Don't Blame the Mud by Marty Machowski

For young readers and families, Don’t Blame the Mud paints a vivid and accurate picture of sin and God’s plan of redemption. Written by best-selling children’s author Marty Machowski, this beautifully illustrated picture book teaches children how to recognize the lure of temptation and the truth that bad choices lead to bad consequences.

One day, Max takes the muddy path along the creek home, disregarding his mother’s reminder to keep his school clothes clean. After crashing into a mud puddle, he tries to hide his mistake and discovers the stain of his sin goes deeper than the mud he can wash away. In this lovable, relatable, and heartwarming tale, Max learns his heart needs to be cleaned, and Jesus is the only one who can wash away his sin.

By clearly articulating the gospel, Don’t Blame the Mud helps parents create an environment of confession so kids can own up to their own mistakes—in the freedom of Christ—rather than place the blame elsewhere. Parents, teachers, and caretakers can help children identify with the real-life draw of temptation and the real-life consequences of sin, understanding the value of God’s salvation through the cross. Instead of teaching kids how to deal with a problem, Machowski uncovers the real issue of sin and provides a gospel answer.

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Meet Marty Machowski a Family Life Pastor at Covenant Fellowship Church, a Sovereign Grace Ministries church in Glen Mills, Pennsylvania, where he has served on the pastoral staff for more than twenty years. As leader of their children’s ministry, Promise Kingdom, he has worked for many years to develop curriculum and devotional material that connect church and home. His passion is equipping families to understand the Bible as one gospel story and help them share that with their children. He is the author of The Gospel Story for Kids series including Long Story Short: Ten-Minute Devotions to Draw Your Family to God (OT); The Gospel Story Bible; and the Gospel Story Curriculum: Finding Jesus in the Old Testament and the forthcoming Old Story New (NT): Ten-Minute Devotions to Draw Your Family to God and Gospel Story Curriculum: Following Jesus in the New Testament. He and his wife Lois and their six children reside in West Chester, Pennsylvania.


My Thoughts:
This is the cutest story of a boy who is not supposed to get muddy on the way home from school, but alas, he "cannot" help himself and ends up covered in mud on his way home. He tries to "blame" the mud for getting all over him, instead of admitting that he was not obedient to his parents. It's a great illustration of how we often try to blame others, or sin, or the old "the devil made me do it" idea rather than assuming the responsibility for our actions. The ending talks about how when we admit we are sinners and ask God's forgiveness he washes us clean.

In the back of the book, there are a lot of good pointers on leading a child to Christ and helping your child understand sin and the gospel. Personally, I found this book to be very unique and fun to use with kids. I am hoping to use with my Awana kids this year, as I think they will really be able to grasp and relate to the story. 

I received a copy of this book courtesy of New Growth Press and was not required to write a positive review. All opinions are my own.