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The Bible Project (Videos)

When our school year (like so many of yours) took a hairpin turn mid-March, I found I missed the little things most—those luxuries we hadn’t realized were luxuries. Watching the students file into morning chapel and sit down right next to each to other. All of us singing together, inhaling and exhaling one another’s saliva droplets, unaware that that was a privilege we could lose.

But just as I’ve loved seeing how God has transformed our losses into unanticipated gifts, I have loved seeing how our school transformed morning chapel into a little “chapel at home.” The at-home version is greatly simplified, yes. But during those last months of school, the girls and I gathered around the table each day, watched a video from The Bible Project, and then read a portion of Scripture together. Chapel wasn’t what it had been, of course, but it became something else for those last few months—a time to gather around the light of Scripture together and to remember who God is.

The Bible Project (Videos) | Little Book, Big Story

You’ve probably already watched a video from The Bible Project. They’ve been around for a while. Co-founders Tim Mackie and Jon Collins use their differing gifts to articulate some of the more abstract ideas in Scripture, both explaining the concept through each video’s narration and illustrating it through the video’s art.

I was most familiar with their videos summarizing specific books of the Bible, but they also make short videos about theological terms or concepts, or about the genres of Scripture—so many things. And the videos explain so clearly what role each book or idea has within the bigger story of the Bible. For all you visual learners (I’m one, too): you’ll love these. And for those of you wondering how much such a resource costs: they’re all free! (But, of course, you could always donate to the Bible Project.)

The Bible Project (Videos) | Little Book, Big Story

So, how could you use these with kids? If your pastor is preaching through a book of the Bible, you could watch the corresponding Bible Project video to give your family a big-picture view of your pastor’s week-by-week preaching. Or you could pick a specific theme, like “The Covenants” or “The Holy Spirit,” and dig into that with your kids. Or you could browse through their library and see what strikes your fancy. I highly recommend the series “How to Read the Bible.” We started watching it during the last weeks of the school year, and our girls loved it so much they insisted we keep watching through the summer.

The Bible Project (Videos) | Little Book, Big Story

One note, though: I do encourage you to pre-watch these videos before sharing them with sensitive or young children. I haven’t seen anything in them that is inappropriate for adults, or even older children, but the Bible can be gruesome and disturbing at times, and in the interest of staying faithful to the text, the Bible Project doesn’t shy away from that. Your kid may not be ready for some of the videos quite yet.

But hey, even if that is the case, you can still enjoy them! And I really think you will.

The Bible Project (Videos) | Little Book, Big Story

The Bible Project (Video Resource)

What’s in the Bible? (Videos)

Vischer

Way back in this blog’s beginning posts, I wrote a bit about What’s in the Bible? I told you that it was awesome and that you should watch it, but that was over a year ago and now it’s a cozy sort of season when movies and fleece blankets are in high demand, so I thought I’d give the series its very own post—even though it’s not a book, but a show about the book.

What’s in the Bible? is a series of 26 episodes that works its way through the entire Bible, but probably not in the way you’re thinking. Yes, it tells the creation story and shares a stellar retelling of the Book of Ruth, but the overall focus of the series is less on the celebrated stories of the Bible and more on the great, overarching story of the Bible. What is actually in the Bible? Why does it matter to us? What’s in the Bible? strives to answer those questions with creativity and sincerity (a great combination when dealing with anyone, little or big). The mind behind it all belongs to Phil Vischer, of JellyTelly (and formerly of VeggieTales). He briefly explains the vision of What’s in the Bible? here:

As you may remember from my post about his book, Sidney and Norman, I think very, very highly of Mr. Vischer. He appears on the show as a sort of anchor for an eclectic cast of puppets (which features, among other things, a Sunday school teacher, a news anchor, and a pirate), where he doesn’t shy away from difficult topics, but speaks to kids as though they can and should understand what the Bible says about tricky topics like sin, salvation, and theological doctrine. Take the show’s explanation of the Trinity, for example:

Our daughters love these videos. My husband and I love them, too, and through the show’s vivid illustrations we have both learned a lot about key aspects of the Bible. The episodes that touched on Paul’s back story or the silence between the Testaments switched lights on for both of us, and now our daughters tend to do things like, oh, list the books of the Bible in order just for fun. The show is full of catchy songs (a song about the Pentateuch—sung on a riverboat!) and great topical segments (A Pirate’s Guide to Church History!) that go far beyond the traditional fare of Christian children’s programming.

Now, where you can you find this excellent series? If you live in our area, you can request copies of the DVDs at the public library, but by far the easiest way to watch them is to subscribe to JellyTelly. The monthly fee is cheap and grants you access to all 26 episodes of What’s in the Bible? as well as a variety of other shows and games that our family has yet to explore. (Do I sound like an infomerical? Don’t worry, this is not a sponsored post—none of my posts are—so it’s simply my enthusiasm for this show that you hear taking on a cheesy radio-announcer persona.)

JellyTelly’s mission is “be a tool to help raise the next generation of Christians so they know what they believe and know how to live it and to help launch the next generation of Christian storytellers.” I love that vision and see it succeeding marvelously through What’s in the Bible? 


What’s in the Bible? (DVD series)
Jelly Telly