Case for Grace for Kids

by Lee Strobel, Jesse Florea (With)

Overview

Grace can be a tricky thing to understand, but in this adaptation of New York Times bestselling author Lee Strobel’s The Case for Grace, kid-friendly language and personal stories of grace in action help children ages 6 to 10 discover firsthand what grace is, why it’s so amazing, and how God uses his gift of grace to forgive, care for, and strengthen us … as well as show kids how they can pass along the message of grace to others.

Whether they’ve grown up in the church or are encountering faith for the first time, The Case for Grace for Kids is the perfect resource to answer the questions about the idea of spiritual forgiveness kids 6-10 ask most. Inside, readers will discover:

• Makes the complex idea of grace easy to understand by breaking down the questions kids ask and answering them in a way they will understand
• What it means to repent and be forgiven of your sins, and have the offer of eternal life
• The grace God gives us, as well as the grace we can give to others
• Stories from real-life people who have experienced God’s amazing grace firsthand
• Answers for why Christians believe what they do, and why they can be confident in our beliefs
• Ways to talk to other people about their faith and share what they know

Explore exactly how grace works, why God freely offers it to us, the amazing things grace can do, and what it means for our lives today. Because grace is a gift we definitely want to receive.

The Case for Grace for Kids:

• Is a solid source of information that looks at all sides of the issue to present solid evidence behind each conclusion and fact about the Christian faith
• Has illustrations and callout graphics to make the topics engaging for kids six and up
• Is an excellent resource for Sunday schools, church libraries, and homeschooling

This book can be used on its own or alongside The Case for a Creator for Kids, The Case for Christ for Kids, The Case for Faith for Kids, and The Case for Miracles for Kids to help children with faith development and answer questions they wonder about most.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780310736561
Publisher:	Zonderkidz
Publication date:	02/24/2015
Series:	Case for. Series for Kids
Pages:	176
Sales rank:	243,552
Product dimensions:	5.40(w) x 8.40(h) x 0.50(d)
Lexile:	780L (what's this?)
Age Range:	6 - 10 Years

About the Author

Lee Strobel, former award-winning legal editor of the Chicago Tribune, is a New York Times bestselling author whose books have sold millions of copies worldwide. Lee earned a journalism degree at the University of Missouri and was awarded a Ford Foundation fellowship to study at Yale Law School, where he received a Master of Studies in Law degree. He was a journalist for fourteen years at the Chicago Tribune and other newspapers, winning Illinois’ top honors for investigative reporting (which he shared with a team he led) and public service journalism from United Press International. Lee also taught First Amendment Law at Roosevelt University. A former atheist, he served as a teaching pastor at three of America’s largest churches. Lee and his wife, Leslie, have been married for more than fifty years and live in Texas. Their daughter, Alison, and son, Kyle, are also authors. Website: www.leestrobel.com

Jesse Florea has written and edited for Focus on the Family for twenty-five years. As editorial director for youth publications, he oversees Clubhouse and Clubhouse Jr. magazines, and he cohosts the “Official Adventures in Odyssey” podcast. Jesse has written or cowritten more than thirty books, including The Case for Grace for Kids and the bestselling The One-Year Sports Devotions for Kids and Devotions for Super Average Kids. He lives with his wife, Stephanie, in Colorado Springs.

Read an Excerpt

Case for Grace for Kids

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By Lee Strobel, Jesse Florea, Terry Colon

ZONDERKIDZ

Copyright © 2015 Lee Strobel and Jesse Florea
All rights reserved.
ISBN: 978-0-310-73656-1

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CHAPTER 1

ON THE CASE

PUTTING TOGETHER THE PUZZLE OF GRACE

I grew up in an upscale neighborhood northwest of Chicago. My dad worked hard to build his business and provide everything we needed and more — as far as material things were concerned. He loved my mom. And everybody in the neighborhood seemed to like him.

Still, my relationship with him was always frosty, but not in a cool snowman-like way. It was cold. Maybe I needed more positive comments than the other kids. I don't know. He didn't take me to Cub Scouts, cheer at my Little League games, watch my speech tournaments, or go to my graduations.

Over time, I learned that the only way to get his attention was through winning things. So I strived for good grades, was elected president of my school, was the editor of the school newspaper, and even wrote stories for the community paper. Still, I don't remember any positive words coming from my dad. Not one.

I do remember, however, once when I was a kid, the entire family went to church together. We did this fairly regularly. But after the service on this particular Sunday, my dad drove everyone home — but he forgot to bring me. I can still picture my panic as I searched wildly around the church, looking for my family. My heart pounded, and my hope sank as I realized my father had left me behind.

It was a mistake on his part, but it was difficult for me not to see it as symbolic of how our relationship was developing.

One evening when I was about twelve years old, my father and I fought over something. I walked away feeling shame and guilt. I went to bed vowing to try to behave better, to be more obedient, to somehow make myself more acceptable to my dad. I can't recall the details of what caused our conflict that evening, but what happened next is still vivid in my mind.

I dreamed I was making myself a sandwich in the kitchen when a luminous angel suddenly appeared and started telling me about how wonderful and glorious heaven is. I listened for a while then said matter-of-factly, "I'm going there," which I meant, of course, at the end of my life.

The angel's reply stunned me. "How do you know?"

How do I know? What kind of question is that? "Well, uh, I've tried to be a good kid," I stammered. "I've tried to do what my parents say. I've tried to behave. I've been to church."

"That doesn't matter," the angel said.

Now I was staggered. How could it not matter — all my efforts to do the right thing, to be dutiful, to live up to the demands of my parents and teachers? Panic rose inside me. Words wouldn't come out of my mouth.

The angel let me stew for a few moments. Then he said, "Someday, you'll understand." Instantly, he was gone.

I woke up in a sweat. It's the only dream I remember from my childhood. Through the years it would come to mind every once in a while, and yet I would always shake it off. It was just a dream.

As I got older, I found myself getting more confused about heaven and spiritual matters. When I became a teenager, my parents insisted that I attend Bible classes at the church.

"But I'm not sure I even believe that stuff," I told my dad.

His response was stern: "Go. You can ask questions there."

But questions were only reluctantly tolerated during class. And the answers I did receive only scratched the surface. Nobody seemed willing to dig in and understand how deep their faith was. I actually emerged from those classes with more doubts than when I started.

Doubts continued to annoy me as I grew and my teachers insisted that science had explained away God. A creator was no longer needed. I became increasingly doubtful. Something was missing — in my family and in my soul — that created a gnawing need I couldn't even describe at the time.

Years later, I was driving down Northwest Highway in Palatine, Illinois, when I flipped on the radio. I can still recall the exact location, the time of day, and the sunny weather. But soon I couldn't see anything at all, because what I heard flooded my eyes with tears.

I didn't catch the full story, but it was about family and faith and God and hope. The voice belonged to someone who was born about the same time I was and yet whose life, in its astonishing horror and brutality, was the opposite of my own. Still, there was an instant connection, a bridge between us. She seemed to have lived out the answers to the questions nobody at my church could explain. She understood heaven and being part of God's family at a gut level. Her faith wasn't stuck as thoughts in her head. She knew the living God in her heart.

I had to track her down. I had to sit down and hear her story, one on one. I had to ask her my questions. Somehow I knew she held a piece of the puzzle of grace.

(Continues...)

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Excerpted from Case for Grace for Kids by Lee Strobel, Jesse Florea, Terry Colon. Copyright © 2015 Lee Strobel and Jesse Florea. Excerpted by permission of ZONDERKIDZ.
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Excerpts are provided by Dial-A-Book Inc. solely for the personal use of visitors to this web site.

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Table of Contents

Introduction What Is Grace? 11

Chapter 1 on the case 17

Chapter 2 The Orphan 25

Chapter 3 The Prodigal 49

Chapter 4 The Professor 71

Chapter 5 The Evangelist 87

Chapter 6 The Executioner 103

Chapter 7 The Hero 125

Chapter 8 The Thief 137

Chapter 9 Dream Come True 145

What the, Bible Says about Grace 157

Notes 168

Editorial Reviews

07/01/2015
Gr 4–6—In this approachable guide, Strobel attempts to provide a simple definition of grace and examples of how it changes lives. He describes how his strained relationship with his father affected his spiritual life and his growing desire to piece together the puzzling concept of grace. Each chapter introduces readers to actual people, exploring how God's grace has changed their lives. The author also devotes a chapter to the near-death experience that allowed him to unmask the true meaning of grace in his life. Each chapter concludes with a two-question, "Face-to-Face with Grace" section, which asks readers to relate or apply some aspect of the story to their lives. Poems and jokes and bits of trivia are interspersed throughout, and a section of Bible verses called "What the Bible Says About Grace" concludes the book. Simple black-and-white drawings introduce each chapter. VERDICT A solid option for parochial schools and church libraries.—Susan Harris, Ridgeway High School, TN

School Library Journal

The newest addition to bestselling author Lee Stobel's youth collection is Case for Grace for Kids, a presentation of true stories that introduce and explore the concept of God's forgiving love. Lee Strobel and Jesse Florea write about seven real people ("The Orphan," "The Prodigal," "The Professor," "The Evangelist," "The Executioner," "The Hero," and "The Thief") who have experienced and recognized God's grace in their lives. Their situations include abandonment, drug abuse, isolation, discrimination, stealing, endangerment, childhood illness, and genocide. Each has overcome adversity through God's mercy and compassionate care. Though intended for a juvenile audience, some realities described in the book are particularly harsh, such as the actions of the Khmer Rouge. With Case for Grace for Kids, primary author Lee Strobel aims to share the good news of God's munificence and love. He writes of his personal encounter with discovering and accepting God's grace, and incorporates many of his own thoughts and realizations throughout the book. A final chapter provides numerous biblical citations to help readers find references to grace in scripture. With conversational chapters, easy readability, and compelling situations, Case for Grace for Kids offers a means for young readers to discover and explore the certainty of God's grace. At the end of each "case," a shaded box ("Face-to-Face with Grace") poses questions for discussion or introspection. Cartoon drawings by Terry Colon and sidebar trivia (the name "Grace," saying grace before meals) add a light touch. Nina Ditmar, CLJ—Christian Library Journal

From the Publisher