God's Mighty Acts in Creation

Starr writes with a sublime simplicity without losing the key points or watering down of the import of the lessons. I recommend this book for family readings and devotion. Utterly uplifting.

Moms and dads looking for short devotionals for young children should check out God's Mighty Acts in Creation and it's companion volume, God's Mighty Acts in Salvation, by Starr Meade. Each book contains 40-45 interactive readings, no longer than 2 pages each, designed to help elementary-aged children see the wonders of God. While both volumes are recommended for ages 8-12, our 7-year-old really enjoys them and has no problem grasping the truths presented. Each reading presents a Scripture text, followed by well-written, doctrinally-sound, and age-appropriate teaching and application of the text. Meade was a director of children's ministries in her church for 10 years and is the author of a number of devotional books for parents with young children. Whether for use in family devotionals, or for the children to read on their own, both of these volumes should be in the library of all Christian parents of elementary-aged children.

There is an abundance of children's books that talk about the various aspects of creation. These books usually go something like this: "On day 1, God created this, on day 5 God created that, etc. What a wonderful world we live in!" Illustrations abound picturing the different things created on different days. More often than not, what is missing is turning a child's focus from the creation back to the Creator. When asked to review Starr Meade's book God's Mighty Acts in Creation, I thought this would simply be another book along those lines.However, from the first chapter in the book, I realized that this book was very different from other stereotypical creation books. Meade does follow the Day 1, Day 2 pattern seen in Genesis 1, but that's as far as the similarities go. Each two-page chapter discusses something created on a particular day and how that created thing illustrates an aspect of God's character. For example, for Day 1 Meade points us to the holiness of God, illustrated in the creation of light ("God is light and in him is no darkness at all" - 1 John 1:5); or to Jesus, the Light of the World. We see the mountains pointing us to the eternity and unchangeableness of God. God's goodness is seen in the abundant variety of foods that were created. The vastness of space points us to a God without limit. Additionally, for each thing created, we are told about a time when God overruled how the created thing usually operates, showing that God is owns every part of creation and can do what he pleases with it. For example, he showed his power over the sun and moon when he made them stand still for Joshua and the children of Israel. Meade starts with an aspect of creation and beautifully draws our attention to the One who created it.While the book is rather small (only 109 pages), it is jam packed with wonderful truths about God as illustrated through creation. Because each chapter is a short two pages long, it is perfect for family devotions or for middle aged children to read on their own. Very few children's books have left me excited to start using it for our family Bible time, but God's Mighty Acts in Creation certainly does have me looking forward to reading with our children the many ways God's beauty is seen in creation.Disclaimer: Thanks to Crossway's Homeschool Book Review program for providing a review copy of this book. I was under no obligation to write a positive review.

God's Mighty Acts in Creation consists of 45 interactive readings that guide children through the six days of creation. It's aimed at 8 to 12 year olds and is fairly short...just over 100 pages...but packed full of Biblical truth. The first two readings are in an introductory section and address the concept of general revelation, while the rest are organized by day, beginning with "Day 1: Light and Water" and ending with "Day 6: Animals and People". Each reading begins with a key verse followed by a short (about a page and a half) reading and an "As for me and my house..." application section that contains several thought-provoking questions and related activities.I expected this book to simply go through the six days of creation, but I was pleasantly surprised to see that it does so much more! It uses the six days as a framework not only to show how created things display God's power and wisdom in the creation story, but to explore and apply many other references to nature throughout the Bible and to show how all His created works reflect who He is. For example, "Day 1: Light and Water" contains readings on Jesus as the Light of the World and the Living Water, "Day 3: Land and Plants" addresses God's sovereignty over nations and Jesus as the True Vine, "Day 5: Birds and Fish" discusses the ravens feeding Elijah, and "Day 6: Animals and People" includes Daniel and the lions.One of the things I love about Ms. Meade's books is that she doesn't water things down...she has a real gift for putting difficult concepts into terms that are simple enough for young children to grasp. Using her books together, I've seen my kids have several "a-ha" moments where they were able to clearly understand and articulate back to me truths that I didn't fully understand until adulthood. This book continues to follow that trend. It's engaging and meaty, perfect for family or individual use. My nine year old is using it for his personal devotional time, but I plan to go through it to discuss as a family in the near future. I highly recommend God's Mighty Acts in Creation and God's Mighty Acts in Salvation and I'm hopeful there will possibly be more titles in the series!Thanks to Angie Cheatham at Crossway for providing review copies to me.