Today’s Reading:
Read Jeremiah 50; Jeremiah 51:61-64
Have you ever watched a race and thought you knew for sure who the winner was going to be, but in the end, you were completely surprised by who won the race? It’s fun to watch a runner who might have been behind at the beginning finally race her way to the finish line first, isn’t it?
As the Israelites spent their time in Babylon, it most likely looked to them that the Babylonians were winning! Jerusalem had been destroyed. The temple had been destroyed. The Israelites were far from home. Jeremiah’s message was clear. While it may look like Babylon had claimed the victory, in the end, God had a different plan! God’s plan was for the restoration of Israel- and the destruction of Babylon.
God used Babylon to fulfill the promise He had made that if the Israelites disobeyed, there would be consequences. However, in the end, God promised that Babylon would not be victorious. Ultimately, God would claim the victory!
Jeremiah 50:34
“Their REDEEMER is strong; the Lord of Armies is His name.”
Application/Prayer:
Some days we may have hard circumstances that we are facing. It may seem like things will never get better. Days like that are hard, aren’t they? Read the promise Jesus gave us in John 16:33. Thank Him that even though we may have trouble, we can know that He has conquered the world. Jesus gets the victory every time!
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