THINK TOGETHER.
Do you remember the story of the Prodigal Son (Luke 15:11-32)?
READ TOGETHER
Proverbs 19:4. Wealth brings many new friends, but a poor man is deserted by his friend.
Do you remember the story of the prodigal son that Jesus told? It illustrates today's proverb. The younger brother took his dad's money and left home. While he had lots of money he was able to do lots of things (bad things) with lots of people (bad people). Jesus doesn't say it directly, but he implies that the son had lots of new friends from his new money. But when all his money was gone he had to go feed pigs for a living. No money – no friends.
There is an important lesson here for us about friendship. Some people will only be friends with you because you have things, or money, or for what you can do for them. Sometimes we even treat Jesus this way, don't we? We only like Jesus because of what he can do for us.
True friends like you for who you are, not what you have. A friend that would leave you if your money ran out is not a real friend. In fact, a true friend will help you when you need it. That's why Jesus is still the best friend ever. He likes you because he likes you, not because of what you have (everything you have, he gave to you), and not because of what you can do for him (you can't do anything for him because Jesus already has everything he could ever need in God). This means that Jesus isn't your friend because of what he can get out of it, but only because of what he can pour into it. That's the kind of friend we should be, and that's the kind of friends we need.
Because of Jesus we will always be liked for who we are, not what we do.
With Jesus we can be a true friend too.
DO SOMETHING TOGETHER
Watch the movie Toy Story together. What kind of friendship did Buzz and Woody have? Talk about how it changed over the course of the movie. Did they desert each other or stick together?
PRAY TOGETHER
Jesus, you will never desert me because you love me for me. Amen.
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