Book Review: Wonders of His Love by Champ Thornton

Every Christmas when we start dragging boxes of decorations out of our basement, our kids (ages 4, 7, and 10 this year) begin to get excited. They start rifling through the boxes to find their favorite ornaments, argue about who gets to crown the tree with our bright silver star, and then start rummaging through all the Advent books and activities we’ve collected over the years—wondering which we’ll dive into together this season. I’m happy to tell you that Champ Thornton’s Wonders of His Love will be a welcome addition to our Advent rotation.

Helpful Family Rhythms

Wonders of His Love is an Advent devotional written for families that explores the book of Isaiah. The book highlights five wonders that point us to five key truths about Jesus as he is revealed in Isaiah. The first four wonders each cover a week of the Advent season, with individual devotionals for five days per week. Each day highlights a Scripture passage, slides into some quick devotional thoughts, and wraps up with a few questions to help your kiddos apply the truths you just walked through together.

This format provides a nice rhythm for parents to get into as Advent rolls along. The weeks themselves are also structured similarly, following a week-to-week pattern. Days 1 and 2 are labeled “Picture It” and “A Closer Look.” On these days, Champ presents the week’s big truth to families and then unpacks it while taking you on a deeper dive. These days are more straightforward devotional texts that have families examine a passage, reflect on what’s happening in the particular text, and make connections along the way.

Days 3 and 4 offer families “A Promise to Remember” and “A Challenge to Accept.” These days illuminate a promise God makes to his people and a challenge for believers to take up as they seek to build the kingdom. Champ asks good questions here, and they’re helpful for both kids and parents to think through. “Who are some people that you could help or encourage?” This question, like most that are asked throughout the book, is great for moms and dads going to work each day, or for kids who spend much of their lives around other children at school.

Day 5 is always for “Family Fun.” It includes a Christmas carol along with a handful of activities for families to enjoy together. It could be something as simple as baking cookies or more elaborate like setting up a scavenger hunt, but it serves as a nice time at the end of each week to laugh, eat, or play together. Each week also contains an ornament that families can build and decorate together for their own Christmas tree.

Lots to Love

There’s a lot to love about this family-focused devotional.

First, I love that it’s short and to the point. Champ’s work is built from the ground up with families with younger children in mind, and because of that, it doesn’t waste any time. He knows parents are on the clock as soon as they sit down for a family devotional. So, he’s gone out of his way to make the content easy to read, quick to digest, and ready to use without a ton of prep. This is a huge win for parents working to take a first step in their discipleship journey with their kids.

Second, the rhythm of the book works really well. The weekly theme that’s reinforced by the same rotation of categories each day of the week will serve families who are working to build new discipleship rhythms. It’s helpful to know what to expect each week (and day) as those rhythms take hold. The repetition within the days/weeks should also make it easier for parents to jump back in (hopefully guilt-free!) after inevitably missing a day because of a behavior meltdown, bath-time-gone-wrong, or whatever parenting pitfall rears its ugly head.

Finally, this is an Advent devotional that shows families the beauty of Jesus and invites them to trust and follow him over and over again. The illustrations on each page remind you that this is indeed a resource for the Christmas season, but make no mistake, Champ is doing his best to call kids and parents to put their faith in Jesus. Every piece of Scripture that is highlighted, every question that’s asked, every connection that’s made is done to draw folks to the wonder of our Savior. There are a few welcome occasions where he directly invites kids and families to trust and believe.

Wonders of His Love succeeds in being not just a well-thought-out and effective Advent devotional, but an incredible entry point for families attempting to engage in family worship/discipleship for the first time. Its simple Christmas illustrations, easy-to-follow format, and gospel-soaked devotionals make it easy to recommend to parents. Whether you’re just starting to share Jesus with your kids, or you’ve been at it for years, this is a resource you want to have. I can’t wait to get our tree up and crack this open under the twinkling lights with our family this year.