In August of this year, Tyndale released a new Inspire Bible for Girls ages 8 and up. This new Bible is a wonderful edition to the award-winning Inspire line, and I’ll be sharing my review on the blog today as well as a few pages I’ve illustrated in mine. Yes, this Bible is for girls of all ages, including us “big” girls.
To order your own Inspire Bible for Girls on Amazon, shop my affiliate link here. Choose from either Hardcover or Softcover.
Here is a brief description of this new Bible from the publisher: “Over 500 beautiful full and partial-page Scripture line-art illustrations to color are attractively displayed throughout the Bible. There are lots of pages with open space for creativity in the lightly-ruled, two-inch-wide margins. Girls can leave traces of their faith throughout their Bible for a unique treasure that will truly inspire! The 8.65-point font is larger and more readable than other coloring Bibles, and the high-quality white Bible paper makes it a great choice for creatively responding to God’s Word right on the pages of the Bible. Instill the joy and value of reading the Bible in young girls’ hearts so they can learn to connect with God and discover valuable truths from Scripture―and ultimately live it out in their lives!“
Tyndale was kind enough to send me a copy of the softcover Inspire Bible for Girls to review. I did also purchase the hardcover version for myself because I loved the cover. Both covers have shimmery silver to it, but I felt like the hardcover had just an extra special touch with the etched designs and colorful endpapers. Both Bibles contain the exact same content, so it’s just a matter of personal preference when choosing a cover. The softcover also retails for slightly less, if budget is an issue.
In addition to the illustrations we’ve come to love in the Inspire Bibles, the Inspire Bible for Girls also includes lots of extra features. These extra features include: 300+ devotionals written by author Carolyn Larsen; 160+ journaling prompts; 64 key scripture verse pages new with illustrations; 64 fun facts list for each book of the Bible (1-3 John are listed together); topical index of devotionals as well as a special “Shine Brightly for Jesus” devotional plan.
As with the other Inspire Bibles, this one includes the full text of Scripture in the New Living Translation (NLT). This translation is dynamic and highly readable, making it a great option for young girls. Something new to this Bible is the addition of some color to the actual pages. There is some teal included throughout the Bible on the key verse illustration pages, the Old and New Testament Pages, the fun facts, devotionals, and journaling prompts. I like that they used color to help highlight these columns throughout to make them stand out and easier to find as you’re flipping through.
The introduction includes lots of information for studying and illustrating in your Bible, as well as some practice illustrations that are a great place for testing out supplies. In the back is an index of all the designed scripture verses and designed word art.
There are new illustrations on the inside covers and the dedication page. Again it was left blank like in the Inspire Praise bible to make it easier to personalize as you choose. This was the first page I illustrated in my new Bible the day after I received it. I used sparkle gel pens and Faber Castell big brush pens to color and write on the spread.
The next page I illustrated was this full page illustration in 2 Chronicles 20:20. I used watercolor pencils and light water to color this page. The thickness of the pages I would consider the same as the original Inspire Bible. The pages are listed as white, but they seem sort of cream to me still. I do think they are a lighter shade than the original Inspire Bible though.
Overall I am highly pleased with the newest Inspire Bible for Girls, and I love that it’s packed full of features. This would make a great Christmas gift for any young girl in your life. To order a copy of the Inspire Bible for Girls on Amazon, click here. To read other Inspire Bible reviews, visit my Bible Review page here.
Please note that this post contains affiliate links. This means I receive a small commission when you make purchases through the link at no additional cost to you. I was sent a complimentary copy of the softcover Inspire Bible for Girls by Tyndale Publishers. I was not required to give a positive review. All pictures and opinions contained in this post are my own.
For the month of July, I thought it would be fun to share some resources for kids to encourage them to read this summer! First up I have 2 board books to share that are great for reading aloud with toddlers. I have 2 little girls who love books, and these board books have been a huge hit with them.
The first book I want to share with you is called Counting Blessings. This sweet book features a cute bunny family. The mommy and daddy bunny are helping the baby bunny to count different blessings throughout the day. The first half of the book show 10 different blessings to count and then the second half of the book counts things outside in nature, without using numbers like the first half.
As a mom of two young children who love to read counting books, I really like the structure of this one to include actual numbers for part of it and then things that the child can count for the second part of it. The cover of the book is a padded cover and the pages are traditional board book material. This book is very sturdy for little hands, and so far our copy has been able to withstand two very rough toddlers. Another thing I like about this book is that it showcases simple blessings that would be more familiar to a young child, like crackers, good night kisses, books, songs, birds and trees. This loveable book is great for reading before bed with a simple rhyming scheme that makes it flow smoothly when reading.
The second board book I want to share is called Little One, God Made You Special. I was drawn to the title of this book for my girls because my husband and I try to emphasize a lot how God made us special. We want our girls to grow up knowing that they are made in God’s image and that they are a precious gift. This book helps to reinforce those truths with soft illustrations of animals and a sweet rhyme that points out the different parts of us that are perfectly made by God. The book opens and closes with the message that “God made you special, little one. There’s no one like you–no, no not one!”
My girls love to read this one and flip the pages. This board book has a traditional board book cover and pages, but they are on the thinner side. It will stand up to toddlers better than a regular book, but may not be as sturdy as other board books. The size is perfect for showing off the beautiful illustrations, which I think are a major highlight of this book. The book is written by Rick Warren’s daughter, Amy, and is inspired by themes from The Purpose Driven Life. I love that the theme of this book is very intentional, even for the youngest of readers.
For day 2 in my “College Bound” series, I want to share with you the newest agenda planner from Dayspring! For the first two years that I was in college, I went to a local community college to get my associates before transferring to a larger university. The front office would give out free spiral-bound planners to students every semester that would have events specific to the college as well as a monthly and weekly views to plan out classes and assignments. It had round stickers in the back with things like “finals” “due” and “project.” These planners were extremely helpful in helping me keep track of my work schedule, classes, assignments, projects, and finals. So it’s no surprise that I would highly recommend an agenda planner for those headed off to college!
Even though I’m not in college anymore, I still find a planner useful for jotting down important dates and appointments, as well as using it for weekly scripture writing. Dayspring just released 5 new 18-month agenda planners. These planners start in July 2018 and go through December 2019. Because they start in the summer, it’s the perfect set up for a new college student starting in the Fall 2018. Each one is spiral bound with a gold spiral and has laminated front and back covers. Dayspring sent me the Illustrated Faith branded planner to review and share with my followers, but there are numerous covers and styles to choose from. Each planner is practical and functional, as well as beautifully designed and faith inspiring.
All the planners from Dayspring have the same basic layout. There is a monthly dashboard and a laminated tab attached for that specific month. Then the first 2-page spread is the monthly calendar view. Next, the month is broken down into weeks, with one week spanning a 2-page spread. There are lines for writing more in-depth notes to plan out more specific details. This is also the area where those who use it as a faith planner would write out scripture or other faith-related content.
At the back of the planner is a Notes section. There are a few lined pages, a few graph pages, and a few blank pages in this section. There are three pages of planner stickers that fit perfectly into the monthly calendars and are a great way to add colorful reminders for important events. Lastly there is a pocket in the back to store extra bits and pieces.
The Illustrated Faith branded planner is absolutely beautifully designed. The cover is my favorite color, purple! It has a geometric design and hand-brushed lettering that spells out “Just give me Jesus.” Some of the design is gold-leafed to make it shimmer. For each monthly dashboard, a unique verse and design determines the color and theme for that month. At the top of each page is a coordinating banner that matches for that month. Even if you don’t add any other illustrating to this planner, it is still faith inspiring. But I like that there is lots of room to add decorations and embellishments. Make sure to subscribe to my YouTube channel here to be notified when new Faith planning videos get added to my channel!
I highly recommend the Dayspring 18-month agenda planner for all your planning needs, whether you are in college or want to use it as a faith planner. You can order your own Dayspring planner as well as other fun planner supplies by clicking the affiliate link 
This week I’m going to be sharing a few things to consider giving to a recent grad who is now college bound! I know summer is often a time for vacations and relaxing, but it can also be a time of preparation for the next phase of life for many young adults. For Christian young adults, there’s nothing more important than a reliable study Bible, and I highly recommend the CSB Worldview Study Bible.
Here is the description from the publisher: “The CSB Worldview Study Bible features extensive worldview study notes and articles by notable Christian scholars to help Christians better understand the grand narrative and flow of Scripture within the biblical framework from which we are called to view reality and make sense of life and the world. Guided by general editors David S. Dockery and Trevin K. Wax, this Bible is an invaluable resource and study tool that will help you to discuss, defend, and clearly share with others the truth, hope, and practical compatibility of Christianity in everyday life.”
This is my new favorite Bible, and it currently sits on my nightstand for easy access. Not only is the leather touch cover comfortable to hold in my lap while reading, but the size is great for every day use without being too bulky. The design on the interior is very subtle, with mainly gray shading to help offset the extra content. A few images that evoke a universe theme are included on the Old Testament and New Testament pages and the concordance cover page. I like that the design is neutral and not too distracting. The content and the text are the main focus.
The 130 worldview articles spread throughout the text are helpful for discerning relevant topics in our culture. Written by over 120 scholars, the topics span from the practical to the intellectual. Some article topics include creation, science, gender and sexuality, language, other religions, music and recreation, technology, church and state, a biblical work ethic, just to name a few.
The over 5,900 study notes also provide extra guidance when reading certain passages. The notes are offset in a light gray box at the bottom of each page. The scripture text is double column, with a cross-reference center column.
Each book of the Bible begins with a two page spread that includes book introduction and information, Worldview elements, and a timeline. The Worldview elements for each book are “Teachings about God,” “Teachings about Humanity,” and “Teachings about Salvation.” Having this common them throughout helps to tie a Christian Worldview together throughout all of Scripture.
The CSB Worldview Bible is thought-provoking for helping Christians form a biblical worldview. I highly recommend this Bible! It would make a great gift for a recent grad or great gift to self.
My third recommendation in this blog series for Mother’s Day Gift Ideas is the amazing book 
In Bloom is part memoir of Kayla growing up in the 90s, part stories about navigating how to raise her daughter to be a confident woman of God, and part call to action to put aside insecurity once and for all to finally bloom into the confident woman God created you to be. This book not only was touching and witty, but it put into words many things I have felt myself, especially having grown up in the church in the 90s in a culture that viewed “biblical femininity” one way that I didn’t exactly feel like fit into.
If you have ever felt out of place or that God got it wrong when he made you, then run to go read this book! Kayla writes: “When we imagine ourselves before and after, we think of the end of one thing and the beginning of another. But that’s where I think we get discouraged because we assume change means becoming someone completely different. Maybe we’re looking at change all wrong. It seems to me that if we are fearfully and wonderfully made in the beginning, then our renewing isn’t meant to keep changing us from one old thing to another totally new thing, over and over again. It’s meant to liberate us of our shame, enhancing our gifts and adorning us in grace” (page 142). Kayla’s writing in this book is so relatable and accessible, and I was flipping through chapter after chapter, not able to put it down. I think one of the biggest messages of this book other than confidence is that you don’t have to live in shame. What a liberating truth that God does not want us to live in our shame, but instead he wants us to be liberated through Christ to use our gifts and bear fruit!
This book is more than just a story. It’s a guide to help identify your sources of inadequacy and insecurity that have bombarded you throughout your life, and replace them with affirming truths from God’s word that you are accepted, loved, and filled with purpose. The text is saturated with biblical truth without being imposing and judgmental. Instead, In Bloom is a celebration of being a confident woman and embracing who God made you to be.
I enjoyed this book so much that I had to bring some of the lessons I learned into the margin of my Bible. I journaled this page in my Thrive Bible in Psalm 92:12-15 “But the godly will flourish like palm trees and grow strong like the cedars of Lebanon. For they are transplanted to the Lord’s own house. They flourish in the courts of our God. Even in old age they will still produce fruit; they will remain vital and green. They will declare, “The Lord is just! He is my rock! There is no evil in him!”
For Day 2 in my Mother’s Day Gift Ideas series, I’m going to share this sweet little book titled 
The style and design of this book is very beautiful and feminine, with the pink and gold colors being carried throughout. It was designed with gift-giving in mind for women who love to use devotionals, especially daily ones. The writing style reminds me of that used for the daily devotionals included in the Thrive Bible (review 
The devotionals themselves start with the date, a key passage of scripture to explore for that day, a paraphrase of the passage written by the author, and a section at the bottom of the page for reflection. I will admit that I typically like my devotionals to dig deeper into scripture than this type of book, but I appreciate what the author is trying to communicate by paraphrasing. She’s trying to help the reader experience the truths of God with fresh eyes. The author has specifically chosen those verses which are often all too well known, and tries to reinvigorate the reader’s experience with the text.
From a Bible journaling perspective, I think this book would make a great supplement to help guide you through a year of scripture to explore further with journaling. Since each entry is fairly brief, it leaves room for further exploration in your Bible. It makes a great guide for choosing a daily passage , as well as guiding the reader to further reflection.
I think this book would make a great gift for moms who may feel discouraged or disconnected from their daily devotional time, or have a busy life with a demanding schedule. God’s Call to a Deeper Life is the perfect little daily push to reconnect with God and the Bible, without being too overwhelming. You can order God’s Call to a Deeper Life as a gift for the mom in your life on Amazon 
I know sometimes it can be hard to shop for moms, especially ones who seem to have it all, so I will be doing a blog series all week long about some of my Mother’s Day gift ideas that you may not have thought of! My first recommendation is for the 
The reason why I recommend a journaling Bible, even for moms that aren’t necessarily interested in art journaling, is because it’s a personal gift that anyone can use! You can write notes or prayers in the margin, lightly color the illustrations, and just enjoy reading through this Bible. You don’t have to be an artist to use a journaling Bible. This Bible is both functional and beautiful.
What is a One Year Bible though? It’s a Bible that has the entire New Living Translation text divided into 365 daily readings that include a passage from the Old Testament, the New Testament, Psalms, and Proverbs. By organizing the text in this way, it helps guide the reader through the entire Bible in one year in a format that is more conducive to a busy life, or for those who need the visual ease of having it organized this way instead of having to flip all over the place with a traditional bible and reading plan. Each section is dated from January 1st through December 31st.
This bible has 2 inch margins that are either lightly lined or contain a preprinted illustration. The pages are cream, the text is arranged double-column, and the page thickness is the same as the original 
The illustrations on the inside front and back cover are unique to this Bible, and the presentation page is absolutely beautiful! It would make a lovely gift for your mom or wife to color the presentation page and write a note to her. This would also be a great place to let children or grandchildren color for mom or grandma, creating a personal and special gift that she will cherish.
Also included in the front of the 
The hardcover is a soft touch cover with floral detail and etching. The endpapers are printed with a beautiful pink, green and teal floral print. The Bible also includes 2 ribbon bookmarks, which I absolutely love when publishers do this. It helps to have multiple bookmarks if you are reading different sections, or want to go back and reread a passage while still keeping your current place. The bookmarks match the colors of the pink and teal cover.
I did color one page of this Bible using gel pens, just to make sure the paper was the same as the Inspire Bible (it was). As with all gel pens, you do have to be careful to not color over the same spot too many times or it will bleed through. As long as you aren’t too heavy-handed with coloring, they do shadow but don’t bleed. Add a set of colored pencils and/or gel pens when giving as a gift (I recommend Crayola Twistable colored pencils 
Order the One Year Expressions Bible as a Mother’s Day gift on Amazon 
The newest Advent devotional kit is here! Advent is my favorite time of year for Bible journaling, and this little kit is packed with an explosion of color as you explore the reason for the season.
The style of this kit is such a cute vintage handmade vibe. Plus add in some cute Christmas mugs washi tape, and you can’t help but get into the Christmas spirit. The biggest difference to the kit this month is that the 8 cards all include devotional material. I do wish that there had been more scripture references included with the kit, because the devotionals only include 4 verses. However there are so many other resources for Advent studies this time of year, so having a simpler kit is appealing to supplement other studies or for those who want a simpler study in the rush of the holidays and not feel pressured to journal every day.
I’m happy to see that the stamp set has more smaller stamps this month to give you more options for stamping cuteness onto your page. However as with past months, I just wish there was more variety. There are two stars and 4 bows, so I would have liked to see maybe a little tree or a little ornament. But the great thing about the Advent kit is that it coordinates with the entire line of Illustrated Faith Advent products on Dayspring, and there is a stand-alone Advent stamp set with more stamps that would be a great add-on to use with this kit. The die cut pieces are a mix of blank vintage style ornaments and a few ornaments with words on them. It would be so cute to use some of the icons from the stamp set to embellish the blank ornaments.
The devotional cards are the perfect size to fit into a traveler’s notebook. I’ve decided that I wanted to work in a traveler’s notebook in December so that I would have room for writing as well as adding in other sources and studies as I work through this season. I’ve been having fun getting it set up in anticipation of December as well as using a bunch of fun pieces from my stash in addition to the Advent kit to decorate my notebook.
It seems like just yesterday I was writing my very first Bible review on this blog with the original Inspire Bible by Tyndale that released March 2016, and now here I am again reviewing the newest addition to the Inspire line, the Inspire Praise Bible, which releases December 5, 2017. You can preorder a copy of the Inspire Praise Bible with purple butterfly softcover from Amazon 
My biggest question when I heard that they were releasing an all-new Bible was will it have the same art or new art? Answer: all new art! And not only that, the Inspire Praise has new features as well. Here is the description from the publisher: “The new Inspire PRAISE Bible has even more beautiful line-art illustrations to color, with nearly 500 all-new full- and partial-page Scripture illustrations attractively displayed throughout the Bible! Bonus features of Inspire PRAISE include even thicker Bible paper; thirty-two colorful, transparent, praise-themed journaling pages to enhance your coloring and creative journaling journey through the Bible; plus, three sheets of PRAISE-themed stickers and a purple pocket in the back of the Bible for storing journaling embellishments. Leave traces of faith―and PRAISE―throughout the Bible for a treasure that will truly inspire! The lightly-ruled, two-inch-wide margins offer additional space to write notes and reflections or to draw and create. The 8.65-point font is larger than most full-size journaling Bibles, and the high-quality Bible paper makes it a great choice for creatively responding to God’s Word right on the pages of the Bible.“
NEW INSPIRE PRAISE BONUS FEATURES
Tyndale listened to what journalers like, and this new Inspire Praise is a response to that. My favorite new feature of this Bible is the thicker pages. I was skeptical at first whether “thicker pages” would truly make any difference when it comes to using paints and wet mediums, and let me tell you that it does! Typically the pages of my original Inspire Bible get super wrinkled if I use watercolor of any kind. The wrinkles don’t bother me, per se, but they do make me hesitant to journal on the back of a page in which I used a wet medium since it’s so wrinkled. When I used watercolors for the first time in my Inspire Praise, I was shocked at how smooth the page stayed. There is still slight wrinkling, but it is a noticeable difference how much smoother the pages in the Praise remain.
Thicker pages also means less bleed through and shadowing. The pages of the Inspire Praise Bible are still thin compared to watercolor paper or other art papers/journals, but so far I have been very pleased to see how well these pages are handling paint, watercolor pencil, stamping, and black ink pens.
The style of the illustrations in the Inspire Praise are a bit more whimsical than the original Inspire, and I love them! I definitely think the new illustrations will appeal to younger girls wanting to get started Bible journaling, as well as women who want a bit less “formal” floral style of illustrations.
The purple cover and endpapers are absolutely beautiful! I love the colors they chose this time. The partially-colored transparency pages sprinkled throughout are a fun new addition. Each one can be journaled on or left as-is (I may leave mine as-is because they are so pretty already), and highlights a verse of Praise. The page behind each transparency has a blank margin so as not to compete with the design on the transparency page.
Another new feature of the Inspire Praise is the 4-page welcome message at the beginning of the Bible that invites the reader to praise God through the reading and coloring of this Bible. This would be a great place to start if you are new to Bible journaling and hesitant to get started, as there are beautiful illustrations alongside the welcome message. It would also be a good place to test out different mediums to see how they perform on the pages if you’re concerned about bleed through.
On the back inside cover is a purple pocket containing 3 sticker sheets that you can color and add to your pages. These match the illustration style of the Inspire Praise. One of the sheets is blank tabs that you can color and/or write on and then fold over as you adhere them to the top or side of your page. The pocket can also be used to store a few smaller supplies that you might want to keep and carry along with your bible.
I am very pleased with the new Inspire Praise Bible, and I would highly recommend it! This new Bible would make a great Christmas gift for both new and experienced bible journalers young and old. The release date has been pushed up to November 30 (originally set for release December 5), and Bibles have already started shipping! To order the Inspire Praise hardcover solid purple on Amazon, click 
Also, for those wondering if this comes in Large Print, the answer is not yet. Tyndale typically releases regular size versions of their bibles first and then as demand dictates, they add a large print edition. There is no new information about the release of the Praise in a Large Print edition at this time. To order the original Inspire Bible blue hardcover in Large Print on Amazon, click 
One of my gifts for Mother’s Day this year was the new 
Here’s the description from the publisher: “The THRIVE journaling devotional Bible is for every woman who wants to know God more deeply and follow Him more closely. God’s design for His children is that they live flourishing, fulfilling, joy-filled lives in Christ. Bestselling author and beloved conference speaker Sheri Rose Shepherd has devoted over 30 years of her ministry to helping women learn how to thrive in Christ, reflect God’s glory, and gain an eternal perspective. Sheri Rose invites women to join her on a year-long journey through the Bible in the THRIVE. The daily devotionals capture the very heart of her ministry by helping women discover their identity in Christ, God’s purpose and plan for their lives, and how to flourish in a faith that is pure, genuine, and life-giving. Each day’s devotional reading contains a key Scripture, a love letter from God, a reflection from Sheri Rose, a treasure of truth, and a special prayer for the reader. Sheri Rose encourages women to leave all of their concerns and struggles at the foot of the cross so they can truly thrive as the women God created them to be. This beautiful women’s journaling devotional Bible features a natural shabby chic fabric with decorative blue stitching, a THRIVE tag stitched to the front, round corners, cream page edges, and a matching ribbon marker.“
In order to accommodate the extra content while still maintaining a portable size, it is slightly wider than most journaling Bibles. It also has the Biblical text organized as double column instead of single column. However the wider size also means wider margins for more journaling on some pages, especially the devotional pages. The margins are lightly lined to help guide notetaking and written out prayers.
The New Living Translation is quickly becoming my favorite, and I like how geneologies are listed as a list for easier reading. The daily prayers, book introductions, “treasures of truth,” and character profiles help enhance the text while reading in between the devotionals. I especially like that the devotionals are numbered 1-365, rather than dated (Jan-Dec) so you can start and stop any time of year without feeling guilty to follow a specific date. Each devotional also gives the page number at the bottom for the next devotional, since the placement of the devotionals vary from book to book.
The supplemental material at the front includes a letter from Sheri Rose Shepherd, as well as tips on how to use and study this Bible. A Bible reading plan is included with a convenient checklist to help mark your progress. It is dated, but this is the only section that includes dates and obviously you can ignore that and follow your own pace. Since the focus of this Bible is to guide women through a yearlong journey to Thrive through Bible reading and devotions, there aren’t maps or concordance included in the back. The purpose of this Bible is to speak to a woman’s heart through the various tasks and trials she may face.
Overall, I highly recommend this Bible for women looking to Journal their way through a yearlong journey of Bible reading and devotions directed towards the thriving heart of a woman. I can’t wait to use this Bible and add my writing and art, as well as my heart, to the margins.
Kountingsheep 