Sponsored content from One Story Ministries.

A couple of years ago, I was meeting with a group of children’s ministry leaders from across our denomination to plan our annual CDM LEAD Retreat.  Within a larger discussion on the need for discipleship resources for parents, one of our team envisioned “something” for parents to use while on the road.  I didn’t think much of it until I had one of those light-bulb moments while driving my then thirteen-year-old son to school.  We travel to school every day together, since he attends the Christian school that is a ministry of our PCA church (for which I happen to work).  Our daily morning commute is typically eighteen minutes long.  I realized that we spent approximately two minutes of that time talking about what was happening at school, followed by sixteen minutes of listening to my favorite 70’s and 80’s radio stations.  Because of these routines, my son had become an expert in the pop/rock music of my childhood!  I had been discipling him in a way I did not fully intend.  More regrettably, I had been missing prime discipleship opportunies—as my church’s Director of Discipleship, mind you.

So, remembering the conversation with my children’s ministry peers, I went to work on a discipleship resource for parents to use while on the road with their children.  Road Talk was born!  It was a simple concept: a spiral-bound flipbook to guide parents into discipleship discussions.  Read a couple of Scripture verses and answer five questions.  That’s it.  Here are the actual instructions: 

Turn off the radio. Turn off the screen. Don’t answer your cell phone (unless it is an emergency).
Driver: Keep your eyes on the road.
Passengers:  Read the Scripture passage. Ask the questions.
All:  Answer the questions. Have good conversations!

Road Talk, Volume 1 includes ninety-nine days of discipleship conversations, from Romans to Colossians.  Volumes 2 and 3 cover the rest of the New Testament epistles.  

As I “test drove” Road Talk with my son, I witnessed a remarkable change in our commute time.  We still talk about school and listen to some music.  But now, 8-9 minutes are taken up with reading and discussing God’s Word, with some very practical daily application.  At first, I did much of the talking; now, my son does much more.  Over the past year and a half, our conversations have become more Christ-centered than ever before.  My prayer is that these times will bear much fruit in our lives.

When you have a look at Road Talk for yourself, you will see that there is nothing truly profound, except the Word of God!  Just a couple of verses and a few questions for discussion.  Yet, this is a time-honored method of talking about God’s Word that goes back to Moses, as he instructed God’s people: “You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way…” (Deuteronomy 6:8). Most parents, like me, could use a resource that resides in the console of our SUV to prompt us to talk to our children about the Lord!  I’m very thankful to our own PCA CDM for partnering with One Story Ministries to publish and distribute all three volumes of Road Talk.

But why stop there?  How about a resource for discipleship discussions around the table at home?  Meal Talk is the next in the series from CDM and One Story Ministries.  These volumes include readings from the Psalms and Proverbs (alternating each day).  It’s the same design and format; for use at breakfast, lunch, or dinner.  While this resource was created with parents and children in mind, I have had reports of married couples also using it for their own edification.  Don’t miss opportunities for marriage and family discipleship at meal times!

Since the Road Talk and Meal Talk series were published, I’ve had several suggestions about a next discipleship series for parents.  As a Biblical Counselor, I wanted to come up with something that would help parents dig a bit deeper into the hearts of their children.  So, this year I just finished, Soul Talk, Volume 1.  Instead of chronological Scripture passages, it presents eleven passages on nine different counseling topics.  Some of these are: Anger, anxiety and worry, depression, relationships, and communication.  This format allows discipleship conversations about the problems we all face in this life, using God’s Word to train our minds and hearts.

Road Talk, Meal Talk, and Soul Talk are available exclusively at pcabookstore.com.  If you will be attending the PCA General Assembly in Chattanooga this year, you can flip through them at our One Story Ministries booth.  When you stop by, you also have the chance to get to know all the discipleship resources we offer for children, youth, and adults for use in the church, home, and Christian school.  Now, more than ever, we don’t need to miss any of our God-given discipleship opportunities with the next generation!

John C. Kwasny, Sr. is the Executive Ministries Director at Pear Orchard Presbyterian Church and the Executive Director of One Story Ministries (OSM).  He is the author of all OSM’s six curriculum lines, as well as several other books and resources.  John is also a Biblical counselor, seminary professor, podcaster, and a regular conference speaker.  Visit onestoryministries.org or johnkwasny.com to learn more.