Title: Raising Kids to Follow Christ
Author: Lee Ann Mancini
Major Themes: Children, Parenting, Christian Life
Synopsis: Practical advice for parents to instill a lifelong trust in God into their children.
Back when I was a new mother, I started reading books about raising children. Over the years, I’ve read quite a number of them. All of them have good pointers—and most of them have had things I don’t quite agree with. I don’t read very many books like that now, but I probably still should, since, even after being a mother for 25 years, I still have a 4-year-old. When I was offered a review copy of Raising Kids to Follow Christ, I decided it would probably be a good book to spend some time with.
Publisher’s description:
How can we raise the next generation to have an unshakable faith in God as they navigate the challenging terrain of modern culture?
Offering years of experience and countless success stories, author and parenting expert Lee Ann Mancini says what our children need is a heart change, not just a behavioral change, so that they become effective disciples. In Raising Kids to Follow Christ: Instilling a Lifelong Trust in God, she inspires parents, grandparents, teachers, and others to teach their children essential Christian principles to enable them to navigate the world with grace, integrity, and an unbreakable bond with their heavenly Father.
This book goes beyond surface-level advice, delving into the intricate matters of children’s hearts and minds and offering a blueprint for nurturing a deep and unwavering faith in Christ.
Raising Kids to Follow Christ offers:
- Decades of personal experience and training based on key essential principles in Scripture
- Practical strategies for addressing doubts, fears, and questions that arise in today’s culture
- Ways to help children control their emotions and actions in various situations
- Suggestions from some of today’s brightest Christian minds in children’s spirituality
- Empowerment for parents to become their child’s spiritual champion
- Easy-to-understand apologetics for children and adults
- Fun ways to connect your child’s heart to Christ
Raising Kids to Follow Christ is a collaborative journey inviting parents to learn, grow, and flourish alongside their children as they become bold in their witness and committed to their faith rather than secular culture.
My thoughts:
Lee Ann Mancini has a lot of good advice in Raising Kids to Follow Christ. This would be a very good book for new parents to read. Much of the advice for instilling a love for Jesus in your children works best with babies, toddlers, and preschoolers—if I tried implementing her suggestions with my children, most of them would think it was pretty silly, but if you started very young, it would be natural. I liked the encouragement in building a God-centered worldview for your children and helping them to learn to know Jesus personally.
On the other hand, she clearly states that “discipline never means physical punishment.” I wondered if she meant that physical punishment is never to be used? I may have missed something, but what I understood her to say was that seeing the parent’s disappointment should be enough punishment for most things. Maybe I’ve totally failed with my children, but that has never been enough for them. I did appreciate the author’s advice for ways of teaching children right behavior. She has some very creative ideas for teaching children about God.
I received a complimentary copy of this book from the author, and these are my honest thoughts about it.
No warnings!
Age levels:
Reading Independently—Adults
Links to buy this book:
Amazon: Paperback | Kindle | Audible Audiobook (unabridged)
AbeBooks: View Choices on AbeBooks.com