JOIN THE JOURNEY JR.
Families Abiding in Jesus together
With shorter reading assignments and kid-specific focus areas, Join The Journey Jr. is designed to help parents disciple their kids and engage with Scripture in the best ways for their age.
This month's memory verse
Him we proclaim, warning everyone and teaching everyone with all wisdom, that we may present everyone mature in Christ.
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And after she was baptized, and her household as well, she urged us, saying, “If you have judged me to be faithful to the Lord, come to my house and stay.” And she prevailed upon us.
Acts of the Apostles 16
Paul’s Second Missionary Journey
1Paul went first to Derbe and then to Lystra, where there was a young disciple named Timothy. His mother was a Jewish believer, but his father was a Greek. 2Timothy was well thought of by the believers* in Lystra and Iconium, 3so Paul wanted him to join them on their journey. In deference to the Jews of the area, he arranged for Timothy to be circumcised before they left, for everyone knew that his father was a Greek. 4Then they went from town to town, instructing the believers to follow the decisions made by the apostles and elders in Jerusalem. 5So the churches were strengthened in their faith and grew larger every day.
A Call from Macedonia
6Next Paul and Silas traveled through the area of Phrygia and Galatia, because the Holy Spirit had prevented them from preaching the word in the province of Asia at that time. 7Then coming to the borders of Mysia, they headed north for the province of Bithynia,* but again the Spirit of Jesus did not allow them to go there. 8So instead, they went on through Mysia to the seaport of Troas.
9That night Paul had a vision: A man from Macedonia in northern Greece was standing there, pleading with him, “Come over to Macedonia and help us!” 10So we* decided to leave for Macedonia at once, having concluded that God was calling us to preach the Good News there.
Lydia of Philippi Believes in Jesus
11We boarded a boat at Troas and sailed straight across to the island of Samothrace, and the next day we landed at Neapolis. 12From there we reached Philippi, a major city of that district of Macedonia and a Roman colony. And we stayed there several days.
13On the Sabbath we went a little way outside the city to a riverbank, where we thought people would be meeting for prayer, and we sat down to speak with some women who had gathered there. 14One of them was Lydia from Thyatira, a merchant of expensive purple cloth, who worshiped God. As she listened to us, the Lord opened her heart, and she accepted what Paul was saying. 15She and her household were baptized, and she asked us to be her guests. “If you agree that I am a true believer in the Lord,” she said, “come and stay at my home.” And she urged us until we agreed.
Start your time today by playing this Icon Match game.
What did you notice? Each picture was a symbol that pointed to a bigger idea. Now focus specifically on the image of a wedding ring: what does it communicate? A wedding ring tells the world “I belong to someone.” Similarly, baptism is a way Christians tell the world “I belong to God.”
In Acts 16, Paul preached the gospel, the good news of Christ, to Lydia, and she believed! In the very next verse, she was baptized. Lydia’s story shows us two important truths: 1) baptism comes after placing your faith in Christ and 2) baptism was important for the early church and should be for us too. Let’s look at what baptism is and why it’s important.
1) Baptism follows faith. Romans 3:23 says, “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,” and Romans 10:9 says the only way to salvation is to ” confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead ” Therefore, baptism is how we are saved but instead shows other people that we have trusted in Christ as our savior and the Holy Spirit lives in us.
2) The church in Acts prioritized baptism, because, in baptism, Christians proclaim their acceptance of Jesus as their Savior and celebrate their new life in Him. Let’s explore how the symbolism of baptism reflects both a proclamation and a celebration.
Baptism declares to the world around us that we have put their faith in Jesus. Even more so, each movement in baptism also tells two stories at once: the story of Jesus and those who place their faith in Him.
Baptism is a celebration that we are free from the power of sin. Baptism is like blowing out candles on a birthday cake: the candles don’t make you a year older, but they celebrate that you are!
Parents, if you have questions about whether you child is ready for baptism or not, check out this parent equipping resource to learn more.
End your time praying and asking God if baptism is your best next step in your relationship with him!
Our monthly memory verse Colossians 1:28. Take time this weekend to practice memorizing the verse. You can use this Memory Verse Activity Packet to reinforce memorization throughout the month!