Little Homeschool on the Prairie: The Action Bible Anytime Devotions Review

Disclaimer: I received a FREE copy of this product through the HOMESCHOOL REVIEW CREW in exchange for my honest review. I was not required to write a positive review nor was I compensated in any other way.

My family has several products from the Action Bible products from David C Cook. Our most recent one is a devotional The Action Bible Anytime Devotions.

The Action Bible Anytime Devotions is a softbound book with 195 pages. There are 90 devotions in this.

This devotional should interest both boys and girls alike. The intended age range is around 8 to 12. I feel that younger and older kids outside of that age range will enjoy this. This can be read as a family devotional out loud or independently.

What makes this devotional so intriguing for kids is that it is a fully illustrated and full colored graphics on every page. Every page has detailed illustration graphics almost like a comic book but, with the super powers of stories from God’s word.

The super powers taught are:

Learn: With an action verse you are learning God’s precious word.

Apply: How can you apply this to your life, every person is unique with their situation.

Relate: How can we relate with the people in the Bible from long ago.

Think: What does the devotion speak to you so you can grow in your faith.

Talk: We need to pray & talk to HIM daily, not sure how a quick prayer is included.

Share: Share God with others with question and your actions.

Take: Don’t just rely on this devotional, but on the Bible which gives life.

The top right tells you what the devotions theme is

There is a common thread weaved throughout the devotions. On the top right of each devotion the themes are labeled. They aren’t grouped together. The themes are: Courage, Hope, Trust, Love, Kindness, Faith, Strength, and Service.

There is a Table of Contents at the beginning of the devotional with the page number. The scripture don’t go in order of Old or New Testament nor, are they grouped together by themes. There is also a brief introduction explaining how you can use the devotional.

All of the 90 devotions have the same layout with each devotional. Here are the gems in this devotional.

Each Devotional is on a two page spread. The Title is at the top of the page and underneath the title is a scripture with the address that the devotional is based on.

The page layout of each of the 90 devotionals

Making the Bible relevant for our kids

The next section is a story of a child or teen struggling with issues that kids face today. The stories throw in a Biblical story centering on the same concepts or issue from the scripture. The scriptures tie in nicely with the issue. Some of the stories are about lying, complaining, stress, anxiety, helping others, listening to advice, and other topics that we ALL need to evaluate in our walk with Jesus.

Three topics are covered in the bullets

On the next page are 3 bullets with the following topics:

*A resolution to the situation and words of encouragement.

For example: One story deals with getting angry with your sibling messing up something of yours. The resolution says that you have been pushed to your limit of patience. It asks did you lost your temper or just get really more frustrated. It relates back to the story asking how the situation could have been handled differently with some suggestion. Then is reminds you that we have choices to control our anger and to try to be patience.

*A prayer that you can repeat or give you an idea how to address the issue in prayer.

Example: Following the above devotional. Praying and admitting you lost your temper and got angry quickly. Asking for forgiveness and asking to have patience, be a better listener, and to show love.

*An action or application you can do.

Example: You have to do the right thing. This can be hard but you should tell the person you got angry with your sorry. Taking it a step further by inviting them to play a game or ride a bike.

Take it Further points you to more Bible passages to read

The last section is Take it Further:

This points you to more scripture to read about the topic and gives you the scripture address to look up yourself. However some of them tell you what to read in the Action Bible.

How did I use The Action Bible Anytime Devotions?

My son who is 14 has several of the devotionals and the Action Bible. He was the primary user of this daily.

My son spending his time digging in God's Word

We as a family believe that devotions don’t replace the Bible reading but enhance your studying and reading of God’s word. My son reads his Bible every morning independently.

On school days we start our school day off reading the Bible together after the kids have done their own private reading and prayers. The kids can read their devotional in school or before. With that being said my son usually reads The Action Bible Anytime Devotions first thing in the morning daily. The devotions are short and even with looking up the other suggested scriptures it took him no more than 15 minutes each morning. I would ask him daily what he read that day. He would share with me the topic. Some days we would talk about the story especially if it was an issue that touched close to home. The nice thing is that when we talked about it in the classroom my 17 year old daughter with special needs would join in the conversation with concerns and she is very black and white and isn’t shy about sharing her struggles and heart with you. I had several heart to heart talks with my kids over the last few weeks that are a result of The Action Bible Anytime Devotions.

My son said, “I like that the topics and situations aren’t cheesy.” “They are topics that I feel I can relate to.” He also commented, “I like the graphics and colors as it is very appealing and fun.”

My son will continue adding this to his daily Bible time. I like The Action Bible Anytime Devotions and think it’s a good devotion to add to your kid’s daily Bible Reading.