Read: Ephesians 4:30-32; 1 John 1:9

Mia loved playing foursquare. Every day at recess, she was first to grab the big rubber ball and station herself inside the “king” square of the painted foursquare grid.

Thwump! The ball ricocheted out of Tatiana’s square and rolled into the bushes. “You’re out!” called Mia gleefully. “And I’m still in.” Tatiana exited the square.

Womp! The ball bounced into Jonah’s square and flew out before he could hit it to another player. Jonah hung his head and walked to the back of the line.

“I won again!” sang Mia.

A new kid joined the game. Someone Mia didn’t recognize. Mia skillfully palmed the ball and it spun into his square. Would he be able to hit it back?

“Oooh! A spinner!” called Emilie.

Mia held her breath as she waited. The new boy tapped the ball back to her so gently that she lunged to reach it. She missed and flew forward, scraping both knees.

“No fair!” Mia screeched. She grabbed the foursquare ball and threw it as hard as she could. All her friends watched as the ball hit a sharp rock and popped.

Tears filled Mia’s eyes, and she ran.

The recess monitor, Mrs. Goldspeed, found Mia sitting on the curb, head in her arms. “What happened, honey?”

“I…I scraped my knees,” Mia muttered.

“Hmm. Does that have anything to do with this broken ball?” Mrs. Goldspeed held up a piece of rubber folded over her arm like a worn-out rag.

“Well,” hedged Mia. She sighed. “I got mad, because I didn’t win.”

“You know, this deflated ball is like us when we sin,” said Mrs. Goldspeed. “When we are broken, we need God to make us new.” She pulled out a patch and pump. “I can fix this foursquare ball, just like God can fix your heart. Because Jesus died for our sins, we can pray and ask Him to forgive us whenever we need to and He will give us a fresh start.”

Mia bowed her head. “Dear God, I’m sorry for losing my temper. Help me to be kind to others.” She felt clean-hearted and brand new.

When Mia returned to the foursquare game, she grinned to herself. Thank you, God, for mending me just like this patched-up rubber ball.

–Wendy Lynne Smith

How about you? Have you ever felt like a deflated rubber ball—broken because of your sin? The good news is that God wants to restore you and fill you up with His love. You can ask for forgiveness when needed and He will make you like new. Then trust Him to fill you with His Holy Spirit and empower you to be kind to others.

Today's Key Verse: Be kind to each other, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God through Christ has forgiven you. Ephesians 4:32 (NLT)

Today's Key Thought: God forgives and restores

Read: Romans 3:21-28

“I have a surprise for you today!” Mom said as Carmen walked into the kitchen.

“What, Mom?” Carmen sat down to a bowl of cereal. “I know about my birthday dinner tonight with Grandma and Papa. That’s not a surprise.”

“This one’s different. I’ll tell you when you get home from school. Hurry with your breakfast so I can walk you to your bus stop on my way to work.”

All day Carmen wondered about Mom’s surprise. When she climbed the steps to her apartment after school that afternoon, Mom was waiting for her at the door. She took Carmen’s bookbag and dropped it in the living room. “Let’s go, mija!”

As they walked down the street, Carmen chatted about gym class. Then Mom stopped in front of a fancy bakery, one Carmen had wanted to visit.

“We’re getting something here?” Carmen asked.

“That’s my surprise! I signed you up for their birthday rewards, so today you get a free cupcake.”

Carmen laughed. “Really?”

Mom nodded. “Let’s go in!”

“Oh, Mom, it smells just like I imagined—even better!” Carmen breathed in the aroma of delicious baked goods. After choosing a chocolate cupcake with buttercream frosting, she and her mother sat down by the windows.

“What a great surprise, Mom! Something so tasty—and it’s free!” Carmen wiped gooey icing from her mouth.

“Does it remind you of something we heard at church last week? About receiving something wonderful for free?” Mom asked.

“Oh yeah! When we trust Jesus to save us and make us God’s children, we get forgiveness for our sins. We also get eternal life with Him…so much good stuff!”

Mom smiled. “Yes, and just like this cupcake, we didn’t have to pay for it. We didn’t have to work to earn God’s love either.”

“Just like I didn’t do anything to earn this cupcake,” said Carmen.

“Right,” answered Mom. “Jesus paid the price so we could be God’s sons and daughters, mija. He died for our sins and rose from the dead to make us part of His family—that’s how much He loves us. We have a lot to celebrate on your birthday—and every day!”

–Allison Wilson Lee

How about you? Have you wondered if you could ever be good enough to receive God’s perfect love? God tells us in the Bible that we don’t need to earn His love or forgiveness—and we could never do that anyway. God loves us so much that He offers us a relationship with Him, along with forgiveness of our sins, as a free gift paid for by Jesus. Receive this free gift today by trusting in Him. (To learn more, go to Have You Heard the Good News?)

Today's Key Verse: For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. Romans 6:23 (NIV)

Today's Key Thought: God’s love is a free gift

Read: Psalm 37:23-28

Weston shuffled through the pieces of a jigsaw puzzle. “Wow, I’ve never tried to do a puzzle with so many pieces before!”

“I know it looks hard, but I’m sure you can do it,” said Mom. “Want some help? I could turn the pieces right side up for you.”

“Okay,” Weston said. “I’ll work on the barn.” He started to sift through the jumbled pile, looking for red pieces.

“Weston, do you know what this jigsaw puzzle reminds me of?” Mom asked as she turned pieces over.

“Uh, my room, I guess,” Weston said with a smile. “A big mess!”

Mom laughed. “It does look a lot like the clutter I sometimes see in there, but I had something else in mind—our lives. Sometimes life is puzzling to us. It’s confusing and filled with overwhelming problems, and we can’t see how the pieces can possibly fit together. But God has a plan and purpose for everything that happens. He knows all the pieces will fit perfectly, even when we can’t see how.”

“You mean like the time I didn’t make the Parkside soccer team?” Weston asked.

“Right,” Mom said. “Many of your friends made the team, and you were so disappointed. You didn’t see how that piece of your life fit at all. You even said you might as well give up playing soccer.”

“Yeah, but then Mr. Singh called,” Weston said. “He was coaching the Greenwood team and asked if I’d like to play the goalie position.”

Mom nodded. “So you joined that team, and you really liked it and had a great time.”

“Yeah,” Weston said. “It was so much fun!”

“I think God wanted you on Mr. Singh’s team so we could get to know his whole family,” Mom said. “They accepted our invitation to come to a program at church and heard about Jesus.” She glanced at the puzzle pieces Weston was working on. “Hey, that barn’s really coming together!” She handed him another red puzzle piece. “Just like you’re fitting those pieces together into a barn, God fits all the pieces of our lives together into something good that points to Jesus and His love for us.”

–Annette S. Bury

How about you? Are you going through something difficult or confusing right now? Does your life look like a jumbled mess that will never fit together? We often can’t see or understand how things that are sad or painful could possibly be good. Trust God. He has a purpose for all the things that happen in your life. He promises to fit them together into something good that shows you belong to Jesus.

Today's Key Verse: We know that all things work together for the good of those who love God, who are called according to his purpose. Romans 8:28 (CSB)

Today's Key Thought: God has a purpose for everything

Read: Colossians 3:14-17

“What do you think of this one?” Sofie asked her older sister. Kara was helping her choose an outfit to wear for her school pictures the next day.

“Why don’t you pick something simpler?” Kara suggested. “Remember, Mom said you have to pick clothes without too bold of a pattern so they will look good in the picture.”

Sofie slid the shirt on the hanger and hung it back up in her closet. “Okay.”

“So, how was Sunday school this morning?” Kara asked as she searched through the clothes hanging in Sofie’s closet.

Sofie shrugged. “All right, I guess. I just wish it was more exciting.”

Kara frowned. “I thought you enjoyed Sunday school.”

“I do. I just wish there was more time for games and playing with my friends. Maybe then we would have more kids come to church!”

“I know it can be hard to sit,” Kara said. “And the teachers do their best to make the lessons fun. But sometimes you can get so focused on playing games and seeing your friends that you miss what God wants to teach you.”

“What do you mean?” Sofie asked.

“Well, it’s like your school pictures. If you wear a shirt with a busy pattern, the people who see the picture will focus on your clothes instead of being focused on your beautiful smile.”

“So is playing games with my friends bad?”

Kara pulled another shirt, a pale blue one, out of the closet. “No. It just shouldn’t distract you from the real reason we go to church—to worship Jesus with other Christians and learn about what He tells us in the Bible.” She held the shirt up against Sofie, studying it. “See? It’s like this shirt. It brings out the blue in your eyes without distracting people from what they’re supposed to be looking at.”

“My face!” Sofie smiled. “I get it. We go to church to worship and learn about Jesus, and I should be focusing on Him.” She took the blue shirt from Kara. “You know what? I think I like this one.”

Kara grinned. “Just remember, the most important thing is to wear a smile!”

–Jessica Kleeberger

How about you? What do you focus on when you go to church? It can be fun to play games, do crafts, and visit with friends, but we shouldn’t let that distract us from the real reason we go to church—to learn about Jesus and worship Him. Praying, singing songs, and reading the Bible are all ways we worship Jesus and learn more about Him together. When you go to church, focus on Him.

Today's Key Verse: Let the message of Christ dwell among you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom…singing to God with gratitude in your hearts. Colossians 3:16 (NIV)

Today's Key Thought: Focus on Jesus at church

Read: Matthew 6:9-15

“Kayla, could you please pass the corn?” Nate asked.

As Kayla picked up the bowl of corn with one hand, she accidentally spilled it all over the table.

“Aw, man,” said Nate. “I was really looking forward to some corn!”

“I’m sorry, Nate!” Kayla said. “I didn’t mean to spill it—it was an accident!”

“I know, Kayla,” Nate replied as he helped her clean up the spilled corn. “I’ve spilled food before too. Next time use both hands. Can you pass the mashed potatoes instead?”

This time Kayla grabbed the bowl of mashed potatoes with both of her hands and passed it to her brother without spilling it.

“Thank you,” Nate said as he put a spoonful of potatoes on his plate.

“So, Nate, Mom tells me you’re working on memorizing the Lord’s Prayer for Sunday school,” Dad said.

“How’s that going?”

“Well, memorizing it is the easy part. My Sunday school teacher wants me to be able to tell her what it means, and that’s where I’m struggling,” Nate said as he took a bite of his potatoes.

“Well, maybe I can help,” said Dad. “Which part do you not understand?”

“The part that goes something like, ‘Forgive us our diets as we forgive our dieters.’”

Dad chuckled. “I think you mean debts and debtors, not diets and dieters. Our debts are our sins, and our debtors are those who sin against us. God wants us to forgive others just like He forgives us.”

“You mean like how Nate forgave me for spilling the corn?” asked Kayla.

“Well, spilling the corn wasn’t a sin, Kayla, so it’s not quite the same thing. But it was a mistake, and instead of getting upset about it, Nate remembered that he’s made mistakes like that before too. So yes, in a way, that’s what we need to do when others sin against us by doing something that’s wrong. We forgive them because we’ve been forgiven by Jesus, who died for our sins on the cross.”

“That makes a lot more sense now,” Nate said as he pushed his plate aside. “I wondered why God wanted us to forgive dieters!” The entire table began to laugh.

–Melissa Yeagle

How about you? Has anyone ever told you they were sorry for something they did to you that was wrong? Did you forgive them? We all sin and need to ask Jesus to forgive us, and He always does—and He wants us to do the same for others. The next time someone asks you for forgiveness, remember that Jesus has forgiven you for your sins and trust Him to help you forgive others.

Today's Key Verse: Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. Colossians 3:13 (NIV)

Today's Key Thought: Forgive others

Read: Romans 5:17; Ephesians 1:7-10

“Hurray, we’re getting burritos! We’re getting burritos!” Keira skipped gleefully as she and her mom and older sister, Addi, walked into their favorite Mexican restaurant and got in line. They’d been running errands all morning, and Keira had been in a bad mood and had started several arguments with her sister, so she was surprised when Mom offered to get them burritos instead of taking them straight home.

Moving through the bustling serving line from item to item, Keira nodded yes to chicken, then to rice. She added some veggies and gave an enthusiastic “Definitely!” to her favorite condiment, sour cream. With a twinkle in her eye, the server lifted a large serving spoon and dolloped a huge mound of sour cream onto Keira’s burrito bowl. Keira’s eyes lit up, and she beamed. There’s nothing better than sour cream, she thought as she uttered her thanks and found her way to their table.

“Mom, take a look at all this sour cream!” Keira said as she sat down. Mom’s eyes grew wide at the mountain-sized scoop in Keira’s bowl.

Addi piped up. “You know, I think God’s grace is a lot like Keira’s sour cream.”

“What do you mean?” asked Keira.

“Well, it reminds me of the verse in Ephesians we read the other day—the one that says God has forgiveness and grace that He lavishes on us. That’s what the server did—she lavished sour cream on Keira’s burrito bowl!”

“I think I see what you’re saying,” said Mom. “God has gobs and gobs of grace that He piles on us.”

“You mean He isn’t stingy with His forgiveness?” Keira asked.

“That’s right!” said Addi. “We don’t have to feel shy about asking for God’s grace and forgiveness. When I sin, God isn’t guarding the grace container like Mom has to guard the sour cream at supper sometimes.”

Mom laughed. “Right. Because Jesus died for our sins, He has plenty of grace to go around. He’ll always forgive us for the things we do wrong.”

“I’m glad,” said Keira, thinking of how she’d acted that morning. “Now whenever I see sour cream, I’m going to remember that God has gobs and gobs of grace for me.”

–Dominique E. Miller

How about you? Do you often do things that are wrong? Are you struggling with the same sins over and over? Each time we go to God, He has grace for us. Because Jesus paid for all our sin by dying on the cross, He doesn’t ever run out of grace or get tired of forgiving us. He has loads of grace for you every day, so talk to Him about the sins you’re struggling with and receive gobs and gobs of grace.

Today's Key Verse: In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace that he lavished on us. Ephesians 1:7-8 (NIV)

Today's Key Thought: God’s grace never runs out

Read: Ephesians 6:10-18

Callie sat at the edge of her bed and put on a pair of white socks. Then she looked up and saw her brother Jackson standing in her doorway wearing one black sock and one white sock. Callie laughed. “Your socks don’t match,” she said.

Jackson looked down at his outfit. “They do too. The black one matches my black jeans and the white one matches my white t-shirt.” Jackson smiled a big toothy grin, and Callie rolled her eyes and smirked.

Just then Dad came out of his room holding a black sock and a white sock. “Have either of you seen the match to either of these socks?” he asked.

“Yeah,” said Callie. “On Jackson’s feet!” Jackson was slightly big for his age, and sometimes he borrowed Dad’s socks. Dad shook his head as Jackson stood on one foot and yanked the black sock off. He handed it to his dad in exchange for the white sock.

After breakfast, they met in the living room for their morning devotions. “Time to get dressed for the day,” Dad said.

“But we’re already dressed,” said Jackson, looking down at his clothes. “We even have matching socks!”

“I’m talking about getting dressed spiritually,” said Dad. “Think of it this way. Why is it important to wear socks?”

“Well, socks help keep our feet warm and dry,” Callie said.

“And they protect them from getting hurt by rubbing against our shoes,” Jackson added.

Dad nodded. “The Bible talks about putting on spiritual clothes called the armor of God that help and protect us. They help us remember God’s promises and protect us from the devil’s attacks. And one of the things we need to put on like socks is the gospel of peace.”

“How do we do that?” Callie asked.

“By reminding ourselves that Jesus has saved us from sin and won the victory over Satan. That means we don’t have to give in to sin or listen to the devil’s lies. One good way to remember that is to read God’s Word. The Bible reminds us what Jesus has done for us so we can feel His peace in our lives.”

Jackson smiled. “Well, let’s get started. I want to make sure I’m wearing matching gospel socks!”

–Melissa Yeagle

How about you? Do you remember to put on socks every day? What about gospel socks—do you remember to put those on every day too? You do that by remembering what Jesus has done for you and that you belong to Him. Praying, reading the Bible, and spending time with Him are ways you can put on the spiritual clothes you need to stand up against evil and feel God’s peace in your life.

Today's Key Verse: Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground. Ephesians 6:13 (NIV)

Today's Key Thought: Put on God’s armor

Read: Matthew 7:7-11

Keaton watched a frog as it hopped around the yard. When it stopped, it blended in with the grass. If Keaton looked away, he had a hard time finding it until it started hopping again.

When Dad got home, he joined Keaton on the porch. “Hey, Keaton. How was your day?”

Keaton shrugged. “I just spent the last half-hour playing hide-and-go-seek with a frog.” He sighed. “Not that he ever tried to find me.”

Dad sat down on the step. “Sounds like an interesting game. How about a contest to see who can find the frog first?” Keaton nodded, and the two spent the next several minutes trying to spot the frog.

“Thanks for playing with me, Dad,” Keaton said after the frog hopped underneath the porch. “It’s a lot more fun than playing by myself.” He kicked at a stick in the grass. “I’m thankful you got a new job and we got this nice house, but I miss my friends from our old neighborhood.”

“I know,” Dad said, patting Keaton on the back. “Have you tried praying about it?”

Keaton frowned. “Doesn’t God already know what I’m going through? Why doesn’t He just give me what I need without me having to ask Him for it?”

Just then Keaton’s stomach let out a loud grumble, and he and Dad laughed.

“It sounds like you’re as hungry as I am,” Dad said. “I’m sure Mom has something for dinner, but she won’t bring it to us out here. We have to go to the table. Sometimes that’s the way Jesus does things too. He always knows what we need, but sometimes He waits for us to bring our worries and problems to Him first.”

“Why?” asked Keaton.

“To help us look to Him as our Savior and trust Him to provide us with everything we need—even when He doesn’t give us exactly what we ask for.”

Keaton’s stomach growled again. “Okay, Dad. I’m ready to go in for dinner. But first can we pray and ask God to help me make some friends?”

Dad nodded, and they bowed their heads and prayed together.

The next day when Dad got home from work, Keaton was sitting on the porch with two other boys his age, all of them trying to spot the frog.

–Melissa Yeagle

How about you? Do you bring your worries and problems to God? Do you ask Him to provide the things you need? He already knows exactly what you need—and sometimes it may be different from what you ask for. But He still wants you to bring your needs to Him so you can learn to trust Him in all of life’s situations. Jesus loves you and gave His life to save you. In Him, you have everything you need.

Today's Key Verse: Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. Matthew 7:7 (NKJV)

Today's Key Thought: Bring your needs to God