Why I Write Children’s Books by Janet Christensen

As we kick-off a new month, we wanted to give you some insight and inspiration from our authors. We asked each of our authors a variation of the question, Why do you write children’s books? We loved their answers and we think you will too! We will be sharing the author’s thoughts with you each week here on the blog. So, get comfy, grab a glass of sweet tea and be inspired.

 

I have the privilege of doing the children’s message at our church every week.  As I sit down with my puppet friends, Darby and Lil, I am warmed by the children’s smiling faces, the looks of wonder and awe, and the loving joy that glows back at me.  These are my kids, even though I share no genetic bond to them.  They light up my day and minister to me every week.  I am truly blessed.

I can vaguely remember sitting in children’s church when I was a little girl.  What do I remember most?  After 40 some odd years, it isn’t much.  Let’s be honest…I don’t remember where I put my keys most days.  But after all this time, I still remember the feeling of God’s love as I sat on the low pile carpet at the front of the church.  I knew in that moment I was safe.  I knew that I was loved.  I knew I was not alone.  What a beautiful memory.

Sometimes I wonder what life would have been like, if when I was younger, I had a reminder of God’s love, not just on Sundays, but on every day of the week.

I grew up in a Christian home with a loving family, and we read a lot.  In fact, I can still recite portions of many of the books we read as a family.  I bet you could possibly do the same.  But, the books I read didn’t always reinforce the truths I was learning about on Sundays.  They were fun and age appropriate, but they didn’t mention God or His great love for all His kids.

Repetition is a powerful tool in learning.  Not to take anything away from the books I read as a child, but I wonder, would I have felt more at peace in the storms of life if the message stamped into my mind through my nightly story time was “God is always with me and I am never alone?”  Would I have felt less rejected in moments in my teenage years, if the truth that “God loves me and I am His treasured child,” is what was repeated in the stories I read every day when I was young?

We can never know how things may have turned out if we had done them differently in our past, however, I have a feeling that hearing these faith and truth filled messages every day would have been a great blessing. 

That is what inspires me.  I want the kiddos of my church who have stolen my heart, along with every other child out there, to have stories reflecting God’s truths and promises read to them each and every day.  Life will get hard.  Challenges will occur.  That is just the way life goes. My furtive prayer is that when life gets tough, they will remember the messages they learned at children’s time and were reinforced every day in the books they read.  I pray that they will fall back into the loving arms of their God, knowing that, because of their nightly repetition when they were younger, He is right there with them through it all.

 

Janet’s Book Good Night, Fireflies is available in our online store in both hard cover and soft cover.