Unlocked: Daily Devotions for Teens

READ: DEUTERONOMY 4:9; PSALM 78:1-16

I was in middle school when I first took an interest in the Civil War, particularly the role that my third great grandfather, Michael Sallander, played in it. He was only a teen and a recent immigrant when war broke out, yet he still enlisted in his home state of Wisconsin, lying about his age to do so. All four of his brothers enlisted as well. One died—the younger brother who enlisted with him and fought beside him. Two or three of the Sallander brothers were prisoners of war, including my grandfather, and another one was so debilitated by disease that he never returned to the farm.

Despite the horrors of war and its long-lasting impact on his family, Michael served alongside a number of Methodist ministers who profoundly impacted his life—to such an extent that he was ever after described as a happy man of faith in my great-grandmother’s stories.

Every Memorial Day, a holiday initially created to remember Civil War veterans, I think of Michael and thank God for his life, his faith, and his sacrifice. There is a blessing in remembering the faithful who have gone before us, and I believe we have a responsibility to remember the ways our ancestors and spiritual role models lived and died in faith. After all, God can use their examples to inspire us and the generations after us—to reassure us of prayers that did not die with the faithful, but continue to surround us now (Hebrews 11:13-16; 11:39–12:3; Revelation 5:8).

This Memorial Day, consider taking a moment to remember the people strong in the faith who came before you. You might ask Christian family members or church members in your life for stories about their faith, about the ways they have seen God move in their lives, and about the people who inspired them to know God better. Perhaps Memorial Day can become a holiday of grateful remembrance for us all. • Abigail Aswegen

• Jesus loves us, and His death and resurrection made the way for us to be united with Him and other believers through the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 12:13). If we’ve put our trust in Jesus, we have become part of His family, the church—which includes all believers around the world and throughout history. Our faith has been passed down from generation to generation for thousands of years. How can it be helpful to hear the stories of those who walked with Jesus before us? What stories of His faithfulness in your life do you want to pass on to the next generation?

“Remember the former things, those of long ago; I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like me.” Isaiah 46:9 (NIV)

READ: GENESIS 11:1-9; ACTS 2

Diversity in language is an important part of God’s creation! In fact, language is one of the many ways God shows how creative He is—and how He is redeeming all that He has made.

The creation of different languages happened at Babel. The people were guilty of being prideful and wanting to make a lasting name for themselves because of their own work. Their sin was deserving of judgment, and it was keeping them from fulfilling God’s very first calling to humanity: “Be fruitful and multiply. Fill the earth and govern it” (Genesis 1:28). God could have struck down the people of Babel, but instead He showed them mercy and scattered them, suddenly causing them to speak different languages from each other. This separation interrupted their wickedness and allowed them to explore and live in different parts of God’s creation instead of simply remaining in one place.

Fast forward to Pentecost, when God gives us a glimpse of the new creation. After Jesus died for our sins on the cross, rose from the grave, and ascended into heaven, the day of Pentecost came. The Holy Spirit was poured out, and each listener was able to hear the Apostle Peter preach in their own language. Because of this miraculous event, many people heard the gospel (or good news) and put their trust in Jesus. So, at Pentecost, God used the power of language to unite His people. Instead of the judgment, confusion, and division of Babel, God used the diversity of language to bring unity around salvation in Jesus.

In other words, our salvation in Jesus Christ and our belief in Him is what unites us. In God’s kingdom, people from all different lands, cultures, and languages will unite in praise to Him. The stories of Babel and Pentecost demonstrate how God takes all things and works them for good and for His renewed kingdom (Romans 8:28-30). • Naomi Zylstra

• Have you ever experienced a communication barrier due to language? What was that like? Have you ever imagined what it will be like when Jesus returns, and all God’s people will be able to understand each other effortlessly?

• God delights in the great variety of languages and cultures in His creation—it’s a beautiful thing! What are some practical ways we can honor and enjoy our differences, especially within the body of Christ? (1 Corinthians 12:12-27)

After this I saw a vast crowd, too great to count, from every nation and tribe and people and language, standing in front of the throne and before the Lamb...shouting with a great roar, “Salvation comes from our God who sits on the throne and from the Lamb!” Revelation 7:9-10 (NLT)

READ: LUKE 8:22-56

Who doesn’t love a good superhero movie? It’s fun to imagine someone “somewhere out there” who’s not bound by the laws of nature like we are—someone who comes to the rescue when weak earthlings find themselves in trouble they can’t escape. While many of us daydream of being a superhero, I think many of us also have a craving to be rescued by a superhero.

And those dreams of a rescuer are not that far off. If you’re familiar with the true stories found in the Bible, you know that unpredictable, unexplainable, unimaginable rescue stories appear quite frequently in both the Old and New Testaments. Think about it: a boy defeating a giant with one stone, a man kept alive in a pit of hungry lions, a raging storm stilled in an instant, thousands upon thousands of people crossing the Red Sea on dry ground, a man healed from lifelong blindness, a twelve-year-old girl brought back from the dead…and the God of the universe becoming human to defeat the devil in the most unexpected way—by dying and rising again. The angel Gabriel was right: “nothing will be impossible with God” (Luke 1:37).

The beautiful thing is that the God who performed all these wonders is the same God who loves us today. He is always doing wonderful things, we just have to open our eyes to see. A friend once told me, “God does His best work in the impossible.” In fact, the cross is how we know that nothing is impossible for God. On the cross, Jesus accomplished the impossible—and He did it for you.

What impossible things are you facing in your life? Give them to the Lord. Be like Jairus, a man who came to Jesus in his darkest hour. Jesus told Jairus, “Don’t be afraid. Only believe…” (Luke 8:50). Then Jesus raised his daughter from the dead. In the same way, we can go to Jesus with any need, trusting Him to work in every situation for our good and to right every wrong in His perfect timing. Life in God’s kingdom is better than any story Hollywood can create—because we can always count on the God who calls Himself our Rescuer. • Emily Rudolph

• Why do you think there are so many movies about superheroes? Which is your favorite?

• Read Ephesians 3:14-21. What does this passage reveal about God’s power?

• What impossible but wonderful things does God promise His people, either now or when Jesus returns? (If you want to dig deeper, read Matthew 28:20; John 5:17; 14:15-31; Romans 8:18-39; Philippians 4:11-13; 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18; 2 Peter 3:8-13; 1 John 5:11-15; Revelation 21:1-5)

“For nothing will be impossible with God.” Luke 1:37 (CSB)

READ: 1 SAMUEL 1:1-10; 2:1, 21

Recently, I had the opportunity to share with some friends about a woman from the Bible. As I started reading about Hannah in preparation to share her story, a few things stuck out to me. Hannah was seeking the Lord consistently as she prayed for a child. First Samuel 1:10 describes this prayer as marked by deep anguish and bitter crying. This was very relatable for me.

Even now, I have something deeply personal that I am asking of the Lord in prayer. Often, my prayers are covered in tears. Sometimes I find myself thinking, When will the Lord answer? I wonder if Hannah thought that too. You see, Scripture says that Hannah’s prayers for a child went on year after year. She kept seeking the Lord. Yet, she was also honest about the sadness she felt during this time.

Miraculously, the Lord gave Hannah a child—Samuel! Not only that, but Hannah went on to have three more sons and two daughters (1 Samuel 2:21). I can only imagine how excited Hannah must have been! And after Samuel was born, she continued to pray, praising the Lord for His faithfulness. Hannah found her strength and joy in the Lord (1 Samuel 2:1).

Hannah’s story taught me that it’s okay to pour out our hearts to the Lord with honesty and emotion. You and I are not meant to carry what we’re going through alone. The Lord is with us, and He wants us to invite Him into every part of our lives. Especially the painful, messy parts. I think the Lord wants to create something new in you and me today—maybe a desire to seek Him, peace in His presence, trust in His character, or joy in glorifying Him. Whatever the Lord has in mind, you and I can trust in His plans, purposes, and promises, just like Hannah did. • Daevis McMurphy

• Have you ever prayed for something for a long time without seeing any hope? Sometimes we might feel like we just can’t keep praying. But Jesus is with us, and He feels our sorrow as His own. We don’t need to be embarrassed of our tears, because our Savior weeps with us, and He longs to comfort us in His loving arms. Because He died and rose again for us, there is always hope. (Isaiah 40:11; Matthew 26:36-46; John 11:35; Hebrews 4:14-16; Revelation 21:1-5)

• Can you think of any ways you’ve seen God’s faithfulness, or even an answer to prayer? Consider taking some time to rejoice in the Lord and praise Him today, whether it be through singing, dancing, writing praises to Him, or something else!

Then Hannah prayed: “My heart rejoices in the LORD! The LORD has made me strong...I rejoice because you rescued me.” 1 Samuel 2:1 (NLT)

READ: PSALMS 1:1-6; 3:3; ISAIAH 61:10; LUKE 15:11-32

I was probably in high school when I started continuously reading the psalms. Whenever I get to Psalm 150, I start over again. But I usually don’t look forward to Psalm 1. Maybe it’s because, when I read these verses, I’m confronted with the reality that I don’t measure up.

But when I read Psalm 1 a few days ago, I noticed I felt shame, and then I did something different. The Holy Spirit graciously prompted me to repent. To honestly tell God, I don’t measure up to this, and I’m sorry. I want to be like this— to not mock people, even if it’s just in my heart, even if it’s just because of my own insecurities. Instead, I want to meditate on Your Word day and night, and I’m sorry that I haven’t been. Do you know how I felt in that moment? Calm. It felt good. I like repentance. As it turns out, repentance is kind of the opposite of shame.

And it gets better. Verse 5 says, “Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous.” On first read, that doesn’t sound like good news. But all the sudden, I realized something: this means the righteous will stand in the judgment. And that includes me. Not just when Jesus returns to judge the living and the dead, but right here and now.

To be clear, I sin every single day, just like everyone else. But the good news is, Jesus has made me righteous. He saw all my sin, and He loved me. So much that He was determined to bring me near and make me innocent. He went to the cross, took all my sin upon Himself, suffered the agony I deserved, and just before He breathed His last, He said, “It is finished” (John 19:30).

On the cross, my sin was forgiven. Thinking about all this, I was reminded of Luke 15, when Jesus told the parable of the prodigal son. After ruining his life and wasting everything his father had given him, the son returned home, head heavy with shame. But his father was watching and waiting for him to return, and when he saw him, he ran to him, threw his arms around him and kissed him! And then the father called for a ring to be placed on his son’s finger and the best robe to be put on him. The father honored his son—not because he deserved it, not in the least! But because he loved him and rejoiced that he was home (Titus 3:5).

That’s what God does for us. Through Jesus’s death and resurrection, by faith, we are clothed in the robes of His righteousness. So we are free to confess our sins, to lay down our burdens and shame, knowing that we are already forgiven and deeply, truly loved. • Hannah Howe

• God invites us into the freedom of repentance. Consider taking some time to confess any sin that comes to mind.

Those who look to him are radiant; their faces are never covered with shame. Psalm 34:5 (NIV)