365 Bible Answers for Curious Kids: An "If I Could Ask God Anything" Devotional

Help the kids in your life find answers to their questions and deepen their faith with 365 Bible Answers for Curious Kids, a unique daily devotional full of biblical answers about God, the Bible and Christian faith. "When I was writing the book, I imagined the voice of an everyday mom talking with her child, tenderly, lovingly – and with a little bit of humor, too," said Slattery.

Why Do People Hurt Other People?

"Love your enemies. Pray for those who hurt you." — MATTHEW 5:44

Human beings are not perfect. People hurt other people for many reasons. Sometimes they're afraid or sick or sad. Sometimes people hurt others because they've been hurt themselves.

When I was little, I had a beautiful boxer named Roxie. Roxie belonged to another family before us. They used to go away on long trips and lock poor Roxie in their cold, dark basement. Scared and lonely, Roxie hated it!

A few months after Roxie came to live with us, we had to go away on a trip. The minute Roxie saw my suitcase, she looked at me with panicky eyes and ran away! It took my dad an hour to catch her. I loved Roxie, and it hurt my feelings that she ran away. Did it mean she didn't love me? My dad explained that the reason Roxie ran away was because she had been hurt by her other owner. She just didn't want to be hurt again.

There is a lot of wisdom in the old saying: "Be kind. For everyone you meet is carrying a heavy burden." People hurt one another; it is true. People are not perfect. But we can always pray and try to show one another love and kindness (John 13:34–35).

How Can Anything Good Come Out of Pain and Suffering?

[Jesus] had much pain and suffering. . . . But he took our suffering on him and felt our pain for us. — ISAIAH 53:3–4

Everyone experiences pain and suffering in life. God doesn't cause pain and suffering. But God can turn it into something beautiful, valuable, and good. Think of a pearl, for instance. A pearl starts as a bit of sand that gets trapped in an oyster. The sand scratches and irritates the oyster, so it reacts by covering the sand with layers of protective coating. Over time, the sand becomes a beautiful pearl! Sometimes we can have a difficult person in our lives. When we cover the person with layers of love and prayers, he doesn't irritate us as much. The person may even become a beautiful friend! The best example of God turning pain and suffering into something beautiful and good is when God resurrected Jesus from His death on the cross. Because Jesus rose from the dead and received a resurrection body that can live forever in heaven, one day we will too! Remember: God can turn anything into something beautiful and good.

How Is It Possible to Experience Joy in Life's Troubles?

You know that [many kinds of troubles] are testing your faith. And this will give you patience. — JAMES 1:2–3

In the 1800s, cod was the most popular fish in America. It was nutritious and tasty— but only when fresh! People tried shipping live cod in big saltwater tanks. But when the fish arrived, their long period of inactivity in the tanks made them taste yucky and mushy. One day a catfish slipped into one of the cod tanks. The catfish is the cod's natural enemy. During the trip, he chased the cod. All that swimming made the cod fit, healthy— and yummy! From then on, a pesky catfish was included in every shipping tank of cod. Just like the cod, we all have catfish in our lives. The catfish are our troubles! They nip at us and keep us awake at night. But when we turn to God in prayer, our pesky troubles— like catfish— can make us spiritually healthier and stronger! This is because when we talk to God, our faith grows. When our faith grows, we become more trusting and joyful— and better at being God's helpers!

Why Do We Give Gifts at Christmas?

"Surely your heavenly Father will give good things to those who ask him." — MATTHEW 7:9–11

In the days leading up to Christmas, more books, toys, games, clothing, and candy are advertised and sold than any other time of year. Do you have a gift list for others? Giving gifts to family and friends at Christmas is a loving thing to do. Receiving gifts is fun too! But sometimes we can get so excited about Christmas presents that we almost forget the reason we are giving and receiving them.

Yes, it is true that we give gifts to our family, friends, and teachers to show our love and appreciation for them. But at Christmas there is a deeper, even more important reason for gift- giving.

The Bible says that God loves to give good gifts to His human children (Matthew 7:11). We give gifts at Christmas to remind us of God's greatest gift to the world— His Son, Jesus. Gifts help us remember and celebrate God's great generosity and love.

What Does Jesus Mean When He Tells Us to Be Perfect?

"You must be perfect, just as your Father in heaven is perfect." — MATTHEW 5:48

A year has nearly passed, and a new one is almost here! Now's the time for making New Year's resolutions. A resolution is a well- intentioned, firm decision to do or improve something. For me, this means to eat less junk food and watch less TV. Wait a minute . . . those are exactly the same resolutions I made last year!

In today's verse, Jesus tells us to be "perfect." Ugh. For a long time I wondered, How could Jesus ask such a thing? How can He forget that because we are human beings, perfection is not possible? Then I learned that the Greek word commonly translated "perfect" in this passage more accurately means "whole" or "complete." Wow! Suddenly the verse made sense! Jesus is not telling us to be perfect, which is impossible. Jesus is telling us to be whole and complete, which— thanks to God's perfect love— is possible.

Jesus is making you whole. It doesn't happen overnight; it's a lifelong process (Philippians 2:12–13). Remember this when you're making New Year's resolutions. God bless you on your faith journey over the coming year!

Kathryn "Kitty" Slattery is a longtime Contributing Editor for Guideposts, and the author of several books for children, including 365 Bible Answers for Curious Kids: An "If I Could Ask God Anything" Devotional (Tommy Nelson), My Friend Jesus: The Gospel for Kids (Tommy Nelson), and If I Could Ask God Anything: Awesome Bible Answers for Curious Kids (Tommy Nelson). To learn more about Kitty's work, visit her website: www.KathrynSlattery.com and Facebook: Kathryn "Kitty" Slattery.

Excerpt from 365 Bible Answers For Curious Kids (2017, Thomas Nelson).