A Heart Aflame for God was easily one of the top books of 2025, so not surprisingly, it sold out. Westminster Books has it back in stock and back on sale at up to 50% off. (The other major pick for the year, Everything Is Never Enough, is also in stock, though more moderately discounted.)
Today’s Kindle deals include several books that are ideal for children. You’ll find some for grownups too, of course, including Garrett Kell’s excellent Pure in Heart, which I believe is on sale for the first time.
If you’re interested in Bible commentaries, I have created a page that lists volumes that are on sale (in print or Kindle editions) at Amazon. There are tons of great options!
(Yesterday on the blog: To Those Who Married Poorly)
Is There Room in the Church for Me?
“‘Is there room for me in the church?’ This is a question many young men are asking quietly, often to themselves, and rarely out loud. Not because they doubt the truth of the gospel or reject the authority of Scripture, but because they sense that certain social, cultural, or political opinions — opinions not addressed directly by the confessions and not forbidden by Scripture — have become socially disqualifying within the church.”
We Have Dusty Bibles and New iPhones
Do with this information what you will! “Do you know that, on average, we spend over 2 months a year on our phones? In other words, we spend an equivalent of 70 full days in a year using our phones. Let us break it down. According to global research, the average person spends 4 hours and 37 minutes on their phone each day.” (See also: Is Phone Addiction Really That Bad?)
How Do I Know if I’m Called to Serve as a Pastor?
J.V. Fesko answers a common question. I appreciate that he gives attention to both sides of a pastor’s call, the internal and external. (That said, I’ve never been taken with the common counsel that “if you can see yourself doing anything else—don’t pursue the pastorate,” since I don’t see it as a biblical mandate.)
Australia Is Coming Apart: The Church Can Point a Way Forward.
Stephen McAlpine believes Australia is coming apart (in a way similar to many Western nations) and explains how the church can point a way forward. “Where else is there such a levelling of people. Or indeed such a raising up? I have not seen it anywhere else. It does not exist anywhere else. Indeed our rector over coffee a day or so later was observing that in the other communities to which he belongs – those outside the people of faith – there is much talk about togetherness and community. Many ideas about fairness and equality. But talk and ideas are not the same as tangible proof.”
Helping Students Read the Bible for Themselves
“A few years ago, a former student came up to me with a question that sounded simple, but clued me into a deeper problem. He said, ‘Hey, I’ve been reading the book of Mark like you told me to… but now what? I don’t really know what to do after that.’ He wasn’t lazy. He was trying, but like so many students today, he didn’t have a framework for how to read the Bible – no direction or understanding of what he was even looking for.”
Fruitful to the End
Beth Ferguson: “Slowing down feels like fading away. Thankfully, the gospel tells another story. Output and speed do not equal fruitfulness. Old age is not a winding down—but a deepening. Productivity is reframed, not as busyness, but as rootedness; not as the accumulation of achievements, but as the cultivation of character and blessing.”
Flashback: Thoughts on Digital Libraries in 2025
I would never say that electronic libraries are right for everyone or the best option in every situation. I would never say they are without drawbacks. Yet, many years after making the shift, I would say that it was right for me and that I am glad I did it.
Resolve by the grace of God that you will have regular seasons for examining yourself and looking over the accounts of your soul.
—J.C. Ryle
