Bible Reading: John 14:3; Philippians 3:20

Samira wove red yarn through the vertical strands on the loom, then tapped the knots down with the beating comb her mother had brought from Afghanistan. She had been helping her mother make Kilim rugs for years. Samira loved weaving red, navy, and brown yarn into diamond-shaped patterns. The rugs sold well at the artisan market, making her proud of her work.

But tonight, Samira had a lot on her mind. "I'm not sure I belong here," she told her mother as she wove more yarn through the strands. "I have lots of friends at school, but I feel different from them. Why is that? I've lived here most of my life. I don't even remember Afghanistan!"

"Well, you're right--we don't belong here." Samira's mom wrapped the red yarn over the white wool strands and twisted. "But we don't belong in Afghanistan either. We are Christians, and our home is with Jesus. He became one of us and then died for our sins and rose again so we could have a place in God's kingdom. That's where we belong--more than any country where we were born or where we live now. Our true home is God's kingdom. But for now, we must wait in a broken world until Jesus returns to get rid of sin and death and make all things new."

Samira stopped weaving. "Why didn't we wait for Jesus in Afghanistan?"

Mom put her beating comb down and turned to Samira. "While waiting for Jesus, our job is to share what we know about Him with others. We tried to do that in Afghanistan, but it was very dangerous. Here, we can read the Bible and worship Jesus without worry of being put in jail or worse. I'm so thankful Jesus brought us to a place that is safer, and I look forward to the day when all His people will be safe forever with Him. In the meantime, Jesus is with us, no matter where we live, because we belong to Him."

Samira smiled and turned back to her weaving. "I'm happy to be from Afghanistan," she said. "I'm happy to weave beautiful rugs. I'm happy to live here. But I'm really happy to be a Christian, a child of God!"

-Bonnie Carr

How About You?
Do you sometimes feel like you don't fit in where you live? It could be a new home you have moved to, or it may be the same place you've always lived. As Christians, we know that Jesus is King over the whole world and that He is with us no matter where we live or what we go through. We are part of a kingdom and family that lasts forever. That's where we truly belong.

Today's Key Verse:
Our citizenship is in heaven, and we eagerly wait for a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ. (CSB) (Philippians 3:20)

Today's Key Thought:
Jesus's kingdom is our home

Bible Reading: Luke 15:8-10

Marci loved watching her pet crawdad, Lulu. At night, Lulu would come out of her home at the bottom of the fish tank and start moving rocks around. It seemed like she was always changing things.

Another thing Lulu liked to do was escape. Marci would get up some mornings and find Lulu crawling across the floor. Marci would quickly scoop her up and put her back in the fish tank.

One morning, as Marci was getting ready for school, she noticed Lulu was missing. She frantically searched her whole room but couldn't find her. "Oh no, where can Lulu be?" Marci muttered. She went into the hallway. "Watch out for Lulu!" she shouted.

Marci's mom came into the room. "Isn't Lulu in here somewhere?"

"I've looked everywhere and I can't find her!" Marci said.

Mom and Dad pitched in on the search for Lulu. A few minutes later, Dad called from the kitchen. "I found Lulu!" he said. Marci and her mom ran into the kitchen. "She crawled under the refrigerator. I'll pull it out, and you pick her up, Marci," Dad said as he began moving the refrigerator.

Marci carefully grabbed Lulu and rushed her back to the fish tank. "Stop escaping from your tank, Lulu. Don't you know it will hurt you to be out of the water? And where would you find food?" Marci scolded.

The crawdad just sank to the bottom and crawled back into her home.

"You know, Lulu's little escaping incident got me thinking about a story Jesus told in the Bible," Dad said at breakfast. "You know how excited we got when we found Lulu and got her safely back in the fish tank? As a pet, Lulu is important to us. Well, just imagine how important we are to God. The Bible tells us all of heaven rejoices when someone turns from sin and trusts in Jesus. That is a lot of love."

"God really does care about everyone," Marci said.

"He sure does," Mom agreed.

Before Marci left for school, she glanced inside the fish tank. Lulu was busy moving rocks around again. Marci just smiled. She was so thankful they had found Lulu, but she was even more thankful to know God loved her so much.

-Lisa Fuller

How About You?
Have you ever lost something important to you? When you found it, how did it make you feel? You were probably really excited, weren't you? The Bible tells us that is true with God too. It says all of heaven rejoices when one person repents and turns to Jesus. We are important to Him. Have you trusted Jesus to save you from sin? If not, do it today, and all of heaven will rejoice! (To learn more, click the "Good News!" button in the right column of this page.)

Today's Key Verse:
There is joy in the presence of God's angels when even one sinner repents. (NLT) (Luke 15:10)

Today's Key Thought:
You are important to God

Bible Reading: Matthew 6:26; 10:29-31

"Ouch!" yelled Violet, tripping headlong into a pile of boxes that lined the hallway. Moving day was only five days away, and the house was a mess. She slowly untangled herself and got to her feet. "I hate moving," she said. "I don't want to leave my friends. I especially don't want to go to another school!"

Mom sighed. "I know, honey," she said, "but we've prayed about it, and your dad and I think this is God's will for our family right now."

"But it's so hard," Violet said as she blinked back tears.

Mom wrapped her arms around her daughter. "I know--it's hard for all of us. But we can trust God even when we don't understand." Mom pointed toward the window. "Do you see that sparrow on the feeder in the backyard, Violet?"

Violet sniffed. "Yes."

"A sparrow is just a tiny little bird," said Mom. "There are millions of them. No one pays much attention to a sparrow. But Jesus said God takes care of those little birds--He even knows when each one dies. He reminds us that He loves us and values us much more than the sparrows. That's one reason we know He'll take good care of us."

"Then…do you think God will help me make new friends?" Violet asked.

"I'm sure He will," Mom replied. "He knows you need friends. Have you talked to Him about it?"

Violet shook her head. "No, but I will."

"Good," said Mom. "Jesus cares about you and understands what you're going through. He knows how hard it is to move to a new place--after all, He left heaven and came to earth as a human to die for our sins!"

Violet smiled. "That was probably the biggest move in history, wasn't it?"

"It was!" Mom agreed. "You can talk to Him anytime and bring your worries to Him in prayer. He understands, and He'll be with you at your new school and help you be a friend to others."

Violet wiped her eyes. "Okay. I'll remember that." She smiled and picked up an empty box. "I think I'll go tell Him how I'm feeling while I pack some more of my things!"

-Toni VandenAkker

How About You?
Are you facing something difficult in your life? Perhaps you're starting a new school, or your family situation has changed. Remember that God loves you and promises to take care of you. Jesus understands what you're going through and wants to help you, so tell Him about your worries. He cares about you and promises to be with you in everything you face.

Today's Key Verse:
Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about you. (NLT) (1 Peter 5:7)

Today's Key Thought:
Jesus cares and understands

Bible Reading: Revelation 20:11-15

"Let's see, Mrs. Garcia ordered four boxes of chocolate chip cookies, Aunt Katie wants one box of oatmeal raisin and one box of double chocolate delight, and Mrs. Jones gets three boxes of sugar cookies," Lina murmured to herself. She was taking part in a fundraiser for her school and had sold cookies to several families in her neighborhood. Lina carefully finished filling out her order form and took it to school the next day.

When the cookies arrived, Lina double-checked the boxes with her list to make sure the orders were right. Then she went to deliver the cookies to the people who had ordered them.

When Lina stopped at the Garcias' home, Mrs. Garcia came to the door. "Here you are," said Lina. "Four boxes of chocolate chip cookies."

"Hooray! Cookies!" exclaimed the Garcias' young son, Jorge. He eagerly took a cookie from a box Mrs. Garcia had just opened.

As Lina got back on her bike, a little boy came running up to her from the house next door. "Oh!" he exclaimed when he saw what she had. "I want cookies too!"

Lina knew the boy well. His family attended the same church as her family. "I'm sorry, Nathan," she said after checking her list, "but I don't see your family's name here." She smiled at him. "I'm still taking orders, so ask your mom or dad if they'd like to buy some cookies."

Nathan's dad was working in the yard, and he walked over. "I heard that," he said, "and we'd like to buy some, wouldn't we, Nathan?" Nathan nodded eagerly.

"All right!" said Lina. "Then your name will be on my next list, Nathan, and you'll get cookies too."

"Your list of names makes me think of Pastor Holt's message last week," said Nathan's dad. "Remember it? Pastor Holt reminded us that one day, we will all face God. He'll look to see if our names are written in heaven. They need to be on God's list in the Book of Life."

"And if they are, we get to spend eternity with Him," said Lina. She smiled at Nathan. "That's one list you want to be sure your name is on!"

Nathan grinned at her. "It already is," he said, "because I trusted Jesus to be my Savior!"

-Holly F. Cepeda

How About You?
Is your name on God's list? That's a very important question, because only those whose names are written in heaven will spend eternity with Jesus. The time to trust Him is today--right now! Admit your sin and trust Him to save you. Then your name will be written in the Book of Life in heaven. (To learn more, click the "Good News!" button in the right column of this page.)

Today's Key Verse:
Rejoice because your names are written in heaven. (NKJV) (Luke 10:20)

Today's Key Thought:
Trust Jesus and be on God's list

Bible Reading: Psalm 33:4-9; John 16:33

"Ow!" Ian wailed as his mom rubbed a baking soda mixture on a bee sting. "It still hurts! Why did God make bees, anyway?"

"I didn't hear you complaining when you were spreading honey on your toast this morning," said Mom. "But hang on--I'll get you some ice to hold on the sting. That will help it stop hurting."

Ian sighed. "I guess bees are useful," he said when Mom brought the ice. "But I wish they didn't have stingers." Ian frowned. "I don't see why God made some other things either--like volcanoes or earthquakes."

"Well, think of it this way," said Mom. "Remember the farm we visited last year where the bees were building hives and making honey?"

"Yeah," Ian said. "It was fun to see all the cool things bees can do. They're really smart!"

"Yes, they are," said Mom. "But do you think bees could build a skyscraper?"

Ian grinned. "Of course not. But neither could we, Mom!"

Mom laughed. "True, but there are engineers and builders and other people who know how to build them. Do you think if they explained how to build a skyscraper, bees could build one?"

Ian shook his head. "They're just tiny little bugs, and we're humans. You know they can't understand the things we do or say."

Mom nodded. "And compared to God, we're just tiny little humans, so how can you expect us to understand everything He does?"

"You mean, we're just like tiny little bugs to God?" asked Ian, sounding rather shocked.

"No--we mean much more to Him than that," Mom said. "We're very important to God. He created us in His image and blessed us with many amazing abilities, but we're not equal to Him. Many things He allows to happen won't make sense to us, but we can trust Him because He is good and knows what He's doing. Jesus came into our broken world to die for us so we could be saved, and He promises to put an end to suffering and death one day. Even though we don't always understand God's ways, we can trust Him because everything He does is good."

Ian nodded. "And even though they sometimes sting, bees do lots of good things too."

-Heather M. Tekavec

How About You?
Do you wonder why God created certain things or allows some things to happen? The Bible says God created everything to be good, but when sin entered the world, it became broken. As a result, we experience pain and death in this world--and so did Jesus when He came to save us. We may not understand everything God does or allows, but we can trust Him because He is good.

Today's Key Verse:
You [God] are good, and what you do is good. (NIV) (Psalm 119:68)

Today's Key Thought:
Trust God when you don't understand