the bread in his hands and gave thanks to God. Then he passed the bread to the people, and he did the same with the fish, until everyone had plenty to eat. 12 The people ate all they wanted, and Jesus told his disciples to gather up the leftovers, so that nothing would be wasted. 13 The disciples gathered them up and filled twelve large baskets with what was left over from the five barley loaves. 14 After the people had seen Jesus work this miracle, they began saying, “This must be the Prophet who is to come into the world!”
John 6:1-14
Memory Verse
Matthew 25:40
40 The king will answer, “Whenever you did it for any of my people, no matter how unimportant they seemed, you did it for me.”
When you read the Bible, God's power and the things he does are front and center: the creation story, the flood, and the exodus from Egypt. And sometimes, God's people do big things too with God’s help, like David defeating a giant or Esther saving her people. Those big things have a great impact for sure. But do you ever notice that the little things also make a big difference?
In John 6:1-14, Jesus does a big miracle by feeding 5000 hungry people! But how did Jesus do it? In John 6:9 the disciples say to Jesus, “Here is a boy with five small barley loaves and two small fish, but how far will they go among so many?” The disciples do not think this boy’s small offering will really make a big difference, but Jesus surprises them! This boy, whose name we don’t even know, offers his little lunch that Jesus then multiplies into a big feast for many! As you read through the Bible, discover all the ways that God takes great delight in blessing people who are willing to serve him in little ways!
In what little ways can you serve God this week? Maybe you could start by being on the lookout for people who might need help or need someone to show them God’s love. Does someone look thirsty? Offer them a bottle of water. Does someone look sad? Offer them a smile and kind words, and pray for them. Do you notice lots of trash around your school? Grab some gloves and a bag and pick it up. As you spot people you can serve, serve them!
Prayer
God, thank you for delighting in the little ways I can serve you. Help me to spot people I can serve and know that it makes a big difference to you. Amen.Related Resources
Tanya Yuen
Tanya Yuen is a pastor who serves in the denominational office of the Canadian Baptists of Ontario and Quebec with the privilege of supporting pastors in children and family ministry. She also gets to spend time in Muskoka at Camp Kwasind in the summer, sharing about Jesus with kids. She is mom to 3 girls and together with her husband, Alfred. They spend as much time as possible hiking the trails around the Niagara Escarpment in Ontario.