As a Pastor to Kids, I often have parents and other children’s ministry leaders asking me a very difficult question: “What books do you recommend for kids who are going through a lot in their lives?” Often, these kids might be going through the death of a loved one, or a serious illness in the family, or their parents’ divorce. There are some books out there on these topics, but often, they tend not to take a child-first approach by listening to what the child is saying, and instead offer too many platitudes that could come off as hollow to children.
However, GOD, I FEEL SAD: BRINGING BIG EMOTIONS TO A BIGGER GOD is a book that succinctly, carefully, and gently walks with a child through the emotion of sadness. There is an example here taken directly from the Psalms in Scripture, where the Psalm writers are often pouring out their emotions to God and simply explaining how they are feeling. Feelings have sometimes been villianized in the evangelical space in particular, however, feelings and emotions can be good indicators of what is going on inside of us and our responses to what is happening around us. We should not dismiss the feelings of kids, especially when they express big emotions like sadness.
The book walks a child through sadness by first exploring what sadness is as well as naming it in their life when they feel sad, but maybe cannot express that sadness in the words, “I am feeling sad.” The authors give many examples of times a child might feel sad, as well as how sadness may be expressed through words, our faces, and our responses to others. There is also a turn around near the end of the book about hope in God. This doesn’t come across as a “God will fix all your problems” kind of platitude, but instead directs kids to know that God loves them even when they are sad, and that one day God will make all things right.
The artwork throughout the book is incredible and offers a lot of visuals that are striking and colorful. Nomar Perez has illustrated many books, and his unique art style is a perfect fit for this one. Michelle Nietart, one of the two authors of the book, is a licensed professional counselor, which lends a lot of expertise to the topic. I really appreciated her approach to talking about sadness with kids as it doesn’t minimize their sadness or leave kids thinking they will be stuck forever in that emotion.
For Children’s Pastors, this book is a must have. I cannot recommend it enough as a book to suggest to families who are walking through difficult seasons of life. It can also be helpful as a way to talk to kids who express sadness while at church to children’s ministry workers, as it gives positive language to leaders who can then have more trauma-informed discussions with the kids in their ministries.
I was given a review copy of this book by ZonderKidz.