Livingstone Corporation - Revolution Devotional

YOUTH SPECIALTIES

Revolution Devotional
Copyright 2005 by The Livingstone Corporation

All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, down-loaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of Zondervan.

ePub Edition June 2009 ISBN: 0-310-86377-5

Youth Specialties products, 300 South Pierce Street, El Cajon, CA 92020, are published
by Zondervan, 5300 Patterson Avenue SE, Grand Rapids, MI 49530

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Revolution devotional : 90 daily devotions for guys / Livingstone.
p. cm.
ISBN-13: 978-0-310-26706-5
1. Teenage boys--Religious life--Juvenile literature. 2. Devotional calendars--Juvenile literature. I. Livingstone Corporation.

BV4541.3.R48 2005
242.632--dc22

2005024202

Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible: NewInternational Version (North American Edition). Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan.

Some of the anecdotal illustrations in this book are true to life and are included with the permission of the persons involved. All other illustrations are composites of real situations, and any resemblance to people living or dead is coincidental.

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any meanselectronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, or any otherexcept for brief quotations in printed reviews, without the prior permission of the publisher.

Web site addresses listed in this book were current at the time of publication. Please contact Youth Specialties via e-mail (YS@YouthSpecialties.com) to report URLs that are no longer operational and replacement URLs if available.

Produced with the assistance of (www.LivingstoneCorp.com).
Project staff includes Don Jones, Chris Hudson, and Randy Southern.

Creative team: Dave Urbanski, Heather Haggerty, Anna Hammond,
and SharpSeven Design
Cover design by Holly Sharp

06 07 08 09 10 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

Contents

Dear Reader,

Are you wondering if this book is worth your time? It is, if any of the following apply to you:

You...

Are looking for a daily devotional tool you can pick up and use right now.

Want to develop the habit of spending time with God every day.

Hope to see God grow your faith over the next 90 days.

Want God to sharpen your character.

Want to connect Gods Word to the real issues in your life.

Are looking for a cool companion product to Revolution: TheBible for Teen Guys.

Like to read something challenging for your devotions.

Did any of those apply to you? If so, read on...

The Revolution Devotional contains 90 devotions written specifically for teenage guys. Heres the set-up: The devotions are arranged in 12 topical sections. Check out the Contents page to get a quick idea of whats inside.

Each days devotion fills two pages. Youll read an opening verse, a devotion on a character trait or issue designed to challenge you to put what you read into practice today, a Bible passage, and a list of random entertaining/informative/ridiculous stuff.

Heres the deal: You can read the Bible til you pass out or lose your eyesight from staring at the little black text. You can read a devotional book every single day. But if it doesnt change how you live and who you are inside, then its a waste of your time. So the challenge is not only to make this devotional book a part of your daily routine but also to boldly live out what God wants you to do. This is the greatest adventure of your life.

So quit reading the lousy introduction page and start living!

A Genuine Relationship
with God

So in the course of time Hannah conceived and gave birth to a son.
She named him Samuel, saying, Because I asked the LORD for him.

1 Samuel 1:20

More than anything in the world, Hannah wanted a son. Unfortunately she wasnt able to get pregnant. So she did what any God-loving woman would do in her situation. She prayed about it. She took her troubles to God and begged him to help her.

Year after year after year.

Every chance she got, Hannah went to the house of the Lord to pray. As you might imagine, each year her prayers became a little more intense. She begged, pleaded, and cried for God to answer her. She vowed to dedicate her son to God if God would allow her to get pregnant. And in response, God finally gave her a son.

Hannah understood the value of constant prayer and worship. She never lost faith in God. She never stopped praising him. Maybe thats why God came through for her in such a big way.

Do you understand the value of prayer and worship in your life? Not just as a way to get the desires of your heart, but as a way to deepen your relationship with God?

Dont make the mistake of treating prayer like a drive-up window at a fast-food restaurant. Dont just place your order and then wait for God to fill it, expecting to get what you want and get it now. Instead work on developing a complete prayer and worship time with God.

And include more than just your requests in your private conversations with God. Praise him for who he is. Confess the things that have damaged your relationship with him. Thank him for the things hes done in your life. And when youre finished with those things, talk to him about your needs and desires.

It worked for Hannah. And it will work for you, too.

For the full story of how God rewarded Hannahs prayer of faith, check out 1 Samuel 1:1-28.

Weird Things People Have Prayed For

The following list is real. People actually admitted to praying for these things. What odd prayers could you add to it?

During football season, I pray every Sunday that the Bears will win and the Packers will lose.

When I was little, I used to pray for cartoon characters like the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and the X-Men.

I used to pray for lots of presents from Santa on Christmas.

This girl I liked was dating another guy, and I prayed shed break up with him.

When I was late for curfew one night, I prayed that God would turn back time so I wouldnt get in trouble.

I used to pray that God would give me Kevin Garnets basketball skills and give Garnet my skills.

After I bombed an English test, I prayed that God would burn the school down and destroy the evidence. I dont know why I didnt just pray for my test to get lost.