We love to read and were happy to have an opportunity to review Who Was Jonah? and Who Was Mary, Mother of Jesus? from the Kingdom Files series written by Matt Koceich and published by Barbour Publishing.
Kingdom Files was written for children in the 8-12 year old age range, but can be used with children a little bit older or younger. Each book in the series explores the life of a specific person from the Bible. These illustrated books are less then 100 pages each and contain:
Fact File: lists the name, occupation, timeline of the person's life, and more
Action File: key information about the character and the things that they did for God's kingdom
Power File: memory verses and ways to apply lessons learned from the character in your everyday life
Throughout each book you will also find Clue Boxes that help point out certain insights.
There are currently 6 books in the Kingdom Files series: Who Was Jonah? Who Was Mary, Mother of Jesus? Who Was David? Who Was Esther? Who Was Daniel? and Who is Jesus?
Who Was Jonah? tells the story of Jonah, the prophet, who told God no and refused to go to Nineveh to share God's truth. Jonah gets tossed overboard and spends 3 days in the belly of a big fish and afterwards was a changed man who wanted to do God's will. Jonah goes to Nineveh and after hearing him preach the Ninevites believed God. Even the king humbled himself before God. Jonah became quite upset. But this time Jonah didn't run, instead he talked to God. God taught Jonah a lesson using a plant to show Jonah that people and their hearts matter and that God cares about all people.
The Power-Up file gives 10 memory verses for children to read or memorize and 10 Power-Up lessons including:
Obey God
Don't Be Afraid
God Cares
God Loves
God is Faithful
Live by Faith
Pray Hard
God is Grace
God Doesn't Abandon
God Provides
Who Was Mary Mother of Jesus? tells the story of the miraculous conception and birth of Jesus. Then it moves on to the visit of the Wise Men and Mary, Joseph, and Jesus' escape to Egypt. The next chapter tells the story of Jesus and Mary going to look for him at the temple and then we learn about the first miracle Jesus performed when Mary asked him to. In chapter 6 we read about Mary and and Jesus' brothers calling Jesus out of a house and then Mary at the cross when Jesus is crucified. It also talks about the last time Mary is mentioned in the Bible, after Jesus rose from the grave.
There are 10 memory verses in the Power Up File and 10 Power-Up lessons including:
Let Your Life Glorify God
Rejoice that God is Your Savior
God Knows You
God Blesses You
God Does Great Things For You
God Gives You His Mercy
God is Mighty and Carries Your Burdens
God Lifts Up the Humble
God Meets All Your Needs
God is Helpful
I read Who Was Mary Mother of Jesus? and Who Was Jonah? aloud to my 7, 9, 11, and 13 year olds. We read and discussed 1 chapter per day. The chapters were short and easy to read through. The information was presented in a way that was interesting for the children and I enjoyed it as well. Both books stuck to what we know to be true from the Bible and did not take any "artistic license." Some spots say something like we can imagine the look on Mary's face when the strangers came to her door, but it does not add or take away from what the Bible tells us. The clue boxes spread through the story gives us deeper insight and things to think about when reading. The black and white illustrations are a perfect compliment to the story. The Power-Ups in the back of the book takes the lessons we learn from the Bible and helps children relate to and apply to their lives today. We really enjoyed reading both of these books and would recommend them to others.
To see what my Crew Mates had to say, stop by the Crew Blog!
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