Today’s Kindle deals include Sighing on Sunday by Megan Hill, Perfect Unity by Ralph Cunningham, and several other good books.

Logos users, March Matchups continues with just a couple of rounds of voting remaining. Be sure to consider the deals that are already available.

(Yesterday on the blog: What’s a Trade War and How Did We End Up In One?)

This is a really good article on what we gained and lost when we all made the move to livestreaming. “What began as a temporary necessity has become an expected staple of the church’s ministry. As people began returning to worship, committees and the session debated whether livestreaming should continue. If so, for how long, and for what purpose? Those were difficult questions to weigh at the time, in an unprecedented situation. But now, with five years of experience, what evaluation can we offer about the place of livestreaming in the church’s ministry?”

Emily Van Dixhoorn writes compassionately and biblically to the spouse of an unbeliever. “I heard that you are married to an unbeliever and could use some encouragement. I wish you and I could sit down over coffee together and I could hear about your specific struggles. But for now, I pray that God will graciously use my words here to comfort and strengthen you.”

“It hit me Thursday morning as I pulled into the parking lot for work. Exhaustion is its name and I quickly questioned, ‘How am I going to make it through the next 48 hours…’ I was ready to stay in my car, turn around, and plop myself onto my bed.”

Jana lists several ways that writing has drawn her near to God (which is to say, how it has been spiritually beneficial).

It is good at times to remember truths that some find basic and some consider impossible or even abhorrent. “God overcomes the humanly impossible and brings us decisively to faith and to union with Christ for salvation.”

“There are certain moments a father never forgets. One of the sweetest memories of my young children occurred when I came home after work. Immediately, my children would drop whatever they were doing and scream ‘Daddy’s home’ while running full speed into my kneecaps. Though I came home every day, they greeted me as if I had been lost at sea for the past year and unexpectedly found my way back.”

Is it unspiritual to be depressed? This author answers with a confident “no” (or “no, not necessarily”) and does so in a well-written and helpful little book that I am certain will be a blessing to many.

The more empty I am, the more room is there for my Master. The more I lack, the more He will give me.
—C.H. Spurgeon

There are certain categories of books that you can read once and never return to—you read a single title on that subject and it tells you all you ever need to know about it. But there are other categories of books that you need to return to on a regular basis. In my experience, that includes books on giving—on living a life marked by financial generosity. Over time I find my natural tendency is toward keeping rather than giving, toward saving rather than freely distributing. So I need to regularly read books that will interrupt my apathy and reaffirm what I know to be good and true.

Gospel Generosity

A new book on the subject proved to be just what I needed. Nathan W. Harris’ Gospel Generosity: Giving As An Act of Grace is part of B&H’s “The Short Guide Series” and, as such, wastes little time in getting right to the heart of the matter. “This book is all about one thing—giving. More specifically, it’s about how the gospel calls Christians to a life of radical generosity.”
It’s important to address the word “radical.” There are some Christians who seem to be called by God to be especially extreme in their generosity, to earn heaps and give away almost all of it. Or to create great ministries and, by refusing to ever solicit donations, to display God as the provider. And as much as I honor such individuals, and as much as they might benefit from this book, I don’t see Harris asking us all to imitate them. Rather, the generosity he calls for is radical compared to our natural tendencies, radical compared to the financial principles of the people around us, radical compared to what might seem naturally intuitive, and radical even when compared to our spiritual forebears in the Old Testament.

Because your head and heart are converted, then even how you view your money changes. What once used to be yours is now for God’s use. As the pocketbook experiences conversion, its aim is to be used to glorify God. A converted life leads to converted thinking about money. A converted pocketbook does not heed the words of the world and fixate itself on saving, but sees its resources as a way to participate in the gospel’s call to generosity. The call to follow Christ means to commit your whole life without reservation or hesitation. Every aspect of your life is given sacrificially to God, which includes your money. Because of God’s mercy, and the new life we find in Christ, Christians should live out their holy call to generosity with joy.

Generosity, then, is an implication of the gospel and a calling of the gospel—a call we are all to heed whatever our means and whatever our circumstances.
As Harris progresses through his short book, he begins by telling how our obsession with money and possessions is an issue of heart, health, and service to God. It’s an issue that reveals the heart’s ultimate trust and loyalty, that serves as an indicator of spiritual health, and that proves who we mean to serve in this world—God or money.
Having shown this, Harris addresses the issue of tithing and does some careful biblical work to show how tithing is no longer a mandate upon Christians. Yet this does not free us from the obligation of giving 10 percent of our income as much as it frees us to give with even greater freedom and generosity. The coming of Jesus Christ and the inauguration of his kingdom completely transform the way we understand and practice our giving.
As the pocketbook experiences conversion, its aim is to be used to glorify God. A converted life leads to converted thinking about money.Nathan W. HarrisShare
The closing chapters consider how giving proclaims the gospel and portrays it to the world around us. As citizens of that kingdom, we are to be humble, selfless, and wholeheartedly committed to Christ’s call and this necessarily impacts the way we give, the quantity we give, and the freedom and joy with which we give it. We also give with a view to Christ’s return, allowing the guarantee of his second coming and eternity in his presence to motivate our generosity now. It allows us to be genuinely cheerful givers, whose joy is not grounded in what we have now, but in what Christ has promised.
“For Christians, generosity is more than just the way we give money, spend our time, and share our abilities with others. As we give, we get to be living examples of what Christ has done in our lives. Giving, above all else, is about the testimony of the gospel.” Giving, then, is a blessing not only for those who receive it, but for all of us who do it. We don’t have to give—we get to give! And as we give, we proclaim what Christ has done for us and proclaim our trust and confidence in him. What a joy then, and what an honor, that God calls us to this sacred task.

Good morning. Grace and peace to you.
There are some great picks in today’s Kindle deals including Kevin DeYoung’s Do Not Be True to Yourself and Kent Hughes’ Disciplines of a Godly Young Man.
(Yesterday on the blog: Enough to Get Rebellious People Into Trouble)

I recently spent a delightful evening with David Zadok, a pastor in Israel, and was glad to read this profile of him at TGC.

Here are 7 useful tips about reading Revelation. “The temptation is to write off the book as impossible to understand and thus keep it closed. But doing so comes with significant loss. We understand why as we read the extraordinary promise in the book’s third verse…”

Come and see how the Lord is building His Church around the world. Join John Piper, Sinclair Ferguson, Conrad Mbewe, Kevin DeYoung, Steven Lawson, and many others October 16-18 in Jacksonville, FL. Early bird pricing ends April 19. (Sponsored)

“A few months ago, I read a blog in which some missionaries were talking about a difficult event that occurred with their children. In the comments on that post, a woman wrote something to the effect of: ‘If you have young children, it is clear: God has not called you to missions.’ I was not really surprised. People have asked us questions about our children throughout the years that belied the same assumption: missionaries are unable to keep their children safe on the mission field.”

“I fear that our cultural understanding of leadership is going further astray from true leadership. We Americans seem to have a bizarre attraction to two types of leaders: celebrities and powerful communicators with bold, brash opinions. We judge leaders by the size of their platform.” True, though it’s not just Americans.

“I’ve heard it said, ‘What doesn’t kill you will probably try again tomorrow.’ That’s just life in a fallen world. The devil prowls around like a roaring Lion seeking those to devour, but GOD! God is stronger than the what ifs of tomorrow where the enemy tries to belittle you and turn you away from the Lover of your soul. God is the One who chases after you all the more. Will suffering try to over take us? Yes.”

This article tells how elders within the local church ought to receive ongoing training—even if they aren’t on staff.

Masculinity has become complicated…The culture has plenty to say about masculinity that is toxic, but far less to say about masculinity that is good and honoring. 

If you have suffered deeply, you are onto something that most people aren’t. You know that this life is flawed. Strangely, that is a good thing! Now allow that to move you toward God, to renew your faith in him and your need of him.
—Tim Lane