Teach Your Children Well: A Step-by-Step Guide for Family Discipleship

Ministry trainer Johnson debuts with an accessible and friendly guide to helping parents instill in their children a lifelong love of Christ. Citing research that found 50% of high school students actively involved in their churches lose their faith after graduation, Johnson emphasizes the need for parents to “guide our children into an adult relationship with Jesus” and provides advice on how to do so. She urges parents to look for moments when God appears to be “trying to get our attention”—which might take the form of a dream, revelation, or anxiety—and use them as opportunities to talk with children about God. Johnson encourages “proactive discipleship” that involves creating “consistent, deliberate spiritual practices” for children and taking Jesus as a role model. She proffers suggestions for what this might look like at different stages of a child’s development, such as bringing toddlers to church services and asking older children for prayer requests during breakfast. The prose is companionable but authoritative and offers realistic and winsome ways to affirm kids in their faith. This is an ideal program for parents looking for straightforward strategies to usher children into their own relationships with Jesus. (Aug.)