With Mother’s Day just behind us, and Father’s Day coming up, here’s a list with book recommendations around the topic of Parenting. Books marked with a * are our favorites on that specific topic.
Family Planning/Infertility
Sweeter By The Dozen. Making Jesus the Lord of Our Family Size, Randall Hekman
As Christians, we are convinced of the importance of making Jesus the Lord of our life. But what does it mean for the number of children we have? In Sweeter by the Dozen, Randall Hekman shares the story of how he and his wife, Marcia, stopped trying to limit the number of children they would have and allowed the Lord to open and close the womb. He then gives his rationale for opposing the modern idea of family planning and responds to common arguments raised against having larger families. Here is a challenge to allow Jesus to be the Lord of everything, even your family size.
Infertility. Comfort for Your Empty Arms and Heavy Heart, Amy Baker
The progression should have been natural. You got married, and children were supposed to follow in due time. But every month that ends in a period rather than a pregnancy has you feeling more and more depressed. Perhaps you even find yourself avoiding people and places with children because it is just too painful. Amy Baker and Daniel Wickert help you see God’s presence and provision for you in the midst of your pain. With compassion and understanding, they walk through some of the struggles and pitfalls of dealing with infertility and offer practical help for leaning on Christ, connecting with your spouse, and engaging with others.
Empty Arms. Hope and Support for Those Who Have Suffered a Miscarriage, Stillbirth, or Tubal Pregnancy, Pam Vredevelt
“I’m not picking up a heartbeat.” These are the most dreaded words an expectant mother can hear. As joy and anticipation dissolve into confusion and grief, painful questions refuse to go away: Why me? Did I do something wrong? How will this affect my ability to have a family? What do I say to my children without scaring them? With the warmth and compassion of a Licensed Professional Counselor and writing as a mother who has suffered the loss of a baby and a sixteen-year-old son, Pam Vredevelt offers sound answers and advice. As an expert in love and loss, Pam gives reassuring comfort to any woman fighting to maintain stability and faith in the midst of devastating heartbreak. Empty Arms: Hope and Support for Those Who Have Suffered a Miscarriage, Stillbirth, or Tubal Pregnancy is the essential guidebook for anyone suffering the agony of losing a baby.
General
Parenting By God’s Promises, Dr. J. Beeke
In Parenting by God’s Promises: How to Raise Children in the Covenant of Grace, Dr. Joel R. Beeke explores what this nurture and admonition looks like and offers gems of practical wisdom for parents on topics such as instituting and leading family worship, teaching children, modeling faithful Christian living, and exercising discipline. However, he carefully puts parental responsibilities in their proper perspective and guides mothers and fathers to lean not on their own abilities but to trust more fully in the God who knits children together in the first place. Above all, he affirms, parents must look to the one true God, who promises to provide everything His people need and to bless them and their families.
*Parenting. 14 Gospel Principles That Can Radically Change Your Family, Paul Tripp
What is your calling as a parent? In the midst of folding laundry, coordinating carpool schedules, and breaking up fights, many parents get lost. Feeling pressure to do everything “right” and raise up “good” children, it’s easy to lose sight of our ultimate purpose as parents in the quest for practical tips and guaranteed formulas. 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.
Everyday Talk, John A. Younts
God first gave specific instructions for being a parent in Deuteronomy 6. He instructs parents to talk to their children every day about God and His ways. Everyday Talk offers practical, creative ways to do that. Learn how to use ordinary conversations to show your kids the goodness and wisdom of God. With clear biblical teaching, John Younts illustrates how to lead your children into a greater awareness of the presence and glory of God.
*Teach Them to Work. Building a Positive Work Ethic in Our Children, Mary Beeke
Do your children exhaust you? Have you found yourself finishing their chores because it’s, well, easier than getting them to do them? If so, this book will give you new energy, and your household new harmony. This book will help your children develop a good work ethic. Mary Beeke, healthcare professional, educator, and mother first helps you absorb parenting principles and then gives you practical principles to bring clarity to roles in your home. Mary breaks down the principles into manageable chunks so whether you want a reflective study to bring radical change in your life, or just need a shot in the arm, she has you covered.
Building a Godly Home. A Holy Vision for Raising Children, William Gouge
In the third volume, A Holy Vision for Raising Children, Gouge offers wise and practical advice to both children and parents on how to relate to each other with love and honor. Drawing from a wealth of biblical principles and examples, he fleshes out how a household of affectionate authority provides for children and prepares them to live as God’s servants in the world. Fathers, mothers, sons, and daughters will find much here to challenge and guide them.
See also the other 2 volumes. A Holy Vision for a Happy Marriage and A Holy Vision for Family Life.
Big Truths for Young Hearts. Teaching and Learning the Greatness of God, Bruce A. Ware
Equips parents to guide their young children through all major doctrines in an understandable, chapter-a-day format.
Sure, it’s easy to teach your children the essentials of Christian theology when you’re a theology professor. But what about the rest of us? 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 Ahead. Preparing Now for the Teen Years, Kristen Hatton
As parents of young children anticipate the teen years, counselor Kristen Hatton helps them lay the groundwork so that having honest conversations, setting reasonable limits, and exploring issues of the heart will prepare them and their children for the next stage. Hatton helps moms and dads make the connection between their current parenting and future outcomes. By evaluating their parenting, they will see where their own fears, desires, and insecurities lie and how to pivot to practices of faith and trust in God.
Parenting With Words of Grace. Building Relationships with Your Children One Conversation at a Time, William Smith
How you speak to your kids today will impact your relationship with them tomorrow. As a parent, your words are powerful. What you say and how you say it has the potential to either invite your children into deeper relationship with you or push them away. What’s more, in a very real sense, your words represent―or misrepresent―God’s words to his children― meaning they have the power to shape how your children view their heavenly Father. Offering practical guidance for grace-filled communication in the midst of the craziness of everyday life, this accessible guide will help you speak in ways that reflect the grace God has shown to you in the gospel.
The Disciple-Making Parent. A Comprehensive Guidebook for Raising Your Children to Love and Follow Jesus Christ, Chap Bettis
Your children will either live forever with Jesus or apart from him. Too many growing up in Christian homes will not follow Christ as adults. Do you have a strategy for parenting in today’s hostile culture? The Disciple-Making Parent will give you confidence in your journey.
*Purposeful and Persistent Parenting: Blessing Others, Blue-Tape boundaries, and other Practical Perspectives on Raising Children, John & Cindy Raquet
In Purposeful and Persistent Parenting, John and Cindy Raquet seek to share, through encouraging examples of their journey toward God-honoring parenthood, the lessons they learned in raising their eight children. With personal stories of triumph and failure, goal setting (and resetting), many practical tips, and a little blue tape, they hope that this work will be a valuable companion on your own adventure in parenting and instrumental in helping you to truly enjoy the work of raising your children.
The Life and Faith Field Guide for Parents: Help your kids learn practical life skills, develop essential faith habits, and embrace a biblical worldview, Joe Carter
As a Christian parent, you want your children to develop good character and godly wisdom. But how do you go beyond hoping and praying to teaching them ethical knowledge, practical skills, and virtuous habits? This innovative guide provides practical, effective ideas you can use to help your children build their faith and character in 50 ways, including… engaging with the Bible and culture; interacting with God and others; making good decisions; becoming better learners; managing conflict… Once you grasp these concepts and discover how to teach them, you will be able to successfully shape the character and worldview of your child or teenager.
For Dads
The Shepherd Leader At Home. Knowing, Leading, Protecting and Providing for Your Family, Timothy Witmer
Husbands and dads play a crucial role in the health and survival of the family. That’s why leadership expert Tim Witmer has written this book―to strengthen our efforts to lead well. He applies a biblical framework to the role of leadership in the home, showing how effective shepherding involves “knowing, leading, protecting, and providing for your family”; all the while communicating solid principles with a down-to-earth, relatable tone. Find in this book the wise counsel and practical direction that is sure to make a difference in your family today.
Family Worship, Donald Whitney
Many Christian families have never experienced the joys and benefits of family worship. But as Donald S. Whitney makes clear, the daily worship of God by families at home is a practice rooted in the Bible and common throughout Christian history. How can people unfamiliar with family worship lead it in their own homes? How do busy households in today’s culture recover faithfulness in family worship? This practical book shows you how simple and easy it can be.
For Moms
*Treasuring Christ When Your Hands are Full, Gloria Furman
Grocery shopping. Soccer practice. Dirty dishes. 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.
Glimpses of Grace. Treasuring the Gospel in Your Home, Gloria Furman
Sometimes life feels a lot like a burden―day-in and day-out its the same chores and tasks, challenges and discouragements, anxieties and responsibilities. Dust bunnies show up on the stairwell, social commitments clutter the calendar, and our families demand daily attention and care. At times, just catching our breath seems like an impossible feat. So where is God in all of this? Does he care about the way we unload the dishwasher or balance the budget? Do the little things like changing diapers or cooking meals make a difference? And how can we use our spheres of influence for God’s glory and our joy? Whether you are a stay-at-home mom or a working woman splitting time between the office and home, Gloria Furman―writer, pastor’s wife, cross-cultural worker, and mom―encourages us to see the reality of God’s grace in all of life, especially those areas that often appear to be boring and unimportant. Using personal examples and insightful stories, her richly theological reflections help us experience the gospel’s extraordinary power to transform our ordinary lives.
Missional Motherhood. The Everyday Ministry of Motherhood and the Grand Plan of God, Gloria Furman
There’s no such thing as “just” a mom. 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.
Idols of a Mother’s Heart, Christina Fox
Even good things can become idols if we give them central importance in our lives. Having children changes everything, and as mothers, we risk looking for life, purpose and meaning in motherhood. While being a mother brings its unique set of challenges, these years of raising children and helping them grow in the nurture and admonition of the Lord provide an opportunity to grow in our own Christlikeness as well. Writing from her own personal experience as a mom, Christina Fox encourages mothers to prayerfully and thoughtfully examine their own hearts, and to let God use motherhood as a means of sanctification.
*Loving the Little Years. Motherhood in the Trenches, Rachel Jankovic
I didn’t write this book because mothering little ones is easy for me. I wrote it because it isn’t. I know that this is a hard job, because I am right here in the middle of it. I know you need encouragement because I do too. This is not a tender reminiscence from someone who had children so long ago that she only remembers the sweet parts. At the time of writing this, I have three children in diapers, and I can recognize the sound of hundreds of toothpicks being dumped out in the hall. This is a small collection of thoughts on mothering young children for when you are motivated, for when you are discouraged, for the times when discipline seems fruitless, and for when you are just plain tired. The opportunities for growth abound here but you have to be willing. You have to open your heart to the tumble. As you deal with your children, deal with yourself always and first. This is what it looks like, and feels like, to walk as a mother with God.
Between Us Girls. Walks and Talks for Moms and Daughters, Trish Donohue
Between Us Girls is more than a devotional; it’s a conversation guide, and the twenty-six “chats” are just the beginning. Ultimately, Donohoe’s book teaches mothers and daughters a new way to communicate and starts them on a wonderful, lifelong journey of getting to know one another better and learning to love their Savior more. Written by a busy mom for busy moms, so no prep time is needed! Just schedule some time with your daughter, grab this book, head to your destination of choice, and cherish every moment you share with your girl. Between Us Girls was written for mothers with daughters between the ages of seven and fourteen. Moms of younger girls may choose to skip or modify a couple of chapters, while moms of older girls can springboard off certain chats into deeper conversations.
Mama Bear Apologetics. Empowering Kids to Challenge Cultural Lies, Hillary Morgan Ferrer
The problem with lies is they don’t often sound like lies. They seem harmless, and even sound right. So what’s a Mama Bear to do when her kids seem to be absorbing the culture’s lies uncritically? Mama Bear Apologetics is what you’ve been looking for. This mom-to-mom guide will equip you to teach your kids how to form their own biblical beliefs about what is true and what is false. Through transparent life stories and clear, practical applications – including prayer strategies – this band of Mama Bears offers you tools to train yourself, so you can turn around and train your kids. Are you ready to answer the rallying cry, “Mess with our kids and we will demolish your arguments”? Join the Mama Bears and raise your voice to protect your kids – by teaching them how to think through and address the issues head-on, yet with gentleness and respect.
Parenting Issues
*The Heart of Anger. Practical Help for Prevention and Cure of Anger in Children, Lou Priolo
Anger! Is it ever a problem in your home? Do your children ever speak to you in angry, disrespectful tones? Or do they fight between themselves? Have you ever lost your patience when dealing with an infuriating situation? If you honestly answered “yes” to any of those questions, you could use this book. Of course Christian families experience episodes of frustration and anger. Here’s a book which goes beyond the external manifestations of anger and deals with the internal source: the thoughts and intentions of the heart.
I can’t Believe You Just Said That, Ginger Hubbard
Are you ever embarrassed or shocked by what comes out of your child’s mouth? Do you raise your voice, threaten, and coerce but find yourself frustrated because nothing seems to work? In I Can’t Believe You Just Said That!, Ginger Hubbard provides a practical, three-step plan to reach beyond the behaviors of tongue-related struggles – such as lying, tattling, and whining – to address your child’s heart. After all, as Matthew 12:34 tells us, “the mouth speaks what the heart is full of”. By moving past the idea that parenting is about rigid rule setting or behavior management, we can set aside ineffective practices such as scolding, ignoring the offense, or merely administering punishment. Instead, we start to see that our children’s outbursts are prime opportunities for the ultimate goal of all parenting: to guide them to the redemptive work of Jesus and his transformational power.
You, Your Family and the Internet: What Every Christian in the digital age ought to know, David Clark
How may Christians better understand the dangers and opportunities offered by the Internet? This excellent resource, written by an expert in the field, explains and illustrates what the technologies are and guides readers to draw on biblical principles (such as self-control and accountability) to help them to apply these to the dangers at hand. It also encourages believers to make the best use of opportunities that arise from judicious use of the World Wide Web.
The TECH-WISE family: Everyday Steps for Putting Technology in Its Proper Place, Andy Crouch
Making conscientious choices about technology in our families is more than just using internet filters and determining screen time limits for our children. It’s about developing wisdom, character, and courage in the way we use digital media rather than accepting technology’s promises of ease, instant gratification, and the world’s knowledge at our fingertips. And it’s definitely not just about the kids.
Drawing on in-depth original research from the Barna Group, Andy Crouch shows readers that the choices we make about technology have consequences we may never have considered. He takes readers beyond the typical questions of what, where, and when and instead challenges them to answer provocative questions like, Who do we want to be as a family? and How does our use of a particular technology move us closer or farther away from that goal? Anyone who has felt their family relationships suffer or their time slip away amid technology’s distractions will find in this book a path forward to reclaiming their real life in a world of devices.
*Parenting in the Pew. Guiding Your Children into the Joy of Worship, Robbie Castleman
Robbie Castleman believes that Sunday morning isn’t a success if she has only managed to keep the kids quiet. And she knows there’s more to church for kids than trying out their new coloring books. Children are at church for the same reason as their parents: for the privilege of worshiping God. Worship, Castleman writes, is “the most important thing you can ever train your child to do.” So with infectious passion, nitty-gritty advice and a touch of humor, she shows you how to help your children (from toddlers to teenagers) enter into worship.
Raising Young Children
*Don’t Make Me Count to Three, Ginger Hubbard
Do you find yourself threatening or raising your voice in an attempt to get your children to obey? Are you discouraged because it seems you just can’t reach the heart of your child? Through personal experience and the practical application of Scripture, Ginger Plowman encourages and equips moms to reach past the outward behavior of their children and dive deeply into the issues of the heart. Her candid approach will help mothers know how to handle issues of disobedience and offer a confident, well-balanced approach to raising children.
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 revised edition of Shepherding a Child’s Heart, Dr. Tedd Tripp not only draws on his thirty years experience as a pastor, counselor, school administrator, and father, but he also shares insights gained in many years of teaching this material in conferences worldwide, providing more valuable help for parents.
Instructing A Child’s Heart, Tedd& Margy Tripp
We need to provide our children with a consistent, persuasive, biblical framework for understanding the world God has made and their place in it. The instruction that you provide for them should be directed to persuading their hearts of the wisdom and truthfulness of God’s ways. Impress truth on the hearts of your children, not to control or manage them, but to point them to the greatest joy and happiness that they can experience – delighting in God and the goodness of His ways.
Raising Older Children
*Age of Opportunity, Paul Tripp
For a parent, the teen years are years of unprecedented opportunity-years of penetrating questions and exciting new discussions, years that open the door to a teen’s heart. In this wise and hopeful book, Paul Tripp shows parents how to connect with their children as never before, drawing on practical strategies shaped by God’s Word.
It’s Not Too Late. Restoring Broken Relationships with Teenage and Adult Children, Margy Tripp
It’s Not Too Late identifies the most common reasons for broken parent/child relationships and brings gospel hope and direction to weary, bewildered parents. There is more than one explanation for broken relationships between parents and children. Sometimes the most diligent and careful parenting cannot curb the rebellious bent of a child’s heart. But the most common reason for broken relationships between parents and children may surprise you. It’s Not Too Late uses the principles from the Scriptures to identify possible reasons for relationship meltdown, to suggest necessary spiritual preparation for reconciliation, and to model practical biblical dialogue for approaching teens and adult children.
Why is My Teenager Feeling Like This? A Guide for Helping Teens Through Anxiety and Depression, David Murray
Have you ever looked at your anxious or depressed teenage son or daughter and wondered, Why is my teenager feeling like this? In this companion guide to his book for teens Why Am I Feeling Like This?, pastor and counselor David Murray offers spiritual encouragement and practical direction for parents and other adults who want to help but don’t know where to start. Structured around eighteen real-life examples, Murray provides tips for having open conversations with teens about anxiety and depression, as well as discussion questions, Bible verses for memorization, and prayers. With these tools in hand, parents and teenagers alike will be equipped to experience freedom from the chains of anxiety and depression.
Podcasts
Parenting with Ginger Hubbard
https://www.gingerhubbard.com/blogs/podcast
Risen Motherhood
https://www.risenmotherhood.com/podcast
For Children
Meg is Not Alone, Megan Hill
God lovingly gathers his people into a wonderful community-the church. The local church is made up of individuals who respond to God’s love by worshiping him together and caring for one another. In this picture book, Meg’s parents accidentally leave her at church after the morning service, which makes her feel scared. But Meg is not alone. Various people in the church stay with her until her dad returns. These church friends care for her by giving her things like tissues, cookies, and storybooks, and she learns how to be a church friend to others. With easy-to-understand language and colorful illustrations, this children’s book highlights Jesus’s command to “love one another,” showing kids ages 3-7 that God has provided the local church to be their loving community.
Lucy and the Saturday Surprise, Melissa B. Kruger
One Saturday morning, Lucy and her brother, Lewis, each get to choose one piece of candy from the store. But Lucy’s delight quickly disappears when she unwraps her chocolate and discovers it melted! Envying her brother’s long-lasting lollipop, Lucy spirals into a pattern of discontent: see, covet, take, and hide. Her envious actions make her feel miserable, but her dad helps her find the path to freedom and grace. Everyone struggles with wanting what others have. Lucy and the Saturday Surprise helps children understand the dangers of letting desire fester into envy. Through colorful illustrations and engaging characters, Lucy’s story shows kids how to fight against envy and reminds us all that Jesus offers freedom from both the penalty and power of sin.
Polly and the Screen Time Overload, Betsy Childs Howard
Technology can be a helpful tool and source of enjoyment for many families-a way to aid children with learning, to connect with loved ones, and to provide entertainment. But as with many good gifts from God, tech devices are best used in moderation. In this new picture book, readers meet Polly while on a trip to her grandparents’ farm. During her visit she spends all her time on her new tablet instead of enjoying the farm animals and playing with her cousins. A chat with her grandfather teaches her that, though screen time can be good, it can also keep kids away from better things.
Charlie and the Preschool Prodigal, Ginger Blomberg
We so often desire to save ourselves, either through running from rules or self-righteously following them-missing the true joy and rest found in the Father’s unconditional love. In this picture book for kids ages 3-7, author Ginger M. Blomberg retells the story of the prodigal son through the eyes of wild-child Eddie and his rule-following brother Charlie.
Good News for Little Hearts – series, CCEF
There is a wealth of resources available to adults who struggle with anger, anxiety, and failure, but what about young children who deal with these issues? Now there is a new series of books that addresses these very real experiences that children and their parents work hard to manage every day. These topics are dealt with using Bible-centered principles and the type of counseling that is provided by The Christian Counseling and Educational Foundation (CCEF).
Each book in the series tells a very endearing story about a woodland character that has a serious problem. The stories are very relatable as the characters deal with just the kinds of situations that happen to us every day. We see in ourselves and our children the same sinful reactions that we would share with these creatures. But in each story, there are godly principles applied to help them and us understand how we can and should respond.
God Hears Your Heart: Helping Kids Pray About Hard Emotions, Christina Fox
God Hears Your Heart continues the story of Mia and Josh, begun in Tell God How You Feel. Mia and Josh are typical kids, dealing with hard and difficult emotions all kids feel: anger, disappointment, guilt, and failure. In God Hears Your Heart, they learn that God wants them to tell Him about all their feelings. They learn that He wants them to pray to Him and tell Him about how angry they feel when someone says something mean or how disappointed they feel when their plans get flipped upside down or how they feel when they fail at something. Mia and Josh learn just how much God loves and cares for them.
Other books in this series by Christina Fox: Tell God How You Feel and The Great Big Sad
