March 25-31 is HOLY WEEK. Each day this week we will add an additional passage from the New Testament that walks us through what happened the week before Jesus was crucified.
Today’s Reading:
Read Judges 13:3-4; Judges 14:1; Judges 14:8; Judges 17:6– Samson;
Read John 13:1-17; Matthew 26:17-30
Remember how God told the Israelites that they should be HOLY or SET APART? They didn’t seem to be doing a good job at that, as a nation!
Start your time out today with a strength contest! Pick a strength activity (holding a wall sit or a plank?) that all of your family can do and see who lasts the longest. In our Bible reading today, we learned about a man who was very strong, but he did not use his strength to honor the Lord.
A baby named Samson was born to an Israelite couple and God sent an angel to tell the parents that Samson was to be set apart. He was a special baby and was to live his life as a “Nazarite.” God was going to use him to save Israel from the Philistines. A Nazarite would make choices that set him apart from other people. Sadly, Samson did not keep his promise to be a Nazarite and live set apart. He did things that went against God’s plan. God gave Samson strength and wisdom. Samson saw his strength and his wisdom as something he should be proud of and he forgot to give God the glory for all he could do. Instead of living for God, Samson began to live for himself.
Samson’s story is a picture of what the Israelites were doing. They were not following God and doing what was evil in the Lord’s sight.
“In those days, there was no king in Israel; everyone did whatever seemed right to him.” (Judges 17:6).
When we read about Jesus’ time with the disciples, it is very different than what we read about Samson. Samson showed that he cared mostly about himself. Jesus demonstrated that he loved others most!
In our reading today, Jesus takes on the role of a servant when he washes the disciples’ feet. That was a way he showed the disciples how much he loved them! Jesus also shared a meal with the disciples. Sadly, this was the last meal that Jesus would have with all of his disciples together before his crucifixion.
Jesus knew that and he took the time throughout the meal to prepare the disciples for what was coming. Jesus loved the disciples and wanted to give them a way to remember him when he was gone.
Application/Prayer:
As a family, have a foot washing ceremony. As you wash another family member’s feet, thank God for them and pray for any specific request they might have. Talk about how you can be like Jesus and show others how much you love them and how much Jesus loves them.
March Memory Verse:
He answered, “It is written: Man must not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.”
Matthew 4:4
Using the daily reading prompts from George H. Guthrie’s Read the Bible for Life, here’s how to use this devotional:
- Bring your Bible! Your kids need to see that everything you are reading to them or learning about comes from an actual Bible!
- Each day starts with a reading prompt. Read the selection as a family. If your kids are readers, encourage them to read along with you.
- After you’ve read the passage, read the short devotional thought that goes along with each passage.
- Prayer and application are important any time we read God’s word! After each devotional, there is a challenge to help apply what your family has read that day.
- There is a reading for six days of the week. The last reading of the week is a Gospel Conversation Prompt to help you connect the reading from the week with God’s plan for salvation.
Other Resources:
March memory verse coloring sheet