Ochorus for youth ministries

Free books your teenagers will actually read

The great classics retold for teens, true stories of people who met God before they were grown, and thirty-day devotionals written for young people. Free on their own phone, with no ads and no account needed.

books
295
sermons
251
reading plans
36
languages
10

Plans to read together

One short reading a day. Start on the same day and everyone reaches the same chapter together, each reader ticking off their own progress as they go.

Starting Out: Faith for Teens

24 days·~7 min/day

A first walk with Jesus, for teenage readers. Charles Spurgeon meets you at the gate with the plainest of help for anyone finding their way to Christ; then the true stories of men and women who gave him everything show what that life becomes — two short books over about three weeks.

Day 1 ·Around the Wicket Gate

Anchored: Two Months with God for Teens

64 days·~4 min/day

Two months with God for readers aged 13 to 17: both books of Anchored — Is It True? Who Am I? and Real Life — one devotion a day on the honest questions of faith, who you are in Christ, and following Jesus through worry, screens, friendships, home and grief. Each day ends with a pointer to one chapter of a classic.

Day 1 ·Anchored – 30 Days with God for Teens – Book 1

They Were Young: Two Weeks of True Stories

14 days·~14 min/day

Two weeks of true stories for readers aged 13 to 17: both books of They Were Young — Called and Tested — one life a day, from Spurgeon in a snowstorm and Richard Allen in Delaware to Patrick, Perpetua and the Uganda Martyrs, each ending with questions to think through.

Day 1 ·They Were Young – Book 1: Called

See every reading plan

Start a reading group

Choose a plan and the day you begin, then pass on the link. Everyone who opens it is on the same day of the plan. Nobody needs an account, and nothing about anyone is collected.

Read on

Good places to start

Thirty days with God

A few minutes a day for a month, on their own phone.

Begin reading
Anchored – 30 Days with God for Teens – Book 1
Ochorus Originals
Book 1 of 2 in Anchored – 30 Days with God for Teens
32 chapters · 1 hr 48 min read
Begin reading
Rooted – 30 Days with God for Youth – Book 1
Ochorus Originals
Book 1 of 6 in Rooted – 30 Days with God for Youth
32 chapters · 1 hr 12 min read
Begin reading
Daughters of the King – 30 Days with God for Girls – Book 1
Ochorus Originals
Book 1 of 3 in Daughters of the King – 30 Days with God for Girls
32 chapters · 1 hr 16 min read
Begin reading
Sons of the King – 30 Days with God for Guys – Book 1
Ochorus Originals
Book 1 of 3 in Sons of the King – 30 Days with God for Guys
32 chapters · 1 hr 17 min read
Begin reading
Real Questions – Book 1
Ochorus Originals
Book 1 of 3 in Real Questions
32 chapters · 2 hr 4 min read
Begin reading
Anchored – 30 Days with God for Teens – Book 2
Ochorus Originals
Book 2 of 2 in Anchored – 30 Days with God for Teens
32 chapters · 1 hr 57 min read

Why youth ministries use Ochorus

  • Classics in words teens read

    The Pilgrim’s Progress, All of Grace and others, retold for teenagers without losing what they say. Each one links to the full original for when they want more.

    See the teens editions

  • True stories worth telling

    C. S. Lewis, Corrie ten Boom, Elisabeth Elliot, Watchman Nee and others, told for teens: real people who trusted God when it cost them.

    Meet them

  • Thirty days with God

    Devotionals like Anchored and Rooted give a teenager a few minutes a day for a month, and reading plans keep a whole group on the same page.

    See the reading plans

  • On their phone, ready to listen

    Everything works on a phone with no sign-up, and any chapter can be read aloud with Listen, for the bus, the walk or the drive home from camp.

Ways to use it in your youth ministry

  1. A thirty-day challenge

    Start the group on the same devotional after a retreat or camp, and check in each week on how it is going.

  2. A book for the term

    Read a teens edition together, a chapter or two a week, and spend youth group on the questions it raises.

  3. Heroes night

    Tell one true story of faith each week, then point the group to the full biography to read at home.

  4. Something to hand a new believer

    Send a young person who has just come to faith a link to All of Grace for teens and a short reading plan.

“Let not the thought of receiving more grace to-morrow, make you negligent of to-day.”
John Wesley, Sermons on Several Occasions, ch. 43 ¶29

Meet the writers

The lives behind the books: each one has a full biography, with the books and sermons they left.

See every biography

Pass it on

A message ready for a bulletin, a group chat or an email. Copy it as it is, or make it your own.

Free Christian books for teens on Ochorus: true stories, the classics retold and thirty-day devotionals. No ads and no sign-up. https://ochorus.com/teens/
WhatsApp Email

Questions

Is Ochorus really free?

Yes. Every book and sermon on Ochorus is free to read, with no paywall, no subscription and no ads. The classics themselves are in the public domain, and Ochorus is a ministry, not a business.

Do teens need to sign up?

No. Anyone can read without an account. A free account is optional: it keeps reading progress, notes and saved books in step across devices.

What ages are the teens books for?

The teens editions are written for older children and teenagers. For younger members, the books for young readers retell the same classics more simply.

Is it safe to send teenagers to?

Ochorus has no ads and nothing to buy. It is a library of Christian books, and nothing else competes for their attention.

Give your group something good to read

Start with the books for teens, or pick a reading plan to go through together.