Books for Christmas season devotions

Our entire family loves books. And one of our all-time favorites is Jack and Kathy Stockman’s gorgeously illustrated book, titled simply, The Advent Book. This book is out of print, but is still available online, and well worth pursuing.

We read one new page daily, opening the door for that particular day. Each day we start the book from the beginning, working up through the numbered door for the day. The children eagerly await the day when it is their turn to open the doors, and by Christmas even the youngest has memorized most of the Christmas story by heart. Take a peek at some of the beautiful illustrations in the loveliest lift-the-flap book you’ve probably ever seen.

Sometimes you can find this book reasonably on Amazon, but it is very hard to find elsewhere, as it is out of print. Heirloom copies are also available for purchase through Jack Stockman’s website.

I have not read this next book yet, but I am getting it for my personal reading this Advent season. It looks wonderful!

Come, Thou Long-Expected Jesus: Experiencing the Peace and Promise of Christmas By Edited by Nancy Guthrie

Another devotional reader I have used and enjoyed is The Handel’s Messiah Family Advent Reader. The Handel’s Messiah CD is included with this devotional. My oldest son and I used this together one year, and we really enjoyed the informative and inspirational readings, followed by listening to a track from the CD.

Jotham’s Journey (as well as the two sequels by Arnold Ytreeide) is an exciting, suspenseful Christian fiction book, designed to be read one chapter daily during the Advent season. Each chapter ends with a “cliff hanger”, which left my kids begging for more. This isn’t quite in the “devotional” category, in my opinion, but it is an enjoyable read, and the characters learn more about the Messiah as the books progress.

Jotham’s Journey: A Storybook for Advent By Arnold Ytreeide

Christ in Christmas: A Family Advent CelebrationBy James C. Dobson, C.R. Swindoll, J.M. Boice & R.C. Sproul

Christ in Christmas features one brief reading for each day of the Advent season. Each day also has a suggested song, questions for discussion and a simple activity.

The Story of Christmas is an Advent calendar made up of 25 little board books, one for each day until Christmas. Each book tells a part of the Christmas story. We’ve had this set for 14 years. Every day in December we read one little board book and hang it on a small, tabletop tree. My youngest children love taking this little tree down off the shelf several times during the season so they can look at all the little board books.

The Story of Christmas: Story Book Set & Advent Calendar

If you have a toddler in the house you might enjoy the four books in the Born to Be King series by Catherine MacKenzie. Each book begins with the sentence, “If you were a King…” and tells something about what earthly kings do, such as sleep in palaces or eat feasts. Then each book has the sentence, “But Jesus is a different King. He is a better King. He is the best King.”

From there these simple board books go on to tell toddlers the story of Mary and Joseph, the Shepherds, Simeon and Anna and the Wise Men. Each book ends with a simple call to faith and a suggested scripture, such as the Mary and Joseph Love Jesus book, which ends with the words, “Jesus was punished even though he never sinned. He did this to save us. He is the only one who has ever done this. He can save you too.”