Listen to Pastor Nick read the “Firestarter”
from the version for young people and the reading.

[From the version for young people]

Imagine being the child that Jesus picks up for a special blessing, and then you linger along with those following Jesus, because you just love being with him.  Get up right next to Jesus as you listen to a conversation Jesus has with a rich man.  Here he comes, anxiously asking Jesus questions about salvation.  Follow the conversation slowly and see how it moves along.  The man wanted to do something really special with his life.  Hear Jesus’s wonderful suggestion to him…and how sad the man was because he clung so much to his riches that he didn’t want to let go of them to follow Jesus.
Picture this scene and get in touch with the man’s sadness as he walked away from Jesus.  What sort of feelings stir within you?  Maybe Jesus is turning to you and wondering of you’ll walk away too.  But really, there is no greater richness than having God’s love for you in Jesus…and you have it! 

Openness of a Child (From the original version with Mark 10:1–22)

 The sacredness of marriage is uplifted, its rupture denounced as sin. If this applies to you, repent of wherever there was sinfulness in your divorce. In the Lord’s forgiveness, you will find the grace to follow God’s will, most likely living with the blessing with the one to whom you are now married.

Become as a child. Do not be afraid of intimacy with the Lord, however great is the sinfulness in your life. God receives you and loves you. The Lord wants you to be wonderfully happy. Feel the sadness of the rich young man who walks away from joy, due to his attachment to wealth, instead of to the Lord. Be very alert as the Word of the Lord comes to bring you life.

 Mark 10:13-22

Create your own Bible Breaths Learn More…
Example: Kingdom entered as a child v. 15

Fridays are dedicated to the Gospels. This year, we generally read
from the Gospel of Mark, this season, chapters 7 to 13.

For all the Firestarters in the original version I recommend the ebook.  You will have the entire program of well over a thousand of these introductions with you on your phone or tablet. Check the menu options at the site for more information.