Weekly Kids’ Reflection in our Parish Bulletins – Comments on these reflections can be sent to heykids23@gmail.com
Hey Kids! Bulletin Article – August 2, 2026
Hey, Kids! – Have you ever needed to be alone to sit in sadness? You may feel like you need the world around you to quiet down a bit so you can collect your thoughts. If you have ever mourned the death of a loved one, sitting alone in a room and crying may be the only way to push through the pain. Sometimes, being alone can bring us peace when we are sad. We can use this time to talk to God and come to terms with our grief and sadness. Most of the time, when someone passes, you get more visitors than you could have ever imagined. We could either embrace this gift or turn them away.
In today’s Gospel of Matthew, Jesus appears to need some time and quiet space after he heard about the death of John the Baptist and went on a boat to a deserted place. However, a crowd of people followed him. He later spoke with them, cured the sick and fed them all. I would like to think that even though Jesus was so sad about John’s passing and kind of just wanted to be……alone……he felt comfort seeing a crowd of people also mourning with him and wanting answers. He was moved by seeing them and probably felt compassion for them as well. Instead of being alone with God, he chose to share more of what he knew of God.
I find it refreshing that Jesus got sad too; just like I do. Perhaps he needed to be alone with God to help him understand what just happened. People were looking to him on how to react. What did he do? He continued to do God’s work. He continued to pray, to heal the sick and to feed the hungry. He didn’t send them away, even though his disciples were encouraging to do so. Why is this important for us to hear about? Because death is very much a fact of life. It is ok to be sad and to want to be alone when we are mourning. However, we should continue to focus on God and His Will. Let us take that sadness and volunteer our time at a shelter. Perhaps we can start a fundraiser in honor of our loved one. Whatever we choose to do, let us remember to invite God into our pain. Be grateful for those that want to sit beside us when we are sad.
Let us pray: Heavenly Father, we thank you sending us Jesus to remind us how You are always with us. Amen.
Hey Kids! Bulletin Article – July 26, 2026
Hey, Kids! – Finding a hidden treasure can be one of the coolest experiences for someone. In the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus tells us a few different parables (stories) that help us to imagine what heaven is like. He compared heaven to a treasure that is filled with valuable goods that is found buried in a field. Jesus goes on to say it is like fishing and the net you are using collects various fish. You throw away the bad fish, but you keep all of the good fish. Heaven is like this – meaning that there is no evil or sin in heaven. Only good is in heaven. All the people that believe in God are in heaven and all the people that do not believe in God and have lived their life in evil ways will not be allowed in heaven.
We know that this is the good ending we will have if we listen to what Jesus is trying to get into our heads and hearts through his stories. We know that Jesus loves us no matter what. We know that as long as when we ask for forgiveness and try our best to follow God’s rules, we will be allowed into the kingdom of heaven. However, Jesus wants us to know that when we do get into heaven, it is the most perfect place you can imagine. When we are in heaven, all the bad things we have experienced from our time on Earth are washed away, forgotten and forgiven. You may even see a familiar face in heaven of someone that once hurt you and the grace of heaven would not even allow you to remember that hurt. I think that is truly amazing. Once we are in heaven, forgiveness will wash away any painful memories and everyone in heaven is a FRIEND. We will be in heaven surrounded by people who have been forgiven of their sins and filled with God’s grace. We must do our part to find the wonderful treasures here on Earth to get us into heaven. Reading the bible, learning about Jesus, forgiving those that hurt us and being kind are true treasures here on Earth.
Let us pray: Father in heaven, thank you for letting us know that we can live forever with you in the most perfect place. I want to live with you in peace, harmony and surrounded by love. Amen.