Unlocked: Daily Devotions for Teens

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…

“Put on” is a phrase we use every day. Because on a daily basis, we do the physical act of putting on clothes and shoes in order to be clothed. Just as we get clothed physically, we also need to get…

“Wouldn’t these magnets make great souvenirs from my trip?” I thought, browsing the little shop high above the ground. My summer of serving with inner city ministries in New York was drawing to a clo…

There was a point in my life when I was so ashamed that I didn’t want to associate or talk with people. I had messed up so badly that I didn’t see myself as fit to be with others. I was so down that …

I confess the things I did. And the things I didn’t do but should have done. I confess letting anger explode And bitterness smolder inside. I confess that I strayed off the path of following you. I m…

God doesn’t despise our brokenness. He doesn’t look down on us when we are hurting. He doesn’t think less of us because we are broken. God loves the broken. He offers healing to the hurting. God is a…

Not five days had passed since we began our journey, and already we had seen trouble. My brother and I dragged our tired bodies down the road, our dented swords hanging limply in their scabbards and …

You have done it all, God You created the sky, the earth You saved me when I was still a sinner You have written my name in heaven You have done it all, God You created goats and pigs You made grass …

Psalm 23:1 says, “The Lord is my shepherd.” Did you know you can read this verse many times, and it can reflect something a bit different each time? This happens if you emphasize a different word ea…

In the book of Esther, a Jew becomes queen of a gentile (or non-Jewish) nation that stretches from India to Cush (the upper Nile region). This kingdom is headed by King Xerxes. But Esther is not his …

Years back, I shared a house with a friend. This friend had a niece who also lived with us. For some reason, this girl harbored a dislike for me. Whenever something went wrong in the house, she was q…

We live in a culture that’s full of division—division that leads to differences in ideas, differences in politics, and even to war. We hear terms like cultural warfare, cancel culture, and cultural b…

“Jax!” Celine pointed eagerly to her microscope. “Come look at this.” Jax put down the test tube he was holding and walked over to her. Thanks to the artificial gravity in the station, he could mov…

As Celine peered through the window of her submersible, she could see the edge of Saturn’s rings looming through the gap in the ice above her. “I’m approaching the fissure, Jax,” she said into her h…

A big bowl of stew is a comforting food when you’re hungry on a cold day. It’s a great meal to share…unless you put poisonous ingredients in it! If you like strange stories, today’s reading is one of…

It’s okay to not be okay. It’s okay to admit that you don’t have the answers. It’s okay to struggle. Just know that God has your back. If you’ve put your trust in Jesus, nothing can separate you from…

Have you ever been on the brink of a major transition? New schools, new jobs, new homes, new friends—these changes can be good, but they can also be painful. People might ask you how you’re feeling, …

Have you ever felt like an outsider because of your faith? Maybe people judge you, or even avoid you, because you are a Christian. Sometimes, it feels like having faith is a burden—especially when yo…