Be Kind to Animals
First, we are going to be looking at the book of Matthew, chapter 10 and verses 29 through 31. (Matthew 10:29-31)
*Read this verse out loud or ask a grown up to read it to you.
“Are
not two sparrows sold for a farthing? and one of them shall not fall on the
ground without your Father. But the very hairs of your head are all numbered.
Fear ye not therefore, ye are of more value than many sparrows.” Matthew
10:29-31
Jesus is talking to his apostles and trying to help them understand how important they are to God. He tells them in verse 31 that they “are of more value than many sparrows!”
Well, how much is a sparrow worth? It says in verse 29 that 2 sparrows could be sold for 1 farthing. Back in Jesus’ time, 1 farthing was about the same amount of money as HALF of one of our pennies!
*Find Luke, chapter 12, verse 6 (Luke 12:6). We read that you could buy 5 sparrows for only 2 farthings…
“Are not five sparrows sold for two farthings, and not one of them is forgotten before God?” Luke 12:6
That is about the same as paying 1 penny for 5 little birds! Needless to say, people back then didn’t place a whole lot of value on these little birds. Still, Jesus tells us that not one sparrow would fall to the ground without God knowing and caring!
Sparrows that live out in the wild face all kinds of danger. The Bible tells us that if one gets hurt or dies, God knows about it and cares about it, after all God is the one who created the birds.
“And God created great whales, and every living creature that moveth, which the waters brought forth abundantly, after their kind, and every winged fowl after his kind: and God saw that it was good.” Genesis 1:21
God shows us in the Bible that even though we are more important to Him than the animals He created, He still cares about the animals. He gave animals to us to care for and watch after.
*Look in your Bible at the book of Proverbs, chapter 12, verse 10 (Proverbs 12:10):
“A righteous man regardeth the life of his beast: but the tender mercies of the wicked are cruel.” Proverbs 12:10
This verse says that those who please God are ones that take care of, and watch over, their animals. It also tells us that the wicked are cruel, or mean. Let’s think of some ways that we can be part of the group that pleases God in the way we treat animals!
**FUN PROJECT TIME!
Go over this list and talk to your parents about some ways that you can be kind to animals, then go out and do it!!!
*You can help feed and give water to your dog or cat. Maybe some of you have other animals at home that you can help feed!
*You could help your pet get exercise by taking it for a walk. If you don’t have a pet, ask your parents and neighbor if you could help walk the neighbor’s pet.
*You can make a bird feeder and fill it with seed or hang a mesh bag (onion bags work great!) outside with pieces of string, thread, ribbon, shed animal hair (like from your dog or cat), and straw. Birds can pull the material out through the holes in the bag and use it to build their nests!
*Maybe you could donate a bag of pet food to the local animal shelter.
*Sometimes, being kind to animals means just leaving them alone. When you walk by a house with a barking dog, don’t tease it through the fence or bark back. That dog is not trying to be mean, it’s just trying to protect its family from strangers. It doesn’t know if you’re a nice person or not, so it’s going to bark or growl to warn you to stay away!
**Teasing animals is NOT kind and others might see us doing it and try to copy us. We are supposed to be good examples to those around us. Teasing or being mean to animals is NOT a good example!**
*Try coming up with more ways to be kind to animals!
Mind Your Morals
Lynda Sander