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

Read: Romans 5:6-8; 8:38-39

Cali opened her eyes. “Ready or not, here I come!”

Her three-year-old sister, Nora, stood behind a scrawny tree hugging her teddy bear. Cali pretended to look around. “Where could Nora be?” she wondered aloud.

Ruff, ruff! Cali’s dog ran out of the house and straight to Nora.

Nora laughed. “Cocoa found me!”

“Lunchtime!” Mama called from the porch.

A wonderful aroma met them inside. “Cookies!” squealed Cali. “Can I have one?”

Mama took a pitcher of lemonade from the fridge. “No cookies until after lunch.”

Nora peeked around Mama. “Is Teddy in there? I think he’s still playing hide-and-seek.”

“No Teddy in the fridge.” Mama shut the door. “Let’s check outside.”

As soon as Mama and Nora left the kitchen, Cali slid a cookie from the plate and popped it into her mouth. She scooted the rest of the cookies around to hide what she’d done.

A few minutes later, with Teddy still missing, they sat down for lunch. Nora bowed her head. “Thank you, God, for this food. Please show me where Teddy is. I know You can because You see everything.”

Cali thought about Nora’s prayer. She hadn’t been hidden when she ate the cookie. God had seen her as easily as Cali had seen Nora hiding behind the scrawny tree.

Cali’s stomach felt funny. She no longer wanted a cookie. She gave a piece of hers to Cocoa, who trotted to his bed and nuzzled it under his blanket. Out from the other side of the blanket popped a fuzzy ear.

“Look,” cried Nora. “Cocoa hid Teddy in his bed!” She ran to get her bear. Once she had him in her arms, she turned to face Cocoa. “No, no!” she scolded.

Cocoa put his tail between his legs. Nora plopped beside him. “Don’t worry, silly dog. Me and Teddy and Jesus still love you!”

Cali suddenly felt better. She’d been wrong to eat the cookie and try to hide what she’d done, but Jesus still loved her. She knew this because of something else she’d hidden—the very best thing to hide—God’s Word in her heart. The Bible promised that because she trusted Jesus as her Savior, nothing could ever separate her from His love.

–Martha Hynson

How about you? Do you ever feel like hiding from God when you’ve done something wrong?
Do you worry he might stop loving you? God promises in His Word that nothing can separate us from His love, not even our sin. By memorizing verses like Romans 5:8, you can hide God’s Word in your heart so you will never forget the hugeness of His love for you.

Today's Key Verse: But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Romans 5:8 (NKJV)

Today's Key Thought: Jesus will always love you

Read: Matthew 6:19-21

“Look, Malachi!” Nevaeh said as she pulled a small worn book out of an old trunk that had belonged to their great-grandmother. Her voice echoed a little in the big attic where they were cleaning. “This looks like a journal Grandma Baker wrote in. She gave it the title ‘My Trophies.’”

“I wonder what kind of trophies she won,” said Malachi. “Was she an athlete?”

“Well, let’s look.” Nevaeh opened the book and read out loud. “May 10. Thank You, Lord, for letting me talk to Abigail today and help her understand how much You love her. I’m so glad she trusted Jesus as her Savior.” Nevaeh turned a few pages. “July 16. Today Graham left to be a missionary in India. He’s changed so much since he got saved, and now he’s serving the Lord.”

“I wonder who Abigail and Graham were,” said Malachi. “Let’s ask Dad.”

When the kids asked their father, he smiled. “I think they were children Grandma Baker led to the Lord. She worked as a children’s missionary for many years. Those kids became living trophies as they turned to Christ—examples of how God was working through her to bring more people to Him. It was the most important thing to her.”

“Yes,” said Mom. “Grandma didn’t have much earthly treasure, but she was rich in heavenly treasures. In the Bible, Jesus talks about how important it is to store our treasure in heaven.”

“There’s a good lesson here for all of us,” said Dad. “Each of us should ask ourselves, ‘Where am I storing treasure? On earth, or in heaven?’”

“But do I have to lead somebody to Jesus to get treasure in heaven?” asked Nevaeh. “I’m not sure I could do that.”

Dad shook his head. “It’s not what we do that stores treasure in heaven, but who we do it for. When we trust in Jesus, everything we do out of love and service to Him builds on the treasure we have in Him. He’s our true treasure, and He helps us store heavenly riches that last forever by making us more like Him so we can show others His love.” Dad smiled at Nevaeh. “Someday you might be surprised how He’ll help you lead someone to the treasure found only in Him.”

–Jan L. Hansen

How about you? Where do you store your treasure? In the rooms and closets of your home? In good grades or likes on a screen? Or in heaven? Things like money, success, and popularity come and go, and they can only last as long as your life on earth. But the treasure found in Jesus lasts for all eternity! Store treasure in heaven by trusting Him to help you share His love with others and point them to Him.

Today's Key Verse: Store your treasures in heaven, where moths and rust cannot destroy, and thieves do not break in and steal. Matthew 6:20 (NLT)

Today's Key Thought: Store treasure in heaven

Read: 1 Corinthians 6:9-11; James 2:1-4, 8-9

“Look what I found!” Juniper called as she ran down the steps of her aunt’s house. She had been looking through a pile of old stuff in the attic that her aunt was going to throw out. “Look! This old fruit jar has 1898 stamped on the bottom!” Juniper said, showing her find to her aunt. “It looks like one I saw that was worth a lot on an antique show my dad watches.”

Aunt Claire smiled. “Well, you found this one, so you can keep it. But you’ll have to clean it up.”

“Oh, I will!” Juniper beamed with pleasure as she went to clean the jar.

When she finished, she brought the jar back and put it on the table. “Wow!” Aunt Claire said. “That looks like a whole new jar! By the way, Juniper, do you remember Becca who lives next door? She’s coming over pretty soon. I thought you’d like to have someone to play with.” Juniper groaned. “What’s the problem?” asked Aunt Claire.

Juniper shrugged. “Becca’s family is…well…different, and she acts kind of weird. She’s not a Christian, and I seriously doubt she’ll ever become one. She doesn’t seem like someone who would, if you know what I mean.”

Aunt Claire picked up Juniper’s jar. “Juniper, look at this jar—now that it’s cleaned up, it looks beautiful. Just think—it was in the trash pile. Until today, no one realized its value and saved it.” She turned the jar in her hands. “In a way, Becca is like this jar—and you and I are too.”

“How are we like that jar?” Juniper asked.

“Well, at one time we were in the trash pile of sin,” said Aunt Claire. “But Jesus found us, washed us, and made us new. He saved us from sin and gave us new life. We are valuable to Him, and Becca is valuable too—so valuable that Jesus died for her. He can save her and give her a whole new life, and He wants you to help her see how valuable she is by showing her His love.”

Aunt Claire handed Juniper the jar, and she held it in her hands a moment before putting it back on the table. “Okay, Aunt Claire. I will.”

–Barbara J. Westberg

How about you? Do you see every person as valuable—even those who are different from you? God made everyone, and He values each person. He values them so much that He sent His Son, Jesus, to die so they could be saved from sin. Spend time with those who are different from you and let them know how valuable they are. Let them see God’s love in the way you treat them and value them.

Today's Key Verse: If you are treating one person as more important than another, you are sinning. James 2:9 (ERV)

Today's Key Thought: Every person is valuable

Read: Genesis 1:1-3, 26-31; John 3:16

“Good morning, Amelia,” Heidi, Amelia’s stepmom, greeted her.

“Good morning.” Amelia rubbed her eyes. “What are you making?” she asked, noticing all the ingredients Heidi had out.

“Breakfast cookies!” Heidi smiled and held up a bag of raisins. “Would you like to help? I need some eggs cracked.”

“Sure,” Amelia replied, pulling over a stool. “My mom says I’m good at cracking eggs. I love cooking.”

“Then you’re the perfect person to help me make these cookies!” Heidi set the eggs on the counter. “You can crack two into that bowl.”

Amelia did as she was asked. “Done,” she announced.

“Now, let’s add some oats.” Heidi handed a measuring cup to Amelia, then leaned over her phone to say, “Open my Bible app.”

Amelia frowned as she measured the oats. “Why do you listen to that book so much?”

Heidi smiled. “Because it’s the best book in the world,” she replied as she added some chocolate chips to their mixture. “It’s about God and what He did for us through His Son, Jesus. Jesus saved me and changed my life.”

“What did God do in the book?” Amelia asked, turning on the mixer.

Heidi waited until the mixer was turned off. “Why do you like cooking?” she asked.

“Making things is fun.” Amelia shrugged and eyed the ingredients they were using. “It’s cool to mix things like flour and oats together and get cookies out of it.”

Heidi nodded. “One of the coolest things God did was make the world. And He didn’t start with flour or oats—He started with nothing. All He had to do was speak the entire world into existence.”

Amelia looked at her skeptically. “The entire world?”

“The entire world. He made us too, and He sent Jesus to save us from sin—our wrongs and everything that makes the world a broken place—so we could know and love God and live with Him forever. I enjoy reading the Bible because it teaches me about God and His love for us.” Heidi tapped on her tablet. “Do you want to hear the very first story in the Bible—the one where God created the world?”

“I’d like that,” Amelia agreed as the pair began to roll the dough into balls.

–Kimberly Brokish

How about you? What’s the coolest thing you’ve made? Maybe it was a craft, a sweat treat, or a game you came up with. We can make a lot of things, but we have to start with something. Only God is powerful enough to make something out of nothing. He made everything there is, including you—and He wants to have a relationship with you. (To learn more, go to Have You Heard the Good News?) Praise God today because He made you and loves you.

Today's Key Verse: You are worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honor and power; for You created all things, and by Your will they exist and were created. Revelation 4:11 (NKJV)

Today's Key Thought: God created the entire world

Read: Proverbs 16:19-24

“Milo, listen to me say this verse,” Joel said as he helped his little brother learn a memory verse for Sunday school. He recited each word slowly. “Okay, now see if you can repeat it.”

Milo tried to repeat the verse, but he stumbled over the unfamiliar words. Joel tried to help him, but eventually gave up. “You’re hopeless,” he said. “Go practice on your own. I have to finish my homework.”

Milo looked forlorn. “I’ll do better,” he said.

Joel rolled his eyes. “Yeah, right.”

As Milo got up from the table, Joel saw his mom standing in the doorway. She smiled at Milo. “Go work on your verse in your room, and I’ll be in to help you in a few minutes.”

After Milo left, Mom turned to Joel. “I’m disappointed in your attitude toward your brother. He struggles to learn things and needs help and encouragement.”

“Okay. Sorry,” Joel said, flipping open his math book.

Later that day, Joel’s dad put his tablet on the table and scrolled through some pictures. “These were taken before, during, and after the Harrison Hotel construction,” he said. “I need to choose photos to use in my article about the project.”

Joel pointed to a picture. “I like this one—it’s a good before shot. You can see the entire old building and the crane.” He looked at the dates in the file names of the pictures. “Wow! They tore the old building down in just a week. Didn’t it take over a year to build the new one?”

“Yes, it did,” replied Dad. “Unfortunately, it’s much easier to tear down than to build up—in most areas of life, not just construction.”

Mom nodded. “For example, we often find it easier to criticize people for what they do wrong than to praise and encourage them. But none of us is perfect, are we?” She looked at Joel. “That’s why Jesus died to save us. He took the punishment for our sins so we could have freedom and forgiveness in Him, and we need to show His love to others by encouraging them when they’re struggling.”

Joel sighed, remembering how impatient he had been with his brother. “I need to go find Milo,” he said, “and help him learn a verse.”

–Rose Ross Zediker

How about you? Do your words and attitude encourage others? If someone is struggling with something that’s not a problem for you, do you help them? If somebody does something well, do you say so? Trust Jesus to help you be an encourager. Use your words and attitude to show others His love by building them up instead of tearing them down.

Today's Key Verse: Encourage each other every day. Hebrews 3:13 (ERV)

Today's Key Thought: Use encouraging words