One of the Family Values in my home is Empathy & Kindness. We chose this specifically because of our experience and our current environment. Everyday I tell my son – We love God and we are kind to people no matter the colour of their skin, hair or size. We even have a song for it already – the earlier the better!
Imagine my joy when I got the book – THE WIDE WELCOME💃🏽💃🏽💃🏽💃🏽💃🏽. I opened it and read through and I am honestly in love with the Book. The title alone is a great discussion starter! The author used the concept of having favourite books, toys and other non living items to communicate this message in a unique way. “You can have favourite things but the problem begins when you play favourites with people”. She emphasises the fact that Jesus never played favourite with people. “Jesus welcomed the sick, he talked with people with disabilities, he talked with people with fancy clothes, Jesus also talked with people with shabby clothes, he talked with people with dark skin, and people with lighter skin…”. I believe Children will understand the significance of welcoming people regardless of their background as you read and explain this book to them.
The interesting part for me is that the entire story is taken from the Book of James Chapter 2! She connected James Chapter 2 to Jesus and the cross! – Jesus welcomes us all! It’s a truly beautiful read. It’s a long read so you may want to break it up in sections and have a discussion with your kids. The double catch is there is also a Video Read through and Colouring Sheets so after reading your kids get to colour do something to reinforce the lesson! Whoop! Whoop!
This is a Bible based story on treating everyone with honour and respect regardless of color, race status so beautifully illustrated and simply communicated in a fun, colourful way! (I’m dancing at the point lol),
I think that was the catch for me! When you take a Bible story that is relevant in today’s world and you break it down in a way kids can truly connect, you have my attention!
So if you have wondered how to get the message of Kindness to your children or teaching children to love and respect people in a simple uncomplicated way from a Biblical perspective? The Book – The Big Wide Welcome might just be the right resource to help you achieve this goal. Trillia Newbell used a simple but powerful creative analogy to communicate this message in a way kids can connect and adopt this as a life long lesson. Any child who reads this would easily understand the concept. Appropriate for children age 3 – 6
You can get your copy from The Good Book Company UK, US, Australia