I’m so grateful to ChurchSocial for sponsoring the blog this week. This week they are highlighting the software’s value to leaders within the church.
Today’s Kindle deals include a variety of different titles headlined by a book about one of history’s most inspiring Olympians.
(Yesterday on the blog: Molded in the Master’s Hands)

Peter Van Doodewaard has a sweet celebration of motherhood: “There are profound similarities between husbands and wives, and these provide common ground for communion and fellowship. There are also profound differences—some obvious and some nuanced—which deepen the joy and wonder of that communion and fellowship.”

Wendy Alsup answers some hard questions: “How should we understand Deuteronomy 22? And does its inclusion in the Scriptures mean the Bible cannot be trusted to guide and direct women today?”

I love reading missionary updates and found this one particularly encouraging.

T. M. Suffield has some really interesting thoughts on discipleship. “When you stick ‘-ship’ on the end of something you end up systematising a phenomenon and developing a ‘science’ (in the sense of a body of knowledge). We see this in ‘leadership’ for example. A similar thing has happened with ‘discipleship.’”

Cara writes about the power of the Word of God and offers a vivid illustration along the way.

If you spend a good bit of your life commuting, you may benefit from Jessica Schroeder’s article about stewarding that time well.

The free and willing sacrifice of their own wealth caused them to rejoice. Each one gave as he decided in his own heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion. God loves that kind of cheerful giver and God’s people love to be that kind of cheerful giver. 

Believer, when you are on your knees, remember you are going to a King. Let your petitions be large.
—C.H. Spurgeon

“Let the heavens be glad, and let the earth rejoice, and let them say among the nations, ‘The LORD reigns!’”

(Yesterday on the blog: God Has Found You Faithful)
Be Worthy of Your Gray
Andrée Seu Peterson: “Scripture says men are held in bondage all their lives by fear of death (Hebrews 2:15). And women by fear of gray. The secret is that once confronted, the boogeyman is not so formidable after all.”
When No One Is Watching: The Heart of a Christian Remote Worker
Reagan Rose has an article meant to challenge those who work from home. “If we’re being really honest, at times we’ve all taken advantage of the remote work arrangement in a way that felt less than honest. The problem, however, isn’t that remote work makes us lazy workers. It just makes it easier to get away with.”
Who Will ‘Stand in the Gap’?
D.A. Carson tells of a particularly important verse. “I do not have a ‘life verse,’ or even a favorite Bible verse. That is not a criticism of those who enjoy such blessings; it may even be a confession that in some domains I have a short attention span. But I would find it easier to list a hundred (or a thousand!) verses that have shaped my life in some significant way than to list one that can claim exclusive influence.”
More Concerning News on Social Media and How It Influences Us
“I’m very concerned about social media, where it is taking us, and how hard it is to extract ourselves from it, even if we want to. Worse, many of the platforms seek to get their users hooked, and data suggests they are downright harmful in a number of ways. I’m beginning to start thinking about ways to reduce how much I rely on these platforms.” Many of us share such concerns.
If a Tree Falls in a Forest?
“The woods looked like a maze of intersecting lumber.  Limbs, torsos of torn trees, and scattered boughs needed to be cleared. Power saws buzzed in nearly every direction. As I walked I found myself humming an old Fanny Crosby hymn, Rescue the Perishing. ‘Rescue the perishing, care for the dying. Jesus is merciful. Jesus will save.’”
Why Are So Many Young Childless Men Getting the Snip?
There is something so very tragic about this. “Often the reason that men are giving to Dr Low, who often asks them to consider their options before going ahead with the surgery, is that the world is running out of hope and why would you want to bring a child into it? Hope has gone. Climate change, sustainability issues, warfare, massive political upheaval. What’s the point of dumping that all on a young person? Won’t they hate you for it anyway?”
How Do I Read the Old Testament Historical Books Devotionally? (Video)
Dr. Peter Lee answers in this brief video from RTS.
Flashback: The Depth of My Depravity
You don’t know how deeply sinful you are by your unrighteousness deeds, but by your rejection of God and his grace. That is the most serious, heinous, and damnable sin of them all.

Sin can no more stand against the presence of the Holy Spirit than darkness can resist the gentle, all-pervasive beams of morning light. —F.B Meyer

This week the blog is sponsored by New Covenant OPC and is written by Michael Grasso, Pastor of New Covenant OPC.
Our church, New Covenant OPC, recently started a building campaign to build a new place to worship because we have outgrown our current facilities.  I have been told several times about the difficulties of such an undertaking, which are made even more daunting in light of our location: the San Francisco Bay Area, one of the most expensive areas in the country.  Though the process is challenging, we believe that this project will advance the kingdom of God and that supporting it is akin to supporting missions in some important ways.
The Bay Area is not only one of the most expensive places in the country but also one of the darkest.  Certainly, the past decade has seen a general spiritual decline throughout the US and the West as a whole, but for this area, the darkness has been thick for decades.  Another OPC church in San Francisco faced lawsuits, vandalism, and firebombing in the late 1970s and early 80s over the issue of homosexuality.  (You can read more about this here).  If there was anywhere in the US that could be considered a mission field, surely San Francisco would be it.
In the midst of this darkness, those who are standing up for the truth are few and far between.  The vast majority of churches have compromised the truth.  It was common for churches in our area to caution against celebration at the overturning of Roe v. Wade in the Dobbs decision in 2022.  Even in the relatively conservative homeschool groups, my family is a part of many of the families told stories of how their churches wanted to make space for those who might be grieving a legal decision that saves the unborn.  Faithful, expository preaching is the vanishingly small exception to the general rule of compromise.
In this darkness, we at New Covenant are trying to hold forth the Word of life faithfully to a lost and dying generation.  I myself am a relatively new pastor, being in my fifth year of service.  We moved from Greenville, South Carolina because we wanted to serve in a place where the gospel was needed, and we can say that God has blessed the ministry.  The church has grown by the grace of God, and what we’ve found is that much of the growth has been from people new to the Reformed faith and expository preaching.  It has been a fairly regular occurrence that new members are excited merely that the Bible is preached.  That is often the main thing that draws people to our church and is so different from what’s happening around us.
Faithful, expository preaching is the vanishingly small exception to the general rule of compromise.Michael GrassoShare
Because of our growth, we are at the point of needing new facilities, a problem for which we thank God.  Most churches would probably think that the new building we are proposing would still make us a small church, but this illustrates how serious our problem is.  We can currently only fit 72 people in our main worship area.  We make use of an overflow room with closed-circuit TV upstairs, but if we were to use every room in our building (which would require some work to set up on our end) the most we could reasonably hope to accommodate is about 90-100.  Our current attendance is anywhere from 65-75.
On top of this, we live in one of the most expensive areas in the country.  It is difficult for the congregation at its current size even to support me as the pastor given the cost of housing in the area, let alone seek to build a new place to worship in such an area.  Our problem is that we cannot accommodate the growth required to be able to support a building project.  We need the building to grow, but we need to grow to have the building.
Hence our appeal.
Our church has historically been one in need of aid, but we hope to become one that gives it through church planting.  By the grace of God we’ve seen growth and regularly put before the congregation the vision of planting another church in the Bay Area.  Our new facility, which would be able to accommodate 160 in the main worship area, would enable us to accommodate enough growth to begin thinking about planting more Bible-preaching, Reformed churches in the Bay Area, churches that are committed to standing for the truth in the face of great darkness.
Hence missions.
What is missions but to labor for the advancement of the gospel and the planting of churches in areas that don’t have it?  Having a church building that can accommodate more growth is a crucial strategic step in being able to plant another church, not to mention the added ministry opportunities a new building could facilitate.
And so, here is our appeal: would you consider supporting our new building project so that more people might be able to sit under the preaching of the Word in a dark area?  Our current goal is to raise $500,000 from sources outside the congregation.  The total project cost is $2.4 million.  Any gift is helpful.  If many people give $100 or $1,000 this adds up.  If you are a person of means, we would ask you to consider giving a more substantial gift to help us.  If you’d like to partner with us for the long haul, consider giving a monthly gift.  Whether or not you give, please join us in praying for the advancement of God’s kingdom in the Bay Area.
To give, visit our Gofundme page: https://www.gofundme.com/f/newcovenantopc.
You can also send gifts via Zelle using the email: [email protected]