Dear Friend,

As we think of all that the Lord Jesus has done for us, we want to love Him with all our heart. This brings joy to the Lord's heart.

Another way we can bring joy to His heart is by obeying Him. Jesus said, "If you love Me, keep My commandments" (John 14:15). Let us think about how we obey the Lord Jesus.

In His Word, the Lord tells us things that we should not do. The Bible says, "You shall not steal" (Exodus 20:15). You may be tempted to steal. There are so many things that you would like to have. It is easy to think, "No one will see me." But the Lord Jesus sees and knows all things. When we steal, we are disobeying the Lord.

The Bible says, "Lie not one to another…" (Colossians 3:9). This is a command that we all can understand. God hates lying lips! If we tell lies, we are not obeying the Lord Jesus.

The Lord not only tells us the things that we should not do, but He also tells us things that we should do. The Bible says, "Be kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake has forgiven you" (Ephesians 4:32). God has forgiven us of all our sins, so we must forgive others.

The Lord not only speaks to us in His Word, but He also speaks to us in our heart. We do not actually hear a voice, but we know, deep down in our heart, when we do something wrong.

Have you ever cheated in school? If you have, how did you feel in your heart? You did not feel good because the gentle voice of the Lord Jesus was telling you that it is wrong to cheat. Cheating is stealing information that does not belong to you.

When you are in doubt about doing something, ask yourself this question: "Would Jesus want me to do this?" If you think that He does not want you to do it, don't do it! If it is right for you to do it, the Lord Jesus will help you to know it is the right thing to do.

Just before the Lord Jesus went back to Heaven, He said to His disciples, "All power [authority] is given to Me in heaven and in earth" (Matthew 28:18).

What does the word "authority" mean? Authority is the right to be obeyed. If someone has the right to be obeyed, what should we do? We should obey them!

The Lord Jesus has all authority in Heaven and on earth. This means that He has the right to be obeyed by every person. But the Lord Jesus does not come down here and tell each of us what we should do all day long. Instead, He puts people here to represent His authority.

For example, the Lord Jesus puts parents in the home to represent His authority. When you obey your parents, you are obeying the Lord Jesus, and when you disobey them, you are disobeying the Lord. The Bible says, "Children, obey your parents in the Lord: for this is right" (Ephesians 6:1).

Sometimes boys and girls grumble and argue when their parents tell them to do something. This is not pleasing to the Lord.

We please the Lord when we obey the right way. The right way to obey those God puts over us involves three things:

1. Do what you are told to do,

2. When you are told to do it,

3. With a good attitude.

There are other places besides our home where the Lord puts people in authority over us. In the school, it is the principal who represents the Lord's authority. When you obey the principal, you are obeying the Lord. When you disobey the principal, you are disobeying the Lord.

In the classroom, the teacher represents the authority of the Lord Jesus. The way you treat your teacher is the way you treat the Lord. When you obey your teacher, you are obeying the Lord. When you disobey your teacher, you are disobeying the Lord. If you talk ugly to your teacher, it is like talking ugly to the Lord.

It is easy to say, "I love the Lord and I want to please Him," but the test of my love is this: Am I obeying the Lord? Am I obeying those whom the Lord puts over me? Am I obeying the Lord in the way that pleases Him?

If the Lord has shown you that your attitude has not been right, will you choose to obey Him in the way that pleases Him? Begin to do this now in your home and school. You will see that the Lord will bless you. Jesus said, "If you know these things, happy are you if you do them" (John 13:17).

The story so far…

Steven's buddy Pete seems to be the center of a camp mystery. The four friends want to talk to the camp director.

Chapter 8
The Corner Store

Before the girls were able to ask any more questions, the boys disappeared through the woods.

"I hope Pete will not have to leave camp because of this," Maria said with concern. "I don't think he has asked Jesus to be his Savior. Maybe Mr. Douglas will help him do that."

The girls got to their feet and ran toward the dining hall.

It was not until the next morning that Maria and Susan saw Steven and Randy again. "Where were you last night?" asked Maria.

Steven began to explain, "We did not see Mr. Douglas, but we found Mr. Ken. We told him everything. He will be telling Mr. Douglas about this. He was very concerned.

"We also learned that the old man we saw is Mr. Patrick. He will be playing his violin for us. He has played here at camp many times before. If Mr. Douglas needs more information, he will be calling us into his office. I hope it will not be during craft time, because I want to finish Dad's wallet.

"I hope he will like it. I am putting the words 'God loves you' on the back of the wallet."

"Yes, I know he will like it very much, especially because it is hand-made by you. He needs something to make him happy," Maria said.

"Wow! Things are sure getting exciting around here. I never thought we would be part of a mystery at camp," Susan said, shaking her head. "We have to hurry to get to the morning meeting in time. Let us know what happens next."

Later that morning the girls were working hard on their craft projects when Miss Marion came to them and said, "You two girls have worked so well on your projects that you are farther ahead than some of the others. Could you go to the corner store for me? I thought I had enough supplies for the week, but we ran out of some."

Maria and Susan liked Miss Marion and were delighted to be able to do something special for her. They took the list she handed them and ran quickly to the corner store near the entrance gate. They had stopped at the partially opened door to catch their breath when they heard adult voices talking inside.

"We have been missing beads, pens, comic books, things like that since the very first day of camp," said a man.

"The strange thing is that we have not seen many kids in the store. But we will watch each one carefully now."

Susan stared at Maria with wide eyes and whispered, "Things are getting more mysterious all the time. I think we should not go in, but run back to camp."

Maria grabbed Susan's arm and said, "We have to get the supplies for Miss Marion. We are not doing anything wrong. Come on, Susan, I am sure it is okay to go inside." The girls slowly pushed the door open and walked into the store.

"Hello, girls, can I help you?" asked a smiling lady behind the counter.

"Yes, thank you," Maria answered nervously, as she handed her the list from Miss Marion. "Our craft teacher, Miss Marion, asked us to get these supplies for our projects."

The lady looked at the list for a moment. "I will have to go to the back for these items. They are the things that have been disappearing. I will be right back," said the lady as she walked away shaking her head.

The lady returned with some boxes of supplies. "I found some unopened boxes in the back of the store room. I think the thread and beads should be enough for the rest of the week."

"Thank you very much," Maria and Susan said almost at the same time. Then they hurried out the door and back to their craft projects.

At the crafts room door Maria said to Susan, "We only have a few minutes left for crafts. I think we should then go to Mr. Douglas and tell him what we heard at the store."

Susan nodded as they went into the crafts room and gave Miss Marion the supplies. They both worked quietly, thinking about what had happened at the corner store.

As soon as craft time ended, Maria and Susan were on their way to see Mr. Douglas. When they arrived they were surprised to see Steven and Randy in Mr. Douglas' office.

Steven explained to Mr. Douglas that Maria was his sister and that the girls knew about the strange happenings at camp.

Mr. Douglas pulled extra chairs into his office. He asked the girls to share what they knew about Pete and the items some of the campers had purchased during the past few days.

Maria and Susan told him in detail what they had heard in the corner store that afternoon. Mr. Douglas listened very carefully with a troubled face. Steven and Randy sat and listened in awe.

"Thank you," said Mr. Douglas. "You have helped explain some things that have become a great concern to the camp staff. I never thought anything like this could happen at Camp Good Hope."

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