When Meredith Cook went looking for a book about missions and missionaries that she could read to her young kids, she had trouble finding many options. So she decided to write one herself.
Cook’s brand new children’s book “Go Tell Everyone: 9 Missionaries Who Shared the Good News” offers an inspiring introduction to missions that’s designed for children up to about age 4. The book features the age-appropriate stories of missionaries Marie Buhlmaier, William Carey, Lough Ah Fook, Betty Greene, Adoniram Judson, George Liele, Lottie Moon, Betsy Stockton and Lilias Trotter.
The interactive book features colorful illustrations to help children learn about each missionary and where they served, as well as develop a foundational understanding that anyone can share the good news about Jesus, no matter how young.
Cook’s book was released on March 12 by B&H Publishing Group, and we recently caught up with her to discuss the book, the missionary stories it includes and her own involvement with missions. Here are Cook’s answers to our questions, which have been slightly edited for length and clarity.
What inspired you to write this book?
My husband and I both have a passion and burden for missions and a desire to see more missionaries sent overseas. So, of course, we wanted to start teaching our kids from early ages about the Great Commission and God’s love for the nations.
However, I had a hard time finding anything about missions or missionaries specifically in a board book format when our kids were born. One day my husband said to me, “Well, you’re a writer. You should write it.” Fast forward about three years, and the Lord opened an opportunity for me to fill that hole with “Go Tell Everyone.”
You mentioned that this book grew out of a need you saw to help the youngest of children begin to understand the Great Commission. Why is it important to help children learn about missions and missionaries at such a young age?
As we teach our children the gospel, we also want to teach them what to do with it after they believe. The gospel is good news for the whole world – for your next door neighbor, but also for people around the world who are dying every day without having ever heard the name of Jesus.
I think it’s important that we raise our kids to be both aware of and burdened for the lost among the nations. We can do that in age-appropriate ways, one of which is to tell them missionary stories. It’s never too early to start building a solid foundation of both gospel truth and a Great Commission perspective in our kids. Then, if the Lord calls them to be a missionary, they’re prepared to say, “Yes!”
How did you pick the missionaries that were included in the book?
This was hard. I eventually settled on a few different criteria that helped me choose. I wanted to include a diversity of people who had obeyed the Great Commission. As best I could, I wanted kids from different cultural and ethnic backgrounds to be able to read this book and see someone who looks like them. I also wanted to include a good mix of well-known missionaries and others who might not be as familiar. I thought it might be helpful for parents to learn about missionaries they may have never heard of.
Finally, I chose missionaries whose stories I could easily simplify. There’s not much room for detail in a board book, so I tried to choose missionaries whose stories were both compelling and easy to summarize for kids.
You’ve served as a writer and editor for various missions and ministry organizations, but what was the process of writing a book like?
This was the most fun project to work on. It definitely helps that my kids are the target age for my book. I was able to draw on the many examples of board books I’ve read to my own kids. They’re also very inquisitive, so we’ve also had a lot of practice trying to simplify complicated subjects for them. Mostly, though, I have to give the credit to my editor at B&H. Her input was vital to making this book what it is now.
Missionary stories are often heavy stories, but this book includes bright, colorful and joyous illustrations. Why was it important for the book to have this kind of look?
To be sure, many of the missionaries in my book experienced extreme trials. But, as I mentioned previously, I think we start teaching kids about missions and missionaries in age-appropriate ways. That’s not to shield them from the darker aspects of missionary stories, but a board book is not an ideal place to start with that. I want to start with the good news first, and then it’s up to parents to determine how and when to share the heavier details with their kids as they grow.
But I also think there’s a bit of symbolism to the bright illustrations in the book. These missionaries are now with Christ. Any trial or hardship they endured is but a drop in the bucket compared to the eternal glory they’re now experiencing. So I think that whatever joy is exuded from the book’s illustrations could be representative of the joy these missionaries are now experiencing in the presence of Jesus.
What do you think kids will find most intriguing or interesting about missionaries and the stories that are included in the book?
I think that will vary depending on the child. My kids are particularly fond of Marie Buhlmaier because she was a missionary to their own country. I imagine some kids will be drawn more to missionaries who look like them, who exemplified qualities kids wish to emulate or who did the same kind of things kids enjoy. For example, Lilias Trotter was a prolific artist, so kids who enjoy art may be more drawn to her.
Books are an excellent way to teach children about faith and following Jesus. What are some other ways you seek to instruct your own children about God and His Word?
When our daughter was about 18 months old, we started reading “The Jesus Storybook Bible” to her every evening. It’s a habit we continued after our son was born and have now been practicing for more than three years. It’s become so habitual for our kids that they will often remind us to read the story before we even mention it, and they each have a good grasp on almost all of the major Bible stories.
We’ve also recently begun incorporating memory verses during storytime. Our daughter participates in a memory verse program at our church (our son isn’t old enough yet), but we teach each week’s verse to both kids.
Missions is a significant part of your life. You went on your first mission trip at age 14, you hold a degree in missiology and your husband, Keelan, serves as the director of the Center for Great Commission Studies (CGCS) at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary. How are you and your family actively involved in missions today?
Keelan, by nature of being the director of the CGCS, goes on two to three mission trips per year. I was able to go to Japan with him last year, thanks to our wonderful parents who stayed with our kids! This has been a great way for us to talk to our kids about why Daddy (and sometimes Mommy) is going overseas, the missionaries he’s working with and how he’s sharing Jesus with people who may have never heard about Him.
We also try to include our kids in local service projects with our church, such as volunteering with a school supply drive or our town’s fall festival, where we may have the chance to share the gospel with people we encounter.
Finally, we financially support missions through the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering each year. Our church’s children’s ministry also does a separate missions offering in the spring, so that’s been a great way to include our kids in giving financially to support missions.
What do you hope children and families take away from the book?
Ultimately, my desire is for parents and children alike to consider how God might be calling them to fulfill the Great Commission. The Great Commission is for all believers, and the nine missionaries in my book are just a few examples of the thousands of people who have obeyed Jesus’s command to “go.” I hope that everyone who reads this book will seek to answer the question, “Where will you go?”
(EDITOR’S NOTE – Meredith Cook serves as a grant coordinator at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary. She is also a current member of the Biblical Recorder’s board of directors. You can learn more about her book at gotelleveryonebook.com.)
