** Daily Devotional 에서 방송된 내용의 줄거리입니다. Daily Devotional은 Keys for kids Ministries에서 지원받은 프로그램입니다. 홈페이지 www.keysforkids.org로 들어가시면 Keys for kids Daily Devotional <October 01, 2021>에서 다시 들으실 수 있습니다.**

 

Promise Keeping (Monday)

Read: John 20:24-29; 2 Corinthians 1:20 

 

"Why did we ever promise Mrs. Murray we'd take care of her garden?" Thomas asked his sister from the pea patch. "We're never going to finish."

 

Bethany looked up from weeding a flower bed. "She's our neighbor, and she asked us. It's just for a week so she can visit her daughter's family and new baby grandson."

 

Thomas sighed. "All this weeding and watering will take forever! I don't see how we'll ever get done."

 

Bethany shook her head. "You're quite the Doubting Thomas today."

 

Thomas stopped weeding. "I'm just being honest."

 

"Honest Thomas or Doubting Thomas, you sound the same to me." Bethany got up and sat next to her brother on the grass. "Remember in the Bible when Jesus died on the cross, and three days later He rose from the dead?"

 

"Of course," said Thomas. "But what's that got to do with this?"

 

"Jesus told His disciples three times what would happen to Him. But they couldn't understand or believe it."

 

Thomas nodded. "That would be hard to understand."

 

"After Jesus did what He promised and rose from the dead, He appeared to His disciples. But Thomas wasn't there. When the other disciples told Thomas the news, he said he wouldn't believe it unless he saw Jesus for himself. He believed after he saw Jesus with his own eyes," Bethany said.

 

"I remember Jesus told Thomas, You believe because you have seen me. Blessed are those who believe without seeing me.' We learned that verse at church."

 

Bethany nodded. "When Thomas saw Jesus, he knew without a doubt that everything Jesus said about Himself was absolutely true. Jesus had done what God sent Him to do--die for our sins and then come back to life."

 

"Just as He promised," Thomas added.

 

"And we can trust that every promise Jesus makes, He will keep," said Bethany. "Even when we don't keep our promises."

 

"Do you think we'll be able to keep our promise to Mrs. Murray?" Thomas asked.

 

"I hope so," replied Bethany. "Since we believe in Jesus, we can trust Him to help us keep our promises like He does."

 

Thomas nodded and pulled another weed. "Just call me Honest Thomas!"

 

-Lynda Boucher

 

HOW ABOUT YOU?

Have you ever promised to do something, but you weren’t able to keep your word? People don’t always do what they say they’ll do, but Jesus always does what He promises. And if we fall short of what we set out to do, Jesus is patient, gracious, and merciful to us. You can trust Him to keep His promises—and to help you keep your promises too.

 

TODAY'S KEY VERSE: Psalm 145:13 (KJV)

The Lord always keeps his promises; he is gracious in all He does. (NLT)

 

** Daily Devotional 에서 방송된 내용의 줄거리입니다. Daily Devotional은 Keys for kids Ministries에서 지원받은 프로그램입니다. 홈페이지 www.keysforkids.org로 들어가시면 Keys for kids Daily Devotional < September 29, 2021>에서 다시 들으실 수 있습니다.**

 

Ready, Get Set…Wait (Tuesday)

Read: Lamentations 3:22-26; Romans 5:6 

 

Jared tossed his backpack onto the kitchen island, plopped on a stool, and buried his head in his arms with a sigh. His dad looked up from his laptop. "Something wrong, Jared?"

 

"Yeah, something's wrong! Coach Jackson made Sam captain instead of me! I've been on the team longer, I'm the leading scorer, and I know all about the strategies of the other teams. No one is more ready to be captain than me!"

 

"I'm so sorry," said Dad. "I know how much you wanted that role. And you're right, you do have a lot of the ingredients needed to be a good captain."

 

Jared slipped off the stool and walked over to the refrigerator, looking for something to eat. Inside, he found a bowl of orange gelatin--his favorite. He quickly grabbed a spoon and dug in. "Ewww," Jared said. "It's all runny!"

 

"That's because it needs to set for another hour or so." His dad paused. "You know, that gelatin makes me think of what God might be doing in this captain situation. Remember what we read the other night about how, when Jesus was just twelve, His parents found Him in the synagogue talking with grown-ups about the Scriptures and that everyone who heard Him speak was amazed?"

 

"Yeah, I remember."

 

"Well, Jesus had the ingredients that made Him ready for ministry. But He wouldn't start His ministry until He was thirty years old--eighteen years later."

 

"Are you saying I'm going to have to wait eighteen years to be a captain?" Jared asked incredulously.

 

Dad laughed. "No. I just mean that you may have what it takes to be captain--just like that gelatin has what it takes to be your favorite dessert--but you may need to set. Though it's also possible God has something entirely different in mind for you. Either way, you don't have to wait to use the gifts and talents He's given you. Use them to help others now--maybe by supporting Sam in his role as captain--and patiently trust God to lead you to the next thing when the time is right."

 

"Okay," said Jared. "Although it's going to be hard to wait for the gelatin to set. Can we kick a ball around in the backyard until it's ready?"

 

"Of course," Dad said. "Let's go." -Laura Kuehn

 

HOW ABOUT YOU?

Do you ever feel frustrated when you really want to do something but have to wait? A big part of trusting God means trusting His timing. He sent His Son, Jesus, to die for your sins at just the right time, and He knows exactly what—and when—is best for you. Trust Him to help you use the gifts He’s given you to show others His love, both now and in the future.

 

TODAY'S KEY VERSE: Psalm 27:14 (KJV)

Wait on the Lord; be of good courage, and He shall strengthen your heart; Wait, I say, on the Lord! (NKJV)

 

** Daily Devotional 에서 방송된 내용의 줄거리입니다. Daily Devotional은 Keys for kids Ministries에서 지원받은 프로그램입니다. 홈페이지 www.keysforkids.org로 들어가시면 Keys for kids Daily Devotional < September 30, 2021>에서 다시 들으실 수 있습니다.**

 

It’s Hereditary (Wednesday)

Read: John 3:1-8; 13:33-35 

 

"Oh, Mom! Why did I have to get freckles?" Everly complained as she studied her face in the mirror.

 

"Be glad you don't have warts," said her brother Miles. "Besides, what's wrong with freckles? Mom has freckles, and she's pretty."

 

Everly shrugged. "That's different."

 

"I'm not really surprised you have freckles," said Mom. "It's hereditary."

 

"What does that mean, Mom?" Miles asked.

 

"It means there's no hope for me!" Everly moaned.

 

"Children inherit some of the characteristics their parents and grandparents have," Mom explained. "For example, freckles seem to run in our family. As you pointed out, Miles, I have them. Both your grandma and great-grandma had them too, and now Everly has them. Another thing that runs in our family is curly hair. You both inherited that characteristic."

 

"That one's not so bad, I guess," said Everly. "What else did we inherit?"

 

"Well, Miles got your dad's brown eyes, and Everly's eyes are blue like mine," said Mom. "People often say that you look like me, Everly, and they see a lot of your dad in you, Miles. So you're both a reflection of your father and me."

 

"We're a lot like you and Dad because we were born into your family, right?" Miles asked.

 

Mom nodded. "You may not always appreciate all the traits you inherited, but you both have so many of them and look so much like us that it's obvious you're part of our family."

 

"Freckles and all!" said Everly with a grin.

 

"You know, kids," said Mom, "since we're Christians, we're part of another family too--God's family. When we put our trust in Jesus, the Bible says we were born again'--we were freed from sin and became God's children, and He put the characteristics He Himself has in our hearts--traits like love, faithfulness, and patience, to name a few. When our words and actions reflect the character and love of Jesus, others can see that we're God's children."

 

"That's what Mr. Snyder said in our youth group last week," said Miles. "He said we become more and more like Jesus as we grow in our faith."

 

Mom nodded. "As we develop the characteristics He's given us and display them in our lives, it's plain to see that we belong to Him." -Brenda Decker

 

HOW ABOUT YOU?

Do you belong to God’s family? Do others see Jesus and His love in you? When you trusted in Him, He saved you from sin and gave you the traits He has so you could reflect His character to others. As you get to know Him better, He will help you grow to be more like Him every day. Let your life and the way you treat others be a reflection of Jesus so others can see your heavenly Father’s love for them.

 

TODAY'S KEY VERSE: Ephesians 5:1 (KJV)

Be imitators of God as dear children. (NKJV)

 

** Daily Devotional 에서 방송된 내용의 줄거리입니다. Daily Devotional은 Keys for kids Ministries에서 지원받은 프로그램입니다. 홈페이지 www.keysforkids.org로 들어가시면 Keys for kids Daily Devotional < October 02, 2021>에서 다시 들으실 수 있습니다.**

 

Bad Day Blues (Thursday)

Read: Philippians 4:4-9 

 

Sam was grumpy when he got off the school bus. His mom smiled, but he didn't smile back. He'd had a bad day.

 

First, his friend Aiden didn't play with him on the playground. At lunch, Sam spilled his milk on his favorite shirt. Then he got a bad grade on a homework assignment. The bad feelings grew inside him until they were all he could think about.

 

"What's wrong, Sam?" Mom asked.

 

Sam trudged up to the front porch. "Bad day."

 

Mom blocked the door before he could walk inside. "Wait! I have a surprise in there for you."

 

"A surprise?" Sam tried to move around Mom, but she wouldn't budge. "What is it?"

 

"I can't tell you. Not until we get rid of your bad-day blues." Mom grabbed Sam's hand and took him back to the garden. "So, what happened?"

 

Sam didn't want to share about his day--but he wanted the surprise. After a slight groan, he told Mom everything.

 

"That does sound bad." Mom pulled a weed. "Did anything good happen?"

 

"Well, I did make a new friend at recess. His name's Tristan."

 

"Wonderful! Anything else?"

 

Bit by bit, good moments appeared from Sam's bad day as he plucked weeds with Mom. The cool T-shirt his teacher gave him, finger painting, getting a window seat on the bus. Sam didn't want to admit it, but maybe this wasn't the worst day.

 

"It's okay to have bad days," Mom said. "But God tells us to rejoice, no matter what."

 

"Rejoice?"

 

"It's like finding joy in God's world and thanking Him for it. Even on bad days, Jesus loves us and won't ever leave us, and we can find joy in that. No matter what bad things happen, we can rejoice because He's saved us and given us eternal life." Mom pulled a ripe strawberry from the vine.

 

Sam gasped. He hadn't noticed the strawberry plants behind the weeds. But with the weeds gone, the fruit shimmered red in the sunlight.

 

Mom was right. God planted joy in every moment...even if the weeds hid it sometimes.

 

"Ready for your surprise?" Mom asked.

 

"Yes!"

 

Even before Sam walked inside and smelled the fresh strawberry pie, joy stirred in his heart.

 

-Becca Wierwille

 

HOW ABOUT YOU?

Have you ever had a terrible day? Sometimes one upsetting moment can ruin your whole day if you let it. But no matter what, Jesus is with you. He loves you. He saved you from sin and offers you joy, hope, and peace. And that is something you can always be thankful for, even on the worst days.

 

TODAY'S KEY VERSE: Philippians 4:4 (KJV)

Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I will say, rejoice! (NKJV)

** Daily Devotional 에서 방송된 내용의 줄거리입니다. Daily Devotional은 Keys for kids Ministries에서 지원받은 프로그램입니다. 홈페이지 www.keysforkids.org로 들어가시면 Keys for kids Daily Devotional < October 03, 2021>에서 다시 들으실 수 있습니다.**

 

The Keeper (Friday)

Read: Psalm 121 

 

"I love watching all the animals," Faith said when her class took a field trip to the zoo. "But the penguins are my favorite! They look so cute waddling around on land. And it's even more fun to watch them swim. They look like they're flying underwater!"

 

"Yeah, but it's awfully cold in here. Brrrr!" exclaimed one of the kids.

 

The guide showing them around explained that the penguin room was kept cold so the birds would be comfortable. "Otherwise, the penguins could get sick and possibly die from the change of climate," he said. Faith listened as he talked about a number of other special things that were done to keep the penguins healthy.

 

That evening, Dad read Psalm 121 at the dinner table. "Do these verses remind you of the penguins?" he asked Faith. "You told us the zookeepers take special care of them."

 

Faith nodded. "Yes. They make sure the penguins' room is cold enough and that they get certain foods--and even special lights! They know how to keep the conditions just right so the penguins won't get sick."

 

Dad smiled. "This Psalm reminds me that God does the same thing for us."

 

"You mean He makes sure the weather doesn't get too hot or too cold?" asked Faith's little sister, Ellie.

 

"Well, it doesn't say the weather won't ever get hotter or colder than we'd like--or even that there won't be dangerous weather sometimes, like tornadoes or hurricanes," said Dad. "But God is in control of our environment, and He's watching over us even when bad things happen."

 

"So we have a keeper, just like the penguins do," said Ellie. "One of the verses in the psalm you read says God is our keeper, doesn't it?"

 

"It does,"said Dad. "He provides for every one of our needs, including our greatest need of all--salvation from sin. He sent His Son, Jesus, to die for us so our wrongs could be forgiven and we could have eternal life with Him. We can always trust Him to take care of us, even when bad things happen."

 

"Yeah," said Faith. Her eyes twinkled. "Hey, Dad, I think we should visit the penguins a lot so I'll remember that!" -Deborah S. Marett

 

HOW ABOUT YOU?

Did you know that God is your keeper? He’s the one who takes care of you. He provides the air you breathe and the food and water you need to survive. He also provides for your spiritual needs. He sent Jesus to save you so you could live with Him forever, and He fills you with His peace, hope, and love. Even when bad things happen, He’s there watching over you. Thank Him for being your keeper.

 

TODAY'S KEY VERSE: Psalm 121:3-5 (KJV)

He who keeps you…shall neither slumber nor sleep. The Lord is your keeper. (NKJV)