Daily Devotional for June 2, 2019
Stop and Look Around You
Felipe’s fingers raced across his tablet as he sat on the subway. His mom and sister sat behind him going over Adela’s Bible verse for church. Every afternoon, their mom met them at school to ride home with them. And every day, Felipe played the same video game.
“Auggghhh!” Felipe shouted out in frustration as he lost again.
“Shh! I’m trying to concentrate!” barked Adela.
The subway car jerked suddenly, and Felipe’s tablet fell onto the floor. It slid and knocked the cane of an older woman who looked rather lonely.
“I’m sorry,” Felipe said to the older passenger. He stared at her wrinkled skin and dark, almost sad, eyes.
“That’s all right, dear,” the woman replied, a small smile crossing her chapped lips.
That night, Felipe couldn’t get the older woman on the subway out of his mind. He kept on wondering about her. To his surprise, he began to see her on the subway after school a lot. He wondered how long she had been riding with them. Days? Weeks? Months? And he never even noticed her.
One afternoon on their subway ride home, Felipe reached into his bag for his tablet. Once again, he noticed the elderly woman sitting with her cane in one hand and a book in the other. Let us love one another, Felipe thought, remembering the Bible verse from his class at church the week before.
“Mom, can I go talk to her?” asked Felipe, motioning to the woman. Mom smiled and nodded.
“Hello,” said Felipe as he sat down next to the woman. “My name is Felipe.”
“Hello, young man,” said the woman, smiling. “My name is Ms. Ethel. Thank you for saying hello.”
Felipe smiled back and noticed that the book in her hand was a Bible. “Are you reading your Bible?”
“Well, I forgot my glasses, so I can’t see the words today,” replied Ms. Ethel.
“I could read it for you. Mom, is that okay?”
“Definitely,” Mom said with a smile.
From then on, Felipe read the Bible to Ms. Ethel on the subway ride home every afternoon. And after a while, he forgot all about his video game. •Emily Rudolph
How about you?
Do you ever get caught up in a video game, book, or other activity and ignore those around you? God didn’t ignore us. He sent His Son, Jesus, to die for our sins so we could be saved. What a gift of selfless love! It’s okay to do things you enjoy, but don’t forget to stop and look around you. Who can you show God’s love to today?
Thank you for reading this Keys for Kids devotional! Did you enjoy the story? Has Keys for Kids been an encouragement to you and your family? If so, would you please consider supporting Keys For Kids Ministries in our effort to continue to provide these daily devotionals to children around the world?