Palm Sunday and Easter Sunday. Both lend themselves to all sorts of exciting possibilities for the Sunday school classroom — special colorful crafts and activities, joyful and boisterous songs, and an enthusiastic presentation of the biblical narratives. Children love it and churches often go to great lengths to highlight these celebrations in the classroom. But what about the biblical narrative of the cross? Where does it fit in between these back-to-back Sunday celebrations? After all, the events surrounding Jesus’ death on the cross don’t lend themselves to any kind of fun or appealing acti ..read more

It can creep into our classrooms and parenting in seemingly harmless ways. It’s often well-intentioned and, in the short-term at least, gives children a warm sense of well-being. It just feels right. What is it? Encouraging self-esteem. Consider how important, biblical truths can become skewed if we put the emphasis in the wrong place… God loves ME. God made ME special. God hears ME when I pray. God takes care of ME. This kind of “me” emphasis may make children feel good about themselves but it has a dark side, a dangerous, dark side because it dismisses and minimizes the true purpose for whic ..read more

Truth78 is excited to launch our new website (Truth78.org) next week. Our new site was created to serve you as we partner together to equip the next generations to know, honor, and treasure God. Our new site will help us share our vision and mission with churches, families, and others around the world who care about the faith of the next generations! This new site will be easier for you to navigate, features more free content, is accessible from mobile devices, and is more secure and reliable. The updated technology behind the scenes will enable our team to better support you and allow us t ..read more

I have to confess that, over the years, my prayers on behalf of my children and students have often been smaller in scope and weaker in depth than they should be. In part, this is the failure of my mind to more intentionally ground prayer in the powerful truths of Scripture, and the failure of my heart to truly and fully love and embrace these truths—eternal truths, such as the immeasurable greatness and worth of God. Truths that clearly communicate God’s purposes and promises for His people, enjoyed through Christ alone. Truths regarding the almighty power of the Holy Spirit to bring life, g ..read more

One of the great joys of teaching or leading a small group is when children ask amazing questions. Many prove easy to answer, but some are very difficult. For example, years ago I was teaching a a lesson on Adam and Eve’s sin in the garden and God’s response as recorded in Genesis 3 to a class of third graders. After finishing the story, a child asked: “Mrs. Nelson, why did God put the tree in the garden in the first place?” I thought to myself: That’s a really good question! This was not covered in the lesson. The text doesn’t answer this question either. When did third graders get so smart ..read more

I remember when every night was a struggle to get our daughter to bed. It was as if nighttime brought to her mind every possible catastrophic scenario. She was terrified! As parents, we were tempted to simply address her fears with simple, rational explanations: “See, there are no monsters under your bed.” “The dark can’t hurt you.” Etc. Sometimes these explanations can be helpful, but they can never give our children unshakeable peace and assurance in the myriad of fearful situations they will experience both now and in the future. That’s why I am so excited about When I am Afraid, a new chi ..read more

After months of planning and preparation, we are excited to announce that on April 10 Children Desiring God will officially become Truth78, an independent 501(c)3 organization structured to more strategically fulfill our mission to equip the next generations to know, honor, and treasure God. We will mark this launch on April 10 with a new website, new resources, and a special launch event. The name Truth78 connects us to Psalm 78, which has been a signature text defining our ministry over the past 20 years. Psalm 78 charges us to take this testimony we’ve received from our fathers and faithfu ..read more