Apologetics Study Bible For Students HCSB: Review and GIVEAWAY!

I love it when I am given the chance to review something developed with teenagers in mind!  B&H Publishing Group has partnered with Sean McDowell and a host of other talented contributors to create The Apologetics Study Bible for Students.  Their goal is to encourage readers who have real questions by offering straight answers and in turn, help them to develop a stronger, more confident faith.

As my 16 and nearly 18 year olds stand on the threshold of College, I often find myself wondering if we have prepared them well enough.  Is their faith-foundation strong enough to withstand the secular influences on the horizon?  Will they seek answers from God’s word when their thinking is challenged?  Or will they drift away from fellowship and become sad statistics in the trend of young people leaving the church?

In the email offering me the chance to take a look at this new study Bible, this paragraph caught my attention.

The Apologetics Study Bible for Students HCSB works against that trend by helping anchor younger Christians in the truths of Scripture, equipping them with thoughtful and practical responses for whenever the core issues of their faith and life are challenged, while helping them better articulate their beliefs with non-believers.  A Confident Faith - isn't that something we all strive to have!!! 

I immediately thought of my 16 year old.  He is an amazing young man with the biggest heart of anyone I know.  Yet he doesn’t enjoy leading, and often looks to the values of his friends to access where he is in life.  I get it.  He’s a peer-oriented teenager. 

Thankfully, he often talks to me about what he’s thinking.   And we get to share what we think God is trying to teach us.

But I won’t always be there to help frame his struggles in a Biblical Worldview.  Or to help him come up with answers when friends and teachers say things contrary to God’s Word.  His faith will stand or fall based on the sureness of the stones he, himself,  has used to build it. 

I think this Bible will be perfect for him!

Here are some of the features included in the The Apologetics Study Bible for Students HCSB:

• Two-color design-intensive layout (it’s easy to read!)
• 60 "Twisted Scriptures" explanations (Answers for when people twist the scriptures to mean something different then what it was intended to say.)
• 50 "Bones & Dirt" entries (archaeology meets apologetics)
• 50 "Notable Quotes"
• 25 "Tactics" against common anti-Christian arguments
• 20 "Personal Stories" of how God has worked in real lives
• 20 "Top Five" lists to help remember key apologetics topics

These helps and discussions are framed and placed throughout the pages.  Like well-placed-pictures, they add clarity and insight to the text.   My favorite of these are the Bones and Dirt notes that detail how various archeological discoveries lend confidence to the accuracy of God’s Word.

My only wish is that some of the notes delved a little deeper into the topics they cover.  Although I understand that it is designed for youths, I think there are many critical thinkers like my son among them that would benefit from deeper discussions.

My son is really enjoying this Bible, and I highly recommend that parents and youth leaders take a look at it. 

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Confident Faith Sweepstakes

If you would like to enter the Confident Faith Sweepstakes to receive FREE weekly tools to use & share including 16 short, energetic teaching videos from author, Sean McDowell., you can do so (here).

I watched a few of these videos and think they are great conversation starters for you and your teens!

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Now, For the Giveaway…

If you would like a chance to receive a copy of The Apologetics Study Bible for Students, please leave a comment on this post by noon Thursday, August 20, 2015.  A winner will be chosen at random from among the comments.   

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"Disclosure (in accordance with the FTC’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising”): Many thanks to Propeller Consulting, LLC for providing this prize for the giveaway. Choice of winners and opinions are 100% my own and NOT influenced by monetary compensation. I did receive a sample of the product in exchange for this review and post.

Only one entrant per mailing address, per giveaway. If you have won a prize from our sponsor Propeller / FlyBy Promotions in the last 30 days, you are not eligible to win. If you have won the same prize on another blog, you are not eligible to win it again. Winner is subject to eligibility verification.”