Shabbat Shalom

God's Crime Scene for Kids' Mystery Investigation Kit Giveaway

Join your children in learning how to determine the most reasonable cause for everything we see in creation with a real-life detective! In God's Crime Scene for Kids, J. Warner Wallace shows kids ages 8 to 12 what skills are needed to solve Jason's mystery. Jason uncovers a mystery in his grandmother's attic. He and his friends, Hannah, Daniel and Jasmine, enlist the help of Detective Jeffries at the Jr. Detective's Academy. Your kids will look at evidence in the universe that demonstrates God is the creator and ultimately learn how to make their own case for God's existence.

Help your kids become detectives who investigate creation for signs of God and His creativity by entering to win the Mystery Investigation Kit!

One grand prize winner will receive:

• A copy of God's Crime Scene for Kids
• A Kindle Fire so your kids can visit the Cold-Case Christianity for Kids website and start their journey in the Case Makers Academy
• A kid-proof, protective Kindle Fire case (your kids' choice of color)

Enter today by clicking the icon below, but hurry! The giveaway ends on August 31. The winner will be announced September 1 on the Litfuse blog.

Wordless Wednesday

NIV Beautiful Word Coloring Bible (Large Print) – Book Review

Easy to color and easy to read! Reflect on the precious truths of Scripture with the NIV Beautiful Word™ Coloring Bible, Large Print, featuring beautiful line art for coloring and a large type size. Perfect for all ages, this Bible’s thick white paper with lightly ruled lines in the extra-wide margins provides ample space for your own artistic expressions and journaling.

My Thoughts:

There are so many creative Bibles out there these days. Honestly, I think it can be difficult finding one now with all the choices. With the popularity of adult coloring and journaling artistically I can see the popularity of expressing yourself with God’s word through journaling and coloring in a Bible. Personally I’m not one of those people who like to write in my Bible this way. It’s not that I have a problem with it. It’s just not me. However, I have many dear friends who love expressing their faith and study time this way. This is an amazing gift for a dear friend or a family member.

This is a beautiful hardback book covered in a lovely cloth floral pattern. The floral pattern looks like watercolors of delicate flowers and leaves splashed on the fabric. The spine going into the front and back is a rich navy color.

This is a large print Bible with a Readable 10-point font size. In my opinion not large enough on the font size. This is the New International Version. It measures 10”x8” and is a large Bible. It is a hefty Bible at 4 pounds. There is also a rich navy blue ribbon for marking your page.

There is a whopping 1472 pages. The pages are thicker than your average Bible. They are still not what I would consider something you could use a marker to color the pages. I would stick to color pencils and possibly ink. I would test out a page first for coloring before you start your artistic expression. Another nice feature is that the Bible lays out flat when it’s opened. I like this type of Bible when I’m studying and I see this as a huge plus when you are coloring and journaling.

The Bible has a lovely Presentation page along with the context of the books of the Bible with the pages on it. The Word is laid out in a single-column page format. There are a few footnotes available. The Bible doesn’t have an introduction page to the books of the Bible. I don’t know why so many Bibles are omitted this in Bibles these day. I wish that this would be a standard. That is just my personal opinion! This Bible doesn’t have the words of our Savior in red. The back of the Bible has a Table of Weights and Measures. There are no maps in this Bibles.

There is an ample amount to write notes or to create your own art. The artwork is lovely. Some pages have full pages to color and others have art just in the margin. All the art is scripture based and relevant to the page it is located on. Maybe one day I will venture into Bible journaling like this. For now I know who I’m planning on giving this lovely Bible to.

I received a free copy of this product from BookLook Bloggers in exchange for my honest review. I was not required to write a positive review nor was I compensated in any other way. All opinions I have expressed are my own or those of my family. I am disclosing this information accordance with the FTC Regulation.

The Soldier Who Killed a King A True Retelling of the Passion by David Kitz Book Review

A stunning story of Holy Week through the eyes of a Roman centurion

Watch the triumphal entry of the donkey-riding king through the eyes of Marcus Longinus, the centurion charged with keeping the streets from erupting into open rebellion.

Look behind the scenes at the political plotting of King Herod, known as the scheming Fox for his ruthless shrewdness.

Get a front-row seat to the confrontation between the Jewish high priest Caiaphas and the Roman governor Pontius Pilate.

Understand as never before the horror of the decision to save a brutal terrorist in order to condemn the peaceful Jew to death.

If you've heard the story of Passion Week so often it's become stale, now is the time to rediscover the terrible events leading from Jesus’ humble ride into the city to his crucifixion. The Soldier Who Killed a King will stun you afresh with how completely Christ's resurrection changed history, one life at a time. 

My Thoughts:

I enjoy reading Biblical historical books. It’s hard to find good quality ones to read that don’t take the Biblical story way out of context. I expect some creative liberties to filling in the blanks and getting more depth into the plot and characters. I just don’t always agree when the context is there and that creative writing changes what we already know from God’s word. I’ll get back to this part in a bit.

David Kitz writes with passion and does a fantastic job with descriptions in the story. The characters are vivid and you almost feel like you are there watching the scenes take place in person. Great job with the characters I really like how he portrayed Marcus Longinus, the Roman Centurion. He did a good job with many of the characters. I did think some of the speech seemed out of place for that time period. 

The crucifixion was extremely vivid and I’m okay with that as for me it’s a reminder of the price that Jesus paid for our sins. Other readers may not be okay with the details as it goes into a lot of details. It brought tears to my eyes.

There are a few other parts that I didn’t expect. There aren’t any details about the inappropriate acts. You get the underlying meaning. I think the author handled these situations good. I also think the story would have been just as good without them.

Now back to the context and whether it took it out of the Biblical context. Yes, there are a few scenes that we know about from God’s word that he changed. Not a lot but, it was still done. I was a bit disappointed in that.

The author is an excellent writer. He drew me into the story and made it a page turner. I don’t usually rate books but, if I had to rate it I would give it a 4 out of a 5. If the context wasn’t changed I would have said a 5 without a second thought.

Disclaimer: I received a free copy of this product from Kregel Publication in exchange for my honest review. I was not required to write a positive review nor was I compensated in any other way. All opinions I have expressed are my own or those of my family. I am disclosing this information accordance with the FTC Regulations.

 

Shabbat Shalom

Super Hero Kids Giveaway with David C Cook!

DOES YOUR CHILD LOVE COMIC BOOKS? HOW ABOUT SUPER HEROES?

Now is your chance to have DC and Marvel illustrator Sergio Cariello make your child's dream come true!

Parents!

David C Cook is proud to introduce the newest book in the Action Bible collection: The Action Storybook Bible (coming October 2017). Pre-order The Action Storybook Bible from Amazon, Barnes and Noble, or ChristianBook.com to reserve your copy today. Plus click the graphic below to enter to have a chance to win an illustration of your child as a super hero by Action Bible artist Sergio Cariello (who has also illustrated comics for DC and Marvel!).

The giveaway is open until September 11, 2017, 5:00pm MST. Your entry must be received by then to be eligible. Five winners will be chosen at random from eligible entrants.

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{THE ACTION STORYBOOK BIBLE}

Families see the Bible in motion and put their faith into action! The Action Storybook Bible invites families with young children to explore God's redemptive story together. An entry point into the world of The Action Bible, it tells of the amazing creation story, powerful kings who reigned over ancient Israel, God's miraculous gift of eternal life through Jesus, and more! God's promise for the world is displayed throughout every page. Discover your family's place in God's incredible story and together put your faith into action! Interactive features include:

• Fifteen key episodes from God's Word-each one loaded with several stories along with over 350 brand-new illustrations throughout.
• Short and easy readings-for children ages eight and under with rich, colorful images.
• Life, Faith, Action! features-conclude every episode and invite families to talk about how God moves in the stories, how to see God in life today, how to put faith into action, and how to easily talk to God with a suggested prayer.
• Hall of Fame visual index-the place to look up favorite Bible characters by discovering their icon connections and finding them in the stories.

Learn more and purchase a copy here.