Purpose and Principles
Where We Begin
Ask a Sabbath school council, church board, or conference committee how to keep young people connected to the church, and the ideas come quickly: more music programs, a church sports team, Saturday evening socials, livelier Sabbath school classes. Each has its place. But before settling on a method, there's a better question to ask first — what does God say actually works?
The Answer Isn't a Mystery
We aren't left guessing. "The most successful method of securing their salvation and of keeping them out of the way of temptation is to instruct them constantly in the word of God" (Counsels to Parents, Teachers, and Students, p. 159).
It's a simple answer, and a hopeful one. Children who know the Bible well have something no program can substitute for.
Jesus Shows Us How
By the age of twelve, Jesus knew the Scriptures so thoroughly that the teachers in the temple were amazed — "all who heard Him were astonished at His understanding and answers" (Luke 2:47). That understanding didn't arrive by accident. "His intimate acquaintance with the Scriptures shows how diligently His early years were given to the study of God's word.... Every child may gain knowledge as Jesus did" (The Desire of Ages, p. 70).
Every child. That promise is the foundation of everything on this website.
What It Looks Like Today
Picture the juniors you know. Could they trace the story of Scripture from Creation to the cross? Could they explain the plan of salvation in their own words — and where they fit into it? Many children can, when someone takes the time to walk them through it. That's the work these materials exist to support: parents and teachers opening the Bible with their children, week by week.
About These Materials
The lessons here are written to hold the interest of children and their parents while giving them the "big picture" of the great controversy. Each series (except youth) moves through the Bible stories in order, building a clear foundation — where sin came from, and how God is answering it.
The Bible itself stays at the center. Children read it as part of every daily lesson, learn how to study it, and grow into personal devotions of their own, while parents gain a simple rhythm for family worship. Every story ends somewhere practical, inviting children to live by God's principles.
You'll also find a wide range of coordinating resources, all beautifully illustrated with realistic artwork and photography, so children see these sacred stories as what they are: true.
Our Prayer
Teaching children the Word of God is some of the most rewarding work anyone can do — and no one has to do it alone. Our prayer is that what you find here makes it easier, and that everyone who uses these materials, children and adults alike, experiences the life-changing power of God's Word.