Unlocked: Daily Devotions for Teens

READ: LUKE 5:16; EPHESIANS 3:14-21; HEBREWS 4:14-16 I was determined to bring meaningful traditions into our family when I was a young mother. During the season of Advent, many Christians remember how Jesus came the first time, and how He will one day come again. So we made a little Advent wreath and decked it out with four candles, one for each of the four Sundays in Advent. And, on each of those...

READ: COLOSSIANS 3:16; HEBREWS 10:23-25 Have you ever sat by a warm fireplace on a cold winter day? When the weather is stormy and harsh outside, a well-tended fire seems especially bright and comforting. But what happens when an ember is removed from the fire? That lone ember loses its glow and warmth. It needs to be tossed back in with the rest of the burning wood in order to ignite again. The s...

READ: HEBREWS 4:12; 2 TIMOTHY 3:16-17 Have you ever been following along in your Bible at church and realized none of the words on the page matched what your pastor was reading aloud? Why is that? It’s likely because you and your pastor were reading different Bible translations. A Bible translation is created when a group of scholars study the original languages of the Bible (Greek, Hebrew, and Ar...

READ: COLOSSIANS 1:9-11; 1 THESSALONIANS 1:2-3; 1 PETER 1:3-9 The final line of yesterday’s poem says the winter trees wait, “Certain of the coming spring.” Can we be certain spring is really coming? I mean, will our hard times truly end—and not just in death? As I wrote that line, I had in mind the letters of the apostles Peter, Paul, James, and John. They wrote to early Christians enduring great...

READ: 2 CORINTHIANS 4:7-18; 12:8-10; HEBREWS 4:14-16; 12:1-3 Sharp and sheer, Against the white-washed sky, Winter trees stand stark and frozen— Not a leaf to greet the eye. Thick and thin, Limbs lifted to the wind, Shining in the morning sun, Side by side they stand. Crisp and clear, Awash in winter’s glory, Patiently they wait, watching— Certain of the coming spring. I don’t know about you, but...

READ: ACTS 18; ROMANS 16:3-5; 1 CORINTHIANS 16:19 Who are Priscilla and Aquila? This was a question I asked as I was reading through Romans 16. They’re mentioned in verse 3, and for some reason it caught my eye. So, I looked up their names in my Bible app, and I was surprised to learn their story! In Acts 18, we find that Paul first met this married couple in Corinth. Paul had come to Corinth to c...

READ: PSALM 119:9-16, 105; JOHN 14:5-6, 16-18 Have you ever heard the advice, “Be true to yourself,” and wondered, But what does that mean? How can you be true to yourself if you’re not one-hundred-percent sure who you are yet? After all, you’re still learning and growing—not just in your teen years but throughout your whole life. As you make choices about what to do for your education and career,...

READ: MATTHEW 1:18-25; JOHN 1:1-18; 3:16-17 One of the greatest mysteries for the church to comprehend is the nature of Jesus. In the incarnation—that is, the event in which God became human— something happened that theologians call the hypostatic union. This refers to the union of two natures in one person: Jesus is one-hundred-percent human and one-hundred-percent divine. He is fully human and f...

READ: MATTHEW 5:43-48; EPHESIANS 4:26, 31-32 Have you ever worn a full backpack for more than a few minutes? When you first put it on, it doesn’t seem too bad. But after walking across campus or standing in line for a while, it can feel like that backpack is getting heavier and heavier. Of course, you didn’t add anything to your load. But as your back gets more tired, it can certainly feel like th...

READ: JOHN 4:3-42; 7:37-39; REVELATION 7:16-17 The drought in Xzerio had gone on for a year. People were so thirsty they were fainting in the hot streets. That is why I came up into the mountains—I hoped to find water. I plod on. Then, I see a glimmer up ahead. What is it? Lakes! Three lakes, shimmering in front of me. I rush toward the first one. A sign, made of gold, is engraved with the words “...

READ: PSALM 63; JEREMIAH 33:3; COLOSSIANS 2:2-8 I don’t have time for devotions. Not today. Have you ever had this thought before? I know I certainly have. I mean, who has time for devotions? We’re busy, growing young adults. We have family, friends, school, sports, hobbies, jobs…the list goes on and on. In all the chaos—fun as it can sometimes be—it’s easy to think that we don’t have time for God...

READ: ECCLESIASTES 3:1-14; MATTHEW 28:20; ROMANS 8:35-39 Have you ever seen a plant that’s been repotted? If a potted plant gets too big, it needs to be moved to a bigger pot so it can grow and flourish. But, when you first put it in its new home, it may look droopy. That’s because it’s in a state of shock from being uprooted. Yet, if someone takes care of it, the plant will soon take root in the...

READ: JOHN 1:29; ROMANS 6:8-11; HEBREWS 10:1-25 I sat against my bunk bed. I had just realized that after being a believer for sixteen years, I didn’t understand Jesus. I know this sounds strange—and trust me, it was. I was devastated and confused. I had put my trust in Jesus at five years old and faithfully served ever since. But I realized that I didn’t really understand the sacrifice Jesus made...

READ: JOHN 15:13-15; ROMANS 3:21-24; 15:7; 1 JOHN 1:8–2:2 Are you good enough? I’m not. Not nearly good enough to please all those voices that tell me to do better, try harder, be perfect. How I’ve tried! Many of us are side-lined perfectionists, watching from the benches while other brighter, bolder, better perfectionists are in the game, seemingly living that gleaming, perfect, successful life w...

READ: DEUTERONOMY 31:8; MATTHEW 6:25-34; JOHN 10:3-5 I was 24 years old, and I was bawling. I sat halfway down a mountain slope, one ski at my feet and the other several yards uphill where it had landed when I’d crashed. I had actually chosen this area of snow to land on, as leaping into a snowbank in order to stop had seemed less frightening than continuing to hurtle down the mountain. I was over...

READ: PSALM 139:14-18; MATTHEW 6:26; 10:29-31; EPHESIANS 2:10 I love snow. I love the way the delicate little snowflakes dance and spin as they fall from the sky. I love it when they all pile up into fluffy, white, satisfyingly smooth mounds. I love the way they look, with each little ice crystal so small, beautiful and intricate all at the same time. And yet, you’d think with just how much snow f...

READ: 1 SAMUEL 20:32-42; LUKE 1:26-45; HEBREWS 2:18 Do you know Mary’s story well? It begins when the angel Gabriel appeared to her and told her that she would be carrying the Messiah, the Son of God. Mary was a virgin and probably a teenager at the time. How did she explain this to her parents? Did they believe her? Did she tell her peers? Did they think she was crazy? These are some of the quest...

READ: PSALMS 106:1-2; 146:6-10; 1 THESSALONIANS 5:16-18   When I look at my hands, each finger formed by You, When I feel the wind, each breath coming because of You, When I hear the noise of a crowd or the quiet of a peaceful place, All of this points to You. How can I not thank You?   When I move my body, all my strength given by You, When I blink in the sunshine, the brightness coming from You,...

READ: GENESIS 12:1-3; JOHN 1:1-13; GALATIANS 4:4-6 For many people, the word family evokes ideas like safety, love, acceptance, and happiness. But for others, family evokes ideas like anxiety, strife, fear, and rejection. God established the family as the first human social structure, starting with the first marriage between the first man and woman as part of the “very good” world He created; He i...

READ: ISAIAH 53:1-6; LUKE 15:1-10 Shivers snaked through my body. I blinked. The sun lit the surrounding snow with gleaming white light. I pushed my curls out of my eyes and away from the wound on my head. I touched the bruising and winced; the memory flooded back. After we lost the fugitive, a fight broke out. Of course, the others would leave me here. I muttered something unsavory. “Welcome, my...

READ: ROMANS 12:13; HEBREWS 13:2; 1 PETER 4:7-10 Did you know that all Christians are called to some sort of ministry? You don’t have to be a pastor or missionary to have a ministry—the fact is, God commands all Christians to minister to others. The word ministry basically means service. And in Galatians 5:13, all Christians are instructed to “serve one another humbly in love” just as Jesus served...

READ: MATTHEW 6:25-34 Since I was young, I’ve often had to remind myself to just consider the next moment instead of trying to figure out everything that’s going to happen in the future. The truth is, it’s all in God’s hands, so I don’t have to worry about tomorrow. I don’t have to get stressed about what I’ll be doing in an hour or how things are going to turn out today. All I need to do is live...

READ: MATTHEW 23:27-28; EPHESIANS 2:4-10; PHILIPPIANS 3:7-9 Have you ever cut into a shiny red tomato, only to find it was all rotten in the middle? It may have looked perfect on the outside—not even a bruise. But inside, it’s mushy and not fit to be eaten. Sometimes we are like that rotten tomato. Many of us put up a good front. We may do good things—we follow the rules, read the Bible every day,...

READ: PSALMS 46:1-3; 61:1-3; MATTHEW 14:22-33; HEBREWS 13:8   You are my refuge and strength, My strong tower in the storm. So I do not shudder as The clouds darken.   You promised peace In the midst of turmoil, Peace that does not falter, So I stand firm as the thunder rolls.   And as the rain pours down I remind myself of the one Who walked upon the waves To reach for me in the storm.   And thou...

READ: PSALM 73:11-28; 2 CORINTHIANS 4:16-18 We can ask God hard questions. In Psalm 73, Asaph’s question to God is basically, Why are the wicked so successful, while people like me who follow God experience so many hardships? Asaph finds his answer as he goes into God’s sanctuary, and God opens his eyes to three things: First, success is fleeting. Second, God is with His people on earth, holding o...