Keys for Kids - daily devotions and Bible stories for kids and families

Read: Hebrews 1:10-12; 13:8

As Jonathan finished eating a caramel apple at the carnival, his mom glanced at her phone. “We only have time for one more thing, Jonathan. What will it be?”

Jonathan’s eyes darted back and forth as he tried to decide what one thing he wanted to do before leaving. Straight ahead he noticed the roller coaster’s lights flashing as it looped around and around. To his right, bright red cars spun in a circle to the beat of blaring music. To his left, he saw a building with a sign that said House of Mirrors. “That’s it, Mom. I want to see that.”

“Okay,” said Mom. “House of Mirrors it is.”

After buying tickets, Jonathan and his mother walked through a dark, narrow hallway. He stepped into the first small room and ran to the mirror. “Mom, look at me in this mirror. I look taller than a giraffe!”

“So do I,” said Mom, and they both laughed.

Jonathan moved to the left and pointed. “In this mirror I look like a hippo!”

They made their way through all the rooms and hallways, laughing as each mirror changed and distorted the way they looked. “That was fun!” Jonathan said as they left the building.

Mom nodded. “You know what those mirrors made me think of?”

“They made me think of how glad I am I don’t have to clean them,” Jonathan said.

Mom laughed. “That crossed my mind too, but what I was really reminded of is how we can let our circumstances distort our image of God.”

Jonathan looked puzzled. “What do you mean?”

“Well, when good things happen to us, we may think of God as being loving and kind. But when life is hard or bad things happen, we might wonder if He really cares for us. The thing is, we shouldn’t use the events of our lives as a mirror to see what God is like. The Bible says He never changes. He always loves us—so much that He sent His Son to die for us. No matter what’s going on in our lives or how we feel about it, we can trust that Jesus loves us and is with us. He’s always good, and He’ll never change.”

–Annette S. Bury

How about you? Does your view of God depend on what’s going on in your life? When things go well, do you see Him as a loving, caring God? And when things are bad or simply don’t go the way you want them to, do you wonder if He loves you after all? He does. He loves you so much that Jesus died to save you and will always be with you. He cares for you all the time, and He will never change.

Today’s key verse: I am the Lord, and I do not change. Malachi 3:6 (NLT)

Today’s key thought: God doesn’t change

Read: Psalm 96:4-9

Hailey looked up from reading her Bible on the front lawn. “Amare, are you afraid of God?” she asked her brother.

“No, I don’t think so,” replied Amare. “Why should I be afraid of Him?”

“This verse says, ‘The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.’ What does that mean?”

Just then their neighbor Hunter came along. “Hey, Amare,” he called, “get your bike and come with me. Drake dared me to climb the fence around the power station’s transformer, so I’m gonna do it.”

Amare’s eyes widened. “You’d better not! My dad says it’s dangerous to go near that thing.”

“I’m not scared of anything,” Hunter said. “You coming?”

Amare shook his head. “No. I don’t want to get zapped. Why do you think there’s a high fence around it with all those ‘No Trespassing’ signs?”

Hunter laughed. “To keep out scaredy-cats like you!” He sped off on his bike.

Amare watched Hunter leave, then jumped to his feet. “I’m gonna tell Mom.”

When Mom heard about Hunter’s plan, she decided to call the police department. Soon they heard sirens heading toward the power station. “Maybe seeing the police will teach Hunter to wise up,” said Hailey. “He said he wasn’t afraid of anything.”

“Well, there are some things he should be afraid of,” Mom replied.

“Are we supposed to be afraid of God?” Hailey asked. “One of the verses in my Bible reading today talked about fearing Him.”

“We fear God in the sense that we respect, honor, and trust Him. We know He has power over everything and that, because He is good, He must punish sin.”

“So, fearing God is kind of like how I respect and obey you and Dad because you’re my parents?” asked Amare.

Mom nodded. “When we fear God, we see how serious our sin is and how much we need Jesus to save us from it. We see that His way is better than ours and that we need to trust and obey Him. Then, by trusting in Jesus, we can feel His peace, knowing He loves us so much that He took the punishment for our sin and will always be with us.”

Hailey grinned. “So if we fear the Lord, we have no reason to be afraid!”

–Barbara J. Westberg

How about you? Are you afraid of God? If you’re a Christian, you have no reason to be afraid. When the Bible tells us to fear God, it means to respect His authority and the fact that He must punish sin. Even though you’ve sinned against God, Jesus took the punishment for your sin. Fear God by trusting and obeying Him. (To learn more, go to Have You Heard the Good News?)

Today’s key verse: The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. Psalm 111:10 (NKJV)

Today’s key thought: Fear God

Read: Romans 12:9-21; Galatians 5:22-23

Aria curled up on the couch with her new book. “I’m almost done reading this already,” she told her brother. “It’s about a princess who didn’t know she was a princess!”

“How can that be?” Brayden asked. “If I were a prince, I’m pretty sure I’d know it!”

“She was kidnapped as a baby,” Aria explained. “But even after her family found her, she didn’t act like a princess. Her parents wanted her to live in their huge palace, but she wanted to stay with people she knew, so she kept on living in an old shack. The king and queen bought her beautiful new clothes, but she didn’t want to wear them. She just kept wearing her old ones, which were ragged and dirty.”

“Sounds like an interesting book,” said Mom. “And you know, we sometimes act that way ourselves.”

“We do?” asked Brayden.

“I don’t wear raggedy old clothes,” said Aria. “Besides, I’m not a princess.”

“Actually, in a way, you are,” Mom replied. “And Brayden is a prince.”

Aria giggled. “And Dad’s a king, and you’re a queen?”

Mom shook her head. “No, I’m a princess too, and Dad is a prince. Because we trust in Jesus, we’ve been adopted into God’s family. We’re His children, and He is a King—not just any king, but the King of kings!”

“Oh yeah!” Aria said. “I knew that.”

“As children of God, we’re His heirs,” continued Mom. “Jesus shares His blessings with us and promises us eternal life with Him. But sometimes we forget to embrace the new life He’s given us. We act as if we don’t know we’re children of the King and go back to our old sinful ways.”

“Well, how is a prince—or princess—supposed to live?” Brayden asked.

“The way the King does,” Mom replied. “We need to live in a way that shows others Jesus’s love. But we can’t do it on our own. The Holy Spirit makes us become more like Jesus. He gives us characteristics called the fruit of the Spirit. As His fruit grows in our lives, we act more like the princes and princesses we are.”

“I’m glad He helps us live our new lives,” Aria said. “I don’t want to go back to a shack when I can live in the palace of the King of kings!”

–Tanya Ferdinandusz

How about you? Did you know that, if you trust in Jesus, you’re a child of the King of kings? Does your life reflect this? Or do you keep trying to go back to old sinful habits that no longer fit with who you are? Let go of your raggedy old ways and embrace the new life you have in Jesus. Trust Him to grow the fruit of His Spirit in your life and make you become more like Him.

Today’s key verse: We get our new life from the Spirit, so we should follow the Spirit. Galatians 5:25 (ERV)

Today’s key thought: Live like a child of the King

Read: Luke 4:1-15; John 10:7-10

Riley rummaged through the tackle box until she found the shiny silver lure her dad wanted. “Is this the one?”

Dad took it from her hand. “Yep. That’s it.” He grinned. “As soon as Mr. Fish sees this, he’ll gobble it up.”

Riley beamed. “Then we’ll catch him and gobble him up, won’t we?”

Dad nodded. “We sure will.” After tying the lure to the fishing line, Dad cast it into the lake. “Want to reel this in and see if we can catch a fish?”

“Next time,” Riley said. “You catch one first.”

“Okay.” Dad turned the reel. “Hey! I think I’ve got a bite!”

“All right!” Riley clapped her hands as Dad reeled in a big fish. “Wow! Are we going to eat it tonight?” she asked as Dad reached for the flopping fish.

Dad grinned. “You know it!” He threw the line out again. “Do you know why that shiny thing you gave me is called a lure?”

Riley shook her head. “Not really.”

“To lure something means to attract it, and that thing attracts fish,” Dad explained. “It looks good to them and tricks them into thinking it’s good to eat, but when they grab it, they’re caught.” He handed Riley the fishing rod. “Did you know that Satan often uses lures to trick and trap people?”

Riley began reeling in the line. “He does?”

“Yep, but not the kind we use,” said Dad. “Satan often tricks people by making sin look attractive. He may get you to think it’s harmless—even fun. But don’t fall for it. Just like a fishing lure, in the end, sin only leads to death. That’s why Jesus had to die for us—to take the punishment for our sin so we could have eternal life with Him instead of being separated from God forever. When you’re tempted to sin, remember that Jesus resisted temptation and conquered Satan and death for you. He saved you and makes you able to see Satan’s lures for what they really are—lies—so you can turn to the true life you have in Him instead.”

Riley finished reeling in the line. “No fish this time,” she said. “I guess they resisted the lure.” She cast the line out again. “I’ll trust Jesus to help me do the same thing!”

–Richard S. Maffeo

How about you? Did you know that Satan uses lures to get people to sin? He’ll do his best to trick you into doing something wrong. Don’t fall for his lies. Even though he may make sin look attractive and fun, it only leads to destruction. If you know Jesus as your Savior, He has saved you from sin and given you eternal life. When you’re tempted to sin, trust Him for the strength to say no.

Today’s key verse: Humble yourselves before God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. James 4:7 (NLT)

Today’s key thought: Resist the lure of sin

Read: Psalm 103:2-6, 8-12

Hudson sat down at the kitchen table and watched as his little sister, Violet, tried to staple several pieces of paper she had colored into a book. “When I was your age, I had to push with all my weight on the stapler,” he said.

Suddenly, Violet stood, chair scraping, launched her project into the trash, and stormed to her room.

“I’m right here if you want”—Violet slammed her door—“help,” Mom said. She rescued the book from the trash and examined it. Violet had managed to staple it three times in the middle, but couldn’t figure out that to flip it open like a book, it had to be stapled on the side. Mom knocked on Violet’s door.

“Come in,” Violet said with a huff.

“I know a way to fix your book,” Mom said. “Do you want help?”

Violet nodded and followed Mom to the kitchen. “I tried, but I can’t do it!” she wailed.

Mom walked to a drawer and opened it. “Sometimes parents know things kids don’t,” she said, pulling out a staple remover.

“Oh yeah, I’ve seen those before!” Violet said, her face brightening.

Mom removed the center staples and helped Violet re-staple the sides of the papers. “It’ll have some small holes in it, but it will still work great.”

Violet hugged her book and then hugged Mom.

Hudson grinned. “That’s like what God does for us, huh, Mom? He rescues us from the trash and makes us work right again.”

Mom smiled and hugged both her kids. “You’re right, Hudson. God can rescue us and repair any mess we’ve made, no matter how big it is. We all do things that are wrong, but God is always there to forgive us and help us when we mess up. Nothing is beyond His repair.”

“Does God have a giant staple remover?” Violet asked.

Hudson and Mom both laughed. “No, Violet, He has something better,” Mom said. “Jesus died in our place to rescue us from sin and make us new people. When we trust Him as our Savior, He forgives our sins and His Holy Spirit empowers us to live life God’s way.”

–Pearl Allard

How about you? Do you feel like your life is beyond repair? Maybe you’ve done so many things wrong that you feel like a mess no one can fix. No sin is beyond God’s forgiveness, and no person is beyond His repair. He sent His Son, Jesus, to rescue you from sin and death, and He will make you a new person and always be there to help you. Trust in Him. (To learn more, go to Have You Heard the Good News?)

Today’s key verse: He redeems me from death and crowns me with love and tender mercies. Psalm 103:4 (NLT)

Today’s key thought: No life is beyond God’s repair