Be Faithful
GOD COMMANDS US TO BE FAITHFUL.
Bible Reading of the Day: Read Revelation 2:8-10.
Verse of the Day: “Remain faithful even when facing death, and I will give you the crown of life” (Revelation 2:10).
Joel and Vanessa stood beside their grandmother’s bedside. Grandma had been in the hospital for almost two weeks. They both knew that Grandma was dying; their parents had explained that she would be going to heaven soon.
“I don’t want her to die.” Vanessa whispered to Joel.
“Me neither,” Joel said.
Suddenly, Joel and Vanessa’s dad stood behind them. He wrapped his arms around them, and they buried their heads in his chest and cried.
Dad waited for a long time while his children cried, then knelt beside them and spoke. “Joel, Vanessa,” he said, “I know you’re sad that your grandma is dying, and that’s OK. But you can be happy, too.”
The children said nothing, but looked at Dad with searching eyes.
“You can be happy because your grandmother is going to heaven. She has loved God since she was just a little girl, and she’s been faithful to him all these years.”
Joel and Vanessa nodded. They remembered going to church with their grandmother, even in the worst weather. They remembered her reading her Bible every morning at the kitchen table. And they even knew that she had been writing letters to prisoners and invalids for as long as they could remember.
“You know who’s waiting for her in heaven?” Dad asked. He had tears in his eyes.
“God?” Vanessa whispered.
“That’s right,” Dad answered, “the God she has loved all these years is waiting in heaven, along with the people she’s loved, like your grandpa. And you know what God’s going to give her when she gets there?”
Joel and Vanessa shook their heads.
“He’s got a crown with your grandma’s name on it! He’s going to give it to her as a reward for her faithfulness to him.”
“A crown?” Joel said.
Dad nodded. The children turned then and looked at Grandma’s sleeping form on the hospital bed, as if expecting to see her gray hair covered with a crown. “You know what else?” Dad said. “God has a crown for you, too.”
“He does?” Joel said.
“Yes,” Dad answered, “if you’re faithful to him, just like your grandma has been.”
TO DISCUSS: God commands us to be faithful and promises to reward those who are. What do you think being faithful to God means? How can you be faithful to him today?
TO PRAY: “Heavenly Father, there are many people who have been faithful to you and to us. We want to thank you for their lives right now.” Pause to pray silently for the faithful people in your life.