Kids Bible Devotional for April 23, 2024
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Focus Verse
Proverbs 3:5-6 Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths. (KJV)
Jump Start
What’s a five-letter word that means “to trust and believe” and begins with the letter F?
Did you guess the answer? Faith. If you got it right, notice how you only had part of the solution but were able to figure it out with the clues you had been given.
Sometimes, trusting God is this way. We may only have part of the information. For example, we may know what He requires of us through His word, godly instruction, or personal prayer. But we may not know how to accomplish what He asks of us. Or it feels like acting upon His instructions will not yield the desired result. We are missing pieces.
At times, God asks us to have blind faith. We may not be clear where our obedience will take us, or all the steps involved, but we step out in faith anyway. The writer of Hebrews says that faith gives substance to what we hope for and is all the evidence we need even if we cannot physically see it. What we come to understand is that Father knows best, which is the title of today’s devotion.
Today's Devotion
Ethan had just slipped on his boots when his dad appeared in the doorway to his room. “Hey, buddy, you about to go somewhere?”
“Yes, sir,” Ethan replied. “I thought I’d work on that tree house today.”
“Okay, then. Just stay out of the shed today. If you need anything from there, ask first, okay?”
Later that afternoon, while working on one of the walls of the tree house, Ethan found he needed a saw. He remembered that his dad had one in the shed. He also remembered that his dad told him to ask if he needed anything from there. Not wanting to bother his dad since it would only take a minute to grab the saw, he decided to get it himself.
When he opened the door to the shed, a large dog jumped from behind the tractor and ran toward him, barking maniacally with fangs bared. Ethan slammed the door shut just as the wild animal leapt toward him. He struggled to keep the dog trapped inside.
Ethan’s dad raced around the corner. A man dressed in an olive-green outfit accompanied him. He carried a long pole with a slip noose at the end and a large metal cage.
“I see you didn’t listen to me,” Ethan’s dad snapped. He flung his body against the shed door.
“Dad, you didn’t tell me there was a killer dog in there,” Ethan said.
“I didn’t need to, son. I just told you to stay out of the shed. You should’ve listened. I trapped that dog in there until Animal Control could get here to take it away.” He nudged Ethan aside as the man with the slip noose prepared to enter.
After the man trapped the dog, Dad turned to Ethan. “Next time, you’ll listen to me, right?”
Ethan vigorously shook his head. “Yes, sir. I will. You can count on that.”
Wrap Up
Many times, God doesn’t tell us why we go through certain things. He just expects that we will trust Him. Consider Abraham. The writer of Hebrews says that by faith he went out, not knowing where he was going. Or Moses. After forty years in exile, God told him to bring His people out of Egypt. These same people who once rejected him.
There are so many more examples like these in the Bible. There are many more that are unknown to us of men and women, boys and girls, who kept the faith even when the odds were stacked against them.
In this walk with God, we may travel many unfamiliar roads in life, but we have this assurance. God will see us through if we keep our trust in Him. Are you a boy or girl of faith?