The Gospel Story Bible

Can a bed-time story actually change your life?

My two younger children (ages 6 and 2) love to have books read to them.  They especially enjoy bedtime reading with their daddy.  Our 14 year old, although she has now outgrown being read to, loved books when she was little as well.  Both my husband and I are big readers and I am so glad my children have developed a love for books and hearing a good story.

What better story for them to hear than the gospel.  As a parent/grandparent you may feel overwhelmed at where to even start sharing the gospel with the little ones in your life.  Marty Machowski, a Family Life Pastor at Covenant Fellowship Church, a Sovereign Grace Ministries church in Glen Mills, Pennsylvania, has written an amazing resource to help us share the greatest story ever told - the story of Jesus - with our children and grandchildren. 

Written by Machowski and illustrated by A.E. Macha,  The Gospel Story Bible is Machowski's beckon to families to take time out from the daily grind to be transformed by the message of the Good News.  Sometimes it's easy to forget Jesus in the midst of frantic schedules, family squabbles and conflicting priorities.  God often becomes a little more than an afterthought after days absorbed and depleted by the busyness of life.  But the truth is that Jesus is the Hero of every story - including the mundane, ordinary ones we experience on a regular basis.

This book is unlike any other "Bible Story book" you have encountered!  It is uniquely illustrated and uses 158 stories to present God's plan of salvation in Christ from its opening narrative in Genesis to its finale in Revelation.  Based on the ESV Bible, this easy-to-read storybook is written for children from preschool to high school and skillfully connects the individual stories to the overall gospel narrative of Jesus and His gospel of grace.

I was just in conversation with someone the other day who said she didn't read the Old Testament, because she didn't understand much of it and she felt that Jesus was in the New Testament.  That broke my heart.  With the use of The Gospel Story Bible, you will be equipped with a resource to help you see Jesus from Genesis to Revelation.

Machowski says,

"The gospel is deep enough to keep the oldest and wisest parents learning and growing all their lives, yet simple enough to change the heart of the first grader who has just begun to read.  That's what makes The Gospel Story Bible ideal as a storybook for a preschooler, a devotional for a grade school student, a refresher for the adult believer or an introduction for the new one.  Parents and children will learn together to read the whole Bible as one story, with one Hero - Jesus Christ."

Each story is found on a two-page spread.  The scripture passage from the Bible is given, the "story"and then "Let's Talk About It!", where questions are provided to help engage the readers further with the story.  Machowski masterfully points to Jesus and the redemption He came to give to lost sinners in every story.  Here's the last paragraph of the story about Rahab from "Rahab's Help" on pages 86-87:

"Did you know that God had special plans for Rahab?  She became King David's far-off grandmother.  That means she also became the great, far-off grandmother of Jesus!  Just as the blood on the doorposts kept the Israelites safe during Passover, the scarlet cord in Rahab's window protected her and her family from the judgement of God brought to Jericho.  One day her far-off grandson Jesus would die on the cross.  His scarlet blood covers our sins so that we too can be saved from the judgement of God."

I encourage you to visit www.newgrowthpress.com and order The Gospel Story Bible.  Or you can find it at Amazon.com by going HERE. 

*A complimentary copy of this book was provided to me by Audra Jennings, media specialist with B&B Media Group for the purpose of review.  

In a world where our kids will hear every kind of story, make sure you share the greatest story ever told with them - the story of Jesus.

Blessings,
Jennifer