A little over a year ago, in the airport on the way to Las Vegas, I found a book I knew Baby Gray had to have. It was the Jesus Calling Storybook Bible by Sarah Young (shop my affiliate link here). I didn’t want to lug it around for the rest of the trip, so I sent a photo to my mom and asked her to get it for part of the boy’s Christmas. We have loved it. It breaks everything down into an age-appropriate story for the boy, AND it’s also taught me a lot.
Several things I have known on the surface or a had a brief idea about have been clarified and refocused for me through this storybook Bible. It’s not your run of the mill cutesy, story-only children’s Bible. It’s got the meat and potatoes of the Bible stories while also including important details (God turning away when Jesus became sin, for example).
I attended a Bible study Wednesday morning, and the author of Seamless mentioned in the introduction video that she used a children’s Bible when she first started seeking the Lord. She used it to piece together the stories and understand them in a tangible way. That’s how I have felt with ours. I don’t know that I ever would have been smart enough to figure that out on my own, but God has sure used it to teach me. It has been a breath of fresh air for me to read it and study it with the boy–especially as our space constraints have cramped my usual “quiet time” style a little.
Another thing Angie Smith mentioned in the intro video that I feel is worth noting was how she felt when she first went to a Bible study in college. To paraphrase a little, when she went to the first meeting, she was not a believer; she had not grown up in church; she was not familiar with the order of the books of the Bible. As she watched others in the study turn, in unison, to the called book and chapter, she felt alienated and alone.
A couple of things about that jumped out at me. How often do we just assume that everyone is where we are? How easy is it to be in your comfortable groove, following Christ, and forget that there are those who don’t know Him? There are those who don’t know how to read His word, how to dive it and experience the living, breathing Word of God. My other thought? I don’t know where all of them are, either, and I’ve been in church pretty much all my life (thank you, YouVersion). Let’s be seekers of those who are seeking Him. You don’t have to be a Bible scholar to help someone feel less alone.
I’m in no way affiliated with any of these folks; I just like to share what’s working for us. Thanks and gig ’em!
