Golden Bells

Children’s Magazine

Golden Bells is a children’s outreach magazine published to present the gospel and teach the word of God to the young people living in today’s world. The main purpose of the magazine is to provide solid Bible-based material that is easily understood, yet comprehensive, in a time when clear, scriptural materials for the younger generation are becoming increasingly scarce. Golden Bells is produced and funded by believers from the Salis-bury assembly in Brisbane, Australia. Dona-tions from our subscribers also assist in covering the costs of children’s prizes and postage.

In 1966, brother Blair McCracken produced the Acacia Ridge Sunday School Magazine. This was the beginning of what we now know as Golden Bells. The magazine became known by its current name within the following year and was used to spread the word of God in government schools in the local area. As time passed, word of the magazine spread and subscriptions came from every state in Australia as well as internationally, from countries such as Canada, New Zealand, Africa, India, Fiji and the Solomon Islands.

Believers, both young and old, from the Salisbury Gospel Hall have contributed to the production of Golden Bells over the years, actively taking part in writing articles, compiling activities, graphic design, posting and packaging. The magazine has undergone a number of facelifts in order to keep it up to date and interesting to our changing society. The most recent change, during 2006, saw the introduction of a full colour glossy format and a theme for each issue.

Today, the magazine reaches over 4,000 children and young people in different parts of the world and has served three generations up to the present day. It is used in Sunday school lessons, religious education (RE) classes, kids’ clubs and home schooling programmes. The magazine is also used as a teaching tool in outback Aboriginal communities and International Schools.

Golden Bells is produced bi-monthly and is freely available to anyone who wishes to put it to use in youth or children’s work. The content within each issue spans a broad age range through various regular articles.

If you are interested in subscribing to Golden Bells please contact us at the following address:
Golden Bells, PO BOX 1463,
Sunnybank Hills 4109 QLD, Australia
Email: [email protected]

The magazine goes out with the prayer that children and their families might come to know Christ as their Saviour.

Each issue contains the following:
Children’s Story
Each issue begins with an adapted Bible story and is suitable for reading aloud to young children, or read by those who have a reading age of 7-10 years.

Claire’s Column
A letter from Claire is written to the children explaining the theme for the issue and linking it to the Bible and daily living. Children are able to email or write to Claire in response to each letter.

Activity pages
The activities are Bible based and usually relate directly to the chosen theme. Simple find-a-word, hidden pictures and colouring pages are included for young children, whilst comprehension activities, crosswords and quizzes are included for teenagers. Completed activities can be sent to Golden Bells and the children are added to ‘The Golden Bells Club’ where they can then receive points and awards for their efforts.

Teen focus
The topic is explored in an interactive way to children from approximately 12-16 years. These pages require use of the Bible in answering the questions and understanding the theme being studied.

Young Christians’ Page
YCP is a Bible study page which can be used in small groups or by individuals to study in more depth and gain a solid understanding of the topic from a biblical perspective.