Glorifying God in Trials (04/30/09 - 18 Comments)
Today's post comes courtesy of my good friend Ryan who offers some reflections on glorifying God through life's trials. He wrote this article yesterday. ***** I am writing this from the waiting area at the Trillium Hospital in Toronto, while my beautiful wife is undergoing a procedure to help bring closure to the miscarriage we first learned about last week. While this isn't our first miscarriage, it is the first since the healthy births of...
A Radical Transformation (04/29/09 - 10 Comments)
A couple of weeks ago I spoke at a Families & Technology seminar in Auburn Hills, Michigan, and enjoyed the opportunity to spend some time focusing on how technology is changing the world and perhaps even changing the Christian faith. I was surprised during my research to see just how much technology has changed, well, everything! I gave two talks and thought I'd share my introduction to these seminars. In the days to come I...
John Calvin: Pilgrim and Pastor (04/28/09 - 6 Comments)
There are not too many men whose five hundredth birthday is a cause for remembrance, not to mention celebration. Yet here we are, five hundred years after the birth of John Calvin, witnessing widespread celebration of his birth. This year we see many conferences dedicated to understanding Calvin's impact on the church and on society, even centuries later, and we see the publication of many books looking at the man and his theology. It strikes...
The Intentions of Providence (04/27/09 - 21 Comments)
"As [Jesus] passed by, he saw a man blind from birth. And his disciples asked him, 'Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?' Jesus answered, 'It was not that this man sinned, or his parents, but that the works of God might be displayed in him' (John 9:1-3)." And, of course, Jesus spits on the ground, creates mud, has the man wash away the mud and performs a miracle...
Eternity Without a Mediator (04/26/09 - 24 Comments)
In his little book Fear Not!, an examination of death and the afterlife from a Christian perspective, Ligon Duncan writes about the horrors of hell. Having done so, he offers a final reflection on the ultimate difference between heaven and hell. And, though I've read extensively, I do not recall ever hearing someone express it quite like this. These are words that are worthy of some reflection. Though he has already discussed hell, there is...
Escaping Anonymity (04/25/09 - 7 Comments)
Several months ago I was asked to submit an article to Tabletalk Magazine. The editors had read an blog entry I had written dealing with the subject of accountability and asked if I'd be willing to write a condensed version and submit it for publication. I was glad to do so and the result appeared in this month's Tabletalk. You may have read a version of this article in the past but, if you care...
Free Stuff Fridays (04/24/09 - 11 Comments)
Today is Friday and that means it is time for another Free Stuff Fridays. This week's sponsor is Seeds Family Worship. "Seeds Family Worship was planted when worship leader, Jason Houser, was asked to write some songs to help kids remember the verses from his church's summer Bible school. Jason began writing songs and singing them for the kids and families at church. The songs were well-crafted, catchy, and taken straight from scripture. Families...
What Is The Gospel Coalition? (Part 2) (04/24/09 - 24 Comments)
Yesterday I posted the first part of an answer to the question many people have asked me (and the question I've, in turn, asked many other people: What Is The Gospel Coalition? In that article I answered a few of the what, where and why questions. Today I want to discuss how you and I can be involved in it. Important to the ethos of The Gospel Coalition are the differences between an organization and...
What Is The Gospel Coalition? (04/23/09 - 36 Comments)
As I wrote yesterday, I am in Chicago at The Gospel Coalition Conference and I am here primarily to discover what The Gospel Coalition (TGC) is and why you and I should care about it. It is my impression that most people are quite confused, as I am, about what the organization is and what it hopes to accomplish. I am also uncertain as to who this organization is for--whether it is exclusively for pastors,...
The Gospel Coalition (04/22/09 - 9 Comments)
Since yesterday morning I've been in Chicago at The Gospel Coalition Conference. This is my first time at this particular conference and, as you may have noticed, I am not giving it the usual liveblog treatment. The sessions are going out live over the internet (where, from what I hear, tens of thousands of people are taking them in) so there seemed to be little reason to go through all the work of typing out...
2000 (04/22/09 - 23 Comments)
A long time ago I added to this web site a little counter. It is way down at the bottom right of each page and it increments by one number each day. It simply tracks the number of days since I made a commitment to blog every day. That was back on October 1, 2003. I first put it there as a challenge and as a reminder to write something every day. I had found...
Why Johnny Can't Preach (04/21/09 - 17 Comments)
Nineteen sixty-six saw the publication of a book titled Why Johnny Can't Read. Its author, Rudolf Flesh, explained in it that societal changes were leading to illiteracy; children were increasingly unable to read, at least with the effectiveness of the children of years gone by. By the 1980's, Linden and Whimbey had followed with Why Johnny Can't Write in which they showed the similar societal trends were now keeping Johnny (a generic name used to...
The Quiet Time Performance (04/20/09 - 28 Comments)
Like all Christians, I love my quiet time. I am always thrilled at the prospect of sitting down for a few quiet moments before a busy day to spend some time alone with God--a few moments one-on-one with my Creator. I love to open the Bible and to carefully and systematically read the Word of God, allowing it to penetrate my heart. I love to sit and think deeply and meditatively about the Scriptures and...
Humility in Service (04/19/09 - 3 Comments)
It has been too long, I think, since I've posted a prayer from The Valley of Vision. This one, titled "Humility in Service," seems appropriate for a Sunday morning as the day will undoubtedly bring us many opportunities to serve our brothers and sisters in Christ and many opportunities to share the Good News with those who do not yet know the Lord. Mighty God, I humble myself for faculties misused, opportunities neglected, words ill-advised,...
Putting Unity First (04/18/09 - 15 Comments)
The following quote comes from Iain Murray's book Evangelicalism Divided (on page 291 if you must know). I think it offers good food for thought (even on a Saturday morning). The ecumenical call [in the mid-20th century] was not for truth and salt; it was supremely for oneness: the greater the unity of 'the Church', it was confidently asserted, the stronger would be the impression made upon the world; and to attain that end churches...
Free Stuff Fridays (04/17/09 - 5 Comments)
With a new Friday comes a new Free Stuff Fridays giveaway. This week's sponsor is Moody Publishers. They are offering a package of some of their most popular new releases. There will be five winners, each of whom will receive: Start Your Family: Inspiration for Having Babies by Steve and Candice Watters Get Married: What Women Can Do to Help it Happen by Candice Watters Radical Womanhood: Feminine Faith in a Feminist World by...
How Long Till I Become Holy? (04/17/09 - 13 Comments)
Years ago a Christian band called Hokus Pick used to tour Canada once or twice a year. They were a great bunch of guys who truly loved the Lord. I would often catch them in concert and even promoted a handful of shows for them. Every time they toured, they did so with a different opening band and their tongue-in-cheek boast was that every band who opened for them immediately broke up after the tour....
Reading the Classics - Real Christianity (VII) (04/16/09 - 15 Comments)
So this is it. As of today we've read the final chapter of William Wilberforce's Real Christianity. This marks the seventh classic we've read together. I am going to offer a few closing remarks and then open it for discussion in case you'd like to reflect on the book. And then I guess we'll have to start thinking about what comes next. Discussion In the book's final chapter, Wilberforce offers "Practical Hints for Real Christianity."...
Missing the Forest for all the Trees (04/15/09 - 170 Comments)
John MacArthur has kicked off a bit of controversy with his posts on Song of Solomon and, in particular, with his rationale for doing so--addressing pastors who, when preaching through the book, "employ extremely graphic descriptions of physical intimacy as a way of expounding on the euphemisms in Solomon's poem." In his first two articles he has singled out Mark Driscoll as one he considers a prime offender. This will be the last time the...
The Case for Life (04/14/09 - 23 Comments)
There was a time when my mother was actively involved in the pro-life movement here in the Toronto area. I have many memories of journeying downtown with her, taking the subway and bus with mom, so we could volunteer in some way in the fight against abortion. I have fond memories of it, mostly. At times, though, I am prone to despair as it seems that in the twenty or twenty-five years between then and...
Fighting Fire with Fire (04/13/09 - 39 Comments)
In early 2006, firefighters in Orange County, California, anticipating a dangerous forest fire season, began a controlled burn of 10 acres of canyon land forest. They lit a small fire to prevent a bigger fire, attempting to reduce the amount of flammable material that might serve as tinder during the dry season. They thought everything had gone as planned until the winds shifted and picked up. Somewhere in the brush a hot coal sparked a...
See, What a Morning (04/12/09 - 6 Comments)
It is Easter today, and I woke up thinking about this song, a new favorite Easter hymn. It is written (not surprisingly) as a collaborative effort between Keith Getty and Stuart Townend. You can find at least a couple of different versions of it at Amazon or on iTunes. There is the studio version on the Getty's album In Christ Alone or, the one I prefer, a live recording by Stuart Townend on the album...
The King of the Ages (04/11/09 - 2 Comments)
A few days ago, while studying 1 Timothy, I came across an interesting portion of Philip Ryken's commentary and I thought I'd share it with you. Ryken comments on 1 Timothy 1:17, those verses that inspired a classic hymn of the Christian faith: "To the King of ages, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen." Here is what Ryken says: ***** Demetrius was right to be worried. The Ephesian...
Free Stuff Fridays (04/10/09 - 0 Comments)
With a new Friday comes a new Free Stuff Fridays. We are once again giving away music, this time courtesy of our sponsor Blake Hicks (visit www.blakehicksmusic.com.). Blake is a student at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary where he is completing his second(!) Masters degree. One of those multi-talented types, he is also an excellent graphics artist and musician. He has offered 20 copies of his album Songs of a Pious Heart: A Tribute to...
Behold the Man Upon a Cross (04/10/09 - 4 Comments)
As seems to be the case with most boys, my friends and I went through a stage where we found great joy in tying people to things. In second or third grade we would take turns being the guys who would grab the skipping ropes and twist endless knots, fastening one of our friends to a tree or fence or flag pole. And, of course, we would take turns being the unfortunate one who was...
The Cross He Bore - Outer Darkness (04/10/09 - 3 Comments)
Today is Good Friday and, not coincidentally, today we finish reading The Cross He Bore by Frederick Leahy. It has proven, I think, a valuable read leading to those days we set aside to particularly remember Jesus' death and resurrection. Today's text is Matthew 27:45: "Now from the sixth hour there was darkness over all the land until the ninth hour." Here is a short quote: ***** At Bethlehem, when the Saviour was born, the...
Reading the Classics - Real Christianity (VI) (04/09/09 - 4 Comments)
Today we come to the second-to-last reading in William Wilberforce's Real Christianity. Though I am enjoying this book I can't deny that it is not my favorite of the classics we've been reading. There is lots to enjoy but perhaps not quite as much that stands as a challenge to my faith, at least when compared to Overcoming Sin and Temptation or The Religious Affections. Not to complain, though, as I have derived benefit from...
The Cross He Bore - The King Among Bandits (04/09/09 - 3 Comments)
There is just one day remaining in our thirteen-day read of Frederick Leahy's The Cross He Bore. Tomorrow we will finish just on time to remember the death of Jesus on Good Friday. Meanwhile, today's text is Luke 23:33: "And when they came to the place that is called The Skull, there they crucified him, and the criminals, one on his right and one on his left." Leahy looks at what it means that Jesus...
The Posture of Prayer (04/08/09 - 9 Comments)
In the past week or two I have been thinking a lot about my times of personal devotion, trying to see where I have allowed them to become just the "same old"--where I may have fallen into bad habits or lazy customs. I have been thinking about what I can do to make these times that will serve to help me grow in godliness while at the same ensuring that they are opportunities to bring...
The Cross He Bore - Satan's Cup Refused (04/08/09 - 4 Comments)
Today we come to the eleventh chapter of Frederick Leahy's The Cross He Bore, a book many of us are reading to turn our hearts and minds toward the cross as we prepare to remember Jesus' death and to celebrate his resurrection. Today's text is Mark 15:23: "And they offered him wine mixed with myrrh; but he did not take it." Leahy uses this chapter to look to the cup Jesus refused and to compare...
Book Review - Just Do Something! (04/07/09 - 16 Comments)
To be honest, I don't know that we really need another book--yet another book--on guidance and the will of God. Having said that, there is probably no genre of book I recommend more often than this simply because experience shows that many Christians, too many Christians, do not understand how God expects us to know his will and how we may expect him to guide us to those things that please him. We are blessed...
The Cross He Bore - Outside the Gates (04/07/09 - 3 Comments)
Good Friday is fast approaching and, not coincidentally, we are drawing near to the end of our reading of Frederick Leahy's The Cross He Bore. Today, in chapter 10, Leahy looks to John 19:17 which reads "So they took Jesus, and he went out, bearing his own cross, to the place called the place of a skull, which in Aramaic is called Golgotha." In this chapter Leahy looks to the significance of Jesus being taken...
Evil as Entertainment (04/06/09 - 79 Comments)
The internet is such a strange phenomenon and one we are really only beginning to understand, at least in terms of its impact on society and faith and family and just about everything else. What passes for entertainment on the internet would, at most other times in history, be regarded as shocking or wasteful or disgusting or maybe just plain absurd. Witness the web sites that offer video after video of people cracking bones doing...
The Cross He Bore - The Crown of Thorns (04/06/09 - 2 Comments)
Today we come to chapter 9 of The Cross He Bore by Frederick Leahy. And today the author focuses on the words of John 19:5 and the crown of thorns. "So Jesus came out, wearing the crown of thorns and the purple robe. Pilate said to them, 'Behold the man!'" Leahy looks to the shame, the significance and the wonder of this brutal crown. ***** There he stood, his face bruised, swollen and bleeding, and...
The Cross He Bore - The Butt of Mockery (04/05/09 - 8 Comments)
A week from today we will be celebrating the resurrection of our Lord. Today, those of us who are reading through The Cross He Bore by Frederick Leahy are focusing on the mockery he first endured on his way to the cross. The text is from Matthew 26:67,68: "They spit in his face, and struck him. And some slapped him, saying, 'Prophesy to us, you Christ! Who is it that struck you?'. I will share...
The Cross He Bore - Sentenced to Death (04/04/09 - 3 Comments)
We are now a week into our reading of Frederick Leahy's The Cross He Bore. We are also, of course, just a week away from remembering Jesus' death and celebrating his resurrection. Today's text is Matthew 26:65,66: "Then the high priest tore his robes and said, 'He has uttered blasphemy. What further witnesses do we need? You have now heard his blasphemy. What is your judgment?' They answered, 'He deserves death.'" Here is just a...
Free Stuff Fridays (04/03/09 - 6 Comments)
It is Friday and that means it is time for another round of Free Stuff Fridays. This week's sponsor is Sojourn Music. Sojourn describes itself in this way: "New songs for modern missional worship, rich in Christian teaching and contextualized in modern culture. Contemporary hymns, psalms, songs of lament and praise written by members of the Louisville, KY-based Sojourn Community." Sojourn is currently putting the final touches on a new album, "Over the Grave:...
Technological Transformation (04/03/09 - 5 Comments)
In a couple of weeks I am going to travel to Five Points Community Church in Auburn Hills, Michigan, to lead a Families & Technology Seminar. I will be speaking to the adults while my buddy Matt McAlvey, Pastor of Connections and Communications (say what?) at Parkside Church in Chagrin Falls, Ohio, will be talking to the students. I have really enjoyed preparing for these talks, trying to understand and explain how technology has changed...
The Cross He Bore - Taking the Oath (04/03/09 - 4 Comments)
This is day six of our thirteen days trek through The Cross He Bore by Frederick Leahy. Today's text is from Matthew 26:63,64: "And the high priest said to him, 'I adjure you by the living God, tell us if you are the Christ, the Son of God.' Jesus said to him, 'You have said so.'" In this chapter Leahy continues to look at the farce of a trial Jesus was subjected to by the...
Reading the Classics - Real Christianity (V) (04/02/09 - 4 Comments)
We continue today with our effort to read through William Wilberforce's Real Christianity. As you know, this book seeks to help the reader discern true faith from false beliefs. This week we come to the fourth chapter, "Inadequate Conceptions Concerning the Nature and the Discipline of Practical Christianity." Because this was a very long chapter, I will simply summarize it and provide a few favorite quotes for each of the chapter's headings. Discussion Wilberforce begins...
The Cross He Bore - The Dumb Lamb (04/02/09 - 11 Comments)
This is day five of our thirteen days spent reading The Cross He Bore by Frederick Leahy. Today's text is from Matthew 26:62,63: "The high priest stood up and said, 'Have you no answer to make? What is it that these men testify against you?' But Jesus remained silent." What stood out to me in Leahy's description of this event in the life of Jesus was that his silence was not merely part of his...
Reveling in Humiliation (04/01/09 - 26 Comments)
Some time ago I read Girls Gone Mild, a book by Wendy Shalit. Shalit's first book, A Return to Modesty: Discovering the Lost Virtue was published eight years ago and caused quite a stir. Shalit, an Orthodox Jew, made the audacious claim that the sexual revolution may not have been entirely beneficial for women. She decried the lack of modesty this revolution has brought about and, according to TIME defended "compellingly, shame, privacy, gallantry, and...
The Cross He Bore - Satan's Hour (04/01/09 - 4 Comments)
This is the fourth day of our thirteen days spent reading The Cross He Bore by Frederick Leahy. Today's text is from Luke 22:53: "This is your hour, and the power of darkness." In this chapter Leahy looks to the sovereignty of God and his foreknowledge of all that would come. "This hour was predestined, and because predestined it was prophesied: prophecy depends on predestination." And so all that happened to Christ this night was...
