Bible Reading: 1 Corinthians 15:57-58; 1 John 5:4-5

"Bulls eye!" said Finn as his arrow hit the target.

"Cool! Let me try," begged his little brother. Finn smiled and handed the bow to Logan. The large bow felt awkward in Logan's hands, but he took careful aim and let the arrow fly. It didn't even reach the target.

"Here," said Finn. "I'll help you."

Logan shook his head. "I want to do it by myself. I just need to get closer." He moved several steps closer to the target and again sighted down the arrow. He slowly pulled back on the string and let go. This time the arrow went far enough, but it was way off course. After a few more tries, Logan was ready to give up.

"Here, I'll help you," Finn offered again. He leaned down and together the boys held the bow and arrow, slowly pulled the string back, and then released it. Logan heard the solid thud as the arrow made contact with the target--only half an inch away from the bull's eye. He tried again, but he could only hit the mark with Finn's help.

"I missed the mark every time," he told his mother a little later. "I can't hit the target unless Finn is helping me."

"That's okay. You'll learn." Mom closed the Bible she had been reading. "You know what? I miss the mark in what I'm doing too. Like you, I need someone's help to keep me on target."

"You do?" asked Logan, looking surprised.

Mom nodded. "Yes--and in more serious areas than a target in the backyard. Even though I'm a Christian, I still miss the mark and do wrong things. I sin. So…" She pointed to the Bible.

"You mean you need Jesus's help?" asked Logan.

Mom nodded again. "Jesus is the only one who can hit the mark. He never sinned, yet He died for our sins so we could have His righteousness--His goodness. Because we trust in Him, God sees Jesus's righteousness when He looks at us. And even though we still do wrong things, God forgives us and helps us turn from sin and do what's right." Mom smiled at Logan. "After a while you won't need Finn's help anymore to hit the target with a bow and arrow, but you'll always need Jesus's help to have victory over sin."

–Pauline Youd