Devotions for Teenagers and Youth

Toast – What Happens When You Die?

Posted on September 23, 2013

Have you ever left toast in the toaster for too long? Maybe you got distracted and went back to check the toaster only to find that you had burnt the snot out of your toast? The only thing it is good for now is being used as a hockey puck. Burnt toast tastes just plain nasty.

Burnt toast can sort of show us what happens when we die. See, when we die, we go to one of two places: Heaven or Hell. And the choice of where we go is up to us. It’s just a matter of choosing Jesus to be your savior or not. For those who don’t choose Jesus, they go to hell. Essentially, they become burnt toast.

And there are lots of ideas out there about what hell is like. Some people think its a party and they’ll spend all their time hanging out with friends and living the party lifestyle. Unfortunately, they’re wrong. Hell isn’t a party. Its a horrible place. The Bible describes it like this:

[quote align=”center” color=”#999999″]…throwing the wicked into the fiery furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth” – Matthew 13:50[/quote]

When described this way, hell doesn’t sound like a party. It sounds like there’s going to be people crying and grinding their teeth together. Totally not the party with friends that people are talking about!

Even though hell is not a fun place, the good news is that you do not have to go there, you don’t have to become burnt toast. If you decide to make Jesus the Lord of your life you can spend eternity with Him in heaven. Which will be way more fun! Choose to accept what Jesus did for you and ask Him to be the Lord of your life.

To get started, pray this prayer:
“Father, I come to you in the name of Jesus. I believe that Jesus is your son. I believe that He died on the cross to take the punishment for my sins. I accept Jesus right now as my Lord and savior. I ask Him to come into my heart and to be the Lord of my life. In Jesus’ name I pray, Amen.

If you prayed this prayer, and meant it, Jesus is now your savior, the Lord of your life. And you will now go to heaven when you die…so there go the worries about being burnt toast! Your next steps should be getting plugged into a local church that preaches the Bible and also getting your hands on a Bible to begin getting to know this Jesus who is now the Lord or boss of your life!!

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Lessons From Mario Kart (Importance of Small Decisions)

Posted on September 20, 2013

If you’re like most teenagers, you probably love playing video games. Maybe you’re a huge Halo fan, or perhaps you love Call of Duty. Whatever your game of choice is, there are things that you can learn about leadership from video games.

Though I’m not a huge gamer, I do love playing a little Mario Kart. The one thing I noticed when I play Mario Kart is the importance of making good small decisions. For example, I tend to make really big turns when I’m driving. For example, I might be driving and notice that I’m starting to head to the left on the road. So I make this major correction in hopes of getting back to the middle of the road. Usually this does no good. I end up driving off a cliff or into a lake or something that results in me losing bunches of time. I always make way to big of corrections and end up losing the game. I’ve come to realize that I need to make small corrections to win at Mario Kart.

The same is true in life. Its making the small decisions/corrections in life that will steer the course of your life and cause you to not get off course.

I read a great story in the book Success for Teens by Jeff Olson. Jeff’s daughter was asking him some advice about how to do well in college and how to stand out. Jeff answered:

“Simply show up at your classes every day, and do the things your professors tell you to do, you’re going to beat 50% of people by just doing that.

Its such simple advice, but so true. Just showing up everyday will make you a success at college. Its the small decisions you make everyday that will be the difference between success and failure in life.

Some good small decisions to develop everyday:

Spending time with God
Getting up when your alarm clock rings(this is huge)
Being places on time
Keeping your word
Sharing your faith with others

Just like in Mario Kart, the small decisions are the ones that will keep you on course for your life. Being a leader begins with the small decisions you choose to make everyday. I encourage you to choose to make good small decisions which will make a huge impact on your life.

What Google Maps has to Say About Life After Death

Posted on September 13, 2013

Using Google maps can be kind of addicting. Its so much fun to be able to punch in a location and instantly see what is located near it and the best way is to get there.

We can use Google maps as an illustration to answer a question that lots of people have, “Why Would a loving God send someone to hell when they die?” This a really good question. If we see in the Bible that God is good and loves everyone, why does He allow people go to hell?

I think Google maps can help us answer that question. When you use Google maps, it asks you to pick a destination. Google maps doesn’t automatically fill in a destination for you or choose for you where you should go. Rather it lets you choose and make a decision where you want to go. That is exactly what God does. God doesn’t send anyone to hell and doesn’t want anyone to go to hell. But He doesn’t force an eternal destination on us. He leaves it up to us to choose.

We can choose to follow after God and accept that Jesus is the son of God, making Him The Lord of our lives. Or we can choose to ignore Jesus and not accept Him as The Lord of our lives. That choice determines our eternal destination.

Romans 3:25 –For God presented Jesus as the sacrifice for sin. People are made right with God when they believe that Jesus sacrificed his life, shedding His blood.

Just like getting directions from Google maps, we have to decide in life our eternal destination. Choose to make heaven your destination by making Jesus to be The Lord of your life.

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How to Make Jesus the Lord of Your Life

Posted on September 6, 2013

Many people think that if it feels good to you, you should do it. In today’s world, there is no benchmark for right and wrong. It’s just about what feels good or seems good for each individual. This attitude is reflected in much of the music we listen to and in many TV shows.

While no one can stop you from doing and believing whatever you want, this concept contradicts what the Bible says.

Acts 4:12 – “There is salvation in no one else! There is no other name in all of heaven for people to call on to save them.” (NLT)

Even though the world today might scream you can do what you want, say what you want, believe what you want, the truth is you can’t. Not if heaven is your goal.

The Bible says there is one way to salvation, Jesus.

That’s it. No other way will get you into heaven. Not saying the right things or doing some good deeds. Its believing in the name of Jesus.

If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. – Romans 10:9 (NIV)

It does matter what you believe. The Bible tells us that we are saved by confessing Jesus as our Lord. Jesus is the only way to heaven.

If you’d like to start a relationship with Jesus, pray this simple prayer.

Jesus, I believe you are God’s son. I believe you died on the cross for my sins. I know that I can’t do anything bad enough or enough good things to get into heaven. Jesus, I need you to be my savior. I ask you right now to be the Lord of my life. Come into my heart. In Jesus, name, Amen.

If you prayed that prayer and believed it, you are now a child of God. Begin to read your Bible every day and look for a good church that teaches the Word. As you plug into a good church, your faith in Jesus will grow!

Kicking the Habit of Fear

Posted on August 30, 2013

Fear. It will stop you, hold you back. It will keep you from fulfilling what God has called you to do.

It’s easy to give in to fear. In our walking around, working and going to school it’s easy to become accustomed to being afraid. We get so used to living our life in fear that it becomes normal.

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Instead of facing each day with fears and worries, choose to resist the fear that tries to attach itself to your life. Decide to not let fear hold you back from doing the things God has called you to do.

Stand firm in the face of fear and when fear tries to attach itself to you say no. Don’t allow yourself to become accustomed to being afraid. Kick the habit of fear by filling yourself up with Gods word.

Here’s a good scripture to start with:
2 Timothy 1:7 – “For God did not give us a spirit of fear, but of power, love and a sound mind.”

Remember fear isn’t from God so don’t live your life afraid. Choose to think on God’s word and kick fear out!

5 Devotions to Defeat Fear

Tips For Dealing With Bullying

Posted on August 29, 2013

Bullying is becoming more and more common these days among teenagers. In fact, one in four kids in the U.S. are bullied on a regular basis according to bullyingstatistics.org. So more likely than not, you or someone you know has felt the effects of bullying.

So what are some things you can do to help combat bullying in your school?

Pray – it sounds absolutely crazy, but sometimes the best thing to do in these situations is to pray. Pray that God will give you wisdom to know how to deal with the situation. Pray for those who are bullying that God will open their eyes to see what it is they’re doing (Eph 3:17-23)
Love – this is super crazy. It does work. Walking in love is a great way to combat bullying. If you respond in love, it gives the bully no fuel to the fire. Kill them with kindness, it works.
Tell – If someone is being abused physically against their will, you are justified in telling a teacher, principal or faculty member at your school.

These are a few suggestions to help with dealing with bullying in your school. Never underestimate the power of praying for those who are bullying others. More than likely, the person bullying is really hurting inside. You might be the person that God could use to help heal them. You may even end up with the opportunity to lead them to Christ!

4 Scriptures That Will Change Your Life

Posted on August 26, 2013

Scriptures Can Change Your Life

It can seem kind of strange to think that reading some scriptures could actually change your life. You’re probably thinking, winning a million dollars or something like that could change my life, but some scriptures, probably not. You might be thinking the Bible is old and hard to understand…how could something like that change my life?

Well, believe it or not, the Bible has the power to change your life. In Hebrews it describes the word of God like this, “For the word of God is full of living power. It is sharper than the sharpest knife, cutting deep into our innermost thoughts and desires. It exposes us for what we really are.” – Hebrews 4:12 (NLT) The Word of God is powerful. It has the power to change things in your life.

One of the best decisions you can ever make is to spend some time getting to know what the Word of God has to say. It can literally change your life!

Here are some great places to start reading:[list type=”check”]

“What this means is that those who become Christians become new persons. They are not the same anymore, for the old life is gone. A new life has begun!” – 2 Corinthians 5:17 (NLT)
“For I know the plans I have for you,” says the LORD. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.” – Jeremiah 29:11 (NLT)
“For nothing is impossible with God.” “ – Luke 1:37 (NLT)
“So now there is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus.” – Romans 8:1 (NLT)

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These are just a few suggestions to get you started reading the Word. There are many other good scriptures out there, so just start reading and you’ll find that as you spend time thinking about these scriptures they will become more exciting to you. They’ll stop just being boring words on a page, but will come alive to you.

Pray: God I thank you for your Word. I thank you that it is powerful and life changing. I ask for your help in reading the Bible. Help it to become more real to me. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Listen: Promises by Sanctus Real

How is Reading Your Bible Like Under Armor?

Posted on August 24, 2013

I went to the mall yesterday and I bought some rocking new under armor shorts.

I got them home and of course had to try them on! I was looking at them more closely and realized that I had missed the fact that there was this cool hidden pocket in the shorts. I was in a hurry at the store when I bought them and had overlooked the fact that there was this great hidden pocket that I could use to put stuff in.

These shorts reminded me of reading the Bible and how there are sometimes really cool hidden truths in Gods word for our lives.

As we take a closer look at Gods word and get involved in reading the Bible we can find truths to help us everyday.

I encourage you to take a deeper look at Gods word as you read it. Don’t just take a surface glance but dig into it. You’ll find awesome truths that can change your life!

Hebrews 4:16 For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword KJV

How to Have an Awesome Quiet Time

Posted on August 19, 2013

How to Have an Awesome Quiet Time

Don’t overcommit and try to do too much in your quiet time.
A good quiet time only needs to start with 5-10 minutes a day
Start reading in the book of John
Use some of the resources available to you. (YouVerson, apps on your phone, Podcasts, grandma’s Bible)

Having a great quiet time doesn’t happen automatically. It will take some work to find out what resources and things work for you. Don’t give up. Keep trying and you’ll find that you’ll be having an awesome quiet time with God.

How To Deal With A Break-up

Posted on August 16, 2013

Breaking up will happen to you. Plain and simple. Sometimes breaking up with a boyfriend or girlfriend really hurts. Other times, a break up might feel like such a sweet relief.

Part of being in a relationship with the opposite sex is learning how to deal with a break-up. Because let’s face it, unless you end up marrying the person you’re dating, you’re going to break up with them. So with that in mind, here are some tips for dealing with a break-up.

1. Determine your basis for your self-esteem – This is an important thing to think about. If your worth comes from who your friends are, who you’re dating, or any other person, your break-up is going to hurt more. There is not a single person who can love you enough to fill your heart or heal your hurts. At some point people will let you down. So, where should our worth come from?

Worth should be based on what God says about us, not what we feel, not what others do or say to us. Reading Psalm 139 is a great place to start when determining a foundation for your self-esteem.

2. What you put in determines the level of hurt on the way out – if you invest everything into a relationship, your money, your body, your time, your emotions, you’d better believe it will hurt when the relationship ends. Girls especially, until your wedding day, you need to be guarding your heart, your body and your emotions. Don’t give those things away freely like so many do. Until you have said your vows, there is a large chance that this relationship will break off and you not be with the person you’re dating. My advice to you is this…don’t give it all away. It is not worth it. What you put into a relationship will determine how much it hurts when it ends.

3. Realize your relationship is temporary – Around 99% of high school relationships don’t end in marriage. What does this mean? It means that you’re going to get dumped. So don’t take your relationship too seriously. Don’t tell that person you love them. Don’t have sex with them. Don’t ignore all other relationships because of them. See the relationship for what it is…it is temporary. Relationships are good to get to know people of the opposite sex and find out what types of people you would like in a future marriage partner. However, its more than likely going to end, so don’t invest too much into a relationship.

4. Ask God to heal you – Maybe you’ve been really hurt by someone in this break-up process. No matter what, relationships do hurt when they end, that’s just a fact of life. Ask God to heal you where you’re hurting. Ask for his wisdom and help with healing your heart after a relationship that has ended. He is able to help heal you when no one else can.

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