My First Message

Designed to encourage parent-child interaction, My First Message is a great devotional Bible for kids. It features phenomonal artwork (drawn by former Disney animators & animators from VeggieTales), is easily understandable (from Eugene Peterson's The Message), and helps little readers think about the stories in the Bible for themselves.
I am not a little jealous that this Bible was not around when I was little. I am so excited for my child to be able to use it though (it will be a while, the age range is for kids 4-8). Of the many features I like about it, some of the great distinctions it has with other kid's Bibles I've seen are:

• It does not gloss over the crucifixion - multiple pictures of Jesus on the cross and even carrying his cross. Many others either show only his feet while on the cross while telling the redemption story
• Equal pages given to both Old and New Testaments - many others tell more of the Old Testament stories and Jesus' life, but leave the rest of the NT letters alone
• It tells the story of Jesus driving out the money-changers from the temple. I think it is good for kids not to see only a "cuddly" Jesus, but a real portrait of his life & ministry.

I am very excited about this book and highly recommend it for parents and children's workers alike.

The Beginner's Bible

Every night I read out loud a story from The Beginner's Bible to my wife's stomach. We want to inundate our child with Scripture, and we're starting early! The Beginner's Bible is for ages 6 and under and puts the Bible in short manageable stories appropriate for that age group. It has over 90 stories from the Bible and fantastic illustrations of those stories.
I must say, though, that I am a bit conflicted with it. I do not know if I am over-reacting or too sensitive to this, but much of the Bible is PG-13, if not R & these stories are more harmless than G rating. Now, I realize that you might not want to tell 3 year old the story of Lot's drunkenness, or of the Levite's concubine, or Elisha & the bear, but no David & Bathsheba, Goliath "looks cuddly like a teddy bear" (my wife's words) on the cover and only showing the feet of Jesus on the cross, seems a bit odd. I want my kid to know how much Jesus loved him/her, by dying for us. I want them to know that Mommy and Daddy only love and are with one another.
In our culture which is over-sexed and focused on self-esteem, I want our kid to have a healthy knowledge of sex and a proper view of self, to say the least. I also want to start as early as possible to instill that in them. Now, mind you, I have never raised a child before. Am I totally off-base?
Overall, this is a good start for kids to hear certain stories of the Bible. I would much rather them reading stories from the Bible than the Wiggles (those guys creep me out). There is a whole line of board books from Zondervan which have stories from the Bible with the same illustrator as The Beginner's Bible. I plan to get all of them.

Your Child - DVD

It is a good thing my wife & I got a dog 3 years ago. He is a little black dachshund named Zeus and somebody (I am not going to say who) spoils him rotten. Discipline was never consistent & he does not listen until the 8th time you tell him "no". (He really is a good dog, he just has a mind of his own).
Anyway, expecting the arrival of our first child, we definitely know some of what not to do, and we know the importance of good discipline and healthy boundaries, but we did not know where to being with them.


The Your Child: Essentials of Discipline video seminar was so helpful. I had originally reviewed it for work, to be familiar with it, but was so impressed with it, that I picked up the home edition and my wife and I went through it. The overall premise of the curriculum is to give parents principles to develop a successful game plan for raising their child - especially in the area of discipline.
Dr. James Dobson leads 12 sessions of about 20 minutes in various aspects of theory and practice of discipline. To spank or not to spank, if so when? How do you keep from blowing up in anger when you kids will not listen? What is the proper balance between love and discipline? When are your kids being defiant & when are they just being kids? Moving through stages of childhood (from birth to adolescence), Dr. Dobson address these and other questions.

I really cannot stress how helpful this has been to my wife & me. We used the home edition, but I would also recommend the main curriculum kit which is ideal for small groups and parenting Sunday school classes, or ABFs. In our small group, we have a couple new first-time parents and in the brief time we spend talking to one another, we pick up helpful hints and also see other perspectives that we may not have come across otherwise. This would be a great tool to use in a group and will spark discussion, stimulate thinking and overall, will be very helpful.

Bringing Up Boys Kit

When I was associate pastor in California, one of the Sunday School classes for adults went through Dr. Dobson's Bringing Up Boys curriculum. I was not in on that, because I taught my own class & did not have any plans of having children in the near future. All the parents in that class raved about this seminar & so I recently decided to view it for myself.
The seminar is 12 sessions ranging from 35 to 70 minutes each and is based on Dr. Dobson's popular book of the same title. How the course works is when you meet, the group starts off with some pertinent icebreaker questions (provided) which tie in that segment's teaching. You then watch the video, which is Dr. Dobson leading the seminar for a large group at the Focus on the Family Headquarters in Colorado Springs. Dr. Dobson is a great communicator (this was the first I had heard him speak). He engages the listener with story and has many wise things to say. Then the group talks through the sessions together and discusses some of the teaching and how it relates to their own situations. There is also different questions for parents of elementary, preschool & adolescent boys.
Dr. Dobson's premise is that boys are a world apart than girls, & raising them takes on completely different strategies. He stresses the point that fathers are of vital importance to the upbringing of boys and that one major factors in the reason boys go wrong is the absence of a dad.
Also, Dr. Dobson points out the fact that some dads do not know how to relate to their boys because they are different from them (don't get into the same things, maybe more sensitive, etc.) and so they subtly disconnect. This has tremendous implications for how boys develop.
This seminar is very well done and I would recommend it to any parent of boys.

HEROES UNMASKED

What is your church doing October 31st?
Get families to your church with a great outreach. Heroes Unmasked is an excellent opportunity to connect with new families in your community.

Heroes Unmasked is the All-New, All-Fun, No-Fear Bible Adventure! Heroes Unmasked resources provide an easy way for your church to attract your community to an outreach event where all ages discover friendship with God. It provides tools & programming that helps turn a typical fall festival event into a “wow!” experience that reinforces biblical values. Heroes Unmasked is a blast - anytime of the year!

- Easy to recruit and set up
- Connect with new kids and families
- Reach your community--and grow your ministry
- Take fun up a notch
- Engage participants in the message of God's love


When families come tot he event, they pose for a free souvenier photo. Everyone will want this memorable keepsake.

You write down their contact information do you can send them their photo later (and be sure to invite them to your church!)




They;ll launch into easy-to-do games that teach them about Bible Heroes. Children from preschool through elementary can take on Goliath & discover they can be heroes for God.

Hand out more than candy - give the gospel message! Kids take home Bible Hero trading cards, goody bags, & other prizes that reinforce God's Word.



After having a blast & learning more about being a hero for God, families will leave happy.

You'll send them a special reminder of their time at Heroes Unmasked - their souvenier photo. This is where you can invite them to your church.



Pick up the kit here for 20% off!
Find out more information here.