STP Devotional for the Week of 12/2/24
Hello! My name is Laura Murphy. I am seventeen and I have been involved with STP for the past nine years. This year, I am playing Beth Bradley in “The Best Christmas Pageant Ever,” and I am so excited to share a little bit about the show with you.
In “The Best Christmas Pageant Ever,” there is a group of siblings, the Herdman family, who the entire town fears. They lie, cheat, spit, and hit, and now they have decided that they should join the annual Christmas pageant. All the people involved are terrified. The Herdman’s have taken all the good parts, and, in the eyes of those participating and those watching the rehearsals, the pageant is going to be ruined. Then, a lady named Grace Bradley decides to do the unthinkable. She is going to show them grace and compassion.
Jesus gave us an example in John 4. While traveling through Samaria, he encountered a woman at the well. She too was an outcast. Her life was filled with sin, and she did not know God; but God looked on her and had compassion. Jesus shared truth, hope, and love with her. She came to believe in Jesus the Messiah. Then, she ran to the town that rejected her, and she shared the good news of God with them.
In Mark, Jesus informs us that the two greatest commandments are:
“Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no commandment greater than these.” – Mark 12:30-31
The people of the town had never shown the Herdman’s grace or kindness. Because their parents weren’t around to show them love and compassion, it left the Herdman kids feeling alone and unloved. When Grace decided to follow God’s commandments and show them love and kindness, the kids begin to change for the better.
As believers, we are called to love each other. Sometimes that may be difficult. People can do a lot of bad things but maybe all they need to be shown is God’s love. And the best way to show the love of God is to love others unconditionally. It’s hard but God will give us His love to pour into them.
The pageant, however, might be too much of a wreck to be performed! Have the Herdman’s caused too much damage, or will it be better than ever before? Come see “The Best Christmas Pageant Ever” and find out!
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