Read: Psalm 133:1; Philippians 2:14-16; Colossians 3:23

George rubbed his stomach and John licked his lips as they entered the kitchen.

“That sure was a good meal,” said George. “I love that chicken Mom makes.”

John set his plate in the sink with a clang. “But look at all the dirty dishes,” he said. “The sink is full of them. I’m glad it’s your turn to clean up.”

“It’s not my turn. I did dishes last night. Don’t you remember?”

John put his hands on his hips. “I know you did them last night, but last week I did them two nights in a row because you had soccer practice. So you owe me.”

Mom entered the kitchen. “Goodness, boys. Do you have to fight about everything? I worked hard to make this meal because I know it’s one of your favorites. I’d appreciate your help cleaning up.”

John pointed his finger at George, and George stuck out his tongue.

“You know what the Bible says?” Mom asked.

“It says lots of things,” said George.

“In the book of Philippians, Paul tells us to do everything without complaining or arguing.”

“Everything?” asked John. “Even dishes? I bet Paul never had to do dishes.”

“Maybe not,” Mom said. “But he worked really hard as a missionary. And he also worked as a tentmaker because he didn’t want to ask for money. In Colossians, another book of the Bible, Paul tells us to do our work willingly and joyfully because we’re really doing it for Jesus, who willingly died on the cross to save us. And do you know what else the Bible says?”

George and John both answered at the same time. “It says lots of things.”

Mom smiled. “In Psalms it says it is good and pleasant when brothers live in unity.”

George and John glared at each other. Then George’s lips curved up the tiniest bit. Then John grinned even more. And suddenly they were both laughing.

“I know you did the dishes last night,” said John. “Sometimes when I have band rehearsal, you do them two nights in a row, and I don’t always repay you. So I can do them tonight.”

“Or maybe we can do them together,” George said as he picked up a dish towel. “You wash, I dry?”

John nodded and flicked on the faucet.

–Carol Raj

How about you? Do you complain about work you have to do? Do you argue with others when it seems like you’re doing more than they are? Instead of complaining and arguing, think of chores and other tasks as opportunities to show others God’s love. The Bible tells us that Jesus is the one we’re truly working for, and when we do our work out of love and joy, we reflect Him.

Today's Key Verse: Do everything without complaining or arguing. Philippians 2:14 (ERV)

Today's Key Thought: Help without complaining

Read: Job 12:7-10; Matthew 6:26

“Mom, what is this animal?” Tiana asked as she gazed past the zoo fence. The animal looked strong like a horse, but it had the stripes of a zebra on its legs. “Is it a type of zebra?”

Mom looked at the plate in front of the cage. “It’s an okapi. It’s related to the giraffe.”

“Not a zebra?” Tiana asked, wondering where the dark brown on the animal’s head and back came from. It was kind of cute with its big ears. “Do you think okapis have good hearing?”

“Not sure, but they can lick their own ears!” Mom exclaimed. “They have long, blueish tongues that help them reach and grab hold of leaves they want to eat. That’s crazy!”

“I hope I see one stick out its tongue today.” Tiana watched the okapis closely, hoping to catch a glimpse of one licking its ear.

“They also have oily coats that make rain slide right off,” Mom said as she continued reading the plate. “So, they never get wet.”

“That’s super cool,” Tiana said, still staring at the animals.

“Tiana, how did the okapi learn to get an oily coat?” Mom asked her. “Do you think they rub their backs in a puddle of oil?”

Tiana frowned. “No, that’s silly. They were made that way.”

“Made that way by who?” Mom asked.

“God,” Tiana answered. “He made everything.”

“He did, didn’t He? He gave them their ears and tongues and oily skin. He clearly cares a whole lot about okapis.”

Tiana shrugged. “I guess.”

“If God cares so much about these animals, how much more do you think He cares about you?” Mom asked gently. “I know you’ve been having a hard time since I started dating Rod. I know you miss your dad. I just want you to remember that Jesus loves you and is always with you. He came to earth and died to save you, and He cares about every detail of your life. You can talk to Him about anything—big or small.”

“I’m glad God cares about me.” Tiana watched one of the okapis lie down and lick its ear. She smiled. “And I’m glad He cares about okapis too.”

–Kimberly Brokish

How about you? Do you ever wonder if God cares about you? He does. When you look at the amazing way He created each animal and gave it exactly what it needs, you can see how much He cares about His creation. Yet the Bible says He cares about us even more than animals. He made us in His image and sent His Son, Jesus, to save us so we could have eternal life with Him. You can talk to Him about anything, knowing He cares about you.

Today's Key Verse: Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about you. 1 Peter 5:7 (NLT)

Today's Key Thought: God cares about you

Read: Philippians 3:4-9

As Dad and Micah walked into the station, the train on the track gave two long whistles. “It looks like our train is almost ready to pull out—we must be later than I thought!” said Dad. “Good thing I got our tickets ahead of time. Come on!” They made a dash for it and were just settling down in their seats when the train began to move.

Micah was so excited he could hardly sit still. “I can’t believe we’re really going to see the Cubs play in person! How many miles is it to Chicago, Dad?”

“I don’t know exactly. You can ask the conductor. Here he comes now—get your ticket ready! Here, you can give him mine too.”

The conductor approached, and Micah proudly held out the tickets. “Thank you, young man,” the conductor said. He looked at the tickets, and then turned to Dad. “Sir, I’m afraid you’ve either got the wrong tickets or the wrong train. Your tickets are for Chicago, but this train is going to St. Louis.”

“Oh no!” exclaimed Dad. “How could I have made such a mistake? I was sure I had the right train.”

“You can get off at the next station,” the conductor said. “Then you can catch the first train back the other way. It shouldn’t take too long.”

“Are we going to make it to Chicago, Dad?” Micah asked anxiously. “What about the ball game?”

“I think we’ll still make it to the game,” Dad assured him. “You know, Micah, this kind of thing happens a lot.”

“You mean a lot of people get on the wrong train?” Micah asked.

“I was thinking of something even worse than that,” Dad replied. “Everyone wants to go to heaven someday, but when we try to get there the wrong way, it’s like we’re on the wrong train. No matter how good we try to be, the Bible says we won’t get to heaven by anything we do. Do you know the way that does lead to heaven, Micah?”

“Sure,” Micah answered. “Jesus says He’s the way.”

“Right,” said Dad. “He’s the one and only way to heaven. We can only have eternal life with God by trusting in Him.”

–Harry C. Trover

How about you? Are you trying to get to heaven by living a good life? By going to church, giving to people in need, or doing nice things for others? If so, you’re going the wrong way! None of those things will get you to heaven. Jesus is the only way. It’s not what you do, but what He did for you on the cross, that gives you eternal life. Trust in Him today! (To learn more, go to Have You Heard the Good News?)

Today's Key Verse: Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.” John 14:6 (NKJV)

Today's Key Thought: Jesus is the way to heaven

Read: Psalm 119:9-16

Manuel looked up when Grandpa walked into the room. “Do you know where I left my glasses?” Grandpa asked as he reached for his Bible.

Grandma sighed. “Did you lose those glasses again? You had them on when you paid the pizza delivery man.”

“We didn’t order pizza today. That was yesterday,” said Grandpa. “Somebody else was here today. Now…” He stopped a moment to cough.

“Your cough doesn’t seem to be getting better,” Grandma said. “You’d better get more medicine.”

“I just got some,” said Grandpa. He paused and furrowed his brows. “Leo!” he suddenly called out, making Manuel jump. “That’s who came today!” Grandpa turned to Manuel. “Leo lives next door, and he picks up medicine for me.”

Just then Manuel spied Grandpa’s glasses lying on the table. “Here are your glasses, Grandpa.”

“Oh good, you found them,” Grandma said. “Now, if only I could find mine!”

Manuel grinned. “They’re on your head, Grandma!”

“Oh, look at that!” Grandma laughed. “I don’t remember putting them on.”

Grandpa put on his glasses and opened the Bible he was holding.

“Are you gonna memorize some verses, Grandpa?” Manuel asked.

Grandpa shook his head. “Not today, but we used to memorize whole chapters when we were kids.”

“That’s right,” said Grandma. “Sometimes when our eyes are tired now, we just say some of them together.”

“Wait a minute,” Manuel said with a puzzled look. “You can’t remember things that happened today—even just a little while ago—so how do you remember things you learned when you were kids?”

Grandpa smiled. “The things we learn as kids just stick in our brains better, I guess. The older you get, the harder it is to remember things. That’s why we encourage you to read and memorize God’s Word as much as you can now, while you’re young.”

Grandma nodded. “The verses I learned as a child have stuck with me all through my life. They’ve reminded me in difficult times that I belong to Jesus and that He’s always with me. That’s something I’ll never forget!”

–Agnes Livezey

How about you? Are you hiding God’s Word in your heart? One way to do that is by memorizing Bible verses. Try it now with today’s key verse. Read it over a few times, then shut your eyes and see if you can say it out loud. Try to do that with a different verse every day or week. But don’t just memorize the words—think about what God is telling you. Use His Word to help you remember His truth and promises.

Today's Key Verse: Your word I have hidden in my heart, that I might not sin against You. Psalm 119:11 (NKJV)

Today's Key Thought: Memorize Bible verses

Read: Isaiah 53:4-11

“Mom, I don’t understand this verse,” Alec said. “It’s Second Corinthians 5:21. ‘God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.’ I know it’s talking about Jesus, but what does it mean when it says He was made to be sin for us? Jesus never sinned, did He?”

“No, He didn’t,” said Mom. “That’s why He was able to save us by taking our sin upon Himself. Let’s see if I can find a way to help you think about it.” She pulled up a picture on her phone. “Here’s a picture of a leper—a person who has leprosy. It’s a contagious disease mentioned often in the Bible, and it can still be found in some parts of the world today.”

Alec looked at the picture and frowned. “That poor man. He doesn’t have any fingers or toes, just little stumps!”

“Yes,” said Mom, “and he’s blind too. If you saw this man, what would you do for him?”

Alec thought about it. “I would give him a drink of water and some food.”

“But he’s dying,” said Mom. “Would you love him enough to get down beside him and take him in your arms and tell him that if he trusts in Jesus, he’ll go to heaven?”

Alec hesitated, then nodded. “But I’d want to wear a mask so I wouldn’t get sick.”

“But what if, in order to really help him, you had to get sick?” Mom asked. “What if you had the power to allow all of his sickness to flow into your body and let all of your strength and health flow into his? Would you do that?”

Alec cringed at that idea. “I don’t think I could do that,” he said. “He has such a horrible disease!”

Mom nodded. “Yet that’s what Jesus did for us, Alec. He never sinned, but He took all our sin upon Himself and died on the cross to take our punishment. That’s what caused Him to suffer so much—not just the physical pain of the crucifixion, but bearing the huge weight of our sin.”

Alec thought it over. “I think I’m beginning to understand.”

–Harry C. Trover

How about you? Have you ever thought about what Jesus did when He died for your sins? He suffered great shame and horror by taking your sin upon Himself. He took your place on the cross so you could spend eternity in heaven with Him instead of hell—He loves you that much! Accept His sacrifice for your sins and trust Him as your Savior. (To learn more, go to Have You Heard the Good News?)

Today's Key Verse: God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. 2 Corinthians 5:21 (NIV)

Today's Key Thought: Jesus took your sin upon Himself

Read: 1 John 1:5-9

“Ronan!” Mom called. “Can you take out the trash, please? I had to get rid of the old trash can, so you’ll just have to stack the bags in the garage for now.”

Ronan scowled. “Why can’t Daisy put it out for once? All she ever does is sit around and text her friends.”

Daisy scowled back at him. “At least I have friends!”

“Both of you, stop it!” said Mom. “Why do you kids have to fight all the time?”

Ronan didn’t say anything more as he grudgingly took out the trash.

When they pulled into the garage a couple days later, Daisy held her nose as she got out of the car. “Ugh! Something stinks in here!”

“It’s the trash!” said Mom. “Let’s move these bags out to the driveway. I’ll text Dad and remind him to pick up a new trash can on his way home.”

“Hey! Come back here and help!” Ronan called to Daisy, who was going into the house. “No wonder you didn’t get a part in the school play—they must have known you’d be too lazy to learn your lines!”

Daisy kicked at the bag he was holding. “Be quiet, dummy!” she yelled.

“That’s enough!” Mom said sternly. “You’ll both help.”

When they finished, Mom made them go to the kitchen and sit down. “Your attitudes remind me of that trash,” she told them.

“Sorry,” Ronan muttered. “Can I get up now?”

“No!” Mom pulled out a chair and sat down. “The way you’ve been acting stinks worse than the trash you took out of the garage today. Things like bad attitudes, selfishness, and jealousy hurt people Jesus wants us to love and drive them away from us. That’s why we need to confess those stinky sins to Jesus. He’ll forgive us and make us clean. He’ll also help us apologize to others for what we’ve done and replace mean, selfish attitudes with kindness and love.”

Daisy and Ronan were quiet for a moment, then they looked at each other. “I’m sorry,” they said in unison. That made them smile.

Mom stood up and grinned. “It smells better in here already!”

–Barbara J. Westberg

How about you? Have you noticed any trash in your life lately? Sins like meanness, gossip, laziness, selfishness, and unkind words can really stink up your life and hurt your relationships with others. Ask Jesus to take out the trash! When you confess your sins to Him, He forgives you and makes you clean. Then trust Him to help you tell others you’re sorry and replace unkind attitudes with His love.

Today's Key Verse: If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 1 John 1:9 (NKJV)

Today's Key Thought: Confess sin and be clean

Read: Ephesians 1:4-6

Audrey sat on the front steps, lost in thought. She’d had a rough week. She failed her math test and skinned her knee, and one of her best friends had moved away. Why is God letting all these things happen to me? she thought. It almost seems like He doesn’t care about me anymore.

Audrey glanced up when her puppy came bounding out onto the front porch. “Hello, Shamrock,” she said. But Shamrock didn’t seem interested in her—he was too busy gnawing on something. “Hey, that’s mine!” Audrey exclaimed, grabbing a wallet from the puppy’s mouth. “I just got this, and now you’ve ruined it!” She looked the torn-up wallet over and sighed. “Maybe Mom can fix it.”

Mom came out onto the front porch and examined the wallet. “Hmm, this is pretty torn up. We’ll probably have to throw it out.”

“But it’s still good,” said Audrey. “It’s just a little torn.”

“This wallet has been through a lot,” Mom said. “Are you sure we shouldn’t throw it away? It’s too torn and dirty to be worth anything.”

“Mom, just because it doesn’t look so good doesn’t mean it isn’t worth anything. If we fix it up, it will be as good as new.”

Mom smiled. “You probably feel a lot like this wallet right now, don’t you?”

Audrey gave her a puzzled look. “What do you mean?” she asked.

“I know this wallet is still good, and with a little TLC, I can fix it up,” Mom said. “I just wanted to help you see that your life is like this wallet. I know this week has been rough for you. But even though you’ve been through a lot, you’re still valuable. You belong to Jesus, who came into our broken world and gave His life to save you and make you His, and He’ll always be there to help you through life’s difficulties. His thoughts toward you will never change, no matter how torn up you feel.”

“Thanks, Mom,” Audrey said, giving Shamrock a hug. “I’m glad I’ll always be valuable to Jesus. And I’m glad you can fix my wallet—things are already starting to look up!”

–Norah Varner

How about you? Have you ever felt like God has turned away from you? Do you feel like you can’t do anything right? Jesus loves you so much that He died and rose again to save you, and He’ll never leave you. No matter what has happened to you or what you’ve done, His thoughts toward you will never change. He will always love you and care for you.

Today's Key Verse: This is my comfort in my affliction: Your promise has given me life. Psalm 119:50 (CSB)

Today's Key Thought: You’re valuable to Jesus

Read: John 13:35; Romans 1:14-16

“Happy birthday!” Ivy said when she arrived at her friend Rennah’s birthday party. Ivy’s family had moved recently, and she’d been praying for new friends. Now she had some.

But there was a problem at Rennah’s party. “Okay, you guys,” Rennah said when they were ready to play the first game. “Here’s what you do. Everybody has to draw a slip of paper from this basket. When it’s your turn, you have to do what it says.” She began to pass the basket, and each girl pulled out a piece of paper.

Ivy eagerly unfolded her slip of paper and looked at it. Oh no! she thought. Doing this would be wrong, but if I don’t do it, everyone will laugh at me. Ivy tried to think of a way out. Maybe I could trade with somebody—but then I’d be asking someone else to do it. What am I going to do? She silently asked Jesus to help her know what she should do. Then she heard her name being called.

Ivy took a deep breath. “I’m supposed to draw a picture of who I think is the ugliest boy at school and have you guess who it is, but I—I can’t do it.” The room became very quiet. “I don’t like to look at people that way,” Ivy continued. “I feel like I’d be treating someone God created and loves very badly if I did that.”

After a moment, Rennah shrugged. “That’s okay. We’ll skip you. Jasmine, you’re next.”

The next day at school, Serena, one of the girls who had been at the party, came up to Ivy. “I’ve been thinking a lot about what you said at the party,” Serena said. “I’m a Christian too, but I don’t usually let people know that because I’m afraid they’ll make fun of me. I probably would have just done what was on that slip of paper and then felt bad about it afterward.” She paused. “I’m glad you didn’t do that. You reminded me that I need to let people know I belong to Jesus and show it in the way I treat others.”

Ivy was surprised. “Thanks, Serena.” She smiled. “Wanna join me for lunch?”

Serena nodded, and the girls continued talking on their way to the cafeteria.

–Bernard Palmer

How about you? Are you afraid to let others know you’re a Christian? Do you think they’ll make fun of you for doing what God says is right? People might respond negatively, but Jesus will help you. He took your sin and shame on Himself to give you eternal life. Because of Him, you have nothing to be ashamed of! Let others know you follow Him and see His love in your life.

Today's Key Verse: I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ. Romans 1:16 (NKJV)

Today's Key Thought: Let others know you follow Jesus