We want to raise faithful children. But are churches today helping to fulfill that mission? Or do our children's ministries look more like entertaining babysitting services than places where true spiritual formation happens?

In Formational Children's Ministry, Ivy Beckwith helps ministers and parents create ministries that capture children's imaginations, not just to keep them occupied, but to live as citizens of the kingdom of God. She asks big questions, such as

• What if we taught children how the stories of God, church history, the local community, and the child intersect and speak to one another?
• What if children's ministry was less about downloading information into kids' heads and more about leading them into these powerful, compelling stories?

In addition to providing theological reasons for formational children's ministry, the book offers practical examples of how Beckwith and other practitioners are implementing a formational model.

If you're ready to create a place where children truly feel a part of God's story, where they don't just learn information but live it, this book is your first step.

"This is a genius book, written by an enormously gifted child educator who will help you reconceptualize your ministry to children. Both the child and the adult will be transformed by this book."--Dan B. Allender, PhD, professor of counseling psychology, founding president, Mars Hill Graduate School; author of To Be Told and Leading with a Limp

"Formational Children's Ministry reaches beyond guided conversation, creative storytelling, and the mere calls to build relationships to challenge us to engage in story-based, meaningfully-patterned, real-life interactions to find fresh faith in children's ministry."--Gregory C. Carlson, PhD, chair and professor of Christian ministries, Trinity International University