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PRAYER FOR THE WEEK
Jesus, teach me to treat things -- mine or other people's -- with as much gentleness as a good shepherd has with his sheep! Amen.

"I am the good shepherd," Jesus said. "A good shepherd will give up his life to save his sheep. A paid worker will let a wolf eat the sheep, because he doesn't own them. But I know my sheep and they know me, and I'll die for them. All people will hear my voice and become like one flock of sheep with one shepherd."

Are you careful or careless with other people's things? Some kids are careful; they don't want to get in trouble if something gets broken. Other kids think, "Hey, this doesn't belong to me," so they aren't respectful of other people's stuff. Of course, they're probably really careful with their own things!

This week's Gospel (John 10:11-18) is about things that are yours and things that aren't. Jesus says that, if someone is paid to take care of sheep, he might not be careful with them, because if they get hurt or lost, they're not his anyway. But a good shepherd who owns the sheep will watch over them so they don't get lost. He'll take care of them and keep them safe.

When you own something and really like it, you're careful with it. If you're playing with another kid's toy, you might forget to be just as careful, because you aren't thinking about not having it anymore if it gets broken.

We belong to God, like sheep belong to a shepherd who owns them or a certain toy belongs to you. God doesn't just take care of us like a good shepherd; Jesus even died for us on the cross. He knows every one of us, like a shepherd knows each of his sheep, and He would do anything to keep us safe![[In-content Ad]]

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