When I was younger, I remember being at the home of someone in our church. There had been some adult Bible study. As it finished and we were all running around, one of the other kids took a toy from me. I felt wronged and went to my dad to seek out justice. When I pled my case, the woman he was speaking to bent down to me and said, "Why don't you pray to God that the boy would have a changed heart and give it back to you?" Even as a child, I had a genuine faith that I was nurturing. But that response made me feel so empty and frustrated. Here were adults, in such a position to intervene, and they were going to instead sit back and see if God would divinely act?! Couldn't God act THROUGH the adults who were present and use this as a teachable moment?! I didn't have the words then, but now I see more so how that didn't rest well with me. We don't need to passively sit back -- we can live out our faith, stand up for those who have been wronged, and demand justice.

I've been intentionally reading fiction and non-fiction by people of color the last few years, trying to immerse myself in their experiences and stories and learn from them. I have age-appropriate conversations with my daughters and try to fill their library with diverse picture books.

The Gospel in Color -- For Kids: A Theology of Racial Reconciliation for Kids by Curtis A. Woods and Jarvis J. Williams caught my eye in hopes of it being a good resource to share with my daughters. At times I worried it might fall back into the passive role -- willing for us to pray for changed hearts so racism is erased, for instance. However, the authors didn't mince words in the introduction and throughout as they talk about events with a biblical lens:

"People have killed other people for racist reasons, yet sometimes racism is far more subtle and sneaky -- so sneaky it seems almost invisible at first. Racism can be present in words and actions that seem polite, but are actually subtle ways of letting people know they're less valuable because they're different."

There is an adult version of this book, whose chapter contents mirror these so that adults and children could work through the books alongside each other. In the Introduction, there are suggestions for how to go through the book based on the age of the child (ages 6-9 need more support, while children ten and up could do it more independently).

The chapters are written with accessible language and defined terms, along with discussion questions to supplement the material. Talk of sin, the good news, and reconciliation is prevalent. In the last chapter, the authors provide five ways to live out the gospel "in color." They encourage reconciling with others, but they do admit that: "Forgiving someone doesn't mean we pretend we aren't hurt, and it doesn't mean we just ignore whatever they do. Forgiveness means we don't retaliate with hate, but commit to loving them instead. Even when we forgive someone, the process of reconciliation means they must still seek to make things right, undo damage they've done, and face the consequences of their actions."

I appreciated this book as an introduction to racial reconciliation for children.

(I received a digital ARC from NetGalley and Patrol, LLC in exchange for my honest review.)

What a beautiful book!
In today's racially charged world, this book would provide a perfect starting point with elementary-age kids on issues surrounding race and racism. It is also an amazing opportunity for parents to celebrate diversity! The illustrations are beautiful, it's rooted in the Gospel at every turn, and the discussion questions provide a great opportunity for parents to discuss relevant issues with their kids. I also love the fact that there's an accompanying book for parents!
Highly, highly recommend.

First of all, the artwork in this book is absolutely beautiful. This is a very important topic to be addressed and I appreciated the overall structure of the book, particularly the ways to pray and summary at the end. I was expecting it to go a little deeper, but I do understand that might be challenging for the target audience. Certainly a good step toward addressing this topic with children.

Beautiful illustrations,  full of  fantastic stories for kids to learn about God and the bible. The only thing I found difficult  was because it was loaded as a file book  the print was small and some words overlapped  so I found it hard to read at times. Other  than that this was a great book to review.

I was trying to read this on my Kindle Paperwhite. The title came up as just an ISBN, the kerning was off (worst on headers, where all the letters overlapped) and the whole thing was forced to landscape orientation even though mostly it only showed one page on the left half of the screen.

This made it very difficult to read, though the sections I did manage to wade through had good content. I liked the variety of content and the general language.

Such a simple message. Such a clear presentation. Curtis Woods and Jarvis Williams have put together a message about race in The Gospel in Color--For Kids. Despite the title, this is a message people of all ages need to hear.



With simple text and some colorful illustrations, Woods and Williams describe what racism is. Without getting into tons of history or political demarcation, they state that "race" simply refers to "the human race or a specific ethnic group" and that "racism" is "the poisonous idea of people or governments rewarding social and economic privileges to one group of people by virtue of skin color or ethnic background." I'm not sure I've read a more clear, succinct, or helpful definition of racism.



But it's not enough simply to say that racism is bad and that equality is good. The central chapter of the book is about the gospel of Jesus Christ. Jesus reconciles us to God, which enables us to be reconciled to one another. "The sin of racism makes people enemies of one another based on their skin colors or where they came from. But Jesus came to reconcile enemies and make them friends. Jesus dies on the cross for all our sins--including the sin of racism. As a result, people who believe in Jesus are brothers and sisters in Christ, no matter what we look like." Amen, amen, and amen!



In an age of Black Lives Matter, trigger warnings, Trump hating, white supremacist rallies, and activism of all kinds, it seems that race relations are at an all-time low. Woods and Williams have a message for this generation of young people: Jesus is the answer. The Gospel in Color should be required reading for kids of any age and any race. We should all aim to "live out the gospel in color."









Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the complimentary electronic review copy!

I appreciate the way this book address racism and reconciliation through a biblical lens. Including Bibles stories many kids know opens the door for discussing racism. I like the reference to related scripture, questions for discussion, and prayers for change that are included with each chapter/story. This book is meant to be read with an adult, and the format is effective in introducing a conversation with kids about racism.

I struggled with this book and found it hard to keep reading. I was distracted and found it very busy. I wanted to like it, but am not sure how kids will do with it.

Living in a broken world means we come face to face with injustice and situations that break out hearts.
And we`re faced the decision of turning a blind-eye or doing something.
But to do can also feel overwhelming because we don't know where to start, how to act, and what's the true difference we can make. Sometimes we don't acknowledge just to avoid this overwhelming sense of uselessness.

I quite enjoyed "The Gospel in Color" for it reminded me that an act of change can start with education - a tool I strongly believe in but sometimes underestimate its power.
Written in easy vocabulary for us to teach the builders of the future, our kids, this book clearly, gently and compassionately reminded that we're all God's creation, made in Hid image. We are brothers and sisters in Christ and should fight against any sin creating division.