Family Devotion - "Don't get burned by peer pressure"

Big Idea: I won't bow to peer pressure!
Power Verse: "Don't copy the behaviors and customs of this world." Romans 12:2

For this devotion, you will need some toothpicks, a small cup of peanut butter, and a small ball of Playdoh or clay, or a cup of very firmly packed soil.

Ask your children to tell you what they learned about Shadrach,Meshach, and Abednego this week (Daniel 3). Discuss the following questions:
• What did Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego do that made the king mad?
• Why wouldn’t they obey his order?
• Did they know God would deliver them from the fire if they were thrown in?

Explain to your children that Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego were experiencing peer pressure. Ask your children to tell you what peer pressure means. Help them understand that there will always be people who will pressure or push them to do wrong things. Emphasize that even though it might be hard to resist the pressure, God is always there to help us.

Place a few toothpicks deep in the peanut butter, and ask your children to gently push the toothpicks. Then place a few more toothpicks deep in the Playdoh, clay, or soil, and ask your children to gently push on those toothpicks, too. Ask them which is harder to push over. Then explain to your children that as our relationship with God grows more solid, the harder it is for people to push us to do the wrong thing. And when people see that we aren’t going to bow to peer pressure, they’ll want to know what’s different about us, which gives us a great opportunity to tell them about Christ.

Pray with your children, asking God to deepen your relationship with Him. Pray that He will give all of you the strength to stand up under any peer pressure you’re experiencing.