Devotions for Teenagers and Youth

Daily Bible Verse and Devotion – Esther 4:14

Posted on January 7, 2020

The story of Esther is inspiring. She stood up for her people and her faith knowing that she might face death. That takes a lot of courage.

Just like Esther, you’ve been called to do something for God. Your calling might look different from those of people around you, but you’ve been gifted and called for a purpose. You’re on the earth at this moment in time to make a difference.

So what are you going to do? Will you stand up, as Esther did? Will you be bold and brave in your calling?

If you keep quiet at a time like this, deliverance and relief for the Jews will arise from some other place, but you and your relatives will die. Who knows if perhaps you were made queen for just such a time as this?”
– Esther 4:14 (NLT)

Today’s Key – Believe in your calling.

To do something big for God, you’ve got to believe in your calling. You have to determine that you will not let anything stop you from doing what God has called you to do.

That takes guts! It’s not easy to do something like Esther did. Standing up for people, doing something different isn’t easy. But if you want to be a person who does big things for God, you’ve got to believe in your calling and take a risk.

When you believe in your calling, it allows you to step out and do things that you might have otherwise been afraid to do.

So today, if you’ve questioned your calling, challenge yourself to live this year differently. Choose to believe that you’re called and then each day live life on purpose. Determine to not let anything distract you from what God has called you to do!

Want to learn more about God’s purpose for your life? We’ve got a 10-day devotional designed to inspire you and challenge you to impact the world for Jesus.

Through thought-provoking questions and scriptures, you’ll start your journey to discover God’s great plan for your life!

Daily Bible Verse and Devotion – Hebrews 13:21

Posted on January 6, 2020

There was a student in my school that everyone seemed to like. He didn’t wear the best clothes. In fact, he didn’t even like lots of the video games and things that were popular. He wasn’t the smartest, he wasn’t a good athlete, he wasn’t good at band or music and yet almost everyone at school liked him. Why did everyone like him? It was his confidence.

His confidence made people respect him and want to be around him.

I think that’s a great lesson for us. We don’t always have to everything together. But, if we are confident in the right things, it will impact our future for the good.

Today’s Key – Be Confident, God has a plan for your life!

There is one thing that you can be confident about and that is that God has a plan for your life. You might feel insignificant or overlooked. You may feel misunderstood, but the truth is your feelings aren’t a true indicator. Feelings are fickle and will let you down. The truth is, you’re important.

may he equip you with all you need for doing his will. May he produce in you, through the power of Jesus Christ, every good thing that is pleasing to him. All glory to him forever and ever! Amen.
– Hebrews 13:21 (NLT)

God has a plan for your life. You can be confident in that plan. God wants to see you grow in Him and accomplish good things. God’s plans are always good.

So today, if you’ve become discouraged, challenge yourself to focus on God. Become confident in the fact that He has a plan for your life. You matter. And you’re vital to God’s plan on the earth.

Want to learn more about God’s purpose for your life? We’ve got a 10-day devotional designed to inspire you and challenge you to impact the world for Jesus.

Through thought provoking questions and scriptures, you’ll start your journey to discover God’s great plan for your life!

Daily Bible Verse and Devotion – Hebrews 4:16

Posted on January 3, 2020

Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need. – Hebrews 4:16 (NIV)

Have you ever felt like God was too busy to deal with your stuff? Or maybe that you just weren’t important enough for Him to really care about you? It’s easy to feel like God is so busy handling really big things that He might not have the time or energy to care about you.

Perhaps you feel like you’re not worthy enough or that you’ve made too many mistakes to really matter to God. However, that couldn’t be farther from the truth. God loves you. He cares about even the smallest detail of your life.

So when it comes to prayer and talking to God, know this truth: you matter to Him. You’re His child and there is no one He’d rather hear from.

Tip #5 – Praying is easy when you know you can come to God…no matter what

You have every right to come to God. Jesus made it possible for you to come to God with no sin held against you. There’s nothing that’s stopping you from having a relationship with God. So today, choose to believe this truth. Let it become part of who you are. Then spend time developing your relationship with God. God is excited to hear from you!

Daily Bible Verse and Devotion – Hebrews 11:6

Posted on January 2, 2020

And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him. – Hebrews 11:6 (NLT)

Have you ever had a hard time praying? Maybe you felt like you didn’t know what to say or where to get started. Perhaps you even felt like you shouldn’t be bothering God about your troubles in math class when God has to deal with really big stuff like wars, famine, hunger, and people dying.

The truth is, we can let our excuses and fears stop us from having an exciting relationship with God.

That’s not what God really wants. God wants more than anything to have a relationship with you. He is excited and ready to hear what you have to say.

Tip #4- Praying Becomes easier when you know God is excited to hear from you

God isn’t too busy to hear you out. He wants to help you, lead you and guide you into all truth. God desires to know you and to reveal himself to you. You’ve just got to simply believe that He wants to hear from you.

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So today, don’t believe the lie that God is too busy for you. The truth is He is excited to hear from you!

Daily Bible Verse and Devotion – Philippians 3:17

Posted on January 1, 2020

Join together in following my example, brothers and sisters, and just as you have us as a model, keep your eyes on those who live as we do. – Phil 3:17 (NIV)

It’s the new year, and if you’re like most people you’re thinking about goals for the new year. That’s something that we all should be working on. However, in all your goal setting, don’t forget to challenge yourself to grow in your walk with God.

Getting started growing closer to God can often seem overwhelming. Where do you start? How do you do it? The thought of it often makes you feel too overwhelmed to even want to begin.

Knowing God doesn’t have to be overwhelming. In the last two days, we’ve talked about taking five minutes a day to read your Bible and five minutes a day to pray. Today, we’re going to challenge you to take five minutes a day to help yourself grow.

Tip #3 – Spend 5 minutes a day listening/reading something spiritual.

You can do that by reading or listing to something spiritual each day for five minutes. If reading isn’t your thing, look for teaching videos on YouTube. If you love to read, find a few good books that challenge you spiritually.

Spending 5 minutes a day reading or listening to something that challenges you to grow in your walk with God will make a big difference in your life.

So each day this year challenge yourself to do these three things we’ve suggested:

Invest 5 Minutes in the Bible
Spend 5 Minutes in prayer
5 Minutes listening/reading something spiritual.

These 15 minutes you spend each day challenging yourself and growing in your relationship with God will really help you in the long run. You’ll never regret investing in yourself and your relationship with God.

So this new year, challenge yourself to grow your relationship with God. We’re excited to see what 2020 brings for you!

Daily Bible Verse and Devotion – James 5:16

Posted on December 31, 2019

Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The earnest prayer of a righteous person has great power and produces wonderful results. – James 5:16 (NLT)

In yesterday’s devotion, we talked about how to make Bible reading easy for the new year. Today, let’s talk about prayer. It’s easy to feel weird when you’re about to pray. Sometimes you don’t know what to say or how to really get started doing it. So today, we’re going to show a few easy ways to make prayer part of your routine in 2020.

Tip #2 – Spend 5 Minutes in Prayer Each Day

When you’re starting off, it can be really exciting wanting to pray and you think, I’ll spend 30 minutes a day praying and it will be so easy and wonderful. Then three days later, you begin dreading the idea of praying in the first place. So instead of a huge and lofty goal of prayer, consider doing something sustainable.

Choose to spend 5 minutes a day in prayer. It might be while you take a shower. It could be waiting for the bus each morning. Find a place that works for you and commit to 5 minutes each day. Set a timer on your phone and when it goes off, you’re done. Setting a timer might make it feel a little less spiritual, but sometimes knowing you’re not spending hours on end helps you push in for a few minutes. If the 5 minutes is over and you’re still enjoying your time with God, don’t feel like you have to stop. Just let the five minutes be your starting point and commit to doing it each day.

Try Praying Like This:

Lots of times it can be hard to know where to start when you pray. One easy thing to do is to start by finding a couple of things you can thank God for. Find two or three things and spend a minute or two thanking God for the good things in your life.

After that, talk to God a bit. Tell Him areas where you struggle. Be honest and open with Him. Ask God for help and wisdom for the tough things you’re facing.

Finish up praying by telling God how much you love Him.

A simple format like this takes only a few minutes, but you’ll be surprised how much you’ll grow in your walk with God as a result of spending 5 minutes a day praying.

Daily Bible Verse and Devotion – Hebrews 4:12

Posted on December 30, 2019

For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. – Hebrews 4:12 (NIV)

It’s almost the beginning of a new year, and you’re probably starting to think about New Year’s Resolutions. Maybe you want to lose some weight, learn to play guitar, or spend a little less time playing video games. Most people try to make some positive changes for the upcoming year.

One of the best resolutions you can make is spending more time reading your Bible in 2020. So this year, we want to present you with some simple ways to make having a quiet time with God really simple.

It can seem really intimidating to try to read the Bible each day. So let us help you by giving you some quick tips to help you have a simple Bible study plan for 2020!

Tip #1 – Spend 5 mins in the Bible each day

In your quiet times each day, challenge yourself to spend a simple five minutes reading the Bible each day. And if reading the Bible isn’t your thing, consider having it read to you. YouVersion provides an audio version in several different Bible translations.

Also, consider:

Reading a Proverb that is the same as the day number. So if it’s January 1, read Proverbs 1.
Start reading a chapter from the book of John each day.
Do a topical study of an area that interests you. Search our website for topics or google and see what you can find.

There are lots of easy ways to get God’s word into your life. Pick one that makes sense to you. Then set a timer for 5 minutes. When your timer goes off, you’re done. It’s that easy.

Don’t make Bible reading hard this year. Instead, commit to 5 minutes a day and you’ll be amazed at how much you’ll grow in your walk with God in 2020!

Check out this great video by the Bible Project to help you get started reading the Bible.

Daily Bible Verse and Devotion – Matthew 1:21

Posted on December 23, 2019

And she will have a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.” – Matthew 1:21 (NLT)

We are so thankful for Jesus and what His coming to the earth means for our lives. It’s so great to be able to enjoy a relationship with God, freedom from sin, and all of the benefits Jesus has brought into our lives.

We are so thankful to you for your support and for reading the devotions.

StudentDevos will be taking the next few days off from writing to enjoy the Christmas season. We wish blessings to everyone and that you have a great holiday celebrating Jesus!

Daily Bible Verse and Devotion – John 16:33

Posted on December 17, 2019

“I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” – John 16:33 (NIV)

Have you noticed how crazy life can get sometimes? Maybe you’re concerned about your family gatherings this Christmas. You know that Uncle Henry will probably tell that story about you that is so embarrassing and you just wish that Christmas was already over!

Maybe you’re stressed out about finals, or something going on at school. It’s true, life gets crazy sometimes. And in the midst of the craziness, how do you keep your calm?

Today’s Truth: Jesus Came to Bring Peace to Your Storm

Where do you go in the middle of all the unrest around you? Today’s Bible verse helps us out. It shows us that in Jesus we can find peace. Jesus didn’t deny that we would have trouble. No. He told us there would be trouble in the world. But in the middle of trouble, we could find peace in Him.

Jesus came to bring peace into your life and into your situation.

What are you going through that is bringing you trouble? Take it to Jesus. Ask Him to show you how to find peace in the middle of all the craziness of life. He won’t make your trouble go away, but He will show you a way to go through the midst of it and still have peace in Him.

Daily Bible Verse and Devotion – Joshua 1:9

Posted on December 16, 2019

This is my command—be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid or discouraged. For the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.” – Joshua 1:9 (NLT)

Want to know the great thing about God? It’s that he is with you. There’s a difference between someone being for you and someone being with you. If someone is for you, it means they cheer for you. They like the stuff you post online.

But those people like you from a distance. They cheer for you when things are good, but they’re not there day in and day out. They aren’t there when you can’t sleep at night or when things are hard.

But that’s what is so great about Jesus. He’s not just a fan, liking a few things you put online. No, He’s there with you.

Today’s Truth: Jesus Came to Be With You

Jesus is with you when things are hard. When you don’t know what to do, He’s there. He’s not just a God that is for you, He’s with you. Each step of the way. Every day.

So today even if things feel hard. Even if you feel like you can’t keep going on, know this. Jesus is with you. That means you’re never alone!

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If you keep quiet at a time like this, deliverance and relief for the Jews will arise from some other place, but you and your relatives will die. Who knows if perhaps you were made queen for just such a time as this?” – Esther 4:14 (NLT)