This book was conceived after many discussions our family had in the past ten years about the difficulty of having meaningful conversations with others. We realized this was because of a lack of conversation skills on the part of others. Additionally, a family told us they would love a resource they could use to teach their children the conversation skills they observed in our children. Finally, we had the direction of the Lord Jesus on our hearts that this was indeed the next writing project we should undertake.

If our children are to shine as lights to a dark world, they will need to be able to have conversations with those who don’t know Jesus. “That ye may be blameless and harmless, the sons of God, without rebuke, in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation, among whom ye shine as lights in the world” (Philippians 2:15). They should stand out as different, and they also have to be able to articulate the reality of their faith. “But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear” (1 Peter 3:15).

We are extremely excited about the potential for your children that you hold in your hands. We are praying that many will use this material with their children, and that it will profoundly impact their lives for good.

Our family affirmed this writing project and came alongside us with ideas for it and practical daily help to free up our time. In addition, they gave of the talents and skills the Lord has given them to make a few words on a computer screen become the reality of a published book.

Sarah invested hours proofreading the book both before and after the professional proofreader. Anna took the project from our Word file into the publishing software—a time consuming, detail-oriented task. Joseph is our creative element so he helped with choosing fonts, setting up styles for specific pages, and designing the cover. We also want to thank the six families who read this book, implemented it, and gave us feedback before it was printed.

We are very grateful to the Lord for the proof in our children’s lives that what you read in these pages is important and valid. Plain and simply—it works!

Steve and Teri Maxwell