12 For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.
The word of God is alive and will produce living fruit in our lives as we sow it in our hearts.
No matter what age - in fact, it's very important to get the Word into the hearts of children.
Brock Eastman is someone who believes that and acts on it. I met him for the first time on an icy day in Charlotte, North Carolina at the Winter 2021 Christian Product Expo. You see, he portrayed a character named Dr. Fizzlebop. Later, the "doctor" and I did a Zoom call from his video "lab." He authored a book called, Faith and Science with Dr. Fizzlebop: 52 Fizztastically Fun Experiments and Devotions for Families. He has written a number of books and has been a writer for Clubhouse and Clubhouse Jr. magazines from Focus on the Family.
Well, Brock is still involved in sharing Biblical truth with young people, albeit in a different capacity - he works with the David C. Cook publishing company and is the brand director for The Action Bible.
That's according to CBN.com, which says that:
A popular retelling of the Bible in comic book form just hit a major milestone, selling more than three million copies in the United States.
“The Action Bible,” first released in 2010, continues to dominate Amazon bookselling charts, remaining in the top 100 among all books.
Eastman is quoted in the article, which states:
“What strikes people that read ‘The Action Bible’ is just the beautiful, full action-packed [presentation] and our illustrations that really bring the story to life,” he said. “And we like to think about … bringing the Bible to life in a different way.”
Eastman continued, “For this generation, specifically, who is involved with graphic novels, this Bible appeals to them because they like that kind of, ‘Oh, I can see the images of the story moving,’ and there’s a narrative, like a paraphrase narrative of the Bible story that’s easy to understand and sounds like a conversation.”
I guess you could say is a "graphic novel" is a comic book, or like a comic book, only bigger. How big, in the case of The Action Bible? 830 pages and 230 stories from the Bible.
CBN notes:
As a dad of four kids himself, Eastman said, “The Action Bible” does two important things: it seizes upon the interest of youths in graphic novels while also delivering hope to youths who desperately need it.
And, as the article points out, this is especially important to Generation Alpha, defined as those born between 2010 and 2014. Eastman says:
“Something like ‘The Action Bible’ that has these graphics that the kids … are drawn to, telling this narrative of this beautiful story of redemption, of hope, of stories and the characters in the Bible that are just like them — people who struggled with things, who had fear but overcame it with courage because they were empowered by God,” he said. “These fantastic stories that kids are connecting to. They’re like, ‘I see myself in that story and I can be that.’”
While this Bible for younger readers has sold 3 million copies in the U.S., it has also acquired an international audience, translated into 180 languages; and Brock is quoted as saying that The Action Bible has sold over 1.1 million copies in the last four years around the world, in addition to the 3 million copies it has sold in the U.S. since its release.
And, Brock notes, "There’s a lot of careful effort put into not only the language and the words, but also the imagery that took those pages and basically … brought them to life..."I believe we're in the midst of a Bible renaissance, with promising sales figures from 2024 being released recently, and research indicating a increased interest in Scripture. But, another Bible in the house won't directly contribute to the knowledge of God. An unread Bible cannot produce spiritual fruit. We have to consider how we are absorbing God's Word.
Parents are in a unique position in that there is a magnificent amount of content available for younger readers. Reading with children or recommending Biblical material for them to read can be an effective way for them to get the Word of God deep in their hearts, and that perhaps can lead to meaningful conversations - teachable moments - which can spur them to act on what they have read.
The Bible, in Deuteronomy chapter 6, speaks of teaching the words of God "diligently" to children. Our diligence can be contagious, and as we model Christ and demonstrate our love for Him, it can have an impact on generations to come.
Remember, the Bible tells us that God's Word is "living and powerful." Some other translations use the word, "active." The Bible is a book of action, and as we interact with the Word of God, we can find that our actions reflect the presence of the Lord in us.
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