Read: Romans 5:15-17

“Melanie says it doesn’t make sense that Christians give each other presents at Christmas,” Andrew told Mom on the way home from school. “She says we just use Jesus’s birthday as an excuse to be greedy like everybody else. Is she right? What makes us different from people who celebrate Christmas but don’t believe in Jesus?”

“Well, tell me this,” said Mom. “Who was Jesus?”

Andrew frowned. “Is this a trick question?” Mom shook her head. “Well, Jesus was God’s Son,” said Andrew. “God sent Jesus to save us from sin.”

“Absolutely right,” said Mom. “And did we pay anything to receive Jesus?”

“No,” said Andrew. “Jesus was a free gift.”

“A free what?”

“A free gif—aha! Jesus was God’s present,” said Andrew as Mom pulled into the church parking lot. “Hey, why are we at church?”

“I had an idea as we were passing by,” said Mom as she opened the car door.

Inside stood a giant tree covered with envelopes, each one labeled with a child’s first name and age. “Why don’t you pick three?” said Mom. “These are kids who could use some presents this Christmas.”

Andrew picked the envelopes of a boy named Andrew, a girl named Ruby Jane, and then—“Melanie—and she’s my age!” exclaimed Andrew.

On the way home, Andrew opened the envelopes and read the lists. “Melanie wants a new hat. When can we go shopping, Mom?”

“As soon as you answer your own question. What makes Christians different, Andrew? Now do you know why we give gifts?”

“I think so.” Andrew thought for a moment. “Christians give Christmas gifts because God gave us His gift. We give presents to remind each other of the best present—Jesus—and show others His love.”

Weeks later at school, Andrew noticed Melanie was wearing a new hat. “I like your hat, Melanie.”

“Thanks. It was a Christmas present.” Melanie smiled. “I was wrong, Andrew. I guess some Christians give presents because, well, Jesus was God’s present. At least that’s what the card that came with my hat said.”

Andrew smiled. “I want to be a Christian like that.”

–Kelly Carlson

How about you? Did you know that when you give a Christmas present, you are pointing to Jesus? When we give gifts with generous hearts, we point others to the greatest gift of all—Jesus Christ. This Christmas, tell a friend or family member why you’re giving them a present. Tell others about Jesus, God’s greatest present to the world.

Today's Key Verse: For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord. Romans 6:23 (NLT)

Today's Key Thought: Jesus is the best present

Read: Psalm 119:162-168

“What’s all that material for, Mom?” Serenity asked when she and Charis got home from school. “And what are these little frame things?”

“Your grandma needs some hot pads, so I thought maybe you and Charis could make some for her birthday,” Mom replied. “These ‘frame things’ are little hand looms. I’ll show you how to make hot pads with these strips of material.”

“Oh, I know how to do that!” said Serenity. “I learned at scout club.” And when they started making hot pads a little later, she insisted that she didn’t need any help, so Mom turned her attention to Charis.

Charis watched carefully as Mom showed her what to do. First, she fitted a neat row of red loops between two sides of the loom. Then she used a hook to start blue rows going the opposite way. Charis followed Mom’s directions, checking with her every now and then to make sure she was getting it right.

“How are you doing, Serenity?” Mom asked after a while.

Serenity sighed. “I thought I knew how to do this, but it isn’t turning out right. I’m going to take this apart and start over.” When Serenity was ready to start again, Mom showed her what she needed to do.

That night, Mom suggested they all read a Bible story together before bed.

“Oh, Mom,” Serenity said, “Can’t we read something else? I know all those stories already.”

“I’m sure you know a lot of them,” said Mom, “but it’s good to hear them over and over. God has new things to teach us every time we read His Word. The more we read it, the more we learn about who Jesus is, what He did to save us, and how to live in a way that shows we belong to Him.”

“I guess it’s like the hot pads,” Serenity said. “I learned how to make them before, but I’d forgotten a lot of the details, so I needed you to help me do it.”

“Right,” said Mom. “And when we read God’s Word, the Holy Spirit helps us understand what it says and put it into practice.” She picked up Serenity’s Bible. “Let’s read a Bible story together, and then we can read another one of your books before you turn out the lights.”

–Margaret M. Primrose

How about you? Do you think you know everything the Bible has to say? It tells us everything we need to know about who God is and what He’s done for us, and there’s always more for us to learn from it—even from verses and stories we’ve heard over and over. So keep reading it, and depend on the Holy Spirit to help you understand it and do what it says.

Today's Key Verse: I will delight myself in Your statutes; I will not forget Your word. Psalm 119:16 (NKJV)

Today's Key Thought: Read and obey God’s Word

Read: Psalms 51:7-10; 103:8-14

“Miles, look! It snowed last night!” Talia called to her brother as she looked out the window. “It’s so gorgeous—all clean and white and sparkly! I just love it, don’t you?”

“Oh, yes! It’s sooo beee-yew-tiful!” Miles clasped his hands in mock delight. “I just adore the snow. I think it’s simply marvelous, and I—” Miles’ teasing was cut short by the napkin his sister tried to stuff into his mouth.

“All right, you two,” Mom said with a smile. “Get ready for school. I don’t want you to miss your bus.”

By dinnertime, the snow had begun to melt. “I hope it snows again tonight,” said Talia as they finished eating. “It was so pretty this morning, but now everything is starting to look dirty again. I think we should have a little snow every night—just enough to cover up the old stuff and keep things looking clean.”

“I agree with you,” said Mom. “I think that would be nice.”

“Indeed! Oh, absolutely!” said Miles. “The snow is just gorg—auwk!” Talia had clapped her hand over his mouth.

Dad smirked. “Okay, you two, that’s enough.” He looked toward the window. “What Talia said actually reminds me of a conversation I had with Mr. Carlson today. I was telling him that when I was growing up, I thought I could cover up the bad things I did by doing good things—much like how new snow covers up old, dirty snow.”

“But the dirty snow doesn’t go away. It’s still there and shows up again when the snow starts to melt,” said Miles. “And bad things we’ve done don’t just go away either, even when we do something good.”

“That’s right,” Dad said, “and I told Mr. Carlson that every time I thought I was making progress, I’d do something wrong and have to start over again. I finally realized that the good things I did didn’t do anything to get rid of the sin I was trying to cover up and hide. The only way to remove it was to trust in Jesus.”

“Right,” said Talia. “Because only Jesus can wash away our sin and make us clean and sparkly like snow!”

–Hazel W. Marett

How about you? Do you do good things to try to make up for the bad things you’ve done? Trying to cover up sin by your own efforts doesn’t work—the sin is always hiding underneath. You need Jesus. He’s the only one who can wash your sin away. Put your faith in Him and He will remove your sin and make you as clean and pure as fresh snow. (To learn more, go to Have You Heard the Good News?)

Today's Key Verse: Wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow. Psalm 51:7 (NKJV)

Today's Key Thought: Let Jesus wash your sin away