It was on this day 24 years ago that I became a dad. I suppose I had already been a dad for the past nine months and 10 days—a full term of pregnancy plus a few extra days of waiting. But on March 5, 2000, I finally got to meet my firstborn, my boy, my sweet Nick. I watched with wonder as he emerged into this world. I took him in my arms for the first time and gently kissed his forehead. I studied him from the tip of his toes to the crown of his head and declared him perfect. I marveled at what God had given me, at what he had given us, at what he had given the world.
I watched that baby grow into a boy, and that boy grow into a man. I watched him grow not just in stature but in character, not just in age but in wisdom. I watched him profess faith and be baptized, fall in love and get engaged. I watched him begin to prepare himself for a life dedicated to pastoral ministry. I watched with joy and delight.
Twenty times March 5 came with great gladness and sweet memories—with gifts, treats, and celebration. And four times it has come with a combination of gladness and sorrow and with memories that are both sweet and bitter. Four times it has come with Nick no longer here to celebrate or to be celebrated.
March 5, 2021 was the hardest. Nick had been gone for just four months and we were still so new to grief, still so raw. We had been warned that the first would be the hardest and those warnings proved true. That was a hard, hard day. March 5, 2022 was a little easier and March 5, 2023 a little easier still. By then the sharpness of the pain had settled into something more like a dull ache. We had better learned how to cope with our grief and to come to terms with it. Perhaps better said, we had further submitted it to the Lord and further bowed the knee to him—to the God who is sovereign and kind, to the God whose purposes are always and only good.
And now we have come to the fourth birthday in which Nick is in heaven and we are on earth, the fourth March 5 we have faced with this combination of sorrow and joy. We grieve that we cannot see him, hug him, speak to him, express our love to him. We grieve that his presence has been replaced with absence, that our memories of him are always accompanied by the sorrow that we have no more memories to make, at least on this side of heaven.

March 5 through the years
But we also rejoice that we had the privilege of knowing him and loving him. We rejoice that he lived a life worthy of the gospel and that he has now been delivered from all sin, suffering, and sorrow. And we rejoice, of course, that we will see him again. It’s a strange place to be—this place of already and not-yet, this place of faith and not sight, this place of promise but not fulfillment. Yet we are content knowing that it is God himself who led us here and God himself who will eventually lead us out. We have confidence in him, in his love, in his purposes, in his goodness and glory.
I don’t know if birthdays are a thing in heaven. I don’t even know if and how time passes there. But I do know that right here a few of us continue to count it special because we continue to love the one who was given to us on this day, 24 years ago.
This poem is on my mind today and seems a fitting way to close.

Whate’er we fondly call our ownBelongs to heaven’s great Lord;The blessings lent us for a dayAre soon to be restored.
’Tis God that lifts our comforts high,Or sinks them in the grave;He gives; and when He takes away,He takes but what He gave.
Then, ever blessed be His name!His goodness swell’d our store;His justice but resumes its own;Still we the Lord adore.

It was still the early days of what came to be known as the New Calvinism or the Reformed Resurgence. The Together for the Gospel Conference had been formed in 2006 and now, in 2008, was gathering for the second time. The four founders were joined again by guests John Piper, John MacArthur, and R.C. Sproul (and, for the first time, Thabiti Anyabwile). R.C. Sproul led the conference’s fifth session and spoke on “The Curse Motif of the Atonement.” He preached one of those sermons that is still being discussed long after the event and even long after his death.

The conference summarizes Sproul’s sermon in this way: “Drawing deeply upon the imagery of the Old Testament, RC Sproul richly meditates on the implications of what Jesus suffered on the cross and what he saved us from. Bearing the weight of the curse is either placed upon individuals or freely upon the Holy One who took it from us. Jesus became cursed, so that [we] could be counted righteous in Him.”
I was there that day and, like so many others, found myself completely transfixed by this sermon. I had listened to plenty of Sproul prior to this time and had read some of his most noteworthy books like The Holiness of God. Yet even though the man and the message were familiar, I still sat in rapt attention, both recoiling at the horror of what I was hearing and worshiping at the beauty.
The crescendo of the whole message came in the final two minutes. Sproul was contemplating what happened between the Father and the Son when all of our sin was placed upon Jesus and when he faced the Father’s wrath. He explained it like this: “It was as if there was a cry from heaven—excuse my language but I can be no more accurate to say—it was as if Jesus heard the words ‘God damn you.’ Because that’s what it meant to be cursed, to be damned, to be under the anathema, of the Father.”
In the years since, I have often contemplated what made this message so powerful. And in watching and rewatching it, I am convinced that it was a combination of substance and style—of preaching that accounted not only for what was said, but also for how. Part of what made the message so powerful, and what made this crescendo so powerful, is that R.C. whispered instead of shouted.
I have often been struck by the intensity with which many preachers deliver their sermons. Many preachers are aware of the importance of preaching and humbled by the fact that it falls to them to convey deep truths to an expectant people. It is no small thing to stand in a pulpit and preach the Word. Aware of this fact, preachers seem to bring messages that are intense from beginning to end. That intensity is often expressed in volume. If we were to create a little graphic showing the vocal range of a preacher with a whisper at the bottom, a normal speaking voice in the middle, and a shout at the top, many preachers would deliver the majority of their sermons entirely in the top half of the graphic—occasionally in a normal speaking voice, but mostly at an elevated volume. When they need to pack an extra punch, they get louder and perhaps even shout. But they only ever employ the top half of their vocal range.
I’m struck that Sproul took the opposite approach. Throughout this message, he delivers many of the most important lines in the lower part of his vocal range, and often at a bare whisper. He leans toward the audience and the audience responds by leaning toward him, straining to hear. He slows the tempo and lowers his voice to speak many of his most important lines. (See also this clip from 40:00 – around 41:30)
This is a powerful rhetorical technique that few preachers use at all and few use more effectively than Sproul. It is dramatic without being melodramatic, performative without being manipulative. It complements powerful truths with skillful technique. It’s compelling and potent. And, for many preachers, completely untried. It’s my conviction that most preachers would have shouted these lines rather than whispered them. And it’s equally my conviction that this would have proven less effective.
And so I guess my encouragement to those who preach is to draw some lessons from Sproul. He has long been commended as not only the Reformed world’s best teacher in his day but also as one of its master communicators. And I’m convinced that a key part of his skill was his delivery, and particularly, his willingness to employ not only a part of his vocal range, but the whole of it. He put great care into not only the content of his messages, but also the delivery. He had mastered not only the art of preparing a sermon, but also the craft of delivering it. We’d all do well to learn from him.
(Further to this sermon, see “How R.C. Sproul Blessed the Church by Preaching the Curse” in my Great Sermon Series.)

Good morning from Anchorage, Alaska (again). Our flight to Dutch Harbor was canceled yesterday so we are hoping for better things today.

Today’s Kindle deals include a few interesting titles.
(Yesterday on the blog: Getting the Most Out of Logos: A Webinar)
Will My Husband Still Think I’m Attractive as I Age?
I appreciate Britt’s honesty and vulnerability in this article. “In my mid-thirties, insecurity threatens to wrap itself around me. Everything about my body is changing. My belly sticks out, cellulite ripples my legs, gray hair covers my roots, and wrinkles sink into my forehead. My body is nothing like what I used to see in the mirror. I feel a growing need to hide its true shape from not only the world, but my husband.”
For Those Distracted with Much Serving
This ought to be both challenging and encouraging. “God will accomplish His will with or without you. We are used to build the church. Amen! But it is fundamentally Christ who builds His church, not us. You and I are not necessary; only Jesus is.”
$5 Friday (and More) Sale: Reformation Collection
Today, Ligonier Ministries is gearing up for Reformation Day with a special $5 Friday (and More) sale. A wide selection of teaching series, books, study Bibles, and more have been significantly discounted, with many resources available for only $5. Shop and save while supplies last. (Sponsored Link)
What comfort do God’s people have in times of war and conflict? (Video)
Derek Thomas offers an answer.
The Good Portion
“This beautiful time of year, the turning from summer to autumn in Virginia, is a sight to behold. The shifting light, the shortened days, and the cooler mornings signal a return to the splendor of fall. Autumn is a time of distinction, with the onset of firepits and football and family gatherings, as we anticipate Thanksgiving. It is also a time of busyness at church.”
It’s Just a Small One
Jacob shares a conversation between the new man and the old man.
Burdened Excessively and Despairing of Life
“Through the unshakable Hope available in Christ Jesus we have an invitation to be comforted and delivered through every affliction by the living God who promises to uphold his children with His righteous right hand.” What a blessing that is!
Flashback: Forest Fires & Apple Orchards
The meek person…trusts that even if he is distressed and bewildered today, God will eventually make his purpose clear and then he, like God, will judge it all so very good, all so very necessary, all so very wise.

All our fret and worry is caused by calculating without God. —Oswald Chambers