Biblical Heroes: Stories of Faith and Courage

Kate Taliaferro loves Mark Hart's new book of biblical heroes and recommends it for middle-grade readers, youth groups, and family reading.

Biblical Heroes: Stories of Faith and Courage 

by Mark Hart
Published by Ascension Press

It is very likely you have heard in a homily or wise book that there is something to be learned from every character present in every Bible story. Scripture is full of stories of good guys, bad guys, indifferent characters, wise characters, heroes, heroines, villains, young and old, rich and poor. As we return to these stories throughout our lives, we can connect in a variety of ways with the characters depending on our life situation, experiences, and the Holy Spirit’s inspiration in that moment.  

A fresh look at characters and lessons from the Bible 

Biblical Heroes: Stories of Faith and Courage by Mark Hart offers a fresh look at some of these biblical characters and the lessons we can draw from them. While written for older kids and teens, as a mom I found this book to be so enjoyable and a great place to draw from as I talk with my own kids and brand-new teenager about life.  

The first thing I love about this book is the clever chapter titles. Here’s just a couple, but it was hard to pick favorites. 

• Abel: The Bible’s First “Little Brother” 
• Isaac: The Bible’s First Father-Son Road Trip 
• Ruth: The Bible’s First Employee of the Month 
• Daniel: The Bible’s First Lion Tamer 
• The “Loaves and Fish” Kid: The Bible’s First Busboy  

Mark Hart is an engaging author, drawing his audience into the stories of these biblical characters by making them relatable to experiences of today. He then sends his audience off to read the story in their own Bible. I love this element because it gets kids into the Bible itself and reading the stories as they are written there, not just taking in a summary and moving on.  

The main point: God loves you  

After giving some further explanation, analysis, and connections with the story, Hart then offers a concluding section, “Finding Yourself in ____’s Story.” He has a few targeted reflection questions and a conclusion that points out some key takeaways from the story. The overarching theme that ties all the stories together is God’s abundant and never-ending love for each one of us, that we are specifically created for love and that God desires a relationship with us no matter our history, problems, success, or failure.   

Biblical Heroes: Stories of Faith and Courage is a fabulous book, and I am so happy we have it in our library. It is an excellent accompaniment book to any Bible study that touches on one or more of the characters. It would work great as a guide for a youth group (thirteen chapters long, one chapter a meeting — sounds like a great spring session guide to me). We happen to be a homeschool family and I am incorporating it into our religion program for my 10-, 12-, and 13-year-olds. It would also be a great read-aloud option for families to read through together. It would also make a great Confirmation or graduation gift.  

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Copyright 2024 Kate Taliaferro
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