Just Jesus: 5 Stories To Know Him BetterSample

“See, when you're a little kid, nobody ever warns you that you've got an expiration date. One day you're hot stuff and the next day you're a dirt sandwich.” - Greg in Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Ugly Truth

Lots of people in middle school know what it’s like to feel left out. Maybe they don’t make the team, or don't get invited to the party, or don’t get asked to help with a group project, or don't have anyone to sit with in the cafeteria.

Those are the moments when someone might feel like a dirt sandwich.

Everyone wants to belong and feel included. So when we get left out, even if it's just from something small, it doesn’t feel good.

Back during Jesus’ life, there was a blind man who totally knew what it felt like to be left out. He’d spent most of his life begging for money as people walked right past him on their way to wherever they were going. They all had a life, things to do, places to go, people to be with. But he was stuck, left out, by himself.

One day this blind man heard that Jesus was nearby. So he called out, hoping that finally maybe something good would happen to him. But as he called out to Jesus, the crowd turned on him and told him to shut up. They didn’t think someone like him should be allowed to talk to someone as important as Jesus. They assumed Jesus wanted to spend time only with popular people, beautiful people, and important people – not someone like this guy.

But the crowd was wrong.

Jesus went right up to the blind man and asked, “What do you want me to do for you?”

Imagine how the man must have felt. Maybe for the first time in his life, he felt included. Jesus stopped for him when others kept walking. Jesus listened to him when others tuned him out. Jesus helped him when no one else would.

That’s because everyone – absolutely everyone – matters to Jesus. There’s no such thing as an outcast when Jesus is around.

So the next time you feel left out, forgotten, or ignored, remember the blind man and how Jesus noticed, listened to, and included him. That’s exactly what Jesus does for you, too.

REFLECTION

When do you feel left out and what do you do in those moments?

DISCUSSION

Why does it matter that Jesus cares about all people?

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