Daily Devotional for April 29, 2017
The Tablet of Your Heart
“My stomach hurts, Mom,” said Kaylee, burying her head in her pillow. “Don’t make me go to school today.”
Mom put her hand on Kaylee’s forehead. “You felt okay at dinner last night—you ate half a pizza! Is something wrong?”
Kaylee glanced at her electronic tablet lying on her bedside table. “Not really,” she said. “It’s just—I wrote something online last night that I probably shouldn’t have. I just know Shannon’s going to be totally mad at me.”
“Oh, Kaylee. Get dressed, and let’s talk about it during breakfast.”
As Kaylee stirred her cereal, her tablet pinged with a new message. She didn’t reach to answer it.
“So what’s the matter?” asked Mom, sipping her coffee.
Kaylee groaned. “I sent a message to Trevor last night. About Shannon. I said she wants him to sit with her at the school play next week.”
“Does she?” asked Mom.
“No,” muttered Kaylee. “And the worst part is, Trevor posted my message on his page, so now everyone thinks Shannon likes him. And it’s all my fault!”
Mom sighed and shook her head. “Why’d you do that, honey? You know written words are just as hurtful as spoken words.”
“I don’t know,” said Kaylee. “It just seemed like a funny thing to say.”
Kaylee’s tablet pinged again. She looked at the message and sighed. “It’s Shannon,” she said. “What am I going to do?”
“What do you think you should do?”
Kaylee looked at Mom, fighting back tears. “Tell the truth?”
“That would be the loving thing to do—and what God wants you to do. In fact, the Bible even tells us to write love on tablets.”
“It does?” asked Kaylee, her eyes widening.
Mom nodded. “God tells us to write love on the tablets of our hearts—and that means writing it on this kind of tablet too.” Mom tapped Kaylee’s tablet on the table. “We show others love by telling the truth and treating them with kindness—both in person and online. The Bible says that’s how we find favor in God’s sight as well as other people’s.”
A tiny smile lit up Kaylee’s face. “And hopefully in the sight of our best friends too.” – Jennifer Dillard
How about you?
Have you ever told a lie on the internet? Or wrote something mean about someone so others would think you were funny or cool? Words can spread quickly online, and they can hurt you and your relationships. Show love from your heart by sharing words that are true and kind—both in person and online.
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