Karmel L. Newell - Illustrated Bible Stories for Latter-Day Saints

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Newell, Karmel H., author.
Illustrated Bible stories for Latter-day Saints / retold by Karmel H. Newell ; Illustrated by Brian Call.
pages cm
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-1-60907-717-4 (hardbound : alk. paper) 1. Bible stories, English. I. Call, Brian D., illustrator. II. Title.
BS550.3.N49 2013
220.95'05dc232013023293
Printed in China09/13
R. R. Donnelley, Shenzhen, Guangdong, China
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

To my children and my childrens children
Karmel H. Newell

To my wonderful wife, Michelle, and my children
Brian Call

About the Author

Karmel Newell holds bachelors and masters degrees in English literature. She has served on a general Church writing committee, as a Relief Society president, and as a Primary president. She has written other books for children and loves being with childrenher own and others. Whether reading Bible stories or hiking mountain trails, Karmel loves spending time with her husband, Lloyd, and their family.

About the Illustrator

Brian Call graduated from Brigham Young University with a bachelors degree in fine arts. Since that time, he has worked as an illustrator, creating artwork that has appeared in numerous magazines, books, and educational materials. He currently teaches in the art department at Brigham Young UniversityIdaho in Rexburg, Idaho. Brian and his wife, Michelle, and their six children live in Ammon, Idaho.

How to Use This Book

This book is intended to supplement, not replace, scripture study. The spiritual power that comes from reading the word of God directly from the scriptures cannot come from any other source. However, spiritual insight and power can flow more freely when readers know more about people, places, and events described in the scriptures. As readersespecially young readersbecome familiar with scripture stories, the doctrines and truths illustrated by those stories are more easily understood.

The stories in this book are arranged in historical order. Each chapter contains a separate story with sidebars that explain important concepts, introduce essential vocabulary, or offer background facts. The sidebars may be read before, during, or after the story.

Uses for this book are as varied as the families who read it. If, for example, a family conducts scripture study in the morning, this book might be used for bedtime stories to reinforce what was learned earlier in the day. If a family gathers for scripture study at night, this book may be placed in a central location in the home, so children can refer to it to supplement their knowledge on their own. Illustrated Bible Stories for Latter-day Saints certainly provides the framework for a series of family home evenings. Because Bible events are retold as stories, this book may also lend itself well to discussion and to bearing testimony of gospel principles illuminated therein.

Family Home Evening Suggestions

At least a years worth of family home evening lessons may be found in this book. Each chapter is a self-contained lesson. The sidebars offer important supplementary information, the illustrations engage younger children in the stories, and the stories themselves can be read aloud or retold.

Families with younger children may enjoy reading a story together and then acting out what they read. Children might prepare simple costumes and take turns playing the various characters. Tents might be made of sheets, strips of fabric might become the sea or the wilderness, stairs might depict Jacobs ladder, and so forth. The scriptures will come to life as children become familiar with a story by acting it out.

Families with older children might enjoy connecting scripture stories with the teachings of modern prophets. A search on lds.org can link a scripture story with a talk given by a prophet or with an article published in a Church magazine. As older children prepare to teach a family home evening lesson, they might first read the retelling of the scripture story in the book and then tie it to a gospel truth.

Parents may use this book in teaching gospel topics. The format of this book allows for a quick review of the stories, and the stories may serve as springboards for family discussion. The Lords admonition to the Israelites resounds through the ages: Thou shalt love the Lord with all thine heart,... and these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart: And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up (Deuteronomy 6:57).

The Creation

Genesis 12; Moses 23

God, our Heavenly Father, chose His spirit Son, Jesus Christ, to help Him create heaven and the earth. At first, the earth was empty and barren. Darkness spread across the deep, and Gods spirit moved upon the water. God said, Let there be light, and there was light. God saw the light, and He knew it was good. He divided the light from the darkness. That was the first day of creation.

On the second day of creation, God divided the waters, so there was water in the firmament, or sky, and also in the great waters beneath the firmament, or on the earth. God called the firmament Heaven.

On the third day of creation, God gathered the great waters on the earth into one place and said, Let there be dry land. God called the dry land Earth, and He called the gathering together of the waters Seas. God also made the grass, trees, and other plants; they brought forth fruit and seeds. God saw all the things He had made, and He declared that they were good.

On the fourth day of creation, God placed lights in the sky. He made two great lights: the sun to rule the day and the moon to rule the night. He also put stars in the sky. The lights divided the day from the night, and they became signs in the heavens of the seasons, years, and days.

On the fifth day of creation, God placed fish in the sea and birds in the sky. He blessed the fish and birds and said to them, Be fruitful, and multiply.

On the sixth day, God created all the animals and creeping things. Then God, our Heavenly Father, said to Jesus Christ, Let us make man in our image. So God created Adam, the first man on the earth. Heavenly Father and Jesus knew that it was not good for man to be alone, so they created a woman, who was named Eve, to help Adam and to be his wife. God made Adam and Eve caretakers of the fish, birds, animals, and creeping things. God blessed Adam and Eve and told them to have children. God saw everything he had made and declared that it was very good.

On the seventh day, God rested from all his work. He blessed the seventh day and made it sacred.