{"id":2845,"date":"2011-06-23T14:25:24","date_gmt":"2011-06-23T14:25:24","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/owenstrachan.com\/?p=2845"},"modified":"2011-06-23T14:25:24","modified_gmt":"2011-06-23T14:25:24","slug":"reading-the-bible-versus-reading-edited-biblical-stories-whats-better","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/thoughtlife\/2011\/06\/reading-the-bible-versus-reading-edited-biblical-stories-whats-better\/","title":{"rendered":"Reading the Bible Versus Reading Edited Biblical Stories: What’s Better?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

Over at the BibleMesh blog, Thesis, John Starke has a thought-provoking piece up entitled\u00a0\u201cDanville, Illinois and the Eschatology of a Five Year Old\u201d<\/a>\u00a0about family devotions and the use of Christian books versus the Bible. \u00a0Starke raises the question of whether our family devotions should include more Bible and less (helpful and well-intentioned) condensed and edited retellings of biblical stories.<\/span><\/p>\n

Here\u2019s a bit to whet your appetite:<\/span><\/div>\n
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The story leads me to consider the new peculiar (cruel and unusual?) practice we\u2019ve started at our home, where our three children range from the age of just about 2 to 6\u2014 two girls and one boy. We are the normal, young reformed family that has jumped on the story book Bible craze. The steady diet of\u00a0The Jesus Story Book Bible<\/a>\u00a0<\/em>and\u00a0The Big Picture Story Bible<\/em><\/a>\u00a0have brought much fruit and color to our family devotions. But I have to say, with some disappointment, that many of our lessons have never ended with questions. I don\u2019t mean \u201cdiscussion questions\u201d usually included at the end of study guide chapters, but the curiosity of a four or five year old, who wonders, \u201cWhy would Jesus say that?\u201d or, even, \u201cWhat does circumcision mean?\u201d<\/p>\n

Our devotions usually ended with the attitude of, \u201cThat\u2019s great, dad! Jesus sure is swell!\u201d We didn\u2019t always feel a sense of tension, confusion, or wonder. Now, don\u2019t hear me wrongly, these story books are so helpful in putting the whole story of the Bible together for young children, in a way that just plugging through the Old and New Testament struggles to capture. We should read and re-read them.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n

The whole article is worth considering<\/a>. \u00a0I like using books like those John mentioned, but there is no substitute for the actual Word of God. \u00a0It\u2019s kind of like keeping your little ones in church. \u00a0It can be hard, and there\u2019s some extra work you have to do, but in the end, it seems well worth the effort.<\/span><\/span><\/div>\n

\nI happen to think that the books in question can be a big help to parents, especially as they\u2019re putting together the pieces for a Christocentric reading of the Scripture. \u00a0In our home, we use both books John mentioned. \u00a0But as my children age, I am looking forward to digging into the Bible with them. \u00a0That will take some hard work, a good bit of explaining, and some patience, but it will be eminently worth it. \u00a0Resources to understand the Bible are great. \u00a0There is no substitute, however, for the God-breathed Bible. \u00a0None. \u00a0It\u2019s what we need, it\u2019s what our children need, it\u2019s what our churches need, and it\u2019s what our world needs.
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(This is cross-posted from the blog of Vitamin Z<\/a>)\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n
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Over at the BibleMesh blog, Thesis, John Starke has a thought-provoking piece up entitled\u00a0\u201cDanville, Illinois and the Eschatology of a Five Year Old\u201d\u00a0about family devotions and the use of Christian books versus the Bible. \u00a0Starke raises the question of whether our family devotions should include more Bible and less (helpful and well-intentioned) condensed and edited […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1217,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[114],"tags":[13059,622,1246,13176,1678,13215,2206],"class_list":["post-2845","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-devotional-thoughts","tag-bible","tag-big-picture-story-bible","tag-family-devotions","tag-jesus-christ","tag-jesus-story-book-bible","tag-new-testament","tag-old-testament"],"yoast_head":"\nReading the Bible Versus Reading Edited Biblical Stories: What's 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