HOW TO CHOOSE A Children's BIBLE

The Bibles my kids turn to for inspiration.

Who knew there were so many different Bibles to choose from? My Bible App on my phone has 616 versions in 376 languages! So, how do you know which Bible is right for your kids, nieces and nephews, students in the Sunday School you teach or at the camp where you're a counselor? Which version will resonate best with what age group? Over the years my kids have amassed a large collection of Bibles (gifts from baptisms, take homes from Sunday School and VBS, stuffed in Easter baskets and more). I'm not an expert. And I certainly haven't looked through all the Bibles, but I know which ones they keep in their beds, which ones they turn to again and again. My husband picked up Bible Stories (DP 1999) at Cosco in 1999 when it first came out for our then, one year-old, Maddie. The eye-catching illustrations with all of the major stories from the Bible accented by photos of actual Biblical sites and artifacts along with historical facts, have made this book a family favorite -- so much so, that the binding and many of the pages are now taped. Mallory's Sunday School class uses the Adventure Bible (Zondervan). She loves this version with "Did You Know" and "Live It" boxes inserted into the text to make the scriptures relevant to her so much that she asked for it for Easter this year. Max keeps the ESV version in his bed. This is the version his boys' middle school Bible study uses and he's old enough now for a "real" Bible. Maddie has the You Version App of the Bible on her smart phone and on her iPad. She loves having the Bible with her where ever she goes. Not a morning goes by that she doesn't check out "the verse of the day". In fact, she often "shares" it with me or my husband. I'm sure there are many more great kids' Bibles, but these are the additions that resonate with my kids.

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