God's Names

Making Him Known

by Sally Michael

This is a full-color guide for parents to teach their early elementary children about God’s character, as it is revealed in 24 names in the Bible. Each chapter ends with a personal application and activities.

Genres: Devotional, Childrens, Nonfiction, Theology, God, Faith, Christian

120 pages, Paperback

First published January 25, 2011

About the author

Sally is a co-founder of Truth78 and has authored curricula and books that are all marked by a passion for developing God-centered resources for the spiritual development of children. For 16 years, Sally served as Minister for Children at Bethlehem Baptist Church in Minneapolis, under the leadership of John Piper and her husband, David. Sally and David live in Indianapolis where they serve families at College Park Church. They enjoy spending time with their daughter Kristi, daughter Amy and her husband Gary, and three grandchildren.

Reviews

[Kerry Johnson · Rating 5 out of 5]

A well-written, concise breakdown of the many wonderful names of God! I read this on and off with my boys over the past three months, alternating between this book, their bible study and fiction.

Each section covers one name and includes illustrations and a review of previous names. The author's voice is down-to-earth and warm, and the explanations are perfect for children ages 6-13.

This would be a great family devotional as well.

[Jessica · Rating 5 out of 5]

A must-have for any Christian family! We used this book devotional style and read one name per day during meal time or before bed. Each name of God gets about 3 pages of explanation easy enough for my youngest (7 years) to understand and in-depth enough that I myself felt a better understanding of God’s character as we dove into each new name. The author kept my kids’ engaged with her use of questions throughout the reading. Her flow was so natural, my kids would blurt out answers to questions as if we had been sitting having a discussion rather than just reading a lesson. There are also a few simple questions at the end of each section to help prompt further family discussion.

We will definitely be pulling this book out over and over again as the years go on!

[Tracey · Rating 5 out of 5]

I would definitely read this book with my children if I had children. This is a fabulous book for adults as well!

My quarantine book club read it with the purpose of meeting every other Saturday morning on Zoom to pray/adore through three of God’s names. An awesome exercise, literally.

[Rachel · Rating 4 out of 5]

We used this for family devotions. There were definitely times where we intervened and provided caveats for some of the explanations, but overall, it was a good exploration of God’s character through many names. I would’ve liked a slightly different balance in emphasis, but it covers many aspects of God’s character and illustrates those traits and roles through a wide variety of Bible stories and references. Our son kept track of all the names by making a mini-poster, and we were amazed by how many he remembered when we finished. Hoping that translates to a better sense of who God is.

[Rylan S. · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a helpful book. It functioned really well as a family-worship book. I feel like the chapters are a little uneven--sometimes they are really clear and engaging for kids, sometimes not quite so much. But my daughter enjoyed it overall and looked forward to it. The chapters are short enough that you can easily get through one during family worship and discuss it before the kids starting bouncing out of their seats (normally, anyways). Illustrations are beautiful and helped the kids engage.

[Amy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love how this book goes through many of the names of God in a way that makes sense to little ones; however, the reiterating of the names throughout every single lessons seems a bit contrived. It just didn't seem to fit. I like the book, but it's not a rave review.

[Catherine Allison · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love, love, love this book! Powerful truths about our great God! Looking forward to checking out the other books in this series.

[Cindy · Rating 4 out of 5]

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[Janelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this to my kids and we all learned so much more about God and his character through this book.

[Tiffany Wilkins · Rating 5 out of 5]

Easy and thorough book for kids on God's names and attributes. Highly recommend for family study.

[Gary · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very solid stuff at a kids level. This will help them know what God is like and feel the enchantment of another language.

Liked it.

[Shari · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great for elementary age.

[Taylor Rollo · Rating 3 out of 5]

A great book for children explaining the names of God and glorifying God in their eyes with what these names teach us.

[Matthew S Owens · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic

We used this for SS with k-1 and it was good. I often added more activities but I was amazed at the children’s ability to really learn the names of God

[Kimberly Bower MLIS (gladeslibrarian) · Rating 5 out of 5]

GOD’S NAMES by Sally Michael: This storybook is an adaptation of a fifth grade Sunday School resource of Children Desiring God. The target audience is early elementary school students. The language and content assumes the child’s family is already following God. The book begins with foundational information concerning the concept and use of names. It moves from the many names of the child into the many names of God. Each name represents an attribute of God. Studying the names of God will broaden the scope of the child’s understanding of the strength and mightiness of God. There are 23 four-page chapters, each one focusing on a different name of God. Each chapter ends with opportunities for application through praying, doing family activities and performing acts of service within the community. For example, one of the family activities involves looking through a family album and applying the attributes of God into the situations depicted in the photos. One of the acts of service involves making a care package for someone in need. This resource is designed to be an interactive tool between parent and child. Without that interaction, it would be difficult if not impossible for a younger child to understand the text and complete the suggested applications on his own. This resource would be useful for family devotions or as a parallel take-home resource for parents whose children are learning the same lessons in a Sunday School class. 07/11 Kimberly Bower AKA gladeslibrarian

[Heather · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of my favorite children's books. I love it because it deals with the deep things of God on a simple level instead of dumbing down truths or just teaching moralistic lessons. I love it because it is clear on the gospel but it doesn't only tell the gospel as if that's the only part of the Bible and the only part of God's character that children need to know. I love it because so many of the word illustrations she uses to illustrate a truth are so perfectly suited for the truth and for children. Sally Michael deals with about 20 different names of God, ranging from El Kana (the jealous God) to Father. In reading this book, parents can benefit as much as their kids. That's the beauty of well-rounded biblical truth, it's ageless. The chapters are about four pages long with one illustration per chapter. The picture illustrations were reasonably appealing. At the end of each chapter is a suggestion for Bible reading and some questions and an activity. Many of the activities I found cheesy, but that's my response to almost every activity I have seen in a children's book. I also wish that the picture of Adam bare-chested had been illustrated differently. But that is a very small thing compared to the wonderful lessons wonderfully presented in this book. There are three other books in this series and I look forward to getting them all.

[Catherine Gillespie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’m always looking around for good books to use for Biblestudy with the kids. God’s Names by Sally Michael (it was recommended in Tapestry of Grace) turned out to be an excellent choice for my elementary aged kids.

The book devotes one section to each of 26 different names of God. The lesson includes Scripture passages (written out in the text, but it also works to ask the kids to find the passages and read them from their own Bibles) that use that name to describe God, explanations of why that name was important in context, and application of how we can think about God and respond to Him based on our new understanding of who He is.

I really liked this approach. In the course of learning the names of God, kids (and adults!) develop a more complete understanding of God’s character–who He is and what He values. It was easy to make strong applications, and the lessons also built on each other, referencing names we had already learned about, so the way that different things work together was simpler to understand.

God’s Names worked well to do together with my group of kids, but you could also use it as an individual study if you have a kid who is ready for an independent approach. I’d recommend it.

{Read more of my reviews at A Spirited Mind.}

[Ebookwormy1 · Rating 4 out of 5]

We were happy to make the acquaintance of this series and look forward to reading more for our family devotions.

While the chapters were mostly engaging for the children (there are always a couple that don't immediately 'click'), we did have to take a break from the study to have a discussion about the Trinity. Most of the chapters, maybe 3/4 of them are in reference to the revelation of God the Father in the Old Testament. Then, the book transitions to names of Jesus. Of course, Jesus is also God, but the relationship in the Trinity is not explained. Later chapters also reference the Holy Spirit, again while remaining silent about the Trinity.

I wish later editions would include a chapter on this important topic. Otherwise, it was a wonderful read and we are ordering another from the series.

[Eva · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is terrific! It is a perfect addition to any home school family or elementary Bible class. I highly recommend it for anyone who wants to explain to a child about the different names we call God, or help a young one learn to trust a powerful Heavenly Father.

[Angie Martin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Tim and I are reading this with our children.

[Amber · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic book that we used for our nightly devotional with our kids. Our kids are lower elementary and this was great for their level but older elementary would be great too.

[Hannah Kartagener · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic for morning devotions with the kids. Our family enjoyed this powerful book immensely.

[Unabridged_Michelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

I learned right alongside my children. This is not just for kids! This made a GREAT Bible Study book for our homeschool!

[Lonnie Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very well written. I enjoyed working through this with my boys. Short and sweet without pulling punches this is repetitive just where it needs to be.

[Faith]

It was a great book

[Trisha · Rating 3 out of 5]

A helpful resource for introducing your children to God's names.