Honest Answers: Exploring God Questions with Your Tween
by Janelle Alberts and Ingrid Faro
Somewhere between “Jesus Loves Me” and high school cynicism, the childlike acceptance of pat answers about faith is lost–often forever. But while many parents find this transitional period daunting, they don’t want their kids to leave the Christian faith just because they didn’t get good answers to how prayer works or whether dinosaurs were on Noah’s ark.
Honest Answers is a discussion book to help parents tackle the God questions that make them sweat. This isn’t the place to come for pat answers that will make their kids nod, smile, and disconnect. Janelle Alberts and Ingrid Faro know that when tweens start asking questions, they’re already old enough to understand the answers. They’re determined to equip parents with the language, theology, permission, and confidence to join in the discussion–and to learn how to offer deeply doctrinal answers in 140 characters or less.
The tween years present an incredible opportunity to build trust with kids and to keep them coming back to their parents for answers rather than finding other sources. With the tools and conversational tips here, mom and dad can engage in a hopeful conversation and help their children build a Christian faith to hold them steady their whole lives.
ABOUT THE AUTHORS
JANELLE ALBERTS
Janelle Alberts spent her early career in PR departments for Microsoft and UPS, boiling down logical, clear corporate messaging.
She now attempts the same for Scripture, often featuring bits we’ve never heard, but wish we had, since knowing things like even Noah got tipsy & embarrassed his kids can help a girl rally to the end of the day.
She wrote her first faith column for the Akron Beacon Journal in 2010 and has since been a regular contributor to Christianity Today’s Gifted for Leadership, iBelieve.com, and more. You can reach her at [email protected].
INGRID FARO
Ingrid Faro, Ph.D., M.Div., learned early that scholars and academics are often too far removed from the Church and unable to speak the “shoes‐on‐the‐ground” living that the Bible teaches. Jesus could talk to anybody. Faro believes that if the gospel we preach and the theology we teach can’t walk into any room, any situation, and any culture, it’s missing something vital.
Faro began her career as a dietitian/nutritionist in hospitals, community action agencies, clinics and a university. After that, she managed health insurance agencies that she had started in order to serve small businesses and individuals.
After years of hard work, Faro graduated from Trinity International Divinity School, Deerfield, Illinois, with a PhD in Theology, concentration in the Old Testament. She accepted her first position with the Scandinavian School of Theology, Uppsala, Sweden where she worked as Associate Professor of Old Testament.
While continuing her work with Sweden, Faro earned a spot back at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School where she served as Director of Masters Programs, and Affiliate Professor of Old Testament. Faro managed the MDiv Program and other theological Masters Programs and also taught Masters and PhD courses in Old Testament, including Genesis and the Theological Foundations of Evil, Hebrew Exegesis and Old Testament Theology. Faro also became a sought-after speaker for churches and conferences, speaking frequently across the country and overseas.
Faro was asked to interview for the Dean of Academic Affairs and Associate Professor of Old Testament at Northern Seminary. She accepted the position and began there in summer 2018. She has spoken for Evangelical Theological Society, Institute of Biblical Research, Society of Biblical Literature, and Theology Conference for Women at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School. She has been an interim pastor for the International Church of Shanghai in Shanghai, China (English-speaking) and national leader discussion group with the Evangelical Free Church of America.
