Do I Have to Love Them?

Read Luke 6:35 CEV:

Love your enemies and be good to them. Lend without expecting to be paid back. Then you will get a great reward, and you will be the true children of God in heaven. He is good even to people who are unthankful and cruel.

Has anyone ever been mean to you? Sometimes kids call each other unkind names, or make fun of each other. Maybe you’ve had someone talk about you behind your back. That hurts, doesn’t it?

When someone treats you unfairly, we usually want to treat him the same way. If you find out your friend told a lie about you, you might be tempted to make something up about her!
But guess what? Jesus says we are to love them. What? That seems topsy-turvy, doesn’t it? If kids are mean to you, you’re supposed to be good to them.

It’s easy to love people who treat you well, but of course, not so easy to love mean people. But with Jesus’ help, you can do it. He loves ALL people, and we try our best to be like Jesus.

Christ’s love is the greatest in the world. If you get angry, and act like the other person, you’ll feel lousy. Wouldn’t you rather do what Jesus tells you to do?

Topsy Turvy Tip: The next time someone treats you unfairly, ask God to help you to be kind anyway, and pray for him or her. You’ll love like Jesus loves!

Life without Christ is Topsy Turvy!™
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First in Line

Read Mark 9:35 (NKJV):

And He sat down, called the twelve, and said to them, “If anyone desires to be first, he shall be last of all and servant of all.”

Have you ever gone to an amusement park hoping to hop on your favorite ride, only to find a long line of people waiting? Now imagine you’ve spotted some friends already in line. Would you try to cut ahead of others to shorten your wait?

Once, Jesus’ disciples argued over which disciple would be the greatest. Jesus responded to them by saying, “If anyone wants to be first, he must be last of all. He will be the one to care for all” (Mark 9:35 nlv).

According to Jesus, you don’t become great by wanting to be first. You achieve it by your willingness to be last. You don’t try to get others to serve you. You serve them! Now that’s topsy-turvy, isn’t it?

Think about it. Whether in line at a park or at school, it’s fun to be first, but doesn’t feel so good when someone pushes in front of you. If you cut in line, how do you think that makes others look at you? What if you tried to talk to them about how much Jesus loves them after you cut in line? Something tells me they might not want to hear it!

Topsy Turvy Tip: Let’s treat others with kindness and respect. Ask God to help you put someone else first today. It may not always be easy or the fun thing to do, but it’s the best thing to do.

Life without Christ is Topsy Turvy!™

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Father's Day Coloring Page/Hidden Picture Puzzle

Visit Topsy Turvy Land to print out a hidden picture puzzle to solve and then color from Liz Ball, Hidden Pictures Publishing.

Click HERE!

St. Patrick's Day Hidden Picture Puzzle

A special treat! A hidden picture puzzle for St. Patrick's Day by Liz Ball. To order books with her hidden picture puzzles or other books (like Topsy Turvy Land!) from Hidden Pictures Publishing, click HERE. Enjoy!

*Click on the picture, then print! It will print out full size ready to be colored. If that doesn't work with your printer, right click on the picture, and then 'save picture as...' and then you can print it out using your photo program.

Would you like to know more about St. Patrick? Click HERE to visit History.com to read all about him.