This week the blog is sponsored by Reformed Free Publishing Association. This post is about their brand new picture book, I Belong: Heidelberg Catechism Question and Answer 1 for Children, written by Joyce Holstege and illustrated by Meagan Krosschell.

We all know the importance of doing daily devotions, not just individually, but at a family level, too. We all have busy lives, but we know that the end result of setting aside a time for family worship each day will be an encouragement for both ourselves and for our children.
The Two Struggles
On the other hand, sometimes we can become discouraged when it comes to devotions. Do you face either of these two struggles in your own family worship?

We want to rely solely on the Bible in our family devotions, but when we’re honest with ourselves, we confess just how difficult it is to apply biblical doctrine to our youngest children’s lives.
Or with good intentions we might purchase a highly-rated children’s devotional book, eagerly opening it up with our family members when it’s time for daily devotions. But after a few pages of reading and a few minutes of reflection, we realize that this is not quite the devotional we are looking for. We can appreciate its goal of instilling readers with good character traits like courage and honesty. But what we do not see is a strong focus on the nurturing of children’s faith in Jesus Christ or the comfort they find in belonging to him.

The Solution
A new devotional resource from Joyce Holstege, a veteran Christian school teacher, provides a solution to both struggles. I Belong: Heidelberg Catechism Question and Answer 1 for Children is a picture book that explains and applies the first question and answer of the Heidelberg Catechism to children ages four to eight.
Why did Joyce base her devotional on the Heidelberg Catechism and on this question and answer? When the Heidelberg Catechism was first written in 1563, it was designed to be a teaching tool for parents and teachers seeking to instruct their children in the fundamental doctrines of the Reformed faith. It’s a beautiful confession that is still widely used in Reformed churches today. And question and answer 1 emphasizes the comfort we have as children of God, the theme woven throughout the entire Heidelberg Catechism.
Using I Belong in your family devotions will benefit your children (and you!) in at least these three ways:
Your children will learn biblical doctrine: Just like the question and answer itself, Joyce’s book is doctrinally rich. From spiritual adoption, to atonement, to a life of good works, children are taught not just about the love of God generally, but about how much he loved his people, sending his only begotten Son Jesus to redeem them from their sins. 
Your children will understand what you are reading to them: Doctrine is absolutely necessary for our children, but if they don’t understand it, chances are they won’t be able to draw comfort from it later in life. I Belong explains the doctrines of the Christian faith in a way that even young children understand. Consider how Joyce explains the comforting concept of atonement:
God promised Adam and Eve that he would send his perfect lamb Jesus to pay for their sins. God promises that Jesus paid for all your sins, too. When Jesus died on the cross, his blood paid for your sins. He bought you with his blood, so that you can be called his child. This is called atonement.
Your children will enjoy what you are reading to them: I Belong is a devotional that will hold your children’s attention as you read. Joyce frequently addresses her audience of young children (“you”), reminding them that the comforting promises contained in this question and answer are for them. Your children will also love the book’s twenty-two beautiful, full-color illustrations created by talented young artist, Meagan Krosschell.
You can purchase your copy of I Belong: Heidelberg Catechism Question and Answer 1 for Children here.

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

I am aware that the categories of introvert and extrovert are not described or even hinted at within the pages of the Bible. My understanding is that the terms arose from the mind of Carl Jung and were popularized through his teachings—teachings that oppose Scripture in a host of ways.
Yet there is still something to the idea of introversion and extroversion—that some people are more naturally outgoing and talkative while others are more naturally inward and reserved. This simply describes what we have all observed, that some are more affable than others and that while some are refreshed and energized by being with people, others are refreshed and energized by being apart from people. Through some combination of nature and nurture, that’s just how we are.
Personally, I fall well within the ranks of the introverts. I genuinely love people and enjoy being around them. However, being surrounded by others and immersed in conversation eventually begins to drain me and I find refreshment in solitude. That may be as simple as ducking out of an activity for five minutes to do a bit of an internal reset or it may be as complicated as taking week-long vacations with no one but my family. While some people are drained by solitude and invigorated by company, I tend to be invigorated by solitude and drained by company.
There was a time in my life when I allowed introversion to provide a ready excuse when I did not want to do something—when I did not want to accept an invitation, attend a gathering, or meet a new person. After all, why would I do something that clashes with my personality, that drains me, and that I can find exceedingly difficult?
However, I encountered a challenge when I began to consider church leadership and the character of a man who aspires to be an elder—character that is meant to exemplify what God expects of all Christians. As I studied those qualifications and passed through the early stages of examination, it became clear that I was failing to fulfill some of them. If I was going to be hospitable, if I was going to faithfully instruct others in the Word, and if I was going to know and be known by the people I would lead and love, I would need to address some of my natural tendencies. While being a leader in a church would not require a personality transplant, it would require a willingness to deny some of my own comfort.
I decided at that time to commit to being a dutiful introvert. A dutiful introvert is one who acknowledges and accepts what is true about himself but also determines he will never let it interfere with his duty before the Lord. He will not pretend he is an extrovert or stop valuing times of solitude, but he will also not allow his personality to excuse any failure to fulfill the opportunities God presents to him.
I have a duty of love to greet visitors at my church and have no right to allow my introversion to keep me from making another person feel seen, acknowledged, and welcomed. So I will greet others.
I have a duty of hospitality to those who would benefit from it and have no right to allow my introversion to keep me from opening my life and opening my home. So I will invite others in.
I have a duty of care to shepherd the people of my church and have no right to allow my introversion to keep me from getting to know them so I can tend to their spiritual needs. So I will create and accept opportunities to begin new relationships and foster existing ones.
Introversion can never be allowed to negate duty or justify a failure to love.Share
In short, introversion can never be allowed to negate duty or justify a failure to love. This is the commitment of a dutiful introvert.
It has not always been easy and I haven’t always been successful, but I have observed something interesting along the way: The more I have forced myself to be dutiful, the easier duty has become. The more I have pushed to deny myself, the more joy I’ve found in self-denial. I have not become an extrovert—not nearly!—but neither is that my desire or goal. I have remained who I am, but with duty added to it—duty and the delight that flows from it.