Trail Life Troop
NC-613
Devotional – Service to Country
Opening
- Today we learned about veterans who served our country honorably in the armed forces, now let’s see what the bible says about serving others.
- Read, or someone read the Teaching verse. FYI: The memory verse is further down
Romans 12:1 Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship.
Devotional
Big picture Service to God, Service to Country
- Q: When we say a military veteran has served his country, what do you think that means? (Give hints)
- Q: You may not have served your country, or been in the military, but has any of you served someone else recently? Maybe you served food to someone needy or maybe you raked a neighbor’s yard?
- There are many ways to serve people, it doesn’t have to be just military service to be considered serving others. But serving in the military is one of the best ways to serve others that a person can do. That’s why we are honoring veteran’s here today, for their service to all of us in this great nation of ours.
- Q: In the teaching verse, God is asking you and me to serve someone. Do you know who that someone is? (God!) That’s right! God is asking you to offer your life, your entire body, as a living sacrifice to Him, as an act of faithful service to Him. And not just a few years like in the military, but forever.
- That doesn’t mean you have to be killed to serve God. It means you do have to die to yourself, though.
- Dying to yourself means you give your life, completely, 100%, in total service to God. A LIVING SACRIFICE. That means you are alive, doing things, but giving up your right to run your life as you want so instead God calls all the shots in your life. When you do that, you are a living sacrifice to God.
- That’s the kind of service that is totally pleasing to God, when you offer yourself as a living sacrifice.
- Just like veteran’s have chosen to serve their country, Christians are in God’s armed forces when we serve God. You are in God’s army!
- Why should you be willing to be a living sacrifice for God? Because God is so merciful to all of us. For He saved us all on the Cross, and because of that, we should now serve Him gladly because His saving us from our sin and Satan. Be one of God’s armed forces, holy and pleasing to Him. You’ll be blessed!
Memory Verse #2
Ask if anybody knows it yet and can say it? Read it together 2X Consider having a memory verse pamphlet for kids take home.
Matthew 22: 37-39 "Love the Lord God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself."
Topical Questions
Romans 6:23 says “the wages of sin is death” yet God says if we die to ourselves and let Him live within us we will live forever in Heaven with Him. What Romans 6 is saying is God conquered sin and death. And, that without Jesus we are dead because of our sin nature, but if we believe in Him and His free gift of the gospel, then we will live forever free from sin, with God forever and ever.
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Do you see how service to God is needed?
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What is a way that you can serve God today?
Closing Prayer
Dear Father God, we thank You for all those serving our country NOW in the armed forces. We thank You for all those who DID serve in the military and made our country what it is today, the greatest country the world has ever known. Some even died while serving their country. They gave everything, even their life. Well, we can do that same thing too in God’s army. We pray that these boys will serve You Lord by being LIVING SACRIFICES to You. Give them strength to do so. In Jesus Christ’s name we pray. Amen!
