How much would you like to be famous? Would you like to be a great YouTuber and have millions of followers and views? Many times we really think we’d desire fame and money and followers.

The truth is, however, any fame without God’s help is empty.

You could be the richest most famous person in the world, and without God, you’d feel like the riches weren’t enough to satisfy you deep down.

Abraham got fame and riches a different way. Instead of seeking followers and money, he sought God. From his relationship with God, God promised to make him famous.

I will make you into a great nation. I will bless you and make you famous, and you will be a blessing to others. – Genesis 12:2 (NLT)

When we seek fame, we get disappointed. When we seek God, we find fulfillment.

So today, choose to seek God. Find fulfillment in your relationship with Him, not from riches and the likes of others.

Have you felt like you were the only one of your friends that was standing up for God? I remember a time when I thought there was not another person I knew that loved God and was following after Him with all my heart.

I was the only person in my youth group that read my Bible. I also was the only person I knew at school that really loved God wholeheartedly. When my friends went out partying, I stayed home. And it was really hard sometimes.

That’s why I love today’s Bible verse because it seems like Noah would have probably felt a lot like I did.

This is the account of Noah and his family. Noah was a righteous man, the only blameless person living on earth at the time, and he walked in close fellowship with God. – Genesis 6:9 (NLT)

Walking in a close relationship with God is rewarding. Knowing Him and fellowshipping with Him is so great. However, when you say no to the things of the world, it can feel lonely.

Today’s Truth: Fellowship with God is worth the Sacrifice

The thing to remember is that in reality, you’re not alone. Unlike Noah, there are other teenagers out there that love God as you do. And while you might not see them all the time at your youth group, they exist. So don’t be discouraged. You’re not the only one. You might be the only one at your school or in your group of friends, but all over the world, there are teenagers who love God and who are walking in close fellowship with Him.

Don’t give up. Don’t compromise. Walking in fellowship with God is rewarding and worth it.

“So commit yourselves wholeheartedly to these words of mine. Tie them to your hands and wear them on your forehead as reminders. – Deuteronomy 11:18 (NLT)

You’d probably look pretty silly wearing Bible verses tied to your head and hands. So maybe don’t do that. However, today’s verse is really good in the sense that it shows us that we should put a high priority on God’s word.

So whether it’s sticking a Bible verse on your mirror as you get ready each morning, or setting the background of your phone to an encouraging scripture, make sure that you put God’s word in front of you often.

As you spend time getting God’s word in your heart, then when you’re facing a bad situation, you’ll have the encouragement from the Bible you need to get through it because you already spent time getting to know God’s word.

Choose to put God’s word in front of you each day and see how powerful and helpful it is in your life!

Do you remember when you were a little kid? You’d get a new toy for your birthday, and you’d love that toy. You’d play and play and play with it. Then, after about a week or two, the toy would get boring. The newness had worn off and it wasn’t as exciting anymore. It’s easy to get a gift and then after a few months totally forget about it, because it’s not as exciting as it once was.

Spiritually, it’s easy to do the same thing. You’ve been given spiritual gifts. God has gifted you for a unique purpose and calling. However, it’s easy to often forget about the gifts or become used to them so they don’t seem special anymore.

Do not neglect the spiritual gift you received through the prophecy spoken over you when the elders of the church laid their hands on you. – 1 Timothy 4:14

In today’s verse, we are challenged to not neglect our gifts. Don’t forget about the things that God has spoken to you about your future. Choose to remind yourself of what God has said to you. Also, don’t take your giftings for granted. Your gift is important to God’s plan and purpose on the earth. Even if you’re not like others, don’t get discouraged. God has gifted and called you for a special purpose.

Stir up that gift. Don’t let it get old and boring. Remind yourself of how special you are to God and how important your gift is to His plan. Ask God to show you how you can use your gift to help others today.

In this way, every generation will have a living faith in the laws of life
and will never forget the faithful ways of God. – Psalm 78:7 (TPT)

I always thought that I would live for God when I was older. I figured I’d lean on the faith of my parents and then I’d really go all-in for God when I got to be an adult. However, as I went to some youth camps and began to learn more about the Bible, I realized that I shouldn’t wait. I could develop a relationship with God and a faith walk of my own.

Today’s Bible verse talks about how every generation has to have a living faith. God doesn’t want to have a dull, boring lifeless relationship with you. Instead, He wants you to have a living faith. That means God wants to speak to you. God wants to show you things to come and things about your future. He wants to talk to you, help you know how to deal with the mean girl who rides your school bus. God desires to give you the wisdom to know how to talk to your friend who has parents that are going through a divorce. God wants to have a living relationship with you.

He doesn’t want to do this when you get to be an adult. Rather God can speak to you now. He can lead and guide you right now. So don’t wait. Don’t follow after God when you get older, choose to go deep now.

“But blessed are those who trust in the LORD and have made the LORD their hope and confidence. – Jeremiah 17:7 (NLT)

Confidence is a strange thing, isn’t it? Sometimes you have days when you really feel confident, and then there are days when you feel so incompetent and insecure. When talking about confidence, it’s easy to think that if you are dating the right person, or friends with the right people, or wear the right things then you’ll be confident. Or perhaps you think if you make the right team, get the right part in the play then you’ll be really confident.

The thing is that when confidence is built upon people, circumstances, or things, that confidence can be easily shaken. Confidence built on anything other than God, will cause you to be shaken when difficulty comes.

The best way to have lasting confidence is to build your confidence in God. God says in today’s verse that we are blessed when we trust in the Lord and when we make Him our hope and confidence.

Confidence that is lasting and secure finds it’s foundation in God. When God and what the Bible says about you becomes your confidence, then you’ll be able to face anything that comes your way.

Today, choose to build confidence in God. When you do, you’ll have a confidence that will last.

So let’s not get tired of doing what is good. At just the right time we will reap a harvest of blessing if we don’t give up. – Galatians 6:9 (NLT)

It’s really easy to get discouraged. Maybe you’ve been believing God for something and you haven’t seen results yet. Perhaps you’ve been doing the right thing for a long time and no one has noticed or acted like they cared.

In these situations, it’s really easy to want to be discouraged or quit. However, today’s Bible verse tells us to not get tired of doing good. How do you keep yourself from being discouraged? Many times it helps to remind yourself of the good things God has done for you. You can remember the times He’s brought you out or has been faithful. Sometimes the reward for doing the right thing doesn’t always show up when you think it should or when you expect it.

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The good news is that God always rewards faithfulness. If you stick with it and don’t give up, you’ll be rewarded. So challenge yourself to stick with it. Don’t give up when it gets hard or you feel like no one notices. If you stick with it, God will see that you are rewarded.