Kids Bible Devotional for October 17, 2024
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Focus Verse
Hebrews 11:21 By faith Jacob, when he was a dying, blessed both the sons of Joseph; and worshipped, leaning upon the top of his staff. (KJV)
Jump Start
"What an old man can see sitting down, the youth cannot see standing up."
We began with an ancient African proverb that describes the wisdom of elders. Job said it this way, “Wisdom belongs to the aged, and understanding to the old.”
There is something precious about a lifetime of knowledge and experience passed down to the next generations. So often, we can get in a hurry and forget that the elders in our church congregations have so much valuable insights with which to teach us, if only we ask.
Their hair may be gray and their steps a little slower than they used to be, but their minds are full of sage advice. As we grow older, we see more clearly the things in life that are truly valuable. And most aren’t kept in high security vaults or behind impenetrable walls or fences. They are the people we love.
Today's Devotion
After his grandfather’s funeral, David rode back to the old farmhouse with his father where the family was meeting for dinner. Instead of taking the old dirt road back to the farmhouse, Dad continued down the narrow asphalt road.
“Are we not going to the house with the others?” David asked.
“In a minute,” Dad said. He quietly drove down the windy road until he reached a small lake at the edge of a meadow dotted with wildflowers. He eased the car beneath a spreading oak tree. Without a word, Dad got out of the car.
David followed him to the bank of the lake where his dad looked longingly into the murky waters. David stood quietly beside his father. Even though Grandpa was up in age, the news of his passing hit everyone in the family hard, especially his dad.
“When I was your age, your grandpa used to take me fishing here at this old pond,” Dad began. “We hardly caught anything, but I didn’t care. I cherished the time we spent together.”
David wondered what it would have been like to sit on the bank with his grandfather and fish. They hardly got much of a chance to visit because of his dad’s work schedule.
“One day, I asked him why we fished here since we hardly caught anything. He said, ‘It’s not how many fish you catch, but the company you keep that matters most.”
“That’s sounds like Grandpa,” David said. “He always had some pretty good one-liners.”
“In that statement, I learned the most valuable lesson,” Dad continued. “People are made rich, not from the money in their bank accounts or the stuff they own, but because of the love they share with others.”
“I remembered Grandpa say he was so hungry he could see cornbread walking around on crutches.” This made them both laugh. “I never knew what he meant by that, though.”
“Neither did I, son. But he did have some good ole country wisdom. Speaking of which, we better hurry up to the house for dinner before either one of us is on a pair of crutches. You know how Granny gets when we’re late.”
Wrap Up
In our theme verse, we read about Jacob leaning on his staff. This was a sign of his advanced age. However, Jacob started to need his staff to lean upon after he wrestled with the Angel all night upon his return home after many years in Genesis chapter 32. In that tussle, the Angel dislocated Jacob’s hip joint to get away from him before daybreak. After that, Jacob’s staff became his crutch.
In this regard, the staff symbolizes a grappling and a wrestling that Jacob endured to receive a blessing from the Lord. In many ways, our elders have had similar spiritual battles in their lifetimes that have made their faith stronger and their wisdom sounder. For this reason, they have much to teach the younger generations.
We should always appreciate the wisdom of our elders.
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