Whats In the Bible??

When I was asked to participate in the blog tour for the new DVD series, What's In the Bible?: Battle for the Promised Land - I had no idea what an advocate I would become. I have to just say right up front - ABSOLUTELY FABULOUS series! I have always thought Phil Vischer was marvelous (think Veggie Tales) but this new series, published by Tyndale, is loaded with content that I am so excited about. The series takes individual books of the Bible and teaches our kids history and contextual material that otherwise I am afraid would be lost to most children. We watched just one volume, vol. 4, Battle for the Promised Land, and that covered the books, Joshua, Judges and Ruth. We watched it once with our older kids and then with our younger daughter, age 6. What was amazing was that when we watched it with our teenage sons, we laughed at humor our six year old would not understand, but even our teens said they learned biblical things they had not known before. Then, we watched it with our six year old and she came away laughing at the humor that was definitely prevalent and also said she learned some new things as well. And the best part?? Even my very strong Bible-knowledge husband said he learned some things he hadn't known before either!! What a versatile and useful Bible teaching tool - that is what I love most about it.

Here is my interview with our six year old daughter:

Did you learn from it? YES!! I learned LOTS - I didn't know there were so many judges!

Did you find it funny? (Well, I wouldn't have had to ask her really - she was laughing OFTEN!!) YES!! It was very funny - especially the old ladies!

Would you want to watch more of these? YES! Can we go get one now??

Who was your favorite character? Michael made me laugh! He is funny.

My husband had this to say: (And he's the authority on this sort of thing with his seminary background!!)

I really enjoyed episode 4 of the What's in the Bible Series. It was the first time I had seen the series and I was very impressed. I appreciate the chronological approach to teaching the Bible. There are many advantages I see in this. So often we teach children the Bible in a shotgun approach. We jump from one story to another without connecting the dots. There is a greater story and flow to the scriptures and children need to see the plan of redemptive history as it unfolds.

I also appreciate the emphasis on teaching doctrine along the way. Explaining the "whys" to the stories helps children understand the deeper truths of scripture.

Another great technique is the use of repetition. Stories are told in one format and then often retold in another. This is great in helping children to understand and remember the truths that are presented. The review at the beginning of each series also helps children understand where things fit in and how they are connected. The review of the books of the Bible along with the breakdown or divisions of the books helps children become more literate in their Bible knowledge.

Basically what I am trying to say is that these videos are packed full of great stuff. I hope to get the entire collection not only for myself but also for my kids.

So there you go - and if you needed one more reason to go get these for yourself - my husband and I were even saying what a wonderful family Sunday School curriculum this would make - or any family learning at our church - they are just as enjoyable to adults as children. They really are NOT to be missed!!

Now - for the best part - I actually have a DVD certificate to give away to one lucky reader!! So - leave a comment and we will choose a winner next Monday, December 6!!!

*I was provided a copy for review purposes by Tyndale Publishers.