My kids are obsessed with Heaven. And not just Heaven. They talk about Jesus’ second coming all the time, too. I don’t even know how it started. I mean, I’ve never done any eschatological teaching with them!
(I just wanted to show you I knew the word eschatological. Aren’t you impressed?)
Lydia and Asa say things like, “Is Jesus going to come back today?” or “We’ll go to Disney World next year. Unless Jesus comes back!”. Lydia even told me she always pictures Jesus coming back with a big net and scoop us all up to Heaven. (I guess that’s her interpretation of “caught up in the air”? Ha!)
They love talking about Heaven–about who is there, how to get there (Asa: Can we fly a plane?), what it looks like, when do we get to go, etc. etc. They are honest-to-goodness excited about Heaven.
I guess I’ve shied away from Heaven and end-times-ish type discussions with them because I remember as a kid, it sometimes made me nervous. That thought of ETERNITY just about kills my poor little mind. I didn’t want to introduce those nervous thoughts kids can get too early. But apparently, I underestimated the child-like faith my kids have.
When they hear that there are no tears, no sadness and lots of time to be with Jesus, they immediately like the place and want to be there! They aren’t frightened by death and I think at this point it’s because the awesomeness of Heaven overshadows what they know of death.
I’ve decided to let these conversations come as often as possible and let the kids take them as far as they want. I want them to look forward to Heaven because I want the first thought in their mind to always be that they want to be with Jesus, you know?
I’ve been trying to round up some resources for talking about Heaven with the kids. Here’s a few I’ve found and read…
God Gave Us Heaven by Lisa Tawn Bergren
Lisa is one of my favorite authors (have you read her *blush* Young Adult novels?!). This book is part of a series you’ve probably seen before (God Gave us You, God Gave Us Two, etc.). It follows a little Polar Bear cub asking questions to her parents about God and heaven.
There is some great teaching and descriptions in it and although it is very didactic, the kids enjoyed it. We even had a conversation later about Heaven and referred back to the book to explain it. (Asa asked me, “Mommy, will the Queen go to the same Heaven we’ll go to?” This was after watching the Opening Ceremonies of the Olympics!)
Someday Heaven by Larry Libby
OK. Actually, I just grabbed this book off our bookshelf and realized we have never read it! Each page is a new question about Heaven (Where is Heaven? How do I get to Heaven?) with some good answers–mostly in a non-fiction format, but some include a little story to give further detail.
I’m going to try it out on my kids today! I’ll let you know what they think!
Heaven for Kids by Randy Alcorn
I got this book free on Kindle a few months ago and I skimmed through the whole thing right away. It’s aimed for older kids because it’s kind of set up like an encyclopedia. Well, that’s what it reminds me of, anyway–it’s full of every question (and answer) you can imagine about heaven. It’s a great resource for when your kids ask those specific questions you have NO IDEA what the answer is!
I totally admire Randy Alcorn‘s perspective on heaven (even his novels give good teaching on the afterlife!) so I highly recommend anything by him. (I still want this picture book, Tell Me About Heaven by him, too.)
Also, all our Bible storybooks usually have the story of Jesus returning to Heaven after the resurrection and this always leads into a discussion of Heaven for us.
Oh, and I gave my friend Mandi (who’s brother-in-law died) What is Heaven Like? by Beverly Lewis for her kids. And for the life of me, I can’t remember much about it but she said they really like it (and I must have liked it if I gave it to her, right?!).
What do your kids think about Heaven? Have any good resources to share?
photo source: bossco
Jacquie says
Have you read “Heaven is for Real”? GREAT book about a little boy’s visit to heaven. I believe there is a version especially for kids too. http://heavenisforreal.net/ I think it’s awesome that your kids are excited about heaven and Jesus’ return! I say go for it and include eschatology in your Bible teaching! 🙂
ohAmanda says
I was just talking about this book–I need to check it out!
Thanks, Jacquie! 😉
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Staci Brown says
Hey, I’ve read “Heaven is for Real”. That’s TWO books I’ve read that you haven’t…what’s happening to me?!?!
I was always “scared/nervous” of Heaven too, but the older I’ve gotten the more I can’t wait!!
ohAmanda says
Staci, who are you?!! You’re turning into a bookworm!!
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Lyndall says
This is a great idea – heaven is something to get excited about! So lets get the kids in on it too! I have a copy of ‘What is heaven like?’ that I have put away for the future… you’ve inspired me to go have a peek now to see if my daughter is ready for this book 🙂 Thanks!
Becky says
Heaven is for Real for Kids, as told by Colton Burpo is a good resource as well. It tells about his near death experience as a child. The illustrations are beautiful. My kids talk a lot about going to heaven. My son, age 4, a few months back kept asking if he was going to heaven tomorrow? It kind of freaked me out a little for a while. We had two tragedies in our community in which two children connected to our school, one involved my daughter’s classmates family. I think this has spurred more conversation about the topic than would have otherwise.
Debora says
Gracias por compartir, las charlas que tenes con tus hijos. es un tema dificil de hablar con ellos. gracias!!!
Cindy Hunnicutt says
I have always sensed kids’ nervousness about heaven. The thought that they might not be with their mom and dad, or won’t know what to do when they get there is a little overwhelming for them. However, when “Someday Heaven” came out- it was such a blessing in answering practical questions like,”Will I see my Grandpa?” or “Will my pet be there?” Helping kids with the simple questions and answers brings a comforting framework to the BIG questions and answers about eternity. I’ve used that book to teach about heaven a few times and have felt that it brought clarity and comfort to kids.
Can you believe I’m teaching about heaven in the morning??!!
Good post, Amanda.
I love my Lydia and Asa and their big hearts of trust for Jesus!
ohAmanda says
Thanks, Mama! 🙂
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