Bible Junkie

I have a confession to make... I am a junkie.

Apparently, the first step to recovery is admitting that you have a problem. So...I am openly acknowledging the fact that I have an addiction to biblical literature for children, specifically bible story books. I love to get my hands on a new children's Bible! There is nothing quite like the thrill of going to the mailbox to open what might be our new family favorite, and of pouring over it and wondering how it will enhance our Bible study time at the Smith house. I have amassed quite a collection over the past few years. Perhaps I need to slow down on purchasing these items. I mean, how many children's Bibles does a person really need anyway?

It all started right before Mary Alice was born. I received my first children's Bible as a gift at her baby shower. It was one of my favorite presents. This began my addiction.

Each year the cycle repeats itself. I research the web, ask friends, and search all over the globe just to find a better and more exciting children's Bible to read with the kids. Then, when the timing is right, I make my purchase. I just received one of this year's Bibles in the mail a few days ago. (I ordered two.) Based upon careful inspection of it's contents, I have decided that I will probably dust off one of my old favorites instead.

It is important to me that these Bibles be fairly accurate. Many of them take liberties with the truths of God's Word. Of course, nothing could be as accurate as the Bible itself. I know that these children's Bibles are just storybooks to be used in addition to instruction from the true Bible. I feel a big responsibility to be cautious when reading them to my kids.

I thought I would share some of the children's Bibles I have in my collection:

1) The Children's Bible In 365 Stories- This is the one that I received from the elders at our church at the time of Mary Alice's birth. I haven't read very much from this one, so I can't give it a good recommendation. The illustrations are nice, though, and there are many of them.


2)The Word and Song Bible- I LOVED this one for many reasons. I bought this Bible about three years ago. It comes with multiple CDs. Kids can listen to this Bible independently. It has a narrator reading the Bible stories and cute little songs at the end of every couple of stories. My kids still pull this down during their play time and listen to it. Some have said that some of the sound effects (the voice of God, etc.) were a little too scary. My kids weren't scared at all, but if things like that bother your kids, you may want to keep that in mind. This is probably the most interesting and engaging story Bible that we have. I have used it multiple times when teaching Bible class also. The kids love it!



3)The Jesus Storybook Bible- I'm not a big a fan of this Bible. This is the one that we ordered this year. I was very disappointed. My main reasons for disappointment were that it is very very incomplete and extremely inaccurate. It leaves out too much information. Major looked through it an kept pointing out stories that were "missing" in the Bible. The illustrations were interesting. We'll flip through it, but won't read it for any kind of Biblical instruction. The author takes way too many liberties, listing her opinions instead of truths of the Bible. This Bible is unsound.



4)Egermeiers Bible Story Book- We LOVE LOVE LOVE this book. We used it two years ago. This is the most Biblically accurate story Bible I've come across. Some may think that it is too hard for children to listen to this story Bible. It is my opinion that children can be trained to sit and listen to these stories. It isn't written with "baby language", but communicated in more of a straightforward way. I do wish there were more illustrations. Overall, this is an excellent Children's Bible!



5)The Big Picture Story Bible- Short and sweet, this story Bible provides a wonderful "big picture" of God's plan, from the Old Testament to today. Reading this Bible made me understand God's whole plan for the first time. It is amazing how I "got it" as an adult by reading this Bible. Wonderful, simple Bible. Wonderful illustrations. Very good for preschoolers (and beyond). Simple language, very easy to understand



6)Vos' Story Bible- We used this last year for our Bible Stories. This Bible is part of the curriculum of several reputable Christian private schools. The woman who wrote this Bible communicates as if she were telling a story to her grandchildren. That makes it different from some of the other story Bibles. Vos does take a few liberties with what the Bible means when it says such and such, but those can be easily explained if you are reading aloud to your kids. This Bible definitely could have used more illustrations. We enjoyed getting through this Bible this year and will read through it again another year.



7)Leading Little Ones To God- I just received this in the mail along with the Jesus Storybook Bible. I'm not sure about this one yet, but it looks promising. It seems to be more of a devotional book than a Children's Bible. I am looking forward to going through this Bible this year. It had many good reviews online and was recommended by several friends. I guess I'll wait and see...



So, there you have it... I am in LOVE with children's Bibles. Being a children's Bible junkie isn't so bad! There are so many great materials out there to help parents study God's truths with their kids. I hope sharing my faves will help you as you are sorting through all of the options. Be careful, though! Once you start, you just might become an addict!