I’m writing this from my hotel room in Louisville, Kentucky, where I’m gearing up for tomorrow’s Band of Bloggers event and the start of the Together for the Gospel 2012 conference. (Yes, the guy who posts an average of eight times a year is going to an event for bloggers. Hey, we can’t all be Tim Challies.)
I couldn’t be at this conference at all were it not for my wonderful wife, Naomi. Not only did she give me this trip as a 40th birthday present (best present EVER, by the way!), but she also is holding down the fort this week, including the start of softball season for one child, final rehearsals for the school play for another child, and the general trials of being a parent of four kids – only she’s doing it without any help from me at all. Only a woman who loves Jesus and loves her husband would do such a thing, and I want to publicly thank her. You’re the best, Naomi!
Also, I want to publicly thank my church. The dear folks at Little Brown Chapel Community Church surprised me yesterday with a check to enable me to purchase some much-needed ministry books at the conference. I love you guys, and I am honored to serve and shepherd you!
April 10 2012 | Uncategorized | 1 Comment »
This summer, my wife and I wanted to challenge our oldest daughter with some challenging reading material that would both stretch her mind and strengthen her faith. A few books immediately came to mind, and I solicited suggestions from Facebook friends to get more ideas. After some collating, I’ve put together the final list of books my 10-year-old will be reading this summer. I’d recommend any of these books to any teenager or preteen with good reading skills.
- Basic Christianity by John Stott
- Desiring God: Meditations of a Christian Hedonist by John Piper
- Dug Down Deep by Joshua Harris
- The Holiness of God by R. C. Sproul
- Do Hard Things by Alex and Brett Harris
Just missing the cut, but still recommended: Don’t Waste Your Life, The Pleasures of God, and God is the Gospel by John Piper, The Screwtape Letters by C. S. Lewis, Putting Amazing Back Into Grace by Michael Horton, and Knowing God by J. I. Packer.
June 28 2010 | Uncategorized | No Comments »
It seems to be trendy to post a summer reading list, so like a lemming, here I go with mine:
- The Cross of Christ (John Stott)
- The Apostolic Preaching of the Cross (Leon Morris)
- Pierced for Our Transgressions (Jeffery/Ovey/Smith)
- In My Place Condemned He Stood (Packer/Dever)
- Fifty Reasons Why Jesus Came to Die (John Piper)
- The Cross He Bore (Frederick Leahy)
- A War Like No Other: How the Athenians and Spartans Fought the Peloponnesian War (Victor Davis Hanson)
- Do Hard Things: A Teenage Rebellion Against Low Expectations (Alex and Brett Harris – audiobook)
- Hebrews: Reformed Expository Commentary (Richard Phillips)
Most of the above titles are on my list because I’m planning an adult Sunday school class for my church this fall on the subject of the cross. (To clarify: I don’t know if the class will actually be approved by the powers-that-be. I’ve proposed the class, and gotten a “maybe” as a response; I’m preparing the materials over the summer so that I’ll be ready to go if the class is green-lighted.) I plan to focus on the different ways the Bible talks about what was secured for believers (or on behalf of believers) on the cross – justification, propitiation, reconciliation, etc.
The Hanson title is my “beach reading” book – or it would be if any beach time were in the works for the summer. Instead of the beach, I’m getting a new baby girl. (I’ll take that trade!) I like ancient history, and I like Hanson’s work in general. (I’m one chapter in already, and am enjoying it very much.)
I picked up the audiobook version of Do Hard Things the other day while I was at a bookstore to pick up a computer book for a work project. It’s targeted at teenagers, but 1/3 of the way through the book, the Harris boys are doing a fine job of challenging this 36-year-old. When I’m finished with it, I’ll probably give the CD’s to my church’s youth group. (Drew – you want it?)
I’m also starting to study my way through Hebrews, and the Phillips commentary will be a good resource for that.
I’ll post reviews as I get through each of the above works. (I’ve read a few of them before, but I plan to tackle them again this summer.)
June 29 2008 | Uncategorized | 1 Comment »