Not Sugar

Bible Reading: Isaiah 5:20-21

Marcus watched as Jayla placed a cake in the oven to bake. “I’ll clean the bowl,” he offered, licking his lips.

“Nope.” Jayla quickly ran water into the bowl. “Raw batter isn’t good for you. You’ll have to wait till the cake is done.”

But when the cake was done, it did not look good. “I’ll try it,” said Marcus. He cut out a small piece. “Yuck! Not even frosting will help that!”

Jayla tried the cake and made a face. “What’s going on?” Dad asked as he and Mom came in from the garage.

“Jayla’s cake tastes funny,” said Marcus.

Dad startled at the sight of the sugar canister sitting on the counter. “Oh no! It’s my fault, Jayla—I’m so sorry. Yesterday I picked up a few groceries. When I got home, a box of salt was leaking. The sugar canister was empty, so I poured the salt into it. Then my phone rang and I forgot all about it.”

“See? You should have let me clean the bowl,” said Marcus. “Then we would have known your cake wasn’t good before you baked it!”

“Does this remind anybody of Pastor Holt’s message last week?” Mom asked. “He talked about the verse in Isaiah where people said evil was good and bitter was sweet, remember?”

“Yeah,” Jayla said. “Kind of like how the label on the canister said its contents were sweet, but they sure weren’t!”

“At least you can bake a new cake,” said Dad. “If people say something is good when God says it’s evil, that’s much more serious.”

“Like…what sort of things might they say?” Jayla asked.

“Well, how about if someone says we can do whatever we want as long as we’re true to ourselves?” Mom said.

“That’s calling evil good, isn’t it?” said Marcus.

“Yes,” said Mom. “In the Bible, God says He sets the standard of right and wrong. We need to live according to His truth, not our own feelings and desires.”

“Some kids say being a Christian just means you think you’re better than everyone else,” said Jayla. “It’s saying that something good is evil.”

Dad nodded. “Even though Christians aren’t perfect, Jesus has saved us and is working in our lives so others can see His love through us. And that’s a very

good thing!”

-Linda Weddle

How About You?

Do you know which things God says are good and which He says are evil? In today’s world, many people try to make good sound evil and evil sound good. That’s why it’s important to use the truth of God’s Word as the standard for your life. Listen to what God says in the Bible, and trust Him to help you live out His truth and love.

Today’s Key Verse: Isaiah 5:20 (NKJV) Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil.

Today’s Key Thought:

Follow God’s standards