The season of Lent begins early this year, so I spent a lot of time in January thinking about what study guide or plan I wanted to use during the 40 days leading up to Easter. Then I remembered that Tyndale had sent me two new coloring Study books from a series called Drawn In Bible Study by Eugene Peterson using The Message translation, and I realized going through one of these books would be perfect! I received the studies on Esther and Mary, and although I’ve decided to use Mary for Lent, I’ll be showing you both versions in this post. They also have a third one on Ruththat I don’t have a copy of, but wanted to mention that it was available as well.

You can order Drawn In Bible Study: Mary on Amazon here, Esther available here, and Ruth available here. You can order The Message Canvas Bible on Amazon, as seen in these pictures, here.

Here is the description of the series from the publisher: “Color with friends. Be drawn into scripture. Deepen your friendships as you gather around Scripture for coloring and conversation. Drawn In offers simple four-week Bible studies―perfect for groups or personal devotions. Coloring quiets your heart and mind so you can enter fully into Scripture’s stories. The Bible’s passion and personality come through in The Message, surprising new and old Bible readers alike. Discover the delight of being Drawn In.”

Each book contains 4 sessions that are designed to be used over 4 weeks. It can be used on your own for personal study or as a group bible study guide with additional suggestions in the back for group discussion suggestions and ideas. The study content is written by Eugene Peterson, a well-known author who also created The Message translation of the Bible, which is the scripture used in these books when quoted throughout. The full scripture text is not provided, so you will need your Bible in order to study along with these books.

The illustrations themselves are a highlight of these books. Spread throughout the entire book, they are both full page and partial page designs. The style is reminiscent of that used in The Message Canvas Bible (you can read my review here). My one criticism for the design of these books is that they don’t lay flat, which makes it a bit hard to write and color in them. I bent the binding of mine to be able to get them to lay flat in certain spots, and the binding is holding up well so far. Some illustrations also peek around the edges of pages and there are a few in the introduction, which would be great for practice.

There are lots of questions with space to write at the end of each 6 sections within each session. That gives you six days during the week to work through a session of you decide to do one session a week. I haven’t had a chance to read through the questions, but I’m excited to go through Drawn In: Mary for Lent. I’ll be able to break it up into the smaller sections for a daily reading to get me through this season, with a few days for catching up, which I’m sure I’ll inevitably need.

I think these little books would make a great individual or group bible study tool. The study itself isn’t super in-depth, but there is a ton of thought-provoking content and space to meditate and color. If you’re interested in going through the Mary study with me, you can order your copy on Amazon here. I will be posting my progress here on my blog and on my Instagram @kountingsheepbiblejournaling.

Please note that this post contains Amazon affiliate links. This means I receive a small commission at no additional cost to you. Tyndale sent me a copy of these books in exchange for my honest review. All pictures and opinions contained within this post are my own.