Here are the books I read and reviewed in 2015. Click a title to read the review…
A Sketch of the Life of George Whitefield
The Surprising Imagination of C.S. Lewis
Here are my book reviews for 2011.
Here are my book reviews for 2012.
Here are my book reviews for 2013.
Here are my book reviews for 2014.
“It’s easy to label what we consider ‘good things’ in our lives as gifts from God and to welcome them with gratitude. But when difficult things happen, we don’t look at them as part of God’s good plan for us. Mary’s example [Luke 1:38] shows us we can also welcome those things we would not necessarily label ‘good,’ confident that God’s gifts sometimes come in perplexing and even painful packages. When we belong to God, we know He will use whatever He allows into our lives for good. Somehow, in God’s hands, these things also become gifts of His grace toward us.” —Nancy Guthrie
“Unless we intend completely to forfeit our holy seasons, and to allow them to be taken captive for the purposes of crass commercialism and narrow-minded narcissism, we need to make the best use of these times as God intends….” —T.M. Moore
“No one who is lost has lost one ounce of value to God. Even if you don’t have a relationship with Him, you have immense value to God. Lostness implies value. Whatever someone is willing to spend to recover something that’s lost shows how valuable that item is. In the most famous verse in the Bible, Jesus clearly explains our value: ‘God loved the world so much that He gave His one and only Son so that whoever believes in Him may not be lost, but have eternal life’ (John 3:16).” —Rick Warren
If you have trouble knowing whether to use their, there, or they’re, this may help.
“By giving to You what You do not need, and what I might enjoy, I am saying more earnestly and more authentically, ‘You are my treasure, not these things.’” —John Piper on fasting
I was going through an Advent reading plan on YouVersion, and I came across this quote: “Each Christmas is practice for the moment of Christ’s second coming, when every knee will bend, either in worship or terror.”
In this video, Brett Kunkle explains from Scripture and from personal observation how we know humans are born into sin.
“Many Christians today…choose to listen only to soft, flesh-assuring preaching. Where there is no convicting word, there can be no godly sorrow over sin. Where there is no godly sorrow for sin, there can be no repentance. And where there is no repentance, there is only hardness of heart.” —David Wilkerson
“We are tempted in our day to be ashamed of the gospel. It is thought to be bare, unintellectual, almost childish by many. Hence, they would overlay it with argument and eloquence, to make it more respectable and more attractive. Every such attempt to add to it is being ashamed of it [Romans 1:16].” —Horatius Bonar
Check out some absolutely stunning pictures from the Hubble Space Telescope!
We are always excited to portray the story of the First Advent at an annual event in Cedar Springs called “Mingle With Kris Kingle.” My thanks to all of the folks from Calvary Assembly of God who help assemble the set and portray the characters from the biblical story each year. Also glad for all of our 4-H shepherds who help us out each year.
“The warrior of God is not the man of muscle and a strong jaw, but the man of un-utterable weakness, the man who knows he has not any power; Jacob is no longer strong in himself, he is strong only in God, his life is no longer marked by striving, but by reliance on God. You cannot imitate reliance on God.” —Oswald Chambers
I normally don’t like having my picture taken, but for the Champions of Change project, Adam Bird did an amazing job with even a face like mine!
Pornography addictions act like any other addiction. Check out this video.
The Overview Bible Project always has great Bible study resources, like this one. If you haven’t subscribed yet, please do so.
“True believers are determined to trust God even if their prayer isn’t answered. It doesn’t matter if all their goods are taken away, or even if they face death. They desire to enter God’s rest. What is the evidence of such a life? They have ‘ceased from [their] own works’ (see Hebrews 4:10). They no longer lie awake at night trying to solve their problems in their own wisdom and skill. Instead, they turn everything over to Jesus. It doesn’t matter whether they end up in gain or loss. Their only focus is that God has a plan, and that He is working it out in their lives.” —David Wilkerson
Seth Godin reminds us that improving our attitude is a skill that can be learned.
J. Warner Wallace shares the exquisite fine-tuning of our universe that points to an Intelligent Designer/Creator.
“Is there anything more freeing, more thrilling, or more strengthening than the truth that God Almighty is your refuge—all day, every day in all the ordinary and extraordinary experiences of life? If we believed this, if we really let this truth of God’s omnipotence get hold of us, what a difference it would make in our personal lives and in our ministries! How humble and powerful we would become for the saving purposes of God!” —John Piper
“All the year round, every hour of every day, God is richly blessing us; both when we sleep and when we wake, His mercy waits upon us. The sun may leave off shining, but our God will never cease to cheer His children with His love. Like a river His lovingkindness is always flowing, with a fulness inexhaustible as His own nature, which is its source. Like the atmosphere which always surrounds the earth, and is always ready to support the life of man, the benevolence of God surrounds all His creatures.” —Charles Spurgeon
Dan Reiland has 5 questions for great communicators.
I was so honored to be nominated as a Champion of Change by some of the wonderful folks I work with in Cedar Springs. Truly honored! Adam Bird is a photographer, and he has partnered with the Heart of West Michigan United Way to create an ArtPrize exhibit that will encourage others to get involved in their community.
Here is a mosaic of all of the Champions of Change in the ArtPrize exhibit—
If you would like to check out some of the other pictures Adam shot of me, please check out his amazing work here.
Here’s how you can help be a Champion of Change:
I thoroughly enjoy photography. Looking at the way a photographer creatively captures his image has always fascinated me, and I’ll never forget the thrill of the first time I developed my own roll of film from my 35mm SLR camera. I’m still learning this art, and Bryan Peterson’s book Learning To See Creatively is a wonderful textbook to help me grow.
Although, it’s really more than just a textbook. The way Bryan walks the reader through the process of seeing the shot, setting up the shot, and processing the shot feels like I was taking a class with him, allowing me to look through his viewfinder with him. This book is chockfull of pictures that are detailed in their account of which lens he used, at what settings, and what point of attraction caught his attention.
God has given us an amazing camera in the eyes He created for us. Learning To See Creatively allows us to capture the way we are seeing the world to share with those around us. What a gift this is! Anyone interested in upping their photographic game will enjoy this book.
I am a Random House book reviewer.
“We are not just connected to Jesus, our Head. We are also joined to each other. The fact is, we can’t be connected to Him without also being joined to our brothers and sisters in Christ.” Read more from David Wilkerson in his post Partakers Of The Bread.
“Hard work spotlights the character of people. Some turn up their sleeves, some turn up their noses, and some don’t turn up at all.” —Sam Ewing
“Grace is an active, present, transformative, obedience-enabling power.” —John Piper
Don’t miss tonight’s meteor shower.
These are some absolutely stunning pictures from National Geographic!
I faced a future all unknown,
“What takes away the compulsion of revenge is our deep confidence that this world is not our home, and that God is our utterly sure and all-satisfying reward.” —John Piper
“Though it is clear as noonday in Scripture and in experience that stability is not to be found beneath the moon, yet men are for ever building upon earth’s quicksand as if it were substantial rock, and heaping up its dust, as though it would not all be blown away.” —Charles Spurgeon
[PHOTOS] 50 photos of Moms loving their kids in very trying times.
This post from a Live Dead team member—The Risk Of Security—reminds me to (1) pray for our front-line missionaries, and (2) pray that God will move on people’s hearts to raise up more missionaries!
How to poison your marriage in 3 easy steps: blame, compare, withdraw. Married couple should definitely read this post.
I love the leadership insights from Tim Elmore. He’s got a thoughtful post today on 2 temptations leaders face in turbulent times.
[VIDEO] Frank Turek and Boby Conway discuss the question: Can Science Disprove God?
Craig T. Owens 