A Unique Devotional for Kids
I had the privilege of receiving the 52-Week Bible Story Devotional by The Big Picture Interactive to review. I found this book to be very interesting in a few different ways. The first and most obvious is that with this devotional the reader has the option to download an app to enhance the experience. The second is that I’ve not experienced a devotional for children set up to last for an entire year.
First off, I will say that my children thoroughly enjoy this book. They think the technology aspect is really cool and really love the 3-D picture that pops up when using the app with the photos. Unfortunately we were never able to scan the QR code and watch the video. The code would scan and a page would open but a video would never start playing. It seemed to be stuck in a permanent buffer. In looking at the app reviews, other users had the same trouble. An additional concern is that the app is a very large file and takes quite a while to download, even on WiFi. For me it took around forty-five minutes to download. The concept is excellent, and I hope they keep working on improvements with the app until it’s just right!
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Kid-Friendly Stories
As for the actual stories, they are written in a kid-friendly way that kept my children interested the whole time. If your children cannot read, or if you can’t read with them, the app will do it for you. For my family that wasn’t something I needed since we do devo time all together, but sometimes it is nice for kids to hear the story from someone else. Based on the stories I have read to date, the devotionals are sound in doctrine. Throughout the story, the verses are mentioned so that you can find the actual words of God in the Bible with your children, which further solidifies the story. I love that!
More than Just a Story to Read
After you’ve read the story and looked at the awesome 3-D photo with the app, there is a page full of awesome bonus stuff. I call it bonus stuff because no other children’s bible story book that we own has this much to offer after the story. In this devo it offers more verses to read to drive home various points in the story. The book includes a QR code which should lead to a video. There’s also a little blurb that points the story to Jesus and how it impacts the story of Christ. On the next page there’s a challenge to the family on ways to remember this story and the love of Christ throughout the week. It asks some simple, yet thought-provoking questions and finishes with a prayer.
Content for the Oldest to the Youngest
I have so enjoyed all of the little details of this devotional. My children have enjoyed it as well. The questions allow us to come together in a place where no one person has a better chance of answering a question than another, which is really helpful in my home where competition runs high! There is just the right amount of content and interesting pictures for my youngest ones but plenty of “meat” for my oldest child to further read and learn from. I really do recommend this devo, even with the app issues. This book has been a favorite in our home and will continue to be for years to come!
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What I’ve been doing with my little one is she’d open up her Bible ask me what the story with a picture means and I just tell her the story. She then asks questions and we talk about it.
Oh I love this! I’ve been looking for more ways to engage my son with the Bible. Thank you for sharing =)
Thanks for a very well written book review. It is helpful to know the things that you liked about it as well as the things that still need improvement. And, reading this reminded me of a very old family devotion book that my mom read to my siblings and me around the kitchen table with a snack. Of course, we had no apps in our book!
How unfortunate for the app not to work properly. I love books and would enjoy the devotional alone, so the app wouldn’t be an issue for me.
Oh wow! I have never seen a Bible Study devotional for Children! I have to check it out!
My kids would love the app aspect of this. Anything to make the Bible really come alive for them is a great bonus!
I love this! I’ve been trying to figure out how to get my kids more into bible stories and devotionals. We have children’s bibles and I used to do a verse memorization insentive, bit it didn’t stick. This sounds great.
It looks SO interesting from the outside for kids. Thanks for your thoughts on this.