Read: Genesis 1:1; John 1:1-3 “Grandpa’s going to like that birdhouse you’re making for him, Tomás,” said Dad. “It looks great—but I see it’s not quite like the one pictured in your woodworking manual.” “No,” replied Tomás. “I left the perch off and made the hole smaller. This way, starlings won’t move in before the…
Read: Psalms 51:7-10; 103:8-14 “Miles, look! It snowed last night!” Talia called to her brother as she looked out the window. “It’s so gorgeous—all clean and white and sparkly! I just love it, don’t you?” “Oh, yes! It’s sooo beee-yew-tiful!” Miles clasped his hands in mock delight. “I just adore the snow. I think it’s…
Read: Isaiah 53:3-7; Matthew 9:10-13 Ciara cringed as someone started coughing their way down the hall. A moment later, the coughing stopped, but then her younger brother, sitting next to her at the kitchen table as they did their school, began coughing. Ciara scooted away. At least she had gotten over her cold before the…
Read: Romans 3:21-28 “I have a surprise for you today!” Mom said as Carmen walked into the kitchen. “What, Mom?” Carmen sat down to a bowl of cereal. “I know about my birthday dinner tonight with Grandma and Papa. That’s not a surprise.” “This one’s different. I’ll tell you when you get home from school….
Read: Psalm 51:7; Philippians 2:1-11 “I’m glad I’m not like Rachel,” Mackenna said as she gazed at the falling snow through the car window. “What do you mean?” Mom asked with a slight frown. “Well, Rachel is kinda—oh, I don’t know—stuck on herself a bit. Whenever we talk, she does most of the talking, and…
Read: Psalm 51:10-17; Ezekiel 36:26-27 Aunt Dee must be here! Qian thought when he saw a blue mini van parked in their driveway. Maybe she brought Grandma home from the hospital—the doctor said she might come home today. Grandma had been very sick, but she’d had an amazing operation. She’d been given a heart transplant—her…
Read: 1 Peter 1:17-21 “Oh no!” said Mei. “I won’t be able to mail this birthday card to Grandma until Monday.” “Why not?” asked Mei’s little sister, Anya. “The mailman hasn’t come yet. I’ll go put it in the mailbox for you.” Mei shook her head. “We’re out of stamps. Without a stamp on the…
READ: Romans 10:9-13; Galatians 3:28 “Oh, look, Mom!” Alyssa picked up a pair of gloves in the store. “These would match my new winter jacket perfectly! But I doubt they’ll have my size—they haven’t had my size in anything else I wanted today.” Alyssa and her mother were having a rather unsuccessful shopping trip. “Well,…
Read: Luke 11:9-13 “Matthew, when you’ve finished raking the leaves, come to the shed.” Matthew’s father pushed a wheelbarrow around the back of the house. Uh-oh, what did Dad want now? The last time he called Matthew to the shed, he asked him to pick up sticks that had fallen from the windstorm. Maybe he…
Read: Romans 8:14-17 Leo sat at the dining room table with his mom, dad, and two older brothers. He had been part of the family for exactly nine years now. They bowed their heads, and Leo’s dad prayed. “Father in heaven, today we celebrate the day You brought Leo to our family. Thank You for…
