Dear New Life in Christ Church Family,

One way I have been motivated and encouraged in my Christian walk is by reading gospel-oriented children’s books to my kids. Have you ever read John Bunyan’s classic Pilgrim’s Progress? Books like these make my case … they are so powerful because they communicate our faith in an interesting and heart-touching way. Now that I have babies again, I am reading more to my children and I’m finding great new books that both you and your children will benefit from.

One thing that is especially good about these books is that they help you show your children how Jesus helped you. One of the most important parts of sharing the gospel with your children is to demonstrate that you faced the same temptations they face, how you saw your own sin, and how you learned your own need of Jesus’ forgiving grace.

I’ll give a short description of seven books below, and I have given them all into our library, as of the sending out of this letter. We are very thankful for Angie Henriksen taking over leadership of the church library.

Each of these books are all beautifully illustrated and will help you talk about faith with your children.

Gus Loses His Grip: When You Want Something too Much by David Powlison - We all have our temptations, addictions, and idolatry. We want things more than we should, and we do things we shouldn’t just to have them, even if it means we need to break God’s law and hurt the people around us. We all need to reorient our desires around God’s Word. This beautifully illustrated book tells the story about young Gus learning this lesson, together with his dad.

Tori Comes out of Her Shell: When You Are Lonely by Jayne V. Clark - from the back cover of the book - "Tori the turtle moves to a new pond with her family and goes to a new school. During her first day, it seems like everyone has a friend except her. She is lonely and afraid of being rejected. But Tori's teacher, a skunk named Miss Minnick, reminds her that Jesus is always her friend. Tori Comes Out of Her Shell brings gospel help to children ages three to eight and biblical counsel to families experiencing loneliness. "

Jax’s Tail Twitches:When You are Angry by David Powlison - This one may hit close to home to an average parent, but both us and our children deal with flashes of anger, don’t we? This book gives a good and practical way to apply Psalm 103:8 - “The Lord is compassionate and merciful, slow to get angry and filled with unfailing love.” Both Jax and his dad learn how to move from anger to forgiveness and peace with others.

Why do we Say Good Night? By Champ Thornton - While children may be afraid of the dark and even resist going to bed, adults have their own fears and anxieties. The book reminds children that the Lord keeps them safe and they have a great protector in Jesus Christ. It is a nice and simple story that helps kids rest at night and adults to look to Jesus even when things are hard.

The Moon is Always Round by Jonathan Gibson - I’ve seen this one make grown men cry. Literally, I was at the PCA’s General Assembly and saw other elders casually reading this book until they got to the end and started to gently cry. It is the story of God’s faithfulness, even when a family suffers a great loss. Even though we see the moon in different phases, sometimes only being a crescent, other times being full, we know that the moon is always round. In the same way, even though we may experience suffering or loss, God is always faithful.

God Made All of Me: A Book to Help Children Protect Their Bodies by Justin and Lindsey Holcomb - As parents, we want our children to understand the sacredness of their bodies, but we have a hard time talking about some of the dangers they face. This book helps parents communicate important life lessons in gentle and loving ways.

God Made Me Unique: Helping Children See Value in Every Person by Joni and Friends - We want our children to see the value in every person, to take away some of the fear in the differences, and to befriend those with special needs. This book will help children to treat all people with kindness and respect.