Deep-O-Tionals: Devotions with Depth - Genesis: Part 1

by Mesu Andrews

Perhaps you know Mesu Andrews as the author of best-selling, award-winning biblical fiction, but in Deep-O-Tionals: Devotions with Depth, readers are invited to discover the roots of Mesu’s writing strength. From her earliest days as a young mother seeking daily guidance from the Scriptures to her current journey as a grandmother finding inspiration in God’s Word, Mesu has always been a lover of the Bible. Readers are invited to share in her real, raw, and refining journey with the One who calls us all to dive deep into life with Him.

Few of us have hours to study Scripture or find insight with our limited understanding of God’s Word. Deep-O-Tionals: Devotions with Depth presents Bible study details in conversational content. The resulting daily devotional studies combine in-depth looks at short Scripture passages with real-life applications of spiritual truth. Each lesson includes an introductory story that touches the heart, the day’s full Bible text with commentary to teach the mind, and a heartfelt suggested prayer to transform the life. Bonus material called, Sheep Going Deep, provides extra Biblical content for the Good Shepherd to lead those seeking deeper study.

This volume, Deep-O-Tionals—Genesis: Part 1, covers the first twenty chapters of Genesis, beginning with the story of creation and moving through the painful fall toward God’s plan of redemption. Familiar stories about the flood, humanity’s early attempts to form civilization with the tower of Babel, and God scattering people across the earth sets the stage for the introduction of a new kind of covenant. One man, Abram/Abraham, and his wife Sarai/Sarah are chosen to be one family who will bring one promised child into the world to bless all nations. This volume concludes just prior to the birth of Isaac and foreshadows the life and sacrifice of the One whose miraculous birth millennia in the future will become the ultimate redemptive blessing to all of humanity.

272 pages, Paperback

Published February 9, 2023

About the author

MESU ANDREWS is the Christy Award-winning author of Isaiah’s Daughter whose deep understanding of and love for God’s Word brings the biblical world alive for readers. Andrews lives in North Carolina with her husband Roy. She stays connected with readers through newsie emails, fun blog posts, and frequent short stories. For more information, visitMesuAndrews.com. 


Her first novel, Love Amid the Ashes (Revell, 2011, the story of Job) won the 2012 ECPA Book of the Year for a Debut Author. Love’s Sacred Song (Revell, 2012) relates the poetic Song of Solomon in story form, and Love in a Broken Vessel(Revell, 2013) sets the story of Hosea and Gomer in biblical Israel. In the Shadow of Jezebel (Revell, 2014) displays God's sovereignty over Jezebel's daughter, Queen Athaliah. The Pharaoh's Daughter (Waterbrook/Multnomah, 2015), unveils Moses' early years, and Miriam (2016) introduces Yahweh's prophetess during the ten plagues and the Exodus. Isaiah’s Daughter (Waterbrook/Multnomah, 2018) introduces readers to the prophet Isaiah's captivating daughter, and its sequel, Isaiah's Legacy (Waterbrook/Multnomah, 2020) , provides the redemptive end to her life and her son Manasseh's reign. To follow Yahweh's progression toward the Messiah, By the Waters of Babylon (August 2018) continues the story of the prophets and kings through the exile, and Of Fire and Lions (Waterbrook/Multnomah 2019) tells Daniel's compelling story. And The Reluctant Rival: Leah's Story tells of Leah, Jacob's neglected wife, and how God used her to change the course of history. And when Joseph's brothers sell him into a life of slavery in Egypt, Jacob's favorite son encounters one of the Bible's most infamous bad girls in, Potiphar's Wife  (Waterbrook/Multnomah 2022).

Reviews

[Ebosereme Nwamu · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am in awe!!!

I am a big fan of Mesu Andrews' fiction books and I didn't have expectations when I picked this non fiction to read!!! I am floored by the sheer brilliance that this devotional is. Totally floored!!!

Beautifully written! Reading this, I wasn't in doubt of the writer's walk with God. Easy to understand and use. The study is profound and rich. Anyone at any level of their walk with God can use it and mine the maximum benefits from it.

I enjoyed how it was divided into sections that are easy to study daily. I particularly loved how the author used real stories about herself and her family to drive home some points. The vulnerability was touching and endearing.

Highly, highly recommended.

I received a copy of this book and this is my honest opinion.

[(Katie) Paperbacks · Rating 5 out of 5]

I took my time with this book, as I really wanted to get the most of it. Mesu does an exceptional job at sharing her life experiences and showing the book of Genesis in a very relatable light to present times. Even though this book was written years ago and now just being published, I think now was the perfect time for it because it's God's timing.

I love that Mesu does what most devotionals don't, she includes every chapter of Genesis and not just one verse here and there. I love that because, not naming names (me) a lot of the times tend to not or forget to do the extra dive into God's Word when I'm reading a devotional. So I love that she included full chapters of scripture.

Mesu puts her heart and soul into these books, it will make you laugh, it will make you cry and it will make you really think about how your heart and mind make decisions to effect your life.

[Wendy Park · Rating 5 out of 5]

Deep-o-tionals is a work that precedes Mesu Andrews’ fiction writing but is a wonderful window into her passion for the Scriptures. What makes this devotional book unique is that it doesn’t just rely on the traditional format of providing one verse and then the author’s commentary but digs deeper into a passage and cross-references it with other relevant verses. The “Sheep Going Deep” section is my favorite part. Each daily section is short, accessible, and meaty. It makes the book of Genesis come alive with its rich look into the lives of ordinary people following an extraordinary God.

[Lynn's · Rating 5 out of 5]

Genesis is a book of the Bible that can take your breath away and muddle the brain at the same time. One moment God is speaking light and life into existence and the next a serpent is speaking to a woman, then, a man is taken to heaven without experiencing death. What does it all mean? Countless commentaries and books with really big words have been written to mine out the precious truth within, and while I believe we are all grateful for those resources, the effort it takes to dig that deep is often daunting. If those are the reasons you’ve never completely understood or stayed away from this 50+ chapter book of the Bible, then Genesis Part 1 in Mesu Andrews Deep-O-Tionals series is the tool that will unlock the book of Genesis for you.

This devotional is first off, easy to read, understand and brings the text to our lives in a practical way. Each days devotion is made up of four parts:

Touching The Heart - where the author tells a story about her personal life that will later complement the Scriptural text.

Teaching The Mind - this section is similar to a commentary, where groups of verses are explained in a way that’s easy to understand. Each group of verses is usually explained in one paragraph per group, so it doesn’t take long to read.

Transforming The Life - here the author takes what we’ve read and bullet points it into a prayer so the verses can have an immediate transforming part of our lives.

Sheep Going Deep - the author connects the day's reading in Genesis to other Scriptures in the Bible so you get a complete view of the topic, then ends with a few points that we can meditate on for the day.

I have to be honest, when I read the very first lesson I was a little bit of a hard sell. LOL! I was tempted to skip some of the parts but then, after a few days I started to see how each section worked together and all of the sudden, I was remembering the lessons and the main points because of how beautifully each of those sections connected to each other. And now, I think this is a beautiful format to teach Genesis. The author has taken something that can be so complicated and made it so simple and relatable. Does she talk about deep meaning doctrine? Yes! But when you finish the devotional for the day, you don’t just walk away with a bunch of “important things to remember”...you walk away with doctrinal truths attached to something you know you can understand because it’s things we deal with everyday in life.

If you are in a part of life where you feel like you don’t have the time to devote to an in depth Bible study but you still have the desire to do so, this devotional is for you! In 5-10 minutes a day, you can follow this devotional and go through Genesis 1-20 chapter by chapter and verse by verse. It doesn’t take hours to study and you will walk away understanding the Scripture and the importance of each passage in a simple but fulfilling way. This book is worth every penny! I highly recommend it!

[Rebecca Tellez · Rating 5 out of 5]

DEEP ~O~TIONALS
devotions with depth

A new devotional devoted to the first 20 chapters of Genesis. For anyone that is looking for a refreshing way to start your day or end it if you do your quiet time at night, this is definitely a must have for your bookshelf. It will open your eyes to a new way of reading/studying Genesis. Mesu gives us a glimpse into her heart in the days before she started writing those fictional stories. The format is very different from your ordinary devotional. Each day is divided into four segments.
Touching the Heart are glimpses into Mesu’s personal life sprinkled with humor and her deep love of God.
Teaching the Mind goes into the chapter and verses for the day with in depth thoughts and research that make reading the Bible exciting and new.
Transforming the Life are personal prayers that we can use for our own devotional prayer for the day, changing it to fit our own lives.
Sheep Going Deep takes the daily verses and ties it into other Scripture with insights and questions that will make you think.
For those who follow and read Mesu’s fictional books, you will hear her voice throughout and if you have never read any of her books, you may find yourself searching them out.
I highly recommend this book and am anxiously awaiting the next 20 chapters.

[MJSH · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love Mesu Andrews' approachable, faith-filled, grace-laden voice that guides the readers from Genesis 1 through 20 in thirty-six days of devotional-styled readings.

Every day has a theme/title. Each day's reading consists of:
1. Touching the Heart - where the author shares anecdotes and observations relevant to the topic
2. Teaching the Mind - where she goes through the Bible verses, questions that may arise, answers and speculations, questions that are thought-provoking, and commentary that is lively and engaging
3. Transforming the Life - where she has prayers of the heart based on the verses
4. Sheep going Deep - where she shares the verses again and pairs them with New Testament verses

It's a devotional that will have you coming back daily. Filled with wisdom and practical applications, Mesu Andrews will continually point you back to His Gift in His Word through these readings. I received the book from the author and was under no obligation to post a positive comment. All opinions are my own.

[Sherril Odom · Rating 5 out of 5]

This devotional is like no other I’ve read, based on a particular theme. Mesu schools us on a variety of topics, all extremely applicable to our everyday life issues.
Before jumping into the deep stuff, she prepares us for our lesson by relating it to one of her (often hilarious) real-life stories.
Then she introduces the verses we’ll be studying, starting on the first page of the Bible. From the beginning, Mesu gets down to business, explaining if it’s not in the Bible, God must not have thought it important enough to be there! Question answered!
She takes a few verses, then pulls unimaginable depth from them, explaining them in layman’s terms and relating them to real life.
Then she provides examples of prayers we can lift to help us experience what the characters in the Old Testament lived and learned in those chapters.
Finally, for those who seek deeper learning, she dives further in, explaining a little more.
If she could do this for every chapter in the Bible, we’d have it made!

[Susan · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this devotional. I am not a huge devotional reader, choosing most of my devotion time to be straight from the Bible, but once in awhile I am encouraged to make one part of my Bible study time. I have loved the depth of Biblical accuracy Mesu Andrews brings to her historical Biblical fiction, so it should be no surprise that she uses her God given talents for this as well.

Besides including the biblical passage and author's thoughts, Ms. Andrews provides some historical/cultural context, cross-referencing other passages that reinforce the story and prompts for personal introspection with real-life application.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from the author/publisher and was not required to write a review. All opinions expressed are my own. I have since purchased my own copy and look forward to reading more of Ms. Andrews Deep-O-Tionals.

[Andi Tubbs · Rating 5 out of 5]

have been a fan of Mesu Andrews since I read Love's Sacred Song. When I was asked to review this collection I had no idea what I was going to encounter. As a reader who loves Ms. Andrews's fiction, I opened the book timidly. And just like her fiction, this devotional series is filled to the brim with the truth from the Bible. It also gives the reader journaling questions that allow them to go deeper with God.

In some of the devotionals, she asks questions that believers have been asking for years and points the reader straight to the Bible for the answers.

Each devotional has three parts. Sheep Going Deep is probably my favorite part of the devotion.

Giving the scripture Genesis 2:16-17 -- "Yaweh God commanded the man saying, 'You may freely eat of every tree of the garden; but you shall not eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil; for in the day that you eat of it, you will surely die.

She then asks these questions to the reader.

-Did Adam and Eve die the moment they ate from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil?

-Did God lie? Why or why not?

This is a devotional you can sink your teeth into and grow in your understanding of the Bible and in a deeper relationship with God.

I highly recommend this devotional series!

Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book via the publisher. I was not required to write a review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

[Sue Fellows · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this devotional and taking a look into the mind of one of my favorite Christian Fiction authors. Uplifting and challenging to my life. A must read!