Unlocked is a daily teen devotional, centered on God’s Word. Each day’s devotion—whether fiction, poetry, or essay—asks the question: How does Jesus and what He...
READ: MATTHEW 11:28-30; ROMANS 3:23-24; GALATIANS 2:11-21
Youth group camp had just finished, and as we all settled in with pillows for the long bus ride home, my friend (who I’ll call Samantha) solemnly shared a tidbit from her college-age counselor (who I’ll call Brynn): “Brynn told me she’d never written ‘I love so-and-so’ about any boy. Brynn also said she’d never worn a two-piece bathing suit.” I could see how the counselor’s words impressed Samantha, and how much she felt this was a standard Brynn had set. Samantha left camp believing she needed to follow Brynn’s example to walk God’s path for her own life.
Hearing this, I felt uneasy, as if I didn’t measure up in a way I’d only just learned about. I had doodled “I love so-and-so” about crushes on my notebooks. And I remembered wearing a bikini swimsuit as a little girl. I couldn’t shake the feeling I’d somehow blown it, although I longed to stay close to God and I wasn’t even sure I needed to confess those acts as sins. Had those choices made me less holy? Or less holy than Brynn?
Of course not! Over time, God showed me a deeper truth about holiness. When we put our trust in Jesus, we are believing He paid for our sins because He laid down His perfect, sinless life and then rose again after death. We are acknowledging we need Jesus to accomplish what we can’t do for ourselves: provide us with purity before God. Once we’ve trusted in Him, we’re set free from trying to obtain holiness by good deeds—which we couldn’t do anyway. While God’s Word guides us in establishing biblical convictions about dating, dressing, and other details, nothing we achieve—or avoid—changes our holiness. That can be found only in Jesus. • Allison Wilson Lee
• Do you feel you’ve fallen short of God’s standards? God doesn’t want us to be weighed down by guilt and shame. And He doesn’t want us to strive for holiness out of pride or fear. Instead, He calls us to rest in the holiness of Jesus and learn from Him (Matthew 11:28-30; Hebrews 10:14). Through His Spirit, His Word, and His people, God helps us discern right and wrong so we can confess and turn away from sin in our lives, and so we can be free from rules and obligations that aren’t from Him (Matthew 5:27-28; Colossians 2:8-23; 1 John 1:9). Consider taking some time to talk to Jesus. You can bring Him your questions and frustrations and hurts, confess any sins that come to mind, and ask Him to remind you that He loves you, has forgiven you, and is always with you.
Yet now he has reconciled you to himself through the death of Christ in his physical body. As a result, he has brought you into his own presence, and you are holy and blameless as you stand before him without a single fault. Colossians 1:22 (NLT)
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5:08
Resisting Temptation
READ: MATTHEW 4:1-11; 1 CORINTHIANS 10:13; HEBREWS 4:14-16
It’s happened again. You promised yourself you wouldn’t sin in that way, but you have. For weeks you’ve been struggling with combating this temptation, but you keep falling for it. At times like these, it’s easy to think that God is furious with us. After all, He’s a just and holy God. Isn’t He sick and tired of this?
While it’s true God is a holy God, He’s not unaware of our struggle. When Jesus was on this earth, He was tempted to sin too. Jesus is fully God and fully human, and He’s well acquainted with the pressure the devil puts on us. At one point, the enemy told Jesus to turn stones into bread after He hadn’t eaten for forty days. A piece of bread must’ve sounded like a gourmet feast! While Jesus didn’t fall for the lies, He still needed to resist the temptation.
Temptation is hard to deal with. Nobody would deny it, not even God. But Hebrews 4:16 says we can approach God’s throne and find grace and mercy to help us. On our own, it’s impossible to resist the devil’s bait, but God will help us conquer the lure of whatever sin we’re trying to fight.
Because Jesus came to earth to die for our sins and rise up from the grave, He’s not just sympathetic toward us—He’s empathetic (Hebrews 4:15). Being empathetic means being able to identify with or understand another’s situation or feelings. So, as we’re struggling with temptation, we don’t need to worry about God being stand-offish and without pity. Instead, He’s always empathetic, and He’s ready to help us whenever we call on Him. • Morgan A. Mitchell
• Have you ever viewed God as being uncaring when you were struggling with sin? A lot of us assume this is how God feels about us when we’re tempted or when we’re sinning, but He is always filled with compassion for us. He loves us so much that Jesus died for us so we could be forgiven for all our sins— past, present, and future. How could remembering that Jesus empathizes with us, and He wants to help us, change the way we struggle with sin?
• Do you think God will help you with the sins you struggle with? He absolutely will! Consider taking some time to be totally honest with Him and ask for His mercy, grace, and help.
For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin. Hebrews 4:15 (NIV)
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4:23
Time to Laugh
READ: PSALM 16:11; PHILIPPIANS 4:4; 1 THESSALONIANS 5:16-18
April Fools’ Day is biblical. Many would stare at me or raise an eyebrow if I said that, but it’s true. April Fools’ Day is a day when practical (not harmful) jokes are encouraged, and people spring them on each other left and right. While pranks can go too far, if done in the right spirit a good joke can cause a lot of laughter and fun.
How is all of this biblical? While April Fools’ Day isn’t in the Bible, Proverbs 17:22 tells us that “a cheerful heart is good medicine.” God doesn’t want us to walk around solemn and dull all the time. He wants us to enjoy life, have fun, and take time to laugh. When Jesus was on earth He attended weddings (John 2:1-12), went to parties (Mark 2:13-17), and celebrated holidays (Luke 2:41; John 5:1). He spent time with friends and family, including children and babies. He didn’t just teach and preach; He also had fun.
And remember, Jesus didn’t become human and live on earth—and ultimately pay for our sins by dying on the cross and rising from the grave— just to send us to live in a humdrum place for eternity. While we don’t know what the new heavens and new earth will be like exactly, we do know that we will enjoy feasting and singing with Jesus and with all those who have gone before us who were saved. Psalm 16:11 says God will fill us with “joy” and “eternal pleasures” in His presence!
So don’t be afraid to have fun and enjoy yourself. Maybe this April Fools’ Day you’ll pull a prank and get everyone laughing. It’s okay to do so—as long as the recipient ends up having fun too! After all, everyone knows Jesus played an April Fools’ joke on Peter in Matthew 29:1-3. Just kidding—April fool! • Morgan A. Mitchell
• Have you ever played a fun practical joke on someone, or had one played on you? What happened?
• Have you ever seen a prank that didn’t make the recipient laugh or maybe even hurt someone? Remember, if a joke is only fun for one person, it’s not a good joke. If you’re considering playing a prank, slow down and think things through. God calls us to love others the way He loves us by considering their needs, interests, and feelings. And God helps us do this through His Holy Spirit, His Word (the Bible), and His people (the church). Who are trusted Christians you can talk to if you’ve experienced a hurtful prank, or if you’re not sure if a joke is a good one?
A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones. Proverbs 17:22 (NIV)
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5:13
Unlocked Special: April Fools with Producer Josh!
This is a special episode of Unlocked featuring not only Dylan and Natalie together (sort of ) but hosted by Josh, who produces each podcast episode!
Since Josh began editing the podcast, he has ever-so-kindly taken the initiative to save a large variety of verbal missteps, mess-ups, repeats, and mistakes from Natalie and Dylan, and beautifully arranged them into a lovely bloopers episode made especially for today
It’s unfiltered. It’s unpredictable. It’s Unlocked…and yeah, it’s kind of a mess. But it’s their mess. And we love them for it.
Hit play if you dare. ️
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5:27
Gifted
READ: ROMANS 12:6-8; 1 CORINTHIANS 12:1-12; 1 TIMOTHY 4:12-14
Have you ever had a teacher, mentor, or parent speak into your life in a way that you will always remember? When I was a junior in high school, I was struggling with anxiety following an event that happened at school. It was a dark time in my life. I was feeling lonely, scared, and overwhelmed. Worst of all, I was feeling distant from God.
A few weeks after this event, my Spanish teacher took me aside after class one day. She told me she had noticed me struggling these past few weeks. And she felt like God had put it on her heart to share something with me. She believed that the Holy Spirit had gifted me in the area of listening. And that I would continue to use this to serve others and bring joy to God.
Before this moment, I had never thought that listening could be a gift from God. But then I realized that even in the midst of trials, I could use my God-given gifts to draw closer to Him. The way that I listened to other people’s stories became a way to honor God. Listening with empathy and humility could be a gift to my neighbors to reflect God’s love to them.
God has given each of us unique gifts, and it is a great source of joy to be able to use those gifts to honor Him. Some of us have been given gifts such as wisdom, service, and generosity. These gifts, as well as many others, can be used to live out our calling to share God’s love by being Christlike in our thoughts, words, and deeds. Whether you realize it or not, God has created you uniquely and beautifully in His image (Genesis 1:27). And whether you feel gifted or not, God can and will work through your life for His good purposes. • Emily McDonough
• Before Jesus came, the Spirit of God gave some people special aptitude for craftmanship or superhuman strength (Exodus 35:30–36:5; Judges 14:5-6). Then, after Jesus rose from the dead and ascended into heaven, God the Father sent God the Holy Spirit to live inside everyone who puts their trust in Jesus. Every believer is given at least one spiritual gift, and we can find lists of these gifts in Romans 12:6-8 and 1 Corinthians 12. God has also given us our own unique personalities and natural abilities, and He often works through these as well. How has God gifted you? How could you use your giftedness to show His love to others this week?
• Have you noticed any gifts from God revealed in others? How can you encourage these people and speak into what you’ve witnessed in their lives?
God has given each of you a gift from his great variety of spiritual gifts. Use them well to serve one another. 1 Peter 4:10 (NLT)
Unlocked is a daily teen devotional, centered on God’s Word. Each day’s devotion—whether fiction, poetry, or essay—asks the question: How does Jesus and what He did affect today’s topic? With daily devotions read by our hosts, Natalie and Dylan, and questions designed to encourage discussion and a deeper walk with Christ, Unlocked invites teens to both engage with the Bible and to write and submit their own devotional pieces.
Listen to Unlocked: Daily Devotions for Teens, Chandresh B. presents The Leela Show and many other podcasts from around the world with the radio.net app
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