God on the Go: New People

Is it hard for you to meet new people? Some of us can feel shy or nervous, but the good news is that Jesus shows us, and teaches us, how to meet new people! In the Bible we’re going to read about Abraham, who treated three new people kindly and they ended up meeting messengers from God! Listen and find out how, with God’s help, you can make new friends!

What’s New!

Monday Bible Story:

• Abraham in the Old Testament met three new people one day. He treated them well. (Genesis 18)

Tuesday Key Verse:

• Matthew 7:12 – In everything you do, be careful to treat others in the same way you’d want them to treat you

Wednesday Prayer:

• God, help me treat people with the same kindness that I want to be treated with. In Jesus’s name, amen.

Thursday Question:

• Do you like meeting new people or does it scare you a little bit? Why?

Friday Fun Fact:

• Q: Guess how many people scientists say you will meet in your lifetime?
• A: 80,000!

 Special thanks to George Fox University for sponsoring the God on the Go Podcast!

Show Notes:

To get this week’s episode and daily text prompts, text the word Go to 89419. If you are in Canada, text GodOntheGo to 866-729-1065

Transcription:

I’m Julie Lyes Carr and this is God on the Go, where we help you make the minutes matter when you’re on the go to school and errands and activities. I want you to think about somewhere you’ve been that’s had the most people you’ve ever seen. Maybe it was at your soccer game and there were all kinds of people cheering from the sidelines. Maybe you went to a movie and there were a lot of people in the theater. Maybe it’s at your church. You look around and there are just so many people. Or maybe you’re in a new class at school and it’s filled with all kinds of new people you don’t know.

You might have the kind of personality that loves to meet all kinds of new people. You might get excited when you know that you’re going to see people and talk to people who you don’t know. Or maybe you’re the kind of person who sometimes likes meeting new people, but sometimes you feel a little shy. That’s how I am a lot of the time. I like people and I enjoy meeting new people, but sometimes it makes me a little nervous. Or maybe you really don’t like meeting new people at all, and you know what? That’s okay too. Whatever kind of personality you have, God makes it really simple for us when we meet new people. And we’re going to meet new people all the time. Did you know that over your life you’ll probably meet 80,000 people? That is an eight with four zeros behind it. 80,000! That’s a lot of people.

So, what are you supposed to do when you meet new people? I used to think that I was wrong for sometimes feeling a little shy when I was meeting new people. I used to think that I was supposed to be super friendly all the time and outgoing. But then I remembered that God made me the way I am and he made you the way you are. He’s not at all surprised by our personalities, and how new things make us feel. Here’s what’s so cool. Instead of making, meeting new people about your personality, Jesus told us something that works all the time no matter what, whether we’re outgoing or shy, or some combo in between. Jesus said in Matthew 7:12, In everything you do, be careful to treat others in the same way you’d want them to treat you. That’s it. Now, I bet you want people to be nice to you and you probably want people to include you, so that’s what you do when you meet new people. Be kind. Help someone,feel comfortable. Listen to them. Invite them. Sure, it might take a little bit of practice, but since it’s how you would also like to be treated, you’ll know what to do, and God can help you.

There’s a man in the Bible named Abraham. He’s in the Old Testament and one day he met three new people. He could have given them a big wave but never talked to them. He could have ignored them. Instead, he was kind. He shared his snacks with them, and as it turned out, that was a great thing because these three new people Abraham met, they were messengers from God. Since he treated them the way he wanted to be treated, he got to know some of God’s helpers. How amazing is that?

When you head into a new class or a new school or a new team, you are going to be meeting a lot of new people. And sure, you might feel a little worried. I understand that, but just know with God’s help, remembering what Jesus said, simply treat these new people the way you’d like to be treated. And before you know it, some of these new people might just become some of your newest friends.

Friend, I’d love it if you would text me. You can text the word go, G O to 89419 and I’ll send you some special surprises and extra tools to go with each episode of God on the Go. God on the Go is sponsored by George Fox University, where each student will be known personally, academically and spiritually. I’ll see you next week on God on the Go, where we make the minutes matter.