Sunday was the 56th anniversary of the deaths of the missionary martyrs to Ecuador: Jim Elliot, Nate Saint, Peter Fleming, Ed McCully, and Roger Youderian. As I pondered that event, I began to think about the impact of their deaths and how the Lord has used it both in the short-term and in the long-term.…
Did you make any resolutions this new year? If you didn’t, Burk Parsons’ Tabletalk article from a few years ago may persuade you to think again. Burk argues that the Bible gives us good reasons for making resolutions, as long as we make them sensibly, dependently, humbly, and for Christ’s sake. The beginning of a…
When it comes to Christians and the question of abortion, nearly all of us probably fall into one of three categories. 1) To some degree we are active in the pro-life cause. 2) We sometimes wonder whether we should be. 3) We are aware that abortion is a serious issue, but we have never taken…
I’ve been at this blogging thing for quite a long time now–a bit over 9 years. I’ve been at the daily blogging thing for almost as long. This means that I’ve got an extensive backlist of articles from years gone by. I thought it might be fun to pull out some of the articles I…
It’s January 1 today, and that means that I’ve got a desktop wallpaper for you to download. For the next few months at least I’ve decided to change things up a bit. Instead of putting out a public call for wallpapers, I am asking just one designer to create a fantastic design. A few notes:…
Lots of 2011 “best of” or “top ten” lists are coming out these days; it’s kind of a year-end tradition in the Internet age. I’ve already posted my top books of the year, but I thought it would be helpful or at least interesting to list some of these other lists—a top ten of top…
2011 was a great year for books. While I did not read as many books in 2011 as I have in previous years, I still read quite a few. Today I want to share some of my top picks from the year that was. Let me offer the usual caveats that these are almost certainly…
Last week I asked if you are interested in taking The 3650 Challenge with me–to read or listen to 3,650 chapters of the Bible in 2012. A lot of you said that you are interested, so today I want to launch this plan in earnest. Through 2012 I plan to use Professor Horner’s Bible Reading…
It has been just over a year now since Cruciform Press released its first book–my very own Sexual Detox. I can’t deny that I’m proud of what we’ve accomplished since then. We have now published 14 great books (1 a month) and have many more in the works. We wanted to thank you, the people…
I have never been much of a fan of audio books. For many years I worked from home and found that it was far easier to read than to listen. However, since I became a pastor I have spent endless hours commuting and have looked for ways to redeem that time. I use it to…
Last year I put together a list of unique Christmas gift ideas. This year I wanted to reprise that post while adding and taking away a couple of items. Here are 9 unique gifts you might offer someone for Christmas this year–things that may not be on your radar but would still make a good…
It’s December 1 today, and that means that I’ve got a desktop wallpaper for you to download. For the next few months at least I’ve decided to change things up a bit. Instead of putting out a public call for wallpapers, I am asking just one designer to create a fantastic design. A few notes:…
Cyber Monday is a new tradition–the day that online retailers offer deals to match or surpass the deals offered by retailers on Black Friday. I have been keeping tabs on various online stores and ministries looking for deals that will be of particular interest to Christians. Here are some excellent Cyber Monday deals: Deals removed…
By popular request, here is a listing of some of the best Black Friday book deals for Christian readers. Note that most of these are Friday-only deals and that in many cases there is limited inventory. In other words, don’t dawdle! $5 and less: Bibles: Other Notable Book Deals: Audio Books: eBooks
Around this time last year I let you know about a new book that provides background and commentary for Handel’s Messiah. And now I want to encourage you to take in a performance of Messiah this Christmas season. And just to get you started, I’ve done some of the work, at least for those of…
It’s November 1 today, and that means that I’ve got a whole new batch of amazing desktop wallpaper designs for you to download. Thanks to each of this month’s designers for sending along some amazing work (and for a couple of young, future designers as well). A few notes: 320 x 480 is for your…
It’s October 1 today, and that means that I’ve got a whole new batch of amazing desktop wallpaper designs for you to download. Thanks to each of this month’s designers for sending along some amazing work. A few notes: 320 x 480 is for your iPhone; 1024 x 1024 is for your iPad; your desktop…
If you keep up with this blog, you know that I’ve been trying to learn how other people–pastors in particular–organize their prayer life. The fact is that I am a forgetful person and, at heart, a selfish one. Yet I want to pray for the things that I ought to pray for–the things that are…
Charles Leiter’s book Justification & Regeneration has been available since 2007. At least, it has been available in English since 2007. More recently it has been translated into several other langauges. The author has given me permission to distribute the files. Here is a description: What does the Bible mean when it says that Christians…
It’s September 1 and that means that I’ve got a whole new batch of amazing desktop wallpaper designs for you to download. Thanks to each of this month’s designers for sending along some amazing work. A few notes: 320 x 480 is for your iPhone; 1024 x 1024 is for your iPad; your desktop or…