A new year is upon us and the occasion affords the perfect opportunity to pause, reflect, and pray. In recent weeks I’ve been exploring the poetry of Marianne Farningham who wrote the bulk of her works in the late 1800s. Among them was this poetic prayer for a new year. Perhaps you’d like to make her prayer your own as you set out into 2022…

Father, who givest usNow the new year,Grant that Thy mercyMay with it appear;Lead us the path alongWhich we must go;Choose Thou our portionOf pleasure or woe.
Father, Thy blessing giveBrightening each day;Be Thou our comforter,Hear when we pray.Let us not go aloneOut in the wild;Let Thy forgiving loveShelter each child.
Whate’er our work shall beLet us have light;What our hands find to doDoing with might;Faithfully serving TheeWhile it is day,So be the happy yearPassing away.
Father, Thy wisdom give,Let us be strong;Keep us from grieving TheeDoing the wrong.Oh, let us hear Thy voiceCalling us near,Oh, let us see the wayClearly appear.
Father, we cannot seeWhat is before,Yet we would sing our songTrusting Thee more;Burdens we have and griefsBitter to bear.But Thou wilt quiet us,Thou who dost care.
So we will meet the monthsLeaning on Thee,Loving and mighty One,Still near us be;Help us to forward goStrong in Thy fear;Father, abide with usAll through the year.
If it should be the last,Happy are we!We in the heavenly homeWith Thee shall be.Guide our feet thither, andBless Thou us still—Father, with us and oursDo Thine own will.

Black Friday is behind us and that brings us to Cyber Monday, another opportunity to track down some good deals. I spent a good bit of time hunting around for deals and wanted to share them here.

Amazon
As you’d expect, Amazon has a massive selection of deals that span just about every possible category. Use the filters in the left sidebar to focus on the ones that are interesting to you. The one everyone’s talking about is $50 off the new AirPods Pro; AirTags are also on sale—in case you’re going to be doing some travel coming up; this charger at $25 off is a good value. Also, the all-new Kindle, Paperwhite, and Oasis (which I find the best of them all) are all deeply discounted. Then there’s a nice selection of board games as well.
Westminster Books
Westminster Books has ESV Bibles deeply discounted. That includes:

It looks like (at least as of this moment) their excellent Black Friday deals remain available as well.
Christian Book Distributors
CBD has lots of good deals in their Cyber Monday sale. They include:

Logos
Logos has a selection of Cyber Monday deals. Among them you’ll find:

ESV Expository Commentary series (11 vols.) – 50% Off
Teach the Text Commentary Series (21 vols.) – 68% Off
Prophets, 8 vols. (NIV Application Commentary | NIVAC) – 50% Off
New Studies in Biblical Theology Series Collection | NSBT (53 vols.)
Studies in Historical and Systematic Theology (SHST) (25 vols.) – 50% Off
Bible Survey Video Series: John – 50% Off
Select Commentary Mini-Bundles – 50% Off

And much more. Additionally, they are offering an additional 10% off the sale products for anyone who has already purchased or upgraded to Logos 10, or purchases/upgrades.
10ofThose
10ofThose has discounts on a wide variety of books with some reaching as high as 76%.
Accordance
Accordance is offering 25% off everything. Just enter coupon code 25-all at checkout to SAVE 25% off all items in your cart. You can use the code as often as you like.
Banner of Truth
Banner of Truth has a good number of books and other items discounted up to 50%. You can view the PDF flyer here.
Crossway
Crossway is offering 60% off Men’s and Women’s Study Bibles.
Getty Music
Getty Music has deals on physical and downloadable products as well as tickets for their upcoming Christmas concerts.
Ligonier
Ligonier is having a 3-day sale that offers significant discounts on a lot of books, commentaries, and teaching series.
Missional Wear
Missional Wear has select products at up to 50% off, plus all items marked as in-stock and shipping now at 15% off using code CHALLIES15. That includes shirt deals, stocking stuffers, drinkware, etc.
Truth for Life
Truth for Life has deals on book bundles, Alistair Begg devotionals, and an ESV that is marked down from $199 to $35.

Today’s post is sponsored by P&R Publishing and written by P&R’s editorial director, Amanda Martin.

I learned a new word last year, as I often do when talking to my dad. Diatessaron. Five syllables of majestic-sounding Greek. He said it with relish, which is exactly how such a word ought to be said.
It was a word I immediately wanted to use, but my opportunities to do so are limited. This is because a diatessaron is a single-narrative arrangement of the four canonical gospels. There aren’t many of those lying around! And yet they have a long history: the first diatessaron was created in the late 100s.
My dad, a Presbyterian pastor, was telling me about diatessarons because I was working on one—although at the time I hadn’t realized it had such a delightful name. I was editing a new edition of theologian Loraine Boettner’s Harmony of the Gospels (now titled The Gospel of Jesus) and learning so much as I saw the work of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John come together in a chronological narrative. Not only had I gotten a clearer sense of just how much Jesus traveled during his earthly ministry (he traveled a lot), but I was especially enjoying Mark’s eye for the dramatic detail.
How does a diatessaron work?
I’ll write about the one I know well. Boettner wove the material from the four gospels into one continuous account, including everything but repeating nothing, and added section headings, dates, and locations (where possible). He was a Bible teacher in Kentucky and wanted to create a useful Bible study aid for his class.
The genius of Boettner’s diatessaron is that it includes all Scripture references so that readers can remain mindful of the original text and its context. Any detail that is inserted from another gospel account appears with a reference on the margin of the page. Thus, when you’re reading the story of Jesus’s temptation in the wilderness, you know it’s Mark who dropped in the detail about the wild animals (Mark 1:13). When Jesus is transfigured before his disciples, you know it’s Mark who considered a launderer’s struggle to whiten clothes (Mark 9:3). When Jesus is besting the Pharisees in debate, you know it’s Mark who mentioned that the “large crowd was listening to him with delight” (Mark 12:37 CSB).
The same is true for each gospel writer. No one gets lost. As you read one coherent story, you see how the four gospels harmonize—even in tricky places such as the resurrection accounts.
Please take a moment to say diatessaron out loud. Di-a-tes-sa-ron. It’s a great word, right? Maybe it’s time to bring it back.
And if you’re curious and want to experience a diatessaron for yourself, check out The Gospel of Jesus, edited by Loraine Boettner—it’s reader-friendly, attractively bound, and developed to serve students of the Bible.