I’m not sure if you all have noticed, but we are in a very different place in our culture as compared to our parents. But you know what else I’ve realized? The truth was true 50 (or 5,000) years ago, and it’s still true today. Sure the brokenness of our culture may manifest differently than it did all those years ago, but there is truly nothing new under the sun.
With that said, MHM was able to think of a few great titles that are newer and specifically address some of the cultural mores. And we also thought of some oldies but goodies that reflect truth that is applicable in any number of cultures or time periods.
Sanctity of Life
The sacredness and beauty of life needs to be instilled in our children from a young age. Babies are not burdens, rather they are blessings. Unfortunately our culture treats them more often than not as the former.
Much of this attitude stems from the wealth and opulence that we are privileged to have (even the very poor in the West live in relative wealth as compared to other countries in the world). Isn’t it funny how the more we have of the trinkets, bells, and whistles, the more we want those things rather than what’s truly valuable?
With that in mind, we need to celebrate life from a very young age! I first heard about Pro-Life Kids by the Bombergers just a few years ago. Although we weren’t able to give the benefit of reading this book to our oldest children when they were little, we have read the book multiple times with our younger crew. At first, no questions were asked. But eventually, they asked some very tough questions. What a blessing that they were able to ask US rather than someone else about such an important topic. We HIGHLY recommend this book!
Gender Identity
God Made Boys and Girls is a very straightforward book that clearly talks about the reality of male and female. It’s not hitting your children over the head with any kind of ideology. However, there’s a clear message of the truth of male and female. Solid book for sure! A great read.
Transgender ideology
Matt Walsh is a lightening rod for controversy in our culture today. From producing hit documentaries such as What is a Woman or Am I Racist, he is not afraid to call things out how he sees them. And it doesn’t hurt that he’s hysterical!
He has also written a children’s book, Johnny the Walrus. This book is funny, engaging, and full of what used to be common sense truth. Loved it!
This is going to knock my total up to six, but hopefully you all won’t mind. (:= A similar book that is not quite as blatant is I’m a Frog. The author, Mo Willems, wrote this book quite a while ago, back when we had our heads on straight. So there is nothing that indicates I’m a Frog is trying to fight the culture war. However, this book clearly talks about how pigs can pretend to be a frog, even though they’re not actually one. Again, another great book!
Capitalism
This one may seem as if it’s a stretch to try and teach to our kids, but hang with me here. The Little Red Hen is a classic book that describes the Little Red Hen working her tail off, trying to bake a loaf of bread. She keeps asking her friends for help, but everyone kept refusing. So she did it all herself.
But when it came down to eating the bread, all of her friends were ready and willing to help her out. I remember how slightly shocked I was that the Little Red Hen refused to give anyone anything. And she ate the loaf herself. In hind sight, I realized that I too had the Toxic Empathy virus. I thought it was a bit harsh that she wouldn’t share what she had. But the point is, each of her friends were given opportunities to help and they all refused. The were all treated with equality, NOT equity. And LORD help us, we need our children to understand this concept.
Yes, we should be kind and compassionate. We should extend our hand to others to help them. But if they refuse to work or won’t help, we must have the wisdom to not give something to someone that was never earned. Capitalism may not be a perfect system, but it’s the best one we have!
Absolutely everything
And last but certainly not least, the bible is what each child needs to have, whether that’s a graphic bible (including The Kingstone Bible), The Jesus Storybook Bible, Illuminated Bible, or any other Bible. This is where we find the answer to all of life’s questions. Here is where we learn how to lay the foundation of our worldview. As I mentioned earlier, the manifestations of sin may look a little different from one generation to the next, but all of the answers to our questions can be found in the Word of God.
God is so good. He gives us so many tools and resources to raise our children to love Him and to glorify Him. I pray we utilize what we have been given. Amen?
