Read an Excerpt
The Purpose Driven Life Devotional for Kids
By Rick Warren ZONDERKIDS
Copyright © 2015 Rick Warren
All rights reserved.
ISBN: 978-0-310-75046-8
CHAPTER 1
PURPOSE 1
The Reason for Everything
DAY 1
The Big Question
It is God who directs the lives of his creatures; everyone's life is in his power. (JOB 12:10 TEV)
* * *
Do you ever wonder:
What do I want to be when I grow up?
What should I do with my life?
What are my dreams?
The search for the meaning of life has puzzled people for thousands of years. People want to know why they are here on Earth and if they matter. But the truth is, focusing on yourself will not reveal the answers.
You didn't create yourself. So how could you know what you were created for? If I handed you an invention you had never seen before, you wouldn't know what it was supposed to do. And the invention itself wouldn't be able to tell you either. Only the creator or the owner's manual could tell you the answers.
God is our Creator, and the Bible is his manual. He put us here on Earth for a reason — to love him and love others. If we ask God and read his Word, we'll find out exactly how we should do that.
Prayer
God, show me how I can love you better and love others around me. Show me who you want me to be.
DAY 2
Singled Out
These are the clans of the Levites listed according to their fathers.
(1 CHRONICLES 6:19B)
* * *
If you've ever auditioned for a play or tried out for a team, you probably looked for your name and any of your friends on the list of kids who made it as soon as it was posted. Or if you entered a writing contest at school, you read the list of winners to find out if you or anyone you know won.
However, reading a bunch of names of people you don't know is not on anyone's list of favorite things to do. So it may seem strange that God had the author of Chronicles write down name after name after name. We don't know anything about them, except who their fathers or mothers were and maybe where they lived. But this list of names in the book of Chronicles shows how important recognition is. God recognized the people who were a part of Israel's history and accomplishments. He knew them by name and took the time to point them out.
God knows your name too. He knows who you are, and you matter to him. Even if your name never makes it on a winners' list or try-out roster, God will recognize you as his child. That's reward enough.
Prayer
Lord, it's easy to feel overlooked or unimportant, especially when others get so much attention and recognition. I need to remember that you love me and value me. I need to remember that I'm yours.
DAY 3
Meaning of a Name
God also said to Abraham, "As for Sarai your wife, you are no longer to call her Sarai; her name will be Sarah. I will bless her and will surely give you a son by her. I will bless her so that she will be the mother of nations; kings of peoples will come from her."
(GENESIS 17:15–16)
* * *
Sarai was married to a well-known man, so for most of her life, she was known simply as Abraham's wife. Imagine if everyone always called you by another name rather than your own — Mary's kid, Susan's sister, Andrew's friend.
Then at ninety years old, Sarai became well known herself. She had a baby! That got her recognized. But this new fame was all from God. God blessed her husband for his faith, and he blessed Sarai too. To show how pleased he was, God gave them new names. Names were important in Bible times. Names indicated personality, standing, or family. Sarai's new name, Sarah, meant princess.
Ask your parents how they came up with your name. Did you know God has names for you too? He calls you beloved, royalty, and his child. He also calls you names that fit with his plans for your life. Perhaps God's name for you will be doctor, Olympian, mechanic, or artist. When God gives you a name, he's telling you who he created you to be. As you grow up, he may even give you a new name, just like he did with Sarai.
Prayer
God, what names have you given me? Show me who you have created me to be and what plans you have for my life.
DAY 4
Show Stopper
Where were you when I laid the earth's foundation? ... Who shut up the sea behind doors when it burst forth from the womb, when I made the clouds its garment and wrapped it in thick darkness?
(JOB 38:4A, 8–9)
* * *
What is the most amazing thing you've ever seen or read? Astronauts going into space? An athlete breaking a world record? A triple rainbow? Those things can blow you away. But God has done more amazing, mind-blowing stuff. He created boundaries for the seas, so they don't flood countries under water. He set the sky in place around the earth and made gravity that keeps us on the ground, not floating off into space. God makes the sun rise in the morning so we can see to work and play, and he makes it set at night so we can sleep and rest. Psalm 104 also describes a few of the mind-boggling things God does.
When you read a little bit of God's awesome, huge, magnificent, power, it's hard to wrap your brain around it. Hey, even your brain, with its hundred-billion neurons and sixty-thousand miles of bloods vessels, is one of his miraculous works. God is unstoppable, unmatchable, and unbeatable. He is worthy of your praise!
Prayer
Lord, you are awesome and amazing. I don't even realize everything you are capable of doing. But you have my praise and honor.
DAY 5
Beyond Magic
By the word of the Lord the heavens were made, their starry host by the breath of his mouth. He gathers the waters of the seas into jars; he puts the deep into storehouses.
(PSALM 33:6–7)
* * *
What's the best magic trick you've ever seen? A woman being "sawed" in half? A bird appearing out of nowhere? Sometimes we read about magic, like in a story where someone finds a magic shoe or lamp? Fairy tales are made up, and magic is just illusions that trick your eyes. But God doesn't need magic or illusions — he is divine power.
God uses his supernatural power. When he breathes, he can actually create stars, rivers, and planets. His hands can pick up the oceans (the Atlantic Ocean alone is over forty-one million square miles — that's twenty percent of the earth). Those are some pretty big hands that can save you from anything. God's power is better than a story of magic or a disappearing act. He can save or change anything he wants. He can even rescue you from your worst enemy.
Now that's a super power that every story needs.
Prayer
God, it's not easy to understand how powerful you are because I've never seen you create things or change the earth. Help me believe in you and trust your power.
DAY 6
Anything Is Possible
The sun stopped in the middle of the sky and delayed going down about a full day. There has never been a day like it before or since, a day when the Lord listened to a human being. Surely the Lord was fighting for Israel!
(JOSHUA 10:13–14)
* * *
Every day the sun rises. Every day the sun sets. Even if it's cloudy, Earth still revolves through day and night. If Earth stopped spinning, one side of the world would be night all the time, and the other side would always be daytime. Can you imagine playing in the dark all the time? Or going to bed with the sun still shining through your windows?
Joshua got to see the earth stand still. God stopped it, so Joshua had plenty of sunlight to defeat his enemies. The people on the other side of the world must have wondered what happened!
The Bible is full of miraculous stories. God can do anything anytime. The Old Testament may seem like a book of fiction, but everything written in it is true. God can stop planets, part seas, make animals talk, and change the heart of any person. He does miraculous things for his glory, which means to show who he is and his power. With God, anything is possible.
Prayer
God, I've never seen a miracle or an amazing work like you did for people in Old Testament times. But I believe you are a powerful God, and I want to be on your side always.
(Continues...)
Excerpted from The Purpose Driven Life Devotional for Kids by Rick Warren. Copyright © 2015 Rick Warren. Excerpted by permission of ZONDERKIDS.
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Excerpts are provided by Dial-A-Book Inc. solely for the personal use of visitors to this web site.
