Five-Minute Bible Devotions for Children

Disclosure: I was sent these books to review free of charge from Ideals Books. All opinions in this post are my own. I did not receive any other compensation for this review. I am including links to each item for your convenience but do not receive anything if you purchase them.

With it being summer Hazel is not learning about the Bible at school or going to chapel at school and we have been traveling many weekends and thus she has not been attending Sunday School regularly. I want her to know that reading the Bible and praying is still very important and that we are not taking a vacation from God. We found the perfect way to include Bible lessons in our nightly story times with the books Ideals Books sent us. 

Both books are very similar in how they are written. The first is Five-Minute Bible Devotions for Children: Stories from the Old Testament by Pamela Kennedy and Anne Kennedy Brady and illustrated by Amy Wummer. This book has twenty-one of the Old Testament stories. It simplifies and summarizes the stories so a young child can truly understand it and then it gives a paragraph of relating the story to everyday kids' lives. Next comes a prayer. Then there are four questions relating to the story, the illustration and the child's life. Finally there is a scripture.  To show you an example of the story I found this sample page at Rainbow Resource Center.

Source: Rainbow Resource Center

Each of the twenty-one stories shares an important lesson for the child. A lesson that God and parents want the child to learn. There are topics like keeping promises, being brave, taking turns and more. I can honestly say that Hazel and I love these stories and my thirteen-year-old nephew was very interested in them when he joined us for story time at my parents house. He had to control himself not to yell out the answers to the four questions before Hazel had time to think about them. Some times he was successful. 

The second book is Five-Minute Bible Devotions for Children: Stories from the New Testament also written by Pamela Kennedy and Anne Kennedy Brady and illustrated by Amy Wummer. This book does the same thing with twenty-one stories from the New Testament. The lessons in these stories include learning to obey, saying "thank you", and choosing to share. Again they are stories we want our children to learn and they are all related to a story in the Bible and then explained how the story relates to a child's life. It is such a clear message and I can honestly see Hazel learning the lessons as we read these stories. 

Source: Rainbow Resource Center

The illustrations are whimsical and fun. The second page of each devotion includes a picture of kids doing something to relate to the story and one of the questions is always about the picture and who is doing the lesson. 

These books are fun and easy to read and understand. They teach clear lessons from the Bible and have been perfect for our bedtime routine. Hazel even enjoys reading the stories she already knows and hearing how it is related to her life. These books are powerful. They are recommended for ages 4-8. They are both spiral-bound hardcovers. I highly recommend these books for anyone who wants to help their child understand the Bible stories more and relate them to his/her life.

For reviews of other great religious books check out: 

• God's Amazing World! Book Review for Earth Day
• Religious Kids' Books that Teach God Loves Us and Is Here for Us
• The Sparkle Egg
• The Mouse and the Miracle
• Teaching the Trinity to a Preschooler
• Noah's Ark
• God Gave Us Love
• Must Read Christmas Books
• Baby Moses Books & Craft