Comfort In, Dump Out

Here is some good advice when suffering, and when connected, either closely or more distantly, with those who are suffering. Follow this link.

An Absolute Must-Read

I am tempted to say, "If you read only one book this year, this should be it!"  I really am.  Suffice to say, I picked it up yesterday for the first time, and finished it today.  It's only about 150 pages, but it is all the way through a powerful testimony of God's grace to sinners.
I picked it up because of the uniqueness of the story it tells: it is the story of a woman who, in her mid-thirties, was a tenured professor of Culture Studies (if you know anything about post-modernism, you have some idea of what that means--let's just say she was not exactly a "social conservative"), and in a monogamous lesbian relationship.  And then God's irresistible grace got a hold of her--not overnight, but through the friendship of a pastor and his wife who welcomed her into his home, and just listened and asked questions at first.  That's an attention-grabbing summary.
But I kept reading it because of the way her story taught me about the nature of the call of the gospel; what repentance looks like; how the author wrote very perceptibly about the nature of sin, including sexual sin; and how, though I do not appear, in the eyes of many Christians to be quite so much in need of redemption as this woman was--I am every bit of it.  Excellent, excellent book.  I agree with Westminster professor and pastor Carl Trueman, whose recommendation runs like this: "I cannot recommend this book highly enough.  I do not agree with everything she says; but I did learn from everything she wrote.  It deserves the widest possible readership."
You can purchase the book from wtsbooks.com by clicking here.  Why not get a couple to give away?

Is God Anti-Gay?

That is the title of a short book that just came out.  It is written by an English pastor who, as he puts it, experiences same-sex attraction.  I just ordered a few copies (wtsbooks.com has them at a deep discount this week), so if you are at Covenant and would like one, they will be available. It should be good for anyone who has struggled with same-sex attraction, or knows someone who has.
Another book that I just ordered, and which also comes highly recommended, is called Love into Light. I hope to read both during August, and will let you know what they are like.
The Internet has naturally exploded with viewpoints on gay marriage, in light of the recent Supreme Court decisions.  But surprisingly, on a local level, I have not heard much conversation about this one, especially from church friends, pastors, etc.  So as I read these books, I may have a few more things to say about that in the coming weeks.
In the meantime, here is a "trailer" for the first book I mentioned that is worth a listen:

How do you teach the Bible to your children?

How do you teach the Bible to your children?  Is the Bible--especially the Old Testament--filled with examples of doing good, and God loves those who do good?  If you don't "dare to be a Daniel" does God stop loving you?
Follow this link for a good description, by Sally Lloyd-Jones (who wrote the Jesus Storybook Bible that we have read with our children).  She reflects on how she was taught the Bible primarily as a source for moral direction, but then came to see the Bible as one book with one theme: redemption through Jesus Christ for sinners.  Read and ponder.

Always something new in China

Yes, that's true: always something new in China.  Have you ever heard of Jackson Hole--Beijing, China?  Have a look:

American sentenced in North Korea

Here is a report from the British newspaper "The Guardian" about an American who was recently sentenced to hard labor in North Korea:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2013/may/02/north-korea-kenneth-bae-hard-labour
While in Yanji last year (Yanji is just across the border from N. Korea) we met many people who were working in Rason, the place where he was arrested.  Don't forget to pray for N. Korea.

For "Calvinism"

We have recently been watching and discussing R.C. Sproul's video series Chosen by God in one of our Sunday School classes.  Naturally, though our church is "Calvinist" in its confession, this has not always been easy for everyone to grab hold of.  Everything in our culture and, for many, our upbringing, screams against a God who is that sovereign.
Well, Mike Horton has recently written a book called For Calvinism. (You can buy the book at wtsbooks.com for $10.86, or get the Kindle version for $3.79 from Amazon).   Interestingly the foreword is by Roger Olson, a friend of Horton's and a committed Arminian (who in turn earlier wrote a book, Against Calvinism).
So far I have only read the introduction and the foreword, but even that much has been very worthwhile.  Incidentally, "Calvinism" is not anyone's favorite way to refer to this, including Horton.  Much better is simply to call what Calvin (and Augustine and Paul before him) taught "the doctrines of grace."
Now you might think this is for theological eggheads only.  I encourage you to read Horton's introduction (you may even be able to do that online without reading the book :)).  I think many Christians (and non-Christians) may think that all that we need to do is just be good people.  History has shown, however, that cultural "goodness" is something that cannot be passed on apart from a deeper understanding of God--and without reflecting on what his Word teaches.  And that, even a cursory glance of the Bible shows, is more than superficial goodness.  So go on--read it!

A Glimpse of Average Life in China

Check out this video for an interesting look at one young man's daily life in Shanghai--a window cleaner at Shanghai's World Trade Center (our family met with a dozen of my former students at a pub in the basement of this building last May).  Very well-done video, worth a few minutes' time.