ODB Teens Introductory Edition

Teen Edition

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can do

s g n i h t l l A who

s n e h t g n e r St me P h i l i p p i a n s 4 : 13

Introduction How are you at reading the Bible? Is it easy, hard or have you never really thought about it? Right now you are holding a copy of the Our Daily Bread Teen Edition Annual, Vol.2. We’ve written this for you—wherever you are at. You may know Jesus and enjoy reading the Bible. You may not. Whoever you are, we want to help you read the Bible for yourself and find out more about who exactly Jesus is.

There’s an article for each day of the year, and if you miss one, don’t worry, no one’s counting! We hope that through this booklet you will get to know how much Jesus loves you and wants a relationship with you. If you’ve never spent time with Jesus before, then check out the What about prayer? pages— they’ll help you start talking with Him and sharing the stuff that’s going on in your life with Him. Come and explore the Bible’s message with us—and find out all about the God who invites You to be an important part of His family!

If you need to contact us about this booklet, or if you just want to find out a bit more about us, all our contact details are at the back of this annual!

THE OUR DAILY BREAD TEAM

DAY 21 READ REVELATION 21:1-7 He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain (v.4).

Unseen Tears

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hile I am writing this, more than 11 million Syrians have fled their homes since the start of the civil war in 2011. Inside the country 13.5 million people need urgent aid. The whole country seems to be taken over by war.

We’re surrounded by terrible stories like this, full of pain and sadness. It’s not hard to feel like this world is just in a complete mess.

Maybe you feel like that just within your own life—your mess fills your eyes with frustrated and tired tears that nobody will ever see.

But Jesus sees all our tears and offers real comfort All of when we hit rock bottom (2 COR. 1:3-5). He also promises a future time where sin won’t exist anymore—so neither our tears will pain or sadness. In that day and in that place, “He will matter to wipe every tear from [our] eyes. There will be no more God. death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away” (REV. 21:4).

The God who promises freedom from tears in the future is the only One who can fully comfort us in our tears now.

BC

What I’m thankful for . . .

Loving Father, thank You that our hurts and pains matter to You. Thank You for the promise of a future without tears and a life with You forever. Amen.

DAY 60 READ EPHESIANS 4:15,26–32 In your anger do not sin: do not let the sun go down while you are still angry (v.26).

Anger Management

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hen I was chatting with a friend, she told me she was fed up with someone in her family. But she didn’t want to say anything to him about the way he always made fun of her. When she did try to talk to him, he was just sarcastic. So she exploded in anger at him. They both just got mad at each other and the problems only ended up getting worse.

I understand her situation. I handle anger the same way. I also find it hard to talk to people when they upset me. If a Put out the friend says something mean, I usually hide how I feel. When other people say unkind things, I just fire of anger bury all those comments and keep my head down. before it But after a while, I can’t help exploding.

Maybe that’s why Paul said in Ephesians 4:26: blazes out “Do not let the sun go down while you are still of control. angry”. Putting a time limit on our issues keeps anger in check. Instead of silently becoming bitter when someone hurts us, we can ask God to help us “[speak] the truth in love” (EPH. 4:15).

Got a problem with someone? Rather than hold it in, hold it up to God first. He will help us in our anger so that we can show love and forgiveness to the people who hurt us.

LW

To pray about . . .

Father, please guard us from uncontrolled anger. May the words that we speak please You and show love to others.

DAY 101 READ PHILIPPIANS 2:1-5 In humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others (vv.3-4).

Real Concern

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n the first night of camp, the camp leader told everyone the plan for the week. When he finished, he asked if anyone else had anything to say. A girl stood up and asked for help. She told us all about her little brother—a boy with special needs—and how he could be a challenge to care for. She talked about how tiring this was for her family, and she asked everyone there to help them keep an eye on him during the week. Her Nothing request for help came from her love and concern for her brother and her parents. As the week went costs as much on, it was great to see lots of people getting involved as caring— to support this family.

Her cry for help was a reminder of how easily except not we can all get wrapped up in our own world and caring. problems—so that we don’t see when others need us. Here’s what Paul said we should do: “In humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others” (PHIL. 2:3-4). The next verse reminds us that this is part of living like Jesus: “Have the same mindset as Christ Jesus” (V.5).

Caring for those in need shows Jesus’ love and concern for people who are hurting. Let’s ask God to lead us to the people who could do with our friendship today.

BC

To pray about . . .

Father, You know who’s hurting today.

Please may I have the courage to give them some of my time and attention. Please help me to say the right words.

DAY 134 READ EPHESIANS 5:15-21 Be very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity (vv.15-16).

Better Than Planned

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nterruptions are nothing new. Most days are filled with things we didn’t expect to happen.

Our plans are often changed by things outside of our control. Whether it’s a sudden fight with a friend, lots of unexpected homework, sickness or anything else, life can be so unpredictable.

We think that these interruptions are just things that get in the way and slow us down. Have you ever thought that they could actually be God’s way of protecting you from some unseen danger? Or that they might be opportunities to show God’s love and forgiveness?

God’s plans We’re told to make “the most of every opportunity” (EPH. 5:16), even the ones we’re not expecting! never get Whatever happens today, we can be sure God is interrupted. in control. We may not know why He allows certain things to happen, but we’re still challenged to make the most of the situations we find ourselves in. Let’s be “very careful” (V.15) about how we live. Rather than getting annoyed at our interruptions, we can ask God to show us what He wants us to do. And let’s remember that His plans are always better than ours!

JAL

To pray about . . .

Father, so often it’s the little things in life that get to me, and there seem to be so many of them.

When I feel like giving up, help me to focus again on You.

DAY 181 READ 1 SAMUEL 24:1-10 The wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure; then peace-loving (Jas. 3:17).

Peer Pressure

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f Kiera had done her ‘experiment’ during her school science class, it might have got her top marks. Instead, she got into a lot of trouble for it. She had meant to show her experiment to her teacher, but her friends talked her into testing it during lunch time. When she mixed the chemicals together inside the plastic bottle, the whole thing fizzed up and exploded! No one was hurt, but there was a lot of mess to explain . . .

The Old Testament tells a story about peer Even when pressure too. David and his friends were hiding from Saul (who was trying to kill them) in a cave we’re being (1 SAM. 24). Saul came into the cave to try and find pressurised, them, but he couldn’t see them. In the darkness, David’s friends tried to pressurise David into killing there’s Saul (VV.4,10). But David didn’t want to hurt him. He always time knew Saul was in the wrong, but he also knew that Saul was “the Lord ’s anointed [the person God to talk things had chosen to be king]” (V.6). over with God. Our friends will sometimes want us to do things they think are a good idea. But there’s a difference between what seems like a good idea to people and what actually pleases God (1 COR. 2:6-7). Wisdom from God “is first of all pure, then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy” (JAS. 3:17). If we’re being pressurised to do anything that doesn’t match this list, then it’s probably not a good idea.

When others are pushing us to do something we think might be wrong, we should make time to ask God to help us decide what to do.

JBS

Thinking it over . . .

How have you been pushed into doing things in the past?

Do you find it easy or difficult to say “No” to your friends?

What’s the difference between pleasing people and pleasing God? (GAL. 1:10).

DAY 190 READ PROVERBS 16:19-24 Clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience

Choose Your Words

(Col. 3:12).

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cott had always wanted the kind of friendships James seemed to enjoy. So he asked him one day what made his friendships work. James replied, “You need to be kind, even when you don’t want to be!”

A friend of mine signs off many of her emails and online posts with these words: “Remember to be good to each other.”

We must choose Both those people offer great advice! The daily stresses of life can easily make us annoyed our words with our parents or friends. We pick at the little carefully—we things that irritate us or criticise small habits that bug us. We fire out unkind words without thinking. don’t know The book of Proverbs gives us advice about what damage the words we use with others. It says, “Those who guard their mouths and their tongues keep an unkind word themselves from calamity” (21:23). And there are might cause! these warnings: “The tongue has the power of life and death” (18:21); and “The words of the reckless pierce like swords, but the tongue of the wise brings healing” (12:18). James’ advice about being kind reminds me of Proverbs 16:24, “Gracious words are a honeycomb, sweet to the soul and healing to the bones.”

Father, help us to use words that will show kindness and encouragement to others today.

AC

Notes

DAY 233 READ PHILIPPIANS 4:4–9 If anything is excellent or praiseworthy— think about such things (v.8).

Worth The Calories?

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love egg roti prata, a popular pancake in Singapore, my home country. So I was shocked to read that I need to run for 30 minutes to burn 240 calories. That’s only one egg roti prata!

Ever since I started working out in the gym, those numbers have taken on a new meaning for me. I often ask myself: Is this food worth the calories?

While it’s good to watch what we eat, it’s even If the things more important to look at how much time we spend we do take on social media or watching TV. Research shows that us away from what we see can stay in our minds for a long time and change the way we act towards others. It has a God, they’re ‘clingy effect’, sticking to us like stubborn fat that not worth can be so hard to lose.

With so many screens in front of us all day, our time. every day, we need to make sure we’re careful about what we’re watching. That doesn’t mean we should only visit Christian websites or watch Christian films; but it does mean we should always be ready to ask ourselves: Is this worth my time?

In Philippians 4:8, Paul tells us to feed our eyes and minds on “whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable”.

PFC

Thinking it over . . .

Are you watching things that make your life better?

Or are they drawing you away from the things that really matter?

Ask God to help you make good choices about what you spend your time doing.

3 Signs of My Smartphone Addiction

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omophobia (no-mobile-phobia): The fear of being out of mobile phone contact.

That’s me. I love watching YouTube videos and social media feeds on my mobile. I can spend whole nights on my phone. And any free time I have—you guessed it; I’m glued to the screen of my smartphone.

I use my phone all the time, so much so that my nomophobia has even given me mini anxiety attacks and bruised toes . . . I got anxious when my phone was on silent mode and I couldn’t find it. I bruised my toes when my foot accidentally kicked something while I was making a mad dash to the charger to plug my ‘dying’ phone in.

But it’s not just these physical signs that show my phone addiction.

Three more signs have showed up in my life as well:

1. I started comparing This might sound like you if you use social media a lot. When looking through our social media feeds and coming across the latest and most exciting things happening in our friends’ lives, a thought like this might cross our minds: “Wow, she has so many pairs of nice shoes. If only I were richer, I’m sure I can carry it off better than her.” Really, these thoughts show we’re not entirely happy in ourselves. And it might even make us spend money we don’t really have so we can buy those things we want and show them off on our own social media pages. Sometimes, this is the only way we get to feel good about ourselves.

But comparing ourselves to others only leads us to jealousy and envy. Our comparisons might also just get us annoyed as we throw ourselves pity parties. Proverbs 14:30 says: “A heart at peace gives life to the body, but envy rots the bones.” It’s time to stop comparing and remember that our worth is not defined by what we wear or what we have (or don’t have). We are of value in God’s eyes just the way we are.

2. I wasted time Time is valuable, we all know that. But let’s be honest—we all spend a lot of time on our phones. Every thirty seconds we refresh all our social media feeds to see if there is anything new. Often, I just want to look at websites on my phone instead of spending time with God.

Truth be told, I enjoy chasing the latest news about people I’ve never met in my life and watching videos that give me nothing back—and I know I’m not alone.

But the Bible reminds us to “be very careful” about how we live, “making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil” (EPH. 5:15-16). Let’s spend our limited time in something that gives us more value. After hearing this famous quote, “Only one life, ‘twill soon be past; only what’s done for Christ will last”, it struck me that I don’t know when my life will end. And if my life belongs to Jesus, am I really living it for Him each day? I have since decided that one thing I will do, instead of always browsing my phone, is to set aside time to pray for my friends.

3. I distanced myself from community There are a few YouTubers I follow all the time, to the point that I feel as though I know them personally. I am happy when they are happy, like when they post updates that they are getting married to the love of their lives. The opposite is also true as well—I feel down when they’re sad.

It’s easy to get sucked in like this. We stop hanging out with people face to face because we believe the online world is enough. We can lose interest in meeting up with our friends because it’s easier and quicker to see them online. And, after all, I don’t have to deal with any human conflicts if I don’t come into contact with them, right?

However, I’ve seen in myself, as well as in others, that when we get too attached to our phones, we start struggling to know how to talk to people face to face. We get tongue-tied and don’t know how to carry on a proper conversation. Our attention span is short and we forget how to really listen to our friends and offer our support for their questions and problems.

A friend once complained to me that she had difficulty leading a church youth group because the group were too busy checking their phones and didn’t hear her instructions. When it was time to break into smaller groups for discussion, they didn’t talk to each other because they hadn’t listened to anything she’d said. They were glued to their phones and not paying attention.

Life is meant to be lived, not watched. So let’s start living our own lives rather than watching others live theirs.

DAY 295 READ JOHN 3:16–21 Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that their deeds will be exposed (v.20).

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Invisibility

great thinker in Ancient Greece once tried to show how selfish people can be. He told the story of a man who accidentally discovered a golden ring. One day a great earthquake opened up a mountainside and revealed the ring to the man. When wearing it, he also discovered that the ring made him God sees us invisible. The speaker finished the story by asking his listeners what they would do if they were the man in as we really the story. How would they have used this invisibility? are—and His point was simple: if we didn’t have to worry loves us! about being caught, we’d simply live however we wanted. We’d take what we fancy and go where we want.

In John’s retelling of Jesus’ life we find Jesus saying something similar.

Jesus talked about people who try to stay under the radar to hide what they’re doing (JOHN 3:19–20). When we know we’re doing something wrong or selfish, rather than stopping, we just try to keep it a secret.

Jesus didn’t talk about how we try to ‘cover-up’ our selfishness to shame us, but to offer us a better way (V.17). He shines a light on who we really are; but rather than judge us, He offers forgiveness and God’s love (V.16). We don’t have to be afraid of opening ourselves up to Him—He already knows all about us. And He has already made His decision: to die on the cross in our place and pay for the stuff we’ve done wrong. We can come to the light, not to show how bad we are, but how forgiving He is!

MD

Notes

Our Daily Bread Ministries No: 67/4, New No: 36, Spur Tank Rd, Chetpet Chennai 600 031, Tamil Nadu, India P. [91] 44 2836 3435 | M. [91] 95000 37162 [91] 99626 03519 | WhatsApp: 950003 7162 Email: india@odb.org Website: www.OurDailyBread.org Online Store: www.DHDIndia.in Follow us on facebook at facebook.com/ourdailybreadindia To read our devotions online, visit odb.org or tamil-odb.org or hindi-odb.org To download our free mobile app, visit www.ourdailybread.org/mobileapp