READ: JAMES 1:2-4; 1 PETER 2:21-23 Do you remember the last time you had a cold? Maybe you had a scratchy, sore throat, congested sinuses, body aches, a fever, or all of those at once. Colds can be pretty awful. Do you have someone to help you when you get sick? Someone who’ll bring you [...]

READ: PSALM 119:97-104; JEREMIAH 15:15-17; MATTHEW 4:4 What is your favorite food? Think about how good it feels to eat that food, especially when you’re hungry! Now, listen to what the prophet Jeremiah says: “When your words came, I ate them; they were my joy and my heart’s delight, for I bear your name, Lord [...]

READ: PHILIPPIANS 1:3-11 Imagine you pick up a violin and attempt to play it for the very first time. You tuck it under your chin, pick up your bow, and draw it gently across the strings. Would you expect to hear lovely music? Of course not! You’d probably get some screeches and sour notes. But [...]

READ: ISAIAH 1:18; 1 JOHN 1:6–2:2 Have you ever accidentally folded a basket of dirty laundry? At first, you probably didn’t even notice the clothes weren’t clean. But, when you took a closer look (or smell), you could probably tell that the clothes had been worn. If you decided to just fold them up and [...]

READ: ROMANS 12:4-8; 1 PETER 4:7-11 When you watch or play a sport, do you expect everyone to be good at every part of the game? For example, if you watch baseball, does everyone who bats get the same number of hits? Does everyone throw the exact same way? Of course not! Everyone on a [...]

READ: JOHN 15:1-17 Have you ever seen someone prune a tree or another plant—or done some pruning yourself? Pruning involves cutting off part of a plant so there can be new growth. As a gardener clips, cuts, or saws off branches, sometimes it looks like they’re trying to harm the plant rather than help it. [...]

READ: LUKE 15 Have you ever wondered why Jesus often spoke in parables? Parables are short, metaphorical stories that point to a deeper truth. They illustrate what Jesus was teaching, and they can also make biblical truths easier for us to understand. It’s kind of like the difference between eating a lime and eating a [...]

READ: PHILIPPIANS 4:8; JAMES 3:3-18 Have you ever seen a place that’s been destroyed by a forest fire? Forest fires can cause miles of destruction, leaving nothing but the charred remains of trees in their wake. And all this damage can be caused by something as small as an unattended campfire. When the weather is [...]

READ: MATTHEW 5:16; PHILIPPIANS 2:1-18; 1 JOHN 3:1 Next time you see a full moon, try this: Grab a small coin, and go outside. Then, hold it out in front of you, close one eye, and see if you can cover the moon with the coin. Isn’t it strange that you can completely block out [...]

READ: PSALM 33:12-20; 1 TIMOTHY 2:1-6; 1 PETER 2:9-17 Do you pray for your country? No matter where you live, your nation needs prayer. We don’t need to pray for our country to be the best in the world, but we can pray that God will guide and bless our leaders so they can make [...]