About the Book

Book: The Bible Companion Book 2 Leviticus-Deuteronomy

Author: Karen Westbrook Moderow

Genre: Bible Study/ Devotional

Release Date: May 5, 2024

Do you struggle to relate to God in the Old Testament?

The Bible Companion Book 2 can help. Its simple one-chapter-a-day format lets you engage with Scripture without the pressure of schedules, homework, or heavy reading loads. Short daily readings and thought-provoking questions help you recognize God’s faithfulness even in your most difficult journey.

Though filled with unfamiliar symbols and rituals, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy hold treasures—the great promises of God. They show us the lengths to which God goes to be in our daily lives. Hard-to-read passages come alive as we travel with Israel to the Promised Land and discover the same God who guided His people in ancient times guides us today. If you want to know what God is like and what matters to Him . . . if you question His love for you . . . if you wonder how believing God can change your life, these books of the Law will speak to you. For personal and group study.

Click here to get your copy!

About the Author

KAREN WESTBROOK MODEROW is a Bible teacher and author who brings a storyteller’s perspective to Scripture. She holds master’s degrees in theology and creative writing and loves introducing others to Jesus through the stories told in God’s Word.

More from Karen

Breakfast with Leviticus

My father was a pastor and a man with lofty ambitions. He was known for setting goals others deemed impossible then achieving them. However, there was one that got the best of him. He determined our family would read the Bible through from cover to cover—together. On January first of each year, a morning ritual of Bible and Breakfast began. On cold days, Dad would entice us to the table with his version of a Hot Toddy. We’d sip on hot grapefruit juice and eat while one of us read the day’s Scripture out loud. We read Genesis… Exodus… then came Leviticus. No one had the nerve to say the book was boring and we didn’t understand it, but perhaps Dad felt the same. At some point we gave up. The next year, we’d start anew. Genesis… Exodus… then Leviticus. The next year, same thing. We started the day with images of bloody sacrifices exploding in our heads more mornings than I could count. We never made it past Leviticus.

We teased my father about this epic fail, but he took away something from this experience—the realization that most of us need a little help with some parts of the Bible. He started writing short daily devotionals to help people get through hard-to-understand passages. Years later, I took over where he left off. The Bible Companion series is the fruit of that “failed” venture.

Pastor Floyd’s Grapefruit Toddy

My dad’s version of a teetotaler’s “hot toddy” is easy, delicious, warming, and great for sore throats.

Squeeze juice from one half grapefruit into a mug.
Fill to the top with boiling water.
Sweeten with a half teaspoon of honey, if desired.

Author Interview

Can you tell us a little bit about what readers can expect from your books?

The Bible Companion series brings home the truths of Scripture through storytelling. They’re full of colorful characters whose response to God shows us what He is like but also reveals who we are. My books are more like dramas than a commentary or devotional. They show, rather than tell. They challenge long-held assumptions but don’t deconstruct faith. They don’t ignore the troubling issues in Scripture but offer strategies and perspectives for understanding them. The Bible Companion books reflect my absolute trust in the Bible as the authoritative Word of God. Readers can expect them to celebrate the great themes of Scripture—God’s love, sovereignty, justice, mercy, and power to redeem. No matter what questions are raised, what disappointments are voiced, or what conflicts we delve into, my books will point readers to hope. To a good and bountiful future. To Jesus.

What is the greatest advice you have ever been given about writing?

Learn to write anywhere.

What book made you fall in love with reading?

We didn’t have a TV in our home. Instead, my brother, sister, and I read and read and read. We had a small library across the street from us and we would sit there by the hour. In fourth grade I devoured the biographies of settlers (Lewis and Clark, Sacagawea) and our nation’s Presidents. I recall be enthralled by the life of Francis Marion, the Swamp Fox. As I grew up, I graduated from Nancy Drew to great English and American classics. To this day, give me the choice between reading and watching a TV show and I’ll take a book every time.

What was the inspiration behind it?

My father, Pastor Floyd Westbrook wrote devotionals for every chapter of the Bible for members of his congregation. He realized people often didn’t understand what they were reading or quit reading because they got bogged down in books like Leviticus. His devotionals helped people get through the hard passages and ignited their relationship with the Lord as they understood more of what they read. With his blessing, I took his concept and expanded it. My story-based daily readings are inspired by his legacy and his passion for Scripture which he passed on to me.

What was the most challenging part of bringing this book to life? 

Two things: finding the relevance of the Old Testament ceremonial laws today and writing succinctly.

Relevance

The Bible Companion Book 2 is primarily about the Law. Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy are hard books to get through. I kept wondering, Why would God preserve all these ceremonial laws in the Bible? I don’t think He would unless they conveyed something important us today. In my studies I came across an author who said that the law is not separate from the gospel story, it is the story. That got me looking into the WHY behind what I was reading. I stopped focusing on the details and looked for principles that expressed something about God and His relationship with me. One day, I realized the law wasn’t about principles either (though they are present) it’s about Jesus. I’d always thought of the Old Testament as static, a stone or foundation which prepared us for Jesus. Now I saw Jesus had been there all along. Symbolically, He was the tablets Moses brought down from the mountain. It was Jesus broken at the foot of that mountain because of sin. He was and is the living stone from which water flowed, the Cornerstone Isaiah spoke of. This discovery energized my faith, and I think that comes through in my writing.

Writing succinctly

Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy can be boring, gory, hard to relate to, and in some cases infuriating as when we read what the Bible says about slaves and women, for example. My challenge was to tell the stories behind these hard-to-read passages in a way that was compelling, celebrated God, and connected the readers’ story to what they read—all in 300 words or less. A bite-sized format was essential. The text is dense, so my writing needed to be brief but potent. The process was more like writing poetry than prose. Every word counted so I used imagery, precise vocabulary, and simple sentence structures to connect the truth of Scripture to the reader’s heart and mind.

What was the most rewarding?

I had the privilege of being in the Scriptures for hours every day with God the Father, the Holy Spirit, and Jesus at my side. Writing The Bible Companion series has been its own reward.

What do you hope readers will take away from the book?

That God is forever present and actively working on our behalf. He is a God of might and power who can not only rescue but redeem.

Thank you for taking the time to answer my questions. Before you go, where can readers keep up with what’s next?

Go to my website and sign up for my newsletter.

www.thebiblecompanionseries.com