We will not hide them from their descendants;
    we will tell the next generation
the praiseworthy deeds of the Lord,
    his power, and the wonders he has done. – Psalm 78:4 (NIV)

I remember a certain day at school when one of my teachers spent most of the afternoon lecturing the class for something they had done wrong. Thankfully, I hadn’t participated in the wrongdoing, and so I got to sit back and watch many of them getting in trouble, all the while knowing the lecture and subsequent punishment did not apply to me.

It can be easy to read the Bible with a similar mindset. When reading, you might see a passage like today’s and think, I’m not a parent, so I don’t need to even read or think about what this verse is telling me, and we skip over it without giving it any thought.

And it’s true that you’re probably not a parent yet. But one day you might be. And verses like these can help you when you are. Also, you’re probably influencing younger people around you. Maybe you have a little brother or sister. Or perhaps there are some younger kids that you babysit or see at church. This verse could apply to your relationship with them too.

Whether you realize it or not, you have a responsibility to take the gospel to the next generation. And telling the next generation about what God has done can start for you now. Take your little brother or sister for example, there are probably things you could be doing to encourage your little brother or sister in their faith. Maybe they have doubts about God that you could help them through. Perhaps you could just be a good example to them by making good choices and living for righteousness.

If you’re open to it, God can prompt you and show you a way that you can begin showing His goodness to the next generation. So don’t wait. God can use you today to help the next generation learn more about the goodness of God. Start by asking God how, and be open to being used by Him to help others know Him more.

No, dear brothers and sisters, I have not achieved it, but I focus on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead, – Philippians 3:13

One of the keys to having a good attitude when things get tough is adjusting your focus. In life, where you choose to put your focus determines your attitude. If you focus on all the bad things going on around you, you’ll be upset and sad.

Paul is talking in this Bible verse about forgetting the past and looking forward to what is ahead. That is the key to being happy regardless of your circumstances. If you can look forward to the future, you’ll be much happier.

So instead of being upset about how this year at school is much harder than last year, or focusing on how your algebra teacher is always treating you unfairly, choose to adjust your focus. In the middle of difficult circumstances, you can find happiness by looking forward to what lies ahead. Maybe you get to switch classes next semester. Perhaps you get to go out for track in the spring. Whatever it is, find something in the future to look forward to. Having a goal and something to look forward to will help you find happiness in your current situation.

Now the Berean Jews were of more noble character than those in Thessalonica, for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true. – Acts 17:11 (NIV)

I remember many times in classes at school feeling silenced for my beliefs. A teacher would share in biology class about the origins of the world, and most of what was shared went against the creation account in Genesis. I was unsure what to say or do. Sometimes a friend would share about their beliefs as a Muslim or another religion and I simply didn’t know what to say to them.

A few years have gone by, and I realize now that there is power in knowing what you believe. Not only scripture, but real defense of why Christianity makes sense in the world. The more I study, the more I realize that the Biblical worldview does hold up to scrutiny.

The last few years, I’ve spent searching scripture, learning the history and the reasons for Christianity. And the more I learn, the more I realize that the Bible is true. The Bible makes the most sense of the world we live in. Without it, we can’t understand our world properly.

So, if you’re like I was a few years ago, and knew that Jesus was real and the son of God, but didn’t really know why you believed what you did, I’d challenge you to do what the Bereans did in our verse today. Begin to search the scriptures. Find out how to defend your faith in the realms of science, math, or any other area where you are challenged. Then you can begin to confidently know that the Bible is true and begin to share that truth with those around you.

Need some help? Check out this devotion.

Today’s Truth: Begin to study and search out what you believe.

Or do you despise the riches of His kindness, restraint, and patience, not recognizing that God’s kindness is intended to lead you to repentance? – Romans 2:4 (HCSB)

I heard the story once of a teenager who had really disobeyed her dad. She had gone against his wishes, lied, disobeyed and deserved a great punishment. Her dad did something amazing. Instead of giving her the punishment she deserved, he spent some time with her and took her out for ice cream.

This isn’t the response we expect from our parents when we disobey. We usually expect grounding, time out or some sort of punishment. Instead of what she deserved, her dad showed her kindness. Her dad, being a Christian, wanted her to experience what God’s grace was like. It was a lesson the young lady really remembered. Instead of getting what she deserved, she got grace.

That reminds me a lot of today’s Bible verse. In the passage, we see that God’s kindness leads us to repentance. God treats us like that father with his daughter. We don’t deserve good things because of sin. And yet, God is kind to us. He loves us, and doesn’t give us what we deserve, but rather gives us kindness.

This kindness isn’t to give us an excuse to keep on sinning. The kindness helps draw us to God because when we’re aware of our sin and what we deserve, and realize what God did for us, we can’t help loving Him. We want to know Him more and understand what He did for us better.

So today, be encouraged, God loves you, He treats you with kindness and is on your side!

I assure you that whoever tells this hill to get up and throw itself in the sea and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that what he says will happen, it will be done for him.  – Mark 11:23

There’s power in your words. When you speak words of faith, awesome things can happen. But how do you begin speaking faith-filled words? How can you speak faith over a situation that seems hopeless or over something that seems dead? You do it by beginning to dream. Begin by dreaming and imagining what you’d like your situation to be like.

As you do that, you’ll find that you begin to have faith to see these things come to pass. When that happens, it’s easier to speak faith-filled words. As you speak faith and life over your situation, you begin to see results.

For example, let’s say doing well at school has always been hard for you. Maybe you have anxiety about taking tests. To overcome this, you’d want to begin to dream and imagine yourself successfully taking tests. Maybe you’d imagine yourself getting a good grade, or being really confident when it became time to take a test.

Once you see something in your mind’s eye, it’s a lot easier to speak faith over it. So if you can imagine it happening, you can speak it into existence. So today, begin to watch what you speak and expect God to help you in those difficult and even hopeless situations. He will give you the wisdom to get through whatever you face.