BLOG REVIEW: The Story of King Jesus

"And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might, and these words which I am commanding you today, shall be on your heart; and you shall TEACH them when you sit in your house and when you walk by the way and when you lie down and when you rise up.  And you shall bind them as a sign on your hand and they shall be as frontals on your forehead.  And you shall write them on your doorposts of your house and on your gates." Deuteronomy 6:5-9  (NASB)

This school year in Bible Study Fellowship (BSF), we have been studying the Life of Moses.  Our study has taken us through the books of Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and finally Deuteronomy.  I have been moved immensely by the WORD and these old testament books have profoundly impacted my daily thought life.  One of the recurring themes throughout these books is the importance of passing on faith in the ONE TRUE GOD to the next generation.  We have learned there were always consequences for not passing down their faith.

MY REVIEW:  We want the best for our children, don't we?  We want to see them blessed beyond all measure!  One of the best ways we can provide for our children is to share the FULL story of God's plan for redemption.  The Story of King Jesus does just that in a short, concise way with beautiful illustrations to captures a child's heart and mind.  I love that Ben Irwin scripts a book with such rich truth in a perfect amount of pages to read during one setting!  He quotes "God's redemptive tale can't be reduced to a few memory verses from Scripture.  It's not a formula or a plan or a prayer you recite.  It's a drama that you life, and it's woven throughout every book of the Bible, from Genesis to Revelation."

Don't get me wrong, I LOVE our Jesus Storybook Bible and the other Bible storybooks we have, but you can't sit down and read the whole thing in one setting.  My experience is that preschoolers and early elementary kids don't have long attention spans, so something that is concise is perfect!  It is short enough that it can be read over and over again, with different parts of the story impacting the kids lives at different times.  The book is written in language that our kids can understand perfectly.  It also, focuses on Jesus as KING, which is so crucial because that is what transforms our life.  Overall this book is an excellent "launching point to explore the Bible together."  It has generated additional conversation with my oldest two children.  We discuss the pictures in the book, which then leads to additional bible teaching.

Ben encourages us as parents, "Show your children --- with your life and words -- that this is your story, and it can be theirs too."

One of my favorite lines is towards the end of the book ... "God gave us the King we needed."  Isn't that so true?  He didn't give us the type of King we wanted, because He knew that wouldn't be the best.  So often in my life, God gives me what I need and not what I want.  Thank heavens He knows better than I.  Jesus is God's Best and because of His sacrifice, we have the opportunity to once again be in a restored relationship with God.  And that my friends is GRACE!


Question to ponder: What has God given you recently that is what you NEED, but not necessarily what you WANTED?  


Disclaimer: I received this product free of charge. All thoughts and opinions are my own. I was not monetarily compensated for this review.

Blog Review: Treasury of Bible Stories

"God made Adam a beautiful place to call home, 

a garden with flowers and trees.

The garden of Eden had plants of all kinds

that swayed in the warm, gentle breeze.

There were tropical trees that had blankets of blooms; 

some had fruit that was tasty and sweet.

There were apples and oranges, bananas and pears

and cherries for Adam to eat."

Once again, I have the privilege to work alongside of David C Cook publishing to introduce one of their newest books: Treasury of Bible Stories: Rhythmical Rhymes of Biblical Times.   This 351 page book is a collection of 20 of the most common Bible stories geared towards preschoolers and early elementary children, but fun for the whole family.  This is a storybook Bible perfect for kids who are too old for toddler Bibles, but too young for complete Bibles.  Its lyrical stories will make your whole family laugh!  The illustrations are extremely clever and colorful!

The back cover describes it perfectly, "Magnificent Tales are rhyming Bible stories with clever art and clear lessons the whole family will enjoy.  The stories and illustrations are so engaging that you won't grow tired of reading a Magnificent Tale night after night!  From "The Salty Tale of Noah's Ark" to "The Lasting Story of the Last Supper," the rhyming tales in this book remind us that God loves His people -- in the Bible and today!"

My Review:  The Treasury of Bible Stories is a beautifully illustrated storybook geared towards children ages 4-8.  The rhyming stories pair great spiritual truths with attractive and fun-filled illustrations!  It is the perfect book to read aloud to your little ones because of the fun rhymes!  I found Sophia laughing at each story with the many plays on words.  The rhyming helps the children commit the stories and spiritual lessons learned to memory!  

Sophia really enjoyed "God's Bigger Plan: The Beautiful Story of Queen Esther" as well as "The Good Neighbor: The Parable of the Good Samaritan."  Of course Jackson's favorite story was "Every Beast Times Two: The Salty Tale of Noah's Ark" since he is obsessed with every animal known to man!  He also enjoyed "The Biggest and Toughest: The Story of David's Big Faith."

Both kids truly enjoyed the illustrations!  Kelly Pulley, the illustrator, has a unique and clever style, which distinguishes this book from the many children's Bible storybooks available!  It is pleasing and quite engaging to the eye.  I also felt that the language/word combinations used made it very easy for the children to understand the story and the lesson behind it.  This is ideal for teaching such young ones the spiritual truths from the scriptures.

Overall, I was very impressed with this treasury and am very thankful that we have it in our personal library!!

I will close with a section from my favorite story, "He Has Risen!  The Magnificent Story of the Resurrection."

"So Jesus hung out with His friends for a while,

till the day that He left with a wave and a smile.

He said, "I must return to My Father above, 

You must preach to the world about God's endless love.

You must preach the good news.

You must tell all creation,

and preach of salvation from sin to each nation."

Then He held out His hands and He lifted them high

and He blessed all His friends as He rose in the sky."  

The next time you are in the Christian bookstore, please check out this book!  It would make a great gift for a child's birthday or Christmas!  Give the gift of truth and love! :)

Disclaimer: I received this product free of charge. All thoughts and opinions are my own. I was not monetarily compensated for this review.