Most seminary students are involved in teaching children in some venue or another. Many are husbands and fathers, and so are responsible for training their own children on a daily basis. Others are not, but are still involved in teaching children within the context of their local church. Although sometimes viewed as something less than real “ministry,” teaching children is a significant ministry opportunity in and of itself. It’s also a great training ground for learning about ministering to people of all ages and backgrounds.
Several years ago I stumbled upon a wonderful series of books for teaching children about church history. To date, Reformation Heritage Books has published nine volumes in the “Christian Biographies for Young Readers” series by Simonetta Carr. This series is designed to introduce children to key figures in the history of the Christian church. So far, volumes have covered well-known Christian leaders including Augustine, John Knox, and Jonathan Edwards as well as several lesser-known figures like Lady Jane Grey and Marie Durand. According to the CBFYR website, a book on Martin Luther is currently in the works (due out in early 2016).
The CBFYR series is aimed at children ages 7–12. The books are clear, engaging, and substantive enough to communicate meaningful information about some remarkable people who stood for Christ in a variety of historical circumstances. My own children love these books, and on numerous occasions I’ve come downstairs in the morning to find an early riser stretched out on the family room floor reading about Athanasius or one of the others. They’ve received the books as Christmas presents and on other special occasions, and each time they’ve been excited to devour the new volume.
If you are wondering why believers should be concerned about teaching church history to children, the author of this series has written a helpful post on that subject. Assuming you are convinced of the value of teaching children about church history and are looking for a tool that will help you introduce children to Christian servants of the past, I can think of no better series of books to help you accomplish that goal.
The CBFYR series is available through Amazon, CBD, and WTS Books among others. If you’re interested in seeing some of the artwork used in the books, you may want to watch the series trailer.
