There are few things I love more than a good sunrise. There are few things I love more than waking up before dawn, driving to one of the parks or beaches along the shores of Lake Ontario, and watching the sun rise over the waters. Some of the richest and most beautiful displays of God’s artistry are painted across the sky in those few moments just before and just after the sun rises beyond the far horizon. It never fails to awe, never fails to delight, never fails to inspire.

One of my favorite spots is on the edge of a conservation area a few minutes from my home. After cutting through some dark forest and walking along several boardwalks, I arrive at a rocky beach. Following the shore for some time, I come to the mouth of a small creek that empties into Lake Ontario. The lake is before me, swampy marshland behind me, this little creek beside me. I have only ever had the place to myself and have only ever seen the sun rise beautifully from this spot. I set up my tripod and camera. I sit and wait to see what God will do.
I have enjoyed some beautiful moments here. I have watched the mist rise as swans paddle their way between myself and the sun, their form perfectly silhouetted against the bright yellows and oranges of the dawn. I have had herons land just feet away and stand stock-still before me, little otters skitter past, diving birds splash into the water all around.
This little conservation area is one of the few truly beautiful spots in an area of bland, boring suburbia. It is an oasis of beauty in the midst of the endless sprawl of the Greater Toronto Area. It is my own little paradise in an ocean of ugliness.
And it strikes me as being a little parable for myself and every other Christian. Each of us is deeply and terribly flawed, each of us entering our spiritual lives utterly given over to sin. Over the course of our lives the Lord does remarkable things within us. By his Spirit he enables us to put sin to death and come alive to righteousness, to strip off the garments of the old man and to begin to don the garments of the new one. By his Spirit he increasingly and wonderfully conforms us to the image of Jesus Christ.
But while God truly does substantial things within us, we remain as close to the image of Christ as this little conservation area is to paradise. We genuinely do make progress, yet always know that many decades of struggle in this life will be but baby steps compared to the mighty leap we will experience when we are finally perfected in the moment of death. The best of us take great strides in perhaps one or two areas—in humility or sympathy, in patience or gentleness. But the best of us still have such great flaws, such tragic imperfections, and will take them with us to the grave. The best of us are like these few acres of natural beauty in the midst of a city chock-full of suburban sprawl and industrial ugliness.
But there is one who perfectly mastered the art of living a true, beautiful, and perfect life. There is one who lived free from flaws and imperfections. There is one to whom we look as an example for living now and as a promise of how we shall live when we are finally called home, finally perfected, finally enabled to be all we can be in Him. There is one who shows us what it will be to live in the coming paradise.

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

I added a few Kindle deals on Sunday night and will look for more on Monday morning.
(Yesterday on the blog: When Blooming Youth Is Snatched Away)
Should I Look for a Better Job?
“How do you know when to take another job? I’ve been at my current workplace for two years. Everything is fine here, but I think I could push myself harder and learn more at another employer. Is it time to move on?” This is a solid answer to a common question.
Christian Practice In The Face Of Corrupt Police
“The police. They have often been ranked as the most corrupt sector of many African governments. These should-be law and justice enforcers are often seen acting as decided obstructionists. It’s hard to argue that police corruption in the form of bribery and extortion is not endemic in our continent. This is especially true in Sub-Saharan Africa.” I appreciated Daniel Gachuki’s take on police corruption.
We Believe: Confessions
There is a new issue of Credo Magazine to read. It’s available for free!
Biblical Justice vs. Mob Justice
Denny Burk looks at some differences between biblical justice and mob justice. “A large part of the drama of A Tale of Two Cities is the depiction of mob justice. What happens when the social order disintegrates, and due process and the rule of law are lost? What happens is that the rights of the accused get trampled under foot.”
The Church as a Radical Welcoming Community
“If all of the people we talk to and share meals with at church are like us, we are not being the community we should be. The church should be a place where everyone is welcome and feels welcome. At church gatherings, we should see older people speaking to teenagers, men speaking to women, singles speaking to marrieds, and those with children speaking to those who do not.”
An Earnest Love
Blake Long: “We are always bickering over something. Maybe it’s high time to express earnest love for those of whom we disagree? Perhaps it’s time to lay down our preferences, lay down our desires, lay down our egos and love each other—even in our disagreements. There has been far too much earnest condescension and not enough earnest love.”
The Gentleness of God
This is a sweet look at our gentle God. “He is indeed great and terrible, to be feared above all other gods; but this only serves to accentuate the wonder of his gentleness and deepen our loving reverence for him. More than this, it provides a vital perspective on his dealings with us – especially when we find ourselves in the midst of seemingly harsh providences.”
Flashback: Hand in Hand, Heart Linked to Heart
My sister shared these words with me–words written by Susannah Spurgeon after the death of her husband Charles. She reflects on life together and the Lord who gives and takes away. They are sweet and precious words.

Most frequently we fail in not continuing in prayer until the blessing is obtained, and in not expecting the blessing. —George Müller

Anne Steele knew suffering and sorrow. She also knew rhyme, meter, and sound doctrine. In this poem, titled “At the Funeral of a Young Person,” she puts all on full display and so powerfully directs mourners to ensure they do not miss the opportunity to consider the state of their own souls.

When blooming youth is snatched awayBy death’s resistless hand,Our hearts the mournful tribute payWhich pity must demand.
While pity prompts the rising sigh,O may this truth, impress’dWith awful power,—”I too must die:”Sink deep in every breast.
Let this vain world engage no more;Behold the gaping tomb!It bids us seize the present hour,Tomorrow death may come.
The voice of this alarming scene,May every heart obey;Nor be the heavenly warning vain,Which calls to watch and pray.
Oh, let us fly—to Jesus fly,Whose powerful arm can save;Then shall our hopes ascend on high,And triumph o’er the grave.
Great God! thy sovereign grace impart,With cleansing, healing power;This only can prepare the heartFor death’s surprising hour.

May you know the Lord’s rich blessings as you prepare to worship him this weekend.

Logos users will want to look at this month’s free and nearly free books.
(Yesterday on the blog: Responding Wisely to Domestic Abuse in Your Church)
Stream the Luther Documentary for Free
Throughout October you can stream the excellent Luther documentary for free courtesy of Ligonier Ministries. They’ve also got a study guide to go with it.
Escaping the Clever “Kafka Trap”
“The secular world clearly controls the language game. Be careful you’re not taken in by it.” Greg Koukl explains and offers an example.
How Do We Prepare for the Second Coming?
John Piper offers some valuable counsel on preparing for Christ’s return.
InSight
“A young woman — beautiful face, clothes casual and colorful, long hair swinging as she made her way to the corner. She carried a loaded backpack, but its weight didn’t affect her happy gait. A man passed by her with a lingering look that might have caused discomfort for others. But not this woman. She was all confidence, with a smile that told a story of grace.”
All Mission Should End in Local Church
“At the end of the day, all mission should be working to this end: the planting of a biblical church. If you are doing evangelism or running mission with no intent of building a local church, I will go as far as to say you are doing it wrong. All biblical mission ends in local church.”
Victoria’s Conversion Practices Act is a Genuine Assault on Religious Freedom
This is very alarming information from Australia. “I just got off the phone with a friend and fellow baptist pastor from Melbourne. He has resigned himself to the likelihood that he will face imprisonment over the next few years.”
What Is The One Thing You Want The Congregation To Remember From Your Sermon?
“As we proclaim the word of God, we need to be asking ourselves ‘what is the one thing that will stick in our congregations’ minds from this sermon?’ We delude ourselves as preachers if we think that people will remember all the intricate points and verbally dextrous language we use. Most will remember one or two big things that we communicate.”
Flashback: 3 Quick Questions Before Quitting Your Church
When you don’t pray for the people in your church you may soon find your heart cooling toward them. Once your love cools you may find yourself blaming them for your discontentment when really it began within you.

Through death we may as well be nameless. We’re essentially waiting to be forgotten in time. But in Christ we are known eternally by the Father with the same intimacy and affection he has for his Son. —Matthew McCullough

This week’s Free Stuff Fridays is sponsored by Zondervan Reflective, who also sponsored the blog this week.

They are giving away FIVE 3-packs of J. Warner Wallace’s NEWEST book Person of Interest so you can do a reading group with your family or friends.
Here is more about the book:
Can the truth about Jesus be uncovered—even without a body or a crime scene? Join cold-case detective and bestselling author J. Warner Wallace as he investigates Jesus using an innovative and unique approach he employs to solve real missing person murder cases.
In Person of Interest, Wallace carefully sifts through the evidence from history alone, without relying on the New Testament. You’ll understand like never before how Jesus, the most significant person in history, changed the world.
Features:

Join a cold-case detective as he uncovers the truth about Jesus using the same approach he employs to solve real murder cases
Marvel at the way Jesus changed the world as you investigate why Jesus still matters today
Learn how to use an innovative and unique “fuse and fallout” investigative strategy that you can also use to examine other claims of history
Explore and learn how to respond to common objections to Christianity

Detective J. Warner Wallace listened to a pastor talk about Jesus and wondered why anyone would think Jesus was a person of interest.
Wallace was skeptical of the Bible, but he’d investigated several no-body homicide cases in which there was no crime scene, no physical evidence, and no victim’s body. Could the historical life and actions of Jesus be investigated in the same way?
In Person of Interest, Wallace describes his own personal investigative journey from atheism to Christianity as he carefully considers the evidence. Creative, compelling, and fully illustrated, Person of Interest will strengthen the faith of believers while engaging those who are skeptical and distrusting of the New Testament.
Go here to find out more about Person of Interest.

Enter Here
Again, there are five 3-packs to win. And all you need to do to enter the draw is to drop your name and email address in the form below.

There is much that is expected of pastors and church leaders, much for which they have often been inadequately prepared. At various points most will find themselves having to respond to situations that involve domestic abuse. This could be a woman coming to them and pleading for protection from her husband, it could be an allegation coming from a third party who observed something alarming, it could be an abuser confessing sin and seeking reconciliation. Few people know how to respond well, respond confidently, respond helpfully.

It is for exactly this reason that Jeremy Pierre and Greg Wilson have written When Home Hurts: A Guide for Responding Wisely to Domestic Abuse in Your Church. “[We] wrote this book to help you be the kind of church leader, church member, friend, parent, sibling, or neighbor who responds wisely. We want the Church to be a new normal for those grown accustomed to abuse—a home that doesn’t hurt those inside, but instead welcomes them into the tender care of the Lord.” The book is, then, a guide for church leaders (or others) who wish to help people who are suffering under domestic abuse.
When Home Hurts is divided into three parts. In the first part, the authors explain how to understand abuse and do this by explaining the reader’s role as an agent of God’s love. Love, they say, “is the reverse of abuse because it builds others up at cost to self, rather than builds self up at cost to others. But love is not an equal opposite—it’s far more powerful because, unlike abuse, love is sourced from the eternal depths of God’s heart. You are an agent of a love much bigger than you.” They then explain the dynamics of domestic abuse and offer important considerations about terminology: “Terms like abuse, abuser, victim, and survivor each have a variety of meanings in domestic abuse literature. These terms can be helpful, but only as circumstantial identifiers, not core identities. Helpful uses of these terms are simply circumstantial descriptions of a person in relation to the abuse that occurred. Unhelpful uses are identifiers that define a person entirely by their relation to the abuse that occurred.” They describe abuse in this way: “Abuse occurs as a person in a position of greater influence uses his personal capacities to diminish the personal capacities of those under his influence in order to control them.” They then offer a framework to discern those abusive dynamics in real-world situations.
In the second part of the book they provide guidance on responding after an initial disclosure of domestic abuse. Over three chapters they tell how to care for the victim, how to confront the abuser, and how to consider the inevitable collateral damage. “To put it simply, we first care for the victim(s) and do all that we can to ensure their safety. Only after the victim’s safety is assured, and with her advice and consent, do we begin working with the person who is acting abusively. Only after those two tasks are well underway can we consider the possibility of a third. If the victim is safe and willing, is healing from the trauma of the abuse, and the abuser is no longer exhibiting abusive patterns and is responding well to ongoing accountability, then efforts at reviving or reconciling the marriage will be much more successful. You must neither get this triage out of order nor fast-track it.”
In the third and final part, the authors turn from the initial response to long-term care. They want their readers to help the person who has suffered domestic abuse to advance from being a victim to being an overcomer and to help the person who has committed domestic abuse to advance from being an abuser to being a servant. They want church leaders to lead their congregation in such a way that it responds with wisdom and compassion, that it offers true and substantial hope, help, and healing.y
A series of appendices offer counsel on a number of further issues such as false allegations; separation, divorce, and remarriage; finding trauma counselors; taking advantage of national and state domestic violence resources; and those occasions when more typical roles are reversed so that a husband finds himself a victim of his wife’s abuse.
When Home Hurts is exactly the book I had hoped it would be when I picked it up. It is a book that will do what it promises—help well-meaning but inadequately-trained Christians to respond well to very difficult situations. It will give them confidence that they can be truly helpful in truly crucial times. I suggest reading it through once outside of a given situation, then keeping it on-hand to serve its purpose at those times when you are called upon to walk alongside a victim.
“We want you to be sure that God will be with you as you enter into this situation,” say the authors. “We know it’s not easy being a pastor, church leader, family member, or friend facing such a difficult situation. But rest assured, the Lord desires that we respond wisely, and He will supply the wisdom to do so. In fact, you get the privilege of displaying the heart of God— kind, stable, self-giving—to people who’ve had the opposite displayed to them. You get to be an agent of God’s love for someone who may have forgotten what real love is—and what it looks like in the family of God.” It’s for these very reasons that I give this book my highest recommendation.

Buy from Amazon

As we begin a new month, it is as good a time as any to remember that right now, at this very moment, God is on his throne.

On sale this week at Westminster Books is the amazing Puritan Paperback series.
(Yesterday on the blog: 10 New and Notable Christian Books for September 2021)
On Being a Normal Horse
Daniel uses C.S. Lewis to help him reflect on normalcy. “I wonder if my issues with self-pity stem from that same thinking too much of myself. When I fail to live up to my standards for myself, I come crashing down much like Bree. But, what if, I am just a normal person? A common sinner whom God has saved by His great grace? Someone not destined to reach that greatness on the horizon, but a normal life of faith and service to God instead?”
A Biblical Case for Deaconesses
Reformation21 is sharing a pair of “iron sharpening iron” articles about female deacons. The first is from Keith Kauffman and makes the case for deaconesses. “This is not an open and shut case, and there is room here for good disagreement done with charity in the Lord. I want to examine three primary paths of argument: first, by nature of the role itself; second, by exegetical argument from 1 Timothy 3; and third, by proof of biblical example.”
One-to-One Bible study
“What’s your ideal size for a Bible study? Your answers will likely widely vary; some prefer a small group of 5 or 6 people, some a group of 10-20. Recently I’ve been pleasantly surprised by how uniquely productive it’s been to go through a Bible study in a very small group—just one other person.”
I Can’t Get Over the Privilege
Darryl explains that “over thirty years in, I can’t get over the privilege of being a pastor.”
Encouragement for Troubled Teenagers
Conrad Mbewe shares some encouragement for troubled teenagers.
Lessons Learned at a Dowry/Engagement Party
I enjoyed Tamie’s look at a recent dowry party she attended. “Dowries in Tanzania have various meanings. They are always paid by the groom to the bride’s family but people are quick to clarify to us that it is not a bride price – it is a thank you to the bride’s family for raising her and investing in her, and a symbolic compensation as they are ‘losing’ her because she will be joining the groom’s family.”
How to Help Children Build a Healthy Body Image
Here are some tips for parents on an issue that seems especially prevalent in an Instagram world. “In a society overflowing with negative messages about physical appearance and personal worth, children’s body image is an urgent issue. Children need to know God made their bodies and made them special.”
Flashback: Two Habits of Successful Parents
“Many parents are reluctant and even resistant to asking advice about their parenting. While others can see blind spots, the parents themselves remain… blind to them.”

‘Delight yourself in the Lord’ . . . is a radical call to pursue your fullest satisfaction in all that God promises to be for you in Jesus. —John Piper

As we head toward gift-giving season, publishers are turning up their presses and releasing quite a number of key books. Most of the noteworthy releases from September have already landed in my mailbox and, after looking through them, I have narrowed my list of new and notables to these 10. In each case I’ve included the editorial description. I hope there is something here that you’ll enjoy reading!

The Right Kind of Confident: The Remarkable Grit of a God-Fearing Woman by Mary Kassian. “What if we stopped placing our confidence in the things of this world—and instead put our trust in the only one who is truly trustworthy? As you begin to apply each chapter’s material, you’ll discover the true meaning of confidence, the difference between negative fear and positive fear, and how to turn the Enemy’s tool of fear on its head with strong confidence. Be honest: Who among us isn’t plagued with fears, insecurities, and self-doubt? Popular wisdom says the solution is to simply believe more strongly in ourselves. But award-winning author and speaker Mary A. Kassian explains that the way to combat fear is with more fear—fear of a different kind. In this follow-up to her popular book The Right Kind of Strong, Kassian again draws on her vast biblical knowledge to show us a better way to navigate life. She compares the Bible’s definition of confidence with the world’s well-worn self-help formulas and sets us on the right path. Whether you’re seeking more confidence or already feeling full of it, when you lean into a source of confidence that is unchanging, firm, and trustworthy, you’ll become more like the bold, courageous woman God created you to be.” (Buy it at Amazon or Westminster Books)
Deeper: Real Change for Real Sinners by Dane C. Ortlund. “’Grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.’ How do Christians grow? Few question the call of the Bible to grow in godliness, but the answer to exactly how this happens is often elusive. In this book, Dane Ortlund points believers to Christ, making the case that sanctification does not happen by doing more or becoming better, but by going deeper into the wondrous gospel truths that washed over them when they were first united to him. Drawing on wisdom from figures throughout church history, Ortlund encourages readers to fix their gaze on Jesus in the battle against sin, casting themselves upon his grace and living out their invincible identity in Christ.” (Buy it at Amazon or Westminster Books)
Blessings of the Faith Series by Various Authors. “Reformed theology can seem like a whole different language, and even those of us who have sat under Reformed teaching for years need reminder lessons of its nuances, grammar, and context. The books in the Blessings of the Faith series serve as primers on three components of the ‘Reformed language’: covenantal baptism, expository preaching, and prayer. Each book provides a biblical description and explanation of its topic as well as answers to frequently asked questions and common objections. Informative, encouraging, and practical, these short hardback books are giftable helpful tools for pastors, elders, small groups, and any curious minds seeking to learn or grow more in their understanding of the concepts. Learn why infant baptism is practiced in Presbyterian churches, how expository preaching can spiritually benefit individuals and congregations, and why prayer is such a crucial component of the Christian life. Then you can help your audience do the same!” (Buy it at Amazon or Westminster Books)
Holier Than Thou: How God’s Holiness Helps Us Trust Him by Jackie Hill Perry. “If God is holy, then He can’t sin. If God can’t sin, then He can’t sin against you. If He can’t sin against you, shouldn’t that make Him the most trustworthy being there is? Bestselling author Jackie Hill Perry, in her much anticipated follow-up to Gay Girl, Good God, helps us find the reason we don’t trust God— we misunderstand His holiness. In Holier Than Thou, Jackie walks us through Scripture, shaking the dust off of “holy” as we’ve come to know it and revealing it for what it really is: good news. In these pages, we will see that God is not like us. He is different. He is holy. And that’s exactly what makes Him trustworthy. As it turns out, God being “holier than thou” is actually the best news in the world, and it’s the key to trusting Him.” (Buy it at Amazon or Westminster Books)
Old Testament Use of Old Testament: A Book-By-Book Guide by Gary Edward Schnittjer. “Old Testament Use of Old Testament, by Gary Edward Schnittjer, surveys the hundreds of Old Testament allusions within the Old Testament and provides hermeneutical guidance for interpreting these interrelated scriptures. The handbook takes an easy to navigate book-by-book approach. Schnittjer provides a list of Scripture allusions for each book and follows with an interpretive profile of how that book uses passages from elsewhere in the Old Testament. Specific criteria are applied to each allusion, providing readers with evaluation of the significance of each interpretive allusion. Minor allusions caused by style, figures of speech, and other minor elements are not included. Responsible exegesis requires careful attention to interrelated scriptures, yet there is a host of interpretive difficulties related to Scripture’s use of Scripture. Designed for ease-of-use for any serious student of the Bible, Old Testament Use of Old Testament offers a thorough, systematic tool to aid in evaluating scriptural interpretation of Scripture.” (Buy it at Amazon or Westminster Books)
The Death of Porn: Men of Integrity Building a World of Nobility by Ray Ortlund. “Your Battle against Porn Isn’t about Porn. It’s about Hope. Pornography may seem inescapable, but God can free us from its destructive power. The gospel replaces the dehumanizing lies of pornography with this surprising truth: God created us as royalty. How then can we reclaim our God-given identity to take a stand against—and ultimately starve—the predatory porn industry? In The Death of Porn, Ray Ortlund writes six personal letters, as from a father to his son. Ideal for individuals and small groups, it will give hope to men who have been misled by porn into devaluing themselves and others. Through Scripture and personal stories, Ortlund assures readers that God loves them the most tenderly in their moments of deepest shame. The Death of Porn inspires men to come together in new ways to fight the injustice of porn and build a world of nobility for every man and woman—for the sake of future generations.” (Buy it at Amazon or Westminster Books)
When Home Hurts: A Guide for Responding Wisely to Domestic Abuse in Your Church by Jeremy Pierre & Greg Wilson. “This book is intended to equip pastors, church leaders and church members to respond with the heart of God to situations of domestic abuse that occur in their local church. Prioritising the safety of the victim at all times, Jeremy Pierre and Greg Wilson seek to help you be the kind of church leader, church member, friend, parent, sibling, or neighbor who responds wisely. We want the church to be a new normal for those grown accustomed to abuse. A home that doesn’t hurt those inside, but instead welcomes them into the tender care of the Lord. This very practical, pastoral book acknowledges the reality and the horror of domestic abuse, but also the reality and power of God to heal. It will be a helpful guide to anyone who suspects abuse within their church family but is unsure how to help without making things worse.” (Buy it at Amazon)
Humbled: Welcoming the Uncomfortable Work of God by David Mathis. “How do I humble myself? Humility, according to the Bible, is not something we can just up and do. Both the negative and positive examples of Scripture–from Pharaoh to Rehoboam, from Josiah to Ahab, from Hezekiah to Manasseh, and even to Christ himself–teach us that humility first comes from the hand of God. He initiates the humbling of his creatures. And once he has, the question confronts us: Will you receive it? Will you humble yourself in response to his humbling hand, or will you kick against him? This concise, accessible study of Scripture’s humble-self language uncovers two surprising lessons about the pursuit of humility in the Christian–both what we cannot do and also what steps we can take.” (Buy it from Amazon or Westminster Books)
The Bold Evangelist: The Life and Ministry of Selina Hastings, Countess of Huntingdon by Priscilla Wong. “Many associate the names George Whitefield and John Wesley with the eighteenth-century Evangelical Revival, while the name Selina Hastings, the Countess of Huntingdon, is less familiar. But this remarkable woman played a crucial role in the revival in Europe, interacting and forming friendships with many of its key players. The Countess leveraged her wealth and high position in English society to widen the evangelistic impact of the revival. Her sacrifices would ultimately see, among her many efforts, the establishment of over 60 chapels and a college for training ministers. Readers will be encouraged not only by how steadfastly Selina laboured but also by how she persevered in the face of illness, the deaths of her husband and children, and devastating setbacks in her gospel ministry. Yet trusting wholeheartedly in Christ her Saviour-and not the vanity and riches prized by her aristocratic peers-Selina lived out a faith characterized by boldness, zeal, and love. One evangelical leader described her influence: ‘I feel from Lady Huntingdon’s example an increasing desire both for myself and for you and all our friends that we may be active and eminent in the life of grace.’” (Buy it from Amazon or Westminster Books)
Love Me Anyway: How God’s Perfect Love Fills Our Deepest Longing by Jared Wilson. “There may be no more powerful desire in the human heart than to be loved. And not just loved, but loved anyway. In spite of what we’ve done or left undone, in spite of the ways we have failed or floundered. We long for an unconditional, lavish love that we know intrinsically we don’t deserve. If you are tired, sad, yet always longing, bestselling author Jared C. Wilson has incredible news for you: that kind of love actually exists, and it is actually something you can experience–whether or not you’re in a romantic relationship. In his signature reflective, conversational, and often humorous style, Wilson unpacks 1 Corinthians 13 to show us what real love looks like. Through engaging stories and touching anecdotes, he paints a picture of an extravagant God who not only puts the desire for love into our very souls but fulfills those desires in striking, life-changing ways.” (Buy it from Amazon or Westminster Books)

Grace and peace to you today.

Today’s Kindle deals include some solid deals from Crossway.
(Yesterday on the blog: The Tale of the Pig and the Sheep)
Singing with the Saints
Vern Poythress has begun a promising new series on singing with the saints.
I Wasn’t Half-Dead
Glenna Marshall: “When it comes to God’s miraculous work of saving people through faith in Jesus, I think we tend to believe that some people are harder to save than others—as though God is limited by some people’s backgrounds or besetting sins. His arm is a little weaker when it comes to this person or that person.”
Avian Deceptions
I enjoyed CMI’s little look at brood parasitism.
Everything is Ordinary, Everything is Wonderful
“When you really break it down, every single millimetre of this planet—this universe—is stuffed full of God’s wonders. The fact that he is so generous with his creative marvels does not make them less amazing, even if the abundance makes us less amazed (which is odd, isn’t it?).”
How I Became a Bush Pilot in Papua New Guinea
I quite enjoy these vlogs from “Missionary Bush Pilot.” His channel is worth following.
Love the Real Not the Ideal
Al Gooderham: “We all tend to idealise things: marriage, family, children, holidays, the seaside. Everything. It’s as if we have a filter on our memories and our hopes that means we only remember or imagine the best bits. Idealism isn’t bad but it can cause us to rear back when we find something isn’t ideal. It can cause us to react to reality by withdrawing rather than engaging.”
Enough with the Courses!
I wouldn’t go quite as far as Stephen, but I do think he raises some interesting points about evangelism training courses. “I think the plethora of courses add to the sense that we cannot do this. Their very existence suggests that there is some key to all this beyond just opening your mouth and speaking about Jesus. There is some special training that we require before we can share the gospel. There is some magic insight we must have before we can sit down with a Bible open and read it with someone. The courses add to the air of mystery, which increases the fear, that in turn makes us less likely to just get on and do it.”
Flashback: 2 Surefire Ways to Avoid Persecution
Christians know to expect suffering and persecution. The formula is simple: If the perfect and sinless Son of God suffered persecution, so too will his imperfect and sinful followers.

We must not offer people a system of redemption, a set of insights and principles. We offer people a Redeemer. —Paul David Tripp

As I followed a country trail that winds its way across the vast expanse of Southern Ontario, I came to a river crossing and sat in the shade for a time to rest and to catch my bearings. A man soon happened by and, after we exchanged polite greetings, he told a curious tale.

He explained that he owns a nearby farm and that one of his sheep and one of his pigs had recently escaped. Together they had found a weak rail in the fence and had pressed upon it until it broken under their weight. Seeing their opportunity, they quickly bolted from the field and began to explore their new and unfamiliar surroundings.
It did not take long for the farmer to notice that two of his animals were missing and to set out to find them. He came across the broken-down section of fence and launched his search efforts from that area. But the animals had wandered far and had not left much of a trail behind them. Day soon turned to night and after resting fitfully, he resumed his search in the morning. The animals had now been gone for more than 24 hours and he began to wonder what could possibly have happened to them.
It was in the afternoon of the second day that he began to hear a distant bleating, the sound of his sheep crying out. He listened carefully, then began to follow the sound as it led toward a nearby bog. And it was there that he found his missing sheep and his missing pig. Both had fallen into a deep ditch, both had become coated in muck, both were unable to scramble out. But where the pig had been content to wallow in the mud, the sheep had known to bleat pathetically until the farmer had come to rescue it, to lift it out, and to cleanse it.
Then, said the farmer, “If you are ever deceived into a sin and overtaken by a weakness, don’t lose heart. Go at once to your compassionate Savior. Tell Him in the simplest words the story of your fall and the sorrow you feel. Ask Him to wash you at once and to restore your soul, and, while you are asking, believe that it is done. For if a sheep and a sow fall into a ditch, the sow wallows in it, but the sheep bleats pathetically until she is cleansed by her master. Be the sheep, my friend, and not the pig.”

Inspired by Light on Life’s Duties by F.B. Meyer.