This book aims to show how the church can equip parents so they can ‘parent for faith’. I agree wholeheartedly with its focus on helping one another within a church context. When we become Christians, we are part of God’s family and have brothers and sisters of all ages and from all backgrounds. We are to help one another to obey God in all aspects of our lives, including parenting.
Turner also points out that, as parents, we should not presume that the church will provide all our children’s spiritual needs. We need to read the Scriptures to our children, pray with them, have spiritual conversations with them and live out our Christian faith in front of them.
This book is readable and includes many applicable illustrations. There are also many practical ideas on how we can integrate children into our congregations.
However, I am concerned by the absence of biblical terminology. Throughout, Turner uses the phrases ‘parenting for faith’ and ‘connecting with God’, but these are not fully explained from Scripture. She never addresses how children are sinners before God and in need of a Saviour. She does not mention repentance. Yes, Christian parents are to raise their children hearing God’s Word and are to train them to live in accordance with it (Proverbs 22:6), but only God can save them. It takes a church to raise a parent does not really address this.
The question on the back cover is, ‘How can churches become centres for empowering parents to raise God-connected children?’, but parents need to be more reliant on God, not their own strength. Again, this message is absent from this book. It is a parenting book with little focus on the work of the Holy Spirit. Even though there are many good and practical ideas that churches could take on board, I do not agree with the premise of the book.
Sarah Woollin
Michigan
