May the Lord be with you and bless you on this fine day.

Today’s Kindle deals include a collection of good picks from a few different publishers.

(Yesterday on the blog: Building Churches Out of Other Churches)

This is a helpful article for understanding and guiding young men. “Modern culture paints masculinity in extremes. On one side, masculinity is toxic—something to be suppressed, softened, or erased. On the other, masculinity is brutal, aggressive, and dominant—something to be weaponized. The result? A generation of men is confused about what they’re supposed to be.”

“Celebrities 10, 15, and even 20 years my senior still flash the same edgy fashion of their youth. In many cases their skin looks as taut as the young. I remember watching the teaser for a reunion show of a 90s sitcom, and I saw time etch itself into every male cast member’s face. Then the female star walked in, and I received the message loud and clear: Women dare not age past a certain threshold.”

There is no one like our God. Encountering His holiness leaves us forever changed, bringing new awareness of our sin and need for His grace. R.C. Sproul’s classic book, The Holiness of God, invites readers deeper into the truth of Scripture, that we may marvel at the Lord’s greatness and the wonder of His salvation through Jesus Christ. You can request the 40-anniversary edition of this celebrated book today with your donation to Ligonier Ministries. (Sponsored)

Abigail reminds older women that younger women are eager for their attention and mentorship.

I’ve been enjoying the new “A Storm in the Desert” podcast from 9Marks which tells how the Lord began a great work in the Middle East. You can find it wherever you listen to your podcasts.

Seth shares a cheeky poem about perspicuity.

This is a good question for all of us to consider: “How many more headlines will it take before we take our own vulnerabilities seriously?”

Our God is most present just when he is most needed—ever ready and ever eager to offer his sweet comfort. His compassion—his wondrous fatherly compassion—draws him near to us when we so desperately need his help.

The right manner of growth is to grow less in one’s own eyes.
—Thomas Watson

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.

The Lord be with you and bless you today.

Westminster Books has a deal on the new book by Mark Jones, Knowing Sin.
(Yesterday on the blog: A Family Update and a Some Thoughts on Those Canadian Truckers)
The Necessity and Danger of Mercy Ministry
Mez McConnell: “While a church may do a lot of different things in the service of [its] mission, everything that it does should be aimed at those final goals: proclaiming the gospel and helping people to grow in their obedience to God. Starbucks sells coffee, Listerine makes mouthwash, and the church holds out the gospel and trains people to obey by doing the work of ministry. If we don’t do it, no one will. If we do anything else, we are getting off track.”
The Remedy for the Church’s Post-COVID Malaise
Trevin Wax offers some thoughts about remedying the church’s post-COVID malaise. “It’s been almost two years since COVID altered our lives. I hear pastors and church leaders talk about surviving the pandemic spiritually and emotionally, and then enduring the fallout in their congregations. Many harbor grave concerns about ministry right now and about the long-term sustainability of those who have been tasked with leading the church.”
Why We Need the Local Church
Speaking of the local church, “the culture continues to be hostile to the Christian worldview. Social media outlets are becoming more aggressive towards us, and cancelations by the culture of confusion continue to increase. Where do we turn? The answer isn’t clever or new. We turn to the local church. Here’s why.”
The Necessity of Sound Doctrine
“Sound doctrine is fundamental ‘so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes’ (Eph. 4:14). Paul isn’t mincing words here but distinctly points out that without sound doctrine, the church is susceptible to being carried away by cultural ideologies, false teaching, and deceptive methodologies.”
The Nearness of God is Not Always Good News
“A good portion of modern Christian praise songs emphasize nearness to God.” Well and good, but God’s nearness isn’t always good news…
Should I or Shouldn’t I?
Here’s a bit of a guide to determining whether or not to engage in a conversation.

He never began to love us for anything in ourselves, nor will he cease to love us because of what he discovers us to be. The love of God, which is in Jesus Christ our Lord, is unassailable by change or shock. —F.B. Meyer