Long Story Short by Marty Machowski – a book review

Transform Your Family with Ten Minutes a Day in the Gospel Story
Christian parents know the importance of passing the gospel story on to their children, yet we live in a busy world filled with distractions. Schedules collide, there is homework and yard work and dishes and laundry, the car’s oil should be changed, there are phone calls to make and before you know it, everyone is getting to bed late again.The Bible can seem like a long story for an active family to read, but when you break it down into short sections, as Marty Machowski does, family devotions are easy to do. Long Story Short will help busy parents share with their children how every story in the Old Testament points forward to God’s story of salvation through Jesus Christ. You won’t find a more important focus for a family devotional than a daily highlighting of the gospel of grace. Clever stories and good moral lessons may entertain and even help children, but the gospel will transform children. The gospel is deep enough to keep the oldest and wisest parents learning and growing all their lives, yet simple enough to transform the heart of the first grader who has just begun to read.

Ten minutes a day, five days a week is enough time to pass on the most valuable treasure the world has ever known. Long Story Short is a family devotional program designed to explain God’s plan of salvation through the Old Testament and is suitable for children from preschool through high school.

Marty Machowski currently serves as one of Covenant Fellowship’s Family Life Pastors. He has been on staff since 1988. In addition to caring for married couples, Marty oversees Promise Kingdom, our ministry to children, and COMPASS, our homeschool program, and our Youth ministry. He received a Bachelor of Science in industrial design from the Philadelphia College of Art in 1985. Marty resides in West Chester, with his wife, Lois, and their six children.

I want to start off this review by highly recommending this book. It’s a book for families of any size, in just about any stage in life. I think that even grandparents can use this book, either as a gift to their children and grandchildren or as a devotional book when their grandchildren visit them.

Marty Machowski does a very good job of fulfilling his title’s purpose – keeping each devotional short. However, don’t think that short means little substance. Each reading gives ample opportunity to go deeper into the word than most adult daily devotional booklets. Using questions, both of the text and family members, each day’s devotional will have everybody involved.

I think this book can be best utilized by families with kids in the middle elementary grades, but don’t let that keep you from getting it if you have younger children or even teens. Teens could help take the lead in some of the daily exercises, building them up for the future.

I’ll be using this book with our family. I’ve found it difficult to find sources which can engage our whole family, but New Growth’s efforts here will surely pay good dividends.

Just to repeat – I highly recommend this book.