I want to remind you that my devotional book Understanding and Trusting Our Great God (which is the second volume in the Words from the Wise series) is releasing soon. It’s now available for pre-order!

Westminster Books is having a sale on some of their favorite books from the past 20 years. There’s something there for everyone!
There are a couple of good Kindle deals available as well.
Appeal for Religious Liberty to a Culture Embracing Pride Month
“I’m appealing to non-Christian friends. I want you to see that religion is core to who Christians are. Yes, we still want to be good neighbors. No, we’re not trying to manipulate American society for our own ends. But we cannot compromise our convictions. We believe America can still be a place that welcomes a plurality of ideas into the public square. It can be a place where tolerance is still maintained.”
Don’t Fall Into Ditches When It Comes to Preaching
“I’ve seen the danger of falling into one of two ditches when it comes to preaching. We do well to avoid both.” Darryl explains what they are.
Good Book Guides Giveaway: Enter for the Chance to Win 59 Bible Studies
Enter for a chance to win a set of 59 Bible studies from The Good Book Company, written by trusted teachers like Tim Keller, Ligon Duncan, Eric Mason, and more. (Sponsored Link)
A call for evangelism, and why it might be missing in the West
It’s a valid question: why are so many Christians so passive when it comes to evangelism?
The End of Exodus
Mitch explains why the deliverance from Egypt is not the climax of the book of Exodus. Something else is…
What If I Don’t Know When I Believed in Christ?
“I spiraled into a season of doubting my salvation in Christ. This severe doubt led me to sit in my pastor’s office where I heard an analogy from Spurgeon that continues to comfort me. And if you struggle with doubt and assurance, I trust this will aid you as it did me.”
If You Care About Spiritual Abuse, Watch Your Language
Trevin raises some very important points here. “If we really care about spiritual abuse, then we must push back against the dilution of the meaning of serious words. Otherwise, we create unhelpful expectations for life together in the church and the world.”
Flashback: The Lost Spiritual Discipline
In his classic work Holy Helps for a Godly Life, Richard Rogers draws out a spiritual discipline that has largely been lost and neglected in recent years—the discipline of watchfulness.

Our culture tells us that the problem is outside us and the solution is inside us. The gospel tells us that the problem is inside us and the solution is outside us. —Dane Ortlund

This week’s Free Stuff Friday is sponsored by Radius International.  They are giving away a conference package that includes: 2 tickets, a Radius pullover, and 4 books.

The winner will receive two free tickets to The Radius Conference being held June 28-29, 2023, at Grace Community Church, Sun Valley, CA. This event will be live in person or available as a live stream. John MacArthur, Costi Hinn, Ian Hamilton, Wayne Chen, Brooks Buser, Chad Vegas, and others from the Radius world will be live and in-person to teach on the Great Commission in today’s world.
The winner will receive a Radius International branded pullover. Size and gender option to be selected by the winner from available stock.
The winners will also receive four books that Radius International highly recommends:

No Shortcut to Success
A Manifesto for Modern Missions
By Matt Rhodes
Avoid “Get-Rich-Quick” Missions Strategies and Invest in Effective, Long-Term Ministry
Trendy new missions strategies are a dime a dozen, promising missionaries monumental results in record time. These strategies report explosive movements of people turning to Christ, but their claims are often dubious and they do little to ensure the health of believers or churches that remain. How can churches and missionaries address the urgent need to reach unreached people without falling for quick fixes?
In No Shortcut to Success, author and missionary Matt Rhodes implores Christians to stop chasing silver-bullet strategies and short-term missions, and instead embrace theologically robust and historically demonstrated methods of evangelism and discipleship—the same ones used by historic figures such as William Carey and Adoniram Judson. These great missionaries didn’t rush evangelism; they spent time studying Scripture, mastering foreign languages, and building long-term relationships. Rhodes explains that modern missionaries’ emphasis on minimal training and quick conversions can result in slipshod evangelism that harms the communities they intend to help. He also warns against underestimating the value of individual skill and effort—under the guise of “getting out of the Lord’s way”—and empowers Christians with practical, biblical steps to proactively engage unreached groups.

Missions By The Book
How Theology and Missions Walk Together
by Chad Vegas and Alex Kocman
Across the church, there is a rift between theology and missions. Bad theology produces bad missions, and bad missions fuels bad theology.
We wrongly think that we must choose between making a global impact and thinking deeply about the things of God. But the relationship between theology and missions is symbiotic—one cannot exist without the other. They walk hand-in-hand.

What Is the Mission of the Church?
Making Sense of Social Justice, Shalom, and the Great Commission
by Kevin DeYoung and Greg Gilbert
Christians today define mission more broadly and variably than ever before. Are we, as the body of Christ, headed in the same direction or are we on divergent missions?
Some argue that the mission of the Church is to confront injustice and alleviate suffering, doing more to express God’s love for the world. Others are concerned that the church is in danger of losing its God-centeredness and thereby emphasize the proclamation of the gospel. It appears as though misunderstanding of mission persists.
Kevin DeYoung and Greg Gilbert believe there is a lot that evangelicals can agree on if only we employ the right categories and build our theology of mission from the same biblical building blocks. Explaining key concepts like kingdom, gospel, and social justice, DeYoung and Gilbert help us to get on the same page―united by a common cause―and launch us forward into the true mission of the church.

John G Paton
Autobiography of the Pioneer Missionary to the New Hebrides
by John G. Paton
The autobiography of John G. Paton contains everything necessary to make it a missionary classic. Born into a Christian family near Dumfries in 1824, Paton’s early years were marked by a struggle against poverty. He was self-educated, and the training ground for his life’s work was the slums of Glasgow where he laboured with success as a city missionary. With ‘the wail of the perishing heathen in the South Seas’ continually sounding in his ears, he prepared himself to serve overseas and was ordained as a missionary to the New Hebrides in 1858. This gorup of thirty mountainous islands, so named by Captain Cook, with its unhealthy climate, was then inhabited by savages and cannibals. The first attempt to introduce Christianity to them resulted in John Williams and James Harris being clubbed to death of his wife and child within months of their arrival. Against the savagery and the superstition, despite the trials and the tragedies, Paton persevered and witnessed the triumph of the gospel in two of these South Sea islands. His life is almost without parallel in missionary annals and his account of it is moving and gripping.
TO ENTER
Giveaway Rules: You may enter one time.  The winner will be notified by email. The giveaway closes on Sunday, March 26th, 2023 at midnight.

The Bible says nothing about New Year’s resolutions. It does, however, say a lot about resolutions in general—about the determination and resolve to improve our character, to sharpen our habits, and to live better in the future than we did in the past. In other words, the determination and resolve to be more like Christ.

The trouble, of course, is that we can often make resolutions that are inconsistent with God’s purpose for our lives, that are selfish instead of selfless, or that focus on the minutiae while neglecting the weightier matters. For that reason, there is great value in putting a lot of thought and prayer into our resolutions and then attaching them to truth—to making resolutions that are thoughtfully grounded in a Scriptural command, emphasis, or promise. To that end, here are some ideas for those who may be considering making a resolution to guide them in the year to come.

Family

For the one who has been lax in showing spiritual leadership in the home. “As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.” (Joshua 24:15)

For the wife who has not been loving or respecting her husband. “Wives, submit to your own husbands, as to the Lord. For the husband is the head of the wife even as Christ is the head of the church, his body, and is himself its Savior. Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit in everything to their husbands.” (Ephesians 5:22–24)

For the husband who has not been loving or cherishing his wife. “Husbands, live with your wives in an understanding way, showing honor to the woman as the weaker vessel, since they are heirs with you of the grace of life, so that your prayers may not be hindered.” (1 Peter 3:7)

For parents who have been neglecting their duty toward their children. “Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord.” (Ephesians 6:4)

For children who have been neglecting the honor they owe their parents. “…Let them first learn to show godliness to their own household and to make some return to their parents, for this is pleasing in the sight of God.” (1 Timothy 5:4)

Devotion

For the person who has been neglecting to read the Bible. “Oh how I love your law! It is my meditation all the day.” (Psalm 119:97)

For the one who has been drifting back into bad habits. “Only let your manner of life be worthy of the gospel of Christ…” (Philippians 1:27)

Character

For the one who has been lax in pursuing sanctification. You were taught to “…put off your old self, which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires, and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds, and to put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness.” (Ephesians 4:22–24)

For the one who is prone to grumbling. “See that no one repays anyone evil for evil, but always seek to do good to one another and to everyone. Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.” (1 Thessalonians 5:15–18)

For the one who has been downcast and not seeking the Lord’s help. “Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice.” (Philippians 4:4)

For the one who has been anxious and not taking those anxieties to the Lord. “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.” (Philippians 4:6)

For the one who spent too much of the past year in anger. “Be angry and do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger, and give no opportunity to the devil.” (Ephesians 4:26–27)

For the person whose mind is too often filled with things it shouldn’t be. “Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.” (Philippians 4:8)

For the one who always seems to be in the center of conflict. “If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all.” (Romans 12:18)

For the one who has been convicted about a foul mouth. “Let there be no filthiness nor foolish talk nor crude joking, which are out of place, but instead let there be thanksgiving.” (Ephesians 5:4)

For the one who has been abusing substances of any kind. “And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit.” (Ephesians 5:18)

For the one who has been neglecting to show love and compassion to “the least of these.” “Do not be haughty, but associate with the lowly.” (Romans 12:16)

For the one who has been struggling with contentment. “…I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content. I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need. I can do all things through him who strengthens me.” (Philippians 4:11–13)

For the one who has not been guarding his words. “Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear.” (Ephesians 4:29)

For the one who has been suffering because of the actions of another person. “Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse them. … Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.” (Romans 12:14;21)

For the one who has not had an open home. “Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for thereby some have entertained angels unawares.” (Hebrews 13:2)

For the young Christian. “Let no one despise you for your youth, but set the believers an example in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith, in purity.” (1 Timothy 4:12)

Vocation

For the one who is convicted about meddling in other people’s affairs. “…we urge you, brothers … to aspire to live quietly, and to mind your own affairs, and to work with your hands, as we instructed you, so that you may walk properly before outsiders and be dependent on no one.” (1 Thessalonians 4:10–12)

For the one who is laboring for his own glory. “And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.” (Colossians 3:17)

For the one who has failed to put full effort into his work. “Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ.” (Colossians 3:23–24)

Time

For the one who wastes too much time. “Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time, because the days are evil.” (Ephesians 5:15–16)

For the one who has been giving in to laziness. “Do not be slothful in zeal, be fervent in spirit, serve the Lord.” (Romans 12:11)

For the one watching too much of the messaging. “See to it that no one takes you captive by philosophy and empty deceit, according to human tradition, according to the elemental spirits of the world, and not according to Christ.” (Colossians 2:8)

Relationships

For the one who has felt bitterness settle into her heart. “Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice.” (Ephesians 4:31)

For the one who has been harsh and unforgiving. “Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.” (Ephesians 4:32)

For the one who wishes to impact the unbelievers around her. “Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer each person.” (Colossians 4:6)

For the one prone to comparison. “As for you, brothers, do not grow weary in doing good.” (2 Thessalonians 3:13)

For the one who is prone to treat others with harshness instead of gentleness. “Pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, steadfastness, gentleness.” (1 Timothy 6:11)

Church

For the one who has been rebellious against pastors. “We ask you, brothers, to respect those who labor among you and are over you in the Lord and admonish you, and to esteem them very highly in love because of their work.” (1 Thessalonians 5:12–13)

For the person who is quarrelsome within his church. “So flee youthful passions and pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace, along with those who call on the Lord from a pure heart.” (2 Timothy 2:22)

For the one who has been growing distant from his local church. “Not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.” (Hebrews 10:25)

For the one who has grown convicted that he is not loving others in the way he should. “Owe no one anything, except to love each other, for the one who loves another has fulfilled the law.” (Romans 13:8)