Keys For Kids Ministries

Bible Reading: Hebrews 11:13-16Kenzie snapped one last picture of the Eiffel Tower. "It's so beautiful against the sunset!" She sighed. "I can't believe this is our last night here." "I know," Mom said. "Though I'm actually excited to be going home." "But this has been the best vacation ever," said Kenzie's sister, Aubrey. "I'm going to miss Paris." "All right, everyone," Dad said. "It's getting late. We'd better head back to the hotel to eat our last dinner here in France." Kenzie turned to follow him and accidentally bumped into a man with a touring cap and backpack. "Oh, I'm so sorry!" she said. The man glanced at her, said something in French, and moved past them. Kenzie giggled quietly. "You know what I'm looking forward to about going home? Being able to speak the language. I can't understand what French people say--and they can't understand me!" "Yeah," Aubrey said. "We really don't fit in here, do we?" "I'm looking forward to sleeping in my own bed again," Mom said. "And not living out of a suitcase a

Bible Reading: Romans 6:5-11Evan and James were hunting for wild edible mushrooms with their family. "Got one!" Evan yelled. "Wow, that one's a whopper!" James said. "Just make sure you know it's the right type," Dad warned. "You know the rule: One hundred percent sure, then take the treasure." They mushroom-hunted for a couple hours, driven by the hope of mushroom soup. "My mouth is already watering for mom's delicious soup!" Evan said. "Yeah!" James replied. "Mom is probably the best cook in town!" "I don't know about that," Mom said. "There are lots of good cooks out there." "Well, you're still a really good cook!" Evan and James said in unison, making the whole family laugh.After heading home, the two boys stood outside the kitchen, breathing in the wonderful smells. When the soup was done, the boys raced to be the first to the table. After giving thanks, they gulped it down. "This soup could be called new life soup," Dad said. "The mushrooms in it grow on dead wood. Though the tree has died, the mushroom

Bible Reading: Isaiah 41:8-10"Oh no! No, no, no! Get me off this thing! Mom, make them stop!" Carrie squirmed nervously as the seat she was strapped into began to rise higher and higher into the air.Mom laughed and grabbed Carrie's hand. "Sorry, honey, but I think it's too late to get off now. Believe me, you're going to love it! It's just a little scary right now."Carrie continued to whimper as the ride climbed higher, and she gave a little shriek as the seats bumped into place high up in the air."It's okay," Mom reassured her. "I'm right here with you. You're going to be fine.""Okay," Carrie said, squeezing Mom's hand tight. She looked down at the park below them. "Hey, Mom, it's actually kind of cool to see everything from up here. I can see--aaaaahhhh!" Carrie screamed as the ride suddenly dropped.Mom screamed too, and then they were both laughing as the ride bounced back up and down a few more times before finally settling back down on the ground."Mom, that was so much fun! Can we go on it again?"Mom lau

Bible Reading: Romans 12:3-5"I want to play first base this year, and Coach Nichols won't let me!" said Quincy. "He says I'll help the team more if I play right field." He frowned. "The guys have a saying about right field. They say, 'right field equals left out,' because the ball never gets hit to that side of the outfield.""Now, hold on! That's just not true!" said Dad. "A good right fielder often makes important plays--and I know you'll be a good one." But nothing Dad said could convince Quincy that right field was a good position for him.The next day, Quincy helped his father plant geraniums in the front yard. "Maybe we could get some of those bushes with white flowers we saw when we hiked up Mount Major," said Quincy. "They'd look nice here with the geraniums."Dad shook his head. "Those plants grow well in higher elevations, but I don't think they'd do well down here. God didn't intend for all plants to thrive in the same location. Each species has its own spot in the plant kingdom. That principle applie

Bible Reading: Luke 15:4-10; Acts 1:8"Mom, have you seen my other tennis shoe?" Piper ran from room to room with only one shoe on, desperately looking for the other one. She was supposed to be leaving to spend the night at her friend Aryanna's house. "No, but I can help you look. Do you remember where you saw it last?" Mom asked. Piper shook her head, and the two frantically looked for the missing shoe. They looked under beds, in the closet, in the bathroom, and even in Piper's brother's room. "Are you sure you didn't pack it with your overnight things?" Mom asked. Piper was about to say she would never do anything silly like that, but she knew Mom would just make her look anyway, so she began pulling out everything from her bag. The last thing she pulled out was her missing shoe. "Oops--here it is!" Piper said, a little embarrassed. "Well, I'm glad it's been found." "Remember I'm going to pick you up for church tomorrow," Mom said as they got in the car. "Did you invite Aryanna to come?" Piper shook her head

Bible Reading: Ephesians 4:1-6"There goes Old Faithful!" Corbin said as they watched hot water burst from the ground and shoot high into the air. He and his sister Fiona were showing their aunt a video Corbin had made on their vacation to Yellowstone National Park. "The park ranger said the rock deep underground is so hot it heats the spring water," said Corbin."And then it reaches its boiling point and boils up and shoots out of the ground," added Fiona.After their aunt had left, Fiona and Corbin got out a game. "You lose!" Corbin said after they played a little while. "You're not allowed to make that move!""I am too!" said Fiona. But Corbin wouldn't agree, and the two started arguing. Finally, Fiona pushed back her chair. "You make me so mad!" "What did I do?" Corbin asked."Tons of things!" Fiona's voice grew louder. "You cheat, you used my bike without asking, you embarrassed me in front of my friends, and you spilled juice on my homework. I hate you!" She ran to her bedroom and slammed the door. Then she

Bible Reading: Psalm 23; John 10:1-12, 27-28Evening descended swiftly on the French Alps. Chloe snuggled closer to her dad as the two of them and her dad's friend Jules huddled around a fire for warmth. "Another good thing about being a sheep is all that wool to keep you warm," Chloe said. Jules nodded. "It's almost time to put them in their pen for the night. If I wait until it gets too dark, the wolves come out." Chloe's eyes widened. "Have you ever had to fight a wolf, Uncle Jules?" He nodded solemnly. "Fortunately, I was able to save the lamb. The sheep know they are safe when they stay close to me, just like we are safe with Jesus, our shepherd.""That doesn't mean bad things won't happen to us," Dad interjected. "Everyone goes through darkness and tough times. But our Good Shepherd promises to be with us through every dark valley we encounter." "So we don't need to fear, just like David wrote in Psalm Twenty-Three," Chloe said softly. "Uncle Jules, what about the verse where David talks about God anointi

Bible Reading: Psalm 23; Isaiah 53:4-7Chloe gasped as the car rounded the mountain road and the French Alps were fully displayed. "I've never seen anything so majestic!" Dad parked the car next to a rustic cabin. The cabin door opened and a man with dark curly hair and a beard exited with arms outstretched. "John! Come and hug your old friend!" Chloe hung back, watching the happy reunion until the men turned to her. "Chloe, meet my old college friend, Jules! The last time we got together you were just a baby." "You can call me Uncle Jules if you wish, Chloe. My, you are growing up quickly!" "Do we really get to stay a whole week and help you care for your sheep? Dad says you have over a thousand! I read that shepherding is a difficult job. What's your favorite part about it?" Jules threw up his hands and laughed. "Whoa! I'm not used to all these questions. The sheep aren't nearly as chatty." Jules winked at Chloe. "I'm happy to tell you all about it over a nice cup of coffee."The next morning, Chloe was bundl

Bible Reading: Psalm 139:13-16; Romans 8:28-30Alfie hoisted himself up onto a ledge of crumbling granite and collapsed on a small patch of mossy grass. "That was quite a climb!" he said as he rubbed his aching legs. "Aren't you tired, Uncle Don? We've hiked a long way.""We'll catch our breath for a few minutes before we head back," said Uncle Don. He took off his backpack and set it down. Alfie picked up some stones. "Look at this!" he said. Uncle Don knelt beside him, and they looked at the stone Alfie held in his hand. It was shaped like a triangle and came to an unmistakable point. "It's a real arrowhead, isn't it?" said Alfie."Sure looks like it to me," said Uncle Don.Alfie brushed the dirt and dust from the stone and held it up so that the light glinted off its edges. "You know," said Uncle Don, "the man who made that arrowhead carefully chiseled it, and he knew just how he wanted to use it."Alfie looked at his uncle. "He would have used it for hunting, wouldn't he?" Uncle Don nodded. "I imagine so. He w

Bible Reading: Luke 10:25-37; 1 John 3:16-19After Baker and his mom got off the Ferris wheel, they joined a group of people crowding around a man with a painted face acting out various skits. Baker laughed with the crowd as the man pretended to be learning to ride a bike. But he wondered why the man didn't say anything. "Mom, why doesn't he talk?" "Because he's a mime," Mom replied. "They never talk, but you can tell by their actions what they're doing."Next, the mime pretended to wash a window. He acted as though he bumped his head on the pretend ladder. Later, he appeared to be eating an ice cream cone--and shot the crowd a look of dismay when the ice cream fell off. The crowd laughed and applauded as he acted out one scenario after another. The show ended with the mime making a sad face and waving goodbye to the crowd.Baker turned to his mom. "Wow! He never said a thing, but I could figure out everything he was doing.""Actions say a lot," said Mom. "Do you remember the story in the Bible about the Good Sam

Bible Reading: Isaiah 48:17-18; Ephesians 5:1-2; 1 John 2:3-6"Mom, I see the parade! It's coming!" Millie squealed with excitement and grabbed hold of her little brother's hand. "James, get ready, because they're going to throw candy right at us and we can put it in our bags, okay?"James nodded and grinned. Millie looked down the street and hopped up and down in anticipation."Just be patient, honey," Mom called from her lawn chair. "It will be here soon."Millie craned her neck to see down the street. The parade was still far away, but she could make out flags, cars, floats, and even a fire truck. She could faintly hear a drum and knew the band was marching her way.Suddenly, she gave a little shriek of dismay. "It turned! They're going down a different street. They're not coming here!""What?" Dad jumped up and looked down the street, and Millie noticed everyone else getting up and looking around in confusion. "Come on, Millie!" Dad scooped up James, and they ran to the next block just as the parade arrived. Mi

Bible Reading: Romans 3:22-26; Titus 3:5-7Rosita wiped sweat from her forehead, then got back to scrubbing the pot in the sink. She was working as hard as she could to clean the kitchen before Mom got home. They'd had a fight that morning, and Rosita was sorry for the things she'd said. She sighed and scrubbed harder. I want this kitchen sparkling clean when Mom gets home from work, she thought. That'll make up for it.She glanced into the living room where her little brother was watching cartoons. "Hugo, bring your plate and cup here so I can wash them. And I just mopped the floor, so be careful!" But Hugo wasn't careful. He ran in and slipped when his socks hit the wet floor. His plastic dishes went flying into the air as he went sprawling across the kitchen, milk and crumbs raining down on top of him.Rosita gasped. "Hugo!" Just then the door opened and Mom walked in. "Wow," she said. "What a mess." Rosita covered her face with her soapy hands and burst into tears. Mom and Hugo stared at her for a moment bef

Bible Reading: 2 Corinthians 12:9-10; James 1:2-6"I'm not sure I can catch this wave," Caleb yelled to his uncle as the ocean waves roared. The wind was getting stronger, and it was hard to hear. Dark clouds rolled in from above, blocking the sunshine. Caleb gripped the edges of his surfboard. This surfing lesson wasn't going well. He wanted to do what his uncle taught him and stand up on his board and ride the wave, but it seemed impossible. "Uncle Luke, I've slipped three times, and my arms are exhausted from paddling! I don't think I'm strong enough."Uncle Luke swam over to Caleb. "Let's take a break, and then I'll help you. I know it's scary, but trust me--I've been surfing a long time and know what I'm doing. Can you do that?"Caleb nodded. They bobbed on their boards for a minute before Uncle Luke continued. "You know, Caleb, life is hard sometimes, just like surfing. When scary doubts build up, or the winds blow and it's hard to hear God's voice, we can share our fears with Jesus. He wants us to have fa

Bible Reading: Matthew 18:19-20; 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18"Mom, I'm really worried about Charlotte," Anna said as she sat down at the table. Charlotte and Anna were best friends and did everything together. "What's going on?" Mom asked as she added ingredients into the mixer. "Well, she's been having a lot of headaches lately. I'm worried there might be something seriously wrong with her. What if she has cancer or something?" Mom plopped a scoop of raw cookie dough onto a tray. "It sounds like you've been doing a lot of worrying about this.""It's all I can think about, Mom! I'm just so afraid something bad is going to happen to Charlotte. I can't imagine life without her." Mom brought the tray of cookie dough to the table and sat down. "Have you prayed about it?" she asked. "Um, well--no," Anna said. Mom sighed. "Well, I've been pretty worried too lately. Tomorrow is your school bake sale, and I'm worried these cookies won't get baked in time!"Anna glanced at the clock. "Mom, you have plenty of time. They don't

Bible Reading: Psalm 119:27, 159-160; 2 Timothy 3:14-17The sun was just poking its head over the treetops when Savannah and her mother left for a walk in the woods near their new home. "I didn't understand what Dad read in the Bible this morning," Savannah said. "Why can't we just skip the parts of the Bible that don't seem to say anything important?"Mom was about to reply when Savannah spotted some interesting bushes along the path. "Look, Mom. Those are some kind of berry bushes, aren't they?"Mom stopped and peered at the bushes. "I think they might be, but I don't see any fruit on them."Savannah reached out and lifted some of the leaves. "Here! Underneath the leaves.""You're right!" said Mom. "Those are wild blackberries! They'd taste great on our cereal--or just as a snack. How about running back to the house and getting a bucket so we can pick some?"Savannah eagerly ran home and returned with a pail, and she and Mom began to gather the ripe, luscious fruit. "I'm glad your sharp eyes noticed these," said

Bible Reading: Matthew 11:28-30Julian cheered in excitement at the tractor pulling contest. One of the contestants--a friend of Julian's family--revved the engine as his tractor strained to pull the heavy load. It inched along, then gathered speed to the finish line. "He made it!" Julian shouted, and he clapped along with others in the crowd."The next load he has to pull will be heavier," Grandpa said.The driver revved the engine again, and it moved slowly forward. The load behind the groaning tractor was dragged at a snail's pace to the finish line. Julian shot up from his seat and cheered.He grew anxious as he watched the workers add more weights to the next load. The driver powered up the engine, but nothing happened. Again the engine roared, but the load didn't budge. The driver hunched over the wheel as if to coax the tractor into one last try before time was up. Julian felt like he was in the contest himself, and he yelled encouragement as the tractor began to inch forward. Slowly, slowly it went, until

Bible Reading: Exodus 19:3-6; Isaiah 40:27-31Annie leaned her forehead against the cool windowpane of the airport in Sicily. She sighed as she watched yet another large airplane taxi down the runway and fly off into the big blue sky. Her family had been detoured on the way back to the States from Africa where they were missionaries, and it felt like they had been stuck in the airport for weeks instead of days."Vroom, vroom!" Her younger brother, Bryce, flew past her with his arms extended and accidentally bumped her elbow."Knock it off, Bryce!" Annie said irritably."Hey, what's the problem?" Dad asked, coming over.Annie sighed again. "It feels like we've been at the airport forever and God has forgotten about us!"Dad nodded thoughtfully. "I know it feels that way right now, but God is working out just the right flight for us to get on." He looked out the airport window as another plane took off. "Did you know the Bible talks about wings?"Bryce stopped making airplane noises and looked at Dad. "Like airplane w

Bible Reading: Isaiah 43:1-4Max opened his car window and smelled pine trees. Mom and Dad sang their old camp song about a cowboy and his one-eyed horse. Max usually sang along. But today the lyrics caught in his throat.Mom and Dad's stories of camp made Max feel like he knew the place even though he'd never been there. He couldn't wait to come to Bible camp. But now as camp came into view, he wasn't so sure. "It's too bad the other boys from church couldn't come with you," Mom said.Dad parked the car and patted Max on the shoulder. "You're going to love it here!" Max felt funny inside as he watched Mom and Dad drive away.Max met his counselor, who showed him around his cabin. "Okay, Mike, here's your bunk." He doesn't even know my name, Max thought. Nobody here does. I don't belong here.The counselor shouted, "Campers! Time to meet out by the lake. Bring your Bibles. Move out!"In the noisy crowd, everyone seemed to be with friends. No one spoke to Max. At the beach, the camp director blew a whistle and shout

Bible Reading: Romans 12:9-13"Look!" said Rylee, stepping back from the huge saguaro cactus. "There's something in that hole!"Dad and Easton came over to see. Sure enough, a pair of blinking yellow eyes peered back at them from a hole in the trunk of the cactus."I think it's a screech owl," said Easton. "We learned that woodpeckers peck holes into cactuses when they make their nests. Then after they leave, other birds move into the empty holes and live there."Dad nodded. "Each time the cactus skin is broken--like when a woodpecker makes a hole--a thick gluey liquid seeps out and forms a waterproof pouch. The liquid hardens, kind of like a scab, to make the pouch permanent. Inside the hole it's cooler in the day and warmer at night, so it makes an ideal home for desert birds."Rylee saw big and little holes in the arms of one of the cactuses--they were everywhere. "This saguaro is like a high-rise apartment building!" she said with a laugh. "What a crowded place to live."Easton grinned. "Just like our house."Ry

Bible Reading: Psalm 119:9-16Rylee leaned back to see the top of the huge saguaro cactus next to her. Its spiny arms reached out and up toward the sky. "With so many big arms, this thing should be holding something. Try sitting on one of its arms, Easton," Rylee said with a grin."No way!" said Easton. "I'm not sitting on those prickly things!""Those arms," said Dad, "are holding what is probably the most valuable thing in the entire region.""And I know what it is," Easton said. "Water! Cactus plants can live in the dry, hot desert by storing water inside their trunk and arms.""That can't be right," said Rylee, looking around at the sand and rocks. They extended as far as she could see. "There's no water here!""Easton is right," said Dad. "Cactus roots don't go very deep into the earth. Instead, they go down only about three feet and then spread out about a hundred feet in all directions. The spread-out roots draw in every drop of rain, sending it to a hidden storage area in the arms and trunk of the cactus. T