Joseph, the favorite

Devotional for Kids

“Love is very patient and kind, never jealous or envious, never boastful or proud, never haughty or selfish or rude. Love does not demand its own way. It is not irritable or touchy. It does not hold grudges and will hardly even notice when others do it wrong.” 1 Corinthians 13: 4 and 5 [The Living Bible]

If you are at all like the other millions of kids in the world, there are many times when you do not feel like loving your brothers or sisters. There are different reasons for this. Often wrong feelings of envy or jealousy come over us because we think our siblings are treated better than us. Sometimes they block our way of getting what we want most. When we envy our brothers or sisters we do not feel like loving them.

Joseph’s brothers had this problem. Joseph grew up in a large family. He had ten older brothers and one younger one, plus a sister.

Joseph was his dad’s favorite child. Joseph was so special to his father, Jacob, that he made him a tunic of many colors. His brothers hated Joseph because he was Dad’s favorite.

When Joseph was seventeen and caring for his father’s sheep alongside his brothers, he came home and gave a bad report to his dad about his siblings. Of course the brothers resented Joseph for this. Whatever he said was probably true because the Bible shows Joseph as a man of integrity. But his brothers thought of him as telling tattletales. They thought he was making himself look better than them. The Bible says the brothers hated Joseph for this.

Then to make matters even worse for the brothers, Joseph had two special dreams. In the first dream he and his brothers were binding sheaves in the field. That was part of their harvesting grain in those days before they had all our machinery. In Joseph’s dream his sheaf stood upright and his brothers’ sheaves bowed down to his.

In the morning when he told his brothers his dream they were outraged. “Who do you think you are?” they said. “Do you think you are going to rule over us?” Now they hated him even more.

Then he had the second dream. This time the sun, the moon, and eleven stars bowed down to him. Again he told his brothers. This time the Bible says that his brothers envied him.

Bad things follow when we begin to envy others. People do just about anything when they want what someone else has. That’s why God tells us not to envy. He wants us to be happy for our siblings when He blesses them. And we can trust God to bless us just as much or even more when it’s our turn, as long as we are loyal to Him.

Joseph’s brothers did something awful to him. I will tell you about it in my devotional tomorrow.

I too grew up in a large family. I had six brothers and seven sisters. There was a lot of sibling rivalry in our family, too. Everyone wants to be important.

We had our share of arguments and disagreements. I’m sure there were days when I wanted to do to one of my siblings exactly what Joseph’s brothers did to him; especially when I didn’t get my way. I’m sure there were many days also when one of my brothers or sisters wanted to do to me what Joseph’s brothers did to him. But those feelings passed quickly because basically there was a lot of love in our home.

When I was a young teenager my brother, Ervan, had a bad car accident and nearly died. That bad time make me realize how special each of my brothers and sisters were to me inspite of the rivalry we felt at times.

I couldn’t imagine my brothers or sisters going through the awful things that Joseph had to go through because of his brothers’ envy and the terrible thing they did to him.

In the Bible God reminds us again and again to love one another. He talks a lot about loving our brothers; which also means sisters. I think maybe because it’s hard to love someone all the time when you live with them day in and day out and they know all our weakness and we know all their weaknesses.

But there is also another reason. In 1 John 2:9 to 11 God says: “Anyone who says he is walking in the light of Christ but dislikes his fellow man, is still in darkness.
“But whoever loves his fellow man is ‘walking in the light’ and can see his way without stumbling around in darkness and sin.
“For he who dislikes his brother is wandering in spiritual darkness and doesn’t know where he is going, for the darkness had made him blind so that he cannot see the way.” [The Living Bible]

Envy leads to hate and hate leads to worse things. Envy and hate blind us and we begin to do things we would never do if we weren’t obsessed with these emotions. When we choose to love, good actions follow our emotions too.

Memory verse for this week:

“And this is what God says we must do; Believe on the name of his Son Jesus Christ, and love one another.” 1 John 3: 23 [The Living Bible]

Going deeper for parents:

I believe these words for our kids touch us right where it touches them and are as applicable to us as to them. God Bless You!

Ruth Willms

Author: The Lion Tree
http://ruthwillms.com
ruth.willms@gmail.com

Want to know more about how God can help you every day? Check out my new book The Lion Tree at http://ruthwillms.com

Look for my new unpublished story, An Anniversary Surprise, at http://ruthwillms.com

A True Friend

Devotional for Kids:

“There are ‘friends’ who pretend to be friends, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother.” Proverbs 18:24 [The Living Bible]

Friends are very important in our lives. They are there for us when everyone else lets us down. We can just be us and they will accept us and love us even when we mess up.

We can share our deep feelings with them about the things in life that are most important to us. They cheer us up when we are down. They spend time with us doing the activities which we like best; like going to the movies, playing Wii games or sports, or just hanging out.

Jesus placed great value on friendships. His disciples were his good friends. They believed in Him and supported Him.

Jesus was visiting at a friend’s house. This friend was Simon. He used to be a leper but Jesus had healed him. While he was there another friend entered; a woman. She carried a bottle of very expensive perfume. She poured it on Jesus’ head as he sat at the table. People did those kinds of things those days. It was an act of devotion. She was a true friend.

That same night another one of Jesus’ friends set out to betray Him. He wasn’t a true friend; he just pretended to be Jesus’ friend.

Judas Iscariot, one of Jesus’ disciples, went to the priests in the temple and set up a deal. He asked the priests how much they would pay him if he delivered Jesus to them.

The priests offered Judas thirty pieces of silver. It was exactly the same amount anyone had to pay to buy a slave. That’s all that Jesus was worth to Judas. He took the money and then began planning how he could hand Jesus over to the priests who wanted to kill Him.

Jesus knew what was going on. He is God. He knew this all had to happen so He could die on the cross for our sins.

While Judas was making his deal with the priests, Jesus taught his eleven disciples, his true friends, how to be a good friend. He even made it a rule, a commandment that He expected them and expects us to keep.

“Love each other just as much as I love you. Your strong love for each other will prove to the world that you are my disciples.” John 14: 34 and 35 [The Living Bible]

Jesus also wants to be your friend. It’s up to you to choose. He will be a faithful friend. He will always be there for you.

Memory Verse for this week:
“Happy are those whose hearts are pure, for they shall see God.” Matthew 5:8 [The Living Bible]

Going Deeper as Parents:

Perhaps you have had a friend who turned out to be like Judas. This friend didn’t betray you to the extent Judas betrayed Jesus – to death- but nevertheless it was a betrayal. At first you were shocked that your friend whom you trusted and shared deeply with would deceive you. After awhile you might have realized why it happened.

As you contemplated your past relationship with this friend you realize your friend was never as loyal to you as you were to her. You recognize her character flaws which led her to deceive you. Maybe she was a person who always put herself first. Maybe she chose to please another person who was more important in her life than you and in so doing she chose to put you down.

Some friendships have a breaking point. When there is a disagreement we choose to please ourselves instead of our friend. Some friendships last forever. You know this friend is like a soul mate.

Jesus is a forever friend. He never leaves us. He never deceives or betrays us. We can trust Him. He has chosen to be our friend in giving his life for us. It is now up to us to choose to take Him as our friend and give our life to Him.

Ruth Willms

Author: The Lion Tree
http://ruthwillms.com
ruth.willms@gmail.com

Want to know more about how God can help you every day? Check out my new book The Lion Tree at www.ruthwillms.com

Look for my new unpublished story, An Anniversary Surprise, at www.ruthwillms.com

What is faith?

Devotional for Kids

“You can get anything – anything you ask for in prayer – if you believe.” Matthew 21:22 [The Living Bible]

The Bible talks a lot about faith. What is faith?

My World Book dictionary says it’s, “a believing without proof; trust; confidence; belief in God or God’s promises.”

And Hebrews chapter 11 tells us what faith is. “It is the confident assurance that something we want is going to happen. It is the certainty that what we hope for is waiting for us, even though we cannot see it up ahead.” Hebrews 11:1 [The Living Bible] In fact, the whole chapter talks all about faith. Read it sometime. It is very interesting.

The morning after Jesus chased the merchants and money changers out of the temple He was walking along the road. He saw a fig tree and realized He was hungry. But the fig tree didn’t have any fruit on it.

Jesus talked to it. He said, “Let no fruit grow on you ever again.” Matthew 21:19b [NKJV] And the tree withered away; it died.

His disciples were amazed as I’m sure we would have been if we had been there. Then Jesus told them something very surprising; to them and to us.

He said, “Truly, if you have faith, and don’t doubt, you can do things like this and much more. You can even say to this Mount of Olives, ‘Move over into the ocean,’ and it will. You can get anything – anything you ask for in prayer- if you believe.”

Jesus said this and He never lies. So, does that mean I can make all kinds of things happen like magic by just saying the words?

Faith and receiving isn’t just saying the words and like magic it happens. Our prayer needs to come out of a close relationship with God. We need to spend time with God, in praying to Him and in reading the Bible, which is Him talking to us. We need to be in tune with Him. Then we know what and how to pray and have faith that He will answer.

The closer we get to God the better we know just exactly how to pray. We learn how He thinks and how He does things. Then we learn to know what His will is and what isn’t. We learn what pleases Him and what doesn’t.

It’s just like your relationship with your mom and dad. You know how they think. If you tell them everyone in school has the latest ‘whatever’ they will quiz you. They will say, “OK, tell me exactly who is everyone?” You know they will ask you that because it’s happened before. You know what your parents are like.

It’s the same in knowing God. When you get close to God, He gets close to you and you begin to think like He does.

“And we are sure of this that he will listen to us whenever we ask him for anything in line with his will. And if we really know he is listening when we talk to him and make our requests, then we can be sure that he will answer us.” 1 John 5:14 [The Living Bible]

Memory Verse for this week:
“Happy are those whose hearts are pure, for they shall see God.” Matthew 5:8 [The Living Bible]

Going deeper as parents:

I’m sure that you, just like me, have many unanswered prayers, even when we have honestly put our faith in God to help us move the mountains in our lives. In my over fifty years of walking with God I have definitely learned that just praying in faith is not always the answer. It is a necessity though. We need to pray His will too.

I am a great fan of A.W. Tozer. In The Best of A.W. Tozer, Warren W. Wiersbe has compiled some favorite chapters from his books. These men stress that we need passion. He says that when we look in the Bible we see it was men and women with passion that God heard.

Moses was a man with passion for God and his people. He trembled on the mountain when God spoke with him. He threw himself before God and said ‘blot me out of your book, not the people of Israel.’

Daniel prayed three times a day even when he knew it was against the law and he would have to pay the consequences. It was after his long season of prayer and fasting that Gabriel told him God’s secrets of the centuries.

John, the apostle, exiled on the island of Patmos because of his Christian testimony, wept because no one could be found to open the seven-sealed book. One of the elders then told him that the Lion of the tribe of Judah had prevailed.

The psalmists wrote with deep emotions and the prophets showed their heavyheartedness. Paul cried when he thought of the many who were enemies of the cross of Jesus.

God listens to the man and woman who cares; someone who has a heart, a passion, for what and who he is praying for. When we come to God we also need reverence, a sense of the divine Presence, stillness, solemnity, wonder and a holy fear.

Ruth Willms

Author: The Lion Tree
http://ruthwillms.com
ruth.willms@gmail.com

Want to know more about how God can help you every day? Check out my new book The Lion Tree at http://ruthwillms.com

Look for my new unpublished story, An Anniversary Surprise, at http://ruthwillms.com

How do we keep our hearts pure?

Devotional for Kids

“Happy are those whose hearts are pure, for they shall see God.” Matthew 5:8 [The Living Bible]

What does it mean to keep our hearts pure? I don’t know anyone who has seen God, so what does it mean;” they shall see God?”

To keep your heart pure means to keep it free from sin. It means, don’t sin. Even when we try hard to do what is right sometimes we still sin. Then we can go to God and ask Him to forgive us because Jesus died for our sins.

You’re probably thinking, “But how can I see God?”

If you have asked God to forgive all of your sins because Jesus died for your sins, you are now God’s child. And when you die you will go to heaven and be with Jesus; you will be with God. You will see Him then.

I think “they shall see God” also means you will understand the Bible. The Bible is God’s letter to you. When you read the Bible you will understand what God is telling you so you can obey Him and be free from sin, like He is.

Yesterday was Palm Sunday. We remembered how Jesus came like a king into Jerusalem, riding on a donkey’s colt. The people wanted to make Him king. They waved palm branches, singing:

“Hosanna to the Son of David!
Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!” Matthew 21:9
Hosanna means ‘save now’ but the people were saying it to praise Jesus.

Jesus knew He would be dying on the cross by the end of the week. There were still some jobs He needed to do for God, His Father in heaven. One of them was to clean the temple. The temple was the church they worshipped in. He wasn’t going to be the janitor and clean it. He went to clean it from sin; to make it pure.

So after his triumphant kingly entry into Jerusalem Jesus went into the temple. But this time He didn’t go there to worship. This time he drove out all the merchants who sold doves.

In Old Testament Bible times, before Jesus died for us, the people had to bring doves and other animals for an offering to God. So some merchants [store keepers] had set up tables in the temple and made people buy their doves only for offerings. They charged top prices so they made money on the sale, that they kept for themselves.

There were even money changers in the temple. They made the people exchange their money for money with pagan [which means ungodly] symbols on them. This was the only money they could then use to buy the doves and the other animals that they needed for their offerings.

Jesus said this was wrong. This was sin. He said the temple was to be used to worship God, not as a store; especially not a cheating store. He chased out all the storekeepers and even overturned the tables of the money changers.

He told them that the temple should be a place to pray, to worship, but they had made it a den of thieves. Then the blind and the lame people came to Jesus and He healed them there.

The Bible says that our bodies are the temple of God. That’s because when we become God’s child, the Holy Spirit lives in us. Just like God wanted the people then to keep the temple clean from sin, He wants us to keep ourselves free from sin.

But how can we do that? The Bible says,” For as he thinks in his heart, so he is.” Proverbs 23: 7[NKJV] We become what we think.

So we can keep ourselves free from sin by thinking about good things; by thinking thoughts that please God.

”Fix your thoughts on what is true and good and right. Think about things that are pure and lovely, and dwell on the fine, good things in others. Think about all you can praise God for and be glad about. Keep putting into practice all you learned from me and saw me doing, and the God of peace will be with you.” Philippians 4:8 and 9 [The Living Bible]

Memory Verse for this week:
“Happy are those whose hearts are pure, for they shall see God.” Matthew 5:8 [The Living Bible]

Going deeper as parents:

Do you find it shocking that the meek and mild Jesus came into the temple and drove out the merchants and money changers? This is not how we usually picture Jesus, is it? The people had not seen this part of Jesus before.

But Jesus saw that the temple was being misused. It was to be a place where God’s people could be free to come and worship God as He instructed. The money changers and merchants had hijacked the way of worship. They made the people buy only their doves and use only their money. Besides that they were charging the people a premium for this service so they could make money on it for themselves. No wonder Jesus was passionate about cleaning the temple.

Jesus does not want us to get distracted in our worship. What are we adding that causes a burden in worship? We need to stay true to the gospel message. We have the message that can change the world: God’s love.

Ruth Willms

Author: The Lion Tree
http://ruthwillms.com
ruth.willms@gmail.com

Want to know more about how God can help you every day? Check out my new book The Lion Tree at http://ruthwillms.com

Look for my new unpublished story, An Anniversary Surprise, at http://ruthwillms.com

Why do I have to forgive?

Devotionals for Kids:

“Since you have been chosen by God who has given you this new kind of life, and because of his deep love and concern for you, you should practice tenderhearted mercy and kindness to others…..Be gentle and ready to forgive; never hold grudges. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others.” Colossians 3: 12 -13 [The Living Bible]

It happens to all of us; kids and adults. Life is good and everything seems perfect. But then someone hurts us. They might hurt us physically or they might lie about us or deceive or betray us. It might be someone you thought was a friend or it might be someone whom you hardly know and don’t even like.

You tell yourself, “I’m never going to forgive him. I hope something worse happens to him.”

Has something like this ever happened to you? It happens to all of us. Someone suggests to you just forgive and forget. But it isn’t as easy as it sounds.

In the Bible, in Matthew 18: 21 to 35, Jesus tells about a king who wanted to settle his financial accounts. One of his servants owed him $10,000,000. But the servant couldn’t pay his debt. The king ordered him to be sold along with his wife and kids until everything was paid off. That would have been more than a life time.

The servant begged the king to be patient with him and in time he would pay everything back. The king felt sorry for his servant and did even better. To the servant’s surprise he forgave him his debt. He never had to pay another penny back. How happy the servant must have been.

But, after he left the king this servant went to another man who owed him only $2,000. He even grabbed him by the throat and told him he had to pay him this minute. This man also begged for time. He told the servant he would pay every penny back; to just be patient. The servant had no mercy. He had the man arrested and thrown into jail until he could pay his debt.

This poor man’s friends went to the king and told him what the servant had done. So the king called the servant to come see him again. This time he scolded the servant.

“You evil-hearted wretch!” he said. “Here I forgave you all that tremendous debt, just because you asked me to – shouldn’t you have mercy on others, just as I had mercy on you?” [Matthew 19:23 - 35; The Living Bible]

Then the king had his servant thrown into the torture chamber until he paid his whole debt.

What was Jesus saying with this story? He was saying; “I have forgiven you all your sins. Now if someone sins against you, you must forgive them.”

And why has Jesus forgiven us? Because He loves us.

Think about all the sins that God has forgiven you. Not only the sins you committed today and yesterday but all the wrong things you ever did and will do. Isn’t it amazing that He loves you so much that He has forgiven you?

It’s when God’ love fills us to the point where it overflows to others that forgiveness happens. Love leads to forgiveness. We need to make a choice to love this person who hurt us because Jesus loves us more; and then we will be able to forgive.

Memory Verse for this Week:
“And it is he who will supply all your needs from his riches in glory, because of what Christ Jesus has done for us.” Philippians 4: verse 19 [The Living Bible]

Ruth Willms

Author: The Lion Tree
http://ruthwillms.com
ruth.willms@gmail.com

Want to know more about how God can help you every day? Check out my new book The Lion Tree at http://ruthwillms.com

Look for my new unpublished story, An Anniversary Surprise, at http://ruthwillms.com

Can we trust God all the time?

Devotionals for Kids

“If you want favor with both God and man, and a reputation for good judgment and common sense, then trust the Lord completely; don’t ever trust yourself.
“In everything you do, put God first, and he will direct you and crown your efforts with success.” Proverbs 3: 4,5 and 6 [The Living Bible]

A lot of people pay fortune tellers to find out if good things are going to happen in their lives. Some people also read their horoscopes everyday to find out if they are going to have a good day. Does God want us to go to fortune tellers and to read our horoscope to find our direction for the day and for our lives?

Let me tell you about a girl in the Bible that was a fortune teller. In Acts 16 we read about a slave girl whose owners made a living by having her tell others their fortunes. The owners and the people who paid them for their fortunes believed whatever she told them was the truth. Her masters made a lot of money using her for this purpose. But who was telling her what to say? Was it God? Was it an evil spirit?

When Paul and Silas, who were missionaries, came to visit the city where she lived, she followed them around for days. As she followed them, she would cry out: “These men are the servants of the Most High God, who proclaim to us the way of salvation.” [NKJV] This was true but it bothered Paul that the slave girl was bound to do this all day. He felt sorry for her and wanted to help her.

Finally, one day he turned to her and said to the spirit in her that made her say these things:”I command you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her.” [NKJV] And the spirit came out immediately. Her masters were very angry with Paul for doing this because now they couldn’t make money with her anymore.

Paul told the spirit to come out of this girl because people thought whatever she said was the truth and they would do it. It was not God who was telling her what to say but an evil spirit.

It is the same for us if we go to a fortune teller to find out what will happen to us in the future. Sometimes it seems that what they say really happens but it doesn’t always come true. Sometimes we make it happen because that’s what this person told us would happen.

In the Old Testament God chose certain people to be His prophets. He would tell the prophets what to tell the people to do. They were not fortune tellers. They spent a lot of time with God, praying and reading His Word. God would speak to them by His Holy Spirit. In fact, that’s how the Bible was written. The Holy Spirit would tell the authors what to write.

Prophets fore told that Jesus would be born and that He would die for our sins. They foretold that Jesus would also be raised from the dead. All this happened.

So we can know that the rest that they foretold will happen too: that Jesus is now sitting in heaven at the right hand of God; that one day He will come again for us, His children; and that eventually He will rule over the whole earth too. So we know we can believe the Bible and trust in God.

Memory Verse for this Week:
“And it is he who will supply all your needs from his riches in glory, because of what Christ Jesus has done for us.” Philippians 4: verse 19 [The Living Bible]

Going deeper as parents:

God had a rule about prophets. He said that if everything that the prophet said would happen did not happen a hundred percent of the time, then that prophet was not His prophet. He should be put to death.

In Leviticus 19:26 God warned the Israelites that they should not tell fortunes or go to fortune tellers. In Leviticus 20:27 He warns: “A man or woman who is a medium, or who has familiar spirits, shall surely be put to death.” [NKJV] A medium or someone with familiar spirits means the same as a fortune teller.

There is a reason why He doesn’t want us to know all about what will happen to us tomorrow or many years down the road. Maybe it would be too scary for us, or maybe it would make us lazy so we don’t make it happen but wait for it to happen.

If we go to a fortune teller we are not trusting God. God is in charge of our future. He will bring the best possible things to us. God is all powerful and directs the future and everything in our lives.

Ruth Willms

Author: The Lion Tree
http://ruthwillms.com
ruth.willms@gmail.com

Want to know more about how God can help you every day? Check out my new book The Lion Tree at http://ruthwillms.com

Look for my new unpublished story, An Anniversary Surprise, at http://ruthwillms.com

Would you have recognized Jesus as God’s Son?

Devotional for Kids

“Hosanna!
Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!
Blessed is the kingdom of our father David
That comes in the name of the Lord!
Hosanna in the highest!” Mark 11: verses 9 and 10

On the Sunday before Easter, Jesus came riding into Jerusalem as a king. People were rushing out to see Jesus and to honor Him.

These people had heard about the wonderful miracles that Jesus did. They heard how Jesus had even raised his friend Lazarus from the dead. Yes, Lazarus had died and was already buried in a cave-like tomb. He had been dead for four days. But Jesus said to him “come forth” and he became alive and came out of his tomb. You can read about it in John chapter 11. Finally, a lot of people believed that Jesus must be God’s Son, the Messiah, because of what He did.

Jesus’ disciples had borrowed a donkey’s colt and they put their coats on it for Jesus to sit on. Many people threw their outer garments along the road for Jesus to ride over. Some people waved palm leaves and others threw palm leaves on the road for Jesus to ride over. That is why we now call this day, Palm Sunday.

The crowd followed Him all the way to the temple. All the while they were shouting: “Hosanna! Blessed is the King of Israel who comes in the name of the Lord!” Hosanna means ‘save now’. Jesus came to earth to save us from our sins.

The leaders of the church, the Pharisees, did not like the people honoring Jesus. They did not believe He was the Son of God. They thought He was an ordinary man pretending to be God’s Son. They wanted the people to honor them instead.

The Pharisees came to Jesus and told Him to tell the people to stop shouting. Jesus told them that if the people would be quiet, God would make the stones shout instead. It was God’s timing for Jesus to be honored.

If the Pharisees had just carefully read the Scriptures, the Old Testament of the Bible, they would have understood that this was Jesus, the Son of God. Because in Zechariah 9:9 God had said a long time ago that just this would happen to the Messiah, God’s Son, when He would come.

“Rejoice greatly, O my people! Shout with joy! For look – your King is coming! He is the Righteous One, the Victor! Yet he is lowly, riding on a donkey’s colt!”

I wonder if we would have recognized Jesus as God’s Son if we had been there that day; or would we have been like the Pharisees and told Jesus to tell the people to be quiet.

We are very fortunate. Today we have the Bible telling us all about Jesus and how He died for our sins and rose again and is in heaven, praying for us.
We can truly believe that Jesus is God’s Son because of all the proof the Bible gives us.

Memory Verse for this Week:
“And it is he who will supply all your needs from his riches in glory, because of what Christ Jesus has done for us.” Philippians 4: verse 19 [The Living Bible]

Going deeper as adults:

Jesus fulfilled all the prophecies of the Old Testament that was expected of the Messiah. What further proof do we need that He is God’s Son?

The prophecies He had fulfilled until Palm Sunday:

The Messiah was to be born in Bethlehem
“But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel: whose goings forth have been of old, from everlasting.” Micah 5:2 [King James Version]
Fulfillment: see Matthew 2:1-6; Luke 2:1-20.

The Messiah was to be born of a virgin
“Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign: Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.” Isaiah 7:14 [King James Version]
Fulfillment: see Matthew 1:18-25; Luke 1:26-38

The Messiah was to be a prophet like unto Moses
“The Lord thy God will raise up unto thee a Prophet from the midst of thee, of thy brethren, like unto me; unto him, ye shall hearken;
I will raise them up a Prophet from among their brethren, like unto thee, and will put my words in his mouth; and he shall speak unto them all that I shall command him.
And it shall come to pass, that whosoever will not hearken unto my words, which he shall speak in my name, I will require it of him.” Deuteronomy 18: 15, 18, 19 [King James Version]
Fulfillment: see John 7:14-17, 40-46; Acts 3:22-26

The Messiah was to enter Jerusalem in triumph
“Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion; shout, O daughter of Jerusalem: behold, thy King cometh unto thee: he is just, and having salvation: lowly, and riding upon an ass, and upon a colt the foal of an ass.” Zechariah 9:9 [King James Version]
Fulfillment: see Matthew 21: 1-9; John 12;12-16

Ruth Willms

Author: The Lion Tree
http://ruthwillms.com
ruth.willms@gmail.com

Want to know more about how God can help you every day? Check out my new book The Lion Tree at http://ruthwillms.com

Look for my new unpublished story, An Anniversary Surprise, at http://ruthwillms.com

When I Need a Miracle

Devotional for Kids

“That is what is happening here in this city today! For Herod the king, and Pontius Pilate the governor, and all the Romans – as well as the people of Israel – are united against Jesus, your anointed Son, your holy servant.
“They won’t stop at any thing that you in your wise power will let them do.
“And now, O Lord, hear their threats, and grant to your servants great boldness in their preaching,
“And send your healing power, and may miracles and wonders be done by the name of your holy servant Jesus.” Acts 4: verses 27 to 30 [The Living Bible]

Do you ever wish God would just take care of your problem like magic? Let’s say you really want a Nintendo Wii but Mom and Dad say maybe for your birthday. You want it now. You wonder why God can’t just make it appear when you ask for it.

The answer is, He can, but He probably won’t. God is not our puppet. He cares about our needs and even our desires but we don’t go around directing Him what to do for us all day.

God did miracles all the time and He still does today. He wants us to have a relationship with Him so we get to know Him and do what He wants. That’s how we get to grow spiritually and be like Jesus.

Let me tell you about someone who just wanted to have magical powers from God. This man’s name was Simon. You can read about him in Acts chapter 8, starting at verse 9 to verse 25.It was not Simon Peter. It was Simon, the sorcerer, who was called this because he did magic.

People looked up to Simon because he did some amazing things. Some people even thought that he was the Messiah. But then Philip came along and told them about Jesus Christ and that He was the Messiah. The people believed Philip’s message and were baptized.

Even Simon believed and was baptized. He followed Philip wherever he went because he was amazed at the miracles God did through Philip.

Soon Peter and John came to visit these people and Simon. As Peter and John laid their hands on these people’s heads they would receive the Holy Spirit from God.

Simon the sorcerer was jealous of Peter and John. He offered them money to buy this power of laying his hands on people so they received the Holy Spirit.

Peter told him he could not buy God’s power with money. Simon’s heart was not right with God. He only wanted the power so he would be important and powerful.

Peter told him he needed to repent of the jealousy and sin in his heart. Simon now understood that God’s power was not like his magical tricks. He was sorry for his sin and asked Peter to pray for him.

When we choose God’s way and are loyal to Him, God comes into our life. He puts His desires into our minds and hearts so we want what He wants for us. He shows us how to work this out so He gets the honor and glory.

As we spend some time each day praying to him about our life and day, and read the Bible to see what He has to say to us, we develop a relationship with Him. It’s the same as when you spend a lot of time with your special friends. You get to know them and they get to know you and you are there for each other. God is there for you.

God wants us to come to Him with all our needs, even when we want a Wii. The Bible says that God supplies all our needs. God knows we need fun things in our lives also and wants to bless us with good things.

Memory Verse for this Week:
“And it is he who will supply all your needs from his riches in glory, because of what Christ Jesus has done for us.” Philippians 4: verse 19 [The Living Bible]

Going Deeper as Adults:

According to Wesley L. Duewel in his book, Touch the World Through Prayer, we have great power as Christians to touch the world through prayer.

He advocates that we stay close to the Lord so His power can rest upon us. He says that this was the secret of the Apostle Paul’s ministry and we too must let God clothe us daily with His Spirit.

We need to pray as the early church did that Christ will be shown in His miracle power. Our prayers help shake numbers of people and places for Christ. God still performs miracles today especially in the hearts of those we pray for and in the lives of people.

Ruth Willms

Author: The Lion Tree
http://ruthwillms.com
ruth.willms@gmail.com

Want to know more about how God can help you every day? Check out my new book The Lion Tree at http://ruthwillms.com

Look for my new unpublished story, An Anniversary Surprise, at http://ruthwillms.com

Honor your father and mother

Devotional for Kids

“Children, obey your parents; this is the right thing to do because God has placed them in authority over you.
“Honor your father and mother. This is the first of God’s Ten Commandments that ends with a promise.
“And this is the promise: that if you honor your father and mother, yours will be a long life, full of blessing.” Ephesians 6: verses 1, 2 and 3 [The Living Bible]

God doesn’t just suggest that children honor their parents. He commands it. This is one of the Ten Commandments which He gave to the Israelites years ago, but which He still wants us to do.

I’m sure sometimes you do not want to obey your mom or dad. But God has placed them in authority over you. That means they’re the boss. God has placed them in charge of you because it’s their job to teach you. In obeying them you learn respect for others, you learn responsibility; you learn life skills, etc. They teach you how to live.

God also wants us to honor our parents. He wants us to show them respect – to value them. He wants us to have a good attitude toward them. The best time to start developing this right attitude toward your mom and dad is right now.

You can think of your parents as your coach. When you play hockey you listen to your coach very carefully. He knows all the rules and all the plays. You don’t want to mess up and loss the game. Listening to him helps you win the game. It’s the same with your parents. Listening to them helps you win the game of life, especially honoring God.

It’s important that if there are things that really bother you about how your parents treat you that you tell them. Sometimes we parents and grandparents don’t realize how we come across to you. Sometimes it’s not what we ask of you that bug you, but how we ask you. I hope you have a good relationship with your mom and dad so you can talk to them about these things.

The Bible tells us of a son who did not honor his father and the awful price he paid for it. I’m thinking of Prince Absalom, King David’s son.

Prince Absalom really wanted to be king. And he did not want to wait until his father died to become king. He planned to deceive his dad and steal the kingdom away from him.

He began by acting very friendly to the people. He did kind things for them. He was very handsome and people were attracted to him. His father, King David, had no idea what his son was up to.

One day Absalom asked King David for permission to go to Hebron to worship God. Of course, his father was very happy that Absalom wanted to go worship God, so he said yes. But Absalom was not going to Hebron to worship God. He was going to Hebron to meet with the people who supported him and to become their king.

Some of King David’s faithful servants informed him of the rebellion Absalom was starting in Hebron. Then King David had to flee from Jerusalem so Absalom and his men wouldn’t kill him. How sad he must have been that his own son whom he loved so much was coming against him.

Absalom rode with his men to try and capture King David. Many of Absalom’s men were killed. As Absalom was trying to escape, his hair caught on the low boughs of a tree and his mule ran away. He was left hanging there.

King David had given strict orders to his soldiers to not hurt his son in any way. But the captain of his army didn’t listen, and killed him. When King David heard that his son, Prince Absalom was dead, he was very sad. He loved his son even though he was in rebellion to him.

But now King David and his kingdom were safe. God protected King David because God had put him on the throne. You can read about Prince Absalom and King David in 2 Samuel chapters 15 to 19.

Just like God put David in charge of Israel and he was responsible for them, so God has put your dad and mom in charge of you and your siblings. God has entrusted you to their care. They are responsible to God for how they develop you.

The Bible also tells us of another Son. This Son was always obedient to His Father and always honored Him. He was obedient even to going to the cross. And because He did, God His Father honored him. He shared His Kingdom with Jesus. Today Jesus is sitting at the right hand of God.

Memory verse for this week:
“If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” 1 John 1: verse 9 [NKJV]

Going deeper as parents:

We’re not off the hook because we are adults. God still commands that we honor our parents. That doesn’t mean they call the shots in our life but we need to venerate them.

Jesus refers to this commandment in Matthew chapter 15 verse 3. He says, “Why do you also transgress the commandment of God because of your tradition? For God commanded, saying, ‘Honor your father and your mother;’ Jesus is talking about adults here.

He is reprimanding the scribes and Pharisees for encouraging the people to not care for their parents. In verse 5 he goes on to say, “But you say, ‘Whoever says to his father or mother, “Whatever profit you might have received from me is a gift to God”- then he need not honor his father or mother.’

Let me quote a footnote from the Nelson Study Bible, NKJV: “Jesus was referring to a practice whereby people would dedicate their possessions to God so that they could use their finances for themselves and not for others. For example, if parents needed money, the children could excuse themselves form helping because their resources were already “dedicated” to God. This ruse kept people from honoring their parents by taking care of them in their old age.”

In our culture we have pensions for our retired parents, but we still need to be there for them and help them in ways we can. God still holds out His promise to us, “And this is the promise: that if you honor your father and mother, yours will be a long life, full of blessing.” Ephesians 6: verse 3 [The Living Bible]

Ruth Willms

Author: The Lion Tree
http://ruthwillms.com
ruth.willms@gmail.com

Want to know more about how God can help you every day? Check out my new book The Lion Tree at http://ruthwillms.com

Look for my new unpublished story, An Anniversary Surprise, at http://ruthwillms.com

God Has a Plan for Your LIfe

Devotional for Kids

“For I know the plans I have for you, says the Lord. They are plans for good and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.” Jeremiah 29: verse 11 [The Living Bible]

Do you know that God has a plan for your life? He created you for a very special reason. He gave you certain abilities and talents fitted just for the very thing He has for you to do.

Moses’ life is a good example of God carrying out His plan for His children’s lives. You can read about Moses’ birth in Exodus chapters one and two.

The story of Moses starts with the Israelites living in Egypt. Moses’ parents were Israelites. The ruler of Egypt, Pharaoh, was very anxious about how fast the Israelite population was growing. He could see that soon the Israelites would outnumber the Egyptians.

Pharaoh thought the Israelites would fight against him and leave Egypt and then he wouldn’t have their free labor as slaves anymore. He thought if he made them work very hard he could make them weak. They had to build cities for him. He made them work very hard and very fast. But that didn’t stop the Israelite nation from growing larger and the people from growing stronger.

Pharaoh then tried a different strategy. He made a very cruel law. He said that every baby boy that was born to the Israelites must be thrown into the Nile River.

It was at this time that Moses was born. His parents hid their baby boy for three months. God was with them and protected Moses from Pharaoh’s horrible law. When he was three months old God gave his mother a great idea on how to keep him safe.

She wove a large basket with bulrushes and then plastered it with pitch so it was water proof. She then laid her baby boy, wrapped in soft blankets, in the basket. She placed the basket among the tall reeds at the river’s edge. Then she went home.

Along came Pharaoh’s daughter, the Egyptian princess. She saw the basket and had her maids fetch it for her. How surprised she must have been to see a baby inside.

Moses’ sister, Miriam, was playing along the riverbank, waiting to see what would happen to her baby brother. She came running up to the Princess and offered to find someone to take care of the baby for her. Who did she get? Moses’ mother, of course.

Pharaoh’s cruel law could not thwart God’s plan for Moses’ life and for the Israelites. When he was a little older, the Princess took Moses to the palace and treated him as her own son, a Prince. Later on, as an adult, Moses delivered the Israelites from Pharaoh, and from Egypt, and took them to the land God gave them, Canaan.

It’s important for you, as His child, to be close to God so He can lead you in His plan for you. In the Bible, God says,” In everything you do, put God first, and he will direct you and crown your efforts with success.” [Proverbs 3: verse 6.

As you spend time getting to know God, praying to Him and reading the Bible, He will direct you and keep you, to do the very thing He has planned.

Memory verse for this week:
“If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” 1 John 1: verse 9 [NKJV]

Going deeper for parents:

I marvel at Moses’ mother’s actions. I wonder at her desperation but also her faith. She not only hid her helpless baby in the bulrushes but then she left. Can you imagine doing that?

I believe it was her deep faith in the God of the Israelites; her God. She just entrusted her son to Him. Maybe, because he was a beautiful child, she thought someone would adopt him.

Sometimes God asks hard things of us as He works out His plan in our lives. Sometimes we tell Him we can’t do it. Sometimes we take our time in taking even the first step. Sometimes we wait years to take the second step. Sometimes we’re sure we really messed up His plan for us.

When I read about the patriarchs, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, and how they often made decisions that seemed to thwart God’s plan, I’m encouraged that God is able to work even with our mistakes.

My encouragement is in God’s Word, in Philippians 1: verse 6. “And I am sure that God who began the good work within you will keep right on helping you grow in his grace until his task within you is finally finished on that day, when Jesus Christ returns.” [The Living Bible]

Ruth Willms

Author: The Lion Tree
http://ruthwillms.com
ruth.willms@gmail.com

Want to know more about how God can help you every day? Check out my new book The Lion Tree at http://ruthwillms.com

Look for my new unpublished story, An Anniversary Surprise, at http://ruthwillms.com

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