Do you remember the weeks and months leading to the release of Peter Jackson’s The Return of the King? Do you remember the buzz and anticipation that reached its crescendo in December of 2003? We had already enjoyed The Fellowship of the Ring and The Two Towers, films that had transported us to Middle Earth and gotten us deeply engaged in Tolkien’s world, characters, and lore. We knew it had all been leading to this—to the journey into Mordor, to the ascent of Mount Doom, and to the culminating battles between the forces of good and the forces of evil. We were ready. We were waiting. We were excited.

What none of us felt in the lead-up to the final film was fear or dread. We did not fear or dread the film because we knew it was right that a story that had begun should come to its close. We may have felt an element of sorrow that the story was ending and we would need to bid farewell to characters we had come to love, but we knew that it was good for us to come to its final chapter. And we longed to see and experience it.
There are many people who live in fear of old age, many who live in dread of reaching their twilight years. And in many ways this is understandable, for age brings with it inevitable sorrows and challenges. Life’s later years are rarely life’s easiest years, nor its least problematic. They bring the diminishing of abilities, the loss of friends, the narrowing of life’s borders. The Sage spoke truly and universally when he said “the doors on the street are shut … terrors are in the way … the grasshopper drags itself along,” and so on (Ecclesiastes 12).
Yet these years are also precious in the eyes of God and are meant to be embraced rather than dreaded or denied. Old age is the final part of God’s plan for us before we depart earth for heaven. It is the closing chapter of a story. It is the culmination of a tale that has been told since birth. And why should we fear the ending of a story? Why should we despise the fact that a story begun must also end? Should we not anticipate it as the beautiful final act? Should we not determine to close the story in a way that is beautiful and admirable and honoring to God?
We will undoubtedly live out these years with less energy than we once had and with less of the old vim and vigor. We will perhaps have narrowing opportunities and diminishing abilities. Yet this in no way excuses neglect or indolence, for the Lord still has tasks for us to do, still has people for us to bless, still has graces for us to display. He still means for us to live for his glory and for the good of others—for those in our families, in our churches, in our lives. Our tasks are not complete until he has called us home.
As the Lord of the Rings trilogy drew to its close, we saw that the characters who had been naive at the beginning of the story had become wise. The characters who had been weak at the beginning of the story had become strong. Their qualities had grown and their character had been proven. When the credits had finally rolled and the curtain had finally dropped, we left behind characters we had come to know and love, characters who had shown themselves worthy.
And so too for us. It is in old age that the fruit that began to grow in the younger days finally comes to its ripeness. The seeds that were planted many years before are seen to have grown and multiplied. The investments that were made in youth and middle age—investments in character and godliness—are seen to have been wise and discerning. Old age is the crescendo, the climax, the denouement. It is the beautiful and powerful ending to something precious, something wondrous. It is no more to be dreaded than the final chapter of a great story, no more to be feared than the closing film of a trilogy. May God give us grace to live those days well—to live them with courage, to live them with conviction, to live them with hearts fixed firmly on his glory and eyes fixed firmly on his heaven.

Good morning. Grace and peace to you.

I am waiting for Crossway to come back with more of their weekly batches of Kindle deals. Crossway, let’s have them!
(Yesterday on the blog: We Love New Zealand (10 Reflections))
Greet with a Holy Kiss? Applying an Uncomfortable Command
David Mathis looks at one of the more uncomfortable commands in the Bible and helps us apply it to today’s church.
On Fearing the One for Whom You Live
“There is something striking to me about the idea of fearing the one for whom I live.” That is, indeed, an interesting thought.
Grief and Our God
“Counseling often looks like shining light into the darkness of someone’s life. Helping them see Jesus more clearly, tracing the outlines of his face when the dark shadows of sin and suffering and death have left it unrecognizable. How do we reconcile the deep darkness of this life with the promised kindness of God?”
Living Wills
Andrew Kerr offers some of his thoughts on living wills—something I suppose Christians ought to be thinking about.
The judgement of getting what we want
“I have long been of the view that one way the Lord gives people over to sin in the church is to give them what they want.” Stephen considers the way God sometimes gives us exactly what we want, even when it will harm us or lead us away.
The Christian’s Responsibility to Pray for Rulers
Blake helps us actually pray for our rulers as the Bible commands us to.
Flashback: Nurture Your Children
Through disciplining and instructing your children, you are helping them understand the sinful motivations of their heart and their failure to trust God. You are leading them  away from a destructive path and toward knowing, trusting, and obeying the perfect, heavenly Father.

God will not protect you from anything that will make you more like Jesus. —Elisabeth Elliot

Aileen and I have just wrapped up a lovely little vacation on New Zealand’s South Island. Having just reached our twenty-fifth anniversary and with both our girls now in college, we took the opportunity to let Air Canada travel miles take us as far as they could. We enjoyed ourselves a lot and at the end of it all offer these brief reflections on New Zealand.

Friendly people. There are lots of friendly cultures out there, but I have never experienced people as consistently friendly as New Zealanders (and this was true of my last visit as much as this one). From strangers in the towns to employees in the stores to Christians who were eager to offer hospitality, we didn’t encounter a single person who wasn’t eager to meet us or serve us.
One lane bridges. Somewhere way back in New Zealand history someone must have decided that the country could save a lot of money by making bridges only one lane wide rather than two. And so driving involves routinely slamming on the brakes to wait for oncoming cars to make their way down that single lane. Quirky! And probably a bit annoying during peak tourist season.
Tourists. Speaking of which, we chose to visit at the exact opposite of peak season. We would rather see a place when it may not be quite as beautiful but when it also won’t be quite so crowded. That worked well. It was wintery for our visit, but that suited us fine. The driving was always simple enough and never dangerous (though we did just avoid a couple of road closures by no more than a day or two). And even at non-peak some of the touristy sites were quite busy, making us wonder what it’s like in summer. And especially so in a place like Milford Sound.
Beauty. There are many nations that boast an incredible amount of natural beauty. While I have not visited them all, I have been blessed to visit many. New Zealand is without a doubt right up there. I still think Norway is probably the most incredible place I have been, and both Switzerland and Scotland rank highly as well, but New Zealand now takes its place among them. Everywhere you go there is something wonderful to see, some of it mountainous and harsh, some of it pastoral and green, some of it roiling and oceanic.
Uninhabited. We were surprised at how much of New Zealand is uninhabited. Much of the land is committed to conservation and so is largely untouched for that reason. But then much else is simply the way it must have been many hundreds or thousands of years ago. We drove 2,500 kilometers so truly saw the country, and we often encountered stretches of 100 kilometers or more with no homes, no towns, no people. And, very often, no cell phone reception. It was glorious. But we did quickly realize we needed to make sure we kept our gas tank relatively full.
Doubtful Sound. I have been to many beautiful spots in the world, but Doubtful Sound may top them all. If not, it’s well within the top-five. Milford Sound was incredible as well and had by far the better drive, but we visited Doubtful Sound on a day that was dark and brooding and it was truly a sight to behold. I took many photos but none of them really seem to adequately capture its haunting beauty. I can’t recommend making that day trip too highly. The Lord very nearly outdid himself when he created that area. It is utterly magnificent. (And, despite the name, is a fiord rather than a sound.)
Speed limit. The otherwise-unmarked speed limit in New Zealand is 100 km/h (62 mph) versus 80 km/h in Canada and something roughly similar in the US. This is true even when roads are just one lane in each direction and when they are twisting, winding, and wet. We were assigned an SUV that came with a rollover danger warning and this made things … interesting. And fast. If you don’t drive the limit you are soon guaranteed to have an eager driver hanging on your tail and waiting to sneak by you, probably just beyond the next one lane bridge.
Sandwiches. New Zealand has great sandwiches. Every time we wanted lunch we stopped at a little cafe or restaurant and every time we received a great sandwich or toasty. The food was consistently expensive but consistently good.
Coffee. Australia and New Zealand are different countries (much to the surprise of one of my friends when I told him I was coming here) but they are bound together by this—they both have bad coffee, at least by my assessment. They say the definition of insanity is to keep doing the same thing while hoping for a different result. Well I keep ordering the long black hoping to eventually experience a really good one. I’m still waiting.
Trash. If Jesus had lived in 21st century New Zealand rather than first-century Palestine, he might have replaced his “camel through the eye of a needle analogy” with “it is easier to find a garbage can in New Zealand than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God.” And everyone would have marveled at how difficult it is for a rich man to be saved. Because good luck finding a place to throw out your trash in New Zealand. We even stayed in hotels that insisted we take it with us rather than leave it behind!
We had a really good time here, both interpersonally and in exploring a delightful country. We very much hope to return in the future.

I’m grateful to TGC for sponsoring the blog this week with Are You Keeping Track of Your Church’s Culture?.

There are some interesting books listed in today’s Kindle deals.
(Yesterday on the blog: World Religions in Seven Sentences)
Our Infertility and God’s Foreknowledge
“There are over one billion websites on the internet, yet some days it can feel as though they contain none of the information we want to know. Approximately four million new book titles are released each year, yet too often they tell us everything we don’t want to know. At least 350,000 new tweets are published every minute, and for what? Even with all this information at our fingertips, we still long for more—especially in times of suffering.”
Could It Be Time for a Pastoral Transition?
Benjamin considers times when it may be right for a pastoral transition.
Don’t think about elephants!
“I want you to not think about elephants. Whatever you do, I don’t want the thought of an elephant to enter your mind. Don’t think about their size or their ears or their trunks. How are you going? What are you thinking about right now? I think I can guess!” Simon means to prove something with this.
Truth to Cling to When Nothing Makes Sense
“Though there have been many precious years of walking with my Savior, the past several years has shaken my confidence as the road has continued to be dark, long, and painful. Though God has been faithful in so many ways (far more than we can probably see) I have been increasingly perplexed and unsettled by his ways.” You may identify with Sarah in this.
Such Were Some of You
Justin reflects on one of the most unexpectedly encouraging verses in the Bible.
Don’t Begin With the Needs of Your People
“I used to begin with the needs of people and then go to Scripture. I figured that the place to begin as a preacher is with the needs of the people in front of me.” Darryl explains what changed and why.
Flashback: Love Is a Risky Business
God takes no risk in his love, because he knows everything about me. He knows all I have done, all I am doing, all I ever will do. He will never receive new knowledge of me that may cause him to question his determination to call me his friend. And for that reason, no relationship I have will ever be more secure than my relationship with him.

We tend to think that the default destiny of all people is heaven, and hell is reserved for the particularly wicked. But in truth our default destiny is hell, and heaven is reserved for those who have the honesty to admit it and look to Christ. —Dane Ortlund 

When I enrolled in university, I quickly learned that it was considered wise to take one or two “bird courses” as they were called back then—courses that were known to be an easy credit. These would counter-balance the much more difficult courses I was taking like Greek and French. One of the easy options was “comparative religion.” Though it did turn out to be an easy credit, it also proved to be a near-complete waste of time. The professor didn’t seem to understand the different religions all that well and was convinced they were all pretty much the same at heart. While he brought in clergy members to represent each of the faiths, they must have been carefully chosen because they were as wishy-washy as he was and were equally committed to explaining that all religions are really just different paths to the same destination. But at least I got my easy credit and also passed Greek and French.

Despite that negative experience, I do still think there is value in knowing the tenets of different faiths. After all, we live in a pluralistic society and we do not need to look far to find representatives of any of the other major religions. It can be good and helpful to know what they believe so we can better befriend them and present the gospel to them. We can avoid unintentional blunders and needless offense if we have some senes of what these people believe and why they believe it. (So, for example, we would know not to invite a Hindu neighbour over for burgers or offer a Muslim friend a glass of wine.) Not only that, but world religions have a way of being folded into ostensibly secular worldviews—witness the popularity of yoga, the rise of mindfulness, and the importance of meditation amongst those who would claim to be entirely non-religious. Yet each of these elements has been drawn from eastern religions. Religion is alive and well even in the hearts and minds of your secular or atheist friends.
Douglas Groothuis has made a long and careful study of the world’s major religions and brings his knowledge to bear in a new book titled World Religions in Seven Sentences: A Small Introduction to a Vast Topic. The “gimmick” behind the book is providing a single sentence that can stand in as a summary of that religion’s most significant or unique teaching. This sentence is drawn from either the religion’s scriptures or one of its notable teachers. And I think it proves to be quite a successful way to understand the faiths.
So, for example, when he discusses atheism (which, rightly, he considers a religion unto itself) he turns to Nietzsche’s infamous “God is dead.” For Judaism he goes with “I Am who I Am” and for Hinduism “You are that.” Buddhism he summarizes with “life is suffering” and Daoism with “the doa that can be spoken is not the eternal dao.” For Islam he goes with the obvious choice of “there is one god and Mohammad is his prophet” and, for Christianity, “Before Abraham was, I Am” (which, of course, perfectly complements his choice for Judaism).
Groothuis has no interest in attempting to prove that all religions are equally valid or that they lead by different paths to the same destination. Neither does he mean to see what benefit he can glean from each of them as if God has distributed truth throughout the faiths of the world. Rather, he means to do his best to explain what these religions actually believe and why, and then to interpret them on the basis of his own Christian convictions. That makes this a distinctly Christian approach to the world’s other major religions. And it makes it a remarkably effective one.
I can think of several reasons to read this book. The first is simply for the sake of knowledge. Knowledge is good and this book will increase your understanding of several of the world’s major religions—religions that form a significant part of the worldview of the majority of the world’s population. The second is for the sake of evangelism. By understanding these different faiths you will better understand how to approach those who hold to them and how to present the gospel in the most effective way. The third is the for sake of sanctification. Speaking personally, I find it interesting to study other religions because it better helps me love my own Christian faith and have confidence that Jesus Christ truly does represent the way, the truth, and the life. Never am I more thankful to know and love Jesus than when I see the faiths are people are bound by and captive to.
World Religions in Seven Sentences does just what the title promises and does it well. I’m glad I read it and equally glad to recommend it.
Buy from Amazon

Aileen and I have had a wonderful time on this twenty-fifth anniversary trip to New Zealand. But the time to leave is drawing near. We will see a few more sites on Saturday, worship with a nearby local church on Sunday, then make our way home on Monday. The Lord has been very kind to us.

On sale this week at Westminster Books is one I’ve very much been looking forward to reading.
The Death of Church and Pub
Carl Trueman spent some time in England and now reflects on the death of the church and the demise of the pub.
5 Resolutions for the Weary and Worn Out
“There is a certain weariness that comes in the summer, when we suddenly realize half the year has flown by and things aren’t better than it was in January—or have gotten worse. Maybe your relationships need work, and you’ve found yourself fighting with family and friends. Maybe there’s trouble at home and brokenness in your family. Maybe you’re tired of running the Christian race and your spiritual life has grown stale.” Aaron Lee offers help.
Pastors and Social Media
Samuel James lets us in on some of the questions he might ask a candidate for a ministry position if he was serving on a pastoral search committee.
Pastoral Q & A: How Often Should I Confess My Sin?
How often should a Christian confess his sins? Wes offers a good answer to the question.
Corinthian Enthusiasm
Derek Thomas: “Only one book is absolutely essential to save us, to equip us to obey God’s will, and to glorify Him in whatever we do. Only one book gives us undiluted truth —the whole truth and nothing but the truth. Only one book serves as our ultimate and final authority in all that it affirms. That book, of course, is the Bible, God’s Holy Word. … And yet the irony is that if we use only this book, we may in fact be in disobedience to it.”
The Basics — The Order of Salvation
Kim Riddelbarger continues his series on basic Christian theology with a brief description of the ordo salutis, or order of salvation. This is important theology, so worth reading about.
Flashback: The Rise of Digital Technologies and the Decline of Reading
There was once a time reading came easy, but now it seems to be hard. The difference, they say, is all these new technologies…Let me offer a few thoughts on the rise of digital technologies and the decline of reading.

The gospel teaches us we are unworthy. We are saved by grace, not by worth. —Sinclair Ferguson

May grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with you on this fine day.

There is a nice little selection of Kindle deals to look at today.
(Yesterday on the blog: Let God Prove Himself)
Are you a cheap pastor on social media?
I consider this an especially timely article from Mark Jones. He encourages pastors to refrain from offering cheap advice on social media. This is a phenomenon that concerns me as well!
How Single Assembly Encourages Catholicity, Which Encourages Evangelism
“‘There are many ways to skin a cat.’ It’s a strange saying, isn’t it? I mean, who does that anyway! Even still, the idea finds purchase in conversations about fulfilling the Great Commission and multisite. The Great Commission is the cat, people say, and whether your church meets as a single assembly or in multiple sites and services are just different ways to skin it. I fundamentally disagree.”
What Is Humility?
“When asked in the early fifth century what three graces a minister needs most, Augustine didn’t think twice before responding, ‘Humilitas; humilitas; humilitas.’ When it came to pastoral graces, the great African bishop awarded humility with gold, silver, and bronze medals.” He was undoubtedly on to something…
They Will Never Understand How Much I Love Them
Jacob considers a father’s love for his children and their inability to understand its depth and width.
Days Like Blackberries
Meanwhile, Seth went out picking blackberries and drew some lessons from it.
Jesus Said More about Hell Than Anyone in the Bible
“Jesus spoke of hell more than anyone else in the Bible.” John Piper explains what Jesus said and why it matters.
Flashback: Teaching Others to Sing Sweetly
We sometimes wonder what difference one person can make to a church…Yet as this woman displayed that morning long ago, one person truly can make all the difference.

The main thing that prevents us from understanding the Bible aright is not a lack of hermeneutical skills but our sin. —Tim Chester

One of the great challenges of the Christian life is to become a giver—and not just a giver, but a cheerful giver. The Bible commends generosity, but generosity that is free from compunction or coercion, for “each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.” We must not love money so much that we fail to be generous. Yet we must also ensure we are not giving merely as a way to assuage guilt or relieve external pressure. As is so often the case in the practice of the Christian faith, we need to guard against competing extremes.

It has long been my observation that it often takes some time for Christians to begin to give to the church (and/or to other ministries) and to do so in a way that is genuinely generous. And I think this actually makes a good deal of sense. The majority of people who come to Christ do so when they are young and in a phase of life when earnings tend to be low and a lot expenses loom before them. We can hardly criticize young people for thinking that good financial stewardship must involve prioritizing their savings account. Why give money to the church when you aren’t certain you’ll be able to afford next year’s tuition or put down first-and-last on an apartment? How does it make sense to give money away when you have so little and need so much?
It doesn’t make sense. At least it doesn’t make sense by any standard principle of personal finance. But then again, God’s ways are rarely consistent with the human mind and often push us to reexamine what we have always taken for granted. In that vein, here are a few things I would encourage young or new Christians to consider.
Consider that your money is actually God’s money. While your name may be on the bank account and stamped on the debit card, it is God who owns it. You merely manage it on his behalf. And so as you consider your finances, the controlling question should not be “What should I do with my money?” but “What does God want me to do with his money?”
Consider the human tendency to become captivated by money. The Bible warns that money can control us to such a degree that it competes with God for our ultimately loyalty. Every one of us will be tempted to try to find in money what God means for us to find only in himself. Is there something we can do to prove to ourselves and to God that we put him ahead of money? Read on.
Consider that God promises to provide what you need. One of the reasons we can become so easily enamored with money is that it seems to be the solution to so many of our problems. Money can put food in our bellies, a roof over our head, and so much more. Yet it is God who has promised he will provide these things. Yes, he is likely to use money to do it, but it’s important to ultimately trust in him rather than in the strength of our bank account.
Consider that God expects you to commit some of your finances to his causes in the world. He makes it clear that he expects each Christian to give—and to give primarily and as a matter of first importance to the local church. He expects his work to carry on through the means provided by his people.
Finally, consider that obedience fosters joy. When you do what God calls you to do, you experience joy rather than guilt or sorrow. Hence, if you give to the Lord’s work, you’ll find it a joyful rather than difficult experience. In fact, when you choose not to give, you are denying yourself the pleasure of doing so.
With all of those building blocks in place, it falls to you to take God at his word. You do that by giving, and as you give you are essentially putting God to the test (though in a good and acceptable way). As you give you can prayerfully say to God, “I have trusted you with my soul and am now choosing to trust you with my money. This doesn’t really make sense to me, but I trust you. So please show me that your ways are better than my ways. Please show me that you will provide even as I give to your work. Please accept this gift and prove yourself to me.”
And he will. God cannot prove himself if you will not give him the opportunity. But he can and will prove himself once you create the context. He will prove that he will provide not despite your generosity, but because of it. Because when it comes to God, the normal, accepted, and seemingly common-sense principles of finance just don’t add up.
How much should you give? That is a whole different topic. But briefly, the Bible does not provide an exact amount or percentage, though the Old Testament tithe of ten percent of your income is probably a good place to begin. (And no, don’t get all hung up on pre-tax or post-tax income—just pick one and go with it.) My recommendation—and, to be clear, this is me and not the Bible speaking here—is that you should give enough that you notice it in some way. It is one thing to throw a few spare coins in the offering plate but another to give an amount that is noticeable and that actually makes a difference in your life. Perhaps that means you cannot buy something you had hoped to buy or that you’ll be heading into a new semester with a little less buffer than you had expected. But God knows and God honors that. That small sacrifice is one you can lay before him and joyfully do without for the sake of trusting him and serving his cause.