Look -- there's Jesus!

Now that Christmas is over, you might have lots of memories of seeing people you don't see too often. Maybe you picked up your cousins at the airport or spent time with your Dad, who lives in another town since your parents got divorced.

You felt so excited when you first saw those people. "There he is!" you shouted when you spotted someone. Jesus would understand how you feel. In this week's Gospel (John 1:29-34), He gets to be the person everyone is waiting for!

John the Baptist was teaching that Jesus would be coming soon when he saw Jesus walking toward him. "There He is -- the Lamb of God!" John said. "He's the person I was talking about. I saw the Holy Spirit come to Him from heaven like a dove, and God said, 'He's the one who will baptize with the Holy Spirit. He is the Son of God.'"

If you're waiting for someone, you can hardly stand the excitement. You watch every face in the crowd until you see the right one or ask every minute, "Are we at Dad's house yet?"

John the Baptist must have felt like that. He'd spent lots of time talking about Jesus -- how Jesus could do miracles and how everyone would love Him when they met Him. He must have been very excited that Jesus would start teaching people about God soon!

When you finally see the person you're waiting for, you might be so happy you need to do something silly, like yell their name when they're too far away to hear you or jump up and down.

That's just what John did. He knew that when Jesus came, He would help people have better lives. When John finally saw Jesus, he was so happy, he yelled, "There He is!" Then John told everyone the whole story of Jesus' baptism and how Jesus was God's Son!

You probably got excited to see your Dad or cousins at Christmas. But think of how happy you'd be if the person walking toward you in the crowd was Jesus!

PRAYER FOR THE WEEK: Jesus, help me be excited every time I think of you! Amen.

(01-14-99) [[In-content Ad]]