TEEN CHALLENGE

          My name is Peter, and I want to tell you a story about my wonderful Savior. I say “my”, but He might be your Savior too…which would make Him “ours”. Oh, if He is not your Savior he can be, he should be, he wants to be! Oh, He does! He does want to be, I know he does, for I heard Him say so! He said he came to save the world, the whole world- and he wants you to be His!  This story begins one day when Jesus had just performed an amazing miracle! He had fed 5,000 people with just 5 little loaves of bread and 2 small fish. But that’s a story for another time. Well, I was beginning to feel a little overwhelmed with all those people around. And apparently Jesus felt the same way, because he went up into the mountain on his own. He would not let us come. Us being myself and the other disciples of Jesus.  Since we could not go with Jesus, we decided to go out on our fishing boat. We spoke little as we prepared the boat for launch, each of us l...

            "Do what others won't today, so that you can do what others can't tomorrow." -unknown         This quote really doesn't need to be explained. It says what it means very clearly. If you are learning how to play an instrument today , and your friend refuses to learn an instrument,  tomorrow you will be able to serve the Lord with your instrument, and friend won't be able to. If your friend spends today learning a skill that will help him work his way through college, and you don't, tomorrow your friend will have paid off his college bill, and you won't have.       Consider seriously what you want to be able to do in the future, and begin preparing for it now.               "Today's preparation determines tomorrows achievements." -unknown         

      Theodore Roosevelt once said, "Walk softly and carry a big stick". I like sticks. I know that sounds a little odd, but what I mean is that ever since I was little, I have carried a stick. Whenever I went outside to walk my dog, have a campfire or just to mess around, I always carried a stick. Don't ask me where or why I picked up this habit, because I don't know.      A few weeks ago, my father, my brother, and I began reading The Teenage Years of Jesus Christ  by Jerry Ross together. In his book, Mr. Ross said that he decided to begin carrying around a different Bible verse on a 3 by 5 card every day. He said that it helped him have victory in his thought life.      After we read this, my brother decided he would try it. He impressed me with his initiative, and because he didn't just give it up after a couple of days. He kept doing it. After watching him for about a week, I thought I'd try it. I started recording my vers...

Our October devotional comes from Dr. Mark Hamby, president of Lamplighter Ministries, Mt. Morris N.Y. To see Lamplighters website click  here .     Psalm 84: Springs of Water in Desert Places      Reflective Reading: Psalm 84    This morning I was studying in Psalm 84. The life-changing truths within it refreshed me, and I am          excited to share what I found. Let’s start with Psalm 84:5-7. Blessed is the man whose strength is in thee; whose heart follows the raised path. As they pass through the valley of Baca they make it a spring; the early rain also fills it with pools. They go from strength to strength, every one appears before God in Zion. The phrase “the Valley of Baca” could also be translated “the Valley of Tears” or “the Valley of Weeping.” This is the valley that represents a time of mourning, a time of weeping, and a time of dry, barren, desert places. It is during these times that God is partic...