The God of love and peace be with you on this fine day.

(Yesterday on the blog: What the Canyon Echoed Back)
The Christian’s Confidence in Christ’s Compassion
“Throughout the four Gospels, readers are flooded with examples of the compassion of Christ.” This can and should be very meaningful to us as Christians!
Being Domineering as a Pastor Doesn’t Require Skill
It’s an interesting thought for pastors and for others in leadership: That there is no skill involved in being domineering.
God Will Turn You Every Which Way but Loose
“Your God, in his providence, will turn you every which way but loose. Do not believe the lies that say God wants your life to be as smooth as possible. That he desires for you to have a problem-free existence if only you would have enough faith. To expose those lies, let us look at the life of one of the most faith-filled men of scripture.”
The Remarkable Story of the First Missionary Hymn
I thoroughly enjoyed this telling of the story of the first missionary hymn. “On Pentecost Sunday 1862, as Western eyes watched civil war rip through America, an event just as momentous unfolded half a world away, hidden from every headline. Some five thousand men and women, many of them former cannibals, gathered on a South Pacific island to worship Jesus Christ.”
Before Us, Beside Us, and Behind Us
This article considers God as our shepherd.
Under the Tomatoes
Andrea Sanborn: “My breath came hard as panic pressed on my chest. I stood in the produce section of the grocery store, scanning the aisles, desperate for a glimpse of my towheaded boy. Every parent has been in a similar situation, but most aren’t searching for a nonverbal child who can’t understand when the game has gone too far.”
Flashback: Scepters, Crowns, Thrones
If there are crowns in God’s invisible kingdom, they are worn only so they can be removed to be thrown at his feet.

I would rather be the means of soothing one perturbed spirit than to play a tune that would set all the sons of mirth reeling in the dance. —De Witt Talmage

This week the blog is sponsored by AccelerateBooks. Used by 5000+ leaders, AccelerateBooks keeps you sharp for ministry and life by giving you access to an arsenal of soul-shaping insights from the most important books. Get 33% off forever on all membership at https://partner.acceleratebooks.com/challies. 

You’re probably too busy to read this.
You probably have 5 other browser tabs currently open, a lineup of articles bookmarked for later, and a growing stack of books you’ll read “one day”.
And you probably have a to-do list of all the other tasks you should be doing right now.
And that’s precisely why you should read this article.
How Many Books Should Leaders Read?
You’ve likely opened this article because, as a leader, you already know how important reading is; you already know how essential continued learning is for staying sharp and effective.
As Albert Mohler, president of SBTS, says:
There is no substitute for effective learning when it comes to developing and maintaining the intelligence necessary to lead.
Your brain is a powerful tool that must be sharpened and stewarded, otherwise, it will waste away.
And while you’re well aware of this, too often the urgent demands of life and ministry keep your hands tied and your books untouched. But your inner critic reprimands you: wake up earlier, skip breakfast, drink more caffeine, read faster!
You feel guilty when others seem to read more than you; you’re both inspired and devastated when you consider that:

Timothy Keller reads 3 books a week
Charles Spurgeon read 6 books a week
D. A. Carson reads 9 books a week
Albert Mohler reads 7-10 books a week (sources below)

At this point, you’re likely either inspired to try harder, set more ambitious goals, and eventually succumb to burnout. Or you’re left to wonder if it’s even possible to develop a sustainable habit of learning.
It is possible.
What if effective learning is not measured by how many books you read, but by how effectively you read?
In fact, with the right mindset and the right tools, it’s possible to learn more effectively in a single-year than most do in a lifetime.
In this article, you’ll discover the two principles needed to cultivate the right mindset and you’ll discover a tool that can change your life and ministry forever. (And there’s a free gift at the end you don’t want to miss!)
The Insight Principle
The Insight Principle states that the goal for reading is not reading for its own sake, but acquiring insight.
When you fall into the trap of equating reading with learning, you hinder your growth; when you prize ingesting information more than internalizing insight, you do yourself a disservice.
It is possible to read many books, but learn very little.
In fact, the truth is that “books don’t change people”, says John Piper. “Paragraphs change people and sometimes sentences. They may lodge themselves so powerfully in our mind that its effect is enormous when all else is forgotten.”
In other words, books don’t change people. Insights do.
Therefore, the goal of reading a book is never merely to finish it, but to identify, chew on, and absorb its life-shaping insights. If a book is not providing any insights that are helpful or stirring, it’s better to put it aside and invest your time elsewhere.
The 20% Principle
The second principle effective leaders must grasp is the 20% principle, also known as the Pareto principle or 80/20 rule.
Effective leaders recognize that not all books are created equal. With thousands of Christian books being published each year, you must exercise discernment and guard your time. Not only must you be wise in deciding which books you will read, but you also which books you won’t — this will mean deliberately avoiding good books, in order to make time for great books.
According to the 20% Principle, only 20% of the good books you come across will be worth your time given your particular calling and season in life.
Furthermore, the 20% Principle suggests that even within an individual book, only 20% of its pages hold the key insights, while the remaining 80% of the pages serve to illustrate and strengthen the author’s arguments.
As David Mathis states: “80% of a book’s main insights are found in 20% of the pages. So without apology, I ransack books for what I can get in the little time I have in this season of life.”
The Solution? The Book Brief Method
In light of these two principles, many leaders have discovered the advantage and effectiveness of using the Book Brief method for grasping, retaining, and implementing insights.
Book Briefs are strategic summaries designed to identify the key insights of a book, supported by key quotes and crystallized by reflection questions.

As illustrated above, the Book Brief method requires you to be incredibly intentional with your reading, keeping you focused on both identifying and applying the insights.
While you can absolutely use this method and create Book Briefs on your own, more than 5000 leaders currently use AccelerateBooks to access an entire library of existing Book Briefs, with 8 new Book Briefs added each month. Essentially, AccelerateBooks is an arsenal of Book Briefs, giving busy leaders (like you) access to important insights so you can stay sharp and effective in 2020. (You can download a free Book Brief at the end of this article!)
AccelerateBooks enables you to:

Save Money by stewarding your finances more wisely with informed book-buying choices
Stay Informed and dialed-in to ideas that are shaping the Church and culture
Read Widely through weekly exposure to different perspectives
Retain Insights with an accessible library of Book Briefs to reference
… and much more!

Here’s what some Accelerate members have to say:

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For readers of Challies.com, AccelerateBooks is happy to offer readers a 33% off discount on all membership plans (individual and group memberships).
To snag this deal, visit partner.acceleratebooks.com/challies. 
P.S. – If you’re not quite convinced about the Book Brief method, feel free to check it out yourself with a Free Book Brief Download of Transforming Grace by Jerry Bridges.
P.P.S. – Check out this video to see how AccelerateBooks works!
Sources:
Timothy Keller reads 3 books a week
Charles Spurgeon read 6 books a week
D.A. Carson reads 9 books a week
Albert Mohler reads 7-10 books a week

He told me of a day he had awoken sick in his heart, sick in his soul. He didn’t know what to think, he didn’t know what to do, he didn’t know what to believe. After all those years of marriage, all those years of joy, all those years of living life together, his wife had gone to heaven and he had been left on earth. Though days and weeks had passed, still he was in the depths of despair.

He told how he had laid in bed for longer than usual that morning, remembering the years of her decline, the years in which illness had been an unwelcome but constant presence in their home. He thought of how weak she had become and how tired she had been—tired in body, tired in mind, tired in spirit. He thought of how, as she had approached heaven, she had gained an even deeper assessment of her own sinfulness, and an even deeper sorrow for it. The light of heaven, drawing closer in her mind, had given her such clarity. He thought of how often they had wept together—wept for what had been and for what would never be. He thought of her final day, her final words, her final breath.
Desperate to escape the turmoil of his thoughts, he got up, got dressed, and drove to a nearby park where he began to hike a familiar trail. He needed to be alone, but not alone—to be in nature where the heavens declare the glory of God and the mountains proclaim divine majesty. That trail led through deep woods and then up a long, slow incline. Little rocks skittered beneath his feet and great slabs of stone loomed to either side. Then, just before the trail began to loop back and return the way it came, it led to the cusp of a canyon cut like a deep gash across the landscape.
He told how for a time—it could have been moments and it could have been hours—he stood at the edge of the canyon, gazing into its depths, his mind still disquieted, his heart still downcast. And then, almost at a whim, he lifted his voice and shouted into the void, “Will you never be sick again?” And a moment later, first far in the distance and then closer and closer, the echo returned, resounding from rock to rock and crag to crag: “Never—sick—again!”
He shouted again, this time his voice just a little louder, “Will you never be tired again?” “Never—tired—again!” came the reply.
“Will you never weep again?” “Never—weep—again!”
“Will you never sin again?” “Never—sin—again!”
Mustering all the strength that remained, he shouted one more time, “Will you never die again?” And once more the echo returned from the canyon below: “Never—die—again.”
And as the echo faded for the final time, he was aware that the voice that had reached his ear was his own. But he was aware as well that the voice had spoken truth, that the voice had preached to his heart. For he knew that the echo of the canyon was the echo of heaven.

Inspired by the sermons of De Witt Talmage.

Grace and peace to you, my friends.

I wanted to remind you of my book launch event in Nashville on Labor Day. I’d love to see you there. It’s a free event with Alistair Begg and CityAlight.
There are some nice new Kindle deals available today.
(Yesterday on the blog: Prayers To Pray While You Preach, Lead, and Sing)
How to Get More Out of Church
“As a pastor, I’m burdened for Christians to get more out of church.” So am I, which is why I’m glad Erik Raymond has an article on the topic.
Don’t Be Dismayed at Their Revilings
It’s amazing how surprised and dismayed we can be when reviled—surprising because we’ve been told to expect it!
An unexpected field for ministry
This is a neat account of how ministry in Angola has been spurred by China, of all places.
No Success Without Suffering
“Spiritual success requires suffering. There is no eternal reward without sacrifice.” If it was true of Jesus, it will be true of us…
Above the Clouds, There is Sunshine
“Do you ever secretly scoff at Israel’s failures in the wilderness, thoroughly convinced that you would’ve done so much better? They were firsthand witnesses to so many instances of God’s saving power and miraculous and faithful provision. ‘Come on now!’ we may think. ‘What is their problem?’ How could they so easily drift from obedience into ungrateful rebellion?”
Dealing With Abuse Overseas is Complicated
“What struck me the most were her lifeless eyes. Without emotion, the young teenager related to me disturbing descriptions of abuse in her home. Her father would verbally assault her and yank her hair. He would beat and kick her mother, locking her out of their bedroom for hours. My horror quickly turned to despair. As a teacher, I knew about mandatory reporting of abuse. But this was not the United States. I had no one to report to.”
Flashback: An Army Without Supplies
…these front-line missionaries, like front-line soldiers, are dependent upon a substantial network of support. They can only go where others prepare them to go and they can only stay where others equip them to stay.

God did not choose us because we would have faith but that we would have faith. —Will Dobbie

Those who preach or lead during corporate worship services will probably be familiar with the strange phenomenon of having multiple “tracks” playing in your mind at once. Even as you preach the sermon or lead the songs, your mind may be flitting about from the distraction of a crying baby to the fear that you will flub your lines to the idolatrous hope that your listeners will be wowed by your skill. It’s for this reason that it is wise to pray while you preach and to pray while you lead. In his book On Worship H.B. Charles Jr. writes, “You ask, ‘Can you preach and pray at the same time?’ My answer, ‘You better!’”

In fact, Charles goes farther and offers a few things to pray as you preach or as you lead (which, for those who are not preaching or leading, you may consider praying on behalf of those who are!).
God, guide my thoughts. “As you commune with God in private devotion, your mind can be flooded with distractions. If this can happen in what A. Louis Patterson called ‘the private chambers of your own praying ground,’ imagine how easily it can happen as you lead worship.” There are many distractions that can grab the eye and capture the mind, so it is wise to pray that God would guide your thoughts to what matters far more. And if the distractions are too great to ignore, Charles says “In those moments, I have responded by praying aloud, ‘Lord, please hold my mind.’” “I am a witness,” he says, “that God will answer this prayer. God can help you stay focused. God can bring to your memory what you need to remember. God can enable you to disregard vain thoughts.”
God, guard my heart. “Leading worship requires physical preparation and mental concentration. Moreover, it demands spiritual devotion. It does not matter if your head is in the game, if your heart is not. You should come to the task of leading worship with a prepared assignment, a rested body, and a consecrated heart.” Like David, you should pray “Search me, O God, and know my heart! Try me and know my thoughts!” You should examine your heart for unconfessed sin and even continue that examination as you lead the service. You should ask God to guard you against fear, worry, or discouragement when it seems like your leadership is not effective and you should ask God to guard your heart against all pride, folly, and carnality when it seems like it is.
God, guide my words. Charles is in favor of pastors generally preparing a full sermon manuscript, even if they do not end up taking it into the pulpit with them, largely because “the work of thinking through what you want to say in advance helps keep the preacher from filibustering in the pulpit.” Like many other preachers, he does not rigidly rely on that manuscript or read from it word-for-word. Yet knowing that words are powerful and that every word matters, he wants to ensure his words are not untrue, unwise, or unhelpful. Hence, in a desire to make sure every one counts, he encourages leaders to pray “God, guide my words” or, in the words of Psalm 19, “Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in your sight, O Lord, my rock and my redeemer.”
So, is it possible to pray even as you preach, as you lead, or as you sing? The more you’ve served in these public roles, the more you’ve undoubtedly come to agree with Charles: “You better!”

May you know the Lord’s blessings this weekend!

(Yesterday on the blog: From Everlasting to Everlasting)
After the fire
“Our family was driving through the Var region of southern France recently, and we passed through an area that had been burned in a forest fire just last summer. The scars of that destruction were still clearly visible, but what was astonishing was the amount of green already bursting forth, the unstoppable life pushing through and undoing all the hard work of the forces of darkness.” There’s a lesson to be learned here.
Isn’t one enough?
This is encouraging. “Sometimes you just know the Lord is at work. That’s not to say he’s not at work when you don’t sense it. He’s always at work, after all. But sometimes, while he’s at work, he is at work in ways that are particularly noticeable.”
Desperate and Dependent
You may appreciate these pointers for prayer. “I can’t go to the store and purchase wisdom, character, integrity, honesty, diligence, perseverance, or salvation for my children or grandchildren, but I can ask God to give it. And so I ask.”
How Do You Know If You Love Jesus?
This article draws upon a good source to consider how you can be confident that you truly love the Lord.
What is the beatific vision?
You’ve probably heard the term “the beatific vision.” In this short video, Sinclair Ferguson explains what it is.
The Light of the World: How Jesus is Reaching International Students
This is an encouraging story about how the Lord is reaching international students.
Flashback: Behavior Both Odd and Ugly
I see the world through my own sin and project my sin upon others. I see my sin in them, even where it doesn’t exist. I unfairly and sinfully accuse them of my sin.

What then is holiness? Holiness is nothing but the implanting, writing and living out of the gospel in our souls. —John Owen

This week’s Free Stuff Friday is sponsored by Reformation Fellowship. They are giving away two tickets to the Reformation Fellowship Conference in Atlanta (November 11–12), and 5 exclusive copies of Right with God, the new book from Michael Reeves.

This Fall, Michael Reeves – with Dane Ortlund, Philip Ryken, Jeff Norris, Gwenfair Adams, and Bradley Green – will be hosting the first Reformation Fellowship conference. Over two days, November 11–12, 2022, a new network of friends will be gathering at Perimeter Church, Atlanta, for teaching, fellowship, worship, and prayer. We would love you to join us there: you can book your place online now.
The theme of the conference will be The Gospel: Our Hope, Our Banner, for it is under the banner of the gospel that Christians find true unity and deep fellowship. At the heart of the gospel is God’s free justification of all those who simply trust in Christ, and at the conference, we will be launching a short, readable introduction to this life-changing doctrine from Michael Reeves called Right with God. It is the perfect book for anyone who does not yet know Christ, those struggling with assurance, or readers who need warm-hearted clarity to strengthen their faith.
“Lurking beneath the stresses and anxieties of modern life lie the age-old questions ‘Am I good enough?’ and ‘Have I done enough?’ They haunt some, drive others, and exhaust many into indifference or despair. In these pages—as readable as they are reliable—Michael Reeves exposes both the roots of our problem and the bankruptcy of our own answers to it. But then, simply and engagingly, he points us to the life-transforming resolution that is offered to us in the Christian gospel. Right with God is a short book with an eternity-long message.”

Sinclair B. Ferguson
Chancellor’s Professor of Systematic Theology, Reformed Theological Seminary;
Teaching Fellow, Ligonier Ministries
“A small key can open a massive door that leads to freedom. This small treatise by Dr. Reeves, a very able writer, holds the key of God’s promise to justify the ungodly as a free gift through faith in Christ alone. May God use it to bring many to spiritual freedom. Buy copies of this easy-to-read, highly recommended book and pass them on to the unsaved, to the saved who are struggling for assurance, and to established believers to shore up their convictions.”

Joel R. Beeke
President, Puritan Reformed Theological Seminary, Grand Rapids, Michigan

Enter here
1 winner will receive two copies of Right with God by Michael Reeves and two free tickets to the Reformation Fellowship Conference in Atlanta, November 11–12. 4 winners will receive a copy of Right with God by Michael Reeves.
By entering, you consent to becoming a member of Reformation Fellowship and joining the Union mailing list. Winners will be notified by email. Tickets to the Reformation Fellowship conference will be issued by email and are subject to terms and conditions. Right with God is scheduled for release on October 1, 2022, and winners will receive their copy immediately upon publication. Entrants must be 18 years of age or over.

I have fond memories of the early days of the Reformed resurgence. These were the days in the early 2000s when so many people were discovering, or rediscovering, the deep and historic truths of the Reformed tradition. Everyone was writing about the five solas and the five points, marveling at how they display God’s glory. Soli deo gloria, indeed.

But it seems to me that somewhere along the way people stopped writing about those truths. They began to assume them in place of celebrating them, to consign them to the background instead of ensuring they remained in the foreground. I understand why this happened—there are only so many books that can be written and so many sermons that can be preached on the same topics. But I also fear that unless we continue to return to these foundational truths, we will inadvertently undermine the very tradition we claim to have become part of.
With this in mind, it was a joy to open Will Dobbie’s From Everlasting to Everlasting: Every Believer’s Biography and find it is a book about the ordo salutis, or the order of salvation. This is another of those topics that was once written about often but is now written about seldom—too seldom, I fear. The ordo salutis is how theologians describe the order by which God saves his people. Beginning with election, it proceeds through calling, regeneration, conversion, justification, reconciliation, sanctification, and perseverance before culminating in glorification. It is a “a stage-by-stage roadmap from eternity past to eternity future. It’s a pathway marked out for us by God consisting of multiple steps, some sequential and some simultaneous. No matter how wild or random life may seem, this is the trail along which He is leading us. It will ultimately guide us home to unimaginable joy.”
Dobbie takes an interesting and helpful approach to the topic by structuring his book as a kind of 30-day devotional. Though there are formally nine steps to the ordo salutis, he increases this to 30 by expanding and subdividing each of them. Hence the topic of election becomes “The God Who Agrees: The Eternal Covenant,” “The God who Knows: Foreknowledge,” and “The God Who Chooses: Election.” Before he discusses calling he considers “The God Who Arranges: Providence” and “The God Who Creates: Conception and Physical Life.” Then, of course, in consistency with Reformed theology, he distinguishes between the external call and the internal call. It’s an effective packaging of familiar topics. The devotional nature ensures it is not just informative but also worshipful.
I grew up within the Reformed tradition and have held to its core doctrines for my entire life. These things are deeply ingrained within my heart and mind. Yet I found From Everlasting to Everlasting a particular pleasure to read, almost like the pleasure of reading a novel that was especially meaningful in my childhood. It was a joy to be reminded of the wonder of how God saves his people and to reaffirm how so much depends upon rightly ordering these steps. It was a joy to see again how God is sovereign in our salvation, how he is glorified from the first step to the last. It was a joy to once again meditate upon one of the unique and uniquely beautiful distinctives of Reformed theology.

Buy from Amazon

The Lord be with you and bless you today.

True Companions
“To the ancients, friendship was the crown of life and the school of virtue. To us, it’s both of you clicking a button on Facebook. How far we have fallen.” Yes, but the situation is far from hopeless.
Satan Delights In Church Growth That Isn’t Gospel Driven
“Like every individual Christian, the Church’s greatest enemy is Satan. He lives and continuously strives to deceive God’s people, and to divert them from their God-given agenda and purpose. Though we could consider countless ways that Satan does this, in this article I’m going to focus on one: quantitative church growth.”
A Case against the Longer Ending of Mark
Some time ago I shared an argument that made the case for the longer ending of Mark. Here’s a follow-up that makes a case against it.
To Understand the Bible, Follow the World’s Advice
“I read secular books. That’s not so much a confession as much as it is a confirmation.” This article considers how we can read non-Christian books that will truly help us.
When God Came to Dinner & Why This Truth Changes Everything
“My favorite memories usually revolve around the themes of good food, beautiful setting, and excellent company, and yesterday delivered on all three. But of the thousands of meals I’ve eaten in my life, only a rare few resurface in my memory. Not because I’ve captured those moments on my camera, but because they’ve captured me. They’ve become little diamonds, refracting new hues of color, growing more beautiful each time I turn them over in my mind.”
Are God and Satan Playing Chess with My Life?
“Time to be real. If I’m to tell it straight, I’ve felt a few times lately like God and Satan are playing chess, and I’m a pawn.” Perhaps you’ve felt that way as well…
Flashback: When Christians Just Don’t Read the Bible
While I receive some requests about difficult circumstances and advanced matters of obedience, the most common by far are the simplest: Pray that I would read and pray.

If he gives you the grace to make you believe, he will give you the grace to live a holy life afterward. —Charles Spurgeon

Grace and peace to you today.

 (Yesterday on the blog: What a Wonder Is a Human Being!)
Three Pursuits Better Than Being Right
There are some things that are more important than being right, as this article explains.
God is One
“God has revealed himself as Triune. He is both one and three. Yet many hear that statement as contradictory. Obviously, in mathematics 1 does not equal 3. And it would be a contradiction if God was one and three in the same way. But he is not.”
Can Satan Help Grow Your Church?
“If Facebook has taught us one thing it is that sensational titles are crucial to being successful online. If this post were a video, the title would run something like this: ‘The Church Grew More Rapidly Than Ever Before, But You Will Not Believe How…’ However, I don’t believe that my caution in this post—that Satan can indeed grow the church—is irresponsible or sensational.”
Why Did God Let Adam and Eve Sin?
This is a brief and off-the-cuff answer, but still a good one.
Do Unto Authors
“When people ask what I do for a living, I often say, ‘My job is to teach college students how to read.’ This is only half a joke, because the reality is that our educational system and society has left many people incapable of reading well.” It is so important to learn to read books (especially the Bible) well!
God’s Immutability Secures Ten Thousand Promises
This article tells how all of God’s promises really hang upon one of his attributes.
Flashback: Making the Christian Life More Complicated Than It Needs To Be
There is no circumstance in which God has nothing for us to do, no situation in which we cannot be faithful to his calling on our lives. He calls none of us to uselessness and calls none of us to another man’s life or ministry.

Let us not be those who are known digitally but not locally. —Isaac Adams