*God’s Attributes by Jill Nelson

God’s Attributes is an accessible, kid-friendly way to approach the greatness of God as we learn to trust Him.

*God’s Attributes by Jill Nelson. P&R, 2022, 117 pages.

Reading Level: Middle Grades, ages 8-10

Recommended for: ages 5-10 as a read-aloud, 8-12 independently

God is . . .

How would you describe God? The best way is by learning how God describes himself, and that’s what the Making Him Known series published by P&R seeks to accomplish. God’s Design and God’s Word are two of this series we’ve already reviewed, but God’s Attributes might be the most comprehensive. Each of the 25 chapters explores a different aspect of God: His wisdom, might, sovereignty, self-sufficiency, joy, love, omnipresence, etc. The first, “God Is Incomprehensible,” may seem like a contradiction: why seek to know him if we ultimately can’t? The author uses the story of Job to illustrate how the quantity of God’s greatness is beyond our knowledge, but we can still know his qualities.

Jealousy, Wrath, Holiness

Some of these are difficult to communicate because in us they would be unattractive. How to explain God’s jealousy? The author asks readers to suppose they were the clear winner in a race but someone else claimed the trophy. Would that be right? Is it right, then, to give to someone else, or claim for yourself, the honor and worship that belongs to God alone? Likewise, human wrath leads to sin, but God’s wrath is the right response to the ugliness and presumption of sin—and protection for all that is good and right, especially his own holiness.

The format is easy to use as a devotional, family Bible study, or bedtime book. Each chapter begins with an illustration from everyday life, followed by an explanation in simple terms and an example from a Bible story. This leads to “Learning to Trust God”: an interactive section including discussion questions and an activity (such as making a poster, puzzle, list, or card). Learning to trust God is the point: the more we know of his excellence, the more we can trust. God’s Attributes is an excellent first step.

Consideration:

• The illustrations (one per chapter) include pictures of Jesus.

Overall Rating: 5 (out of 5)

• Worldview/moral value: 5
• Artistic/literary value: 5

Read more about our ratings here.                 

Also at Redeemed Reader

• Reviews: Sally Michael’s More Than a Story walks children through the entire Bible in devotional format.
• Resource: Looking for a good children’s Bible? Browse our many reviews or our one-stop Mega-list!

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