Bible Reading: Romans 8:35-39

Cooper slumped down in his chair and pushed apple slices around on his plate. His mom noticed his discouraged look. "You've had a pretty crummy week, haven't you?" she said.

Cooper nodded. In just one week, he had argued with his best friend, gotten detention for disrupting class, and had to sit out soccer practice for starting a fight. Besides the trouble at school, he'd been punished for hitting his sister and lying to his dad.

"I can't stop doing things that are wrong, Mom," Cooper said. "I really want to do what's right, but I always end up doing something bad again. Have you…" Cooper hesitated, then hurried on to ask his question. "Have you ever wondered if God might stop loving you if you kept doing wrong stuff?"

Mom raised her eyebrows. "Is that worrying you?"

Cooper sighed. "Well, I just wonder sometimes. I'm always asking God to forgive something I did, but then I go and do some other bad thing. Seems like--" He stopped as his new puppy ran into the room with one of Cooper's sweatshirts in its mouth. "Oh no!" Cooper exclaimed. He quickly grabbed his dog, but one sleeve was already badly chewed. "Bad dog!" scolded Cooper, taking the shirt away.

"Don't you want to get rid of that puppy, Cooper?" Mom asked. "He's always chewing things, making messes, digging holes! He's so bad. You don't really want to keep him anymore, do you?"

"Of course I do!" said Cooper. "I don't like it when he's bad, but he's only a puppy. I'll teach him to be good. He's mine, and I'm not getting rid of him!"

Mom smiled. "Don't you think God feels the same way about you? He doesn't want to get rid of you; you're His child! Jesus sacrificed His life so you could belong to Him. He's not happy about it when you sin, but He wants to teach you how to do better." Mom scratched the puppy's drooping ears. "Every time you think of how much you care for this little rascal, think of how much more God cares for you! Then remember He is gracious and forgiving and trust Him to help you do what's right."

As Cooper looked at his puppy, his face broke into a bright smile.

-Jessica Van Dessel

How About You?
Have you thought God might stop loving you because you still sin? He won't. You're very precious to God--He sent His own Son to die for you so you could be His child! He won't stop loving you, but He may need to discipline you so you'll learn to do what's right. Confess your sin to Him, and learn from the discipline He gives through parents, teachers, and others in authority. God is patient and forgiving, and He will always love you.

Today's Key Verse:
Nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord. (NLT) (Romans 8:39)

Today's Key Thought:
God always loves you

Bible Reading: Galatians 6:7-10

"Everything looks delicious," said Miguel's dad as the family began to eat. There was a twinkle in his eye as he added, "Please pass the watermelon, Miguel."

Miguel paused with his fork halfway to his mouth. "Watermelon?" he asked, looking around. "What watermelon?"

"Right there in that bowl in front of you," said Dad.

Miguel looked at the bowl heaped full of golden squash. He was about to protest when he suddenly understood. "Oh, uh, sure, Dad. Here's the watermelon." Miguel laughed as he passed the bowl of squash.

"I don't get it," Miguel's sister Celina said with a frown. "That's squash. Why are you calling it watermelon?"

Dad grinned and waited for Miguel to explain, but Miguel got busy eating and pretended not to hear the question. Celina repeated it. "Well…uh…" Miguel began. "I just made a little mistake when we were planting the garden, that's all--but Dad won't let me forget it."

Celina looked at her father. "What did he do?" she asked.

"Miguel wanted to grow watermelons," Dad explained, "and I told him he was using squash seeds. But would he believe me? Oh no! He insisted they were watermelon seeds."

"It was a perfectly understandable mistake," Miguel said. "They look a lot alike."

"Miguel told me if I'd just be patient and wait until they grew, I'd see for myself," continued Dad. "I waited…and here's the finished product." As Dad held up the bowl of squash, Miguel couldn't help but laugh along with everyone else.

"Like the Bible says, you reap what you sow," said Mom. "That sure is true, both in a garden and in life. We all need to make sure we sow the right kind of seeds."

"Especially in our lives," said Dad. "If we live to please ourselves and sow evil deeds, we can expect to reap evil and sorrow. But if we put our faith in Jesus and sow good things that come from His Spirit living inside of us, we can expect to reap joy and blessings."

Mom nodded. "Whatever we plant in life is what we'll get. That's why we must trust in Jesus and depend on Him to produce His love and goodness in us."

-Hazel W. Marett

How About You?
What are you sowing in your life? Are you living to please yourself and sowing things like selfishness, lies, and greed? Or are you trusting God to help you sow good things such as love, kindness, and forgiveness? The Bible tells us we can't produce anything good in our lives without Jesus. Trust Him as your Savior. (To learn more, click the "Good News!" button in the right column of this page.) Then depend on the Holy Spirit to help you sow seeds that will reap joy and blessing.

Today's Key Verse:
Whoever sows to please their flesh, from the flesh will reap destruction; whoever sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life. (NIV) (Galatians 6:8)

Today's Key Thought:
You reap what you sow

Bible Reading: Galatians 3:26-28; Ephesians 4:1-6

"Go, Silas! Go!" yelled Austin, jumping up and down in his enthusiasm. He watched as his teammate tucked the football under his arm, jumped over another player, and sprinted down the field. "All right!" Austin cheered wildly as Silas scored the first touchdown of the game.

At the dinner table that evening, Austin gave his family a blow-by-blow account of the afternoon's game. Over and over they heard the name Silas as Austin described the various plays.

Finally, Austin's sister Kara held up her hand. "I'm sick and tired of hearing about all the wonderful plays Silas made!" she declared. "I thought the two of you didn't even get along that well. But now all you do is sing his praises."

"Well, he may not be my favorite person in the world," Austin admitted. "He's not my best friend or anything, and we don't always see eye-to-eye, but he's on our team. We work together for the same cause. We're both Greenville Cougars!" He paused. "You should have seen him run this afternoon. Peter passed the ball to Silas, and he ran down the field like a bolt of lightning. The other team--"

"Oh no!" Kara groaned and dropped her head into her hands. "Here comes another episode of 'Silas, the Amazing Football Player.'"

Mom laughed. "I'm glad you enjoyed your game so much, Austin," she said. "It's nice that your team won, and it's also nice that you've found something to admire about Silas. We should always look for positive things in others."

"I think Austin has given us a good example of how we should view other Christians," observed Dad. "We may not agree with them on everything, and they don't all have to be our best friends. But we should remember that we're on the same team--God's team. We all know Jesus as our Savior and have received forgiveness for our sins through Him. Together, we're working to tell others about Jesus and share His great love with the world."

"Just like Silas and I are working on the same team to win our football games," said Austin.

"Yes," Dad said, "and like Mom suggested, we can love and appreciate our teammates, even those we're not close with."

-Hazel W. Marett

How About You?
Is there a fellow Christian who annoys you? You probably enjoy being with some Christians more than others. But remember that all who know Jesus belong to Him, and that makes you teammates. Jesus loves all of us, and He helps us love each other too. Trust Him to help you love and appreciate the other Christians He's put in your life. Then work together as teammates to serve Jesus and tell others about Him.

Today's Key Verse:
You are all one in Christ Jesus. (NKJV) (Galatians 3:28)

Today's Key Thought:
Christians are your teammates

Bible Reading: Matthew 4:18-20; Romans 5:6-8; 1 John 4:7-11

Natalie was grinning as she climbed into the car after church. "Can I go fishing next weekend?" she asked. "My youth group leader said I should."

Dad chuckled as he started the car. "You hate fishing, so there's got to be a catch."

Natalie's brother Gavin laughed. "Good one, Dad." He turned to his sister. "Get it? Catch?"

Natalie rolled her eyes. "Our lesson today was about being fishers of people," she explained. "I told the class how you use the right kind of bait when you go fishing for bluegills, and we decided we should think about what would be the right bait to use when we fish for people."

"Interesting," said Mom. "But what could possibly be better than what Jesus already offers us--eternal life with Him?"

"You're right--that's the best thing, of course," said Natalie. "But Mrs. Parsons pointed out that lots of people live so focused on the present, as she put it, that they don't really pay attention when we talk to them about heaven. So we decided we should also use something else to draw people in and make them want to listen when we talk about Jesus."

"So what kind of bait are you gonna use for that?" asked Gavin.

"Love," said Natalie.

"Love!" Gavin made a face. "Ugh! I don't like mushy stuff."

"Not mushy stuff," said Natalie. "Mrs. Parsons says love can take different forms. Next weekend it's going to take the form of a party."

"That's more like it!" said Gavin. "But how can a party be bait?"

"Well, it's the kind of thing our friends will want to come to, and it will give us a chance to show them God's love," Natalie replied. "There will be food and games, and everyone's welcome to invite their friends. We're hoping people who don't know Jesus will come so they can hear more about Him and see the love He's put in our hearts." Natalie grinned. "I'm going to invite Sierra."

Dad nodded. "Jesus loved us so much He died on the cross for our sins, and He tells us to love others. Love is the bait we use to draw more people to Him."

-Hazel W. Marett

How About You?
Are you fishing for people--are you sharing the good news of Jesus with others so they can know Him as their Savior too? What are you using for bait? The Bible says it's our love that draws others to Jesus--love for God, love for other Christians, and love for those who don't yet know Him. Let the love God has put in your heart fill your life so others will be drawn to Him.

Today's Key Verse:
By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another. (NKJV) (John 13:35)

Today's Key Thought:
Win others through love

Bible Reading: 1 Peter 5:6-11

Natalie dropped her backpack on the floor with a loud thud. "I can't believe Dominick!" she exclaimed. "You remember how I told you I couldn't find my calculator yesterday?" she asked her mom. "Well, it turns out Dominick stole it! Miss Patel saw it sticking out of his backpack, and he admitted he took it off my desk when I wasn't looking." Natalie sat down heavily on a kitchen chair, making it squeak. "What's wrong with him? He says he's a Christian, but he sure doesn't act like it sometimes!"

"I'm sorry to hear he stole your calculator," Mom said. "Did you talk to him about it?"

"Yeah, and he said he was sorry," Natalie replied. "But he's done things like this before. I just don't understand why he would want to steal something that doesn't belong to him."

"Well, I'm glad you're not tempted to steal other people's things," Mom said. "But remember, the things that tempt you probably don't tempt him."

"What do you mean?" Natalie asked.

"Remember when Dad went fishing for bluegills last week?" asked Mom. "Do you remember what kind of bait he used?"

Natalie made a face. "Yeah--it was those gross red worms. Dad says bluegills like them, but if I were a bluegill, I'm sure I'd rather have a nice little minnow. I'd rather eat a fish than a worm any day!"

Mom laughed. "But the bluegills wouldn't, and that's my point exactly. Different fish are attracted to different bait. A good fisherman knows the right bait to use." She paused. "In that sense, Satan is a good fisherman, because people are like that too. Something that tempts one person may not tempt another, but we're all tempted by something. We need to be aware of what Satan might use as bait to get us to sin. Dominick seems to be tempted to steal, which doesn't appeal to you, but you sometimes say very unkind things to your brother when he does something that bothers you."

Natalie blushed. "You're right. I guess I'm tempted by different bait than Dominick is."

"We're all tempted by different things," Mom said. "But Jesus promises to forgive all our sins and help us resist temptation. And we need to forgive and help each other too."

-Hazel W. Marett

How About You?
What temptations do you struggle with? Cheating? Gossiping? Disobeying your parents? We might not all go after the same bait, but we all struggle with sin in some way and do things that are wrong. If you know Jesus, He forgives your sin and gives you the power to resist temptation. Trust Him to help you do that, and show the same grace to those whose struggles are different from yours.

Today's Key Verse:
Be alert…Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him. (NIV) (1 Peter 5:8-9)

Today's Key Thought:
Resist temptation