Release date:: August 19, 2023 at 1:45 pm. First sales will be at Polishing the Pulpit on that date!
I’ve had a hard time keeping this to myself till production time, but it’s finally time to roll this out!. This is the most exciting thing I’ve seen in a while for congregational or family Bible study. “That we may have HOPE,” authored by Caleb and Rebekah Colley and illustrated by Julia Tesh, is a tried and true method of synchronizing your congregation’s Bible study with your own family Bible times at home. I know your congregation could benefit from this year-long study. But I am most excited about the knowledge and faith it can put in the hearts of the children in your little family at home.
But it’s both. It’s for churches and families! In fact, it’s even a great year-long homeschool curriculum for all preschool and elementary ages.
It’s a book!…that will carry you through 52 character studies of the Scriptures. At the end of the year your family will be able to tell the stories of major Bible heroes and villains and how to emulate the positive and eliminate the negative spiritual characteristics of each person. This material is sound, practical and convicting. If you’re using the book at home, there’s a flexible schedule for incorporating the material into your Bible time on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays. In a year, your children will know the stories of 52 important Bible characters and four important facts to remember about each of them. The book is spiral bound, sturdy, and chock-full of the Word. Caleb Colley authored the study book.
But it’s also a memorization flash card system that will allow even the youngest of Bible learners to know the accounts of these 52 characters. The cards come on a binder ring that makes them easy for kids of all ages to carry. This also facilitates easily flipping though the characters at Bible time each night. The cards are both sturdy and beautiful. These memorization cards are authored by Rebekah Colley and illustrated by Julia Tesh.
sample front
sample back
Finally, it’s also a timeline. This is my favorite part. Each of the 52 Bible characters is placed on a sturdy hang-able timeline (that also lays flat on your table or desk), so that your children can easily see exactly where these heroes and villains fit into the Bible’s chronology and how their lives coincide with well-known Biblical events. Assembled by Rebekah and illustrated by Julia, this tool will help your children see the “big picture” of how each person fits into the story of redemption that is the centerpiece and purpose of divine revelation.
You can complete the study using the book only. But using all three resources together is something that I cannot wait to do at our house. (I’m thinking, we may have a black cape that we wear when we’re studying a villain and a white one when we’re studying the heroes.) I just think our grandchildren will be able to conceptualize these accounts more deeply as they use the tools of story-telling, memorization and chronological placement all at once. I can’t wait!
Here’s what Caleb says about how the idea is used in the local church:
“Here is how I have administered the Bible learning initiative: On the first Sunday of every year, I announce to the congregation the theme of the new year’s study. On one occasion I introduced the Bible Characters Study with a sermon on the value of studying Bible characters. Material is distributed to the congregation.
Then, I periodically preach on topics related to the particular week’s study. For example, on the week when the congregation was studying “Cain,” I preached about Cain and Abel. At the end of the year, every family or member has reviewed a 52 week study of Bible characters and has a handbook. I anticipate publishing other studies we have done, including a chronological study of the life of Christ, a study of the biblical doctrine of prayer, etc. I have found that many members of the church welcome the structure of the study and appreciate having the completed book at the end of the year. While this book is just a springboard to one’s own pursuit of Biblical knowledge (2 Peter 1:5-9; 3:18), nonetheless, it is a tool to prompt and deepen that pursuit.”
I hope there are elders who decide to feed the flock using this material. These churches will be blessed. But, even if you are just using it in your own home, exclusively, the growing faith in your home will be well worth your family’s efforts. Nothing is more important than planting the Word in tender hearts! You can see the products now and you can purchase them on or after August 22, 2023.
That We May Have Hope Memorization Cards
That We May Have Hope Timeline
That We May Have Hope Discount Bundle
Have I mentioned that I can’t wait? I can’t wait to talk to moms who are watching these seeds of faith in hearts at home.
It seems everywhere I go, the questions come about homeschooling; everything from “What made you decide to do that?” to “How does this affect your life as a preacher’s wife?” This last week was no exception. The event was a spiritual conference in which my husband and I were speaking , but even so, it seems like we spent a lot of our one-on-one time discussing home schooling. (We love to talk about it, by the way.)
By now, most homeschooling moms in Lord’s church have heard of COCHE (Church of Christ Home Educator’s Retreat). Now in its fifth year, it happens every March in Louisville, KY. I’ve talked with many moms who’ve attended and I’ve yet to speak with one who was disappointed. There’s a lot of curriculum sharing and excellent speakers on everything from learning styles to utilizing the resources in the local church to maintaining sanity when schooling multiples of all ages and personality types. There are give-aways and t-shirts and games. But I think the best thing that happens to moms who attend is the encouragement received from other moms who love the Lord supremely and want their children to go to heaven more than anything else in the world. I know there are plenty of moms who are not formally homeschooling who love the Lord supremely and want their kids to go to heaven, and there are other kinds of parenting retreats that are amazingly encouraging, too. But this one is specifically planned to cater to those who struggle
I think surely all homeschool moms want to go. But it’s often the moms who are “slammed” financially (all that curriculum on one income) who need to go the most. That’s where grandparents. aunts, mentors and friends can make important and loving investments in the children and homes that they love— homes that are foundational to the body of the Lord. 
This years retreat is March 5-7 with a registration deadline of February 18th (SO you need to get a move on!). You can find all the details at 
As you know, if you’ve been reading, for quite some time, I’ve occasionally been running little installments called “Mama’s K.I.S.S.” I know that lots of readers could give many more and far more creative ideas than I can offer, but these installments are just a few tried and true and mostly old-fashioned ideas for putting service hearts in our kids. This is number 53 of a list of one hundred ways we train our kids to serve. K.I.S.S. is an acronym for “Kids In Service Suggestions”.