That’s Ridiculous
THAT’S RIDICULOUS
Read 1 John 4:7-11.
It was the most ridiculous thing Shelly had ever heard! “Let your brothers and sisters know you love them,” Shelly’s Sunday school teacher had said. “And don’t just tell them—show them too.” Well, obviously Mrs. Johnson didn’t know Todd, Shelly’s brother. He was a pain!
When Shelly got home, Moppet, her dog, looked up from his basket. As Shelly sat down to pet the dog, Todd walked through the kitchen. Moppet jumped from his basket and followed Todd outside. Shelly glared at him. “Hey,” she complained, “you belong to me.”
That evening Shelly saw her brother watching TV by himself. She realized that Todd didn’t have many friends. Shelly never talked to Todd much either, except to fight with him.
As Shelly thought about it, she remembered how she had felt when Moppet chose to follow Todd instead of her. It had made her feel sad and angry. Is that how Todd feels? she thought. Sad and lonely and sometimes angry? She thought of Mrs. Johnson’s words. She did love Todd, even though she didn’t always get along with him.
Shelly got a soda, took it to the living room, and handed it to her brother. He looked up in surprise. “Todd,” she said as she sat down next to him, “I . . . I just want you to know that I . . . I love you.”
Todd gave her a funny look. “At least one person does,” he mumbled.
It wasn’t much, but it was a start.
HOW ABOUT YOU?
Do your brothers or sisters know you care about them? Sometimes it’s harder to get along with family members than with anyone else, but it’s important that you do so. Ask the Lord to help you be a good testimony at home.
TO MEMORIZE:
[God] has given us this command: Anyone who loves God must also love their brothers and sisters.
1 John 4:21, NIV
SHOW LOVE TO YOUR FAMILY.
From the book
