Bible Reading: Isaiah 40:8; John 1:14-17; 14:6; 18:36-38

The screen door creaked and slammed shut as Vivian came out and hopped onto the porch swing next to her father. Dad yawned. "What a day!" he said. "Things at work are changing faster than I can keep up with them." Vivian glanced up when her father mentioned change. "Anything interesting happen at school?" asked Dad.

"Actually…" Vivian paused as she gazed at a big gnarled moss-covered tree in their yard. "Remember when I told you Mr. Conners doesn't seem to believe in God?" Dad nodded. "Well, today he said truth is always changing. He said what was true for my parents or friends might not be true for me. He said that as people change, so does truth." Vivian sighed. "That kind of has me confused. It doesn't seem right to me."

For a moment, Dad didn't answer, and Vivian wondered if he'd heard her. He pushed the swing a little higher with his foot and pointed to the old tree. "Look over there at the tree," he said. "Do you see what it's doing?"

Vivian frowned. "No."

He made the swing go higher still. "The whole tree is moving--all the way down to its roots!" He gave the swing another huge push. "Look at it go!"

Vivian finally got what he meant. "Dad!" she exclaimed. "The tree isn't moving--we are!"

"Right," said Dad, "and truth is like that tree. To say that truth changes is like saying that tree is moving, even though it's been anchored in that spot since before you or I were born."

He pushed the porch swing a bit higher and Vivian giggled.

"In the Bible, Jesus calls Himself the truth," Dad continued. "He offers us a new way of living, a life overflowing with His love, truth, and grace."

"I learned a verse at church that says Jesus never changes," said Vivian.

"That's right," said Dad. "Jesus--the truth--is always the same, and His words remain true forever. People's beliefs may go back and forth. Opinions may change. But truth never changes. God's Word is just as true today as it was thousands of years ago, and its truth applies to our lives now just as it did to people back then."

Vivian looked at their burly tree. "I'll pray that God would help Mr. Connors understand the truth about Jesus too."

–Dawn Yrene

How About You?
Has someone told you that everything changes, including truth? Have you been told that you can determine what is true for yourself? There is peace and wisdom in trusting that Jesus is the truth and that His Word is forever unchanging. Truth is not something that changes from day to day. It's not affected by popular beliefs or opinions. God reveals truth to us in the Bible and in the person of His Son, Jesus, and He never changes.

Today's Key Verse:
Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever. (NKJV) (Hebrews 13:8)

Today's Key Thought:
Truth never changes

Bible Reading: Psalm 139:7-16

Emmett kneeled down at the side of his bed and prayed. "Dear Lord, please be with Mom and Dad, and Grandpa and Grandma. Amen." As he got into bed and his mom tucked him in, he had a perplexed look on his face.

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

"Well, I was just thinking about it. How can God be with all of us at the same time? And if I had to choose who to pray for Him to be with, who would I want Him to be with more? Dad has to work on roofs all day and could easily fall and get hurt, and you have to drive in traffic all day and could easily get in a car accident."

Mom smiled. "Emmett, you don't have to choose. God can be with all of us at the same time. He's omnipresent--that means He's everywhere at once."

"I still don't get it," Emmett said. "How can God be in more than one place at the same time?"

Mom walked over to Emmett's bedroom window and opened the curtain to reveal a beautiful night sky with a crescent moon shining. "Do you think Grandma and Grandpa can see this moon where they are in Florida tonight?" Mom asked.

"Of course they can. The moon is so big that people from all over the world can see it at the same time," Emmett replied.

Mom closed the curtain and walked back to Emmett's bed. "Emmett, it's the same with God. He is so big that He can help everyone all over the world at the same time. You don't have to choose who you want Him to be with more--He's more than capable of protecting everyone at the same time." Mom sat down on Emmett's bed. "God is also with those who trust in Jesus in a special way. Even though He's big enough to see and help everyone on earth, He's given Christians the Holy Spirit to live inside them so that we can have His peace and presence with us all the time--even if something bad were to happen to us. He's bigger than we can imagine, and He promises He'll always be with us."

After Mom turned out the light, Emmett went to sleep thanking God for being so big.

–Melissa Yeagle

How About You?
Do you worry that God is not able to watch over all those you care about at the same time? The Bible says His thoughts are higher than our thoughts. That means He is able to handle way more than we can--even more than we can imagine! He is big, and His love for us is so huge that Jesus gave His life so He could be with us forever. Pray for all those you care about and know that God can look after all of them at the same time.

Today's Key Verse:
"Do I not fill heaven and earth?" says the Lord. (NKJV) (Jeremiah 23:24)

Today's Key Thought:
God is everywhere

Bible Reading: Isaiah 40:28-31

"I hate homework," groaned Rosa as she jabbed the sharp tip of her pencil at a long division problem.

Sebastian lifted his nose out of his science book. "I don't mind doing science homework. These magnets are cool! Watch this." He took a nail and rubbed it across a magnet several times. Then he held the nail close to a pin. "See? It picked up the pin just like a real magnet!"

"Wow!" exclaimed Rosa. "Why does it do that?"

"Some magnetism got rubbed off onto the nail," explained Sebastian.

"Can I try?" asked Rosa. She took the nail and held it over a paper clip, giggling as it sprang up toward the nail. Next, she took a clip from her hair and held the nail over that. This time, nothing happened.

"The nail loses its power to attract things quickly if it isn't rubbed against the magnet again," said Sebastian. "That's why it didn't pick up that clip. To keep it working, it has to be rubbed against the magnet over and over."

Rosa returned the nail to her brother and went back to her math while he continued to tinker with the magnet. "This nail is just like a Christian," he said.

Rosa gave him a confused look. "What are you talking about?"

"Well, look! This magnet is like God, and the nail is like us," said Sebastian. "When we get saved, God brings us close to Him." Sebastian illustrated by rubbing the nail against the magnet. "The nail gets power from the magnet, and we receive power from God to love others like Jesus and attract people to Him."

Rosa nodded. "As we let the Holy Spirit's power guide us in how to live, people will see the love of God in our lives and want what we have--we'll be magnetic Christians. But if we focus on our own selfish desires instead of what God wants, then we're like a plain old nail again." She grinned at her brother. "Hey, you're pretty smart to think of that. I'm impressed!"

Sebastian grinned too. "Good! Keep thinking like that. Even though my teacher at church used a magnet like this for an illustration in class last week, that doesn't mean I wouldn't have thought of it myself." He laughed as Rosa threw an eraser in his direction.

–Ellen C. Orr

How About You?
Did you know that you can be like a magnet that attracts others to Jesus? If you know Him as your Savior, you have the Holy Spirit in you. He gives you the power to live a life that points others to Jesus and His love for us. Trust God to help you focus on the desires He puts in your heart, like following Jesus and showing His love to others, so you can be a magnetic Christian.

Today's Key Verse:
You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you. And you will be my witnesses, telling people about me everywhere. (NLT) (Acts 1:8)

Today's Key Thought:
Be a magnetic Christian

Bible Reading: Isaiah 55:8-9; Nahum 1:7; Romans 8:28-32

Sienna grunted as her foot caught a root in the path. She squinted ahead of her, hoping to see where the path led, but all she could see were trees. She sighed and kicked at a stone. She knew Dad was hoping this mountain hike would take her mind off Kaia, but it wasn't working.

As Sienna made her way up a steep point in the path, her foot slipped and she fell, skinning her knee. Dad rushed over and pulled the first aid kit from his bag. As he bandaged her knee, Sienna started to cry.

"I want to go home!" she sobbed. "I know we're just doing this to forget about Kaia."

Dad helped her to her feet. "Trust me, Sienna, we're almost there. It'll be worth it, I promise."

Sienna wiped her eyes and nodded. She made her way up the hill, her knee stinging. As she crested the top, she saw a rocky ledge, and beyond that, open sky. They walked over to the ledge in silence, and the sight took Sienna's breath away. Below them, trees stretched out in every direction.

"Wow," said Sienna. "Look at how high we are!"

Dad nodded. "We've come a long way. We never would have gotten a view like this from the ground." He eased his pack off his shoulders. "I didn't bring you up here to forget about Kaia--I just wanted to give you a new perspective. Remember how you trusted me when I told you that the hard hike would be worth it?" Sienna nodded. "Well, God has a mountaintop view of our lives," said Dad.

"Meaning He sees things differently than us," Sienna said.

Dad nodded. "Trusting God doesn't mean we ignore the hard things in life. We don't know why your best friend got cancer, and we don't know what's going to happen because of it. But God does, and He promises to be with us in every situation. He loves us so much that Jesus died for us, and He gives us strength when it feels like we can't go on." He squeezed Sienna's shoulder. "I know you're worried about Kaia, but remember that while you can only see one small part of her life, God can see the whole thing. He loves her and can use even this tough situation to show her--and you--how good He is."

–Courtney Lasater

How About You?
Are you going through a difficult time in your life? When something bad happens, it's hard to see how any good could ever come from it. But while you can only see the part of your life you're living now, God sees the big picture. You can trust Him in any situation because Jesus died for us so that we could experience His goodness for all eternity. He will always be there during hard times and is always working, even if you can't see it now.

Today's Key Verse:
And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. (NIV) (Romans 8:28)

Today's Key Thought:
Trust God with hard situations

Bible Reading: James 5:19-20

Theo carefully hung a poster on his bedroom wall. He stepped back to look at it. "EXTINCTION IS FOREVER! SAVE YOUR PLANET NOW!" it said, the large letters looming out at him. Then he ran down the stairs, two steps at a time.

"Whoa, Theo! Slow down! Where are you going, and what do you have in that box?" asked Dad.

"These are the calendars we're selling for our school project," replied Theo. "Each month has a picture of an endangered animal. The money we make is going to help with research on ways people can take better care of the earth. Lots of animals and plants are already extinct--they don't exist anymore. We want to keep that from happening to more." He opened the box. "How many do you want?" he asked eagerly.

"I'll take two," said Dad. He smiled. "I'm proud of you, Theo. It's important to take good care of the earth God has given us." Then he sighed. "Though it's too bad we often forget what's in the greatest danger of all."

"What are you talking about?" asked Theo. "The rainforests?"

Dad shook his head. "I wasn't thinking of animals or the environment. I was thinking of people's souls. Anyone who dies rejecting Jesus will experience something much worse than extinction--they'll face eternal punishment in hell. It's good to be concerned about saving the earth, but we should be even more concerned about saving people."

"I never thought about that," said Theo. He frowned. "But I can't make people become Christians!"

"No," said Dad. "But think about your earth project, Theo--are you able to keep people from doing things that destroy the earth?"

"Well, no," said Theo. "But I can raise awareness about what's happening to the earth so they know about it. Then hopefully they'll decide to change."

"Right," said Dad. "And that's what we need to do for people who don't know Jesus. We can't make them become Christians, but we can tell them what Jesus did for them, pray for them, and show them God's love through our actions. Then hopefully they'll decide they want to trust in Jesus too."

–Linda E. Knight

How About You?
Are you concerned about our planet? Everyone needs to do their part to take care of God's creation. But what about the people you know who don't know Jesus--are you concerned about their souls? Humans are God's greatest creation, and Jesus became human Himself to take the punishment for our sins on the cross so we could be saved. Trust Him to help you share the good news of His love with others.

Today's Key Verse:
Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature. (NKJV) (Mark 16:15)

Today's Key Thought:
Tell others about Jesus