The Biggest Story Advent: 25 Lift-the-Flap Devotions for Families

by Kevin DeYoung, Don Clark (illustrator)

Genres: Faith, Christmas, Holiday

60 pages, Board Book

Published October 7, 2025

About the author

Kevin DeYoung is the Senior Pastor at University Reformed Church (RCA) in East Lansing, Michigan, right across the street from Michigan State University.

Reviews

[Jono Spear · Rating 5 out of 5]

Summary: Kevin DeYoung’s goal with this children’s advent devotional is to highlight twenty-four OT promises about the coming Messiah followed by the concluding fulfillment of the birth of Jesus in Matthew 1 to show how the whole Bible is one big story about God’s salvation of sinners through Jesus, the Christ. For each day, there is a verse and one page of explanation. The titles of each day and the verses are as follows:

1. The Snake Crusher is on His Way - Genesis 3:15
2. A Promised Child - Genesis 15:5
3. A Lion from Judah - Genesis 49:9
4. A Star from Jacob - Numbers 24:17
5. A Prophet Like Moses - Deuteronomy 18:18
6. A Son of David - 2 Samuel 7:12
7. A Begotten Son - Psalm 2:7
8. Head, Hands, and Feet - Psalm 8:4
9. Gifts for the King - Psalm 72:10-11
10. A Special Kind of Priest - Psalm 110:4
11. God with Us - Isaiah 7:14
12. A Great Light - Isaiah 9:2
13. The Stump of Jesse - Isaiah 11:1
14. Prepare the Way - Isaiah 40:3
15. Gentle and Lowly - Isaiah 42:3
16. To the End of the Earth - Isaiah 49:6
17. Born to Die - Isaiah 53:5
18. The Lord Our Righteousness - Jeremiah 23:6
19. Lamenting and Bitter Weeping - Jeremiah 31:15
20. One Like a Son of Man - Daniel 7:13
21. Out of Egypt - Hosea 11:1
22. O Little Town of Bethlehem - Micah 5:2
23. Quiet Hearts and Loud Singing - Zephaniah 3:17
24. The Sun of Righteousness - Malachi 4:2
25. His Name is Jesus - Matthew 1:21

Pros: This is the greatest thing since the invention of the cordless cup warmer. I hope to use this every advent season. And I will certainly use this as a catechetical resource for new believers.

Cons: The timing of publishing. I wish I had this when I was a kid. Maybe I would have been the next Michael B. Shepherd if I had known these prophecies when I was a youngling. Jk, there will never be another Michael B.

Overall, an excellent read! Highly recommend.

Disclaimer: I didn’t receive this book free from the publisher. I’m not that cool. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. The reason I wrote this review is for my own reference of the biblical texts. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Chase Riebel Act 16, CFR, Part 255. If you read this far, you’re a nerd.

[Collin Lewis · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was fun and theologically accessible for our kids. Also, even Moriah got to participate opening the flaps.

[Jeremy Hendon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Judah enjoyed the flaps and now refers to Jesus as the snake crusher. Seeing him get fired up over Jesus’ authority and power is the best! Maybe it’s because my kids are so young, but I often thought things could have been expressed in a more clear way for kids. That said, the artwork is stunning, and I think this is a great way to introduce kids (and parents for that matter) to Old Testament prophecies concerning the messiah.

[Kristen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoyed reading this in the morning to my daughter during this advent season and I appreciated the focus on the OT. Will reread with her again next year!

[Kyle Pendley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved reading this with the family each night, and Levi loved the flaps on each page!

[Katie Martin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Recommended ages 6-12

[Amanda (The Little Book Spot) · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5

[Autumn Robinson · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a wonderful book to read with the kids I nanny for. Beautiful stories and illustrations. It’s written as an advent book, but works year round. It was especially helpful for sparking good conversations about the Old Testament.

[Kendra · Rating 5 out of 5]

We read through this Advent devotional as a family this year and really loved it. The book features 25 devotionals, beginning in Genesis and leading up to Jesus' birth, and each day is accompanied by a gorgeous illustration behind a lift-the-flap page. The hardcover book, which features board book style pages, is one of the most beautiful Advent books I've ever seen and the devotionals are child-appropriate but theologically solid. The book is such a welcome addition to our growing collection of Advent books!

[David J. Harris · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was the advent devotional we used this year. Kids loved it! Great resource.

[Darla · Rating 5 out of 5]

Instead of recounting familiar scenes full of shepherds, angels, and wise men, this book focuses on the prophescies leading up to the Christas story. You might think of it as the story before the story--or, better yet, as a fuller version of the Biggest Story.

We finally finished! A week late, but we got started about seven days late. This is not one to rush, but to savor.

While this is described as a Lift-the-Flap Devotional, that does not mean it is only for the littles. Believe me when I say that all of us from baby to 60+ looked forward with anticipation to see what was under the flap each day. If you love the Don Clark artwork in the Biggest Story books, you will love this one as well. Such vibrant and meaningful compositions for every day of Advent, with five additional panels for Christmas Day.

This is a devotional you will put away and take out again the next December -- year after year. A treasure!

We all make mistakes. We all need help. We all disobey God and fall short of his glory. But here is the wonderfully good news: Jesus came to save us from our sins! That's what the centuries of promises were all about, and that's what Christmas is all about too.

[Emily Paul · Rating 5 out of 5]

🙋‍♂️ Who’s a fan of ‘The Biggest Story’ Series by @revkevindeyoung

Then you’ll be excited for this one!

📚 The Biggest Story Advent
✍️ @revkevindeyoung
🎨 Don Clark
🗞️ @crosswaybooks
➡️ Age 6-12

Following a similar style as the other ‘Biggest Story’ books, @ starts this advent devotion at creation & traces the promises of Christ through 24 Old Testament prophecies, showing how they point to the coming messiah. It culminates at the birth of Jesus, the one who ‘will save their people from their sin’ (Matthew 1.21).

Each day contains a ‘lift a flap’ to reveal a picture in Don Clark’s typical vibrant artwork and a verse that accompanies the devotion and prophecy, which could easily be used as a Bible verse memorization.

With all of this series, I love it! It’s biblically rich, theologically grounded, child friendly and unique from other devotions I’ve encountered as it traces Christ specifically through Old Testament prophecies, rather than focusing on the typical nativity stories.

From Eden to Bethlehem — every page points to Jesus!

💚 A beautifully told Advent journey for families who want to see the big story behind Christmas.

[Jennie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Perfect timing! Christmas is coming!! Our family has always celebrated by doing Advent. If you know me personally, you know I have a large collection of Christmas picture books. So, of course, I love the new The Biggest Story Advent book that has come out by Kevin DeYoung and the beautiful illustrations by Don Clark.

This is a board book geared towards younger children, but I think it is great for families of all ages. The book has 25 daily readings, and each day provides a flip out that goes with a short Old Testament promise about the coming Messiah and a daily prayer. The last chapter of the book provides 4 flip-outs that the Savior has come, summarizing His birth from the book of Matthew 1.

Everyone will enjoy the beautiful illustrations and the daily readings about Jesus. Young children will have fun opening the flip outs to count down the birth of Jesus.

Get this for your families and/or buy this as a gift to give to a child. For sure, this will be a keepsake book to keep and read every year at Christmas time!

[Abby Nall · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love the Biggest Story project, so I wanted to love this Advent devotional. I don't know if my kids are too young, or my brain was too frazzled for the level of reading comprehension needed, but I was expecting a series of lessons that followed logically, one from the other, to the arrival of the Christ child. What I experienced was 24 distinct and interchangeable lessons on various prophecies about the Messiah. You could read them in any order, skip some, and your understanding would not be any less. Maybe that was intentional, to decrease the completionist pressure, but I found it underwhelming.
The form factor of the book is excellent. Every day, there is a flap to open, a picture to discover, and a Bible verse to accompany it. It has enough interactivity for kids to look forward to with no extra unnecessary faffe for parents to fuss over. As an advent calendar, this book excels.

I plan to revisit it next year and see if my experience of it improves with older kids and maybe more mental energy from Mom.

[Aaron · Rating 5 out of 5]

In The Biggest Story Advent, Kevin DeYoung presents 25 lift-the-flap devotions for families—a delightful way to teach and prepare young hearts for the coming of the promised King.

My daughter loved the lift-the-flap format and honestly didn’t want to stop at just one! The vibrant illustrations by Don Clark are, of course, incredible—and they pair beautifully with the Advent theme.

Anticipate and Celebrate the Coming of Christ

What I appreciated most were the substantial devotions, aimed at children ages 6–12. I was happy to share God’s story of redemption as it is woven throughout the Old Testament.

Fun and interactive, this Advent book will help your family anticipate and celebrate the coming of Christ.

I received a media copy of The Biggest Story Advent and this is my honest review. @diveindigdeep

[Caleb · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the best advent daily devotionals for our family thus far. Kevin DeYoung does a great job with a biblical theological perspective for the Messiah and includes many prophecies that point to Christ. I don’t love the artwork, but the writing and pace were fantastic. I loved the included prayer prompt at the end which helped launch our family into times of prayer. This was great for teenagers down to elementary grade schoolers.

[David Newton]

Not on the same level as The Jesus Storybook Bible but a worthy addition to the kids' bookshelf. Weightier than the average children's Christmas book (and beyond their current reading level) so I expect it will last for several seasons to come.

[Aubra · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked this for our boys (ages 2 and 5), but a lot is going over their heads. I found myself explaining lots of the words and substituting words. I look forward to continuing to read it each year and seeing what they pick up each year.

[Kate M. Colby]

Review forthcoming for Anglican Compass.

[Kelsey Bryant · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lillian loved this!! It was so cool to walk through the OT from Genesis through the prophets leading to the birth of Christ and the Gospel as well. Beautiful, definitely recommend.

[Holly Fisher · Rating 4 out of 5]

The information was good but the pictures were very abstract

[Bethany Beasley]

Family advent book 2025.

[Ariana Copeland · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful illustrations. Wonderful little messages. Engaging and easy to go through. My little ones loved the imagery as my husband read them the stories.

[Zak Mellgren · Rating 5 out of 5]

Review forthcoming.

[Charles]

Excellent family devotional that shares the Advent story through the lens of all of Scripture. Definitely enjoyed it & absolutely love the artwork!

[Jeff Boyd · Rating 5 out of 5]

A beautiful, Christ-centered Advent study for the whole family.

[Kelly · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun advent read with the kids. They enjoyed the daily flaps, and I appreciated how much OT prophecy about the coming of Christ was included in this.

[April · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book