Unlocked: Daily Devotions for Teens

I am adopted. From what I hear from my parents, adopting me was not an easy
task! Lots of paperwork, government background checks, and other
miscellaneous thingsit took them many months before they c…

Sometimes, I don’t know how to pray for people. And that’s a bummer,
because Jesus calls us to pray for othersfor our friends, our leaders, and
even our enemies (Matthew 5:44; Luke 6:28; 1 Timothy 2:…

In our day-to-day lives, we meet different people who affect us in
different ways. Some say and do things that break our hearts and cause us
tears. Some of the people who hurt our feelings are those …

When I talk about my mom, it’s easy to become emotional. After losing my
mom in 2020, I wondered at the ways she mirrored God’s grace. In moments
when I stood guilty, I knew I was still loved by Mom.

We can serve God in many different waysin our families, at church, at
school, and beyond. But sometimes, we can get discouraged when we feel like
our service is not appreciated. We might feel like th…

By day, the town of Goshen was like any other. People went to work,
children went to school, and families gathered to share a meal at
suppertime. But after dark, everything changed. Doors were locked…

How quickly the grass changes. From green to brown to covered in white snow
How quickly the trees shift First orange, then bare and gray How quickly
the air cools From warm and balmy to cold and cris…

We all have times in our lives when we mess up and things are not right. We
all have times when we feel guilty and dirty. We want to make things
better, but we aren’t sure what steps we need to take.…

The science of astronomy studies the heavensplanets, moons, stars, and
more. In 1571 a boy was born in Württemberg, Germany who became one of the
most famous and influential scientists and astronome…

In and out,
I remind myself
There’s no air in this room
My lungs collapsing
Pathogens attacking
Brain on fire

Keep it in,
I remind myself
This will have to end
But, great tears rolling
Body trembling
…

In reading the narrative of David and Goliath, I noticed a small detail,
and it got me thinking. The first seven verses of 1 Samuel 17 detail
Goliath’s very impressive appearance. Verse 5 mentions hi…

I’m fourteen, and something I need to be constantly reminded of is that I
don’t need to rush life. I always want my wayI want what’s next. I want to
drive a car, have a boyfriend, be married, and hav…

We live by a lake in the northwEsther If we awoke from a twenty-year-long
nap, like in the story of Rip Van Winkle, and we didn’t know what month it
was, we could guess by looking at the lake. Diffe…

In most crime shows there is at least one episode involving something
counterfeit: currency, artwork, even identities. While many of these shows
depict the criminals using state-of-the-art technology…

Are you a morning person? I am an early bird, and I love to start most days
with a brisk walk. I greet the people I meet with a Good morning! Not
everyone answers, and some look downright grumpy. I u…

When I was in fifth grade, I made a unique request of my mom. For my
birthday, I wanted a homemade cake with homemade icing. Specifically, I
asked for frosting made of peanut butter and jelly. Once i…

Humans are flawed, but God is not. Humans mess up, hurt us, or abandon us,
but God never will. Humans pretend to love, run out of love, and turn love
into hate, but God isn’t like that. You are preci…

Years back, my nephew told what he had experienced. His mother, who at the
time was not a Christian (she has since been saved), was trying to take him
and his sister to a witchcraft-worker supposedly…

Thick and impenetrable silence hung over the village. For as long as the
villagers could remember, no one had spoken a word, not even a whisper. A
command from an enemy kingdom forbade anyone in the …

One of the first missionaries, Paul, left Titus on the island of Crete to
oversee the new churches there and appoint elders in every town. Titus may
have been young, or at least younger than Paul sin…