In Reaching a Child’s Heart, Juan and Jeanine Sanchez encourage parents from their gospel-shaped perspective that children don’t need perfect parents—they need a perfect Savior.
Raising children can feel overwhelming as you try to navigate the many voices telling you what to do and not to do, but God has already given you everything you need to be faithful parents! Even though you may be exhausted and discouraged, take heart from the simple, biblical principles shared by Juan and Jeanine Sanchez that will point you to Jesus as your guide and helper as you seek to shepherd your children through every age and stage of growth.
As they share their own journey of parenting five children, the authors highlight the importance of a team-based approach of parenting together. They emphasize focusing on children’s hearts, rather than behavior modification, and illustrate how daily faithfulness in the routine cares of life is never a waste of time.
AUTHORS
Juan Sanchez, MDiv, ThM, PhD, serves as senior pastor of High Pointe Baptist Church in Austin, TX and is a council member of The Gospel Coalition, cofounder and president of Coalición, and an associate professor of theology at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. He has authored numerous books, including 1 Peter for You and The Leadership Formula and is the coauthor of Reaching Your Child’s Heart. Juan is married to Jeanine, and they have five adult daughters.
Jeanine Sanchez teaches English and writing to children and teaches the Bible to women. When not in the classroom, Jeanine enjoys reading, hospitality, watching Florida football, and spending time with her adult children and her grandchildren. She is the coauthor of Reaching Your Child’s Heart.
“The book you have in your hands is a combination of biblical wisdom and genuine humility cultivated by years of trial and error learning to parent under God’s hand. I love that the book begins by reminding you to pray and ends by emphasizing the need to trust in the Lord with all your heart rather than relying on your own understanding of your child’s heart. Read this book and put it to work!”
Miguel Núñez, Professor of Pastoral Leadership, The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary; senior pastor, International Baptist Church of Santo Domingo; president, Wisdom and Integrity Ministries
“Juan and Jeanine Sanchez outline a biblical and theological framework of practical, gospel-oriented principles for parenting. Each chapter is followed by helpful discussion questions, giving an interactive opportunity for parents to assess and apply these biblical principles in their own families. We highly recommend Reaching Your Child’s Heart as a very accessible, practical, biblically sound framework for parenting.”
David and Sally Michael, Executive Director, Truth78; author; director of publishing and training; Truth78
“I first heard Juan and Jeanine talk about these parenting principles when I was a member at High Pointe Baptist, where Juan serves as senior pastor. Both my wife and I were tremendously blessed by the simple way in which they demystified parenting for us, and we still apply their advice with our kids to this day."
Giancarlo Montemayor, Vice President of Global Publishing, Lifeway Christian Resources
“Nothing in the Christian life is as challenging or as rewarding as raising children from infancy to new life and maturity in the Lord. I have had the privilege of watching Juan and Jeanine Sanchez apply godly principles of parenting to their own children, and their gentleness, wisdom, and patience had a profound effect on our family at a key stage in our parenting. Now they have blessed a new generation of parents with that wise and gentle tone in this excellent book! Every chapter is saturated with biblical truth and practical wisdom, mingled with a conversational tone that makes it appealing. I wholeheartedly endorse this book as a rich treasure that I will pass on as my standard recommendation for parents for years to come!”
Andrew M. Davis, Senior Pastor, First Baptist Church, Durham, NC; author
“I’m so glad Juan and Jeanine wrote this book! Reaching Your Child’s Heart establishes a firm, biblical foundation for godly parenting and provides a wealth of advice on how to live it out. Not formulaic but eminently practical, the book doesn’t stir up guilt but gives the hope of the gospel. Full of helpful illustrations, these seasoned parents walk alongside you with good counsel for the various challenges of parenting in the different stages of your children’s lives. Read this book and use the insightful questions to discuss with your spouse and other parents in your church. Whether you’re a new parent or have teenagers, it will equip you to shepherd your children, pointing them to Christ.”
Keri Folmar, Author of The Good Portion: Scripture for Every Woman and Delighting in the Word Bible studies; cohost of Priscilla Talk podcast
“In reading this book, you will sit with a kind, warm husband and wife who have walked some miles before you and aren’t afraid to show you their scars, so you can gain confidence that parenting is not about your gifting, family tree, or children´s attributes but is about the grace provided in the gospel.”
Aixa de López, Author; speaker
“After establishing a solidly biblical and gospel-centric foundation, Juan and Jeanine masterfully bring principles to practice through personal examples and humble transparency. They consider themselves travelers with you—sinners parenting sinners, all in need of heart transformation. Anyone in the parenting years will find this book to be a helpful resource that leaves the reader full of hope.”
Jack and Mary Delk, Parents and grandparents; Jack is the former pastor of counseling at Bethlehem Baptist Church
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This book lays a great theological foundation for Christian parenting, without forgetting all the practical help us parents are always looking for! I love how the Sanchez's come alongside other parents, humbly sharing their own mistakes, while providing invaluable insight from their years of experience and walk with Christ. The biblical principles they lay out are not simply for behavior modification but real heart change. This book is saturated in gospel truth and is an encouragement to all parents, no matter what season you're in!
Our family enjoyed reading this book and its balance between practical application and theological foundations. Many parenting books are either too pragmatic or too "heady;" this one seemed to hit both elements in an accessible way. We especially enjoyed the personal stories of triumphs and failures in parenting, and the chapters on different ages were particularly helpful. If we had one critique of the book it is evident that the authors have a family of girls. Our family has three teen/pre-teen boys, and some of the practical application seemed that it wouldn't quite work as well in our context. It's a small thing, but one that we noticed as we read and discussed how these principles would work with our children. I highly recommend this resource to any current or future parents, and for grandparents who may find themselves raising their grandchildren or trying to support their adult children in the parenting journey.
I am so glad that I came across this book and had the chance to read it. It is a must read for parents at any phase of the child-rearing stages. It is also a great read for grandparents and teachers. Shepherding a child's heart is one of those most important jobs a parent can have. The authors have done a great job including wonderful parenting principles, as-well-as discussion starters and stories that will warm the heart while raising up this next generation of children.
Most parenting books take the approach of trying to convince the reader that their particular style of parenting is the best way to raise successful children. However, in Reaching Your Child’s Heart the Sanchezes look at parenting from a uniquely biblical point of view. They spend a large portion of their book building a scriptural foundation for our role and responsibility as parents that is both encouraging and challenge. Yet, their book is not dry and clinical. They interweave their own parenting journey with biblical wisdom and make the reader feel like a friend joining them for coffee at the kitchen table while the kids all play in the next room. The questions included at the end of each chapter serve as a useful diagnostic tool for the reader to prayerfully consider ways to improve their relationship with both their children and with our Heavenly Father. As a parent I wish I had had this book available to me when my children were small, and I definitely plan to put it into the hands of my adult children who are raising my grandkids. If you are a parent at any stage, you need this book.