Who’s Afraid of a Pink Jellybean?

Read: Psalms 27:1-6; 34:4; Isaiah 21:4; John 14:27

Madison giggled. She couldn’t help it. Her cousins Benjamin and Alex were visiting, and she was too excited to sleep.

“Shhh,” Benjamin whispered from his pallet of blankets on the living room floor.

Madison’s brother Andrew came bounding into the room wearing a blanket around his shoulders like a superhero cape. “What have I missed?” he asked loudly.

“Shhhhhhh!” said all the cousins.

Holding a flashlight up to his face, Benjamin began. “In a dark, dark galaxy, there was a dark, dark world. In the dark, dark world was a dark, dark mountain. On this dark, dark mountain was a dark, dark house. In this dark, dark house was a dark, dark closet. And in the dark, dark closet”—he paused dramatically—“was a pink jellybean!”

The cousins burst out laughing.

“See? That wasn’t scary,” Benjamin said as he turned off the flashlight.

Andrew lay down and stared at the ceiling. “I wonder if I wouldn’t have been so scared if I knew the ending was good.”

“Yeah,” said Madison. “I was fine once we got to the pink jellybean, but the not-knowing was a little freaky.”

Alex grinned. “Kind of like a Bible verse I read once that said something like, ‘My mind reels and horror overwhelms me.’”

Benjamin playfully punched Alex’s arm. “That is not a comforting thought.”

Madison sat up. “I’ll be right back.” She ran to the kitchen and returned with a magnet. “Look!”

“What does it say?” asked Andrew. “Shine your flashlight on it, Benjamin.”

Alex read, “The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The Lord is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?”

“Mom says she looks at it whenever she feels afraid of the unknown,” Madison told her cousins. “She says it reminds her that she has everything she needs because Jesus died to take the punishment for her sin. He saved her and is always with her, so why should she be scared?”

Andrew yawned. “I like that Bible verse much better than ‘My mind reels and horror overwhelms me’!”

“Me too,” said Benjamin, turning off the flashlight. “’Night, everyone.”

The cousins were almost asleep. Then, from across the room, Alex called out, “Is anybody else hungry for pink jellybeans?”

–Kelly Hope

How about you? Is there something you’re afraid of? Jesus promises that He will always be with those who trust in Him, so we don’t have to be afraid. Memorize Psalm 27:1. The next time you start to feel scared, say that Bible verse out loud. Remember that you don’t have to be afraid because Jesus saved you and will always help you.

Today’s key verse: The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The Lord is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid? Psalm 27:1 (NKJV)

Today’s key thought: Don’t be afraid