Book Review

Book Review: 30 Days of Goodness, Love and Grace

This insightful 30-day, eBook Bible study contains selections from the Faithgirlz Secret Power Girls Bible Study series.

I am less familiar with this series, but I enjoy reading books like these because of the work I do with the youth ministry at my local church– specifically our Girls of Destine mentoring program.  I know I’m getting older and more removed from things that younger girls are doing and reading, so I try to take advantage of review opportunities like these.

This text was written especially for girls between the ages of 8-12 years old. In the text, author Susie Shellenberger shares deep truths in each daily devotional that will challenge, inspire, and nourish a reader’s growing soul.

I’ve included a few selections from the publisher’s description that provide a good example of how the text takes classic bible stories and uses modern day examples to connect them to more common day stories/movies that young girls may more readily know and understand (like Cinderella):

  • The Secret Power of Love (book of Ruth),
  • The Secret Power of Grace (1 Peter), and
  • The Secret Power of Goodness (Colossians).

The Secret Power of Love: Like Cinderella, sometimes it’s easy to feel left out and ignored. Maybe things with your family aren’t right, or you don’t feel very lovable. But something amazing happens when you discover God’s love. Journey through the book of Ruth and study one girl’s real-life “Cinderella story,” and see how God transformed her world.

The Secret Power of Grace: You probably want to achieve great things. You probably want a happy life. And you probably want to look incredible every step of the way, sporting a style that makes you sparkle. For a girl like you, that’s no problem—because you’re about to discover the secrets to true success, lasting joy, and a killer style you’ll never outgrow. Cruise through the book of 1 Peter and learn God’s ideas about a beauty and style unlike anything money can buy at the mall.

The Secret Power of Goodness: Sometimes it seems everyone has a different idea of what is true. Some people say that truth is simply whatever works for you. But what if you found reliable truth—as solid and real as the ground you walk on? What if it changed your life? What if it changed you? Come explore the book of Colossians and learn to sort through what you hear about other’s beliefs while discovering what makes our faith special and what it means to be a Christian.

While, I do believe that this type of approach is very effective for the target age group (8-12 years old) I think that it should also be partnered with a “real talk” dialogue that also addresses the issues that these young girls are facing at an increasing rate in this day and age.

Overall, I think this is a great text and approve of the author’s move to create an e-book bible study guide for young girls.  Much of our work and social activity is conducted using electronics and an e-bible study will be a great method for attracting an already captivated audience.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookLook Bloggers book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. 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.”

Book Review: The Color Code Bible

I still remember the first time I saw a Rainbow Study Bible.  

I was still in elementaty school. I’m guessing I was about 7 or 8 years old. The Bible was my mom’s, of course, and I was obsessed with the color coded notes and highlights throughout the text. It was like an encrypted mystery and I wanted to decode every page!   

I love reviewing Bibles and was so excited to review this one.  I’ll share more of the details below, but I’ll start with a general review.  Due to the level and amount of text, I would see this being most appropriate for a 7 or 8 year old (or older) or for parents to use to study with their children. 

As described by the publisher, The Color Code Bible from Thomas Nelson Publishing is packed with bright colors, memorization aids, and the never-ending truth of God’s Good News.

64 vibrant pages in the beginning of the text provide a thorough explanation of the color system and offer expanded study features catered to a child’s creative and imaginative mind! 

With topics arranged by color, any reader can learn about salvation and how to put God’s word into his/her daily faith walk.  

The topics and colors are:

Gold: God 

Navy: Sin, evil 

Red: Jesus 

Orange: Washed clean from sin, new life 

Green: Growth in your new life as a Christian and Faith Walk

Blue: Prayer, Praise and Thanksgiving 

Purple : Heaven

The large, readable typeface, bold in-text subject headings, and color-highlighted verses all make this Bible a fantastic purchase for any child (or adult)!

I love adding bibles to my library and this one did not dissapoint. I can see this being a valuable tool to use with my church’s children’s ministry and as a wonderful gift for a new baby or christening event. 

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookLook Bloggers book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. 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.”

Book Review: NKJV Teen Study Bible

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NKJV Teen Study Bible Review On FixItWithFran.com

My Bible collection is ALWAYS growing.

I’m still dedicated to my Life Application Bible that has been with me since my teens, but I love the feeling of a crisp new book (blame all those years of working in libraries! 😊😂😄).

This text is in the New King James Version (NKJV), which many choose as their preferred text.  I am more of a fan of the New Living Translation (NLT),  but I do see value in reading from multiple versions and I usually review the NKJV during my personal study time.

I see this being a great resource for those working in church youth/teen ministries or as a bible to offer as a gift to a teen (maybe for graduation, a birthday, or “just because”).

I really appreciated the hardcover version as I’ve had much more success with these holding up to repeated use over the years.

Other features of this text include:

Continue reading →

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Book Review: NKJV Apply the Word Study Bible

Apply The Word NKJV Bible Review on FixItWithFran

This week has been so, so, so, sooooo busy!  But, I am never too busy to set aside some quiet time to study the Word and to share my current thoughts with all of you.  It’s what I’m here for 🙂 .

While I enjoy receiving books and other items to review, it is even more special to me when I have the opportunity to review a new Bible. This Apply the Word Study Bible was released earlier this year and is in the New Kings James Version Translation.  I’ve worked my way through the text over the past few months and here are my thoughts:

I Love the Compact Size

I work from home and often study while taking breaks and moving between the master bedroom, guest room, office, living room, kitchen, etc. — Having a bible that I can easily move around with is key!  This text measures approximately 5 and 1/2 inches by 9 inches by 2 inches and tucks neatly into the crook of my arm along with my journal, pen, and highlighter case.

The Subject Headings Direct Your Eyes

I really admired the use of bold, block headings in a variety of shades and colors.  These were used to label the application notes as well as the included study notes about people and places in the Bible. My professional communications professor at UNC’s School of Government always stressed the power of tones, fonts, and appropriate spacing in providing visual cues and my thoughts immediately went to her when I observed these elements in body of the text.  (Hi Professor Setzer! 🙂 #PresentationZen)

Highly Effective Use of Subtle Images

I am an adult, but I still appreciate pictures in the books that I read (when appropriate). Especially my Bibles and cookbooks.  I always imagine how some scenes and images may have appeared and the examples shown below were extremely useful references for me.  I try to use study bibles such as this one while preparing my lessons and podcasts, so the more context I can understand about a certain passage, the better!

Maps!

I am a big fan of maps and I especially need them when a passage relies heavily on geographic references.  I really liked the fact that this bible includes small maps within the body of the text as well as a set of larger maps in the rear of the text.

Apply The Word NKJV Study Bible Review on FixItWithFran.com

Apply The Word NKJV Study Bible Review on FixItWithFran.com

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookLook Bloggers book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. 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.”

Book Review: After the Boxes are Unpacked

This text is so timely for me. Over the last 4 years,  I have done two moves, crossing multiple-states and each experience was so trying in its own way.

I now live in a new city and state, far away from many of my loved ones and family and friends. The experience was painful at times, but God has and continues to use it to produce good fruit in my life and the overall process of relocation and resettling helped me to mature significantly while focusing on God and my faith as the consistent thread of my life despite seasons of constant change and uncertainty.

I greatly appreciated the author’s take on moving, relocation and taking up residence in a new city while incorporating biblical principles and encouragement from the scriptures. Moreover, I truly valued these from the perspective of a new/young wife as this was the cause of my most recent (and prayerfully final) move.

I would recommend this text to anyone looking to find peace in the midst of the chaos that is moving. What I have also learned is this truth: After the boxes are unpacked, there is sometimes a feeling that something is “still missing” — despite our labor to have all of the curtains hung and every item in place.

There is a sense of place and belonging that God gives us through that quiet study time and reflection that we must always remember to carve out time for, DAILY. This book is a great tool to use during that time.  After the boxes are unpacked, rest, re-center, and seek God’s direction for this next chapter of your life.

I’m praying for you.

I received a free copy of this text this with the understanding that I would provide my honest review and unbiased opinion via a review that I would post to this site. I am very much dedicated to providing high quality, honest and thorough reviews and plan to update this post in the future if my continued use of this product causes my critique to change in any way.