Sermons4Kids

[Soldier4Christ]

"Here's a prescription for some medicine," said the veterinarian when Brandon's puppy was sick. "Make sure the dog gets it regularly, and make sure he also drinks lots of water. He's dehydrated-that means he's lost a lot of body fluid, and it has to be replaced."

Brandon eagerly tried to follow the vet's orders, but to his dismay, the puppy refused to drink. "How can I make Rusty drink water?" Brandon asked his mother.

"I'm not sure," Mom replied, "but I remember that once when you were little, you wouldn't drink water, either, so the doctor said to give you a saltine cracker. It worked. The dry, salty cracker made you realize you were thirsty."

Brandon ran to get one of the crackers. It took a lot of coaxing, but the puppy finally ate it. He looked at Brandon mournfully as he opened and closed his dry mouth. When Brandon offered water, the puppy turned his head. Brandon sighed. Then it happened! The puppy stuck his nose in the water. He licked his chops. Then he turned to the water again and had a good drink.

"Hey, look, Mom!" exclaimed Brandon happily. "Rusty's drinking."

"Good!" replied Mom. After a moment she said, "Didn't you have a Sunday school verse about drinking water?"

Brandon nodded and quoted it out loud. "Whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst; but the water that I shall give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life."

Mom nodded. "Jesus said that-He's the Living Water that
everybody needs," said Mom. "People are 'thirsty' for lasting peace and joy in
their hearts, but they don't always realize it. Boys and girls may be busy with
school, clubs, sports, and other things, but none of their busy activities can
satisfy them for long. Only Jesus can take away sin and give everlasting life to
satisfy their spiritual thirst."




HOW ABOUT YOU?
Have you realized that you are spiritually "thirsty"? The Bible says to come to Jesus, the "Living Water." He is the only one who can satisfy your spiritual thirst. He's the only one who can provide salvation. (See page 72.)


TODAY'S KEY VERSE: (Revelation 22:17)
"Let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely."

[Soldier4Christ]

Sarah stood in the back yard and looked up into the big maple tree. "Dad!" she called. "Help me!"

"What's wrong?" asked Dad as he ran toward her.

"It's Fluffy," said Sarah, tears filling her eyes. She pointed up. "She's stuck in the tree. She climbed up there, but now she can't get back down."

Dad spotted the tiny kitten perched high on a limb overhead. It was clinging to the branch with all its strength. "We'll get her down," said Dad reassuringly.

Dad got a long ladder from the garage, leaned it against the tree, and began to climb. When he reached Fluffy, he gently picked up the kitten by the scruff of its neck and carried it down into Sarah's waiting arms.

"Oh, thank you!" exclaimed Sarah. She stroked the kitten gently. "You silly kitten," she scolded. "You could have been hurt. I tried to stop you from climbing the tree, but you did it anyway. Then you got stuck." Sarah looked up at her father. "Fluffy should have listened to me," she added.

Dad smiled as the kitten purred loudly in Sarah's arms. "Do you know that people can be a lot like Fluffy?" he asked.

"They can?" asked Sarah. "You mean like boys who climb too high and sometimes get hurt?"

Dad smiled. "I mean like all of us," he said. "God will guide our thoughts and actions if we'll listen to Him, but often we don't listen. Like Fluffy, we just do what we want to do. As a result, we can get ourselves into a real mess-sort of 'up a tree' like this kitten. Then we have to cry out to God to help us out of our predicament."

Sarah thought about Dad's words for a moment. "But how can I know what God is telling me to do?" she asked. "I can't hear Him, can I?"

"Not with your ears, Sarah," said Dad, "but God will
speak to you through His Word and prayer-and through parents and teachers. Ask
Him to guide you-but don't just say the words and then forget all about Him.
Throughout the day think about Him and what pleases Him. He'll help you know
what to do. When you know what He wants of you, be sure to do
it."




HOW ABOUT YOU?
Do you ask God to guide you when you need to make decisions and are not sure what to do? God wants you to talk to Him. He'll show you the right things to do-and they will never go against what He says in His Word. When He shows you what you should do, be sure to obey Him.


TODAY'S KEY VERSE: (Psalm 25:4)
"Shew me Thy ways, O Lord; teach me Thy paths."

[Soldier4Christ]

"How many bags of chips do we eat each month?" Dad asked, looking up from the newspaper.

Mom shrugged. "Quite a few," she replied.

"This article says that potato chips are America's favorite salty snack," said Dad. "It says the average American child eats twenty-one pounds of them each year."

"I just wrote a report on potato chips," said Alayna. "An article I read said they were first made because a chef in a New York restaurant got angry! He had made French fries for one of the customers, and the man complained because they were cut too thick. The chef tried again-and when the man still complained, the chef got mad. Then he cut the potatoes really thin and fried them so hard that they couldn't be eaten with a fork. And there it was! The potato chip!"

Alex laughed. "Well, thank you, Mr. Chef!" he exclaimed. "I love potato chips!"

 "Have you ever tried to eat just one potato chip?" asked Dad.

Alex and Alayna laughed. "No way" said Alex.

"One chip makes you want more-you try 'em, and before you know it, you're addicted," said Alayna. "There used to be a TV ad that said, 'Bet you can't eat just one'-and I think that would true of any brand."

Mom nodded. "I think it's easier to not even taste some things than it is to try them and then decide to stop," she said.

"Yes," said Dad, "that's especially true of things that are addictive-and are you aware that sin can be addictive, too?"

"Good point," agreed Mom. "That's why we're careful about what we watch on TV and on the Internet and in movies, and why we allow only certain magazines in our house."

"And why you warn us about drugs and smoking and alcohol, right?" asked Alex.

Dad nodded. "It's often easier to say 'no' before you
'taste' the devil's food," he added.




HOW ABOUT YOU?
Have you ever tried something you knew was wrong? When Satan tempts you to peek at harmful pictures or to try drugs or cigarettes, don't give in even one time. Then you won't be trapped into Satan's cycle of evil appetites.


TODAY'S KEY VERSE: (1 Peter 2:11)
"Abstain from fleshly lusts, which war against the soul."

[Soldier4Christ]

When his dad picked him up after school, Logan tossed his backpack on the car seat. "I can't believe what happened today," he said. "I got in trouble for something I didn't even do."

"How did that happen?" asked Dad.

"Mark started an argument," replied Logan, "and he shoved me into my locker. I was so mad! Naturally, I shoved him back. We were yelling at each other when our teacher walked in. He didn't let either of us play in gym today. It wasn't my fault-Mark started it."

Dad looked concerned. "Your teacher must have figured you were both fighting," he said.

"I know, Dad. That's my point. He didn't even . . ." As Logan spoke, a car swerved dangerously in front of them. "Dad! Watch out!" exclaimed Logan.

"Thanks for Your protection, Lord," Dad said quietly.

"Dad! Honk your horn at that guy!" exclaimed Logan. "He almost clipped the front of our car. Honk at him!'' Dad didn't answer, so Logan shook his finger at the other driver. "You creep!" yelled Logan. "You could have caused an accident!"

"Calm down, Logan," said Dad. "You need to learn to control that temper."

At the dinner table that evening, Logan told his mother about the car that almost hit them. "That driver was so reckless," said Logan as he reached for the salt shaker. "I still think you should have honked at him and told him off, Dad." He began to liberally sprinkle his meat and potatoes. "Whoa!" he exclaimed. "This is pepper, not salt!"

"There's quite a difference, isn't there? You know, Jesus said Christians are to be salt in the world-not hot pepper," said Dad. "Which are you being when you get angry and yell at drivers-or shove kids?"

"Hot pepper, I guess," admitted Logan.

"A lot of accidents happen because of road rage, and a
lot of friendships are damaged because of angry responses," said Dad. "Try to
keep your temper in check, Logan. Pray about it every morning before you leave
for school-and again whenever you feel your temper rising. Trust God to help you
control it-He will."




HOW ABOUT YOU?
Do you get "mad" easily? Do you shake your fist at people or stick out your tongue? The Bible has many verses that talk about those who get angry quickly-for example, Proverbs 14:16-17, 29; 19:11, 19; 22: 24-25; 29:22. Look them up. Then ask God to help you control your anger.


TODAY'S KEY VERSE: (Proverbs 14:29)
"He that is slow to wrath is of great understanding."

[Soldier4Christ]

"I'm really bored," declared Katie one rainy day. A moment later, she snapped her fingers. "Oh, I know what I could do!" she exclaimed. "May I go up in the attic and look at the stuff in Great Catherine's trunk?" Katie's dad had jokingly shortened Great, Great Grandmother Catherine's name to Great Catherine. "You said I could read her old journals when I was old enough," added Katie.

Mom smiled. "That should make a good rainy-day activity," she agreed. "I think I'll sit down and do a little reading myself."

Katie hurried to the attic. Kneeling beside the trunk, she found the journals down at the bottom. She took them out and began to read.

When Katie went back downstairs much later, she found her mother curled up on the sofa, reading her Bible. "Did you get over your rainy-day blues?" asked Mom.

"Oh, Mom, it was great!" Katie said excitedly. "Great Catherine came to America when she was fourteen. She had to work in a laundry when she was just sixteen-and she got to iron one of President Hay's shirts when he was in New York!"

"I know," said Mom. "I told you all . . ."

Katie hurried on. "Great Catherine rescued a little rich girl who fell through the ice," she added. "The girls parents gave her that beautiful necklace you have now. Oh, Mom, I know you've told me all those things, but they never seemed so real before. Reading it all from Great Catherine herself is . . . well, it's awesome!"

"I agree," said Mom. She stood up and put her Bible on
the table. "You know," she added, "that's one thing that's so great about
reading the Bible, too. Books and people giving us their thoughts about the
Bible are good, but reading God's Word ourselves makes it more real to us. It's
good to see for ourselves what God has said."




HOW ABOUT YOU?
Do you like to read things written by someone special? Do you read God's Word? It reveals the awesome God we have. It has interesting stories, wonderful promises, and the best advice for daily life. Try to read a few verses each day.


TODAY'S KEY VERSE: (Psalm 119:18)
"Open Thou mine eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of Thy law (the Bible)."

[Soldier4Christ]

"Mom, can I please see Great Catherine's necklace again?" asked Katie.

Mom smiled. "Sure," she said. After getting the box with the necklace, she carefully opened it. "I wear this only on very, very special occasions," added Mom.

"It's so pretty!" Katie exclaimed. Two strands of lustrous pearls glowed softly with a milky-green light. A smooth jade pendant in the center of the outer strand complemented the color of the pearls. "I'm glad Great Catherine's family didn't sell it-that it's still here after all these years. They always were very poor, weren't they? I would think they could have sold it for a lot of money."

"I'm sure it's worth a lot of money, but money isn't everything," said Mom. "The necklace has been passed on for three generations, and we've all valued it. Someday it will be yours."

"I know-and I can't imagine ever wanting to sell it," said Katie. "Maybe I'll pass it on to my daughter someday."

Mom put the necklace away, and Katie went to work on a Bible Correspondence lesson. After a moment she came back. "Look, Mom," she said. "This lesson is from Matthew 13, and Jesus is telling a lot of parables. One is about a man who sold everything he had so he could buy a pearl. It reminds me of the necklace."

Mom nodded. "Some people think the 'pearl of great price' in this parable is Jesus Christ because He's worth everything," she said, "but we can't buy Him. He's the one who gave everything-His very life-to purchase us with His own blood. I think most scholars agree that this parable is talking about how precious we are to Christ, and how He looked for us and bought us."

"And He will never sell us or lose us or throw us away, either," said Katie.

"Right! If we really needed to, we could sell our pearls
someday," said Mom, "but if we trust in Jesus as Savior, we belong to Him
forever!"




HOW ABOUT YOU?
Do you know that you're very precious to the Lord Jesus-so precious that He died for you? He's done all that's needed for you to be able to go to heaven some day. Will you trust Him to forgive your sins and save you? (See page 72.)


TODAY'S KEY VERSE: (John 10:28)
"I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish."

[Soldier4Christ]

"I hope they still have those shoes I want," said Reyna as she and Mom drove to the mall one Saturday. "I think they're on sale-I hope they're not all gone." As she spoke, Reyna heard a bell clang, and Mom stopped the car. A train was going by. What a nuisance! thought Reyna. I hope it doesn't make us too late. The train moved slower and slower. Finally it stopped!

"Oh, no!" moaned Reyna. "Why would a train stop way out here on the edge of town anyway?"

"They're probably sidetracking some cars at the grain elevator," Mom replied.

"Sidetracking? What does that mean?" asked Reyna.

"When they have cars full of grain that they have to leave at the elevator, they unfasten those cars from the train and pull them off onto a sidetrack," explained Mom. As she spoke, the train backed up a few yards and stopped again. Reyna continued to grumble about the inconvenience of having to wait, but they finally were once more on their way.

The next day, something in Pastor Miller's sermon reminded Reyna of the train incident. "Sometimes Christians decide in their hearts to serve God and do whatever He wants them to do, but somehow they get sidetracked," said Pastor Miller, "and time is wasted. Sometimes the love of money will sidetrack a Christian from doing God's will. Sometimes it's a desire for fame or pleasure. Whatever sidetracks us-whatever keeps us from doing what the Lord wants us to do-is wrong for us. He wants to have first place in our lives."

As they drove home, Mom smiled at Reyna. "As Pastor
Miller was speaking, did you think about the train we saw yesterday?" she asked.
Reyna nodded. "I did, too," said Mom, "and I also thought about Jesus. Aren't
you glad He refused to get sidetracked from His mission on earth, which was to
die for us? That's a good thing for us to remember when we're tempted to let
something sidetrack us from what God wants us to do. When we think about that,
it should make make us want to give Him first place in our
lives."




HOW ABOUT YOU?
Have you kept the Lord first in your life? Jesus didn't let anything sidetrack Him from dying for you. When you realize that, it should strengthen your determination to not let anything move you from obeying and serving Him.


TODAY'S KEY VERSE: (Psalm 16:
"I have set the Lord always before me  . . . I shall not be moved."

[Soldier4Christ]

Kevin was not looking forward to the meeting with the church board, but he was one of the boys who had thrown rotten apples at the building. Someone had seen them, and his parents had been asked to bring him to meet with the men on the board. Mom and Dad had agreed, so Kevin had no choice in the matter.

"Hey, Kevin, you'd better wear your best clothes," suggested his sister Peggy when he was ready to go.

"Why should I? It isn't Sunday," grumbled Kevin.

"No, but maybe you can make a good impression," said Peggy. "When they see how nice you look, maybe they'll forget about what happened."

"Do you think so?" asked Kevin hopefully.

"I don't," said Mom. "It's too late for that. No matter how good you look, the men on the board already know what you've done."

Kevin shrugged. "But they might forget."

"Kevin, you know that it's not how a person looks on the outside that counts," said Dad as he came into the room. "It's what's inside. It's true that people can occasionally be fooled, but God never can-and in this case, I'm sure the men on the board won't be fooled, either." He looked at Kevin. "It's time to go," added Dad. "Are you ready?" Kevin nodded.

As he left with his dad, Kevin thought seriously about
what Dad had said. He had heard those same words many times before. He knew what
he had to do-admit his guilt and ask for forgiveness. And he knew the place to
start was with confessing his sin to God and asking Him for help to live the way
he should.




HOW ABOUT YOU?
Do you look good to other people? How about to God? You can never fool Him. He sees what you're really like. He knows your sin, yet loves you and wants you to come to Him and be forgiven. Do that today!


TODAY'S KEY VERSE: (1 Samuel 16:7)
"Man looketh on the outward appearance, but the Lord looketh on the heart."

[Soldier4Christ]

"These books are so cool," commented Jessica as she and her sister looked through the memory books Grandma had made for them. "Look! Here's a picture I drew when I was four years old." Jessica and Amanda laughed together as they looked at the picture.

"May we draw a new picture for a page in our books?" asked Amanda.

"Sure," agreed Grandma. "I want you to use special paper and markers-some that are acid free."

"Acid free? What does that mean?" asked Amanda.

"Most paper contains an acid that will slowly ruin pictures," explained Grandma. "When we use acid free materials, the things we want to preserve will last much longer."

Soon the girls were busy with their drawings. "All done!" announced Jessica after a while.

"Me, too," said Amanda.

Grandma admired their art work and then handed them some plastic pockets. "We'll protect your pages with these," she said, and she helped the girls slide their pictures into the pockets.

"I like my picture the best," declared Jessica as Grandma helped her put the page in the memory book.

"Not me," retorted Amanda. "My colors are prettier."

"Are not!" exclaimed Jessica. "Mine are! I . . ."

Grandma frowned. "Girls! Girls!" she said. "Your quarreling reminds me of acid. It damages something you ought to preserve-your friendship with each other as well as with God." Grandma looked sternly at the girls. "Is there something you'd like to say to each other?"

"Sorry, Manda," mumbled Jessica.

Amanda hesitated. "I'm sorry, too," she said.

"That's better," said Grandma. "These memory books will last a long, long time. They'll remind you of fun times, and I hope they'll also remind you to not let the 'acid' of quarreling-or any other sin-destroy friendships. Be quick to apologize when you're wrong-and equally quick to forgive."

"We'll be friends forever, Grandma," replied Amanda,
wrapping an arm around her sister. "Come on, Jess. Let's go play
checkers."




HOW ABOUT YOU?
Aren't you glad our wonderful God is willing to forgive? Do you forgive, too? Don't let the "acid" of sin destroy friendships. If you've hurt someone, apologize. If you've been hurt, forgive. It's what God wants you to do-He says to forgive as He does.


TODAY'S KEY VERSE: (Colossians 3:13)
"Even as Christ forgave you, so also do ye."

[Soldier4Christ]

"Do that again, Lin," said Grandma.

"Do what again?" asked Lin.

"Laugh again, the way you just did," Grandma answered. "You look just like your father when you do that."

"I do?" asked Lin. He jumped up and raced to the bathroom to gaze into the mirror. He studied his reflection from every angle, and tried repeating the laugh that had caught his grandmother's attention.

"It doesn't work," he said when he returned a few moments later. "Besides, I thought I always looked like Dad."

"You do," admitted Grandma, "but when you do certain things, the resemblance is even stronger than at other times." Nodding her head, she added, "All of us should try to look more and more like our Father."

"Hey!" protested Lin's sister Leah. "Everybody says I look like Mom. What's wrong with that?"

Grandma laughed. "That's good, too," she agreed, "but I was thinking of our heavenly Father. The Bible says we're made in God's image, but I think we look more like Him when we do certain things."

"Like when we do good?" suggested Leah. "When we obey Him and serve Him?"

Lin nodded. "And when we're nice to everybody and when we're helpful?" he asked. "Then the resemblance is stronger, like you said, right?" Lin looked at his sister. "Don't worry, Leah," he said. "I think you look like both Mom and your heavenly Father." Leah gave Lin a surprised glance, and he laughed.

"There," said Grandma, "you did it again!"

"Did what?" asked Lin.

"You looked just like your father," replied Grandma.

Lin grinned. "Which one-God or Dad?" he asked.

"Both," said Grandma with twinkling eyes.
"Both."




HOW ABOUT YOU?
Would anyone say you resemble your Father-your heavenly Father, that is? That would be a great compliment to you! The way you live-even your attitudes -should allow others to see that you are a child of God. The things you do and say should be things that God is pleased to have His children say or do.


TODAY'S KEY VERSE: (Romans 6:4)
"We also should walk in newness of life."

[Soldier4Christ]

"Well, Adam, what happened at school today?" asked Dad. "Did you learn anything new?"

Adam grinned because nearly every night Dad asked the same question at the supper table. Today he had an answer ready. "We learned about birds of fire," he reported.

"Birds of fire?" asked Mom.

"The real name for them is Kirtland's warblers," Adam told her, "but our teacher called them 'birds of fire' for a cool reason." He grinned. "Or maybe I should say 'for a hot reason.'"

"And what is that?" asked Mom.

"Well," said Adam, "they nest in jack pine trees. Jack pine cones open and release seeds only when it's very hot. Forest rangers sometimes start fires near the jack pines to make sure they'll drop seeds so new trees will grow and the Kirtland's warblers will have trees to nest in."

"Really?" asked Mom. "I thought forest rangers watched for fires so they could stop them."

"They do," Adam replied, "but the jack pine trees are getting scarce, so the rangers use controlled fires to make the forest grow. It's weird, isn't it?"

That evening, Dad referred to the birds again. "I've been thinking about the fire that is needed to make trees grow so those birds can have homes," he said. "In a way, God often allows 'fires' in our lives to make us grow spiritually."

"Like . . . what kind of fires?" asked Adam.

"The Bible compares problems, or trials, to fire," said Dad, "and much as we dislike them, they do help us grow. For example . . . remember when you had a sprained ankle and couldn't do much for a couple of weeks? What did you do?"

"Worked on my memory assignments," remembered Adam.

"Oh, that's right," said Mom. "You memorized a whole lot of verses for Bible club during that time."

"For our family devotions, let's look at some verses that
talk about things that help us grow spiritually," said Dad. "And let's pray that
we'll be willing to grow, even if it takes 'fire'-or problems-in our
lives!"




HOW ABOUT YOU?
Have you ever wondered why God allows trials or problems in your life? Maybe He wants you to grow spiritually. Ask Him to show you what you should learn as you go through the experiences your problems bring. Let Him use difficulties to draw you closer to Him.


TODAY'S KEY VERSE: (James 1:3)
"The trying of your faith worketh patience."

[Soldier4Christ]

"I'm glad Dad and Grandpa caught some fish this morning," said Lynn as she took plates from the cupboard and headed for the dining room. "Fresh fish for supper! Yummy!"

Mom smiled as she fried the fish. "I'm sure we'll all enjoy them," she said.

When they sat down to eat, Lynn reached eagerly for the fish. "Do you know what Jan said today?" she asked. "Jan said she thinks Trish is pretty but her new haircut looks ugly. She's right, too." Lynn took a bite of fish. Mom started to speak, but Lynn interrupted her. "Audrey got a 'D' in spelling today. She's smart, but she never studies. Our music teacher was crabby again today-but I'd be crabby, too, if I had to listen to kids sing all day." Lynn kept talking between bites of fish. "Most of the kids can't carry a tune in a bucket. Nobody wanted to sing the solo part, so Daren offered to do it, but he sounded just awful. Most anybody could have done better." Lynn stopped eating and pushed her plate away. "These taste good," she said, "but they have so many little white bones! I'm tired of picking through these fish to find the good parts."

Mom nodded. "You know, Lynn, I'm sorry to have to tell you this, but that's the feeling I got while listening to you talk tonight," she said. "You have some interesting and worthwhile things to say, but the best parts of your conversation were covered up by silly chatter, complaining, and even gossip."

For a moment, Lynn looked angry. Then she sighed. "You've told me before to be careful about the way I talk," she admitted with a long, sad face. "I'll just not talk any more!" She sat back with her mouth firmly closed.

Mom smiled. "You don't have to stop talking entirely," she
said. "Just make sure to take the 'bones' out-the silly, useless, critical
words. You'll find that your speech will be more pleasing to others, and to God
as well."




HOW ABOUT YOU?
Is God pleased with what He hears from your mouth? Do you gossip, complain, or exaggerate? Those things do not please Him. Think before you speak. Don't say harsh, unkind, critical words. Say loving, complimentary, pleasant ones.


TODAY'S KEY VERSE: (Psalm 19:14)
"Let the words of my mouth . . . be acceptable in Thy sight, O Lord."

[Soldier4Christ]

As Rafael and his father walked down Main Street, Rafael noticed an unusual display in a shop window. "Hey, Dad!" he exclaimed. "There's a real dog in that cage!"

 A large hand-lettered sign on the cage read, "Death row! Without your help, this animal will have one more day to live." Rafael stopped and looked at the small, brown-eyed dog inside. "What does that sign mean, Dad?" he asked.

"It's a new program the animal shelter is trying," said Dad. "They can't take care of all the stray animals they find, so by letting people know about the problem, they give the animals a better chance to be adopted out. If no one takes this dog, he'll have to be put to sleep." Rafael stared in dismay at the unfortunate animal. "I've heard that the program is very successful," Dad assured him. "I'm sure someone will claim this cute little dog."

"But, Dad! What if nobody does?" wailed Rafael. "Can't we take him? Look-he likes us already. He's wagging his tail . . . see?"

Dad sighed. "We already have a lot of pets," he replied.

"But this is different," Rafael insisted. "This dog needs us, Dad." He hesitated, then added, "It sort of reminds me of Jesus."

"What do you mean?" asked Dad.

"Well . . . when we had devotions last night, you said that before Jesus saved us we were already condemned -on 'death row' in a way," explained Rafael. "I want to rescue this dog just like Jesus rescued me."

Dad nodded his head thoughtfully. Then he smiled. "When
you put it that way, how can I refuse?" he said. "If you're willing to take care
of this little guy, I'll go in and see if we can take him home tonight. He'll be
a reminder to us that we've been rescued by Jesus."




HOW ABOUT YOU?
Have you trusted Jesus as your Savior? If not, you're "condemned already." Let Jesus rescue you-be saved today! Don't put off this most important decision.


TODAY'S KEY VERSE: (John 3:18)
"He that believeth on Him (Jesus) is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already."

[Soldier4Christ]

When Rafael and his dad arrived home with the new dog, Mom lined a box with an old, soft blanket while Dad explained everything. "Come here, Little Guy," Rafael called gently. "That's what I'm naming him-Little Guy." The dog trotted across the kitchen floor and sniffed at his new bed. Everyone watched as he turned around and around on the blanket, sniffed at it some more, and finally lay down and shut his eyes.

"He must be tired-it's been quite a day for him," Mom said. "Let's let him sleep while we have supper."

When he finished eating, Rafael returned to his new pet. "I bet he's hungry," said Rafael. "What can I feed him?"

"We'll have to get puppy food," said Mom, "but for now, you may give him some of the scraps that came off the chicken we had for supper. They're in a bag over there-just make sure you don't give him any bones."    

Rafael quickly prepared a plate of scraps and set it on the floor. Little Guy began to eat greedily. "Oh-oh-there's still a piece of bone in there!" exclaimed Dad suddenly. "Take it away from him, or it might get caught in his throat. Chicken bones are not good for dogs to chew."

As Rafael reached out to pick up the bone, Little Guy growled and snapped at his hand. "Ow!" shouted Rafael. "Look at that-he nipped me! I was only trying to help him!" Dad managed to get the bone, while Mom looked at Rafael's hand.

"You rascal," said Rafael as he patted the dog's head a little later. "You can trust me, Little Guy! Why would I take something good away from you after doing all I could to save your life and make you happy?"

Dad smiled. "He reminds me of Christians-of myself," he
said. "We're sometimes afraid to trust God completely, because we think He might
take something we love away from us or tell us to do something that will make us
unhappy. We forget that it's God Who saved us in the first place by sacrificing
His own Son, Jesus. That should be proof enough that He wants only what's best
for us!"




HOW ABOUT YOU?
Are you a Christian who is afraid to trust God with your daily life? Don't be! He sent His own Son to save you. He certainly will not try to make you miserable now! Trust Him in every circumstance in your life.


TODAY'S KEY VERSE: (Romans 8:32)
"He that spared not His own Son . . . shall He not with Him also freely give us all things?"

[Soldier4Christ]

Weeks passed, and Rafael's dog seemed to grow bigger and friskier every day. Rafael fed him daily, gave him clean water, and made sure his fur was clean and brushed. Rafael often took him for walks, and they romped in the woods near their house.

But Little Guy was more than a playmate for Rafael. He was taught to help with chores. After Rafael had planted the garden, Little Guy kept the birds away from it. He also barked at rabbits that tried to nibble the lettuce leaves. Little Guy went along with Rafael on his paper route. If a paper didn't land right on the porch, the dog learned to pick it up in his mouth and carry it there. He was an excellent watchdog, too.

"That's some dog you've got there," said Dad one evening. "Aren't you glad you saved him from 'Death Row'?"

Rafael smiled and patted Little Guy. "I sure am!" he said. "I think he's glad, too. It's almost as though he knows I saved him. He wants to go everywhere with me and seems eager to help me in any way he can."

"I think that's why Little Guy is such a happy dog-he has a loving master who cares for him and whom he can serve," said Dad. "Some dogs are pampered by their owners but never contribute anything in return. I don't think those pets are really happy-they're just spoiled and selfish."

Rafael ruffled the dog's fur. "I don't think Little Guy would like sitting around all day with no work to do," he said with a grin. "And you know what? I don't think I would, either."

"Human beings were created to serve God," Dad remarked
thoughtfully, "and we're never really happy until we do that. Some people accept
Christ as Savior but then don't do anything to serve Him. They look for others
to serve them. They apparently have forgotten that they were saved to
serve!"




HOW ABOUT YOU?
Do you serve God? He didn't save you just so you could go to heaven. He wants to use you in this life, too. With God's help, get involved in service-witness, do kind things, be helpful, pray, be generous, give up sinful habits. Serve the Lord-the one who saved you!


TODAY'S KEY VERSE: (Romans 12:1)
"Present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God."