Awesome God: Prayer & Fasting (Kids)Sample

[IMAGE CONTENT] DAY 4 | GOD IS FAIR AND JUST Imagine you have an exam coming up. You studied hard the whole week, and you know that one of your classmates wasn’t studying at all. During the exam, you saw your classmate cheating. Unfair, isn’t it? You studied hard to finish this test without cheating. And then when the results came out, you found out that you scored 85 out of 100, and your classmate, who cheated, got the highest score, 97 out of 100. How would you feel? Wouldn’t you be angry because it was unfair? The next day, the teacher called the attention of your classmate. Someone had seen and reported what happened, and it had been caught on camera. Now how would you feel? This is what justice is—everyone’s actions are fully known, and each action gets its proper consequence. But what about the people who don’t seem to be getting fair treatment? There may be a lot of questions in our head like, “Why do bad things happen to good people?” “Why are there people who are born poor?” “Why are there people who get away with crime?” Right now, life may seem so unfair. But God is just and is always working. We just have to trust him. God is fully good, just, and fair. What does this mean? God knows all everyone ever did; He defends the weak and rewards the righteous, and He does this even if we can’t see it right now. You and I are not perfect. We have also sinned and done wrong to others. But remember Jesus? God had sent His Son Jesus to the earth to die for everyone’s sins. He was perfectly righteous and did nothing wrong, but He suffered unjustly so that we may be “justified.” Being “justified” means we look righteous to God, meaning we look acceptable and innocent as if we have also done nothing wrong. Because of what Jesus did, we can be blameless if we welcome Him to our life as our Lord. This also means that because Jesus is just and good, we who follow Him are called to stand for what is right, be fair to others, and defend people we know who aren’t strong enough to defend themselves. > BECAUSE GOD IS JUST AND FAIR TO ME, EVEN GIVING ME MORE THAN I DESERVE, I CAN BE JUST AND FAIR TO OTHERS. Reflect 1\. What are some times that you feel you were being treated unfairly? Pray about this, and give these moments to God. Pray to forgive those who treated you unfairly. 2\. We are called to be God’s hands and feet to those in need. These could be people who are bullied, defenseless, poor, orphaned, or widowed. List some things you can do for those who are in need. (Examples: Share a meal with a sad sibling, write an encouraging note to a classmate.) Pray Dear God, thank You for being just and, at the same time, loving. Because You love us so much, you made a way for us to be righteous, even if we can never be perfect. As I continue to know You in a deeper way, help me to also start caring about others. Help me be Your hands and feet so Your love can be felt in this world full of injustice. In Jesus’s name, amen.