A young ruler asked Jesus what he should do to make sure that God would accept him as good enough to live forever. Jesus told him to keep all the commandments. And then there was just one more thing he had to do...

Jesus told a story about a rich and generous king. One of his servants owed him millions of dollars, and the king forgave him. He didn't have to pay him back. But when that servant went out, he found someone who owed him about a hundred dollars. He took hold of him and started choking him!  He was an unforgiving servant. He did not forgive. He put the man who owed him money in jail. Uh-oh. When the king hears what he did, he is angry! 

In Mark chapter 8, Jesus heals a blind man.  At first, when the man looks up he says the people look like trees. Jesus laid his hands on the man's eyes again, and this time when he opened his eyes he could see clearly! 

Near the Sea of Galilee crowds of people followed Jesus up on the mountainside. They brought people who were sick, who were blind, and people who couldn't talk, and laid them at Jesus' feet. He healed them. Then, instead of sending them away hungry, he distributed seven loaves of bread and a few fish to the whole crowd. They all ate as much as they wanted, and afterward the disciples picked up seven basketfuls of leftovers. When Jesus did something, he did it because of his faith in the Father. He knew God wanted to heal people and feed people. But he told his disciples to watch out for people who were just pretending. 

In Luke 13, Jesus describes the kingdom of God to a tree that grows from a very small mustard seed. When it grows, it's big enough for birds to perch in the branches! It's also like a tiny grain of yeast. Although it's small, when it gets put into warm water it multiplies. It grows so fast that it can puff up sixty pounds of flour. The kingdom of God may start small, but it spreads and gradually changes into something that has the power to change things. 

In Mark 7, a man is brought to Jesus who was deaf and could hardly talk. The crowd begged Jesus to heal him. Jesus takes him away from the crowd. He puts his fingers in the man's ears. Then he spits, and touches his tongue. He spoke to the man and said, "Be opened." Did it work? How did Jesus do that?

Jesus taught his disciples what to pray about. We pray for God to provide our food. We ask him to forgive us, and remember that we forgive other people, too. We ask him to lead us to make good decisions.  He's the boss of us.  And that's a good thing!

Jesus taught his disciples a way to pray. We get to call God our Father, because he is our Father in heaven. We pray that he is respected and honored. We pray for his kingdom to come - that what he wants happens on earth as it does in heaven. 

Jesus told the story about the prodigal son to tell us how much our heavenly father loves us, even when we don't deserve it. The son took his inheritance early and wasted it on parties and wild living. When he came back home, what was his father's reaction?

When Jesus saw a crippled woman in the synagogue he couldn't wait for her to be healed. He told her she was set free, and when he laid his hands on her she was able to straighten up. But it made the leader mad - for someone to be healed on the sabbath day. But what did Jesus say?