[Passage]

1 Corinthians 15:10
"But by the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace toward me did not prove vain; but I labored even more than all of them, yet not I, but the grace of God with me."

Introduction

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ,

Let us give all thanks and glory to God the Father who has blessed us to have this 2010 Children's Devotional Service.

I give thanks to the children who have prepared for this devotional service with all your hearts, minds, and souls.

I give thanks to the guidance pastors, directors, Sunday school teachers and the parents, too.

Dear children of Manmin, if you go through a very long and dark cave what would you need the most-

You will need a lamp! You have to shine the light of the lamp on the path before you, so you can find your way.

If the lamp goes out in the depths of the cave, you won't be able to see, and you won't be able to find your way.

You might fall into a deep pit, or you might step on something dangerous like a snake.

So, you have to be very careful with the lamp, and you must never let the fire go out.

It's the same when you live in this world.

This world is just like a dark and deep cave, and it is very easy to be lost if you do not have the light of God.

There are so many sinful things that entice you to abandon the way to Heaven.

If you accept the temptations of the sins and evil of this world, it is as dangerous as losing your lamp in the depths of a cave.

God is shining the light on the path you should follow, so remain alert.

Then, whatever kind of dream you have for your future, you can achieve it by asking God with faith.

You can give glory to God and also reach Heavenly kingdom, especially New Jerusalem.
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Then, how can you live in this light-

You must never forget the grace that God has given to you.

I pray in the name of the Lord that you children of Manmin will take this message to heart and receive blessings.

Main

Dear children, the first thing that you have to remember and not forget is the grace of God the Father.

Above all, God has given you His most precious thing in the world.

He gave you the life of His beloved Son Jesus.

Because Jesus took the cross and died, you children can receive salvation.

All those who have committed sins must fall into Hell.

If you hate, fight, become jealous, become resentful, fret and lie to your parents, all these things are sins.

Even though you do not actually hit somebody, if you just hate and resent somebody, it is also sin.

Even though the sin is small, all those who committed sins are sinners.

Romans 6:23 says, "For the wages of sin is death." It means all sinners will die.

Here, 'to die' means that after a person's death, his soul will go to Hell.

Even though you say, "I hate Hell, I don't want to go!" it will be of no use.

But God sent His most beloved Son Jesus to us so that we don't have to fall into Hell.

Jesus is sinless, but He died on behalf of sinners.

Even though you have no money you can ride a bus as long as your parents pay the price for you.

Likewise, Jesus paid the price for you so that you can go to Heaven.

He paid the price of death, which is the wage of sin.

So, if we believe in Jesus, we can go to Heaven and not fall into Hell.

Then, can you go to Heaven if you just say, "I believe in God! I believe that the Lord Jesus saved me!"-

No! If you really believe, you will definitely live by the word of God.

You will obey the commands of God telling us to do or not do certain things.

When you commit sins, you cannot be forgiven just by repenting with your lips.

You have to turn from the sins with your heart and try not to commit the same sin ever again.

But even among those who attend church, there are many who just keep on committing sins.

It's because they didn't learn the word of God correctly.

There are some people who know that they must not commit sins, but they keep on committing them because they enjoy them so much.

But you children of Manmin are different.

God the Father has taught you the truth in very great detail.

He has taught you who God is, why we have to believe in the Lord, and how His children are supposed to live.

And He helps you not to commit sins.

If you make up your mind thinking, "I will not speak foul language; I will reduce the time to play computer games; I will not quarrel with my brother and my friends but yield to them," and if you pray to do that, God gives you the strength to do it.

If you live by the word of God this way, God will love you so much.

He will listen to whatever you say in prayer.

You can tell anything to God, even the secret things that you cannot even tell your best friend.

God can do anything, even the things that your parents cannot do for you.

If you just live by the word of God and become children of goodness, He will answer any desire of your hearts.

And you must never forget this grace of God who loves you so much.

Dear children, the second thing that you must keep in mind is the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ.

By the will of God the Father, Jesus took the cross for you and me.

But what if Jesus had not loved you-

What would have happened if Jesus had not taken the cross but told His Father, "Father, I don't want to take the cross. I don't want that scary crown of thorns to pierce my head. I don't want to be flogged. It will be so painful to be nailed through my hands and feet. I don't want to be crucified. I am sinless, and why should I take the cross and die for the sinners who do not love me but rather curses me-"

We wouldn't have been forgiven of our sins.

But Jesus took that painful and scary cross with joy.

Why did He do that- It's because He loved us so much and He wants us to live with Him in Heaven.

Also, He couldn't just watch you fall into such a fearful place as Hell.

Even though being crucified is so painful, He took all those sufferings because He loves you.

Some of you took up and carried the wooden cross in summer Bible school.

I think many of you cried thinking of the grace of Jesus.

Please do not ever forget that grace.

I urge you to remember the love of the Lord Jesus who gave His life for you.

Dear children, the third thing that you must not forget is the grace of your shepherd.

If a flock of sheep does not have a shepherd, they are to be pitied.

They have to wander around looking for grass and water on their own.

Because there is no one to protect them, they might be killed by bears or wolves.

God also appoints shepherds for His beloved children.

A true shepherd is even willing to give his life for his beloved flock.

So, he will always pray for his flock and teach them with the word of God so that the enemy devil and Satan cannot tempt them.

Then, who is the shepherd for Manmin's children-

God has appointed me to be the senior pastor and your shepherd.

So, I always pray for you.

I pray that you will live by the word of God and go to Heaven, and especially New Jerusalem.

I pray that you will not suffer from accidents or diseases.

I always pray that you will be children who are wise and lovely, and that you will receive your hearts' desires.

Also, I pray that you will have increasingly greater faith.

As God heard these prayers, He let you experience many things.

Even if you are involved in accidents or do become sick, you are healed if you come before the shepherd and receive the prayer with faith.

Also, you have been witnesses to many kinds of rainbows in the sky, and the dragonflies that came to sit on your hands, heads, or shoulders.

Actually, dragonflies usually run away very quickly when men approach them.

But because God commanded them to go, those dragonflies come to you.

God does this to let you feel that God can do even these things, and that God loves you so much.

I always pray for you so that you can have faith, and you will lead a happy life in Christ and I pray for you to be healthy all the time.

Do you children of Manmin also love your shepherd-

So, if you do then you will do me a big favor-

What kind of favor do I want from you- I am asking you to worship in spirit and truth, to pray without ceasing, and become good children obeying the word of God.

When some of you children forget these requests, I become heart-broken.

I have to pray to God with tears, "Father God! Help those children live by the Word. Help them so that by no chance will they fall into Hell."

I hope you dear children will always remember the things I have asked of you and keep them.

This way, let us all go to New Jerusalem together!

Conclusion

Dear children of Manmin, do you know what the most precious treasure of the world is-

It is 'faith'. You can receive answer to your prayers with faith, and you can go to Heaven by faith.

Even though your parents or teachers have good faith, it doesn't mean you can go to Heaven by their faith.

Your parents can pray for you and teach you, but you have to have your own faith.

You shouldn't be attending worship services or pray just because your mom and your teacher tell you that you have to do it.

You should be willing to do those things by yourself.

Please never forget the grace of God.

Also, do not forget the grace of the Lord Jesus.

Remember the love of your shepherd and live in the light.

I pray in the name of the Lord that, in doing so, you will all become Manmin's children who are always blessed by God in His love.

I ask the parents and teachers to guide our children so that they can experience God and have their own faith on their own.

Just because the parents have good faith, you shouldn't think their children will automatically have faith.

Even though they do whatever you tell them to, you shouldn't ever let your guard down.

You always have to check with genuine interest whether they really pray well, attend worship services well, and love God.

You shouldn't force them, but you have to help them experience the works of God on their own through your prayers and the love that are offered to God.

I ask you to play the role of connecting the children to God, to the Lord, and to the shepherd.

[AMEN!!!]

2010-10-18 Posted
2010-10-21 Updated