Read: Matthew 2:1-12

“Mrs. Chavez read us a short story today called ‘The Gift of the Magi,’” Jenna announced at dinner.

“By O. Henry! I love that story,” exclaimed her mother.

“It’s about a young couple who were really, really poor,” Jenna told her older brother, Damon. “They really wanted to buy each other a special Christmas present, but the only valuable thing the guy owned was a gold watch, and the girl had nothing except her beautiful, long hair. So she secretly decided to cut her hair off and sell it so she could buy a chain for the watch her husband was so proud of. Meanwhile, he secretly sold his watch so he could buy expensive combs for the hair she no longer had!”

Damon laughed. “What a disaster!”

“I know, it sounds awful. But it ended up the best Christmas ever, because it made them realize how much they really loved each other.”

“Sappy.”

“Damon.” His father shook his head. “Remember the year you spent all your money on a Christmas gift for Mom? You’d been saving forever for a video game, but you sacrificed it to buy a cookbook she wanted.”

“Yeah, I remember.” Damon grinned. “It was worth it seeing your expression, Mom, when you opened the box!”

“A gift that keeps on giving,” Mom said, pointing to their dessert. “Jenna, I wonder if your story is called “The Gift of the Magi” because the magi—the wise men who visited baby Jesus—brought Him costly gifts? They brought Him gold, frankincense, and myrrh, which were special because they pointed to how Jesus was King over everything but had come to sacrifice Himself so we could have the gift of eternal life. The couple in the story made sacrifices to show their love for each other, and Jesus showed us His love by making the greatest sacrifice of all.”

“Maybe we should all think of ways we can show others God’s love this Christmas,” said Dad.

Jenna was quiet for a moment. “Maybe instead of keeping all the clothes I get this year, I could share my new sweaters and stuff with girls I know who don’t have much. What do you think, Mom?”

Mom smiled. “I think any gift you give from your heart pleases Jesus and makes His birthday extra special!”

–Debbie Meroff

How about you? Have you ever sacrificed something valuable in order to give a person you love a particular gift? Or maybe you’ve had a friend or family member make a sacrifice to give you a gift. Jesus broke every record for sacrifices when He gave His life for us! How can you share His love with others this Christmas?

Today's Key Verse: Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me. Matthew 25:40 (NIV)

Today's Key Thought: Give joyfully like Jesus

Read: Psalm 139:14-18

When Emmalyn got home from school, she went straight to her room, flopped face-first on her bed, and began to cry.

Soon there was a knock at her door. “Emmalyn, it’s Mom. Can I come in?” Emmalyn managed to let out a muffled yes, and Mom came in and sat down on the bed. “What’s wrong?” Mom asked.

Emmalyn sniffled. “Judson noticed that I’m the only one with red hair in our class. He made jokes about redheads all day and even got the other kids to call me carrottop!” She wiped the tears from her eyes.

“Can I dye my hair a different color, Mom? Please?”

Mom was silent as she stared at Emmalyn’s bedroom wall. Emmalyn had a very special bedroom wall. Last summer her uncle had come and helped her paint a mural of a tropical scene on it. “Well,” Mom finally said, “I guess we’ll have to go to the store and pick up some hair dye. While we’re at it, we should pick up a gallon of white paint to cover up your mural.”

“What?” Emmalyn looked shocked. “Why? Uncle Joe and I worked hard on that, and it turned out really well. It’s a one-of-a-kind masterpiece!”

“Well, you want to change your hair so you can be just like your classmates, and I know none of them have a bedroom wall like yours,” said Mom. “So we should get rid of that too.”

Emmalyn stared at her mom for a few moments before she finally understood. “Oh, I get it. You’re trying to tell me that I’m a one-of-a-kind masterpiece, just like the mural on my wall.”

“That’s exactly right,” said Mom. “God made you the way you are, and He loves you—so much that He sent His Son, Jesus, to die for you! And He created you to show His love to others in your own unique way. So don’t try to change yourself just to make other people happy—you’re beautiful just the way you are because you belong to Jesus.”

Mom gave Emmalyn a tight hug, and Emmalyn smiled as she looked at the mural on her wall and thought of herself as God’s masterpiece.

–Melissa Yeagle

How about you? Has anyone ever made fun of you for the way you look? It hurts when that happens, but remember God made you the way you are and He loves you. He made you for a special purpose—to know Jesus and share Him with others in your own unique way. Your beauty doesn’t depend on other people’s opinions about how you look. You’re beautiful because you know Jesus!

Today's Key Verse: For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago. Ephesians 2:10 (NLT)

Today's Key Thought: You are God’s masterpiece

Read: Romans 12:3-10

“It’s my idea! I should wrap all the presents!” Libby cried.

“But you’re not good at wrapping,” Hattie answered.

“It’s a class project to raise money for missionaries our church supports. We are going to work together,” Miss Coretta intervened.

When Miss Coretta had asked their class for ideas to help support missionaries, Libby shared her plan: wrapping Christmas presents at the mall in exchange for donations from shoppers getting their purchases wrapped. Everyone agreed, so Miss Coretta made the arrangements.

Libby felt proud of her idea and wanted to carry out the project by herself. When Hattie noticed Libby rushing to wrap each gift the shoppers brought them, she tried talking to Libby. But Libby insisted on handling it alone.

“Please get more tape and ribbon from the box I brought,” Miss Coretta asked Libby. Grumpily, Libby yanked the supply box from under the table.

Then a man approached. “I had this candle wrapped for my wife’s Christmas present,” he explained. “But the paper fell off on my way out. I was wondering if you could rewrap it.”

Libby stood up from her search for ribbon and tape. She remembered wrapping that candle. She now saw how sloppy she’d been.

“I’m sorry.” Libby’s face turned red. “Hattie, why don’t you rewrap the candle? I’ll get the shiny paper.”

Afterwards, Miss Coretta took Libby aside. “I know that embarrassed you, but I think you can learn something from this mistake.”

“I can?” Libby asked.

Miss Coretta nodded. “God tells us He gives grace to those who are humble. When we admit we need help, He’ll provide it. Jesus humbled Himself by dying on the cross for our sins because we couldn’t save ourselves, and He’ll help you have the same kind of humble attitude He did. When we’re prideful and try to do His work all on our own, we set ourselves up for failure. But when we humbly work with others to serve Him, people can see His love and grace in us.”

“I did fail at wrapping that man’s candle,” Libby replied. Then she smiled. “Hey, Hattie?” Libby called. “Will you show me how you wrap presents? I think I have a lot to learn.”

–Allison Wilson Lee

How about you? Are you humbly serving the Lord with other Christians? God gives each of us abilities to use for His purposes. When we work together as God’s people, we bless others and glorify Him. But when we think we have what it takes to do God’s work all by ourselves, our pride leads to failure, and we keep others from doing their part too. As we grow in Jesus, He’ll help us get rid of pride and be humble so the work we do with others can show people who He is.

Today's Key Verse: When pride comes, then comes disgrace, but with humility comes wisdom. Proverbs 11:2 (NIV)

Today's Key Thought: Be humble

Read: John 13:3-10; 1 John 1:5-9

“Hudson!” Mom’s voice startled him as he stepped into the kitchen. “Look at your shoes!” Hudson looked down at his feet and then at the trail of mud behind him. “How did your shoes get so dirty?” Mom asked.

Hudson shrugged. “I was just outside.”

“Well, please go back outside and clean off your shoes.”

A few minutes later, Hudson came back, and he and Mom wiped up the dirt. “I’m sorry, Mom,” Hudson said.

Mom smiled. “No harm done. I know it was an accident. It’s pretty easy to get dirt on your shoes without knowing it, isn’t it?”

Hudson nodded. “I still don’t know how they got so dirty.”

“Well, at least it was just mud—not sin,” Mom said. Hudson looked puzzled. “Getting your shoes dirty with mud is a little like getting your life dirty with sin,” Mom explained. “We talked about that at church this morning, remember? Sometimes you don’t even think about what you’re doing, and then you suddenly realize that something you’ve done wasn’t right.”

“Does that ever happen to you?” asked Hudson.

“Yes. When I mess up, it’s like my life has gotten dirty with sin. And do you know what I have to do then? To get clean again?”

Hudson thought about it. “Jesus would have to clean up the sin, wouldn’t He?”

“That’s right,” Mom replied. “He promises to clean away any sin from our lives when we confess it and ask for forgiveness.”

Hudson frowned. “Does that mean every time I sin, I’m not saved anymore until I say I’m sorry and ask for forgiveness?”

Mom shook her head. “No, Hudson. Because we’ve trusted Jesus to save us, we belong to Him, and nothing we do could ever separate us from Him. We’ll always be His children—just like you’ll always be my child, even when you have dirty shoes. When we realize we’ve been tracking sin around, we need Him to wash it away.”

Hudson smiled. “I’m glad Jesus will always forgive me when my life gets dirty with sin—just like you forgave me for tracking mud in the kitchen!”

–Richard S. Maffeo

How about you? Have you done something that’s gotten your life dirty with sin? Even though Jesus has already saved you from sin if you trust in Him, you’ll still struggle with it in your daily life until He comes back and gets rid of sin once and for all. When you sin, confess it to Him right away to keep it from getting in the way of living the way He wants you to. He’ll forgive you and make you clean!

Today's Key Verse: Completely wash away my guilt and cleanse me from my sin. Psalm 51:2 (CSB)

Today's Key Thought: Confess sin and be clean

Read: Matthew 2:9-11

The Ravens were up by one in the championship game of the winter league basketball tournament when the scoreboard buzzed. The game was over! All the guys huddled around their star player, Bryson Phillips, who scored 28 of their 62 points.

On the car ride home, Bryson couldn’t stop looking at his Most Valuable Player trophy. “This is the best day of my life!” he told his dad.

Suddenly a bird swooped down in front of their car. “Watch it!” yelled Bryson. Dad tried to swerve, but it was too late. The car hit the bird head-on, and it instantly fell to the ground.

Dad pulled over. Bryson raced out and knelt beside the bird. “Is it still alive?”

“I’m afraid not,” said Dad.

As they continued driving, Bryson set his trophy aside and peered out the window. He thought of his friend Alex. It had been over a year since Alex had passed away from cancer. It had taken him and his family by surprise—one day Alex was fine, and then suddenly, he was gone. Just like that bird getting hit by our car, Bryson thought.

“Are you okay?” asked Dad.

Bryson looked at the trophy in the seat next to him. “All of a sudden this trophy seems kind of worthless,” he said. “I’d give it back in a heartbeat—along with every Raven basketball victory—if it meant getting Alex back.”

Dad sighed heavily. “I miss Alex too. Life is precious—more precious than anything we earn or receive on this earth.”

“Much more precious than winning basketball championships,” added Bryson.

Dad nodded. “Jesus is the giver of life. That’s why He came into the world. He sacrificed His life on the cross so we could have eternal life—a life that goes beyond the years we live on earth. The joy of life with Him is better than anything else. Even when we experience difficult things—like losing Alex—we can be joyful knowing that Jesus walks with us through life’s troubles and promises us a life with Him that lasts forever.”

Bryson smiled as he thought of Alex in heaven with Jesus. He picked up his trophy again. “I do like the joy of winning, but it will never come close to the joy Jesus brings.”

Dad smiled. “Nothing does.”

–Randy Saller

How about you? What things in life give you joy? Winning a game? Spending time with family and friends? Having others recognize your accomplishments? God blesses us with many good gifts, but there’s one thing He wants us to treasure above everything else—His Son, Jesus. Only Jesus can give us life that lasts forever and joy that is unlike anything else.

Today's Key Verse: When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceedingly great joy. Matthew 2:10 (NKJV)

Today's Key Thought: Rejoice in Jesus

Read: Matthew 13:18-23

When Penelope got home from school, she found Grandpa on his knees in the garden. “What are you doing?” she asked.

“Planting vegetables,” replied Grandpa. He grinned. “Aren’t you glad we live in a climate where we can grow things all year round? Nothing tastes better than vegetables fresh from the garden.”

“But didn’t you plant stuff in those same rows last week?” asked Penelope.

“I did, but the hard rains washed most of the seeds away.”

“Oh.” Penelope picked up a pile of empty seed packets and flipped through them. “You planted radishes before, but you don’t have any now, do you?”

Grandpa shook his head. “They haven’t done very well, so I’m trying something else instead. I might try them again next year.” He stood up. “Tell me about your day. You were going to ask Michaela to go to Bible club with you this week. What did she say?”

Penelope sighed. “She said she’d rather go shopping with her mom.”

“Well, inviting someone to do something with you is kind of like planting seeds,” Grandpa told her. “Sometimes you get good results, and sometimes you don’t.” He looked down at his garden. “In fact, your invitation to Michaela points to a much bigger invitation God offers each one of us.”

“It does?” asked Penelope. “What’s that?”

“His invitation to trust in His Son, Jesus, and have our sins forgiven. The Bible says telling others about His invitation is like planting seeds in a field. Some of the seeds yield good results—people believing and trusting in Jesus—but some don’t. When you invite your friends to church and Bible club where they can hear about Jesus and what He did for them, you’re planting seeds.” Grandpa smiled at Penelope. “Keep praying for Michaela and planting seeds in her life by spending time with her and sharing what Jesus has done for you. But since she doesn’t want to go to Bible club with you this time, maybe there’s someone else you could invite.”

Penelope thought about it. “There’s a new family on our block with a girl my age.”

Grandpa nodded. “She may need a friend,” he said. “A friend who can help her understand how much Jesus loves her.”

–Margaret M. Primrose

How about you? Do you give up if you tell someone about Jesus or invite them to come to church with you and they aren’t interested? Don’t give up! Keep on praying for them and showing them God’s love—and keep looking for other people you could reach out to who don’t know Jesus. God wants us to help spread the good news of Jesus by planting seeds in people’s hearts, but only He can make them grow. Keep sharing His invitation with others and trust Him with the results.

Today's Key Verse: Let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart. Galatians 6:9 (NKJV)

Today's Key Thought: Keep on sharing Jesus

Read: Genesis 1:1; John 1:1-3

“Grandpa’s going to like that birdhouse you’re making for him, Tomás,” said Dad. “It looks great—but I see it’s not quite like the one pictured in your woodworking manual.”

“No,” replied Tomás. “I left the perch off and made the hole smaller. This way, starlings won’t move in before the songbirds get a chance.”

“Good thinking!” said Dad. “That reminds me of the model plane you made that flew twice as far after you changed the design of the wings.”

Tomás grinned. “I like to make things work better. Maybe I’ll be an engineer when I grow up.”

“I thought you didn’t like long trips,” said Tomás’s little sister, Liliana. “Wouldn’t you get tired of riding on a train all the time?”

Tomás laughed. “I don’t mean the kind of engineer who drives trains. I mean the kind of engineer who designs things, like bridges and buildings. They don’t just get thrown together. Engineers carefully figure out how to build them so they’ll be strong and safe and work the way they’re supposed to. They draw up the plans for skyscrapers and roads and all kinds of things.”

“Wow!” said Liliana. “I bet you’ll be the best engineer of all!”

Tomás grinned. “Thanks!”

“Actually, the best engineer of all made more than buildings and machines,” said Dad. “He designed the whole universe—the forests and the deserts. The canyons and the mountains. All the plants and animals. The sun and the moon and the stars. Even us!”

“I know who that is,” said Liliana. “God!”

“Right,” said Dad. “God made everything. He knew how much we’d like to watch the birds and animals, and how much we’d love climbing the mountain trails and seeing all the stars at night. He also drew up a plan to save us from sin by sending Jesus to die for us so we could be with Him and enjoy His beautiful creation forever. Aren’t you glad He created so many amazing things and carried out His wonderful plan of salvation?”

Tomás nodded. “That’s an engineering job no one could ever match!”

–Katherine E. Swarts

How about you? Are you impressed by things people make—like big buildings and new technology? God created humans with the ability to do amazing things, but only He could engineer the whole world and all that’s in it. He also drew up a plan to provide salvation—forgiveness of sins and eternal life—by sending His Son, Jesus, to die for us. By trusting in Jesus, you can have eternal life and enjoy God and all His wonderful creation forever! (To learn more, go to Have You Heard the Good News?)

Today's Key Verse: God created everything through [Jesus], and nothing was created except through him. John 1:3 (NLT)

Today's Key Thought: God engineered everything

Read: Luke 1:11-19, 26-38; John 20:24-29

Yamen set his pencil down with a sigh. “I can’t concentrate on schoolwork, Mom. All these doubts keep filling my mind.”

Mom plopped down next to Yamen. “Like what?”

“Like…stuff they taught us in science class when I was going to school last year. They made it sound like we’re just here by chance instead of being created by God. I’ve trusted Jesus as my Savior, and I believe the Bible is true, but sometimes other people sound so sure about what they believe that I doubt.”

“We all have times when we doubt,” said Mom. “It’s what we do when we have doubts that matters.”

“What do you mean?” asked Yamen.

“Remember the story of Thomas in the Bible? After Jesus rose from the grave, He appeared to some of the disciples, but Thomas wasn’t there. When they told him they had seen the Lord, he said he wouldn’t believe until he put his fingers on Jesus’s scars.”

“Then Jesus appeared to Thomas and he believed,” said Yamen. “If He appeared to me, it would make believing a whole lot easier.”

“But don’t forget what Jesus told Thomas,” said Mom. “He said those who have not seen Him and still believe are blessed.”

“Oh yeah, I remember! And there are other stories in the Bible of people doubting—like when an angel told that old dude he would be the father of John the Baptist, but he didn’t believe so the angel said he would be mute until the baby was born.”

“Yes, that was Zechariah,” said Mom. “And when the same angel told Mary she was going to give birth to the Son of God, she didn’t understand how it would happen. But unlike Zechariah, she accepted what the angel said. Like Mary, we can still believe and trust God even when our questions are left unanswered.”

“So you’re saying there will be things we don’t understand but we can trust that God is with us and for us because He sent His Son to die for us and raised Him from the dead?”

Mom laughed. “You’re one smart kid! How about you be the teacher for the day?”

–Savannah Coleman

How about you? Do you ever have doubts about God or His Word? It is human to have questions and doubts, and God understands that. When Thomas doubted, Jesus appeared to him and showed him His scars, and He wants to help you see who He is too. Pray and ask for wisdom in understanding the truth of the Bible, and talk to a trusted adult about your questions. Even if you don’t get the answers you’re looking for, you can trust Jesus to be with you in times of doubt because He died for you.

Today's Key Verse: Then Jesus told him, “Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.” John 20:29 (NIV)

Today's Key Thought: Bring your doubts to God