Helpful Books and Guides For Parents and Children
Being a parent is so much more than helping to make and then delivering a baby. That really is an easy and fun part. But then comes all the work. There is so much involved from changing diapers, proper feedings, learning to care for them, more learning if they have special needs, protecting them from touchy people at the grocery store and so on. The MOST important thing is their salvation though. If they were to die, would they go to Heaven? You are the guardian of their little soul until they are old enough to take on that responsibility themselves. You are actually a teacher and role model to your impressionable, precious, perfect, little you. They see and hear everything, and you can't fool them at all. Don't tell them they can't watch something because it's bad and then sit there and watch it yourself, because they see you doing it and they call you on it. They are smart cookies :-).
I am so sad that I waited so long to talk about God, Jesus, and the Bible, with my oldest son. It didn't help that I didnt have my life right with God at the time he was born. I feel like so much time was wasted. I'm so glad I saw the error of my ways, and started doing devotions with him. I had been searching frantically for books to read to him, and I'm glad I found these.
Although I was wrong for waiting so long, and I felt guilty and ashamed, if I wouldn't have just started fresh, everything would've just gotten worse. I rededicated my life to God and started changing things. Now, years later, all of my children are slowly growing, instead of me having four children that didint know about God. If you can relate to this, I would like to encourage you to ask forgiveness for the past and start making things right RIGHT NOW. I am thankful that God gives second (third, and so on) chances.
God's Great News for Children: Leading Your Child to Christ, by Rick Osborne & Marnie Wooding
I really like this book. My son likes it too so that is a plus. The writing is easy to follow and there are nice big pictures.
Product Description: God's Great News for Children includes 17 Bible stories that tell the gospel message. Beautiful illustrations and personal application questions for each story help adults lead a child to Christ. The large 8 x 10 hardcover format makes it easy to read aloud with your child or in a group setting. A salvation prayer is included for adults and children to pray together along with a certificate to document the child's acceptance of Christ. A new book from Heritage Builders and Focus on the Family to help parents pass on a personal faith to their children.
Parent's Guide to the Spiritual Growth of Children by John Trent, Rick Osborne, and Kurt Bruner
This book is a MUST HAVE for every family. I think it is the coolest. It's all about how to lead your child to Christ. It is so full of information and is easy to understand. There are breakdowns for different age groups (0-4, 5-6, 7-9, & 10-12), questions with answers, ideas for meal time, bed time, drive time, holidays, and more. It's over 400 pages and is a great reference book!
Product Description: This lead product in the Heritage Builders ministry from Focus on the Family provides parents with a resource to help their children develop a personal faith. The book provides an overview of children's spiritual capacity and understanding at different age levels. It also includes practical advice to help parents be the spiritual "trainers" of their children through engaging activities, exercises, and projects that can be completed individually or as a family.
