Kids Bible Devotional for August 13, 2024
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Focus Verse
James 2:15-16 Suppose a brother or a sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says to them, “Go in peace; keep warm and well fed,” but does nothing about their physical needs, what good is it? (NIV)
Jump Start
What can a four-year-old do to end hunger? Start a hunger-relief organization, of course.
In 2005, Joshua Williams from South Florida could not understand why people in his neighborhood went without food. This bothered the four-year-old kid so much that, with the help of his family, started Joshua’s Heart Foundation, a not-for-profit dedicated to ending hunger through the service of young people. According to their website, to date they have served nearly 5 million meals and assisted over 600,000 individuals.
When Jesus walked the earth, several times in the gospels we read that He was moved with compassion at the suffering He saw. Some were due to disease, others due to disabilities, and others due to a lack of spiritual direction. With the last, Matthew said that when Jesus saw the multitude, He was moved with compassion as they were scattered abroad, as sheep having no shepherd. While Jesus performed many miracles and fed thousands who hungered, His ultimate purpose was in the salvation of humankind. In this regard, we all play a part. We are His witnesses upon the earth of the goodness of God to the lost and hurting in the world.
Today's Devotion
Samantha sprawled across the couch, flipping through the latest edition of her favorite magazine. “Check this out, Mom. A couple of twin sisters won an award for starting a charity that gave free coats to homeless kids.”
Her mother peered over her reading glasses. “That’s excellent. I wonder what made them come up with that idea?”
Samantha scrolled down the page. “It says here that they noticed a couple of kids in their class come to school without jackets when it was really cold. They found out that their mother lived in a women’s shelter and didn’t have any money to buy them coats. That got them to thinking. What if we set up donation centers around the city to collect coats when the weather starts to turn cold?”
“Wow, that’s really taking initiative to do something good,” Mother said.
Samantha popped up from the couch. “Say, we should do something like that.”
“What do you recommend we do?”
“I’ve got a ton of toys I don’t play with that I can give away. And maybe some of my books.” Samantha pointed in the air. “I know. We can make baskets with those little New Testament Bibles and teddy bears to give to small kids in shelters and orphanages. We can call it ‘Bibles and Bears.’”
“Oh, that’s a cute name,” Mom said.
“Yeah! And I can make little handmade cards that say, ‘Hug a bear, feed a soul.’ You can bake your famous chocolate chips cookies. You know, to play off the “feeding the soul” part. What do you say? Can we do it?”
Mother sat quietly, returning her attention to her Bible reading.
Samantha pressed on. “I take it you’re not as excited about it as I am. I’m just trying to figure out how we can show the love of Jesus to people in need. Isn’t that what Christians should do?”
“I think it’s good that you’re thinking about others in need,” Mother replied. She removed her reading glasses. “And you’re right. We should do more. I just think we start simple, say volunteering at charities that are already up and running.”
“Like what?”
“We can join a food drive or read to kids at one of these shelters. We can even make a few of your baskets to give away when we do, if you want. Start small and then broaden our reach as God leads us.”
“I love the idea of reading to the kids. I’ll go pick out some books now.” Samantha skipped out of the room.
Wrap Up
In the chapter where we drew our theme verses from, James makes the case that faith without action is useless. We must put feet to our faith. One way to that this is to show the love of Christ to someone in need.
But what can I do, you ask? For starters, you can tell them about Jesus. Hasn’t He been good to you? If He has, tell someone. Next, you can pray that the Lord helps you and your family find ways to show His love to others who have needs.
If you want to learn more about the Joshua’s Heart Foundation, visit their website at joshuasheart.org. Or research local charities in your town and even your own church for programs that help people in your community.
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