Moms of pre-teen and teen daughters often feel like they’re embarking into uncharted waters.  They want to keep the lines of communication open and help their girls learn to depend on God.  However, they don’t know where to begin.  

After more than ten years of mentoring teen girls, I am cautiously inching closer to the teen years with my own daughter.  When she asked me to write a mother-daughter devotional book with her last winter, I said yes without hesitating.  I saw it as a valuable opportunity to connect and talk about faith. 

Eight months later, I am thrilled to announce that 12-year-old Bekah and I just published our mother-daughter devotional book.  It’s called Girl to Girl: 60 Mother-Daughter Devotions for a Closer Relationship and Deeper Faith. 

Our vision is that this book will help foster strong mother-daughter relationships, prompt deeper conversations, and help women of all ages connect with God in fresh ways.

Today, we’re excited to share a sample devotion written in the same format as each devotion in the book!

Mother Daughter Devotional: Loving God With All Your Heart

“Love the Lord your God and keep his requirements, his decrees, his laws and his commands always”

Deuteronomy 11:1

Mom’s Thoughts:

Have you ever heard the expression, “She has a full plate”?  We usually talk about having a “full plate” in terms of a life that is busy and filled with commitments.  You probably know how it feels to have a full plate.  

Take a moment to consider your “plate.”  Your plate is filled with everything you do throughout the average week: family commitments, spending time with friends, school, homework, after-school activities, and more.  Hopefully, Jesus is somewhere on this plate as well.  If you’re reading these words today, there’s a good chance He is!  

Let us begin by saying that we’re so glad Jesus is on your plate.  This is a great start.  However, we have a challenge for you today.

You might expect us to challenge you to view Jesus as the main course on the plate of your life.  Instead, we have a radical suggestion: Don’t view Jesus as the main course on the plate of your life; instead, ask him to undergird every part of your life, and remind yourself Jesus is the plate holding your world together. 

Jesus wants to be your foundation.  He wants to be the uniting force upholding everything you undertake.  

Scripture tells us that the most important command is to love God with all our strength.  Have you ever wondered how to give God every ounce of your love while also loving your friends, family, and the many people in your life?  

The image of a full plate can help us understand what it looks like to love God with our whole hearts while also loving the people he places in front of us.  When a loving relationship with God is the foundation for our lives, we become his vessels.  The love we pour onto others is no longer our own human love; instead, it is the overflow of the love God first offered us.

Here’s the most beautiful aspect of this imagery: The more you love God, the greater your capacity for loving others will become.  God wants to be the source of the love you carry to others.  Make him the foundation of your life, and he will equip you to be his vessel of love to the world around you.

Girl to Girl : 

God wants you to love him in everything you do!

How do you do this?  It might sound stressful or hard, but it’s actually much easier than you might expect.  You show love to God by simply praying to him.  The best news is that you can pray to him any time—anywhere!  

Imagine talking to him while eating breakfast, before you get on the bus, when you go to school, and when you feel stressed.  Tell him what’s on your mind and talk to him.  Thank him for the good things that happen and ask him to help you with the tough things.  

There are many ways to love God but talking to him all day long is a great place to start!  This is how you invite him into everything you do!

Talk About It:

• Take a few minutes and envision a plate representing your life.  What activities and commitments fill your plate?  

• How does your perspective change when you imagine Jesus as the foundation for everything you do—the plate holding your world together?  

• What could you do to remind yourself to talk to Jesus more often throughout the day?

Mother-Daughter Prayer Together:

Jesus, thank you for your desire to hold our lives together.  Help us to invite you into every part of our lives as we learn to talk to you the way we would talk to a close friend.  We want to love you with our whole hearts while also carrying your love to the world around us.  Amen.

Journal Later:

What is your favorite part of the week?  Do you especially enjoy a specific activity or a certain day of the week?  What makes this your favorite part of the week?  How could you add Jesus into this activity?

Ultimate List of Free Devotions for Youth

By: Stacey and Bekah Pardoe

For 60 devotions similar to this one, check out Girl to Girl, our mother-daughter devotional book, here!  This book makes a life-changing Christmas gift for the moms and daughters you love!  It’s also a great resource for grandmas to read with granddaughters or older women to read with younger women.   

Each devotion in the book includes a Bible verse, a commentary from me, a commentary from Bekah, several discussion questions, a prayer, and a journaling section where mom and daughter can journal later.  We love passing a shared journal back and forth and hope this blesses moms and daughters who read our book too!You can also check out our Girl to Girl blog right here!