THINK TOGETHER.
Has anyone ever defended you? Have you ever defended someone else?
READ TOGETHER
Proverbs 31:6. Open your mouth, judge righteously, defend the rights of the poor and needy.
I remember defending someone once in elementary school. Jimmy Peterson, the mean kid, was picking on another smaller student on the playground, so I decided to step in and make Jimmy stop. I knew I couldn’t keep my mouth closed while someone else was being hurt. Thankfully, Jimmy stopped without much of a fight.
King Lemuel’s mother is telling him to do the same thing. A good king will open their mouth, they will judge righteously, and the will defend the rights of the poor and the needy. A king who doesn’t do these things is a really bad king.
Did you know that when you trust in Jesus and receive him into your life you become a king, a queen? The Bible says that all who have been saved by Jesus are seated on a throne, reigning with Jesus, and called kings and priests. That should make sense to us since we are now children of God, THE KING.
So if we are king and queens on Earth today, then this proverb should be one that we pay attention to. As Christians we should open our mouth when someone is being picked on. We should judge righteously when someone is being mistreated. We should defend the poor and needy when they are being hurt.
When we use our words to try to convince others to stop being mean or hurtful that is called reason. One of the things we have to learn to do as we grow up is to reason with each other. It means to convince someone of something with the truth. Like convincing that group to stop teasing. Or convincing a bully not to pick on that other person, not with threats but with wisdom. Jesus gives us this wisdom and this courage to do the right thing. To use reason to try to get others to be kind. And to get help from adults if reason isn’t working.
Because of Jesus we know that no one deserves to be hurt and picked on.
With Jesus we can use words and reason to help those who are being hurt.
DO SOMETHING TOGETHER
Talk through with your children the plan for what to do if they witness bullying or someone being hurt. What might they say to that person? When should they find an adult?
PRAY TOGETHER
Jesus, I am a king/queen. Use me to help others, not just myself. Amen.
TLICfamily 