fave children’s bibles: teach them young.

When we started our homeschooling journey all those years ago, I was kind of winging it. And by “kind of winging it”, I mean I had no idea what I was doing.

As we fumbled and explored our way through the first couple of years learning each other and what worked (and even more things that didn’t work), I found myself really sifting what the most important things were. If I only have these handful of years with them, what am I hoping to accomplish? If we can’t do it all (which we we can’t), what things would move us towards our core values? After all, how we spend our minutes is how we live our lives, and if we’re not careful we’ll squirrel them all away on the things that never really mattered anyway.

Here’s what I landed with: I want them to know and love the Lord, I want them to be for each other, and I want them to be curious and enjoy learning.

None of these things happen quickly, and most of the time that kind of work is going on deep under the surface of their hearts and minds where you can’t even see. But my job is merely planting seeds and nurturing however I can. Only the Lord can make any of those things actually grow.

We’ve read and worked through a variety of resources over the years as I’ve sought to introduce my kids to the wild and mighty God that made them and the world around them. There is A LOT available once you go down the rabbit hole, and it can be pretty daunting when you start to peek around. I wanted to find well-made, aesthetically pleasing resources that were Scripture based and told the narrative of God’s story and his character. Things that made the Bible approachable without watering it down.

Here are a few of the crowd favorites around here that have nestled their way into our family bookshelf: 

The Jesus Storybook Bible, by Sally Lloyd Jones

This is one of my FAVORITE children’s storybook Bibles of all times, and I don’t care how old you are you should have a copy on your bookshelf. I found myself getting teary eyed on multiple occasions at the beauty in how this book portrays the personable and mighty love of God. The illustrations are captivating and rich, and there are so many partnering resources you can use alongside of this beloved book.

You can find all sorts of printables and activities to use alongside of this book, since it’s become quite the beloved read for so many… the secret is out! We’ve used this in the Advent season leading up to Christmas as well, which is coming up soon! You can find free downloads from the author’s website below, and can also purchase pre-made Jesse Tree ornaments from Etsy shops… or just make your own if you’re feeling frisky.

The Jesus Storybook Advent Guide, free download from author Sally Lloyd-Jones’ website

Wooden Jesse Tree Ornaments, by The Okie Giraffe (Etsy)

Felt Jesse Tree Ornaments, by Baby What Knots (Etsy)

The Action Bible, by David C. Cook

As our kids have gotten a little older and are able to read independently, we wanted them to have a Bible of their own. They can highlight their memory verses and take it to church or Sunday school with them if they want. One of our boys is super into comics right now, and I stumbled upon this one and knew it would rope him in.

It seems like a great “bridge resource” of sorts, putting the entirety of Scripture next to the illustrated elements they are used to from their storybook Bibles from the earlier years. There aren’t illustrations for every story, but it’s enough to peak their interest and has been a crowd fave for sure.

The Biggest Story, by Kevin DeYoung

This is a shorter book that was actually based off of a sermon, but it’s the narrative of Scripture written in ten short chapters. Our kids were drawn in and intrigued by this idea of the “snake crusher”, while the author took you on a trip through both the Old and New Testaments, knitting these stories together in such a way that you can see the common thread always leading to Christ.

We were all captivated by these colorful and rich illustrations, it really is such a beautiful read! This is great for a bedtime story, a mealtime discussion, and can definitely be read together more than once! 

Keep going…

If you’re looking for other creative ways to engage Scripture as a family, we’ve loved using various study aids from Kids Read Truth. We love their Isaiah’s Prophecies Fulfilled in Jesus Matching Card Set, and their book This is the Gospel is also pretty wonderful. They have something for everyone in the family, so take some time and wander around their shop! It’s full of gems. (Lots of great giftables too!)

We have recently discovered (and are loving!) a new online membership program called Bible Builds, where you study a book of the Bible and build it out of Legos. This is a paid membership, and they only open up registration periodically, but I will say that the content produced is really well-done. They even give kids a forum to post pictures of their own creations based off each story and see what everyone else has built too… and I mean, who doesn’t love Legos?! (Here’s a picture of their first build: The genealogy of Jesus… hah!)

I’ve always wanted to be creative in the ways that we engage our kids in conversation about the Lord. He’s not just a school subject to be studied, or something to check off the list for our golden star. And I’ll be honest - when I’ve slipped into that mode or had that kind of mentality, my kids can sniff it out every time. But here’s the thing… Our God is very much alive and at work and wants us to know Him. We have to train our kids to do so many things in life: how to eat solids, how to read and write, how to pee into the middle of the dang toilet for crying out loud (still working on that one), and discipleship is no different. Whether you are homeschooling or not, whatever ages your kids are, whether you have been discipling them for years or not, none of that matters… but don’t miss this chance to give them Jesus. Keep it simple. Use these things, or don’t. They are aids, but not requirements by any means.

You have a set amount of time where you live under the same roof with your kids… just decide what your most important things are, how you want to spend your minutes and live your lives, and go after it every chance you get. Let it all be for the glory of the Lord, one messy and hard and beautiful day at a time.

“He must become greater, I must become less.” -John 3:30