I really enjoyed reading, Parenting in the Pew, by Robbie Castleman. It was a bit of a “must read” for me. Generally (before the pandemic), the first Sunday of every month, all of our youngsters are in the pews with their parents as well as Sunday nights. The other Sundays we had Children’s church. However, when the pandemic took effect we were worshiping together as family units every week (not really a bad thing). As a pastor I wanted to figure out how I could help our parents, not to mention my own family (unfortunately my wife is the single parent in the pew with our toddler, pre-teen, and teen)!

Robbie Castleman hits the nail on the head with Parenting in the Pew. I was expecting a very basic, “how to get your kids to behave in church,” type book. However, I was very pleasantly surprised when the topic quickly turned from “church” to “worship.” This book packed a punch, and I found myself rejoiceing and praising God at some of the simple truths demonstrated in very practical ways throughout the book. I also gathered a few ideas on how to better preach/ teach all of our youngsters in the pew.

If you are a parnt looking to teach your children about the value of corportate worship or a pastor/ children’s pastor lookinig to equip parents. This is a fantastic resource for you.

There is only one slight hicup in the whole book. Castlemen spends one chapter on the ordinances (which can vary so much from denomination to denomination). I feel she does a good job providing broad application for families from a variety of backgrounds, but if you are unfamiliar with the differences between pedo-baptism and believers baptism or open and closed communion then it may be alot to sort through in that particular chapter. It is a small part of a very good book and I’d still highly reccomend it.