Today’s Reading:
Read I Samuel 16; I Samuel 18:6-9; Psalm 59
Grab some art supplies today and make a crown. On the crown, write down words that you think would describe the kind of king God wanted for His people.
It was time to choose a new king. Samuel knew that Saul’s days as king were over because he was not obeying God, and the Israelites needed a King who would follow God’s plan for them. God led Samuel to a man named Jesse. Jesse had many sons, but only one was who God had chosen . God showed Samuel that David was who God had chosen to be the next king.
God used David to help the Israelites win many battles before David took his place as king. At first, Saul was grateful for David’s help. But as David had more successes, Saul became jealous of all that David could do. Saul was so jealous he began looking for ways to hurt David.
David knew that God had chosen him to be king and he was trusting in God as he faced many struggles with Saul. In the middle of the Bible is a book named Psalms. David wrote many of the Psalms during his battles with Saul. David trusted that even though Saul was trying to hurt him, God was going to protect him. David had to patiently wait to become king and he showed great character in not rushing ahead of God. Saul, on the other hand, was impatient and often times did not wait on God’s leading and guiding.
Read Psalm 59:16-17
“But I will sing of your strength and will joyfully proclaim your faithful love in the morning, For you have been a stronghold for me; a refuge in my day of trouble. To you, my strength, I sing praises, because God is my stronghold – my faithful God.”
Application/Prayer:
Knowing that we can trust in God even when things are hard for us is an important part of faith. David knew that God was protecting him and providing for him, even though things were not going the way David would have chosen. Have you ever had a time when you followed what God was telling you to do and it was not the easy choice? Thank God that you can know that you can trust in Him – even when things are hard.
April Memory Verse:
If you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. One believes with the heart, resulting in righteousness, and one confesses with the mouth, resulting in salvation.
Romans 10:9-10
Using the daily reading prompts from George H. Guthrie’s Read the Bible for Life, here’s how to use this devotional:
- Bring your Bible! Your kids need to see that everything you are reading to them or learning about comes from an actual Bible!
- Each day starts with a reading prompt. Read the selection as a family. If your kids are readers, encourage them to read along with you.
- After you’ve read the passage, read the short devotional thought that goes along with each passage.
- Prayer and application are important any time we read God’s word! After each devotional, there is a challenge to help apply what your family has read that day.
- There is a reading for six days of the week. The last reading of the week is a Gospel Conversation Prompt to help you connect the reading from the week with God’s plan for salvation.
Other Resources:
April memory verse coloring sheet
April Fill-in the blank activity