On Wednesday’s it was my habit to present to you a Blessing to use with your children. There may be a blessing in here somewhere, but allow me to mostly make this post be an entry in our Holy Week series.
You know the drill… scroll slowly and stop when you see the speech balloon (so as not to expose the answers too early!) These questions are meant for a little family discussion around the computer screen.
Time Out. Talk about…
What Holy Week event is happening in this picture?
It is the foot-washing that took place during the Last Supper. I know, the Passover feast that Jesus shared with his disciples happened on a Thursday; I’m taking liberty with the timing of things.
Time Out. Talk about… Why did Jesus wash everyone’s feet?
Probably because their feet needed cleaning. (Sandals + no paved roads = dusty, dirty, smelly feet). But, as you can suspect, there is a deeper meaning. (I feel another question coming on…)
Time Out. Talk about… Whose job was it, in those days, to wash people’s feet?
That’s right – a servant, and usually it was the lowest of the low-on-the-totem-pole, servant. John’s Gospel tells us that after he had finished, Jesus asked his disciples:
Do you understand what I was doing?
Someone must have said, “No” because Jesus went on to explain how he intended it to be a teaching example.
And since I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you ought to wash each other’s feet. John 13:14
I like how this passage continues, a few verses later with…
Now that you know these things, you will be blessed if you do them. John 13:17
Jesus was telling us to do acts of service in a humble way and we would be blessed!
This flows perfectly into a Wednesday’s Weekly Blessing! So, right now, turn to your child and touching their arm say…
May others know of God’s love through your generosity and kindness.
(Repeat for each child if you’ve got more than one.)
Make plans to attend the Maundy Thursday service at 7:00 pm in the downtown sanctuary at FUMC. We will be celebrating The Last Supper with Holy Communion. See you there?
Stay tuned for the next installment of our series on Holy Week.
Photo credits:
By Peter DeHart, © 2007. Used by permission.
Speech bubbles via WPClipart.com. Quote marks via Clker.com. Both are in the public domain.
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