A.C.T.S. summer of service with Adventures in Odyssey

I'm excited to join a 3-post tour promoting the Adventures in Odyssey's A.C.T.S. call to service this summer.  Each post will be focused on a specific theme as we learn the joy of service.  First up is the theme of Discover.  Check back as we cover the themes of Imagine and Grow in upcoming posts.  There will be a giveaways and more ideas as we Discover, Imagine and Grow in service.  

So let'start by Discovering a heart of service this summer!  

Join Adventures in Odyssey this summer to discover how fun it can be to serve others!

Adventures in Odyssey, the beloved audio series from Focus on the Family, has encouraged kids toward a stronger faith for 25 years. Whit, Connie, Eugene, and the other loveable characters from Odyssey have shared countless adventures with kids across the world in the classic audio dramas, books, videos, and devotionals, fulfilling the AIO promise to help kids discover, imagine, and grow.

This summer, Adventures in Odyssey is joining with Christian bookstores across the country, inviting kids to participate in a Summer of Service. They’re promoting the biblical message, “When you serve, everybody wins,” encouraging kids to serve their families, their communities, and their world. Whether it’s baking cookies for an elderly neighbor or putting together a care package for missionaries overseas, kids will discover that serving can be a blast! 

How the A.C.T.S. (A Call to Service) challenge and contest works:

Kids who join A.C.T.S. can pick up a service log and collect fun character stickers for hours served at participating bookstores throughout the summer, or download a serving log online at whitsend.org.  At the end of the summer, kids can record and upload a short video telling how they serve and why they’d like to become an Adventures in Odyssey Ambassador.

A hundred winners will get the brand new AIO Album, and after online voting, two grand prize winners (one boy and one girl) will get to travel on an exciting Good-Goers Mission Based Adventure trip to another country with a parent!  The out-of-country destination will be announced on a live podcast May 22—hosted by AIO actors Katie Leigh (Connie) and Chris Anthony (Chris)—which you can watch at whitsend.org/acts. You don’t want to miss it!

Why serve?

Our culture puts an extravagant amount of energy into raising kids who will grow up to feel good about themselves. In schools, clubs, homes, and even at church, adults have made a decided effort to bolster children’s “self-esteem” –not by actually encouraging kids do something that’s worthwhile, but by simply telling them they are important and valuable.

At the turn of the century, researchers predicted that the next generation would respond to these efforts of raising self-esteem by being filled with optimism and civic duty. Unfortunately, recent research shows the opposite. Kids coming of age today are more self-centered, disrespectful of authority, and depressed than ever before.

In a very real way, then, the best path toward building selfless, confident children is to help and encourage them toward a growing and thriving faith in God. And that includes obedience to what God teaches—not because it makes kids feel good, although it often does—but because they’re following God’s instructions to love Him and serve others. That builds a faith they can count on and carry with them into adulthood—which is the greatest gift any parent can bestow on their child.

Weekly service ideas are available   

Click here to access a free MP3 of the Business of Busyness to listen to with your children and to also download a PDF of Weekly Service Ideas.  I love the suggestions for weekly service ideas.  I meet so many Moms that are looking just for this.  I know many of you are looking for ideas to help you teach your children the joy and importance of service.  

Hunt for the Devil's Dragon

The Hunt for the Devil's Dragon by Marianne Hering, Wayne Thomas Batson and illustrated by David Hohn is the 11th in the Imagination Station series.  I've got to repeat once again how much I really enjoy this series.  I can't believe there is only one more to go!  This is simply a refreshing series for young readers.  These books are filled with learning, history, values and excitement.  This one has a real dragon in the story; I know my kids are excited about that.  The Hunt for the Devil’s Dragon deals with the topic of bullying and more specifically standing up to bullies.  It's a tough subject and too many of our children face bullying in schools.  This would be a great read to share with a child that is dealing with this issue. It would be a great starting point to open up the discussion with your child.   It gives many examples of bullies/bullying and reinforces that you should always stand up for yourself, your friends and for what if right.  This series keeps surprising me.  I love the wealth of time periods and cultures that we’ve traveled.  The books are filled with Biblical truths.  All this packed into the adventure of a good read! 

I received a copy of the book for the purpose of this review from Tyndale Publishing. 

Humble Heart: A Book of Virtues

Humble Bumbles' Humble Heart a Book of Virtues by Amy Meyer Allen is a collection of nine stories that teach children about the Biblical virtues of; humility, love, thoughtfulness, faithfulness, mercy, encouragement, comfort, courage and joy.  The stories are bright and simple and the illustrations follow suit.  They are understandable and relatable for young children.  They are also charming and enduring for older children to enjoy and learn from as well.  There is a definition of each term at the beginning of each story and an applicable scripture verse at the end.  My children loved going through this book of virtues with me.  We read one a night during our devotion time.  There are fun features too that many children books have.  Humble honey bee can be found on each page and there is a highlighted item from the illustration on the opposite page of text like a hat or a flower which can then also be found in the illustration.  They loved playing this game as we went through the stories.  This is definitely a book we will read time and time again. 

I received a copy of this book from Tyndale Publishing for the purpose of this review.

Challenge on the Hill of Fire, Book 10

 Book 10, Challenge on the Hill of Fire from the Imagination Station series is out!  Authors Marianne Hering, Nancy I. Sanders and illustrator David Hohn have given us an suspense filled story focusing on a bit of the history of St. Patrick's Day.  Personally I love that they are covering the Holidays in this series.  This is the second time they have focused on a Holiday, the first was with Book 6, Problems in Plymouth.  I have not started reading this series to my children as I think they are still a little young for fully understanding some of the historical context of these stories but when I do I will plan the reads to correspond with the right Holiday.  I am very excited to be able to add a fun story, with Historical context and Biblical truths to help us celebrate the different seasons!  This book has been one of my favorites so far.  I've never really studied this time period and am intrigued to learn more about Bishop Patrick.  I also appreciated the tie in with the St. Patrick's tradition of the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow and comparing/relating it to something that's even more valuable to a pot of gold, the knowledge of God.  I hope you'll check out this fun series!   I received a copy of this book from Tyndale publishing for the purpose of this review.

Imagination Station - Books 8 & 9

The Imagination Station series is back! Battle for Cannibal Island by Marianne Hering, Wayne Thomas Batson and Escape to the Hiding Place by Marianne Hering and Marshal Younger both illustrated by David Hohn are books 8 and 9 of this 12 book series. These books are part of what I consider the second part of the series. Books 1-6 follow a continuation of a plot line working to return a lost ring to Mr. Whittaker. Books 8 & 9 while they continue the familiar framework of cousins Patrick and Beth going on adventures with the Imagination Station are written so each book can stand alone and could be read in any order. The authors continue to work through history picking pinnacle times and people for Patrick and Beth to travel to and encounter. In Battle for Cannibal Island the cousins travel back in time and meet the missionary James Calvert who ministered to cannibal tribes in Fiji in the 1850s. The cousins find themselves aboard one of the Queens ships just off an island inhabited by cannibals. This story has a strong message of missions and gladly following God's will for your life. In Escape to the Hiding Place Patrick and Becky find themselves in Holland during World War II. The cousins get to help out in a big way and learn that there are lots of ways to help God's kingdom. These are quality books for young readers. They are filled with adventure, danger and lots of learning moments. They show character, humility, bravery and many other redeeming qualities. I'm very happy to have fun and positive books to share with my two emerging readers. I received copies of these books from Tyndale publishing for the purpose of this review.

Adventures in Odyssey Devotional

Adventures in Odyssey: 90 Devotions for Kids is a wonderful new devotional for kids. The familiar characters from the Adventures in Odyssey series fill this book sharing story examples that reinforce the devotional topic. There are 13 themes each with 6-7 devotions per theme. The devotions are short, about two pages which is a perfect length for this age but they are packed with information and Biblical truths. There's a daily challenge with each lesson and a memory versus. I'm planning on using this for our next family devotional. The themes covered include: Salvation, Learning about Jesus, Discipleship, Prayer, The Bible, Exercising Faith, Forgiveness, Giving, Witnessing, Worship, Going to Church, Serving Others and Overcoming Sin. It's a great line-up that I can't wait to share with my kids. I received a copy of this book for the purpose of this review.

For your young naturalists!

Jim Arnosky an author of many wonderful nature books has an absolute gem of a series with his lovable character, Crinkleroot. These books are sure to awaken the naturalist in all readers both young and old alike. Join the jolly nature lover Crinkleroot as he shares all about the great outdoors. There are all kinds of guides like knowing trees or birds or a guide to tracking. There's even a nature almanac in this series which all books offer an engaging overview of nature. The detailed illustrations are charming and my two enjoy looking for Crinkleroot’s pet snake sassafras on each page. My two have learned so much from this series and even more they have retained so much of that information. Sadly several of these books are out of print but hopefully your library has a good selection available to choose from as ours does. Join Crinkleroot on one of his walks through nature and let him show you all the treasures there are to be found. Some of the titles in this series include: I was Born in a Tree and Raised by Bees, Crinkleroot's Guide to Knowing the Trees, Crinkeleroot's Nature Almanac, Crinkleroot's Guide to Walking in Wild Places, Crinkleroot's Guide to Giving Back to Nature, Crinkleroot's Guide to Knowing the Birds, Crinkleroot's Guide to Knowing Animal Habitiats, Crinkleroot's Guide to Knowing Butterflies and Moths, Crinkleroot's Guide to Animal Tracking, Crinkclerott's 25 Birds Every Child Should Know, Crinkleroot's 25 Mammals Every Child Should Know, Crinkleroot's Nature Almanac and several more.