Bring it Home: Recommended Books
"The best of the church are none too good for this work. Do not think because you have other service to do that therefore you should take no interest in this form of holy work, but kindly, according to your opportunities, stand ready to help the little ones, and to cheer those whose chief calling is to attend to them."
C. H. Spurgeon
Raising Godly Children
It is the precious work of every God fearing family to raise their children to know Jesus. The truth is that every child begins life in the same place we did; sinful and in need of a savior. We as christian parents should make it our greatest effort in life to introduce our children to our God and savior Jesus.
The list below is a list of helpful books for parents to use as resources as we disciple our children.
(This list is not exhaustive. We need your help to keep building it. If you have a recommendation that is not on this list, leave a comment and we would love to check it out. Also check out our Recommend Books Page at JustBringitHome)
FREE
It's over 100 years since JC Ryle wrote Duties for Parents, but even today his exhortations help challenge parents to point their children to Christ. This version, in modern English, is designed to help a new generation of parents understand the importance of a loving, caring, and godly home, not without discipline but where children come to know and understand God for themselves. This timeless Bible teaching from Ryle has been described by many as one of the best resources for parents, outside of the Bible.
Come Ye Children -C. H. Spurgeon
Training children in the ways of Jesus might seem a daunting and thankless task. But you do not need to feel that way. Charles Spurgeon (1834-1892) delivers encouragement and practical advice to those who struggle to know if they are properly shaping young children for the Lord. This book is a must-read for parents, youth pastors, youth leaders, or anyone who wants to understand in greater detail about the important task God has in store.
Household Gospel- Matthew Sims
In Scripture, parents are instructed to teach their kids how to love God and saturate their home with the gospel (Deut 4:9, 6:1-7; Eph 6:104). Husbands and wives are commanded to mirror Jesus in their marriages (Eph 5:22-33). We understand these commands in light of the gospel—in light of Jesus Christ (2 Cor 4:6). Jesus is the hero of our families.
That’s what A Household Gospel is about. It’s ordinary means rooted in an extraordinary gospel. It’s about starting the great commission in our homes. It’s about rehearsing the gospel story when we sit to eat, lay down to sleep, rise up in the morning, and everywhere in between.
Children to be Educated for Christ- Edward W. Hooker
There is need of an appeal to Christian parents, in view of the present condition of the world. You give your prayers and a portion of your money. But, as said the Christian already quoted, “What affectionate parent does not love his children more than his money? And why should not these living treasures be given to Christ?” This seeking our own, “not the things which are Jesus Christ’s” (Phi 2:21), must cease if the world is ever to be converted. We must act, and teach our children to act, more faithfully according to that Scripture, “He died for all, that they which live 4 should not henceforth live unto themselves, but unto him which died for them and rose again” (2Co 5:15).
You can hand over any job that you have as a parent. Shopping for your kids. Child-proofing your house. Taking care of your crying kid in the night. Teaching your teen manners. Maybe even throwing birthday parties. At first glance this seems odd - outsourcing crucial roles of parenting.
But the reality is that many of us do this with the spiritual lives of our children. We rely on somebody else to be the primary spiritual nurturers of our children. As parents, we need to be discipling our children as we go about our lives.
"Every Christian family ought to be as it were a little church." - Jonathan Edwards
Teach your Children the Bible- Thomas Purifoy
A short booklet that provides practical advice on how to teach children to know the Bible.
It provides simple steps to ensure that children are given a strong foundation of Biblical knowledge and understanding.
How to Raise Your Children for Christ- Andrew Murray
This book is a plea for the parents to truly know and walk with God – for them to love God and His Word. In the correct order, focusing first on the parents, Andrew Murray then urges parents to sincerely and consistently love their children and in all tenderness and gentleness teach them as God also teaches us.We can and must exercise faith, so our children and our children's children will be able to impact the world for Christ and inherit eternal blessings.
Devotionals
Bible Story Questions- Norlan De Groot
Bible Story Questions Series is a tool to help families study the Bible together. Each lesson focuses on a short Bible passage to read from your own Bible. The lesson is then divided into four sections: a main thought and three sets of questions corresponding to the head, heart, and hands. The intent it to provide tools for the parent to set the passage in context and also to analyze it according to the traditional theological concepts of knowledge, piety, and practice.
Making Him Known Series- Sally Michael & Jill Nelson
These family devotionals from the Making Him Known series by Sally Michael and Jill Nelson are a perfect gift for families. Children of all ages will enjoy reading and re-reading these stories. Each book contains 26 chapters with suggestions for application and family activities and contains full-color artwork.
Long Story Short & Old Story New-Marty Machowski
Christian parents know the importance of passing the gospel story on to their children, yet we live in a busy world filled with distractions. Schedules collide, there is homework and yard work and dishes and laundry, the car's oil should be changed, there are phone calls to make and before you know it, everyone is getting to bed late again.
The Bible can seem like an old and long story for an active family to read, but when you break it down into short sections, as Marty Machowski does, family devotions are easy to do. Long Story Short and Old Story New will help busy parents share with their children how every story in the entire Bible points forward to God's story of salvation through Jesus Christ.
Every parent wants to see their children make good choices, grow in wisdom, and learn how to live a God-honoring life. But Christian parents know that teaching good morals isn’t enough. Kids (and adults) need gospel power in order to “wise up!” Wise Up will help make learning the truths of Proverbs fun and memorable for first- to sixth-grade kids as it points them to the true wisdom that is only found in Christ.
Wise Up offers families an easy-to-use, gospel-focused resource that can be successfully completed in just ten minutes a day, five days per week. Each session features Bible reading, discussion questions, a fun activity, and a song to make the study memorable for everyone in the family.
Thoughts that Make Your Heart Sing- Sally Lloyd- Jones
Thoughts to Make Your Heart Sing shares profound spiritual truths from the Bible told in a conversational tone—drawing insights from creation, history, science,the writings of great thinkers and preachers and writers, and more—to turn the reader’s eyes toward the God who loves them with a Never Stopping, Never Giving Up, Unbreaking, Always and Forever Love.
Perfect for family devotions, bedtime, or story time.
Take 33 key theological concepts Select 1 Westminster Confession of Faith Blend in 3 weekly readings (Season with Scripture & discussion questions) Allow to rise — Christianity’s big beliefs in 99 brief family devotional servings. As parents, we have the wonderful privilege of watching our children start to grasp the precious truths of Scripture. Big Beliefs! breaks these truths into manageable portions for family instruction, helping your children to grow in the knowledge of vital Christian teachings.
Big Truths for Young Hearts- Bruce A. Ware
With Big Truths for Young Hearts, Bruce Ware, (you guessed it!) a theology professor, encourages and enables parents of children 6-14 years of age to teach through the whole of systematic theology at a level their children can understand. Parents can teach their children the great truths of the faith and shape their worldviews early, based on these truths.
The book covers ten topics of systematic theology, devoting several brief chapters to each subject, making it possible for parents to read one chapter per day with their children. With this non-intimidating format, parents will be emboldened to be their children's primary faith trainers-and perhaps learn a few things themselves along the way.
Parenting
Shepherding a Child's Heart- Tedd Tripp
Shepherding a Child's Heart is about how to speak to the heart of your child. The things your child does and says flow from the heart. Luke 6:45 puts it this way: "...out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks." Written for parents with children of any age, this insightful book provides perspectives and procedures for shepherding your child's heart into the paths of life.
In this life-giving book, Paul Tripp offers parents much more than a to-do list. Instead, he presents us with a big-picture view of God’s plan for us as parents. Outlining fourteen foundational principles centered on the gospel, he shows that we need more than the latest parenting strategy or list of techniques. Rather, we need the rescuing grace of God—grace that has the power to shape how we view everything we do as parents.
Freed from the burden of trying to manufacture life-change in our children’s hearts, we can embrace a grand perspective of parenting overflowing with vision, purpose, and joy.
Parenting By the Book- John Rosemond
Any parent who so desires can grow children who fit this description -- happy, emotionally healthy children who honor their parents and their families with good behavior and do their best in school. In the 1960s, American parents stopped listening to their elders when it came to child rearing and began listening instead to professional experts. Since then, raising children has become fraught with anxiety, stress, and frustration. The solution, says John, lies in raising children according to biblical principles, the same principles that guided parents successfully for hundreds of years. They worked then, and they still work now!
Missional Motherhood- Gloria Furman
Despite the routine tasks and mundane to-do lists, motherhood is anything but insignificant. God has designed motherhood as part of his greater plan to draw people to himself—instilling all women, whether called to traditional mothering or not, with an eternal purpose in nurturing others.
In this book, Gloria Furman searches the Scriptures for the mission of God in motherhood. She opens our eyes to God's life-giving promises—promises intended to empower each and every woman as she makes disciples in her home, in her neighborhood, and around the world.
Treasuring Christ when Your Hands are Full- Gloria Furman
Motherhood is tough, and it often feels like the to-do list just gets longer and longer every day—making it hard to experience true joy in God, our children, and the gospel.
In this encouraging book for frazzled moms, Gloria Furman helps us reorient our vision of motherhood around what the Bible teaches. Showing how to pursue a vibrant relationship with God—even when discouragement sets in and the laundry still needs to be washed—this book will help you treasure Christ more deeply no matter how busy you are.
Ministry of Motherhood- Sally Clarkson
A mother’s day is packed with a multitude of tasks that require energy and time: preparing meals, washing clothes, straightening and cleaning the house, and caring for children. These jobs all are necessary and crucially important. But in the dailyness of providing for a child’ s physical, emotional, and social needs, vital opportunities for spiritual nurture and training can be overlooked
Using biblical wisdom and practical teachings, Sally Clarkson shows how you can make a lasting difference in your child’s life by following the pattern Christ.
The Excellent Wife- Martha Peace
Here is a scripturally based blueprint for the woman who truly desires to be the wife God intended her to be. This book is based on Proverbs 31:10: An excellent wife, who can find? For her worth is far above jewels." Thousands of women have already discovered the worth of this volume and testify to lives and marriages changed because of a commitment to the principles presented here. If this is a commitment you have made, or want to make, The Excellent Wife answers the difficult questions facing you today.
The Exemplary Husband- Stuart Scott
God ordained marriage between a man and a woman for companionship, procreatioin, and so man would have a "helper suitable." However, God says much more in the Bible about husbands loving their wives than He says about wives submitting to their husbands. He created marriage to be a picture of the relationship between Christ and the Church. Christ was willing to sacrifice His life for the Church, and God expects no less from husbands today. The overall purpose of "The Exemplary Husband" is to assist husbands toward purposeful and lasting Christlikeness for the glory of God.
Family Shepherds- Voddie Baucham
God has mandated the transfer of his truth from one generation to the next. Because this transfer takes place primarily in the home, Voddie Baucham Jr. seeks to guide men in faithfully shepherding their families.
Derived from Baucham’s monthly meetings with men in his church, Family Shepherds calls men to accountability for their God-given responsibilities as husbands and fathers. This book will inspire them to live better, love better, and lead better so that their families will thrive in every way.
What He must Be- Voddie Baucham
All parents want their daughters to marry godly young men. But which qualities, specifically, should they be looking for?
What will you say when that certain young man sits down in your living room, sweaty-palmed and tongue-tied, and asks your permission to marry your daughter? What criteria should he meet before the two of them join together for life? What He Must Be… If He Wants to Marry My Daughter outlines ten qualities parents should look for in a son-in-law, including trustworthiness, a willingness to lead his family, an understanding of his wife's role, and various spiritual leadership qualities.
Being a Dad Who Leads- John MacArthur
As a Christian father, you bear a tremendous responsibility―to raise your children through both biblical instruction and personal example. But how can you succeed in a society that attacks the role of fatherhood and godly family values? Are you sometimes tempted to give in or give up?
The rewards of being a dad who leads are well worth making the effort to stand firm. The Bible offers clear guidance for dads on how to parent effectively. Commit yourself to being a dad who leads, and God will enable you every step of the way. There’s no surer path to experiencing a lifetime of family blessings!
The rewards of being a brave dad are great. But no guts, no glory. First you have to be willing to follow God's job description for dads as given in the Bible. In Brave Dad you'll receive guidance on...
When you commit yourself to being a brave dad, God will help you every step of the way. There is no surer path to a lifetime of family blessings!
Legacy: Every man leaves one. Lawson shows fathers how to be sure they're leaving the right one. He takes today's dads on a step-by-step journey through the ten essential biblical values that men are called to instill in their families. From the legacies of godliness and obedience to strength and discipline, men will learn how to ensure their spiritual legacy pays rich dividends into eternity. Drawing upon personal stories and other examples, Lawson puts the irresistible challenge to Christian men to begin today to revolutionize their families for generations to come.
The earthly crisis within manhood will be there until Jesus returns, but in Christ men are pointed toward the gospel as the vision for renewal. Manhood Restored by exciting new pastoral voice Eric Mason combines theological depth with practical insights, putting men in step with a gospel-centered manhood that will enrich every facet of their lives. Mason begins with The Scope of Manhood -- looking first at why God created man, at the divine differences between man and woman, and what should drive the purpose of a man during his time on earth.
Recovering Biblical Manhood and Womanhood- Wayne Grudem and John Piper
A controversy of major proportions has spread through the church. Recent generations bear witness to the rise of "evangelical feminism"-a movement that has had a profound impact on all of life, challenging some of our basic Christian beliefs.
Combining systematic argumentation with popular application, this volume deals with all of the main passages of Scripture brought forward in this controversy regarding gender-based role differences.
One Year Praying through the Bible for your Kids- Nancy Guthrie
As parents we want to protect our children; we want them to move forward in life; most importantly, we want them to take hold of and grow in Christ. We need wisdom from God’s Word for this all-important task. In The One Year Praying through the Bible for Your Kids, trusted author Nancy Guthrie weaves together wisdom and insight from each day’s reading in The One Year Bible, providing encouragement through the triumphs and turbulence of parenting.
The Well Versed Family- Caroline Boykin
The Well-Versed Family 2nd Edition is bursting with even more original insights and super simple ideas to help you and your family: Learn. Link. and Live God’s Word! This family resource makes Bible memory doable - with proven memory tips and tools, engaging games and activities, quick family devotions, 90 memory verse cards, and more. Give your kids the greatest treasure of all: God’s Word. The Well-Versed Family will show you how!
Children's Books
The Biggest Story- Kevin Deyoung
The Bible is full of exciting stories that fill children with awe and wonder. But kids need to know how all those classic stories connect to Scripture’s overarching message about God’s glorious plan to redeem his rebellious people.
In The Biggest Story, Kevin DeYoung, leads kids and parents alike on an exciting journey through the Bible, connecting the dots from the garden of Eden to Christ's death on the cross to the new heaven and new earth.
The New Children's Bible- Anne de Vries
This popular Bible written for children has a new layout. The text has been updated and is designed to be enjoyed by children as well as the adults who read it to them. There are pictures on every page by the illustrator Fred Apps. Let the real adventure of the bible shine through.
In the cellar of the old stone cathedral, Carla and Timothy uncover a life-changing treasure, a carefully wrapped ancient book known as The Ology. What adults might describe as a beautifully illustrated storybook of systematic theology, the kids discover to be a story of adventure, mystery, and wonder that leads them to the truth about God, themselves, and the world around them.
The Ology gives kids of all ages a beginner s theology book to help them understand who God is and how we, as his children, relate to him.
The Garden, the Curtain, and the Cross- Carl Laferton
This beautifully illustrated hardback book takes children on a journey from the garden of Eden to God's prefect new creation. Retelling the Easter story through a Bible overview, children will discover that 'because of our sin, we can't go in' but because of Jesus' victory on the cross, an even better garden awaits us...
The Big Picture Interactive Bible Storybook- B&H Editorial Staff
Give kids the big picture of God’s story with this innovative, interactive Bible storybook. It includes 145 stories with fresh new four-color illustrations, and a “Christ Connection” feature showing kids how God’s plan for salvation through Jesus appears throughout the Bible.
The Jesus Storybook Bible- Sally Lloyd-Jones
The multiple award-winning Jesus Storybook Bible tells the Story beneath all the stories in the Bible. It takes the whole Bible to tell this Story. And at the center of the Story, there is a baby, the Child upon whom everything would depend. From Noah to Moses to King David, every story whispers his name. Jesus is like the missing piece in a puzzle—the piece that makes all the other pieces fit together. Children and adults alike will be captivated by the 44 beautifully written and illustrated stories in this bestselling storybook Bible. Perfect for young readers, this eBook edition allows children to view the engaging Jesus Storybook Bible illustrations and tap to zoom text!
The Children's Bible- Mary Batchelor
These stories are well written, yet short. A helpful resource for families with small children. 365 stories makes for broad coverage of Biblical stories and lessons that is great for families with older children.
This classic Scripture provides an ageless Bible story for every day of the year. It's a perfect addition to any Sunday school room or children's church program.
The Big Picture Story Bible- David R Helm
No child is too young to begin learning about the greatest love story of all—God’s love for his people, as portrayed in the Bible. David Helm and Gail Schoonmaker have together created a colorful book of Bible stories written especially for children ages 2–7. Rather than simply retelling portions of the Bible, this book presents the big picture—the unified story running through the Old and New Testaments. Twenty-six stories together form parts of this big picture.
God Made All of Me- Justin & Lindsey Holcomb
God Made All of Me is a simply-told, beautifully-illustrated story to help families talk about these sensitive issues. Because the private parts of our bodies are private, the home is the ideal environment where a child should learn about his or her body and how it should be treated by others.
God Made All of Me starts from the fundamental truth that God created everything and applies that truth to kids and their bodies. This book allows families to build a first line of defense against sexual abuse in the safety of their own homes.
This list is not exhaustive. We need your help to keep building it. If you have a recommendation that is not on this list, leave a comment and we would love to check it out!
Also check out our Recommend Books Page at JustBringitHome
