Bible Reading: Luke 12:6-7

"In the attic's dim light, Andrew could see many interesting things--boxes of Christmas ornaments, piles of photo albums, and trunks filled with camping equipment. He and Dad were hunting for Dad's old train set from when he was Andrew's age.

"What's this?" asked Andrew, stumbling across a large wooden crate with dozens of items wrapped in newspaper. Wondering what was inside, he began to unravel one. He was disappointed to discover an old-fashioned teacup painted with rambling roses.

"Be careful with that!" said Dad. "That looks like Grandma Joan's teacup collection. It's very precious to your mom."

Andrew was puzzled. "What's so precious about a box full of teacups?" he asked.

"Didn't Mom tell you the story? Grandma Joan collected teacups from every place she ever visited. She had teacups from all over the world!"

Andrew's eyes grew wide. Perhaps the teacups weren't so boring after all.

"They're not everybody's 'cup of tea,'" continued Dad, obviously pleased with his awful joke, "but this collection was Grandma Joan's treasured possession!"

"What do you mean?" asked Andrew. "Like, her very favorite thing?"

"Exactly!" said Dad. "Over the years, those teacups became very valuable. She could have sold them at a high price, but she wouldn't think of it. They held a lot of memories."

Andrew smiled--now he understood. The teacups reminded her of all the places she'd visited.

"Do you know there's a verse in the Bible about God's treasured possession?" asked Dad.

Andrew was intrigued. "God has a treasured possession? What is it?"

"Well," said Dad, "it's you and me, and all of God's people all over the earth. We're so valuable to Him that He was willing to pay a high price so we could be His. He sent His Son, Jesus, to die for our sins so that we could have a relationship with Him." Dad blew away years of dust from a large rectangular box. "And speaking of favorite things--this was definitely mine when I was your age!" He opened the box. "Here she is! The Red Rocket!"

Andrew hurried over to have a look at the red locomotive. "Wow, it's so awesome! Can we set it up today, Dad? Please?"

"Okay," said Dad. "Let's go!"

–Angela Jelf

How About You?
Do you have a treasured possession? Is it valuable? You can tell how valuable something is by the price someone is willing to pay for it. God's people are His treasured possession. He paid the highest price--the life of His Son, Jesus--to make you one of His children. That's how much He loves you. You are very valuable to Him!

Today's Key Verse:
The LORD your God has chosen you out of all the peoples on the face of the earth to be his people, his treasured possession. (NIV) (Deuteronomy 7:6)

Today's Key Thought:
You are valuable to God

Bible Reading: Psalm 51:1-2; Romans 5:6-9

Leo watched his ball roll under the shed, then he dropped his bat and crawled in after it. As he scooted under the edge, he spotted a pair of glowing eyes. A cat, thought Leo. He crawled closer. "Here, kitty," he called. The animal turned. Oh no! thought Leo. A skunk! Before he could scramble out of range, the skunk sprayed, and Leo was covered with an awful smell. "Mom!" he yelled. He hurried to the outdoor faucet, turned on the water, and tried to wash away the dreadful odor with the hose.

Mom came out of the house and put her hand up to her nose. "We need to get those clothes in the washer right away, and you need a shower with lots of strong soap," she said. "And your hair! Wait here." She hurried back into the house and returned with a can of tomato juice. "Put your head under the hose," she said.

Leo looked at the can of tomato juice. "What are you going to do with that?"

"Tomato juice is supposed to help cover the smell," Mom explained. "I'll see what else I can find, but for now this is the best I can do."

When Dad heard the story, the skunk smell still lingered. "I thought it was a cat," said Leo. "I was going to pet it." Dad laughed. "Not funny!" said Leo, but he grinned too.

"Skunks leave a bad odor, but do you know what smells even worse?" asked Dad. Leo shook his head. "Sin," said Dad. "You could say sin stinks."

Leo nodded. "I tried to wash off the skunk smell, but I needed help. We need help getting rid of the sin smell too, don't we? Something better than tomato juice!"

"Yes, we do," said Dad. "The Bible says only the blood of Jesus can get rid of our sin. He died for us and rose again so we could be forgiven and have a relationship with God. When we trust in Him, He removes the stench of our sin and makes us clean."

"That's right. Just like that," Mom said, snapping her fingers. She sighed. "I wish we could do as good a job getting rid of that skunk smell," she added, wrinkling her nose. "Let's go wash your hair one more time!"

–Angela Jenkins

How About You?
Have you ever smelled a skunk before? It's awful! But sin is much worse, and no matter what we do, we can't get rid of the stench ourselves. The Bible says everyone has sinned, and it stinks up our lives with selfishness and hurt and separates us from God. Only Jesus can wash our sins away. Trust in Him and He will make you clean and right with God. (To learn more, click the "Good News!" button in the right column of this page or go to www.keysforkids.org/goodnews.)

Today's Key Verse:
Since we have been made right in God's sight by the blood of Christ, he will certainly save us from God's condemnation. (NLT) (Romans 5:9)

Today's Key Thought:
Jesus removes our sin

Bible Reading: Proverbs 15:1-4; Ephesians 4:31-32

"You're always messing up this room," Hannah said as she pushed her sister's things off the dresser. "You're such a pig!"

"You're the pig. And leave my things alone!" yelled Margo.

"Then keep your stuff off my side of the dresser!" Hannah shot back.

The fighting escalated, and soon Mom appeared at the door. "Girls! I'm tired of the constant bickering between you," she said sternly. "You are sisters, and you should respect each other. Follow me."

Hannah and Margo glared at each other as they followed their mother into the back hall and watched as she got out some towels and a bottle of cleaning solution. "Now," said Mom, "you are going to clean the big living room window until it looks like you could walk through it."

Hannah and Margo got to work. But the more solution they sprayed on the glass and rubbed with the towels, the streakier the window became.

"Mom!" Margo called. "There's something wrong with the spray you gave us."

"What's that?" Mom came in from the kitchen. "The solution I gave you isn't working?"

"It's just making it worse!" said Hannah.

"Well, your solution for solving disagreements isn't working either," said Mom. She came over and took the bottle she had given them. "This is all-purpose cleaner--it doesn't work on windows. And shouting and saying nasty things to each other doesn't work to solve disagreements."

The girls started to complain, but Mom cut them off.

"God has a much different solution," she said. "Instead of responding in anger, He says to give a soft answer. That means calmly talking through the problem and caring about the other person and what they have to say. Because you trust in Jesus, you have the Holy Spirit to help you respond to others in a gentle, loving way--even when you don't agree with them." Mom went and got another bottle from the back hall. "Here, try this solution on the windows--it will work much better."

Hannah and Margo went back to their task and thought about what Mom had said. Finally, Hannah said, "I'm sorry I pushed your stuff off the dresser."

"I'm sorry too," said Margo. "I'll try to keep things neater."

After a few more wipes, the window was as clear as ever.

–Carol Baker

How About You?
Do you ever get angry at your friends or family? Do you react with harsh words or a mean attitude? By ourselves, it's nearly impossible to respond nicely. That's why Jesus gives us His Spirit to help us respond in a kind, gentle way. The next time you're upset, take a deep breath and ask Him to show you how to use His solution--a soft answer spoken in love.

Today's Key Verse:
A soft answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger. (NKJV) (Proverbs 15:1)

Today's Key Thought:
Solve disagreements God's way

Bible Reading: Psalm 33:4-15, 20-22

"I think I see the scenic lookout we found on the map, Mom!" shouted Orlando. He sighed in relief. The family had been hiking the steep Treetop Trail for two hours, and Orlando was glad to finally collapse on a large, flat rock. As he rested, he gazed at the view below.

Orlando's sister Ana plopped down beside him. "Wow!" she said. "This is awesome!" Ana pointed to a house in the distance. "Look over there, Dad. I bet we can see for a thousand miles!"

Dad walked over. "I'd say that house is more like twenty miles away--not a thousand," he said with a smile.

"Well, it's still awesome!" said Ana.

"I agree. It is awesome," said Mom. She sat down beside Ana and Orlando. "You kids use that word a lot. Do you know what it means?"

"I guess it's used to describe something that's extra amazing," said Ana.

"That's a pretty good definition," said Mom. "I looked it up in the dictionary once, and the original meaning has to do with a feeling of reverence for something majestic or sacred. One definition for awesome is 'a reverent wonder.' I like that one."

"I do too," said Dad. "I think awesome is a great word to use to describe God. Psalm 33 says to 'stand in awe of Him.' That means we should love and respect Him and recognize that He is in control of the entire world--and our lives." Dad paused and looked around. "Being on this mountain makes a person feel pretty small, doesn't it?"

"You can say that again!" said Orlando.

"Okay," said Dad. "Being on this mountain makes a person--"

"Daaad!" Orlando rolled his eyes, and they all laughed.

"Things in nature are awesome," Dad said. "God made them, and they give us just a glimpse of His greatness. But what's really awesome is that He loves us so much He sent His Son to save us. Jesus was willing to make Himself one of us and come to earth to die on a cross for our sins--and then He rose from the dead. Now that's extra amazing!"

The family sipped from their water bottles as they enjoyed the view. "Yes," Mom said quietly, "Jesus is truly awesome!"

–Dean Fowler

How About You?
Do you use the word awesome a lot? It's a word that's probably overused, but if you want to see something truly awesome, look around you at the world God created. His great power and glory is displayed in everything He's made--and in His great love and the sacrifice He made when Jesus gave His life for us. Consider all His wonderful work, and stand in awe of Him!

Today's Key Verse:
The LORD Most High is awesome; He is a great King over all the earth. (NKJV) (Psalm 47:2)

Today's Key Thought:
Jesus is truly awesome

Bible Reading: Romans 12:3-10

On their way to the park one Saturday morning, Maisie and her parents decided to stop at an estate sale. Maisie enjoyed seeing all the things the owners of the place were selling. When they walked into a room that looked like a library, Maisie gasped in delight. "Look! A harp! My music teacher at school has one. She said there aren't many people who know how to play them." Maisie turned to her dad. "Can we buy it? I'd love to learn how to play."

Dad pointed to a sign. "See that? It's not for sale."

Just then a woman who was supervising the sale walked in. She smiled at Maisie. "I see you like this harp," she said. "Did you notice the different kinds of strings? Some are really thin and others are thick and strong. Some are spiraled and some are grooved, but others are smooth."

"They're not all the same color either," said Maisie. "Some are bright red, and others are black or silver or gold."

"That's right," said the woman. "This harp belonged to my mother. Now I'm going to take it home so my daughter can learn to play."

The next day at church, Maisie looked around at all the different people singing in the sanctuary. "Being in church reminded me of the harp we saw yesterday," she told her parents after the service.

"Really?" asked Dad. "How's that?"

"Well, I noticed when we were singing how many different people there were--people of all ages and races and personalities--but they all worshiped God in harmony together, just like all the different strings on a harp play one beautiful song."

"That's a good way to look at it, Maisie," said Mom. "A harp is made up of many strings, and God's church is made up of many people."

Dad nodded. "And every string is different--each is designed to sound its own individual note. Yet when each string is in tune with the others, the harp makes beautiful, harmonious music! It's that way with God's church too. The members are all different, but the Holy Spirit unites us through our faith in Jesus. As we show His love to one another and serve and worship God together, we make music that's sweet to God's ears."

–Trudy Vander Veen

How About You?
Do you enjoy the fact that each member of God's church is different? Not everyone will think or act just like you, but that's okay. The important thing is for all of us to stay in tune with the Holy Spirit. That means relying on Him to help us work together and get along, even when we disagree on things. Stay in harmony with other Christians by following the Master Musician--Jesus--as you show others His love.

Today's Key Verse:
How good and pleasant it is when God's people live together in unity! (NIV) (Psalm 133:1)

Today's Key Thought:
Christians should live in harmony