Devotion By: Ryan
8t Grade
Verse: Deuteronomy 1:30
“The Lord your God, who is going before you, will fight for you, as he did for you in Egypt, before your very eyes.”
The Israelites loved and trusted God as He led them out of captivity in Egypt. They had witnessed great miracles! It didn’t take long, however, before they began to grumble and complain about having to walk across the desert to the Promised Land. In the midst of difficult circumstances, they doubted Him instead of focusing on His faithfulness in the past. Ultimately, this lack of trust cost their generation the priviledge of seeing the Promised Land.
Verse: Deuteronomy 1:40
“But as for you, turn around and set out toward the desert along the route to the Red Sea.”
Do you really trust the Lord? Most of us find it much easier to trust when things are going well, but when things are difficult, our faith in Him can be tested. In these times, it is important to remember when God sustained you through difficulties. Remembering those faith stories will help you and your family maintain an attitude towards God that is positive and anticipatory. Negative attitudes lead to the “wilderness.”
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Devotion By: Shelby
8th Grade
Verse: Colossians 3:1-3
“Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your heart on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your mind on things above, not on earthly things. For you died, and your life is not hidden with Christ in God.”
We focus more on things that have earthly value rather than eternal value. The only thing that matters is everything with eternal value. How? Through relationship with God and peers. It is pointless if we just focus on objects. We can’t take anything with us.
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Devotion By: Alexandra
8th Grade
Verse Psalm 37:3
Trust in the Lord and do good;
dwell in the land and enjoy safe pasture.
Trust in the Lord’s decisions for your life. Trust that he knows what’s best for you. If you pray for something and don’t get what you want, you need to reassure yourself that the Lord knows what he’s doing even if it feels difficult. If we oppose the Lord’s plans, we sin. As it says in Scripture, if you trust the Lord’s choices, you will do good. If we trust the Lord, we can enjoy safety from sin.
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Devotion By: Caleb
7th Grade
Verse Colossians 2:6-7
Spiritual Fullness in Christ
So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live your lives in Him, rooted and built up in Him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thanksfulness.
God desires that we grow closer to Him during the good times an the bad times. During the good times, it is not right to act selfish and prideful. We need to give the credit to God and know that without Him, we would not be in the situation that we are in. In the bad times, we tend to get angry and depressed because we don’t want to communicate with anyone, expecially God. We must tell our God our problems even if we are sad and mad. It is okay to be sad as long as we present our requests to our Lord. Eventually, He will help us realize what we do have. Having a grateful heart is a wonderful way to make our relationship with God special.
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Devotion By: Ashtyn
7th Grade
Verse: Romans 8:38
Video: http://youtu.be/ZpXNGgmDOKg
“And I am convinced that nothing can ever seperate us from God’s love.”
As humans, we make mistakes. We can act pretty stupid sometimes because of our own selfishness and pride. In the video, the kids were doing funny, but stupid things! Imagine how God feels whenever we make a joke that maybe is funny, but doesn’t really honor God. Or when we lie to our parents, imagine the sadness He feels knowing how much He has done for us, yet we still fill our lives with such sinful things. Everyday I have to remind myself just how much God has done for me. Then I ask myself “How much are you doing for HIM?” But this verse gives me faith knowing that no matter how many times I mess up…..He loves me still.
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Fighting in the Spirit
I Sam. 24:15: “May the Lord be our judge and decide between us. May he consider my cause and uphold it; may he vindicate me by delivering me from your hand” (NIV).
When Saul turned against David, David was forced to run for his life. At one point, he and his men hid in a cave at the desert oasis of En Gedi. As Saul searched the area for David, he unknowingly entered the very cave where David and his men were hiding. Although David could have easily ambushed and killed him, he refused because he knew Saul was God’s anointed king. He left judgment to God.
When someone has wronged us or our children, we are often tempted to seek revenge. We may gossip, give them the “silent treatment,” or exclude them. We have a choice, however, to live our lives in the spirit or in the flesh. David refused to fight in the flesh, and left Saul’s judgment to the Spirit of God.
Live in the Spirit and allow God to be the judge.
Living by faith, not sight
Deut. 31:12: Assemble the people—men, women and children, and the aliens living in your towns—so they can listen and learn to fear the Lord your God and follow carefully all the words of this law (NIV).
Moses was very clear about the obligation of the Israelites to be people devoted to God’s words, and he instructed the people to pass that knowledge down from parents to children. Although the God of Israel could not be seen, He spoke through His Word. In contrast, the people of the nations surrounding the Israelites worshipped man-made idols that could be seen, but could not speak, because they were lifeless.
Moses warned the people about turning away from the words of the living God and worshipping dead idols. He knew that they were inclined to worship by sight, rather than by faith. As we know, the Israelites did turn and worship other gods, and God used the Assyrian and Babylonian armies to discipline them.
Like the Israelites, we are presented with a choice each and every day. Will we live by faith in that which is unseen or chase after the lifeless idols of earthly success?
When we worship material things, we are living by sight and not by faith.
GUILT FREE PARENTING
1 Pet. 2:24: He Himself (Christ) bore our sins in His body on the tree, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; by his wounds you have been healed” (NIV).
In today’s culture, we often hear that guilt is a bad thing. Pop psychology suggests it is a result of low self-esteem. But, sometimes guilty feelings are simply the natural result of our sin!
How can fallen parents living in a fallen world escape the tyranny of guilty feelings? By embracing the redemptive work of Jesus Christ. There is nothing more freeing than confessing our sin and recognizing that Christ’s sacrifice on the cross has healed us! We break out of the bondage that comes with guilt by trusting in the cleansing work of our Savior.
We will often make mistakes in parenting. Don’t let those mistakes draw you away from God. Take time to confess, die to sin, and live in righteousness!
Learning from experience
Num. 11:18b-20a: Now the Lord will give you meat, and you will eat it. You will not eat it for just one day, or two days, or five, ten or twenty days, but for a whole month—until it comes out of your nostrils and you loathe it (NIV).
In the desert, the Israelites complained about the manna God provided. They wanted meat and they wanted it right away! Because they were impatient and ungrateful, God gave them what they asked for, but in quantities that made them sick.
That story reminds me of when I turned sixteen. I wanted a car right away! My parents allowed me to buy a car that fit my criteria: sporty and affordable. I didn’t check into the quality of the engine and, as a result, I had to deal with a never-ending string of mechanical trouble.
Sometimes God’s best discipline is giving us what we ask for. In many cases, our ability to discern what is best for us is flawed. The things we trust to make us happy often turn out to be painful mistakes that force us to grow and mature. As parents, it can be tough to allow our kids to make mistakes, but lessons from experience are usually the most effective.
Allowing your kids to make mistakes and suffer consequences can be a form of loving discipline.
