We are sharing one more preview in our summer reading series for this year. Marty Machowski’s The Redemption Tales offers a creative presentation of the gospel message by inviting middle-grade readers (ages 8–12) to join the fictional animals who could have been present at the biggest events of the Bible.
The third book in the series, The Light and the Life, follows the adventures of the animals who could have witnessed the events of Jesus’s life. Join the lamb and wolf as they head to Bethlehem, lizards living in the temple, camels traveling with the wise men, turtles in the Sea of Galilee, hyrax at the Mount of Transfiguration, squirrels at Lazarus’s tomb, and the donkey Jesus rode into Jerusalem.
The story begins with a bright burst of blinding light that sent the wolf pack running, leaving Belzib behind after he hit his head in all the commotion. Liora, a lamb venturing out on her own, found him out cold, but the angel’s booming voice soon awoke Belzib. It wasn’t natural for a sheep to make friends with a wolf, but the angel’s song declaring peace on earth drove away all concern. Excited about the angel’s big announcement, the unlikely pair had to follow the brightest star they had ever seen to find the Savior.
We hope you enjoy this preview from the first chapter of The Light and the Life.
A Night to Remember
On a lonely hillside outside the city of Bethlehem, overlooking a flock of sheep, stood a pack of hungry wolves.
“Stay close and pay attention, Belzib,” Gelda whispered to her growing cub. “One day you will be old enough to lead the hunt. Always watch out for the shepherds, for they are always watching for us,” she warned. The hair on the cub’s back stood on end as he tried to keep up.
It was Belzib’s first real hunt. He didn’t much like the idea of fighting and killing for his food. He’d much prefer raiding chicken houses for eggs or feasting on leftover scraps in the alleys.
The pack followed a path that led to an open grassy field where the sheep gathered in a pen—a sheepfold—for the night. The wolves silently approached from the back. Bane, their leader, licked his nose and drew in a long breath. The array of scents increased his appetite.
“They’re in there,” Bane whispered.
Where else would sheep be in the middle of the night, wondered Belzib. But he dared not voice his critique. Young wolves kept their heads low and mouths quiet, never daring to challenge the pack leader.
A thorny hedge and makeshift tent shielded the sheep from an attack. The wolf pack circled the fold, searching for a way to secure their dinner, but they found none. Two shepherds sat dozing at the door to the fold. One of them stirred, and Bane froze in the shadows. The shepherd looked out to the field but did not notice the wolves standing a few yards away.
When the shepherd closed his eyes again, Bane led the pack back to the rear of the sheepfold. The snap of a twig woke Liora inside the fold. Unaware of impending danger, the curious lamb crept past the sleeping shepherds. There had been a time when she had feared the dark, but as she grew older, the dark became an adventure. Liora thought, There is nothing to be afraid of, as she stepped around the shepherds. Her growing legs made it easier to sneak out. In three weeks, she would be one year old and be considered a sheep, not a lamb. Then she would be allowed to range free as an adult sheep does. Lucky for her, the wolves had circled to the back of the fold as Liora stepped out. Liora lifted her head to the night sky. She loved to stare at the stars at night.
At the back of the sheepfold, Bane announced quietly, “We are done here. There is no way in.” He growled, “The shepherds are stirring.” A crosswind carried Liora’s scent safely away, and the sheepfold hid her puffy white wool from the pack’s scrupulous eyes. “Follow me into the thicket,” Bane continued. “We will fill our bellies with food scraps behind the inns in Bethlehem. The city is filled with travelers for the census.”
Belzib muttered, “That was a waste of time.”
Bane’s keen ears heard Belzib’s grumble, but he couldn’t discern the words. “What was that?” he harshly inquired of Belzib. “Have you got something to say? Do you challenge me?” Then he nipped the cub’s shoulder.
“Ouch!” Belzib yelped.
“Does anyone else have something to say?” Bane refused to be challenged by anyone, least of all a yearling. Better to establish dominance before they offer a serious challenge.
“To the city!” Bane ordered, then he turned from the sheepfold, down the edge of the field and along the thorny hedgerow that bordered the grasses. The hill dropped sharply to the valley below. Gelda wanted to comfort Belzib, but she knew there would be time for that later. So she trotted off without him.
The whole incident left Bane uneasy and off his guard. Had he turned even slightly to the left, he would have seen Liora’s white wool against the dark of night. Had he licked his nose and stolen one last sniff, the lamb’s scent would have reached him in the crosswind. But as is often the case, anger took him off his game.
Suddenly, a blinding light burst from the sky above. The brilliant shock wave frightened the wolves and redirected them into the thicket. They went crashing through the briars, into the safety of shadows, leaving Belzib behind. He also took off running, but his growing legs and awkward stride failed him. A paw caught a protruding tree root, and he tripped and tumbled down the hill.
Belzib stopped with a thud as he bonked his head on a tree. In their haste to escape the light, the pack never looked back, but instead fled toward the city. They assumed Belzib was just behind.
The light frightened Liora. She ran to take cover in the tall grass near the tree where Belzib lay stunned. Because he was downwind, Liora didn’t notice him. A sheep can smell the difference between orchard grass, clover, and wild herbs, and can easily catch a wolf’s scent. Liora’s eyes slowly adjusted to the brilliant light radiating from the center of the field. Soon the top of the sheepfold came into focus, with the flowers and grasses waving in the breeze. Her eyes welcomed the light. Her fears faded in the warm glow, and she could see as if it were noonday. An army of flying, buzzing insects emerged from the flowers and grasses, excited by the light.
Liora saw the shepherds gathered in front of the sheepfold, shielding their eyes. There, in the sky, they saw a majestic, winged creature.
Someone shouted, “An angel of the Lord! We are doomed!” They immediately turned their faces from the angel and cowered in fear.
Then the angel spoke with a booming voice, “Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. And this will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger.”
The thundering announcement revived Belzib. “Yeow,” he yelped as he rubbed the sore bump on his head. Liora turned her head toward the noise and spied the wolf cub. She froze, but it was too late. The lamb’s white fluffy coat reflected the glory of the Lord shining in the night.
The glowing lamb frightened Belzib. He took a step back and snarled to warn the lamb to keep her distance.
“A wolf!” Liora said, “Are you going to eat me?”
“Eat you?” the wolf cub replied. “I thought you were coming after me!” But even as he said this, Belzib realized the light reflecting off the sheep came from above.
Liora’s courage grew as she realized the light frightened the wolf.
“I’m with them,” she said and nodded her head in the direction of the angel and shepherds. “If I were to shout wolf, the shepherds would come in an instant. But I will bargain with you. If you agree not to hurt me, I will not give you up to the shepherds.”
The shepherds frightened Belzib. And though his tummy rumbled with hunger, he had no intention of attacking the lamb. He wanted get away from the shepherds and figure out how to rejoin his pack, so he accepted her offer.
“You have a deal,” he said. “I am hungry, but I promise not to eat you. Just, please, don’t call down the shepherds.” Then the wolf cub leveled with the sheep. “My pack ran off to Bethlehem to feast on the food scraps behind the inns. I want to rejoin them, but I don’t know the way. My name is Belzib. I’m lost.”
“I’m Liora,” the lamb answered. “I came into the field to look at the stars. I love the stars. But when the light burst into the sky, and the angel appeared to the shepherds, I became afraid and ran here to hide.”
Just then, an army of angels filled the sky and burst into song. The explosion of praise knocked the lamb and wolf to the ground. But as the angel’s chorus rang out across the hillside, they listened. Their fear was replaced with awe. The angelic chorus was more beautiful than anything they had ever heard.
“Glory to God in the highest,” shouted the host of angels in song.
“And on earth peace,” announced the glorious throng, “among those with whom he is pleased!”
Though Liora and Belzib lived in a world where fear and death often ruled, they now lay in the grass, enraptured by the promise of peace on earth. They welcomed the words as a traveler fresh in from a snowstorm welcomes the warmth of a blazing fireplace.
The angelic song ended as abruptly as it began. With the last echo of the last note, the angels disappeared, as did any fear between the two unlikely companions now staring into the open night sky. Countless stars gave an encore as they twinkled in the dark.
“Wow,” Liora said as she looked up. A thousand sheep couldn’t count all these stars, she thought. She then turned toward Belzib to see his nose pointed to the heavens. She said, “The shepherds call the stars the children of Abraham. They say each one has a name.”
It wasn’t natural for a sheep to be conversing with a wolf. But the song of the angel declaring peace on earth drove away all concern. And, seeing that Belzib didn’t seem interested in hurting her, Liora reasoned he must be a friend, which wasn’t natural either. Sheep don’t make friends with wolves. Or at least not for long.
Excerpted from The Light and the Life © 2025 by Marty Machowski. Used with permission of New Growth Press. May not be reproduced without prior written permission.
You can also read chapter 1 from each of the first two books in the Redemption Tales series at the links below.
The Light and the Life
The Light and the Life by bestselling author Marty Machowski follows the adventures of the animals who could have witnessed the events of Jesus’s life. Join the lamb and wolf as they head to Bethlehem, lizards living in the temple, camels traveling with the wise men, turtles in the Sea of Galilee, hyrax at the Mount of Transfiguration, squirrels at Lazarus’s tomb, and the donkey Jesus rode into Jerusalem.
