“My son, despise not thou the chastening of the Lord, nor faint when thou art rebuked of him: For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth. If ye endure chastening, God dealeth with you as with sons; for what son is he whom the father chasteneth not?” (Hebrews 12:5b-7)

Melody was playing an old vinyl record, listening to the story of the Three Little Pigs. She laughed at the part where the older, smarter brother-pig (the one who built his house out of bricks) was punishing his younger, silly brothers for their foolishness. They had made their houses out of straw and sticks, mostly so they would have more time left in the day to goof around. They mocked their brother for working all day.

The voice of the older-brother-pig was a gruff, matter-of-fact voice. Melody decided it was a great voice for that character. If she had not heard the beginning of the story, she would have thought he was being awfully mean to his little brothers. But now that she knew how silly they were, she began to wonder if he might be going too easy on them! He was always having to help them get out of trouble with the Big Bad Wolf!

How foolish the little pigs were! They thought their brother was boring and old-fashioned. They just wanted him to relax and play all day with them. They laughed at their brother for always worrying about danger and the Big Bad Wolf. All they could see was how he worked all day building a house that was safe, and he never wanted them to have any fun. They did not understand that he loved them and did not want the Big Bad Wolf to get them.

Do you take it seriously when God disciplines you? Do you understand what it means when He allows you to get in trouble for sins you wanted to hide? We should all be careful to respond rightly to our heavenly Father’s correction. He corrects us because He loves us.

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“But thou, O man of God, flee these things; and follow after righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, meekness. Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, whereunto thou art also called, and hast professed a good profession before many witnesses. I give thee charge in the sight of God, who quickeneth all things, and before Christ Jesus, who before Pontius Pilate witnessed a good confession; that thou keep this commandment without spot, unrebukable, until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ.” (I Timothy 6:11-14)

Jesse looked at his brand new little sister through the hospital’s nursery window. He could not believe that he was a big brother now. A nurse had taken a picture of him with the baby and Mom and Dad. Jesse thought Zoey was a great name, and easy to spell. She had not cried when they put her in his arms, and he held very still so she would not get upset. She was very quiet, light, and fragile – like a China doll. And she was so tiny. Her little foot could fit into the palm of his hand!

Jesse’s mom and dad had told him their reasons for choosing the name “Zoey.” They told him that God is the One Who gives life, and “Zoey” is like the Greek word for “life.” They had prayed a long time for a daughter (Jesse had been praying for a sister, too); and, since God had given her life, they wanted to name her “Zoey.”

The word “quicken” means “to give life,” or “to bring to life.” God was the One Who created Adam and Eve in the beginning, and He still gives life today. The Bible teaches that our “times” are in His hands, and that He can give or take away life. What a great God we must have! Humans do not have that kind of power. Jesse could not have snapped his fingers and gotten a little sister – he had to pray for her and wait for God to give life. God is the One Who gives all physical life.

God is the Giver of all eternal life, too. No normal human being has ever been able to raise himself from the dead like Jesus Christ did. Jesus could do that because Jesus is God. No normal human being has the power to take people to heaven, but Jesus Christ did. He even described Himself as “the Way, the Truth, and the Life.” He said that nobody could come to God the Father except through Jesus Himself, God the Son.

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“God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.” (Psalm 46:1)

Emily stood on third base, nervously waiting for the final pitch. The softball game score was tied, and this was her last chance to get a run for her team. Crack! The ball sailed past her. Her heartbeat doubled, and she ran for home plate as fast as she could. The outfielders were yelling at each other, but Emily did not listen. They would throw the ball to home any second, but Emily did not look behind her to see how close they were to getting her. Faster, faster! she thought. She ran harder than she had ever run before.

Emily was not thinking about being tagged on her way to home plate. She was not thinking about the catcher getting the ball before she got there. She was thinking only about one thing: getting to home plate as soon as possible. The catcher held her arms out for the ball, waiting. Emily dove, sliding through the dust and over the plate. Thump! The ball hit the catcher’s mitt. Emily paused and listened. “Safe!” yelled the umpire. Emily stood and smiled. Safe.

Emily must have felt a little like the man who wrote Psalm 46. His country was at war, and he was surrounded by danger and death. But he was not afraid. He knew that no matter what happened around him, he was safe with God. He calls God his “refuge.” A refuge is a place of safety in danger, a place that you can run to for help and comfort. The author of Psalm 46 did not waste time being scared. Instead, he remembered that God is always there to give help in times of trouble.

God is still a refuge for Christians today. Sometimes life seems scary, but we know that God is our “refuge and strength.” Like the author of Psalm 46, we need to remember that God will protect us if we trust Him. Then, like Emily, we need to run to Him in prayer.

God keeps you safe in times of trouble.

My Response:

» When life seems scary, do I remember that God is my refuge?

» How can I “run to Him” today ?

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“I am a great King, saith the LORD of hosts, and my name is dreadful among the heathen.” (Malachi 1:14b)

Eric’s heart pounded as his followed his father toward the large display case in the center of the room. This was what he’d been waiting for, ever since their plane landed in London two days ago. His dad had promised to bring him here to the Tower of London to see the British Crown Jewels – the crowns, scepters, and swords that had belonged to England’s kings and queens through the centuries.

Eric’s mouth hung open as he stared at the gem-studded objects. Rubies, sapphires, emeralds, pearls, and diamonds gleamed from silver and gold settings. His father pointed to a huge heart-shaped diamond in one of the crowns. “That’s the Star of Africa,” he whispered. “The largest diamond in the world.”

“Dad,” said Eric, “why do the kings and queens have to wear such expensive stuff? I mean, aren’t they afraid someone’s gonna steal all these things?”

A guard standing near them cleared his throat and smiled at Eric. “That’s why I’m here, young man,” he said in a crisp British accent. “Our kings and queens are royalty. They deserve only the best our land has to offer. They wear these jewels because it’s only fitting. They’re kings and queens, you know. It’s only fitting that they have the finest and the best.”

In the book of Malachi, God rebukes His people because they have not been bringing Him the best and the finest that they have to offer. Instead, they have been bringing lame and sick lambs. Don’t you understand, God tells them, that I am a great King? All the nations fear My name!

Do you give God the finest and the best you have to offer? Do you give time to His Word when you feel wide awake and alert, or do you put off your devotions for times that you are rushed or tired? Do you sing songs and hymns to God as an act of worship, or do you sing them without thinking about the words? Do you give God your complete attention when your pastor explains His Word to you? Do you put your whole heart into your chores, schoolwork, and other things He has given you to do? Remember that God is a great King. He deserves our finest and our best gifts.

God is a great King who deserves the best we have to offer Him.

My Response:

» Am I giving God my best?

» Are there any areas of my life in which I’m not giving Him what He deserves as my King?

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“Hast thou not known? hast thou not heard, that the everlasting God, the LORD, the Creator of the ends of the earth, fainteth not, neither is weary?” (Isaiah 40:28a)

Tired and sleepy! Has your mom ever described you that way, or warned you that you will be tired and sleepy if you do not get your nap for the day? Many people are tired and sleepy all the time because they do not sleep enough! Some people seem to need less sleep than others. But everybody – firefighters, nurses, teachers, football players, preachers, moms, dads, kids, and even the President – has to get at least some sleep! No matter where people live – in America, Mexico, the UK, Australia, China – everybody sleeps. Why? Because God made us that way.

Do you think God ever gets tired and needs to sleep?

Well, let’s think about it. When people do a lot of things like working outside or shopping all day, they get tired and fall asleep right away at night. God does do a lot of work every day. So it might make sense to us to think of Him to getting tired and needing to sleep. But there really is only one way to find out whether or not God has to sleep, and that is to see what the Bible says about it. And guess what? The Bible does say something about it. Let’s take a close look at today’s verse:

“Hast thou not known? hast thou not heard, that the everlasting God, the LORD, the Creator of the ends of the earth, fainteth not [in other words, He doesn’t get tired], neither is weary?” (Isaiah 40:28a)

The next verse says:

“He giveth power to the faint [those who get weary]; and to them that have no might he increaseth strength.”

So, the Bible says God does not get tired. That’s right. God never sleeps. And on top of that, He gives strength to the weary! That is amazing. How does He do that? He is God; and, because He is God, He is very powerful. In fact, He is the Source of all strength.

Continue reading Kids 4 Truth International – God Is Our Source of Strength →

“Now the Lord of peace himself give you peace always by all means. The Lord be with you all.” (2 Thessalonians 3:16a)

“Stop it!” Erin shouted. Her older brother Collin was running around the room with her favorite doll in his hands, held high above her head so she could not reach it.

“Not until you give me back my remote-controlled car!” Collin yelled back.

“I was just looking at it,” Erin said defensively. “There’s nothing wrong with that, is there?”

“Yes!” shouted Collin. “I never gave you permission to mess with it. I don’t want you to break it. Give it back NOW!”

Have you ever been in an argument like that before? It may have been with a brother, sister, parent, or friend. Because you both wanted your own way, the disagreement and hard feelings went on and on until someone finally gave in.

God has another plan for you. In Romans 12:18, He commands you to “live peaceably with all men.” That is hard to do sometimes! Your siblings and friends do not always want to be peaceful. Sometimes they purposefully do things to annoy you or to start fights with you. But you must remember to turn to God – the Creator of true peace. Peace was God’s idea in the first place, and He brought peace to the world through His Son. Jesus, “the Prince of Peace,” said that He gives peace to all those who choose to follow after Him (John 14:27). If you are a peacemaker, then you will help people see what your heavenly Father is like.

God’s peace is perfect because He created peace.

My Response:

» Am I keeping peace with others?

» Am I looking to the Creator of Peace for the strength to do that?

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“Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new. And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ….God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them….Be ye reconciled to God. For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.” (2 Corinthians 5:17-21)

Have you ever heard of Onesimus (oh-NESS-ih-muss)? The apostle Paul wrote a letter for the sake of Onesimus, and that letter was inspired by God to be a part of the New Testament. If you find the book of “Philemon” in your Bible, you can read the whole story, but here it is in a nutshell:

Onesimus was not a powerful king or a famous preacher. In fact, Onesimus’s only claim to fame was that he was an unprofitable servant. He had left his master, Philemon (fai-LEE-munn). Bible scholars think Onesimus had run away or had been sent to prison by Philemon for doing wrong.

But God saved Onesimus during his time away from his master. Onesimus met Paul, and through Paul, Onesimus met Jesus Christ. In his letter to Philemon, Paul describes Onesimus as his own spiritual son, and he asks Philemon to take Onesimus back into his household as a servant again – and not only as a servant, but as a profitable, useful servant. And not only as a profitable, useful servant, but as a much-loved brother and a fellow-laborer in the faith.

Imagine yourself in Onesimus’s situation. The only thing you are known for is being an UN-profitable servant. You have wronged your master, and you haven’t done what you were supposed to do. You have been an unrighteous servant, and no one owes you anything – especially not your master.

Now imagine you read what Paul has written your master: “If thou count me therefore a partner, receive him as myself. If he hath wronged thee, or oweth thee ought, put that on mine account. I Paul have written it with mine own hand, I will repay it.”

Continue reading Kids 4 Truth International – All Our Righteousness Is of God →

“Then sang Moses and the children of Israel this song unto the LORD, and spake, saying, I will sing unto the LORD, for he hath triumphed gloriously: the horse and his rider hath he thrown into the sea. The LORD is my strength and song, and he is become my salvation: he is my God, and I will prepare him an habitation; my father’s God, and I will exalt him. The LORD is a man of war: the LORD is his name.” (Exodus 15:1-3)

When Moses and the children of Israel sang this song of praise, they had just been rescued by a miracle. The Egyptian military had followed them when they left Egypt, and the Israelites knew they were in trouble. The LORD opened up the Red Sea for them so that they could cross it on dry land. Once all of His people were safe on the other side, the LORD let the water come crashing down on top of the Egyptian soldiers who were chasing them.

These Egyptian soldiers did not understand or care Who God was, and it cost them their lives. They did not understand or care that God protects His glory, and God protects His people. If they had believed the truth about God, they never would have chased His people down in the first place.

When you see it all capitalized in the Bible, the name “LORD” means “Jehovah” (juh-HO-vuh). It is a name full of meaning, and it is what God answered Moses when Moses asked what to call Him. It means “I AM.” In other words: God was, is, and always will be Who He says He was, is, and always will be. It is not for humans to change Him or to think of Him in other ways, or as less than He is. He is the King of the universe. He is not just a human being. He is all-powerful, everywhere at once, and all-knowing. Nobody alive compares to God. If people really understood and believed Who God is, they would not be surprised to read the Israelites’ song. They would not be surprised to learn that the LORD is a “man of war.”

The LORD is a warrior. He is willing and able to fight for the glory of His name and to fight for the good of His people. He is mighty. He is unstoppable. He is unbeatable. Clearly, the Egyptian soldiers did not know Whom they were up against. Or if they knew it, they did not really believe it.

Continue reading Kids 4 Truth International – The LORD Is a Man of War →

“Jesus said unto him, If thou canst believe, all things are possible to him that believeth. And straightway the father of the child cried out, and said with tears, Lord, I believe; help thou mine unbelief.” (Mark 9:23-24)

The crowds that had gathered around Jesus were shocked and probably a little frightened. A man had brought his demon-possessed son to Jesus. As soon as the boy met Jesus, he fell to the ground, rolling and foaming at the mouth.

Jesus asked the father how long this problem had been going on. The father replied that the boy had had the demon since he was a child. Sometimes the demon threw the boy into fire or water as though trying to destroy him. If you can do anything, please have compassion on us, and help us, the father pleaded.

Jesus’ eyes saw right into the man’s heart as He said, All things are possible to him who believes.

The father knew that he had unbelief in his heart. He said to Jesus very honestly, Lord, I believe; help me overcome my unbelief.

Jesus rebuked the demon and told it to come out of the boy – and with an awful cry, it did! For a moment, everyone thought the boy was dead. Then Jesus took him by the hand and lifted him up. He was healed – free from the horrible demon that had tortured him all his life.

Continue reading Kids 4 Truth International – God Helps Our Unbelief →

“Then Job answered the LORD, and said, I know that thou canst do every thing, and that no thought can be withholden from thee.” (Job 42:1-2)

When Job said to God, “I know that thou canst do everything, and that no thought can be withholden from thee,” he was not trying to say that God knows everyone’s thoughts. Of course, God does know every thought we could possibly think, but this verse is teaching us something else about God. It is teaching us about God’s sovereignty, His absolute rule and total control over everything. Anything that God thinks up is His idea, and He can do whatever He pleases. None of us are able to hold God back if He has made up His mind to do something. That is what Job meant when he said, “No thought can be withholden from thee.”

None of God’s purposes can be thwarted. Do you know what thwarted means? It means to be twisted or wrenched around or messed up or squashed. God’s plans cannot fail, and nobody can stop Him from accomplishing His will.

Have you ever been watching a football game and heard someone shout “Interference!”? If the quarterback is throwing the football to the receiver, and somebody from the other team grabs onto the receiver or knocks him over before he can catch the ball, that is called “interference.” The catch is never completed like it was supposed to be because the receiver was “interfered with.” Human beings interfere in each others’ lives all the time, and everyday circumstances can thwart our plans, too. Our plans get changed all the time. Our picnics get rained out. Our favorite sports teams do not make it to the playoffs. Your parents’ car might break down during your vacation. Maybe your best friend’s family has to move 800 miles away.

As human beings, we have to get used to interference and thwarted plans. We aren’t able to make everything go the way we plan. We are not all-powerful and all-knowing. But we can be glad that God is. We can rejoice that God is sovereign and that He does whatever He pleases. He is in control of what happens in our lives – and not only that, but He cares about what happens in our lives. There are many promises in the Bible that speak of how God intends to do things for His glory and for our good. He knows the plans that He has, and we can know for sure that no one and nothing can hold Him back from carrying them out.

God’s purposes can never be messed up, and we can trust Him to do whatever He sets out to do.

My Response:

» Since I know that God can do everything and none of His plans can be messed up, how should that change my attitude when my own plans get messed up?

» Is there ever any cause for me to worry, fear, or get angry if I really believe God is sovereign?

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“When God made promise to Abraham, because he could swear by no greater, he sware by himself.” (Hebrews 6:13)

Have you ever heard someone say, “I swear that it’s true!” Maybe your parents have even told you not to say that, because “swear” is used nowadays as another word for “curse,” and we should not curse. Well, your parents are right to forbid you from swearing, too – it really is enough for you just to say, “What I’m saying is true.”

Sometimes it’s important for a person to make a very serious promise. For example, if the bank lends your parents a lot of money to buy a house, your parents sign a contract that promises to pay all the money back to the bank, a little at a time.

In Old Testament times, a lot of agreements weren’t written down; two people would just make spoken promises to each other. So instead of signing a contract, someone who made a promise would say something like, “I swear by the king,” or “I swear by the temple.” When a person did this, he wasn’t using dirty language. Instead, it was strong promise language. The person was saying that he would be as reliable as the thing that he swore by. Kings were expected to be very trustworthy, and the temple was expected to last forever. In the same way, the person making a promise was saying that his promise was trustworthy, and that it would last forever.

There is something else you should notice about these promises. The king and temple are greater than the person making the promise. In fact, Hebrews 6:16 says that when people make these serious promises – when they swear (in the good use of the word) – they always swear by something or someone greater than themselves.

But if God wants to make a solemn promise, by whom or by what would He swear? Would God swear by a human king? Of course not! God is the One Who made the man into a king. Would God swear by the temple? No! God is the One Who designed the temple and gave strength to the builders and supplied all the building materials. Would God swear by the universe? Surely not! God made the universe, and everything in it!

So does God swear by anybody? According to Hebrews 6:13, when God made a promise to Abraham, He did swear by someone. The book of Hebrews says, “When God made promise to Abraham, because he could swear by no greater, he sware [swore] by himself.”

When God makes promises, He bases His promises on His own greatness and reliability. Because no one and nothing is greater than God, no one and nothing can stop God from keeping His promises. Those of us who are God’s children can look for God’s promises in the Bible, and we can know that God will keep them!

God is greater than everything and everyone else, and He will keep all the promises that He makes.

My Response:

» Can I name any promises that God has made me in the Bible? Do I believe that God will keep them?

» Can I think of any promises God has made that would make me live differently if I believed them?

(For example, when Jesus told His disciples to go into all the world with the Gospel, He promised that He would be with them.)

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“Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.” (1 Peter 5:5-6)

After weeks of preparing, Luke and his twin sister, Jill, were finally spending the night in their treehouse. Dad had helped Luke put some finishing touches on the treehouse – like sanding out the splinters. Mom and Jill had made hot chocolate and poured some into a tall thermos for Luke, and some more into a tall thermos for Jill. Luke and Jill had dragged their sleeping bags and pillows up the ladder and spread them out on the plywood floor. For a nightlight, they captured lightning bugs and put them into a large glass jar with tiny airholes poked in the lid.

It was a beautiful night for stargazing, and the crickets were chirping happily. Jill had brought extra blankets and sweatshirts, in case it cooled down during the night. Setting the jar in the center of the treehouse, they nestled down into their sleeping bags and whispered and laughed and stared up at the stars until they finally began to feel sleepy.

Suddenly – creak!

Luke sat straight up in his sleeping bag. He had been dozing off, but he knew he had heard a noise. Creak. There it was again! Crackle, swish, creak.

Someone was climbing up the ladder! And whoever it was had to be heavier than a squirrel or a raccoon or a possum. By this time, Jill was awake and sitting up, too. Luke could see from the glow of the lightning bugs that she was as scared as he was. Clunk. Creak!

Continue reading Kids 4 Truth International – God Cares for His People →

“Hereby perceive we the love of God, because he laid down his life for us: and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren….In this was manifested the love of God toward us, because that God sent his only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through him. Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.” (1 John 3:16; 4:9-10)

When a man and a woman get married, they give each other rings. The minister at the wedding usually says something like this to the man: “What token do you give to prove your love?” The man answers, “This ring.” The ring that he puts on his wife’s finger is a token, or a symbol, to everyone who sees it that this man chose this woman above all others and that he loves her with all of his heart.

As much as a man might love the woman he marries, no man has ever loved a woman as much as God loves His children. No one you know on Earth is able to love you as much as God can. No one has ever proven his love like God has.

We do not have to wonder about whether God is a loving God. John teaches that God’s gift of His Son is the token, or the proof, to us that He is the loving God He claims to be. Jesus laid down His life for us. What better proof could there be?

These are facts – real, trustworthy reminders that God is love. His love is not fake; God’s love is genuine – the real thing.

When a man and a woman get married, they do not love each other only on their wedding day. They keep on wearing their rings as a symbol that they love each other. And more than wearing rings, they keep on loving each other. Real, genuine love lasts.

Continue reading Kids 4 Truth International – God’s Love Is Genuine →

“The LORD gave, and the LORD hath taken away; blessed be the name of the LORD.” (Job 1:21b)

Job was a man who had been blessed by God. He had everything a man could want – a large family, many friends, a good reputation, lots of property, animals, health, and wealth. Most importantly, Job enjoyed close fellowship with his Creator. He knew that his blessings were direct gifts from God’s hand, and he was careful to give God the credit for all He had done for him.

Have you ever looked around and counted all your gifts from God? Maybe you have at Thanksgiving time, but hopefully you do it more often than just once a year! A grateful heart is usually a natural response to God’s rich blessings, and we are right to thank Him. We also ought to let God’s gifts teach us to trust Him as the great and good God that He is.

But what happens when God keeps back from you something that you really wanted? What if you have been praying for something important, and God seems to be saying “no”? What if God takes something away from you?

Job’s blessings were all taken away from him, and there did not seem to be any good reason why. Job had not bragged about deserving his gifts or earning God’s favor, but God decided to let Satan strike Job with disease and heavy losses. Job had not rebelled against God, but all his children were taken away from him. Job had not complained against God, but all his property was destroyed or stolen by robbers. Job had not failed to thank God for His gifts to him, and yet God gave Satan permission to take everything away from him – all his health, all his wealth, and most of his loved ones. Humanly speaking, it did not make sense for God to take everything back.

It is easy to trust a good and great God Who blesses us. But it can be hard to keep glorifying and praising God when He does something that hurts or surprises or confuses us. Has God ever taken something away from you or your family? A loved one? Your health? The money to go back to your Christian school?

Continue reading Kids 4 Truth International – God Gives and Takes Away →

“If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.” (James 1:5)

Michael’s parents were late picking him up from school, so he walked down the hall to Mr. Bruce’s classroom to wait until they came. Mr. Bruce was the 10th grade teacher at Michael’s school, and he had the most interesting room! Michael and the other 4th-graders were never sorry when they had to wait a little longer if it meant being able to visit Mr. Bruce!

Michael found a desk and plopped himself down. Then he started to look around Mr. Bruce’s classroom. Right away, the bulletin board caught his attention. There was a poster of a man with lots of books around him. The man looked like he was thinking really hard and that he was writing something important. Next to the poster were these words: “Lack wisdom? Ask God! James 1:5.”

Wisdom. What is wisdom anyway? Michael really wanted to know, so he decided to ask Mr. Bruce. “Mr. Bruce, what does your bulletin board mean? I don’t understand it.”

“That’s a great question, Michael!” replied Mr. Bruce. “It’s a wonderful promise God has given to us! Let me read the whole verse out of the Bible to you. It’s from James 1:5: ‘If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.'”

“Oh. That verse is full of all kinds of big words I don’t know!” exclaimed Michael.

“Well, let’s see if I can explain it to you in an easier way,” said Mr. Bruce. “Having wisdom means knowing how to decide what is right and good. And if you lack something, well, to lack means that you need something that you don’t have. So the first part of the verse says that if you need help with knowing about doing the right thing, you can ask God. But the verse says more than that. God gives wisdom ‘liberally’ and He doesn’t ‘upbraid’ us. If someone is a liberal giver, he’s not stingy. And to upbraid someone means to scold him, or give him a hard time.”

“Like my sister Tracey does when I ask her if she’ll help me with my homework?” asked Michael.

Continue reading Kids 4 Truth International – God Gives Wisdom →

“Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith.” (Galatians 3:24)

Are you looking forward to the day when you receive your driver’s license? If so, you will need a driving teacher to show you how to get it.

When Suzanne was fifteen, she enrolled in a driver’s training school. There were two parts to the school. One was the in-class work; the other was the in-car training. Suzanne did very well at the in-class work. She passed all her quizzes and tests because she studied hard and knew the rules of the road.

But the driving part was a little different. Suzanne did not feel very confident when it came to driving in a busy city. Thankfully, the teacher sat right next to her – right in the passenger’s seat – and the teacher had a special tool to help ensure nobody would get hurt. On the teacher’s side, near his feet, he had his own brake pedal.

One day Suzanne and her teacher were in Grand Rapids, Michigan, a fairly large city. One of the things Suzanne was learning to do that day was to merge into traffic. “Merging” is when your car comes off a ramp onto a highway and joins the fast-moving traffic. One key to successfully merging is to speed up and match the speed of the other cars.

Suzanne did not do well at merging. She sped all the way up to about 35 miles per hour, but she should have sped up to about 60 miles per hour! If she had merged onto the highway, the cars coming up behind her would have had to slam on their brakes. It was a good thing that the instructor slammed on his brake and prevented Suzanne from putting the car in a very bad position. After the instructor yelled at Suzanne for a bit, they changed drivers, and another student took the wheel. Suzanne got into the back seat and considered her mistake.

What was the instructor doing? He was teaching students how to drive. Without him and his instruction, Suzanne would never be able to receive her license.

The Bible teaches us that God’s Law is the schoolmaster (or tutor) that brings us to Christ. Just like Suzanne’s driving instructor was bringing her to the point of receiving her own license, so God’s Law is an instructor that shows us how badly we need Jesus Christ. When we see how we have failed to live up to God’s Law, it points us to the only One Who has perfectly fulfilled that Law. And Who is that? It is Jesus Christ! God’s Law guides us to forgiveness in Christ.

Continue reading Kids 4 Truth International – God’s Law Teaches Us That We Need Christ →

I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: marvellous are thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well. (Psalm 139:14)

Sally sat in the front seat of the car watching the snowflakes fall on the car windshield. “Wow! Look at that one, Mom! Isn’t it beautiful? Look at all those little tiny lines!” Sally couldn’t stop watching the snowflakes. She kept pointing out her favorites.

“Sally, did you notice that none of these snowflakes are the same? Every design you’ll see is different from the others. God makes each one unique – each one is one of a kind.”

Mom challenged Sally to find any two that were alike. Sally couldn’t do it!

Sally sat back and thought hard for a little while. She looked at the mounds of snow that had fallen during the night. Almost two inches had fallen overnight, and Sally realized that it took a LOT of snowflakes to make even one small mound of snow! Mom said that each one was different. Wow! That was awesome to think about. Our God is so awesome that He made each snowflake – and there are no two snowflakes alike.

Sally could hardly pull her eyes away from the mounds of DIFFERENT snowflakes, but Mom was talking again: “Sally, do you realize that just as God made each snowflake unique and special, He also makes each person unique and special? Even identical twins are different in many ways. Each person can show God’s glory in a different way from his brothers or sisters or parents or friends. Our differences show God’s creativity and wisdom. To bring glory to God, you do not have to be just like your brother Jim, or like me, or like Dad. God made you special so that you’ll bring Him glory in a way that no one else can.”

God cared enough to make each of us uniquely different from everyone else.

My Response:

» What are some ways God made me unique (special) or different from my brother, sister, or friends?

» Did God make any two things exactly the same?

» Do I praise God for making me unique?

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