One Man Trying...: Bibles for a Young Boy to Read

Friday, February 13, 2015

Bibles for a Young Boy to Read

A friend recently sent me the following email:

Hey John,

Was just wondering if you knew of any other Bible/Spiritual publications similar to the Action Bible?

My son has read and re-read it a few times and recently asked us for a "new bible" that is similar to that one. Any ideas would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks buddy,

This is a great question because it's one I think a lot of parents worry about. How do I put engaging Bibles in front of my kids that help increase their interest in Scripture and pave the way for them to eventually read a real Bible? If you don't have an Action Bible, It's a GREAT start. It's like a Bible in a high quality comic book form.

Here's how I responded....

Have you seen the Jesus Story Book Bible? Love that one.
It's not the same as the "Action Bible" in terms of the art and comic book style - but it is really good for the whole family and seeks to weave all the stories of the Bible together and point out how they relate to Jesus (instead of simply telling the major stories of the Bible as stand alone stories).

You can also get this version with audio CDs and a DVD. These are great for the kids to listen to as they fall asleep.

John Isaac also really likes "The Picture Bible" - definitely an older style, but it's great.

I know some families that also love the Lego Bible, called the "Brick Bible". I looked it over briefly, but never got a copy.

There's also an action bible devotion book. again, I've not used it yet. But I think we may check it out soon.

BUT, this week I got John Isaac the ESV Action Bible Study Bible. It's basically a full blown ESV Bible (all the same text of any other ESV) with pages from the Action Bible weaved throughout and kid-level study notes. He LOVES it. He's been reading it a fair amount on his own - much more than I expected him to do. And he's carried it to church. Prior to this he was carrying his Action Bible and a copy of the ESV (so he could look up the text the preacher was reading, but also read the Aciton Bible during the sermon). It's really turning out to be the perfect Bible to help him transition from a kid's story Bible to a real Bible.

[Ok so there's even a "trailer" for the Bible - I didn't put that info in the email... but see a glimpse below]

On another note, I bribed John Isaac to read this kids church history series when he was 8, then again this year. He really liked it. Great to get this stuff in them now. Be aware that this is not a picture book format - much more like regular books, but all story based. Might try reading one of the stories to the family each week over dinner.