Long, long ago, I shared The Garden, the Curtain and the Cross with you. Remember that one? It was my first introduction to the series I came to adore, the one that has somewhat overrun my blog, because I’ve never met an installment that I didn’t want to share with you.
The Garden, the Curtain and the Cross looked at the entire story of Scripture and told it—winningly—in one short picture book. It is the best, and smallest, introduction I’ve found to the gospel and the entire storyline of the Bible. And now (oh joy!) the book has an accompanying Easter devotional, as well as an Easter calendar. You know those Advent calendars with the doors you open to reveal some little hidden picture? It’s like that. I love it.
The devotional is a two-week devotional, so it won’t take you all the way through Lent. But it will give you a running start at Holy Week, and it will start some great family discussions. The readings are scripted, with times for prayer and discussion as well as reading from Scripture. And it features Catalina Echeverri’s lovely illustrations from the picture book.
Though this devotional is a companion to The Garden, the Curtain and the Cross, you don’t have to read the picture book to benefit from the devotional. Carl and Lizzie Laferton explain, in the introduction, that the devotional looks at some of the passages that informed the picture book and borrows language from the picture book, but it can be read on its own.
(That said, I still think you should read The Garden, the Curtain and the Cross. You’ll love it.)
Easter is a season best enjoyed with a back story—the Resurrection is delightful on its own, of course, but how much more powerful is it after Good Friday? And how much more significant is Good Friday after Holy Week? And how meaningful is Holy Week after we’ve been reminded of the whole, grand story of Scripture? That is what this devotional is about.
The Garden, the Curtain and the Cross Easter Calendar
Carl & Lizzie Lafteron; Catalina Echeverri (2020)
Disclosure: I did receive copies of this for review, but I was not obligated to review this book or compensated for my review in any way. I share this book with you because I love it, not because I was paid to do so.