Bible Reading: Romans 12:9-15; 2 Corinthians 12:9 “What’s wrong, David?” Mom asked as David got into the car. David sighed. “Mrs. Lewis told our class that Philip won’t be in school for a few days. His dad had a heart attack and died early this morning.” Mom gasped. “Oh no! That’s awful.” David nodded. “Principal…
Bible Reading: Ecclesiastes 4:9-12 Gavin walked into the six-inch-deep stream right behind his friend Will. The water filled his shoes and stuck his pants to his ankles. The round stones shifted under his feet as he slogged through the water. Further downstream the rocks became larger and rougher, the ground more uneven, and the water…
Bible Reading: Romans 10:9-14 “Mom, can I go play at the park with Zayden?” asked Sawyer. Mom laughed. “Zayden, Zayden, Zayden. Ever since you met him, all I hear is ‘Zayden.’” “He’s lots of fun,” said Sawyer. “I think we’re going to be really good friends. It almost feels like he’s the brother I never…
Bible Reading: 1 Samuel 18:1-4 Jenny stooped down to tie her shoe while her class was running a lap for gym. As she knelt, one of her classmates veered and stepped on her hand. “Ow! Hey! You stepped on my hand!” Jenny yelled after the retreating girl. Susan was always bumping into Jenny or stepping…
Bible Reading: James 4:4-10 “Hey there, Brighton,” Mr. Davis called from his yard as Brighton passed by his neighbor’s house. “Problems? You don’t look very happy.” Brighton walked over to talk with him. “My friends are all mad at me,” he said sadly. “Some of my school friends told some of the kids at church…
Bible Reading: Romans 12:10-15 Emerson angrily kicked a stone and sent it flying along the sidewalk. When he heard someone coming up behind him, he turned and saw that it was Isaac, one of his classmates. “You mad about something?” Isaac asked when he saw how upset Emerson looked. “What’s wrong?” Emerson sighed and kicked…
Bible Reading: Exodus 4:10-11; Psalm 139:14-16 Nolan and his sister Destiny were having a wonderful vacation at the seashore. They spent hours on the beach—swimming, building sand castles, hunting for shells, and making new friends. “Want to come and find shells with me and Ford?” Nolan asked his sister one day. “He knows where to…
Bible Reading: John 15:13-15 Cara took her cookie and a glass of milk into the utility room, where Mom was folding laundry. “Mom, can I invite Amber over?” she asked. “She’s my new friend.” Cara dunked the cookie into her milk. Mom added a towel to the stack on the dryer. “And you probably want…
Bible Reading: John 15:12-15 “I can’t believe Mia would do this to me!” Addy pulled the friendship bracelet off her wrist and dropped it in the trash. “Addy?” her mother asked. “Are you okay? Why are you throwing away your bracelet from Mia?” “I thought she was my friend,” Addison said. She hung her backpack…
Bible Reading: Luke 10:30-35; John 15:12-13 As Carmen stepped off the school bus, she caught a glimpse of her best friend—at least, her best friend in elementary school—staring stonily out the window. Now part of the popular group, Melissa didn’t even look at Carmen. She hadn’t even seemed to notice her the whole first week…
