Pass It On

Champ Thornton, PhD, is an acquisitions editor at Crossway. He and his wife, Robben, live in Newark, Delaware, have been married since 1996, and enjoy being parents to three energetic teenage children. He's the author of numbers of books for kids and families, including The Radical Book for Kids, The Serpent Slayer and the Scroll of Riddles, and Why Do We Say Thank You? Learning to Be Grateful.

"As Christian parents in a post-modern culture, we long to instill biblical wisdom and virtue in our children's hearts and lives. With Pass It On, Champ Thornton has provided a way for parents or grandparents to provide the next generation with a keepsake volume filled with personal reflections on each chapter of Proverbs. This is a gift a young person can treasure for years to come."Jim Daly, President, Focus on the Family"Imagine what would happen if your family went through this book together. Seriously. Just imagine."Bob Lepine, Cohost FamilyLife Today"Through the ages, Christians have turned to the thirty-one chapters of Proverbs for guidance. Now this book by Champ Thornton can help us plumb this treasure with a greater God-centered and Christ-centered focus. This book will not only help you find wisdom, but by its unique design will also help those who come after you live skillfully as God's sons and daughters in God's world."Stephen J. Nichols, President, Reformation Bible College; Chief Academic Officer, Ligonier Ministries"Every Christian parent desires to teach their children biblical truth and pass along wisdom from God. Champ Thornton has made our work and effort easier through his book Pass It On. His unique concept will not only allow us parents to pass along wisdom from Proverbs, it will equip and serve our own hearts and minds as we meditate on Scripture and journal our thoughts. I highly recommend this resource."Trillia Newbell, Author of God's Very Good Idea, Fear and Faith, and Enjoy"In the book you are holding, Champ Thornton provides a brilliant way to inculcate the divine wisdom of Proverbs into your family. Follow his plan and you will produce what may become the most valuable and spiritually-fruitful gift your children or grandchildren will ever receive. What you write in these pages will surely be long-lasting in its impact and deeply treasured by its recipients. Use this book, record the wisdom God has given to you through the book of Proverbs, and Pass it On."Donald S. Whitney, Author of Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life, Praying the Bible, and Family Worship"Champ Thornton gives parents, grandparents, and friends a Proverbs journal to pass on that incorporates accurate insight into the background of the Proverbs, the nature of wisdom, the application of wisdom to daily life, the ways in which wisdom points us to Jesus, and an opportunity to add personal stories and reflection. We need this book in our age of cultural confusion."John M. Frame, PhD, DD, Professor Emeritus in Systematic Theology and Philosophy, Reformed Theological Seminary"This book is a gift to the next generation, but the giver will receive a treasure, too. If you've felt that sense of urgency as you watch the young children around you grow up too quickly in your estimation, this book will help direct your urgency into action. Champ thoughtfully guides parents and others through Proverbs with the aim to helping us impart wisdom to the next generation. This gift is for children ages 0-99!"Gloria Furman, Author of Missional Motherhood and Treasuring Christ When Your Hands Are Full"It is hard to over-estimate the value of Proverbs. The book is a compendium of God's wisdom. Champ Thornton provides you with a guided tour for each chapter and space for you to journal about how the wisdom of the Proverbs maps onto your life. It is my prayer that this book will make the Proverbs sing for another generation. If you like to journal, you will love this book."Dr. Tedd Tripp, Pastor Emeritus; author, Conference Speaker"As a parent, my greatest hope is to share my love for Jesus with my children. Champ Thornton's new book, Pass It On: A Proverbs Journal for the Next Generation allows parents a wonderful opportunity to share wisdom and insights from God's Word that will bless future generations. It's an excellent resource to help leave a legacy of faith for our children and grandchildren."Melissa Kruger, Editor at The Gospel Coalition; author of Walking with God in the Season of Motherhood"The book of Proverbs intends to make us wise, righteous, and godly. I am pleased to recommend Champ Thornton's engaging book, Pass It On, which helps us both to understand the book of Proverbs and to see how it applies to our lives as well as to those to whom we will pass on the profound wisdom we find there. In our complex and troubled world, we need the wisdom of the book of Proverbs to navigate us toward God and toward a flourishing life. Champ Thornton masterfully guides us in a way that helps us learn from Proverb's rich teaching."Tremper Longman III, Distinguished Scholar of Biblical Studies, Westmont College"In Pass It On, Champ Thornton gives us the opportunity to create a family heirloom. Imagine the treasure of discovering a devotional book with your father's or even grandfather's notes in the margins. Let the thought of creating such a priceless keepsake inspire you to use this book. In a world of plastic and video, you can offer your child a gift with substance the truth of God's Word and the testimony of how it touched you." Marty Machowski, Pastor; author of The Ology, Dragon Seed, The Gospel Story Bible, and other gospel-centered resources for church and home"Pass It On is a refreshing approach to Proverbs written especially for the coming generation to learn and live out the wisdom of God in his world. Beginning with a helpful 'bird's-eye' overview of Proverbs, each chapter is treated along with questions that aid in engaging the text. Most importantly, the discussion avoids becoming a series of burdensome morality lessons by keeping clear the connection to the gospel."Richard B. Gaffin Jr., Professor of Biblical and Systematic Theology, Emeritus, Westminster Theological Seminary"'My son do not forget my teaching' (Proverbs 3:1). What greater legacy can we pass on to our children than biblical wisdom? This remarkable book by Champ Thornton helps us do just that sharing the God-centered, practical wisdom for living found in Proverbs with those who come after us. When you've worked your way through this step-by-step guide you'll have a record of your own journey to hand over to the next generation a journey they will read, cherish, and carry on. I'm going to start immediately, you should too!Brian Vickers, Professor of NT Interpretation, The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary"Martin Luther said, 'If you picture the Bible to be a mighty tree and every word a little branch, I have shaken every one of these branches because I wanted to know what it was and what it meant.' Champ Thornton has done this same thing in Pass it On. In this extraordinarily useful book, he has shaken the branches of Proverbs and shared its good fruit with the reader."Tim Keesee, Executive Director of Frontline Missions International; author of Dispatches from the Front"Part journal, part study guide, part prayer diary, part personal account all add up to a treasured keepsake. The book of Proverbs itself suggests an approach like this: 'Hear, my son [and daughter], your father's instruction and forsake not your mother's teaching.' Champ Thornton offers a practical way to do just that, and future generations will benefit."Janie B. Cheaney, Senior Writer, WORLD Magazine"Proverbs prescribes the pattern of the kind of life that pleases God, showing what holiness looks like in the most mundane circumstances of life. It takes the religion of the sanctuary and applies it to life in the streets and in the home. So often this path from 'church' to 'life' is charted by the guidance of a father. This is what Thornton does in his journal Pass It On. His overview of the book's message and thought-provoking questions are designed to help parents guide their children in the way of holiness. It has been said that religion is no more real than it is in the home. Using Thornton's little book to work through Proverbs will help to foster real religion."Michael Barrett, PhD, Vice President for Academic Affairs/Academic Dean and Professor of Old Testament, Puritan Reformed Theological Seminary"Pass It On introduces Proverbs and shows us how to personalize reflections for subsequent generations. Wisdom personally applied to the life circumstances of family and friends is worth more than silver and gold. It is the most important estate planning any of us can do. This book is a wonderful gift for anyone who aspires to leave a legacy of wisdom."Chris Brauns, Pastor of The Red Brick Church; author of Unpacking Forgiveness: Biblical Answers for Complex Questions and Deep Wounds and When the Word Leads Your Pastoral Search"Champ has created an inventive and intentional method for applying the book of Proverbs to our lives that our friends and loved ones can greatly benefit from. Passing down the wisdom of God's word to the next generation has never been so easy and enjoyable!" Ronnie Martin, Lead Pastor of Substance Church, OH; author of Stop Your Complaining"In Pass it On, Champ Thornton has created another unique resource for assisting Christian parents to extract the precious wisdom from the endless goldmine of the Book of Proverbs and impart its righteous riches to their children. I will be using it with my kids and urge others to dig in, too."Matthew C. Mitchell, Father of four; author of Resisting Gossip; pastor of Lanse Evangelical Free Church