Hot off the press, I Can’t Believe My Eyes by Josh Cooley, is a delightful picture book that takes kids on a kite-flying autumn adventure with a young boy and his dad. Josh Cooley’s engaging story paired with Hannah Green’s colorful and playful illustrations set the stage for a meaningful time of reading while teaching children about God’s existence.

The story begins with Dad raking leaves on a windy day. As the leaves swoosh around the yard, his son asks the all-important question, “Is God real?” The dad then stops raking and says, “It’s a great question. Hmmm … I’ve got an idea. Let’s talk about it after we fly kites at the park.”

What I love about the dad’s response is that he sees the question as an opportunity to teach his son about God’s existence—which is more important than raking leaves at the moment and serves as a good reminder to the parents who read the book to their kids.

As the dad teaches his son to fly a kite, the wind causes the kite to flop and drop, until the boy finally gets the kite to soar. Their conversation then centers on the wind, and how we can’t see it, but we know it’s there by what the wind does—just like God shows himself to his children through his vast creation and also in his Word.

“God proves He exists in many ways! We can’t see God, but we know He is real because of what He does …just like the wind!”

Whimsical rhymes are sprinkled here and there to offer a lyrical element:

God is invisible, but He is real.
Before Him only, we worship and kneel.
He is eternal—no beginning or end.
He is almighty but also our friend.

This book models how everyday experiences can be used to help answer your children’s big questions in a way that is natural and fun, and how important it is to be in the moment and take advantage of every opportunity to deepen the faith of a child. It concludes with a note to parents on how to talk to their children about God to help them on their journey to a deeper faith.

Here’s to windy days and knowing God is real!

Crystal

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