May you enjoy the Lord’s rich blessings as you serve and worship him this weekend.

My gratitude goes to Burke Care for sponsoring the blog this week to invite you to schedule a session with their certified biblical counselors.
Today’s Kindle deals include some newer books and some older ones.
(Yesterday on the blog: My Top Books of 2022)
Was Jesus Really Born of a Virgin?
“For many people, the question of whether or not a virgin can give birth is in the same category as questions about whether or not pigs can fly or time can be reversed or the sun can be stopped from shining. But in each of these circumstances, we must remember that all it takes for these ‘supernatural’ events to be possible is for a ‘supernatural’ God to exist.” Guy Richard explains.
2023 Reading Challenge
Visual Theology has its annual reading challenge ready to go. (Click here for the poster.)
Annual Reading Challenge for Kids and Teens
And while we’re on the subject of reading challenges, Redeemer Reader also has theirs ready to go. It is designed for kids.
Silent Nights
“One December evening, while home alone eating dinner, I suddenly became aware of how quiet the house was. I hadn’t been by myself much for 25 years because I had four kids, a husband, and a dog to fill my home with noise and activity. But my kids were grown, my youngest was away at college, my husband was on a business trip, and our dog had recently passed away. And although I had experienced quiet moments before, this silence seemed different – louder and longer. It had a new quality I hadn’t sensed before – a permanence. It rattled me a little bit.”
The Church’s Ministries
If you’d like to do some good reading over the weekend, the new issue of the 9Marks Journal is available and it covers “The Church’s Ministries.”
Bell Curve of Life

This article reflects on those well-known words of Job: “Naked I was born from my mother’s womb and naked I will return.”

The longer you wait to confess, the more likely it becomes that you never will… Sin is a cancer—it must be rooted out as quickly as possible before it spreads. —Garrett Kell

Good morning! Grace and peace to you.

Westminster Books has a heavy-duty new set of books on sale.
(Yesterday on the blog: The God Who Counts the Cost)
Music And Lyrics
“The world is a symphony: exquisite and detailed and beautiful. But for all of its music, there is one thing that the world cannot supply on its own. The world has music—but it doesn’t have lyrics. That’s where we come in.”
Coming Home (Video)
You’ll enjoy this catchy new song from Drew & Ellie Holcomb.
Redemptive Force
Those who preach may appreciate the terminology of “redemptive force” that Peter Mead uses here.
What About the “Lost” Books of the Bible?
“In modern studies of the NT canon, there is a lot of discussion (maybe even obsession!) with so-called ‘lost’ books of the Bible.” Michael Kruger explains why they may not be quite as lost as we are so often told.
High Schoolers Can Be Church Members, Too
“Student ministries like other age-based ministries tend to help students value Jesus but fail when it comes to helping students value the local church.” This article is meant to address that failure.
Adversity Anniversaries
Aimee Joseph: “It does not surprise me that calendars don’t include ‘Adversity Anniversary’ among their Hair Appointment and Birthday reminder stickers, as there is not much cute or marketable about remembering devastating days.”
Flashback: Should Young Pastors Prefer a Large or Small Church?
Are you willing to minister in obscurity where you can come to know what it is to pastor precious souls, where you can lay a firm foundation of knowledge and skill, where you can finish the preparation that seminary merely began?

If a man is ready and prepared to die, sudden death is in effect no death, but a quick and speedy entrance to eternal life. —William Perkins

Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Westminster Books has deals on a collection of new and notable fall releases.
Today’s Kindle deals include a collection of books from Crossway.
(Yesterday on the blog: When Calvin and Wesley Shake Hands)
The Gospel is in the Detail
Rhys Laverty uses the occasion of Reformation Day to say “it’s vital to remember that an insistence on detail is, in many ways, at the root of Protestantism. And the boldness to point out such details is vital.”
Don’t Just Read Your Bible: 12 Ways to Go Deeper
“When we talk about spending time in God’s Word, we usually say ‘read your Bible!’ But that doesn’t mean you always just pick up the Bible and read a chapter – here are a few other creative ways to soak in Scripture.”
A Strange and Holy Calm
David Mathis: “In a day when outbursts of emotion are not only accepted, but respected, and encouraged, it can be more difficult to raise men who learn to righteously ‘hold their peace.’ It’s a curious phrase at key junctures in the history of God’s people. Some outburst of rage, or rash expression of anger or retaliation, is expected, yet a man of God, we’re told, ‘held his peace.’”
Is This the Right Way?
I enjoyed this article about going the right way.
Memories: A Tribute to My Mentor
It’s always a joy to read tributes to ordinary people who have been faithful.
Staying Power
“It’s one of those myths that just won’t die. For decades, we’ve heard the factoid that half of all marriages in America end in divorce. We’ve heard it so long, it must be true. Right?”
The Cautionary Tale of Francis Collins
“On June 8, 2019, Francis Collins finger-picked his guitar and sang Andy Grammer’s song ‘Don’t Give Up On Me’ at the memorial service for a young man who had died after a four-year battle with a rare kidney cancer. The man had enjoyed the song, and Collins, director of the National Institutes of Health, cared dearly for him. He concluded his performance with an emotional benediction, promising that he would see the young man again and that he and his staff would not give up searching for a cure. This is the kind of man Francis Collins is. One month earlier, Collins’s NIH had approved a research grant requested by University of Pittsburgh scientists who desired to graft the scalps of aborted fetuses onto rats and mice.” This is also the kind of man he is…
Flashback: 6 Marks of a Faithful Ministry
The pastor is to serve humbly, to serve just like Jesus served. An arrogant ministry is the most destructive kind of ministry.

Broken health is naturally discouraging, but if God is in it, we need not be disheartened: he is able to make more of us with our shattered health than we could have made of ourselves with athletic robustness. —J.R. Miller