God’s Amazing World

“What are you painting?” Bo asks his cousin Gracie.  “…the story of how God made the world,”  is her reply.  Bo asks her to tell him the story, and she proceeds to do so, with “seven days.  Like seven chapters.”

God’s Amazing World progresses through all seven days of Creation, in the words of one child to another.  As they talk about each day, they put the day’s creation into the context of their own lives.  For instance, they lie on their backs and watch the clouds when they talk about the creation of the sky.  When they talk about land and sea, they stomp in the mud and run through the sprinkler.

As silly as some of these things might sound, they’re excellent examples of specific ways to help children understand that the Bible is relevant to their own lives.

(I might quibble over the fact that it says God made the dark.  I’m not sure if that’s quite accurate; it seems the dark was already there before God made the light.  But that’s some deep theological musing.  A young child probably wouldn’t think about it one way or the other.)

The book is illustrated with whimsical watercolor paintings by Mélanie Florian.  They’re not soft and subdued, though, like watercolor paintings often are.  They’re quite vivid.

My children enjoyed this book.  (To be honest, I think even the 11-year-old liked it.  Although she hesitated over the idea of God creating darkness, too.)

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received the book mentioned above for free in the hope that I would mention it on my blog.  Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use (or have used) personally and believe will be good for my readers.  I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”