12-15-22 Great Book Ideas for Christmas!

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Merry Christmas! I hope this season has provided many opportunities to spend time together as a family and talk about Jesus together. For those with middle and high school students, I realize the stress of exams means the best of that time won’t start until after tomorrow. But I pray that your kids would experience the peace of Jesus as they navigate the anxiety and pressure of testing. It’s not easy for them- or their parents!

With 10 days left until Christmas, you may have a lot of your shopping already done. But I wanted to send out some last minute Christmas ideas for your kids and your family. This is a list of Bibles, Bible studies, devotionals and books that can help you encourage your family in their walk with Jesus, and help kids grow on their own.

I could always list more books so let me know if you have any questions or are looking for a specific type of book. Besides Amazon, www.newgrowthpress.com, www.thegoodbook.com, and www.10ofthose.com are great places to find a lot of these titles and still get them by Christmas [they have some great sales going on as well].

BIBLES

  • New Living Translation [NLT]- This version is a little easier for young kids who are reading the Bible on their own for the first time.

  • English Standard Version [ESV]- This is the version we use in church and can make it easier for kids to follow along with Pastor Nathan as he preaches.

  • ESV Holy Bible for Kids [Elementary]

  • ESV Student Study Bible [Middle & High School]

STORYBOOK BIBLES

  • The Beginner’s Gospel Story Bible by Jared Kennedy [Preschool]- This is a great first Bible to read simple stories to your kids.

  • Bible Stories Every Kid Should Know by Kenneth Taylor [Elementary]- This is the Bible I am reading with Randy right now. It has questions after each story and he has enjoyed it.

  • The Gospel Story Bible by Marty Machowski [Elementary]- This is the Bible our kids’ Sunday school curriculum is based on so they will recognize the stories. It has questions at the end of each story which is helpful.

  • The Biggest Story Bible Storybook by Kevin DeYoung [Elementary]- This is the book our kids Christmas program was based on.

  • The Jesus Storybook Bible by Sally Lloyd-Jones [Any age!]- If you have been around Faith very long, you know this is one of our favorites. It points kids to Jesus with every story.

DEVOTIONALS

  • Songs to Make Your Heart Sing by Sally Lloyd-Jones [Elementary]- Short devotionals that are great for mornings before school or at night before bed. We read from this every morning in the car on the way to school for years and really enjoyed it.

  • Indescribable by Louie Giglio [Elementary]- 100 Devotions about God and science

  • The Best News Ever by Chris Morphew [Middle School]- Walks through the Gospel of Mark.

  • Turn Upside Down series by various authors [Middle & High School]- We gave these to students for Christmas 3 or 4 years ago and they are probably the most popular book we’ve given out. There are 4 in the series looking at different Bible characters.

  • Better Than Life by Caroline Saunders [Middle & High School Girls]- A study of Psalm and the idea of loving to pursue God through his word.

  • Alongside Jesus by Drew Hill [Middle and High School]

  • Between Us Girls by Trish Donohue [Elementary, Middle School]- A discussion-based devotional for moms to do with their daughters.

  • Between Us Guys by Joel Fitzpatrick [Elementary, Middle School]- A discussion-based devotional for dads to do with their sons.

BIBLE STORY AND THEOLOGY BOOKS

  • The Beginner’s Gospel Story Bible series [Boardbooks for Preschool and Younger Elementary]

  • Very Best Bible Stories Series by various authors [Preschool]- These Bible stories get kids involved in the story with actions that help them enjoy the story and participate in the action.

  • The Radical Book for Kids by Champ Thornton [Older Elementary, Middle School]- This is a fun book that allows kids to explore different topics from Scripture, church history, and more. My boys loved to read this on their own or together book when they were younger.

  • God Made Me Series by Various Authors [Elementary]- This is a great series that covers a lot of different important topics which can be hard for kids to grasp. They explain the topics well and have a parents guide in the back with Scriptures, discussion questions, and ideas for keeping these conversations going.

  • Tales That Tell the Truth series by various authors [Preschool, Elementary]- This series covers great Bible stories in an engaging way. The art and the creative way they present the stories really help kids grasp the point and see Jesus. They have board book versions for preschool kids and longer versions for elementary kids.

  • Big Questions series by Chris Morphew [Middle & High School]- This is an easy for students to read series answering some of the most important questions they are asking, including Who Am I and Why Do I Matter?, Why Does God Let Bad Things Happen?, and What Happens When We Die?.

BOOKS

  • Just Because Your Mine by Sally Lloyd-Jones [Preschool]

  • Do Great Things for God series [Older Preschool and Elementary]- I have enjoyed reading these books with Randy. Each one is a different missionary or person from church history including Fanny Crosby, Corrie Ten Boom, Betsey Stockton and more.

  • Wherever You Go, I Want You to Know by Melissa Kruger [Elementary]- A more Biblical take on the classic Dr. Seuss book Oh, the Places You’ll Go.

  • Everyone A Child Should Know by Clare Heath-Whyte [Older Preschool, Elementary]- We have been trying to read from this at the dinner table sometimes and they are short biographies on people you’ve heard of from church history, and some you haven’t.

  • What Every Child Should Know About Prayer by Nancy Guthrie [Elementary]

  • The Rwendigo Tales by JA Myhre [Older Elementary, Middle & High School]- Fiction series written by a mom on the mission field. Emily enjoyed this series when she was in middle school.

  • 12 Ways Your Phone is Changing You by Tony Reinke [Middle & High School]- This is a great book to help all of us think through the impact our phone use has on us.

  • This Changes Everything by Jaquelle Crowe [Middle & High School]- Written by a teenager about the ways the gospel changes life as a teenager.

  • My Tech-Wise Life by Amy and Andy Crouch [Middle & High School]- This is a book we did a series on not too long ago but if your teenager uses a phone or spends a lot of time on the computer, this book has some great ways to think through creating boundaries and using technology for God’s glory and our own good. Written by a college student with insight from her dad who has written a lot about technology use.

  • Everything Sad is Untrue: a true story by Daniel Nayeri [Middle & High School]- This is one of the best books I read all year. It’s the true story of a boy having to flee his home in Iran with his mother because she became a Christian and his experience coming to America. Written from his perspective as a kid, it is a beautiful story and insightful book.