Bible Reading: Romans 3:22-26; Titus 3:5-7

Rosita wiped sweat from her forehead, then got back to scrubbing the pot in the sink. She was working as hard as she could to clean the kitchen before Mom got home. They'd had a fight that morning, and Rosita was sorry for the things she'd said. She sighed and scrubbed harder. I want this kitchen sparkling clean when Mom gets home from work, she thought. That'll make up for it.

She glanced into the living room where her little brother was watching cartoons. "Hugo, bring your plate and cup here so I can wash them. And I just mopped the floor, so be careful!"

But Hugo wasn't careful. He ran in and slipped when his socks hit the wet floor. His plastic dishes went flying into the air as he went sprawling across the kitchen, milk and crumbs raining down on top of him.

Rosita gasped. "Hugo!"

Just then the door opened and Mom walked in. "Wow," she said. "What a mess."

Rosita covered her face with her soapy hands and burst into tears. Mom and Hugo stared at her for a moment before Mom sent him upstairs to wash the milk out of his hair. "Rosita, what's wrong?" Mom asked.

"I--I've been working hard to clean the kitchen all afternoon. I wanted everything to be sparkling clean when you got here because I felt bad about what I said this morning. I wanted to make things right."

"Oh, honey." Mom gave her a hug. "You don't have to clean the kitchen to make things right with me. You're my daughter--I love you, and I'll always forgive you. But I know the feeling. In fact, I used to try to do the same thing with God. I thought I could make up for my wrongs by doing something right. But it wasn't enough."

"Because the only way to make things right with God is through Jesus, right?"

"You got it," said Mom. "When we trust Him to save us, He forgives our sins and makes us sparkling clean."

Rosita nodded. "I'm sorry for what I said this morning, Mom. Will you forgive me?"

"Of course." Mom grabbed a mop from the closet. "And now I'm going to make this kitchen sparkling clean!"

–Courtney Lasater

Bible Reading: Psalm 119:27, 159-160; 2 Timothy 3:14-17

The sun was just poking its head over the treetops when Savannah and her mother left for a walk in the woods near their new home. "I didn't understand what Dad read in the Bible this morning," Savannah said. "Why can't we just skip the parts of the Bible that don't seem to say anything important?"

Mom was about to reply when Savannah spotted some interesting bushes along the path. "Look, Mom. Those are some kind of berry bushes, aren't they?"

Mom stopped and peered at the bushes. "I think they might be, but I don't see any fruit on them."

Savannah reached out and lifted some of the leaves. "Here! Underneath the leaves."

"You're right!" said Mom. "Those are wild blackberries! They'd taste great on our cereal--or just as a snack. How about running back to the house and getting a bucket so we can pick some?"

Savannah eagerly ran home and returned with a pail, and she and Mom began to gather the ripe, luscious fruit. "I'm glad your sharp eyes noticed these," said Mom. "I saw the green leaves, but I didn't see what was hidden underneath them." She dumped a handful of berries into the bucket. "Maybe that's the answer to the question you asked a while ago."

"You mean about skipping parts of the Bible?" asked Savannah.

Mom nodded. "When we read the Bible, we don't always understand every important truth right away--just like I didn't spot those berries. But when we take time to think about what a verse or passage says, it can help us see how it fits into God's story of how He continues to love us even though we sin. Everything in the Bible points to God's gift of Jesus, who became human and died and rose again to save us. Every passage can teach us something about Jesus and our need for Him. That's why we read all the parts of the Bible."

"When we get back home, maybe I should read that Bible passage from this morning again," said Savannah.

"Why don't we read it together?" suggested Mom. "We can eat fruit from this bucket while we look for spiritual fruit in the Bible!"

–Judith K. Boogaart

Bible Reading: Matthew 11:28-30

Julian cheered in excitement at the tractor pulling contest. One of the contestants--a friend of Julian's family--revved the engine as his tractor strained to pull the heavy load. It inched along, then gathered speed to the finish line. "He made it!" Julian shouted, and he clapped along with others in the crowd.

"The next load he has to pull will be heavier," Grandpa said.

The driver revved the engine again, and it moved slowly forward. The load behind the groaning tractor was dragged at a snail's pace to the finish line. Julian shot up from his seat and cheered.

He grew anxious as he watched the workers add more weights to the next load. The driver powered up the engine, but nothing happened. Again the engine roared, but the load didn't budge. The driver hunched over the wheel as if to coax the tractor into one last try before time was up. Julian felt like he was in the contest himself, and he yelled encouragement as the tractor began to inch forward. Slowly, slowly it went, until at last it reached the finish line. It had moved a heavier load than any other tractor. The crowd went wild.

Over hot dogs and pop, Grandpa and Julian talked about the contest. "It made me think about the struggles we have in life," said Grandpa. "Sometimes our loads are almost too heavy for us to pull."

Julian nodded, thinking about the hard time he had in reading class at school. He just couldn't read as well as the other kids. After getting his last report card, Julian had gone to his room and cried.

Grandpa smiled at him. "Way back when I was your age, I found out that Jesus wants to help us pull heavy loads--the hardships we face in life. So I ask Him to help me whenever I feel like things are just too much. The problems don't always disappear, but they seem lighter when I remember that Jesus, who took the burden of my sin by dying on the cross, wants to help me with any struggles that are weighing me down."

Julian smiled back at Grandpa, knowing what he had to do. He would talk to Jesus about his struggle to read. He needed help with his heavy load.

–Carolyn E. Yost

Bible Reading: Exodus 19:3-6; Isaiah 40:27-31

Annie leaned her forehead against the cool windowpane of the airport in Sicily. She sighed as she watched yet another large airplane taxi down the runway and fly off into the big blue sky. Her family had been detoured on the way back to the States from Africa where they were missionaries, and it felt like they had been stuck in the airport for weeks instead of days.

"Vroom, vroom!" Her younger brother, Bryce, flew past her with his arms extended and accidentally bumped her elbow.

"Knock it off, Bryce!" Annie said irritably.

"Hey, what's the problem?" Dad asked, coming over.

Annie sighed again. "It feels like we've been at the airport forever and God has forgotten about us!"

Dad nodded thoughtfully. "I know it feels that way right now, but God is working out just the right flight for us to get on." He looked out the airport window as another plane took off. "Did you know the Bible talks about wings?"

Bryce stopped making airplane noises and looked at Dad. "Like airplane wings?"

Dad smiled. "These are a different type of wings. Do you remember the story in the Bible about the people of Israel getting ready to go into the land God had promised them? They had waited a very long time--longer than we've waited here! God reminded them of how He had taken care of them before, just like an eagle takes care of its young by carrying them on its wings. And God will always take care of us too. Jesus died and rose from the dead to make us God's children, and He won't ever forget about us. He promises to help us in every situation."

"Wow. I never thought of it like that before," Annie said.

"Me neither," said Bryce.

"Speaking of wings," Dad said, "I think I'll go make another phone call and see if we'll be able to get on one of those airplanes today."

As he walked away, Bryce got a silly look on his face. "Hey, Annie, what do you think the eagle said to Dad when the phone rang?"

Annie shrugged. "I don't know. What?"

"Wing, wing!"

Bryce and Annie's laughter echoed in the airport as they relaxed, knowing both their dad and their heavenly Father were taking care of them.

–Kelly Hope

Bible Reading: Isaiah 43:1-4

Max opened his car window and smelled pine trees. Mom and Dad sang their old camp song about a cowboy and his one-eyed horse. Max usually sang along. But today the lyrics caught in his throat.

Mom and Dad's stories of camp made Max feel like he knew the place even though he'd never been there. He couldn't wait to come to Bible camp. But now as camp came into view, he wasn't so sure.

"It's too bad the other boys from church couldn't come with you," Mom said.

Dad parked the car and patted Max on the shoulder. "You're going to love it here!" Max felt funny inside as he watched Mom and Dad drive away.

Max met his counselor, who showed him around his cabin. "Okay, Mike, here's your bunk."

He doesn't even know my name, Max thought. Nobody here does. I don't belong here.

The counselor shouted, "Campers! Time to meet out by the lake. Bring your Bibles. Move out!"

In the noisy crowd, everyone seemed to be with friends. No one spoke to Max.

At the beach, the camp director blew a whistle and shouted, "Bibles up! First one who turns to Isaiah 43:1, whistle the cowboy song!" A moment later Max and most of the other boys started whistling. The director pointed to Max. "Read the last part of verse one."

Max read, "Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by your name; you are Mine."

The director nodded at Max and said, "Even though I don't know this camper's name, God does. And God knows each of your names. He knows all about you because He made you. He sent His Son, Jesus, to save you. This is the theme verse for camp this week, so we're going to memorize it and talk about it every day. It shows that God loves you and wants you to belong to Him."

Max prayed silently, "God, I know I belong to You--thank you for saving me and always being with me. Please help me feel like I belong here too."

On the way back to the cabin, a boy walked up to Max. "You must be new here," he said. "I'm Oliver."

Max smiled and said, "My name is Max."

–Laura Roesler

Bible Reading: Romans 12:9-13

"Look!" said Rylee, stepping back from the huge saguaro cactus. "There's something in that hole!"

Dad and Easton came over to see. Sure enough, a pair of blinking yellow eyes peered back at them from a hole in the trunk of the cactus.

"I think it's a screech owl," said Easton. "We learned that woodpeckers peck holes into cactuses when they make their nests. Then after they leave, other birds move into the empty holes and live there."

Dad nodded. "Each time the cactus skin is broken--like when a woodpecker makes a hole--a thick gluey liquid seeps out and forms a waterproof pouch. The liquid hardens, kind of like a scab, to make the pouch permanent. Inside the hole it's cooler in the day and warmer at night, so it makes an ideal home for desert birds."

Rylee saw big and little holes in the arms of one of the cactuses--they were everywhere. "This saguaro is like a high-rise apartment building!" she said with a laugh. "What a crowded place to live."

Easton grinned. "Just like our house."

Rylee nodded thoughtfully. Grandma had recently moved into their house, and Julia, a single mom who went to their church, was going to be living with them for a while with her two-year-old son, Wilder.

Rylee remembered the discussion they'd had about Julia and Wilder coming. "You're kidding!" Rylee had said. "Where are they going to sleep?"

"Well, they will need to move into your room, and you'll have to share a room with Easton." Dad patted Rylee's hand when he saw the look on her face. "It's only for a while until Julia can get back on her feet. We'll all have to make some sacrifices, but that's often necessary when we're called to love others like Jesus, who sacrificed everything for us. Pray about it, will you?"

Rylee had tried, but she hadn't felt comfortable praying. She knew she was being selfish. But now Rylee looked at the big saguaro that offered a home to any creature who needed it, even if it meant having holes pecked into its walls. I won't complain, she thought. Even if Wilder pounds holes into our walls too--and knowing him, I'm sure he will!

–Trudy Vander Veen