The Accidental Pastor's Wife

I almost forgot my Saturday kids' literature post! It's been such a busy day--a sporting event, a fence put up next door, made lunch for everyone who was working, had church kids over, hung up VBS posters all over town, made dinner, got lunch ready for VBS meeting tomorrow, got breakfast ready for church tomorrow, complained in my heart about my broken vacuum, dishwasher, and garbage disposal...I'm done ranting. Sorry... Here we go:

When my oldest was a baby, my college roommate gave him a copy of author Melody Carlson's book, The Lost Lamb. In clever rhyme, she tells the parable of the shepherd seeking his lost 100th sheep, who happens to be named Zebedee. The pictures, by Steve Bjorkman, are just as fun as the story, colorful watercolor and ink. I've since found other books about Jesus' parables such as It's Not Funny, I've Lost My Money, The Two Builders, and The Other Brother. We've enjoyed all of these-they are such a great way to tell Jesus' stories and they give us a springboard to discuss the meanings behind the parables. I've found on Amazon.com that there's some we're missing, such as Yes or No Who Will Go?, Farmer Brown's Field, and A Treasure Beyond Measure (I know three things my boys are getting for Christmas!).

Another series Carlson has written deals with things that Jesus said: Love Your Neighbor, Show Each Other Forgiveness, Secretly Do Good Deeds, and Don't Worry About Tomorrow. All four are illustrated by Susan Reagan, whose known for illustrated greeting cards.

Unfortunately, most of the parable books are out of print but if you hunt for them, I'd bet you can find some. She's written lots and lots of other books, both for adults and teens. I'm not familiar with those, all I can tell you about are the ones we have and how much we've enjoyed them.