Respect everyone, and love your Christian brothers and sisters. Fear God, and respect the king. – 1 Peter 2:17

Many people today have little respect for others. This attitude can creep into our lives as Christians sometimes too. We don’t respect our boss at work, we talk about how horrible our teachers are at school, or maybe we even bash the people that go to our youth group or church for things they do.

Sometimes it can be really easy to fall into the habit of talking about others and focusing only on the negative traits of those around us. However, this isn’t the way that God really wants for us to live.

Today’s Bible verse challenges us to respect everyone. That isn’t to say you’re going to agree with what everyone around you does, but rather you’re going to treat them with kindness and respect. You should look for opportunities to speak well of other people. Challenge yourself to be actively looking for good things in the lives of others instead of displaying the bad. Doing this isn’t what comes naturally most of the time. However, it’s the right thing to do. So today, challenge yourself to look for good things in other people and show them some respect.

Let all that I am praise the LORD; may I never forget the good things he does for me.  – Psalm 103:2 (NIV)

Have you noticed that when you’re in the middle of something, it’s really hard to see progress? During the school year, it can feel like your classes are dragging on and you’ve got mountains of homework. It can be difficult to see the progress you’re making because you’re so zoomed in on what you’re currently facing.

It’s good to take some time, especially at the end of a school year and reflect on what you’ve learned so far. Maybe you pushed ahead in learning more math that you didn’t know, or got better at playing your instrument. It’s really good to spend time evaluating and not forgetting where you started.

The same is true spiritually too. It can be easy to feel like you’re not really making spiritual progress as fast as you’d like. You can wish that some of your bad habits would go away faster. Instead of beating yourself up about how you’re not where you’d like to be, it can be helpful to take some time to remember.

Remember where you came from. Remember that you’re not where you were at the beginning of the year. Recall the ways that God has encouraged you or spoken to you. Don’t let the feelings of inadequacy be all you feel. Instead choose to look to see the progress you’ve made so far. Don’t forget where God has come through for you and brought you out.

Faith enabled Moses to choose God’s will, for although he was raised as the son of Pharaoh’s daughter, he refused to make that his identity, – Hebrews 11:24

The issue of identity is something that many teenagers struggle with. At school, you may not be sure what group you fit in with.  That might cause you to do or say things to get acceptance that you later regret.

Moses was no different. He too struggled with his identity. He had to decide did he fit in with Egypt and Pharaoh, or did he fit with Israel. It probably would have been easier to side with Egypt. He would have had lots of great clothes, friends and tons of good food. However, Moses decided instead to not make that his identity. He chose instead to follow after God.

Choosing to look to God for your identity is one of the best decisions you can make. If you base your identity on anything else than God you will always be unhappy. Anything other than God can change. Your friends could change. Your social status could change and if your identity is solely based on those things, you could be really shaken if something changes.

Instead, choose to look to God for identity. Let Him be the one to tell you your worth. When you base your identity on God and His plan for your life you’ll find true peace.

For you died to this life, and your real life is hidden with Christ in God. – Galatians 3:3

There is this tree stump at the local ice cream place in my town that looks like a sheep. I remember getting out of my car the other day and staring and staring at what looked like a sheep under the tree at the ice cream place. I kept thinking why doesn’t that sheep move? What is it doing over there? Did someone lose it? It took me a few minutes of staring at it to realize that it was only a tree stump. What I thought I saw didn’t exist.

In life, a lot of the time what we see isn’t real. We look at ourselves in the mirror and see someone who is too fat or too shy. Maybe we see someone who struggles at school or battles lust. If we let it, that reflection of ourselves becomes reality to us and makes us feel bad about ourselves.

But what if that reflection of ourselves isn’t real? Yes, you might struggle with sin or schoolwork, but what if that didn’t have to define you? What if God wanted you to see beyond what you see in the mirror and rethink what you saw?

The truth is, God doesn’t look at you and only see shortcomings. God sees you through Jesus. And when He looks at you that way, you are enough. So today, determine to see yourself like God sees you. See your value to God. Realize that you’re important to God’s plan on the earth.

But let all who take refuge in you rejoice; let them sing joyful praises forever. Spread your protection over them, that all who love your name may be filled with joy.  – Psalm 5:11 (NLT)

Have you noticed how easy it is to not be joyful? Maybe you’re worried if the boy in Chemistry class likes you and you see him talking to another girl and it makes you sad. Or perhaps you don’t get the solo in the choir and you feel so sad. It’s easy to let circumstances determine your happiness. This is bad because you can’t always control your circumstances.

Life isn’t always going to go your way, but you can choose joy in the midst of your circumstances. A good way to do this is by spending time in God’s presence. Do things like reading your Bible. Also, reminding yourself of how good God is can help you change your perspective.

Think of the times he’s protected you or walked with you through difficulty. As you love God and get close to Him, He can be your source of joy. Your life can be filled with joy if you choose to love God and get close to Him. Your circumstances might not always be perfect, but you can choose joy in the middle of what is going on around you.

So be truly glad. There is wonderful joy ahead, even though you must endure many trials for a little while.  – 1 Peter 1:6 (NLT)

Life has lots of ups and downs. There are days when you feel like everything is going great and others when it feels like your entire world is collapsing around you. Life can be really strange that way.

Today’s Bible verse gives us hope in discouragement. It shows us that there is always joy ahead. We can always find joy when we focus our attention on Jesus. He gives us hope for each day. Through Jesus, we know that our future is secure. We know that He paid the price for sin, sickness and eternal death. Jesus is our reason for joy and hope.

That’s why in the middle of the trials that we face we can have joy. It’s not that we’re happy about the trial but rather we take comfort in our hope. We know that Jesus will see us through whatever we’re facing. That’s what gives us joy. Jesus has been there already and He helps us make it through another day.

Today’s Truth: Jesus has already been through what you’re facing and tells you that you can make it another day.

So today regardless of what you’re facing, you can be encouraged. Jesus is your source of hope. Whether you’re experiencing one of life’s highs or one of the lows you can know that you have joy. It’s a joy that’s going to last because it’s based on what Jesus did and who we are in Him.