Teach Them Diligently to Your Children (and Grandchildren!)
“Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise.”
-Deuteronomy 6:4-7
“Let this be recorded for a generation to come, so that a people yet to be created may praise the Lord: that he looked down from his holy height; from heaven the Lord looked at the earth, to hear the groans of the prisoners, to set free those who were doomed to die, that they may declare in Zion the name of the Lord, and in Jerusalem his praise, when peoples gather together, and kingdoms, to worship the Lord.”
-Psalm 102:18-22
“Let the little children come to me and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of heaven.”
-Jesus (Matthew 19:14)
One of the greatest gifts that God gives children is parents who desire to teach them about who God is and what He has done to show them that He loves them. We live in a day where there is a wealth of resources to help parents teach their children about God’s gracious words and righteous works. And yet sometimes the amount of resources available can be overwhelming. There are too many to use them all. So, periodically, we (and Pastor Wooster in particular) like to recommend certain resources that we think are the best.
The purpose of this article is to do just that: to recommend a few resources that can help you point your children to the goodness, faithfulness, and steadfast love of God. You likely won’t use them all. But maybe one or two will jump out to you as ones you would like to use with your family (or your grandkids!). These are some of the favorites that my family has recently used.
The Biggest Story Bible Storybook
Kevin DeYoung has written an excellent collection of 104 stories from the Bible, fitting each story into the overarching story of redemption through Jesus. This Bible storybook is perfect for kids ages 6-12 with each story able to be read in a manageable time frame. Ideal for family worship, this book also has a website with many other resources related to it, including 4-minute videos of each story, coloring pages, and more.
Seeds Kids Worship
If you want your children to memorize Scripture that they will have with them for the rest of their lives, then you need to know about Seeds Kids Worship (formerly Seeds Family Worship). Seeds produces word-for-word Scripture songs for children. We love singing many of these songs around our house. They have physical CDs, songs on streaming services like Spotify, and videos with motions available on RightNow Media and YouTube.
The Corner Room
The Corner Room is another group that has produced word-for-word Scripture songs. They have three albums on the Psalms and a new album releasing soon on the Words of Jesus. Two of our families favorites are Psalm 46 and Psalm 100. Whereas Seeds Kids Worship songs are written particularly for kids, The Corner Room songs are written for Christians of all ages. Whereas Seeds Kids Worship songs are usually based on 1-2 verses, The Corner Room songs often cover larger groups of verses, including entire Psalms.
Whether using these resources or others, teaching your children to enjoy hearing and singing God’s Words is one of the greatest things you could ever pass on to them. So teach them diligently!