The Gospel Reading: John 17: 20-26 (The Message)
20-23 I’m praying not only for them
But also for those who will believe in me
Because of them and their witness about me.
The goal is for all of them to become one heart and mind—
Just as you, Father, are in me and I in you,
So they might be one heart and mind with us.
Then the world might believe that you, in fact, sent me.
The same glory you gave me, I gave them,
So they’ll be as unified and together as we are—
I in them and you in me.
Then they’ll be mature in this oneness,
And give the godless world evidence
That you’ve sent me and loved them
In the same way you’ve loved me.
24-26 Father, I want those you gave me
To be with me, right where I am,
So they can see my glory, the splendor you gave me,
Having loved me
Long before there ever was a world.
Righteous Father, the world has never known you,
But I have known you, and these disciples know
That you sent me on this mission.
I have made your very being known to them—
Who you are and what you do—
And continue to make it known,
So that your love for me
Might be in them
Exactly as I am in them.
Think and Wonder
Wow, that’s a pretty hard message to read and understand! But, when I hear all the times the word “Love” is used in this passage and all the talk about “being one”, it makes me think about family, and maybe that’s a good place to start.
If someone asks you, “Who is in your family?”, what do you tell them? You might just list your parents and siblings, right? When I think about my family, that’s where I start but I have lots of aunts and uncles and cousins too that I love, so the family circle gets bigger… and then, when I think about all the people who love me and who I love that are like family to me, then, wow, the list gets even bigger! We often talk about all the people who call BCUC their church as our “faith family”… so even more names to add! I think Jesus is telling us, in this reading that all the people in the world are God’s children – and that makes us all family.
So, when we think about loving the people in our family, Jesus wants us to include everyone!.
Do you always get along with the members of your family? Are you sometimes mad at your parents or fighting with your siblings? I think that’s true for all of us from time to time – but the big thing is that, even when we disagree with each other, it doesn’t mean we don’t still love each other.
What do you do to solve the problem when you disagree with someone you love?
How can we use those strategies to help all God’s children get along?
Response Activity Ideas
Pieces of One Puzzle
Each member of your family has unique gifts, strengths, and contributions they bring, yet you all work together to form one family unit.
Have each person decorate a puzzle piece that reflects their positive contributions to your family. Alternatively, work on your own to make a puzzle piece for each person where you show what you value and appreciate about the others.
Cut them out and glue them down fitting together like a puzzle. Can you come up with a creative title for your artwork?
Click to print PDF
Family Teamwork
Try one of these ideas to work as a team with the other members of your family:
Human Knot Game – (works best with a larger group) Gather together and reach your hands into the middle. Grab on to 2 hands. Untangle yourselves without letting go!
Build a Fort – if you think you’re too odd for that, you aren’t using your imagination!
Family Meal - Decide on a meal or dish you can all work on together. Maybe you all work together at the same time, or each person makes one dish, or one person chops/measures, another mixes, another cooks, and another cleans up!
Human pyramid – …at least you can have fun trying!
Jammin’ in your Jammies – Have everyone break out an instrument (clapping together wooden spoons counts!) or using their voices to groove along with your favourite recordings or songs (Bonus points for making it a PJ party at the same time!)
Snack – Trail Mix
Search through your pantry and make separate bowls containing dry cereals, goldfish crackers, M&M chocolate candy, small pretzels, almonds or other nuts raisins, dried cranberries, other dried fruit, etc. Have everyone make their own trail mix. Discuss how all of the different items are brought together to make ONE delicious snack, just like God’s dream of having all of us work together as big, world-wide family.
Kids from Other Countries
Visit https://www.kiocs.org/ and watch the videos about kids lives in other parts of the world. They’re part of our ‘family’ too!