I’m one day late posting this, but I trust the wait is worth it. Here is this month’s selection of desktop wallpaper calendars, all free for the download. There are wallpapers here for your computer, your iPhone, your iPad or just about any other device you might like to dress us. Enjoy!

A few notes: 320 x 480 is for your iPhone; 1024 x 1024 is for your iPad; your desktop or laptop may take any of the other sizes depending on your monitor size and a host of other considerations. If you’re not sure of the size, just find one that looks like it would be pretty much the same size as your screen. Generally you set one of these are your wallpaper by clicking on the link to the image, then right-clicking on the image (once it’s open) and selecting “Set as Background,” “Set as Desktop Background,” or something similar.

In Glorious Day

Created by Eric Novak from Chicago, IL.

• without calendar: 1280x800, 1280x900, 1280x1024, 1366x768, 1440x900, 1600x1200, 1680x1050, 1920x1080, 1920x1200, 2560x1440

Risen Indeed

Created by Jeff Nine, Denver, CO. Alleluia! Christ is Risen! He is risen indeed! Alleluia!

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Bursting Forth

Created by Harold Sikkema, Hamilton, Canada. In April, I’m grateful for new life, for modern hymnwriters, and for my mother’s decade-spanning button collection.

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• with calendar: 320x480, 1024x768, 1024x1024, 1280x800, 1280x1024, 1366x768, 1440x900, 1680x1050, 1900x1200, 2560x1440

This afternoon, and for quite a few Wednesday afternoons to follow, I’ve got something I think you’ll enjoy. It’s a series of short films created by David Murray that focus on Christ’s appearances in the Old Testament as the Angel of the Lord. This week’s episode is titled “Bonus Gospel.”

The DVD and Study Guide (sample here) are available for pre-order, and will be launched at The Gospel Coalition Conference Preaching Christ from the Old Testament on April 12.

However, you can buy the digital download of the whole series here for $5. Or visit Ligonier’s online store in the next few days for the download and also to pre-order the DVD and Study Guide.

Every Wednesday for the next ten weeks, check in here at the blog for a time-limited streaming version of each episode. And now, to get you started, here is the first episode:

David Murray is Professor of Old Testament and Practical Theology at Puritan Reformed Theological Seminary in Grand Rapids, Michigan. He was a pastor in Scotland for 12 years before coming to Grand Rapids in 2007 with his wife Shona and their four children. He blogs regularly at Head Heart Hand.

A couple of months ago Crossway released Don’t Call it a Comeback: The Old Faith for a New Day. I contributed a chapter to that book titled “Jesus Christ: The Only Way and Our Only Hope.” This chapter deals with religious pluralism, inclusivism and exlusivism, all words and terms that have become hot topics because of Rob Bell’s book Love Wins (my review). Crossway has excerpted that chapter and made it available to you as a free PDF.

You can download it here: Jesus Christ: The Only Way and Our Only Hope.

Alternatively, if you would like to read it in your browser using Issuu, click here.

Here is how the chapter begins…

We live within a pluralistic culture of many faiths. Most often, the faiths coexist peacefully. This is good. Living in multicultural Toronto, a city in which over 50 percent of the population was born in another country, I have seen this religious diversity firsthand. As people immigrate to Toronto, they bring with them their religion. My son's best friend at school is Muslim, the neighbor across the road from us is Buddhist, and just down the way is a Hindu from South Africa. Atheists, Roman Catholics, universalists, Mormons--all of them are within a stone's throw of my front door. Look closely and you can even find the occasional evangelical. Within just our small neighborhood is a virtual pantheon.

While we regret the necessity of this pluralism, wishing that all men would be saved and come to a knowledge of Jesus Christ, we are grateful for laws that allow us freedom to worship our Savior. We may not agree with the tenets of other faiths, but if every religion has freedom, we will too. This religious pluralism allows us to worship Jesus Christ in freedom and peace, without fear of interference or persecution. It is a profound blessing.

Last month, on February 1, I offered up a list of desktop wallpapers that were free for you to download and use on your computer, iPhone, iPad or other device. That turned out to be a hit, so here we are on March 1 with another list of wallpapers. Each of these has been designed by a Christian graphic designer or artist and each of them is free for you to download—just click the appropriate link and save the image.

A few notes: 320 x 480 is for your iPhone; 1024 x 1024 is for your iPad; your desktop or laptop may take any of the other sizes depending on your monitor size and a host of other considerations. If you’re not sure of the size, just find one that looks like it would be pretty much the same size as your screen. Generally you set one of these are your wallpaper by clicking on the link to the image, then right-clicking on the image (once it’s open) and selecting “Set as Background,” “Set as Desktop Background,” or something similar.

I’d like to get a bit of buzz going about this post, so I’ll keep an eye on anyone who tweets it or links to it on a blog; I’ll give away a few Westminster Books gift certificates to those kind enough to do so.

March

Created by Shannon Brown, Rockford, IL.

• with calendar: 1280x800, 1280x960, 1280x1024, 1600x1200, 1920x1080, 1920x1200, 2560x1440, 2560x1600

New Every Morning

Created by Zack Kirby, Raleigh, NC.

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Gregory Wilbur says “One of my favorite missions hymns is ‘How Sweet and Awesome’ mostly because it marries good theology and evangelistic fervor so beautifully. This text by Joseph Cottle does the same thing. God's sovereignty and Lordship is strongly proclaimed while entreating the spread of the Gospel for His glory's sake.  It seemed most appropriate to set these lyrics to a strong and majestic melody.  Having this song sung by men's chorus is a great reminder of the necessity of vigorous music in the life of the Church.”

You can buy the song or album at iTunes and Amazon.

Mighty Lord, extend Your kingdom, Be the truth with triumph crowned;
Let the lands that sit in darkness Hear the glorious Gospel sound,
From our borders, From our borders, To the world's remotest bound.

By Your arm, eternal Father, Scatter far the shades of night;
Let the great Immanuel's kingdom Open like the morning light;
Let all barriers,  Let all barriers, Yield before Your heavenly might.

Come in all Your Spirit's power; Come, Your reign on earth restore;
In Your strength ride forth and conquer, Still advancing more and more,
Till all people, Till all people, Shall Your holy Name adore.

Every Friday Ligonier Ministries has a $5 Friday special where they put a selection of their products on sale for the ridiculously low price of $5. This week they want to allow you to choose one of these items. I’ve got a list of 5 items here and one of them will be available this Friday at Ligonier’s store for just $5.

So leave a comment and let me know which one you’d like to see for $5. And then on Friday if you’ve got a few dollars you’d like to spend, you’ll be able to order it from them.

Sound good? Here’s the list (along with links to product information):

• What Is Reformed Theology? (CD)
• The Holiness of God (CD or DVD)
• The Prince’s Poison Cup
• R.C. Sproul’s commentary on John
• Surprised by Suffering

This may be the strangest memory of my entire childhood: at some point I acted in a class play in which I played the role of February. Yes, February. I was a whiny little month, complaining that I was the shortest month and also the one that no one likes because the weather always stinks. I don’t remember how the play ended. Actually, I don’t remember if I had the audience eating out of my hand or if I stank it up. I probably stank it up.

The fact is that February just isn’t the best month—it’s that one between the start of a new year and the start of Spring. But you know what will help brighten it a little bit? Some amazing desktop wallpaper. And so I asked a whole lot of graphic designers if they would like to come up with wallpaper that is appropriate for the month. And now it’s free for you to download.

So go ahead—brighten up your month and download some great wallpaper.

A few notes: 320 x 480 is for your iPhone; 1024 x 1024 is for your iPad; your desktop or laptop may take any of the other sizes depending on your monitor size and a host of other considerations. You may need to ask your computer-whiz nephew to help you figure out the one that’s best.

See the Love

Created by Daniel Spencer.

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Those Who Have Faith

Created by Chelms Varthoumlien.

• with calendar: 1024x768, 1280x800, 1280x1024, 1440x900, 1680x1050, 1920x1080, 1920x1200, 2560x1440

Love Never Fails

Designed by Eric Novak.

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• without calendar: 1280x800, 1280x960, 1280x1024, 1440x900, 1600x1200, 1680x1050, 1920x1080, 1920x1200, 2560x1440

Some time ago I was asked by Kevin DeYoung if I would be interested in contributing a chapter to a book that came to be called Don’t Call It a Comeback: The Old Faith for a New Day. Here’s what the book is all about: “Recent cultural interest in evangelicalism has led to considerable confusion about what the term actually means. Many young Christians are tempted to discard the label altogether. But evangelicalism is not merely a political movement in decline or a sociological phenomenon on the rise, as it has sometimes been portrayed. It is, in fact, a helpful theological profile that manifests itself in beliefs, ethics, and church life. DeYoung and other key twenty- and thirty-something evangelical Christian leaders present Don't Call It a Comeback: The Same Evangelical Faith for a New Day to assert the stability, relevance, and necessity of Christian orthodoxy today. This book introduces young, new, and under-discipled Christians to the most essential and basic issues of faith in general and of evangelicalism in particular.”

I contributed a chapter on how Jesus Christ is the only way to the Father.

The book has just released and is now available at Amazon and Westminster Books (and everywhere else, I suppose).

If you’re interested, here is some more information about the book, including the Table of Contents (along with the authors) and a few endorsements:

A little while ago I wrote a little “point of interest” article on Canadian candy. Whenever I do something like that, I inevitably get hate mail from people who think I need to focus only on very serious topics. It appears that a few people out there like my site so much that they’ll send me nasty emails when I don’t deliver what they want. I don’t get it. Anyway, I wanted to offer a follow-up to that article today (even if it means more emails). As you recall, I sent a package of distinctly Canadian treats to a few readers of this site and 2 of them have now sent through their thoughts.

The first box went to a family in Texas and here is what they have to say:

I received the goods on Monday, and my four children (ages 15, 15, 12, and 10) and wife and I all shared them the next day.

The Canadian foods included-

• Aero bar
• Turtles
• Cadbury Caramilk
• Mars bar
• Nestle Coffee Crisp bar
• Cadbury Crispy Crunch bar
• Nestle Smarties
• Mackintosh’s Toffee
• Hostess Hickory Sticks
• Lays Ketchup Potato Chips

As Tim suggested, none of these are regularly available in this part of the US; the Turtles do show up here during Easter and Valentine's holidays in boxed candy.  And because we are in the Texas Panhandle, we are not likely to see much Canadian candy that accidentally blows across the border.  So these items were mostly all new to us.

My favorite was the Coffee Crisp bar.  I thought it was fantastic.  Three of my four children and wife also regarded it as their favorite.  It was the clear winner.  It had the consistency of a Kit Kat bar, with a mild coffee flavor.  In my opinion, it would sell well in the US.  My family would certainly buy it.  Starbuck's Coffee ought to start stocking it...it would sell very well there, I think.

I probably should have posted this a week ago, but time kind of got away from me. That happens sometimes. Nevertheless, I think this is still a valuable little article. I wanted to draw your attention to 10 unique gifts you might offer someone for Christmas this year—things that may not be on your radar but would still make a good and thoughtful gift for a loved one.

Here they are, in no particular order:

Tabletalk - Ligonier Ministries’ Tabletalk magazine makes a great gift. Every month it features articles by well-known authors, daily Bible studies, a Bible reading guide, and more. And in 2010 it is even going to have a monthly article from John Piper. It costs $23 within the US, $37 internationally.

Reformation Art - How about some art work for the church history enthusiast in your life? Reformation Art reproduces fine art photographic prints of the key figures and events of the Protestant Reformation, and the Presbyterian and Reformed tradition. They have all kinds of great prints available, all of which are produced in high quality and suitable for framing.

Historic Bibles - Or how about historic Bibles? A whole Bible would be out of reach for most of us, but a single page can be framed and make a nice gift. Historic Bibles offers Bible leaves and illuminated manuscripts in English, Latin, Greek, and German. Prices begin at $39. You can visit Geneva Bible Pages to buy leaves from just the Geneva Bible.

Spurgeon Pages - Sticking to a theme here, how about pages from an original sermon manuscript from C.H. Spurgeon? With your order you get one sermon manuscript page amended by Spurgeon, one Certificate of Validation and Authenticity from Spurgeon's College, one printed page with sermon title, text, portion of sermon printed out and one picture of Spurgeon that is suitable for framing.

Visual Verses - I saw Visual Verses at the True Woman conference in Texas a couple of months ago. I’m not convinced that the pictures on the web site really do them justice. Essentially they are passages of Scripture written out but with certain words highlighted or darkened in order to create a picture. Personally I think they are really funky and certainly they are unique!

Hopeink - I somehow came across this Etsy seller a little while ago and thought that her work was really good. Hunt around Etsy and you can find all sorts of other sellers who create interesting and originals pieces of art.

Kindle - OK, so it may not be that unique since it’s the most-gifted item at Amazon, but it’s certain a gift that most people will love. And it sure seems that e-readers are hitting the tipping point where they are no longer mere novelties but a significant part of the future of reading. This article from the New York Times is typical. “Publishers and booksellers are expecting that instead of giving your mother a new Nicholas Sparks novel or your father a David Baldacci thriller in the hardcovers that traditionally fly off the shelves and into wrapping paper at this time of year, you might elect to convert them to e-reading.” With prices falling fast (down to $189 for the 3G version and $139 for the WiFi version) there’s never been a better time to jump into the market.

Microfinance - For the person who would rather give than get, you might consider a microfinancing gift certificate—a way that your loved one can help sponsor a business in a developing country. Kiva and World Vision both offer you this ability. “Make this a Merry Christmas for your loved ones with a gift that lets them change the world. A Micro Loan Gift Card lets your family and friends choose a hard-working entrepreneur to help by funding their small business loan-to buy a sewing machine, a bicycle, training, or whatever will put their families on the pathway to success. ”

Now pardon me while I offer a couple that involve some level of self-interest but, I think, are no less worthy of being on this list (especially if you’re talking about “unique” gifts):

Cruciform Press Subscription - One of the unique things we offer at Cruciform Press (the publishing company I’ve co-founded) is subscriptions. Because our books are all one price and come out on a regular schedule, we can offer subscriptions to print books or e-books and we offer them at great prices. Just like subscribing to a magazine, you’ll receive a new book each month in either printed or e-book format.

Friends of the Blog - I’ve begun offering Friends of the Blog gift subscriptions, and a lot of people have already taken me up on the offer. For just $39 (or $34 if you’re already a Friend of the Blog) you can give your friend a subscription that will come with 5 books of their choice, 10 downloadable albums, a subscription to Christianity Today, and more.