July 12-18 Family Devotions
Part 1
This comes from Archbishop Desmond Tutu’s book Children of God Storybook Bible
Week of July 12 – 18
Theme: GOD CARES ABOUT EVERYONE (Luke 15)
Read:
All sorts of people flocked to hear Jesus. Some followed God’s ways, and some did not. Jesus treated everyone with love and kindness. Some of the teachers did not like this, and they complained. “Just look at him, sitting down and eating with THOSE people! I would never!”
Jesus heard their grumbling, so he told them a story…
Once there was a shepherd who had 100 sheep, including an old smelly ram that was always getting into trouble. One day the old ram wandered off. The shepherd could have said, “Good riddance! That one was nothing but a nuisance.” But he did not. Leaving the other 99 perfectly well-behaved sheep, he searched all night in the cold and rain.
At last, the shepherd found that old ram in a ditch. He was covered in mud. Boy did he smell! But the shepherd didn’t mind one bit. He put the ram on his shoulders and carried him all the way home singing. Then he called his friends and had a party. “I have found the sheep that was lost!” he shouted.
“It is the same in heaven,” Jesus explained. “The angels have a party every time someone who was lost comes back to God.”
He says to all his angels, “Let’s have a joyous celebration. For that one who was lost I have found!”
—Luke 15.10
