Unlocked: Daily Devotions for Teens

I’ve watched people in my life struggle. I’ve watched them deal with health issues. I’ve watched them leave jobs, not knowing what was next. I’ve had my own struggles. Life isn’t always easy, and sometimes it’s hard to understand why things are happening the way they are. God created the world good, but when the first humans sinned, the world became filled with death and sickness and conflict and...

Perfect timing! I exclaim as my family walks in the door just as I finish baking cookies. Usually, perfect timing is what we say when things happen when we want them to, at our convenience, according to our planning and preferences. But what about when things don’t work out according to our timing or terms? When disappointments pile up, or we miss out on opportunities? What about when our prayers...

Do you have a constant contact list on your phone? Mine includes my family and some close friends. I’m constantly texting, calling, or emailing these people with my schedule updates, plans, and schoolwork questions. We are in touch all day with the minutiae of pick-up times, homework assignments, and random things like funny videos. My constant contact list is my inner circle. They know my whereab...

I’m afraid my cousin is dying, I confessed with a catch in my voice. I clutched my Bible as I sat in an upstairs room in our church building with a small group of young adults. The class leader had called for prayer requests before he led into that day’s study. While holding back tears, I expressed worry and sorrow about my cousin’s worsening battle with cancer. Instead of concern, though, I was m...

Of all the interesting things Jesus did, one of the most intriguing was that He stayed on that cross. Growing up, I remember childhood adversaries who would taunt, I bet you can’t Of course, the first thing any of us want to do when challenged this way is to prove we can. It can be so hard to ignore the taunts of others. Jesus knows what that feels like. As He suffered on the cross for our sins, H...

“Gone. Passed away, Distorted, disturbing words. Swallowing back painStinging eyes, blurred. I think of you. Gone! Stumbling away, Heart pounding. I can’t talk Searching a quiet space, To silence my thoughts. I think of you. Gone. I didn’t know you Your dreams, your hopes But your loss rips through Deep within my soul. I think of you. Gone. A community mourns Praying,Broken, torn,Jesus binds our w...

My mom taught first grade at a local elementary school. One year, the group of students in her class included a girl named Rosa. But Rosa struggled to pronounce the letter R. When she introduced herself, the other kids thought she’d announced her name was Wosa. Throughout the early months of that school session, the other first graders referred to this little girl as Wosa. I don’t think they inten...

Did you know that you are gifted? When you become a follower of Christ, He gives you at least one spiritual gift to edify the body of believers. In Romans 12, Paul wrote to the church in Rome and reminded them of God’s love for them and of the different gifts they were given. These gifts were to be used in humble service toward their fellow Christians. The end result of using our gifts is building...

CRASH! You failed. Again. You are sad and mad at the same time, not to mention humiliated. We have all experienced failure: making a low grade on an assignment, forgetting to complete a promised task, giving in to temptation to sin, etc. Usually, we can handle the minor failures. Though embarrassed, we carry on. But what about when we have a sinful failure? The painful knowledge of our actions see...

King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon conquered Judah and relocated some of the Jewish people to Babylon. God gave special wisdom to three of these young menShadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. They impressed the king, and he placed them in positions of authority. All was well until the king built a golden statue. Everyone was ordered to fall flat and worship the statue when certain music was played. Failure...

How do you feel about libraries? They’re one of my favorite places! As the library doors swoosh open, I love breathing in the familiar scent of book pages and seeing the colorful spines lined along the shelves. I don’t even have a favorite section; I love them allfrom history to literature to comparative religion to fiction. Libraries are the bEsther But libraries got even more exciting for me whe...

I recently planted sunflowers and realized the nature of the great outdoors reflects God’s nature. Consider the seasons: there’s an objective order to themit’s always hottest in the summer, and birds migrate to warmer places in the fall. There’s a rightand wrong time for things to happen. Yet there’s also a flexibility. For example, there aren’t set days for sunflowers to bloom. Although it would...

Levi was not a popular guy; in fact, most people didn’t like Levi at all. In Jewish society during Jesus’s time, tax collectors were despised as the lowest of the low. They worked for the enemyRome. They cheated their own people, and they got rich doing it. That was the kind of man Levi wasbut he wasn’t that different from us. Like us, he was a sinner who needed Jesus. But God was working in his h...

During the summer after finishing high school, I had the opportunity to fulfill a dream: leading my all-state marching band as drum major. Along with other musicians and dancers in this group, I flew for many hours across many states to Honolulu, Hawaii. Once there, we performed in multiple venues and enjoyed free time in a beautiful destination. What would you guess were the most memorable experi...

When I wake up in the morning Let each breath be love When I go out and aboutLet my actions spread your love When I come home againLet me love those around me When life gets hardLet your love surround me When others hurt meLet me respond with love When I am scaredLet your love comfort meWhen I lie down at nightLet me know that I am held in love Emily Acker Love is a defining mark of Christianity....

Before, I used to think I was weak. I was not proud of myself. I looked down on myself because of my imperfections. I did not consider myself beautiful, talented, significant, or important. I had a broken family. I was lacking. I envied people. I thought I was not loveable or likable. How do you see yourself? Do you see how wonderful you are? Because that is how God, the perfect and almighty God,...

Sometimes, thinking about the future makes me feel stressed. I can get caught up trying to figure out what I’m going to do, and I can miss out on a lot. One of the most important things I can miss out on when I’m only thinking about the future is the present. I might not notice the ways God is already working in my life. And if I am so focused on the future that I don’t see the present, I will hav...

I’ve been to many funerals. I’ve yet to see the deceased rise up from the coffin and thank me for coming. I suppose there are scenes like this in horror movies, but movie-makers have ways of making you believe things like that can actually happen. Jesus was never in a movie, but He used His real power and mercy to raise people from the dead. There’s a riveting scene, recorded by both Mark and Luke...

The air was cold and bitter as Taylor trudged up the mountain path. She was after a rare flower; this flower was the last hope of saving her village from a deadly illness. The flower only grew in the harsh northern mountains. Many had gone before Taylor and had returned with nothing but broken bones and crushed hopes. But unlike the others, Taylor was following God through the mountains. She praye...

Have you ever asked a question and received an answer that began, Well, in a perfect world ? What would your perfect world be like? No pain or sorrow? Everything beautiful and fun? When God made the world, He made everything good. There was beauty everywhere, and no pain anywhere. Adam and Eve were placed in that good world, one that brought glory to God and joy to Adam and Eve. But all that chang...

I remember when I got sheepskin winter boots in middle school. That might not seem significant, but they werent just any winter boots. Everyone at school seemed to have them. When you got them, it was like you joined a club. My mom knew how badly I wanted a pair of these boots, and she found a less expensive, off-brand version for me. I couldnt wait to wear them. Once I had those boots, it felt li...

If you have ever watched a baby sleep in the arms of an adult, you might have an idea what peace looks like. If that baby starts to squirm, if they start to get uncomfortable, the one holding them adjusts their positionor the baby’s and the baby settles down again. Even when that child is screaming and fussing, the loving adult consoles the child until they can find deeper rEsther God longs to hol...

Have you ever been to a candle shop or watched people make candles? There are so many variations in candles! It seems like the possibilities are almost limitless. Differences in size, shape, color, design, fragrance, intended use, rate of burnall these contribute to the huge variety in candles. But there is at least one thing all candles have in common: they are meant to burn and give off light. I...

Do you ever have those days when you try to pray, but it seems like God just isn’t listening? What can we do when those moments come? We might be tempted to give up in despair, or we can choose to push through and keep seeking. I encourage you: be a seeker! God’s Word has plenty to say about seekingand for good reason. We all go through times when it seems like God is closing His ears to our cries...

As you get older, the problems in your life can seem to get bigger and scarier. When you were younger, there might have been someone who would take on your struggles for you, but now you have to face more of these challenges without help from others. Yet, God is still in control, even when your problems seem like too much to handle. You are never alone. When life is heavy, we only have to turn to...