Also by this author: God Made Me Unique: Helping Children See Value in Every Person, Joni: An Unforgettable Story, The Awesome Super Fantastic Forever Party Board Book: Heaven With Jesus is Amazing!, Jesus and the Very Big Surprise: A True Story about Jesus, His Return, and How to Be Ready, Jesus and the Lions' Den: A True Story about How Daniel Points Us to Jesus, Goodbye to Goodbyes: A True Story About Jesus, Lazarus, and an Empty Tomb, The Friend Who Forgives: A True Story About How Peter Failed and Jesus Forgave, God's Very Good Idea: A True Story of God's Delightfully Different Family, The Garden, the Curtain and the Cross, The Storm That Stopped, The One O'Clock Miracle, The Christmas Promise, The Prisoners, the Earthquake, and the Midnight Song
Series: Tales That Tell the Truth #14
Published by Good Book Company on May 1, 2022
Genres: Children's, Bible Stories
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Excite children with the truth about heaven and the new creation.
What will heaven be like? Answering this question for kids can be challenging, especially as it’s hard to get past the myths.
This beautifully illustrated, biblically faithful storybook by Joni Eareckson Tada excites children with this truth—that when Jesus comes back to this world, he will bring heaven with him! There will be a new creation where we’ll have new hearts and a new body, living in a new city. And best of all, we’ll be with Jesus, forever! It will be better than we can ever imagine.
Kids are encouraged to respond to Jesus’ invitation personally by repenting and believing. They will also be inspired to invite others, and to ask Jesus to come soon.
In this beautifully illustrated picture book, Joni Eareckson Tada teaches children about heaven and Jesus’s return, presenting this through the metaphor of us receiving an invitation to a wonderful, eternal party. She uses concrete language and examples to help children understand spiritual concepts, and instead of simply presenting heaven as where we go when we die, she focuses on what will happen when Christ returns and joins heaven and earth together. This book emphasizes the hope of eternal renewal and healing, and pushes back against dull cultural assumptions to show how wonderful heaven will be.
Catalina Echeverri’s illustrations are absolutely radiant, visualizing scenes on earth and in heaven. Her use of color and light is especially engaging here, and the pictures throughout the book convey an emotional sense of beauty and joy. She also visually contrasts the reality of sin with the joy of having a new heart in heaven, supporting the text through her vivid design. Also, I love how Tada presents freedom from sin in child-relevant terms, saying, “You won’t want to steal cookies, be mean to your friend, or pretend you’ve brushed your teeth when really you haven’t.” RELATABLE. Tada also shares Scripture references in the author’s note at the end, related to specific topics she has covered.
The Awesome Super Fantastic Forever Party Storybook: A True Story about Heaven, Jesus, and the Best Invitation of All is a jubilant, beautiful picture book that Christian families will love. It is also a great resource for Sunday schools and Christian schools, and there are a number of free supplementary resources that are available on the publisher’s website, with coloring pages, crafts, games, and party ideas. I highly recommend this book, and I am grateful that I had the chance to review it. This was especially poignant for me because I read it on Easter, and my ailing grandmother died that night. Easter was such a special day for her to go be with Jesus after years of suffering from dementia, and this book’s joyful depiction of our eternal futures deeply encouraged me.
