“Start children off on the way they should go, and even when they are old they will not turn from it.”
Proverbs 22:6
We have a very exciting, very awesome, and very difficult job in mothering our children. We can’t control what they do, but it’s our God-given job to guide them in the way they should go. One way of doing that, at least while they are living under your roof, is to give them the tools to learn God’s Word.
I’ve compiled a list of resources that have been used by me and my children personally. I’ve only added the Bibles, devotionals, and workbooks that have had an impact on my family and on my children. All of these resources can be adapted to use for a wide range of ages, but for reference, my children are 4.5- and almost 2-years-old.
The Very Best Bible Gift Guide For Children
Tiny Truths Illustrated Bible contains solid teaching. It obviously leaves out many stories, as all children’s bibles do. But the critical parts of the gospel are all present. This Bible also includes stories from Acts and some parts of Revelation – an amazing feature for a children’s Bible that is hard to find.
This Bible is incredibly beautiful, with the illustrations filling up the entire page, wrapping around the text and engaging even the youngest of readers. The reading level is elementary-level, so this is also a great Bible for early readers. Read my full review of this Bible here.
Jesus Storybook Bible by Sally Lloyd-Jones – This Children’s Bible uses conversational language to put Biblical language into an easy to understand narration for kids. The images are beautiful and really help keep kids actively listening and engaged. Most importantly, Jesus is clearly the red thread throughout each story, which helps children connect the Old Testament stories to the gospel. I read this Bible daily to my children.
CHRISTMAS BONUS: The publisher is giving away a free printable advent cards for Christmas! I downloaded them – they are beautifully done and biblically sound. Plus, you get to use the Jesus Story Book Bible to guide the lessons. Learn more here.
The Prayer Bible is a wonderful Bible for children. If you struggle with prayer, or with praying out loud, this Bible will be especially helpful for you to guide your child. You and your child can read pre-written prayers based on scripture from the Psalms and topical prayers. There are also short devotions with prayer pointers throughout the Bible, making it easy to apply your child’s reading to his or her everyday life. The Prayer Bible is written using the International Children’s Bible translation, which uses language that is easy to understand for even young children. Read my full review here.
You can buy this Bible in pink or blue!
God’s Love For You Bible Storybook by Rich and Renee Stearns – This children’s Bible, published by World Vision, does a great job of showing that God’s love applies to everyone around the world. Between each Bible story is a real-life example of issues others are facing the world (unclean water, for example) and what we can do about it.
The Very Best Devotional Gift Guide For Children
How Great Is Our God – I cannot say enough amazing things about this devotional. The author creatively ties in God’s Word to the most unique topics. It’s filled with interesting science information that weaves who God is into every devotion. If you’re looking for an easy way to talk to your kids about God, this is it! You can read my full review here.
Family Devotionals (Knowing Jesus, Knowing the Holy Spirit, Knowing God the Father):
These devotionals provide an amazing outline on topics that are important for children to learn. I’m excited to go through these with my children now, and continue to use them as they grow. Repeating information helps to solidify their understanding of the three persons in our one God: Father, Son, Holy Spirit. You can read my review here.
New City Catechism by The Gospel Coalition – Catechism is essentially just learning or teaching the very basics of the Christian faith. This is great for Christians of any age, especially if you are a new believer. For children, the FREE app is also a great resource, as it includes songs to help memorize the questions and answers! Just click “children’s mode” for the shorter versions of the questions and answers.
Preschool Bible Workbooks – My children and I created a learning wall that has four sections: numbers, sight words, alphabet, and Bible. Every day (when we have an extra five minutes), we go through each section and review the content. For the Bible section, I found these amazing Bible workbooks that are absolutely perfect. The three we’ve tried are:
There are many more to choose from! Find more options here.
The Very Best Christmas Book Gift Guide For Children
Song of the Stars by Sally Lloyd-Jones
The First Christmas by Carol Heyer
The Christmas Story by Carol Heyer
MORE RESOURCES FOR THE GOSPEL-CENTERED MOMMA
Don’t miss the Ultimate Bible & Devotional Gift Guide For The Messy Tired Love Momma!
Check out our resources page for even more game-changing resources for the gospel-centered momma. All of the resources have been or are personally used by me (Kristina) and are among the best of the best: resources to dive deeper into your faith, children’s books and bibles, and parenting books.
Welcome to Messy Tired Love! The devotionals you'll find here aim to connect your everyday mom moments to the truth of the gospel. I hold nothing back as I share my story that's filled with lots of messy, tired, but oh-so-filled-with-love moments. I have three little blessings, that together with God's Word are the inspiration for these devotionals. I hope you will be encouraged, and maybe even get a good laugh, while exploring these devotionals. Much love!
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