Our family was introduced to the Harris brothers about the time the first edition of this book came out several years ago. Our then young teen daughter loved reading the book and realizing she wasn’t the only kid on the planet who made God, serving others and sharing their faith priorities in their lives.
Do Hard Things (New 5th Anniversary Edition) by Alex and Brett Harris is a must read for all tweens and teens. It does a great job at banishing the myth that the teen years should only be about playing and avoiding responsibility as the way to have fun and enjoy life. Instead, they make a strong case that actually living a life doing the hard things is where real joy and fulfillment are to be found for young people.
Schools don’t start here for another month or so, but school supply areas are already filled in box retailers. school supplies now cost pennies on the dollar compared to what they cost the rest of the year. You can buy a lot of supplies for not much money at all if you watch the special sales that they often add to the already lower prices. Then bring the supplies home and have some fun in these last hot days of summer using them to teach your kids about God.
Hot weather seems to make us long for the cooler weather that will come in a few months. If you and your kids are in the house trying to stay cool, there is a fun, easy project you can do that will help keep others warm this winter.
Have you ever put something by the door so you wouldn’t forget to take it with you, then stepped over it on your way out – only to arrive without the needed item? The Christian life can be like that most of the time. We tell our kids (and ourselves) the story of the Good Samaritan and how we need to love and serve our neighbors, and then miss dozens of opportunities each day to do just that.
Summer often brings reading lists for kids and teens. Sometimes, they are given specific books to read, but often there is a lot of freedom. Wouldn’t it be great if some of that extra reading time could be spent reading books that will encourage your children to live godly lives? There are actually quite a few good Christian/positive secular books for kids and teens on the market.