I'm an observer.
I watch, listen, ask questions, take in, and formulate prayerful decisions in light of my observations.
(I'm hoping our children will do the same.)
At some point in history past I observed how often missionaries would say their lives had been
influenced, even from a young age, by exposure to the lives of heroes of the faith...I was paying attention.
For me, this wasn't the case growing up. My parents were a living example of committed service to the local church,
but international missionaries weren't among my common sphere of influence. As a young adult, however,
on my first mission trip to South America I caught the bug.
Now as adults raising children, taking into consideration all the missionaries who say they remember reading biographies of other missionaries in their maturing years, Brodie and I are intent to expose our kids to as many life-changers as we can.
We all love learning from the greats and just as Steve Saint encouraged our kids in his documentary recently, we
likewise tell them you don't have to be "super", "great", or even "grown up" to be a life-changer or missionary.
Even children can stand for Jesus on an ordinary day and we pray our children will!
Homeschooling allows us the advantage of tailoring our learning to our interests and inclinations. We spend much time learning about heroes of the faith and view it as eternal education. Here are just a few of our favorite resources, both for kids and adults alike...and here's to a new year of gleaning with eternal implications from the heroes of the faith!
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(We collect more of these from YWAM Publishing every year and are building a large library of inspiring true stories. These biographies are well written and factual. They are excellent for both adults and kids, though some contain intensity which is to be expected in light of the lives these life-changers have lived.)
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(These DVDs can be a bit intense and sometimes our little ones need to close their eyes for some parts, but considering they are non-fiction, we feel our children can benefit from understanding the real life persecution Christians endure around the world. Also, the documentaries in the Bonus Features are well worth the purchase in and of themselves. We have all been inspired repeatedly by The Torchlighters and add a few new ones to our collection each school year.)
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(As a resource, these are especially nice for younger readers or devotions because they are concise. We like to use them as an easy learning tool to read then write about one hero of the faith in a day due to their brevity.)
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(These, like the 10 Boys/10 Girls, are more brief in their content and even have questions at the end
of each biography section. They are an excellent resource for devotions or daily independent study.)
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(These biographies are slightly controversial in that they mix fact with fiction. The characters are real and their stories are real, though fictional characters or situations have been added. In our family, the children enjoy the action-packed stories, but we are careful to point out the parts that are not factual. We also point out that we don't think it's necessary to add to these already exciting life stories in order to gain the attention of children, though we wouldn't shun the series for doing so.)
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(Not to be confused with the other Trailblazer books mentioned above, these are
completely factual and another excellent resource to learn about heroes of the faith.)
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It's my intention to add on to this list as time goes by and we add more great resources to our collection. We often buy our books and DVDs used on Amazon which is a great tip for budget friendly collecting. Among others, these are the resources on high rotation in our home as we learn from the inspiring lives of some of the great heroes of the faith!
"Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.
For by it the people of old received their commendation."
Hebrews 11:1-2
