For Kids · 3 min with a grown-up
King Saul is afraid the night before a big battle - and this is a sad story about what happens when we stop listening to God.
Today's Story
It was the night before a huge battle, and King Saul was terrified. He looked out at the enemy army and his heart pounded with fear.
Saul wanted to know what would happen. He wanted to hear from God. But God felt far away and silent - and that was the saddest part of all.
You see, for years and years, Saul had been turning away from God. Little by little, he stopped listening, stopped obeying, stopped trusting. So now, on the scariest night of his life, talking to God felt like calling a friend he hadn't spoken to in a very long time.
Instead of turning back to God and saying sorry, Saul went looking for answers in a wrong place that God had warned His people to stay away from. And the message he found there only made him more afraid: the battle tomorrow would be very hard.
It's a sad story. But here is the good news tucked inside it: God is always ready for us to turn back to Him. No matter how far we've wandered, the door home is never locked. Saul forgot that - but we don't have to.
A Big Word
Talk About It
- Saul felt far from God because he had stopped listening over a long time. What are some ways we keep listening to God every day?
- When you've done something wrong, what makes it hard to say sorry and turn back?
- The good news is that God is always ready to welcome us back. How does it feel to know the door home is never locked?