Your church's outreach to children and their parents are top-notch. The nursery and Sunday school classes are full and offer great faith-learning experiences. The daycare and parents-day-out services are thriving. But what if a child who's a part of your church family reveals his dog just died? Her mom and dad are divorcing? The family is moving to another city? These are pastoral (not programming) issues. Is your church prepared to be in ministry with children? To relate with children where ...

Let the Children Give provides adults the resources to demonstrate and teach a stewardship lifestyle to kids. Stewardship is more than a church committee assigned to raise money for the budget. Christians are expected to act as responsible caretakers of everything we've been given by God. All have abilities to accomplish this work, and the apostle Paul reminds us that everyone, including children, must work together. Each of us holds an important role in Christ's mission. "With our abilities ...

Open a new world of possibilities for your kids, where making a difference for others becomes a way of life! Growing Compassionate Kids illustrates practical everyday ways for parents to help children develop empathy and seek justice in the world. As one reviewer says, "This book is a wonderful antidote to both 'compassion fatigue' and the frustrations of Christian parenting in a selfish society." Jan Johnson, a well-known author who deals with Christian spirituality, helps moms and dads and ...

Today, we're increasingly disconnected from one another. Our mobile society, with its incessant busyness, creates a tragic break in relationships and diminishes the sense of community — even within families. Some parents communicate with their children by texting or calling them — inside their home! With all of the activities children are involved in — school, sports, music, camp, and others — spiritual nurture often gets neglected. "Spirituality makes persons look beyond themselves to the we...

The first place most of us experience God and learn the values that shape our lives is within the family. Is it any wonder, then, that all manner of current social ills are blamed on the disintegration of family life? Children need to see that the spiritual life is significant to their parents at home as well as at church. If your home life differs from the image you present at church, your kids will see faith as contrived and irrelevant. In this revised and expanded edition, Thompson suggest...