Table Talks: How to Be a BFFSample

Table Talk 3: Doing Right, Even When It's Hard

Say This: This devotion is all about our friends. Who likes having friends? Who likes having a lot of friends? Tell us why you do or don’t want a lot of friends.

Ask This: How can someone get a lot of friends?

Say This: Someone once said, “the easiest way to get friends is to be a great friend first.”

Ask This: How can someone be a great friend?

Ask This: Do you have to do big things for others to be a great friend? (No) What are some small things we can do to be a great friend?

Say This: Sometimes, being a friend means we do things we know are right when others want us to do things that are bad. Some call this being a good influence and not a bad one.

Ask This: How would you describe influence? [Influence in the ability to make things better or worse.]

Say This: It’s not always easy to influence others for good. Sometimes we have to be willing to make hard decisions, even if we might be scared to do the right thing.

Ask This: Have you ever been faced with making a decision to do the right thing even if you knew others might laugh at you?

Ask This: What choices did you have?

Ask This: If you did the right thing, why were you willing to stand for the right and not the wrong? If your friends were with you, how did they react?

Say This: Our friends can influence us or we can try to influence them. I want to read a story from the Bible about a young man who had to make a decision. He decided to ask two groups of people for advice. Listen to how it played out.

Read This: 1 Kings 12:1-12 [Pro Tip: Read this story ahead of time and tell it with your own creative twists and emphasis. Have fun with it.]

Say This: Do you see how our friends can influence us to make poor choices? We have to be willing to do what is right, even if it’s hard. And maybe, we can be the one influencing our friends.

Do This: Do a home-version of fingerprinting. Grab some paper, pencil and clear tape. Pull off a piece of tape the length of the top digit on your pointer finger. Put it on the table, sticky side up. Next, use the pencil to make a dark spot on the paper large enough to roll the top digit of your pointer finger back and forth. BEFORE you put your finger on the dark spot, rub it across your forehead, near the hairline to gather a little oil. Take your finger and lay it straight onto the dark spot (without smudging) and then carefully roll it onto the tape. Finally, take the tape and stick it to the paper. Do this for everyone so they can see their own fingerprint.

Say This: We all have fingerprints and no two fingerprints are the same. We’re all unique. When we influence other people, it’s like putting our fingerprints on them. It’s our unique opportunity to help others become better or do something easier because we choose to help and serve. Let’s ask God to help us be great friends and even greater influences on others.

Pray This: Dear Jesus, please help us be people and a family who influences others for great things. Help us to see how we can serve and help people become who you made them to be. May we be great friends on purpose and even when it means making hard choices.