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

Read: Ephesians 1:3-6

“Leo, it’s your turn to help with the dishes tonight,” Mr. Phillips said as the kids finished scraping up the last smudges of tomato sauce with their garlic bread.

“Why do I have to do so much around here?” asked Leo.

“Because you’re part of the family, and family members help with the chores,” answered Mr. Phillips.

Leo looked down at his plate. “Even though you’re just my foster family?”

Mr. Phillips looked across the table at Mrs. Phillips, who smiled as the kids began carrying their dishes to the sink. “Leo, do you know why we agreed to be your foster parents?” she asked.

“Well, I’m guessing it wasn’t for my dishwashing skills!”

Mrs. Phillips laughed. “Not even close! We didn’t care what you looked like, sounded like, or how smart you were. We loved you even before you joined our family because God created you in His image and brought you to us.”

“Okay, but what does that have to do with me washing dishes?” Leo asked.

“Think of it this way,” said Mr. Phillips. “We become part of God’s family when we trust Jesus as our Savior. We can’t earn a place in His family, but He sent His Son to die for our sins because He loves us and wants to be our heavenly Father. When we become His children, our actions and words should show it. His love for us makes us want to serve Him and love others.”

Mrs. Phillips nodded. “You weren’t born into our family, but since you’re part of it now, I hope you’ll want to show it by helping with the dishes.”

Leo brought his dishes to the sink and turned the water on hot. As he began to scrub, he turned to Mr. and Mrs. Phillips. “So it’s okay that I’m not the smartest kid in class or the best on the basketball team? You guys love me no matter what and want me to be part of the family?”

“Absolutely,” said Mrs. Phillips. “It’s not about what you do, Leo. We aren’t going to send you away when you mess up or make a mistake. You’re part of our family now.”

Leo couldn’t hide his smile as he turned back to the sink and continued washing dishes for his family who loved him.

–Emily Saxe

How about you? What’s your family like? Maybe you’re adopted, in foster care, or you live with relatives. Whatever your situation, if you trust Jesus as your Savior, you’re in God’s family forever! He loves you and will help you love others, and He’ll never turn you away when you mess up. If you’re not part of His family, you can become one of His children today. (To learn more, go to Have You Heard the Good News?)

Today's Key Verse: See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! 1 John 3:1 (NIV)

Today's Key Thought: Be part of God’s family

Read: Luke 12:22-28

Nari sat at the kitchen table, staring blankly at her math assignment.

“You’ve been looking at the same problem for ten minutes,” said Mom. “Is something the matter?”

“I’m worried about the game on Friday,” Nari replied. “What if we lose?”

Mom stopped chopping vegetables and put down her knife. “Follow me,” she said.

Mom led Nari to her bedroom and pointed to a cage on Nari’s dresser, where Mr. Whiskers, Nari’s pet hamster, was running on his little hamster wheel.

Nari arched an eyebrow at her mom. “Mr. Whiskers is supercute, but I don’t understand what he has to do with my game on Friday.”

“Mr. Whiskers runs on his wheel quite a bit, doesn’t he?” Mom said. “How much time do you think he spends running on his wheel every day?”

“He runs on it all the time,” Nari answered. “He probably spends four or five hours a day on it.”

Mom nodded. “And he uses a lot of his energy to run on the wheel too.”

“Yeah, he sure does!” Nari looked at her mom. “But I’m still confused.”

“With all the time and energy Mr. Whiskers devotes to running, how far has he run?”

Nari giggled. “Mom, that’s a silly question. He hasn’t run anywhere! He’s still right there in his cage.”

“Well, honey, it’s the same with worrying,” said Mom. “You can spend a lot of time and energy worrying about something, and you’ll still be in the same place you were when you started. That’s why the Bible tells us not to worry. Instead, we need to give our cares to Jesus.”

“How do I do that?” asked Nari.

“First, remember that He loves you so much He died to save you from sin and that He cares about every worry and problem you have. Pray about whatever it is you’re worried about and ask Him to give you peace and strength. Then trust Him do what’s best—even if it’s not what you were hoping for. Play your best at the game on Friday and leave the results to God.”

The wheel in the hamster cage grew quiet as Mr. Whiskers slowed down and then hopped off. Nari picked him up and held him in her hands. “Okay, Mom. I will.”

–Casey Comstock

How about you? Do you ever worry about things that are out of your control? It’s easy to get caught up in a cycle of worrying that doesn’t get you anywhere. That’s why Jesus wants you to give your cares to Him. Pray about your worries and look to Him to give you peace and strength. Then trust Him to do what’s best in any situation, knowing He’s in control.

Today's Key Verse: Give all your cares to the Lord and He will give you strength. Psalm 55:22 (NLV)

Today's Key Thought: Give worries to Jesus

Read: Psalm 19:7-11

THUD. “Oh no! A bird flew into the glass!” Torin turned to his dad. “I hope he’s okay!”

Dad and Torin went to the large glass window in the living room. “I don’t see him,” Dad said as they looked down at the ground. “I guess he must be okay—he probably flew away.”

“Well, I think we should put up a poster or something to warn the birds that there’s a window here,” said Torin. “They can’t see the clear glass.”

Dad smiled. “What should it say?”

“Dad! You know birds can’t read. It would just have to be something solid on the glass so they could see it was there.”

“Well, I don’t think Mom would like a sign like that on the front window,” Dad said.

Torin shrugged. “Probably not.”

“You know, Torin, we can be like that bird sometimes,” Dad said thoughtfully.

“We can?” asked Torin. “How?”

“There are dangerous things in life that we may not see either,” replied Dad. “There’s a difference though—while we’re unable to warn those birds about the window, God warns us about things that will hurt us. Do you know how He does that?”

“Well, my teacher once warned me not to run in the hallway, but I did anyway and ran into someone, and we both got hurt,” said Torin. “Is that how God warns us? Through our teachers?”

“That’s one way,” Dad replied. “He puts parents and teachers in our lives to teach us to be wise and do what’s right. But I was thinking of something bigger than running in the hallway.”

Torin thought about it. “Last week Pastor Grey talked about sin and gave a strong warning about that.”

“Right,” said Dad. “God warns us about sin in the Bible, and He puts people in our lives who help us understand those warnings. He warns us that if we don’t trust Jesus to save us from sin, we won’t have eternal life. The Bible also warns Christians about the consequences of sinful actions in our lives. He warns us because He loves us and doesn’t want us to get hurt.”

Torin nodded as a bird flew by the window. “Then we’d better pay attention!”

–Karen Locklear

How about you? Do you pay attention to God’s warnings? God warns us about the dangers of sin in the Bible, and He often uses people, such as parents, teachers, and pastors, to help us understand those warnings. Do you listen? Don’t ignore God’s warnings about sin. Trust Jesus to save you. (To learn more, go to Have You Heard the Good News?) Then depend on Him to help you do what’s right.

Today's Key Verse: Key Verse: [God’s] teachings warn his servants, and good things come to those who obey them. Psalm 19:11 (ERV)

Today's Key Thought: Pay attention to God’s warnings

Read: Psalm 34:13-14; Hebrews 12:14-15

“I know, but that’s what Bianca said.” Kaylee switched the phone to her other ear. “She told me she was sick of hearing you whine all the time. I can’t help it if she says mean things about you.”

When the call ended, Kaylee went into the living room. “Who was that?” asked Dad. “Sounded like you were trying to stop World War III!”

Kaylee sighed. “It was Emmylou. She and Bianca are my best friends, but they hate each other! And I seem to always get caught in the middle of their arguments.”

“Why don’t they like each other?” asked Dad.

“I don’t know,” said Kaylee. “But they’re always saying mean things about each other.”

“Hmm,” said Dad. “Well, I don’t know what their problem is, but when you hear one of them say something unkind about the other, have you tried keeping it to yourself? Didn’t you just tell Emmylou that Bianca told you she was sick of her whining?”

Kaylee blushed. “Uh, yeah, I guess. But that’s what Bianca said.”

“Yes, but you’re contributing to the problem, Kaylee,” Dad told her. “Jesus tells us to be peacemakers. He brought us peace by making us right with God, and He wants us to help make peace between others. To do that, we need to act in a kind, loving way when others aren’t being kind to each other.”

“But I was just telling the truth!” said Kaylee. “Isn’t that what Jesus wants me to do?”

“While Jesus wants us to tell the truth, the way you’re doing it isn’t very kind or loving to either of your friends. When you tell one of the girls the mean things the other said about her, you’re making her feel bad about herself and angry at the other person. Instead, see if you can pick up on anything nice they say about each other and repeat those things.”

Kaylee thought it over. “I guess it’s worth a try.”

“At the very least, you can stop spreading the bad feelings around,” said Dad. “And as they see God’s love in you and your care in what you choose to tell them the other person has said—and in what you say yourself—they might start saying kind things more often!”

–Barbara J. Westberg

How about you? Do you repeat unkind things and stir up trouble? Today’s Bible reading says to seek and pursue peace. One way to do that is to keep any unkind words you hear someone say about another person to yourself. Instead, listen for kind things said about others and repeat those—and add some of your own! Let the peace and love you have in Jesus spread into your relationships through the words you choose to say.

Today's Key Verse: Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God. Matthew 5:9 (NIV)

Today's Key Thought: Be a peacemaker

Read: Romans 12:1-2; Philippians 4:6-9

Zachary leaned back and sighed. He couldn’t concentrate on his homework. He’d been worrying about next week’s science test all day, and then he’d overheard someone tell a bad joke and couldn’t get it out of his head. When the worries and bad thoughts just wouldn’t stop, he finally decided to talk to Dad about it.

“I’m so sorry you’ve been going through that, buddy,” said Dad. “Sometimes bad things we see and hear or our own fears and worries can put bad thoughts in our minds that are hard to get rid of.”

Zachary sighed. “So what can I do about it?”

“Have you heard of the law of space?” asked Dad.

“Yeah,” said Zachary. “No two things can occupy the same space at the same time. We learned that in science class, but it’s also just common sense.” He pointed to a book. “Like that book. Nothing else can be in that space on the table unless the book is moved.”

“Right,” said Dad. “Well, it’s the same with your mind. When it’s filled with good things, there’s no space for heavy worries or bad thoughts.”

“But how do I fill it with good things?” Zachary asked.

“By staying focused on Jesus and remembering that His power is greater than the power of bad thoughts,” replied Dad. “As soon as you feel heavy with worry or a bad thought comes to your mind, ask Jesus to cleanse your mind and help you replace those thoughts with thoughts of things that are good and true—like how He freed you from sin and promises to take care of you in every situation. Give your thoughts over to Him.”

“Okay,” Zachary said. “But what if I still worry or can’t stop thinking about something bad?”

“Well, then it might be good to talk to me or another adult about it,” said Dad. “And you know what else can help? Looking for ways you can show God’s love to others. Focusing on others helps you think more about them and less about whatever it is that’s bothering you.”

“Thanks, Dad,” Zachary said. “I’m going to go pray and ask Jesus to help me rearrange the space in my mind.”

–Agnes Livezey

How about you? Do you have trouble controlling your thoughts? Are you constantly worrying about problems or thinking about something you saw or heard that you know doesn’t please God? Give your thoughts over to Jesus. He saved you from sin and gives you the power to replace bad thoughts with good ones. When you’re struggling with your thoughts, focus your mind on Him.

Today's Key Verse: We take every thought captive to obey Christ. 2 Corinthians 10:5 (CSB)

Today's Key Thought: Focus your mind on Jesus