`I'm proud' feels good

God thinks that's important, too. In this week's Gospel (Mark 1:7-11), God the Father even tells Jesus that He's proud of Him!

When it was time for Jesus to start His work, He went to John the Baptist in Galilee and was baptized in the Jordan River. As soon as Jesus came out of the water, the Holy Spirit came down from heaven in the shape of a dove and landed on Him, and God's voice said: "You are my Son. I love you and I'm proud of you."

Even Jesus needed to be told, "I'm proud of you." When He was going to start teaching people about God, He knew some people wouldn't want to hear it. They would be angry with Him and some would try to hurt Him! He must have been scared. He needed to know His Father was watching and was proud of His work.

There are lots of ways to say, "I'm proud of you." A sticker on your paper, a smile from your teacher, or a hug from your Mom or Dad all help you feel proud of yourself. Then you feel great all day!

It was brave of Jesus to go get baptized and show everyone He was God. When God the Father said He was proud of Jesus for that, Jesus must have felt great, too.

Even God knows that hearing that someone is proud of you gives you the energy you need to keep working hard!

PRAYER FOR THE WEEK: Jesus, help me tell other people when I'm proud of them, and make you proud of me! Amen.