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

Read: Proverbs 15:1; Ephesians 4:31-32

Kevin leaned against the garage doorframe and watched his dad tip the lawn mower onto its side. “What are you doing?” he asked.

Dad knelt beside the mower. “I need to sharpen the blade. But first, I’ve got to get it off.” He glanced up and noticed the frown on Kevin’s face. “What’s wrong? I thought you were playing at the neighbor’s house.”

Kevin kicked at the concrete. “Steven cheated at dodgeball. So, I left.”

Dad grabbed a screwdriver from his toolbox and scraped grass off the mower. “You know, getting along with people is a bit like using tools.”

Kevin raised an eyebrow. “How’s that?”

Dad rummaged through his toolbox and pulled out a utility knife. “Well, sometimes people’s words are sharp, like this knife.” He placed it back down and grabbed a file. “Other times, their actions rub us the wrong way.” He tapped the hammer. “And sometimes they pound away at our feelings.”

Kevin crossed his arms. “Tools can do a lot of damage.”

“They can,” Dad said, holding up a piece of sandpaper. “But they can also repair things—if we use the right ones. Take this sandpaper. It might seem rough, but it can smooth out a lot of rough edges. Same with forgiveness.” Dad glanced at the wrenches on top of his workbench. “Can you grab the 5/8 for me?”

Kevin walked over and handed him the wrench. Dad jiggled it onto the mower bolt, then gave it a hard twist. With a squeak, the bolt loosened, and the blade came off.

“See? The right tool makes all the difference.” Dad stood up and placed the mower blade on his workbench. “Fixing relationships is no different. There’s a verse in Proverbs that says a soft answer turns away wrath. If you talk to Steven about what he did and respond to him with kindness instead of holding a grudge, you might be able to smooth things over. Remember that Jesus always forgives us for the wrong things we do because He died for our sins so we could have a relationship with Him. And He gives us the tools we need to be kind and forgiving to others.”

Kevin thought for a moment, then turned to go.

“Hey, where are you going?” Dad asked.

Kevin gave a little shrug, then smiled. “I guess it’s time to put God’s tools to work.”

–Mark Wainwright

How about you? Have you ever tried to fix something without the right tool? It’s tough, isn’t it? The same goes for friendships. When someone hurts you, holding a grudge doesn’t help. Instead, trust God to help you forgive and show kindness. It’s not easy, but He’ll give you the tools you need to respond in a loving way and make your friendship strong again.

Today’s key verse: Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you. Ephesians 4:32 (NIV)

Today’s key thought: Fix friendships with forgiveness

Read: Isaiah 55:8-9; Jeremiah 29:11-13

Julia slammed the door to her room. It had been a month since her family had moved away from Texas. Her dad had gotten a better job in Tennessee. Life in Texas had been hard, but at least she’d had her friends and family. After crying for a while, Julia heard her door creak open.

“Julia, what’s wrong?” Mom asked.

“I want to go back to Texas,” Julia said. “Why did we have to leave everyone behind?”

Mom walked into the room and sat down on the bed. “I know that moving was a big change for you.” She hugged Julia. “But things change sometimes.”

Julia rubbed her eyes. “But I don’t want things to change!”

Mom was quiet for a minute. “Do you see those orange maple leaves on the trees outside?” she asked as she pointed to the window in Julia’s room. “Did they have to change to turn orange?”

Julia rolled her eyes. “Of course, Mom. They were green when we moved here, and now they’re orange because the weather is getting colder. I learned about it in school. The tree is getting ready to sleep for the winter and doesn’t need the green leaves anymore.”

Mom nodded. “You’re right. The tree will grow new leaves in the spring. Change is hard, but it’s needed for growth. Just like those pretty leaves, lots of things change in the world. Sometimes God allows seasons of change in our lives to help us learn to trust Him more and grow in our faith. When you trusted Jesus as your Savior, God started something new in your life, and He is continuing to change you and help you become more like Jesus.”

Julia looked at the trees outside the window. “Do you think God can help me even though I miss Texas?” she asked.

“Of course!” Mom smiled. “The Bible talks about how God’s way is always best—He knows what He’s doing when things change in our lives and promises to help us through them. Why don’t we pray right now and ask God to help us trust Him and remember He’s with us?”

Julia smiled. “Great idea, Mom.”

–Brooke Morris

How about you? Has something big happened to you? Maybe you had to move to a new place, or you had to change schools and leave your friends behind. Change is hard, and you might feel upset about it. Remember that God has a reason for the change in your life. He will be with you through the hard times, and you can trust Him to use the changes in your life to help you grow to be more like Jesus.

Today’s key verse: I am sure that the good work God began in you will continue until he completes it on the day when Jesus Christ comes again. Philippians 1:6 (ERV)

Today’s key thought: Trust God even through change

Read: Matthew 7:21-23; Philippians 3:8-10

Wyatt and Nicholas, along with their families, joined thousands of other fans in the bleachers surrounding the basketball court. They cheered loudly for their team—and jumped up and down whenever their favorite player, Anthony Smith, dunked the ball.

When the score was tied and there were only a few seconds left in the game, Anthony got the ball again. “Come on, Anthony!” Nicholas shouted. “You can do it!”

They watched in awe as the ball sailed across the court and into the basket just as the buzzer sounded.

“He did it!” Wyatt yelled, jumping out of his seat. “They won!”

Once the cheering had stopped and the crowd began to leave, Wyatt turned to Nicholas. “Let’s go to the locker room. I can’t wait to meet Anthony!”

“I’m sure they don’t let just anybody into the locker room,” Wyatt’s mom said.

“No, but Nicholas knows Anthony. He used to live in Anthony’s hometown. Come on, Nicholas! You can get us in, right?”

“He’ll probably be too busy to talk to us now,” Nicholas said, averting his eyes to avoid the look his mother was giving him.

“Then can you take me to meet him later?” Wyatt asked.

“I’m sorry, Wyatt, but I don’t think Nicholas will be able to do that,” Nicholas’s mother said as she glared at her son.

Suddenly, Wyatt realized Nicholas didn’t really know Anthony Smith at all.

At church the next day, Wyatt told his teacher about the game. “Nicholas said he knew Anthony Smith, but he really didn’t. I can’t believe he’d lie to me like that!”

“He did lie to you, and that was wrong,” said Mr. Jones. “But I wonder if he also lied to himself. Sometimes we can fool ourselves into thinking we know someone when we really only know about them. For example, we can say we know Jesus because we’ve heard about Him in church. Maybe we can even quote verses about Him from the Bible. But if we’ve never admitted that we need Him to save us from sin and trusted Him as our Savior, we don’t know Him personally—we only know about Him.”

“I’ve trusted Jesus to forgive my sins, so that means I really know Him,” said Wyatt. He sighed. “And I know He’ll help me forgive Nicholas for lying to me.”

–Jan L. Hansen

How about you? Do you know Jesus as your friend and Savior? Or is He someone you only know about? He wants to be your very best friend and be with you every day of your life. You can know Him personally by trusting Him as your Savior. (To learn more, go to Have You Heard the Good News?)

Today’s key verse: I want to know Christ and experience the mighty power that raised him from the dead. Philippians 3:10 (NLT)

Today’s key thought: You can know Jesus personally

Read: John 1:35-42

“Hey, Nicholas, wait up!” Wyatt called as he ran to catch up with a new boy in his class. “Didn’t you just move here from Chelton?”

“Yeah,” said Nicholas. “Got here last week.”

Wyatt beamed. “Isn’t that the hometown of Anthony Smith, the basketball player? Do you know him?”

“Oh yeah, I know Anthony,” Nicholas said, happy to meet someone who was interested in basketball.

“Chelton is a small town, so everybody knows everybody. I’ve seen Anthony play lots of times, and he even helped coach my team at basketball camp when he was in high school. He taught me everything I know about basketball.”

Wyatt and Nicholas became close friends. If they weren’t playing ball, they were talking about it and hoping they could see Anthony Smith play. Nicholas always spoke proudly of his friendship with the famous basketball player. “My mom says I listen to him better than I do to her,” he said with a grin.

Soon the boys’ parents made plans to see Anthony Smith play. Their families would sit together in the bleachers close to the court. Everyone was looking forward to the big day.

On the Sunday before the game, Wyatt could hardly contain himself as he shared the news with his class at church. “Guess what! I’m going to meet Anthony Smith!”

“The basketball player?” asked his teacher, Mr. Jones.

“Yes! My friend Nicholas knows him,” said Wyatt. “We have tickets to see him play this week!”

“No way!” said one of the boys.

Wyatt nodded. “Nicholas talks about Anthony all the time. Since he knows him, I’ll get to meet him after the game!”

“That’s great, Wyatt!” said Mr. Jones. “And that’s also a good intro for what we’re going to talk about in class today—the importance of telling others about Jesus. Your friend Nicholas is a good example of someone who is eager to talk about an important person he knows. Are we just as eager to tell people that we know Jesus? He’s the Creator of the universe who became human and died for our sins so we could have a relationship with Him. When we share how exciting it is to know Jesus, we give others an opportunity to know Him too.”

–Jan L. Hansen

How about you? Are you eager to tell your friends about important people you know? What about Jesus—do you tell others you know Him? Today’s Bible reading tells how Andrew brought his own brother to meet Jesus. You can introduce a brother, sister, or friend to Jesus too! Tell them how wonderful it is to know Him personally and that they can know Him too.

Today’s key verse: The believers…preached the Good News about Jesus wherever they went. Acts 8:4 (NLT)

Today’s key thought: Share Jesus with others

Read: Philippians 4:6-8; James 5:13-16

“Mom! Amara’s in her closet crying,” called out Sadie. “She was fussing all the way home from school too!”

Sadie and Amara shared a bedroom, and Amara often hid in her side of the closet when she was upset or wanted to be alone.

Pulling back a few dresses, Mom peered into the closet. Tears were streaming down Amara’s face, and her arms were wrapped around her bent knees. Mom gently touched Amara’s arm. “Hey, sweetie, what’s the matter?”

Through her tears, Amara muttered, “A kid at school cussed at another kid. The bad words keep coming into my head.” Amara wiped her tears with the back of her hand. “Why doesn’t it go away?”

Mom crawled into the closet and held Amara. “Oh, Amara, sometimes that happens to us. When it does, we need to remember that we belong to Jesus, whose sacrifice on the cross covers all our bad thoughts—those we think on purpose and those we don’t. Let’s ask Him to help you with this.”

Mom closed her eyes and held Amara’s hands. “Dear Jesus, please help Amara know You love her and that You can help stop these bad words in her mind. Your Word tells us to share our problems with others and pray. Please help her as she struggles with these bad thoughts. Thank you, Lord. Amen.”

Mom gave Amara a hug. “You know, Amara, another thing that can help with upsetting thoughts is the Bible. There’s a verse in Philippians that tells us to think about good things, and that can help bad thoughts go away. When we read and memorize God’s Word, it helps us focus on Jesus, who promises to be with us in our struggles and give us grace.”

Mom picked up Amara’s teddy bear and wiggled it. She gave the bear a silly voice: “Amara, do you want to go find Sadie and have some ice cream with me?”

Amara smiled and nodded.

The rest of the day, Amara was her happy self, singing and playing with Sadie.

During bedtime prayers, Amara said, “Jesus, thank You for loving me and helping me think about good things.”

–Carrie Hetzel

How about you? Did you know you can talk to God about anything? No matter what you’re struggling with, He wants to hear about it and help you. Sometimes our thoughts can be troubling and scary, and it can be helpful to tell a doctor or trusted adult about how we’re feeling too. God wants us to share our struggles with one another so we can pray and point each other to the truth and love of Jesus. Let His promises in the Bible remind you that He’s with you and offers you grace in every situation.

Today’s key verse: Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. James 5:16 (NIV)

Today’s key thought: Seek help with struggles