‘The Lord is using the Child Evangelism Fellowship® 60-day Wonder Devotional Books through a partnership with the Fathers’ 3-10 Initiative to great effect,’ says CEF® Vice President of Administration Fred Pry
ST. LOUIS — Father’s Day this year is on June 15. As society has evolved, parents have become distracted by and addicted to cell phones, creating a disconnect between the parent-child relationship. An innovative program that encourages fathers to have one-on-one time with their children is bringing thousands of families and Jesus together.
Virgil Anderson started the Fathers’ 3-10 Initiative in Romania to give special attention to the fathers of families with children aged 3 to 10. The idea is to make it easy for these fathers to spend quality time regularly with their young children so they can impart lifelong spiritual lessons.
Child Evangelism Fellowship (CEF) partners with CRU CO-OP to provide CEF Wonder Devotional Books to fathers and their children through the Fathers’ 3-10 Initiative. The Wonder Devotional Book kit contains 360 devotions to cover a full year. The kit contains six individual books to make it easier for the children to keep it with their Bibles.
“The Lord is using our 60-day Wonder Devotional Books in this program,” says CEF Vice President of Administration Fred Pry. “CEF and the Fathers’ 3-10 Initiative share the same heart to reach boys and girls while they are open to the Gospel. The Wonder Devotional Books give fathers a viable and sustainable path to engage with their children on a spiritual level.”
Virgil Anderson talked about how the Fathers’ 3-10 Initiative began and how it works.
“In the 1990s, I traveled from Minnesota to Romania five to six times per year to co-lead the Romania Project,” said Anderson. “During the times between these trips, I helped a Minnesota Cru team. On one occasion, I helped register young fathers at a Friday-Saturday conference. I was impressed with how these young men came and sat on uncomfortable folding chairs to patiently listen to messages on how to be a better dad.”
“[As] the country was experiencing great difficulty in the transition away from the Communist government, I knew that many fathers of young children were experiencing great difficulty. And like most fathers, they hoped their children would not grow up to be bank robbers, alcoholics, or drug users. I also had the belief that children in a young age range (3-10) still wanted the attention of their fathers. But what could bring them together?”
The answer was the Fathers’ 3-10 Initiative.
“It represents the easiest and most strategic way to influence families, churches, communities, countries and the world for good,” Anderson said. “It meets children where they are by providing spiritual guidance and a place of stability in an uncertain environment.”
“The Wonder Devotional Book was designed to help children develop a lifelong habit of enjoying God’s Word and applying it to their lives,” said John Luck, CEF Vice President of Global Partnership, who was instrumental in developing this collaborative effort.
“When parents use the Wonder Devotional Books to engage with their children spiritually, transformation takes place, relationships are strengthened, and often, the fathers have the joy of leading their own children in coming to Christ and growing in Christ.
“The 18-book series provides three years of devotions for kids, and it always provides the child with interaction with God’s Word and a daily prayer emphasis.”
Child Evangelism Fellowship (CEF), which was founded 88 years ago, has been establishing the Good News Club® in countries around the world for decades. Clubs are thriving worldwide, in countries including Australia, Cambodia, Congo, Ethiopia, Ghana, Indonesia, Kenya, Malaysia, New Zealand, South Korea, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Uganda and many more.
In 2024, through the combined ministries of CEF, more than 31 million children worldwide were impacted for Christ. More than 533,000 teachers were trained around the world to reach children.
For more CEF news, see the ministry’s latest edition of the online magazine Impact.
CEF is an international, nonprofit, Christian ministry that has been dedicated to seeing every child reached with the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ, discipled, and established in a local church since 1937. CEF is located in all 50 American states and in most countries around the world, with over 3,500 paid staff and tens of thousands of volunteers around the world.
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To interview a representative from Child Evangelism Fellowship, contact [email protected], Beth Bogucki, 610.584.1096, ext. 105, Dawn Foglein, ext. 100, or Daniel Moyer, ext. 104.