Reviewing Word of Promise Next Generation

As some of you know, this has been quite a busy two week stretch for me. We welcomed my son, K.C., to the world and I've been playing catch-up ever since... :-)

But, I had the perfect accompaniment for this time off from work. As part for the Thomas Nelson BRB program, I got the Word of Promise Next Generation New Testament (MP3 Set). I say it is the perfect accompaniment because it is an audio version of the International Children's Bible (ICB) done in a dramaticized way by several "stars" of teen and children's shows.

"Children's Bible" you ask? Yup. Dramatic reading? Well, more than that really. Is it really good for grown ups? Hmmm, that's a judgment call.

What I mean is, I was really glad to have a decent audio Bible during the times in the car and during those times when I'm holding my boy and can't turn the pages of a book.

What I like about this audio Bible is that it incorporates professional actors, a professional score, and appropriate background voices and sound effects. Really well done. It is very easy to stay tuned in to what is going on, especially in the Gospels, with these nice touches.

The problem, and it is a minor one mostly, is the fact that the actors are kids and teens. I mean, they are very good, but I have a little bit of a hard time buying a 14 year old Jesus. But for the most part, it can be easy to overlook if you focus on what is being said.

The best part of the whole thing is how much my kids have taken to it. My oldest kids are fully in the Disney Channel generation and can tell most of the actors by hearing their voices. They are drawn into hearing the Scriptures because they can identify with the voices they hear. I like that. A lot.

The MP3 version is very useful and easy to deal with. The whole New Testament fits on 3 CDs (24 hours of audio) and can easily be imported into iTunes and synched to an iPod or other MP3 player. Each chapter is a different MP3 file and the track info is included so you can see the title with book and chapter. This makes it very easy to get to a specific book and chapter. Specific verses not so much.

All in all, if you have kids between 5 and 16, this could be a very good purchase if you want an audio Bible for them. For adults, young and old alike, you might try the "regular" Word of Promise New Testament audio Bible.

Either way, these are good options for getting in God's Word daily/regularly. Do it.

Per the recent FTC ruling, I am required to tell you that I received a free copy of this title from Thomas Nelson in return for publishing my review.