We have found a variety of Christian Devotionals helpful over the years, so I thought I’d put them all down in one post to share!
1. Bible Devotions for Bedtime by Daniel Partner
Although this looks like it’s suitable for toddlers, we enjoyed it the most when the kids were around age 8. The length of the story was just nice, and we could take turns reading. The child can read the verse and the prayer, and the parent the rest of the text.
2. Get Wisdom! by Ruth Younts
This was helpful because it has 23 ‘virtues’, with a short explanation, a verse, examples, a space to journal thoughts, and a prayer. Whilst some of the virtues might not link as well with the verses, I found them good prompts to start meaningful discussions.
There’s also a helpful section at the back of the book for each ‘virtue’, to guide parents in leading the devotional time. There are even activities and role play games, which I found useful in bringing the virtues to life!
3. The Big Book of Questions and Answers by Sinclair B. Ferguson
It is literally big, larger than A4 size! We used this when the kids were younger, around ages 5 to 8, and found the length of each page just right. One of us would read the question and answer, another the bible verse, another the Reading Time short Bible passage. We then spend a short while talking through the questions, and maybe the activity suggested, and always end with the well-written prayer, which is a great aid to teaching kids how to talk to God in simple, short prayers.
This is written by Sinclair Ferguson, Professor of Systemic Theology at the Reformed Theological Seminary who had been a pastor, so it has a depth and yet a simplicity that can only come from someone who loves the Lord deeply and knows his Bible inside out. We love reading his many edifying books for adults too.
4. The Big Picture Family Devotional
We really appreciated the Biblical Theology format of The Big Picture Bible, and acquired this devotional quite a long time ago, since it was designed as a complementary resource. We haven’t started on it yet, since we were still going through the others, and now it seems like the kids might have ‘aged-out’ of it! But looking at the contents, I think they will still benefit from it for some years to come.
A glimpse at how the devotional brings us through the big story of God’s grace as it is traced through His Word.
It is always important to keep in mind kingdom theology of the Bible being about “God’s people in God’s place under God’s rule”, instead of reading it as a series of disparate moralistic stories. This devotional will certainly help.
5. Wise Up by Marty Machowski
We loved this devotional, not least because it was really sized into 10 minute sessions, and premised on one of my favourite books of the Bible lately – Proverbs.
It even has the bible passage printed out, so you can easily read it. For the week, there is usually one song (you can find the video online) and one activity to consolidate the lesson.
6. Small Devotionals Big Beliefs! by David R. Helm
So this is by David Helm too, but is modelled on bringing kids through the rich theology embedded into the Westminister Confession of Faith.
My 10 year old is going through this devotional for her personal quiet time, with me reading it alongside her. Whilst David Helm’s Big Picture Family Devotional teaches Biblical Theology, this teaches Systematic Theology. That simply means tracing the key themes and doctrines of our faith, via a brief overview of each doctrinal heading in one lesson.
I loved the fact that the entire unabridged Westminister Confession of Faith is appended at the end of the book, for parents to reference if they wish. What a treasure to have this put into simple lessons with short bible passages referenced, and a couple of insightful questions for interaction and reflection at the end of each page.
7. Exploring the Bible Together by David Murray
This is the devotional that we are using now, sent to us at the end of last year by Truth for Life Ministries as part of our TruthPartner subscription. It is really, really concise, and yet the key truths come out so strongly that even we adults are edified, chastised and taught by it daily.
There we have it! 7 wonderful family and kid devotionals that we’ve benefitted so much from. Family devotional times do not need to be lengthy nor dreary. Just a short passage read, a few nuggets pondered over, and a brief but heartfelt prayer. Sometimes we sing a song, sometimes we pray at length for friends or needs in our church.
The key is consistency, and whilst it might be hard to get it going, once you’ve done it for a few weeks, the flywheel effect takes over! By God’s grace, we’ve been able to do family devotionals at least 4 times a week for quite a few years now. Like the faithful watering upon the soil, the effects may not be seen instantly, and there are days when the going is hard, but it is always helpful, no matter the mood of each one, to be drawn and anchored back to a short reading of God’s word, even if it is to lament about our weariness that day.
And in the long run, we are sure that the power of the Holy Spirit will work mightily through precious moments such as these, to make us fruitful and ready for His service.
Facebook Comments