Bible Reading: Romans 8:35-39; 1 John 4:13-16 SPLASH! Joelle’s brother filled the trench between their two sandcastles with a full bucket of water. “No!” Joelle’s eyes filled with tears. “Now they can’t get to each other!” She jumped to her feet. “Take the water away, Stanley!” Her brother shook his head. “There has to be… Continue Reading…

Bible Reading: Psalm 8:3-9; Isaiah 49:15 “I have a message for you,” Leo’s mom told him when he came in from playing outside. “Michael called a few minutes ago. He wants you to call him back.” “Michael Burke?” asked Leo in surprise. “I thought he was on vacation.” “No, it was Michael Watson,” said Mom…. Continue Reading…

Bible Reading: John 14:1-6; Revelation 21:1-4 “What are you doing, Mom?” Cami asked as she walked out to the barn. Her mother stood at the open door. “Watching some birds,” said Mom softly. She pointed toward the rafters. Cami stood beside her mother, and together they quietly watched a bird fly into the barn with… Continue Reading…

Bible Reading: Psalms 19:7-14; 119:132-133 James clenched the arms of the dentist’s chair, hoping Dr. Jones was nearly finished drilling out his cavity. It was a relief when the drill’s buzzing stopped and Dr. Jones checked the tooth. “Are you finished yet?” James asked anxiously. “Almost. Just a little more drilling, James. We want to… Continue Reading…

Bible Reading: Exodus 3:1-10; 2 Timothy 3:14-16 “We had a Bible story about Moses in my class at church today,” Autumn told her family at dinner. “We learned that God talked to Moses from a burning bush. Our teacher says God still speaks to people.” Wesley jabbed his fork into a potato. “Maybe, but not… Continue Reading…

Bible Reading: Luke 15:11-24 Grant didn’t mind helping out on his uncle’s farm. Some parts of the job were even fun. But there were a few things his uncle asked him to do that Grant could do without—like taking care of the pigs. “They’re just so messy,” Grant said after helping his uncle feed the… Continue Reading…

Bible Reading: Matthew 6:5-13; Hebrews 4:14-16 “I love chocolate!” Marylynn exclaimed as she watched her aunt put a piece of chocolate on top of a graham cracker. Aunt Kari smiled. “I love chocolate too. Why don’t you set your roasted marshmallow on top of this chocolate and I’ll use the other graham cracker to take… Continue Reading…

Bible Reading: Malachi 3:8-12; Luke 6:38; 2 Corinthians 9:7 As church began, Ginny was thinking about how she had finally earned enough money for a whole week at summer camp. For weeks she had been putting every cent she earned into the bank. Ginny’s thoughts were interrupted by a nudge on her elbow. The offering… Continue Reading…

Bible Reading: Psalm 27:2-5; Romans 8:38-39 Waiting for the parade to begin, Evelyn watched as her sister buried her face in Mom’s shoulder. Evelyn used to do that too when she was little. There was a woman talking to Mom, and Elise was scared of the stranger. Mom motioned Evelyn over. Evelyn straightened up. It… Continue Reading…

Bible Reading: Romans 5:6-11 The somber black wall, engraved with rows and rows of names, filled Wylder with awe. He was visiting Washington, D.C. with his family, and he was standing in front of the monument honoring the men and women who had died while serving in the Vietnam War. All their names were listed… Continue Reading…