Today’s Reading:
Read Jeremiah 17:5-8, 10, 14-27; 18:1-10; 19:1-8, 10-15
Let’s have fun creating today! Grab some play dough and spend some time crafting a pot. Think of all the characteristics that would make the pot useful. It needs to be big enough to hold something. It needs to have a bottom that will be level enough for it to stand. It needs to not have any holes in it so that nothing can slip through it. There is a lot to think about when creating a masterpiece.
God told Jeremiah that he was like the potter, or the creator, of a jar of clay, and that Israel was like the jar. God had taken time to create the Israelites and to make sure they had what they needed to be successful. Jeremiah reminded the people that they should trust in God as their Creator and not in people. He also reminded them of the covenant promises that God made with the Israelites. Specifically, Jeremiah reminded the people how important it was to honor the Sabbath and to remember God on that day. Jeremiah reminded the people of the consequences of not remembering the covenant promises. God told Jeremiah to show the Israelites a clay pot and remind them that they were like the pot and God was like the potter who created the pot. In the same way God had the ability to create the pot, He also had the power to destroy the pot.
Sadly, Jeremiah’s message for the people was that their disobedience was going to lead to destruction.
Application/Prayer:
Look at the pot you created with the play dough. Does it seem silly to think about God creating you in the same way that you created the pot? God thought carefully about all the things that would make you who you are when He created you. Read Psalm 139 and thank God for the fact that you are fearfully and wonderfully made. Ask God to help you follow His plan for your life – the one He had when He was creating you. Thank Him for that today.
August Memory Verse:
“Listen, Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one. Love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength.”
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:
August memory verse coloring sheet
August Fill-in the blank activity