King’s Cross Church Resource Recommendations
We all want the best for our children, but sometimes it’s tough to find resources that will encourage them in their faith and us in our parenting. King’s Cross Church has scrubbed through tons of resources to put together this list. Our hope is that it will help you provide Jesus-centered content for children of all ages and resources that empower you to make disciples of your children.
Storybook Bibles
Storybook Bibles are a great tool for children ages 3-9. They should never replace actual Bible reading as a family, but they are helpful when it comes to teaching the gospel and the storyline of scripture. Here are a few of our favorites.
The Big Picture Story Bible clearly teaches the narrative of scripture through the lens of all the major covenants leading up to Jesus, the formation of the church, and the New Heavens and New Earth, It is beautifully and thoughtfully illustrated. For example, people such as Adam, David, and Jesus are all drawn the same to help create the foundation of Jesus being the second Adam and the fulfillment of the Messianic covenant to David. This is a great storybook Bible.
When it comes to Jesus-centered storybook bibles, the Jesus Storybook Bible is the gold standard. Every single story points back to Jesus in a grace- driven way. This is a great storybook bible to teach your children the stories in scripture and how they all point back to Jesus.
Kevin DeYoung is a brilliant scholar and pastor and The Biggest Story Bible Storybook reflects his deep affection for and knowledge of God. This storybook Bible displays the unified teachings of scripture in way that is accessible for a 5- year old. Each story ends with a prayer that you can lead and pray with your children.
The Beginner’s Gospel Story Bible is a gospel-saturated storybook Bible. The stories are short and each story ends with questions you can ask your child. For a parent trying to teach their child grace-based discipleship instead of morality-based stories, The Beginner’s Gospel Story Bible is a great starting point.
Full-Text Bibles
We want to help our children see the beauty of God through His Word and know Him through it as soon as possible. Below you will find resources for full texts that will help your children learn to love God’s Word from a young age.
The English Standard Version is a great translation of scripture. Following in the tradition of the King James Version, the ESV provides a readable and elegant word-for-word translation of scripture. The ESV Big Picture Bible is great for younger readers. It helps connect dots and explain things that kids might miss. It also has a familiar feel for any kid graduating from the Big Picture Storybook Bible.
As our children grow older, the ESV Study Bible is a great resource to help kids understand and apply what they are reading. The bottom of each page is filled with easy-to-understand notes written by top scholars to help explain what is going on in the text. Each book of the Bible has a prologue to help explain the context and major theological themes.
The. New International Version is a wonderful, dynamic equivalent translation of the Bible. Instead of a word-for-word translation of scripture the dynamic equivalence method for translation seeks to provide you with a thought-for-thought translation of scripture. The NIV Adventure Bible is well-loved by many kids and is full of helpful resources to make the Bible come alive.
Just like the ESV Study Bible, the NIV Study Bible is great for kids who want to go deeper into God’s Word. The NIV Study Bible boasts over 21,000 notes, 125 topical and theological articles, introductory commentary and context before each book of Bible, etc. The NIV Study Bible is an accurate, readable and clear guide into scripture.
Board Books
The Biggest Story ABC, by Kevin DeYoung
“First Bible Basics: A Counting Primer” by Danielle Hitchen
“Let There Be Light: An Opposites Primer” by Danielle Hitchen
“Psalm 23: A Colors Primer” by Danielle Hitchen
“From Eden to Bethlehem: An Animals Primer” by Danielle Hitchen
“Holy Week: An Emotions Primer” by Danielle Hitchen
“Jesus Heals: An Anatomy Primer” by Danielle Hitchen
“We Believe: An Alphabet Primer” by Danielle Hitchen
“Our God: A Shapes Primer” by Danielle Hitchen
“Banner Board Book Set” all written by Rebecca VanDoodewaard (includes Katharina Luther, George Whitefield, Susannah Spurgeon, and D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones)
“Jesus Saves: The Gospel For Toddlers” by Sarah Reju
“The Gospel” by Devon Provencher
“Jesus” by Devon Provencher
"God” by Devon Provencher
Children’s Books
“Very Best Bible Story Series” all written by Tim Thornborough (Includes the Christmas Story, The Easter Story, Deborah, Jonah, Daniel, Noah, Moses, David, Adam and Eve, and Esther)
“The Ology: Ancient Truths, Ever New” by Marty Machowski
“WonderFull: Ancient Psalms Ever New” by Marty Machowski
“God Made Boys and Girls: Helping Children Understand the Gift of Gender” by Marty Machowski
“Arlo and the Great Big Cover Up” by Betsy Childs Howard
“Polly and the Screen Time Overload” by Besty Childs Howard
“His Grace Is Enough: How God Makes It Right When We've Got It Wrong” by Melissa Kruger
“Brave Heroes and Bold Defenders: 50 True Stories of Daring Men of God” by Shirley Raye Redmond
“How Great Is Our God: 100 Indescribable Devotions About God and Science” by Louie Giglio
“God Made All of Me: A Book to Help Children Protect Their Bodies” by Justin S. Holcomb
“Good Pictures Bad Pictures” by Kristen A. Jensen
“ColorFull: Celebrating the Colors God Gave Us” by Dorena Williamson
“Little Pilgrim's Big Journey: John Bunyan's Pilgrim's Progress for Kids” by Tyler Van Halteren
“Little Pilgrim's Big Journey Part II: Christiana & The Celestial City” by Tyler Van Halteren
Pre-Teen and Teen Books
“The Chronicles of Narnia” by CS Lewis
“Wingfeather Saga” by Andrew Petersen
10 Questions Every Teen Should Ask (and Answer) about Christianity by Rebecca McLaughlin
“Unbelievable?: Why After Ten Years of Talking with Atheists, I'm Still a Christian” by Justin Brierley
“Don't Waste Your Life” by John Piper
“This Changes Everything: How the Gospel Transforms the Teen Years” by Jaquelle Crowe
“The Hiding Place” by Corrie Ten Boone
“Delighting in the Trinity: An Introduction to Christian Faith” by Michael Reeves
“The Pilgrims Progress” by John Bunyan
“Counterfeit Gods: The Empty Promises of Money, Sex, and Power, and the Only Hope that Matters” by Timothy Keller
Books for Parents & Guardians
“Family Discipleship” by Matt Chandler and Adam Griffin
“Family Worship” by Donald Whitney
“Habits of the Household: Practicing the Story of God in Everyday Family Rhythms” by Justin Whitmel Earley
“Shepherding a Child’s Heart” by Ted Tripp
“Parenting: The 14 Gospel Principles That Can Radically Change Your Family” by Paul David Tripp
“Sacred Parenting: How Raising Children Shapes our Souls” by Gary Thomas
“Raising Grateful Kids in an Entitled World” by Kristen Welch
“The Tech-Wise Family: Everyday Steps for Putting Technology in Its Proper Place” by Andy Crouch
“The Disciple-Making Parent” by Chap Bettis
“She Calls Me Daddy: 7 Things You Need to Know About Building a Complete Daughter” by Robert Wolgemuth
“The Intentional Father: A Practical Guide to Raise Sons of Courage and Character” by Jon Tyson
“Missional Motherhood: The Everyday Ministry of Motherhood in the Grand Plan of God” by Gloria Furman
“Risen Motherhood: Gospel Hope for Everyday Moments” by Emily Jensen and Laura Wifler
Podcasts and Shows for Kids
Lamplighter Kids Stories is not a “Christian” podcast; however, it is a good podcast that teaches kids Christian virtues. Episodes are 20 minutes long and engaging for kids.
This podcast is produced by the Village Church and is rich in the gospel. In each episode, kids learn the Bible, sing the Bible, and hear other kids discuss the Bible.
Produced by Insight for Living (the Ministry of Dr. Chuck Swindoll), Paws and Tales is a fun podcast for kids. Each episode tells a story that revolves around its main characters, C.J., Gooz, and Stacy; and each story ends with biblical truth that is easily accessible.
Superbook is a fun show that can be streamed on Amazon Prime Video. Each episode contains the main characters, Chris, Joy, and Gizmo stepping into a Bible story and then learning how it applies to their life.
Owlegories is a fun show that follows Joey, Nora, Violet, Gus, & Twitch around on fun adventures where they learn about life, faith, God, and the Bible. This show can also be streamed on Amazon Prime Video.
Theo is a show that contains big theology for little kids. Each episode explores Christian topics like justification, sanctification, etc. in a way that is both enriching and entertaining for kids. This show can be streamed on RightNow Media.
Podcast for Parents & Guardians
This Cultural Moment is a brilliant podcast hosted by John Mark Comer and Mark Sayers that helps Christians understand the culture around us. The podcast stopped creating new content in March 2020, so there are some more recent cultural issues that are not addressed. However, all the episodes leading up to that point are incredibly helpful.
The Bible Project podcast hosted by Dr. Tim Mackie is a great source for contextually accurate biblical theology. The episodes are thoughtful and engaging.
Teaching our children the Bible can be intimidating, especially when we feel like we don’t even know the stories. Nancy Guthrie’s podcast, Help me Teach the Bible is a great tool to give you confidence in teaching God’s Word.
For those who desire to learn more about Christian theology, Remnant Radio podcast is a great find. The hosts do a remarkable job of finding experts on a variety of theological issues to share their knowledge. While sometimes their theological bias (Reformed Charismatic) makes its way into the show, the hosts bring on orthodox Christian guests from across the theological spectrum so listeners can learn various sides on theological topics.
Dad Tired is an authentic and transparent look into being a father and a husband that is theologically grounded and motivated by grace. This is a podcast that any dad will be able to instantly relate to and be encouraged and edified by.
Mothering is hard. Risen Motherhood is a podcast that talks about the real things that moms deal with and helps moms to find hope in the gospel. Hosts Emily Jensen & Laura Wifler do a great job of being both theological and practical while inspiring moms to faithfully give themselves to the mission of motherhood.