The Fun of Meeting Jesus is a beautifully illustrated read-aloud book that contains the key Gospel teachings of Jesus without a Christian overlay. These simple and intuitive teachings can be helpful even for people who have a different faith tradition or no faith tradition at all, and they are magical for children.
At its heart, this is a young child's adventure story. Barry, Emme, Sarah, and Quentin are neighbors aged from three to eight years who venture into the Scarey Woods behind their homes to play. They soon become lost. While trying to find their way home, they encounter Jesus sitting beside a stream. He has been waiting for them. Jesus befriends and comforts the children, answers their questions, and cuddles the youngest in his lap as he shares with them his Gospel teachings on forgiveness, love, the meaning of life, and the nature of God. He walks them to their back yard gate and promises that he will never be far away from them: if they seek him, they always will find him.
The Fun of Meeting Jesus can be enjoyed by pre-readers and early readers alike. It includes a brief message for grown-ups so they can see these teachings in their Biblical context, and so they can better use them to help their children grow in love, forgiveness, and kindness. These simple teachings can help children learn to live a happier and more love-filled life.
Roberta Grimes graduated from Smith College as a religion major and then from Boston University School of Law. She then began a small-business law practice she continues today. Happily married for 41 years, Roberta and her husband, Edward, have three grown children and five young grandchildren.
