Homeschool Review Crew Beloved: 365 Devotions for Young Women

As I've watched my mom over the last two weeks quickly decline following a hard fall she took on Thanksgiving while preparing our family's meal, I realize how important it is to have a Godly woman in our lives, so I was thrilled to get a chance to review the Beloved: 365 Devotions for Young Women from Zondervan. It is a fantastic gift to a young woman as it is a journal and a Bible devotional all in one beautiful hardcover book.

What is the Beloved: 365 Devotions for Young Women?

I received a nice hardcover book that includes an attached ribbon bookmark and lines for notes on every day's worth of devotions. The target age for the book is for young women age 13 to 18, but older or younger women could enjoy it just the same.

There is one scripture and short devotion for 365 days, an entire year's worth of inspiration about women in the Bible. So, the book begins with Day 1 and a scripture from Song of Songs: "You are altogether beautiful, my darling; there is no flaw in you." And it ends on Day 365 with a scripture from Galatians: "There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus." In between, there are days filled with scriptures pertaining to women followed by about 3 paragraphs each describing what the verse means. On each page following the scripture and the short devotion explanation of what the scripture means and how it pertains to a woman today, there are lines where you are able to journal or take notes. The short descriptions seemed to present mainly facts and not forced opinions, for instance, the day that talks about the scriptures where Sarai gave Abraham to Hagar, the devotional section explained how this was a custom of the day and not something many women would understand emotionally from today's standards.

How Did We Use It?

I first was trying to decide between which daughter I would use it with. I have one daughter who is pre-adolescent and another in the throws of her later years of high school, so it was a tough decision. I looked the book over myself and even considered hogging it alone, but in the end I decided that it would make a fantastic gift to my oldest daughter who thrives on Bible study.

The book is also very timely for us as I watch my mom in ICU fighting for her life. I realize how important a strong, Godly woman is. 

What Did We Think?

I think the book is beautiful and presented well. I always appreciate space for notes, and I also appreciate brevity when it comes to devotions. I prefer just reading the scripture with a brief description and not lengthy content, so this has the perfect amount of text for each day.

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Build on God's Word with the Minecraft Bible NiRV REVIEW

As part of the Booklook Bloggers program, I received a hardcover 1,144 page Bible for review in exchange for my honest opinion, so that's what follows:

This is the NIrV Minecrafters Bible from Zondrkidz. No, it's not an instruction book of how to play Minecraft. It's an actual full-length Bible in NIrV New International Revised Version intended to be easier for kids to read. It is the complete text from Genesis to Revelation.

The part that gives it the Minecrafters name is the 24 color pages featuring illustrations in the style of Minecraft blocks. These pictures are features on stories of:

• How To Use The Bible
• Creation
• Noah's Ark
• Tower of Babel
• Ten Commandments
• Building of the Tabernacle
• Walls of Jericho
• Samson's Strength
• David and Goliath
• The 23rd Psalm
• Solomon and the building of the temple
• Jonah and the big fish
• Jesus Birth
• Calling of the 12 Disciples
• Feeding 5000
• Jesus Walk on Water
• Last Supper
• Crucifixion
• Sewer of Seeds
• Strong Foundation
• Armor of God
• ABCs of Salvation

Each picture is not just an illustration but also has verses and Scripture summaries printed on the picture as well. The Bible also has a short, few pages of a dictionary and Bible Story concordance section in the back.

I found it to be wonderful that the insertion of the Minecraft-related pictures only enhanced and did not distract from the actual Scriptures. I think I would have liked to have seen step-by-step instructions on how to create the scenes in Minecraft, but perhaps die-hard gamers don't need that kind of instruction for their creativity.

Overall, it would make a fantastic gift for the Minecraft gamer in your life. Whoever created the images in the game to bring them to the pages of this Bible knew what they were doing as a Minecraft builder, no doubt in creative mode. The front even has a nice presentation page for you to write the name and giver of the Bible. The page depicts the 3 crosses in Minecraft brick style.

TOS Review - Zonderkidz Faith Builders Bible for LEGO Lovers

LEGO bricks, Duplo and other building brick toys are such a wonderful hands-on tool for learning. My kids have probably not explored as much with these kind of toys as other kids probably do, but we still have a love for LEGO bricks. So, I was thrilled to get a chance to review the Faith Builders Bible from Zonderkidz. The cover of the Bible alone was enough to pique my interests.

What is the Faith Builders Bible from Zonderkidz?

I received a physical book NIrV New International Reader's Version of the Bible that integrates chldren's love for LEGO bricks or other brick building blocks to teach God's Word. It is a full text of Old and New Testament written in the New International Reader's Version. Interspersed throughout are several glossy, full-color pictures of biblical scenes built using toy building bricks.



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How Did We Use It?

I was asked to read a portion of the Bible with my child and use at least one of the 24 illustrated pages. Well, my child went to town with building even though all I could find in our house to use were the larger blocks, not the smaller LEGO bricks.

I sat down with her, and she explored the pages. I also read some key verses that I was familiar with in this version to see how it compared to the version I was accustomed to. I was pleased to see that the meaning of the text didn't seem to be changed drastically, but the wording was sometimes changed to make it more understandable. I was happy that it was not a paraphrase or a Bible story book but was a full-fledged actual Bible that has added the 24 pages of colorful illustrations picturing LEGO designs of Bible accounts.

My daughter had been building and left her designs in the living room. To my surprise, when I woke up before the kids one morning, I noticed this sunrise shadow of a cross that was filtering into my living room floor. It made me realize the significance of what she had built.

The version was new to me, so I was happy to see there was an explanation as to what the NIRV was. It appears to be the NIV, a version we enjoy, revised to make it easier to read but isn't overly paraphrased. The full text is still intact just easier to understand.

What Did We Think?

What we liked about the Bible was that it was a full Old and New Testament and in a version that is easy to read. We also really liked the idea of connecting block building to learning about God, and the pictures were really nice and bright clear photographs of dioramas pre-built to display the Bible accounts. What would have been even sweeter is if the pictures were presented in the LEGO-style full-fledged instruction book with a fold-out instructions of what bricks to use for each design. But, the way this Bible presents it leaves room for creative expression when the child tries to re-create each design.

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Read what other members of the TOS Review Crew thought by clicking on the picture below: