THE SET UP
As a parent (or a babysitter, caretaker, or friend), one of the scariest things you can experience is losing track of a child in a crowded place. If you’ve ever had that experience, you know time stands still and your mind fills with all kinds of worst-case scenarios. Some of those thoughts must have been rattling around in Joseph and Mary as they searched for their missing twelve year-old son, Jesus. As they ran from place to place, searching, they must have wondered why he had wandered. When they finally find him, he is sitting in the Temple, having a boy-to-men conversation with the religious teaching. And they were amazed at what he was saying. His parents weren’t too happy, but they also realized there was something different about this kid. And Mary “treasured these things in her heart.”
PASSAGE TO READ
Luke 2:41-52 (Page 615 in our house bibles)
REFLECTION QUESTIONS
Have you ever lost someone in a crowded place? How did that feel?
What do you think Jesus’ parents thought while they searched? How do you think they felt when they found him in the temple?
What are the ways, according to Luke 2:52, that Jesus grew in his life? How do you think that is an example for us?
PRAYER IDEA
Ask God to help you to grow in all ways in your life (physically, mentally, spiritually, and socially).