Book Review: Growing in God's Love

As a pastor whose ministry includes the work of faith formation and discipleship across the generations, I have compiled a list of go-to Storybook Bibles for regular reference. (I also have a corresponding list of Storybook Bibles to stay clear of, but that’s a review for another time).

I just added another Storybook Bible to my “go-to” shelf.

In their new title Growing in God’s Love: A Story Bible, well-known and well-respected Presbyterian educators Elizabeth Caldwell and Carol Wehrheim have compiled 150 stories from throughout the biblical canon. 

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Imaginative follow-up prompts follow each story, encouraging children to ponder what they’ve just heard by hearing, seeing, and acting.

The stories are beautifully and thoughtfully written, with sound biblical interpretation that manages to remain age appropriate without becoming watered down. The storybook is cleverly organized into thirteen theological themes, including “strong women and men,” “listening for God,” and “endings and beginnings” which can lend itself to use in a classroom series or to be adapted as children’s messages to correspond with a sermon series. I particularly appreciate that rather than relying on a single artist, the text includes gorgeous illustrations offered by a diverse collection of over twenty illustrators from around the world.
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Caldwell, E. and Wehrheim, C. (2018). Growing in God's Love: A Story Bible. Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox Press.