Bizarre Bible Stories

Published through Wipf and Stock. Also available through Amazon.

Jonah and the whale? Heard that. David and Goliath? Know them. Noah and the ark? So it rained. . . It’s not enough to get the Bible into your kids, we need to get our kids into the Bible. Get your kids hooked on the Bible with stories about angry worms and dead people coming back to life. These stories aren’t just for bedtime – they create a thirst that lasts a lifetime!

Bizarre Bible Stories was written by Dan Cooley to be read by parents to children ages 7 and up, however older children LOVE reading it for themselves. Bizarre was a finalist at The Word Guild Canadian Christian Writing Awards.

Howard Hendricks liked to say, “It’s a sin to make the Bible boring.” For children, the excitement of the Bible is often its unpredictability. You never know what the omniscient God is going to do—unless, of course, you’ve heard the story before. Find your kids, their pajamas, and a few minutes of time. They (and you) won’t be bored. There are four parental “Tips” woven into each chapter. Here’s how they work:

Tip #1—Scripture Passage: Dan wrote these stories so you can read them without preparation. But, if you have time to read the passage over before telling the story, all the better. There are also Scripture verses at the end of each chapter. You could pick one verse to memorize, use as a bedtime prayer, or just read all the verses at the end. These verses are passages that fit with the “So What?” of the story, described in “Tip #2.”

Tip #2—So What? The beginning of each chapter has a “so what” explanation of how this Bible story applies to our children’s lives. There is also an index at the end of the book so you can find stories based on specific passages of Scripture or on the “so what” application topics.

Tip #3—For Parents [Anything in brackets]: One of the difficulties in telling Bible stories to children is the “R” rating many would have in a movie version. If you tell the story as written, they are “G” rated. There is additional background information, gory details, resources, even a little humor added in the brackets. Include what you think your kids should know and skip the rest.

Tip #4—Questions: Each story includes a number of questions for your kids to answer. Your kids will love them, and you will be surprised and often encouraged with their answers. An interactive, unpredictable Bible story is what this book is after, and the questions are key.

“Simply put, author Dan Cooley’s BIZARRE Bible Stories and BIZARRE Bible Stories 2! utilize a vernacular, contemporary writing style intended to reach an audience of children and youth with solid Christian doctrine and practical application. The discussion questions interspersed throughout the text are thoughtfully designed to promote interaction between parents and their children on numerous topics of interest. Cooley’s books reflect his passion for providing spiritual food to children in a manner they can easily digest. His attention to detail is evident from cover to cover.”  – Dr. Gene A. Getz. Author of over 50 books including The Measure of a Man, President of the Center for Church Renewal