I'm a mother of three boys and a Children's Ministry Director and I have looked at many different Bibles. I've been excited to introduce my children to the Bible, but totally overwhelmed with finding a Bible that would faithfully communicate the Scriptures at a level that made sense to young children.

The Jesus Storybook Bible seeks to show how God's plan of salvation is unfolding through each story, and largely succeeds in doing so. Let me try and demonstrate what I mean.

First of all, there are children's Bibles like the Read With Me Bible that are simply bland. Granted, toddlers are not going to pick up on every nuance of a story from the Bible, but the Read With Me Bible often chooses the wrong points to emphasize, entirely leaving out important points of narrative along the way.

One story simply lists miracles Jesus did with no context, failing to communicate that Jesus' miracles actually anticipate and begin to realize a new world, a world where God's Kingdom and rule are breaking into the world in a new and exciting way. Now, children obviously won't grasp the entirety of this message (indeed, even the most mature Christian is still growing in their understanding) but Jesus is more than a magician, he is more than simply amazingly powerful, so why drain the miracle stories of their power? If salt loses its saltiness, what is it good for?

The Jesus Storybook Bible works to explain the big idea, and big picture of the Scriptures at every turn. The focus is on God's love for the lost, the great problem of sin, and the great hope we have in Christ. So, for example, the story of the Exodus is told not as the story of God's great magic show, but instead on the great, mighty, and terrifying rescue of God's people from their slavery, pointing forward also to humanity's slavery to sin and coming rescue in Jesus. That is why the subtitle to this Bible is "Every Story Whispers His Name." Every story anticipates the coming of Jesus and the great rescue he brings to those who put their faith in him. This is a great concept, and a great work for children. 

Now is this Bible perfect? No, and no translation is, much less a paraphrase. Other have commented on some of the shortcomings of this Bible. Sometimes the language and tone is a bit casual, although casual doesn't necessarily mean disrespectful. Every story doesn't say as much as it could, although this is a strength rather than a weakness for a paraphrase (See: The Message). Not all of the theology expressed in the paraphrase matches perfectly with my own, but I see that as a teaching opportunity rather than a fatal flaw, not to mention that I think children should know early on that there are many ideas in the world, and not all of them are equally valid, and certainly not all of them are true. But again, the strength of this Bible is that it gets the story right, interpreting the main idea correctly and always pointing toward Jesus.

This is the point. It continually turns you toward Jesus. From the beginning to the end, everything points towards Jesus Christ.

Here are a few other opinions:

“I LOVE to give people The Jesus Storybook Bible because from the very first chapter it paints a powerful picture of God’s epic love for each one of us. Sally Lloyd-Jones has a unique way of inviting the reader, young or old, to dive in and discover for themselves the truth and hope of the greatest story ever told.” Amy Grant (Amy Grant)

“Sharing the Gospel with The Jesus Storybook Bible has been one of the greatest privileges of my life.” Ann Voskamp (Ann Voskamp)

“I would urge not just families with young children to get this book, but every Christian–from pew warmers, to ministry leaders, seminarians and even theologians! Sally Lloyd-Jones has captured the heart of what it means to find Christ in all the scriptures, and has made clear even to little children that all God’s revelation has been about Jesus from the beginning–a truth not all that commonly recognized even among the very learned.” – Dr. Timothy Keller, NYC (Dr. Timothy Keller)

The last thing I want to mention is that the pictures for this are incredibly well done. Jago is one incredibly talented artist and this book is beautiful.

I would be so bold as to recommend anything by Sally Lloyd-Jones. She has a real gift for communicating truth to the very young or the very young at heart.

It is quite late for. 2017 Booklist but it’s right on time for Easter!  Here is the trinity of books that gave me hope and inspiration last year.  Daring to Hope by Katie Davis Majors, The Lifegiving Table by Sally Clarkson, and Christmas Jars are my top pics from last year.

I am a big believer in the combination of food and fellowship.  And I make no secret of being an admirer of one of the early leaders in the homeschooling movement.  Sally Clarkson continues to astound with the sheer number of books on homeschooling, motherhood, and discipleship.  The Life Giving Table really is one of her best and its a great followup to The Life Giving Home.  

This book is a wonderful combination of biblical principles lived around the table.  It's chock full of stories of her children, her ministry with her husband, and it also is outstanding in the sheer number of practical ideas that will help any parent get started.

I love how Clarkson is extremely family directed. She loves sharing her heart and feelings about her family and encouraging the reader to do the same. In a society that is all about self, Clarkson stands out because of her focus on building up the family and nourishing them and this is very self evident if you have followed her for any amount of time on social media or know any of her other books.

What I really loved about The Life-Giving Table is that she is bringing back a part of family life that has been lost in recent years...gathering around the table for dinner and actually being a family. We have gotten so caught up in rushing around to different activities and grabbing dinner on the go, we are missing out on an important time where we can connect and learn about each other's day and touch base with our families more.

While encouraging the reader to gather with their family around the dinner table, she has built this entire book, and the inspirational words on the pages, in biblical foundation. Throughout the book she offers scripture that you could pull from the pages and use for scripture memory practice, posting around the house for long-term focus, or just using as a thought for the day to ground your family in scripture. Clarkson also has included some fabulous recipes that you can add to your families gathering or just a nightly dinner that could eventually become a tradition in your life and passed down through the generations.

I really enjoyed this book and the study guide that goes with it. If family is important to you, I highly recommend this book and any others from Clarkson. They will help you lift your family to a whole new height and hopefully create some traditions that you can pass down to the younger generations so that they can carry them on.

I picked this up at a used bookstore a while back and it turned out to be one of the best Christmas reads ever!  The heart of this novella is about the transformative power of giving.  

This centers around a journalist who happens upon a human interest story that winds up teaching her lessons about love and forgiveness and renewing her own faith in human kindness. On Christmas Eve, twenty-something Hope Jensen is quietly grieving the recent loss of her adoptive mother when her apartment is robbed. The one bright spot in the midst of Hope's despair is a small jar full of money someone has anonymously left on her doorstep. Eager to learn the source of this unexpected generosity, Hope uses her newswoman instincts to find other recipients of "Christmas jars," digging until her search leads her to the family who first began the tradition of saving a year's worth of spare change to give to someone in need at the holiday.

This was short, heart-warming, and profound all at the same time!  There are great Christmas stories to be discovered that have nothing to do with commercialism and are not overly sentimental.  This is one of them.  I highly recommend this to those of you who love to read about things that can inform and strengthen your faith.