Philippians and Colossians: Stories of Joy and Identity (The StoryChanger Devotional) Paperback – April 11, 2023

I was looking for another daily devotional when I saw this book on Amazon. I really like the books of Philippians and Colossians in the Bible and this devotional has really helped me look at them from a different perspective. This devotional is written well and I feel it is good for new Christians or those wanting to focus on Christ and His work in us and through us. Each day's reading is about 3 pages long and I devoted 1 hour each day to reading the devotional and praying about the message. I feel this devotional could also be read with someone being mentored, a spouse or as a family devotional.The author, who I haven't read before, writes simply and is easy to follow. After reading this devotional, you will read both Philippians and Colossians in their entirety and understand their context. In the devotional, the author helps you to understand Paul's purposes in writing these two epistles. In addition, I really liked that at the end of each day's devotional, the author has a brief summary with some words of encouragement, questions for contemplation, and a prayer. Reading this devotional was an excellent way for me to start my day. The price seems a little high for the length of this devotional, but I would still highly recommend this book.

A handful of other reviewers have already done a deep dive on the content, so I won't review that too much here. This is one in a series of "Storychanger" devotionals, which is admittedly sort of trendy, but does capture an important basic Christian truth: God's story should transform our story. The cover is a cool matte texture with a minimalist and modern design, and the book just looks and feels nice; it makes you want to pick it up and read it. The devotional guides the reader through Philippians and Colossians in a way that is approachable for younger (maybe middle school and up) readers as well as newer believers or even more mature Christians who want a quick devotional to remind them of some of the fundamental tenants of their faith while walking verse by verse through those two Pauline letters. This is not a commentary or a deep dive, but it allows time and space for guided reflection and thus is accessible to people at all stages of their faith. If it's purchased with this intent in mind, and if you don't mind looking past some trendy language to get to the simple pearls, then you'll probably find this a valuable addition to your devotional collection.

This devotional is easy to read, and great for a beginner or someone who is not used to reading devotional material. We found it a little underwhelming since we are better versed in this kind of material, and hoped for a more robust exploration of the books of Philippians and Colossians.

This book has a well-designed and giftable cover, but of course the content inside is more important. Throughout the book you'll find 50 devotionals covering topics discussed in the books of Philippians and Colossians. Each devotion is based specifically on a handful of verses (or sometimes even just one verse) and many (but not all) tie a story in to the topic. Each ends with a summary, a question (action item), and a brief prayer. There are no places specifically for notes, and no blanks to fill in.I like how short each devotional is (three pages each), as that makes the book much more accessible. The questions at the end of each devotional allow for more time to be spent in the subject if desired. I also like that this is really a deep dive into these books and displays how each has so many practical applications.This book uses common and even contemporary language to reach those who are unfamiliar with the Bible. It also uses analogies to make concepts simple and comprehendible. (So did Jesus, right?) This book should not be taken as scripture - though it contains verses, it is not infallible - but it *can* help to make scripture more approachable for the layperson.Note: The book's scripture quotations are primarily from the ESV, with some coming from the MSG and NIV as well.

I have a writing background. I have often considered how my personal story fits into God's story. Given that information, I found Philippians and Colossians: Stories of Joy and Identity to be an interesting and insightful read. In reading the introduction, I discovered this is a follow up to another book that this author wrote featuring story, The Story Changer: How God rewrites our story by inviting us into His that introduces the reader to the idea that Jesus is in our lives to transform our stories forever. I don't think this is trendy at all. Rather, I believe that God is writing a story through our lives as we live each day, if we let Him.Each reading is written to take about five minutes a day. The author explains why he wrote these devotionals this way and how they could further guide you. This book has a modern feel to it in its design. Each reading is short and concludes with a shorter story, a summary, a question and a brief prayer. I found it interesting and I kind of like the style.I received this book from the publisher through the Amazon Vine Program. All opinions within this review are my own.