In this short clip, Joe shares a helpful little set of bullet points from his book that will help you and your people better understand the role of the Law in the life of teh Christian today.

BTW, you should go get Joe’s book Note to Self HERE

Listen. Learn. Tweet.

i could think of a million books i wanna read, but here are just a few choices for my summer reading hit list.
now, if there is something you think i can’t go without reading, fill me in and quit being selfish.

(click book to open in amazon.com)
   
       

obviously if I read all of these, none of you would never see me. however, if I at least read half, I would be a happy camper.

 -S

It’s that time of year again. Hot, humid, usually a little less busy. A great time to get outside, be active and all that jazz. Or, if that’s not your thing, it’s a great time to get around to reading some quality books. And good news, there are some fantastic books that are hot off the press this summer. Or maybe you want to tackle something a little older and more difficult. Either way, you’ve got two months, and here’s a little list to point you in the right direction|

New Books For Summer 2011|

Note To Self | Joe Thorn

Every so often a little book comes along and packs a disproportionate punch that sticks with you. This happens to be one of those books. Released early last month, it’s already one of the books I’ve been recommending continually to folks. On the Christian discipline of preaching the gospel to yourself, it reads and resonates like a personal journal of a man learning to believe the gospel in the everyday. I reviewed Note To Self a while back, to learn a little bit more about this book you can read that review here. And it’s available on the cheap (under 9$) at Westminster Bookstore.     

The Essential Edwards Collection

New this year, Owen Strachan and Doug Sweeney have put together a 5 books set summarizing the life, teaching and theology of Jonathan Edwards. I am in the middle of this set right now and so far I am thoroughly enjoying it. It mixes the writings of Edwards with the practical exposition of Strachan and Sweeney. Which is really helpful, because Jonathan Edwards kind of intimidates me, to be completely honest. I certainly wouldn’t say it’s changed my life, but it’s a really good foot in the door to reading those old dead theologians who use big words and are about 50x smarter than I will ever be. And the whole set is under 30$ at Westminster Bookstore (35% cheaper than Amazon).

The Greener Grass Conspiracy | Stephen Altrogge

Get a hold of this book. Incredibly helpful and practical Lloyd-Jonesian look at Christian contentment. It’s a small book, and will probably only take you a few days to get through, but it’s worth getting. Check out my review from last month for more info. (And it’s cheap >10$ here)

Classic Summer Reads

Lipstick Traces : A Secret History of the 20th Century | Greil Marcus

Ever sat and pondered the complex relationship between late 70′s punk rock, Dadaism and postmodernity? I hadn’t either until reading Greil Marcus. Probably my favorite musical historian, and an author that I wish I had read his entire catalogue. The book is complicated and arduous, and will probably take up most of your summer. But it’s worth it, you’ll come out of Lipstick Traces with a newfound respect for Johnny Rotten and look at culture a little differently. This is rock and roll: in book form. Available for 20$ and under at Amazon

Infinite Jest | David Foster Wallace

Confession: This has been sitting on my nightstand for like a month now. It’s big and its intimidating, but with all the hype around it and Wallace’s influence in modern writing makes this a must read for any bibliophile. Be warned, you’ll get really really psyched up to read Infinite Jest, but if you don’t act on it, you will never read it. But this is as good a summer as any to jump in. And for under ten bucks on Kindle, why not?

Systematic Theology | Wayne Grudem

This is another one of those that has been staring longingly at me from my bookshelf. And to be fair, this is a fantastic reference book, and I have read individual chapters here and there, but I’ve yet to read this 1200 word mastodon of a theological study. Maybe next summer… But it’s not to late for you! For only 30 dollars at Westminster bookstore you can pick this bad boy up for 40% under retail price. Regardless of whether or not you actually sit down and read this cover to cover, Grudem’s Systematic Theology proves handy time and time again.

It’s already early June, time to work in the garden, go to farmers markets and spend muggy afternoons in an air-conditioned living room plugging away at your summer reading project. Hopefully this brief and incomplete list will help give you some direction, or at least be that voice in the back of your head telling you to dust off that old hardback and dig it. Because reading is knowledge, and knowledge is good, yo!

Happy readings from GCC.

http://theresurgence.com/2011/05/29/ordo-salutis

Here’s a snatch:

[T]he adjectival form of aion is the way the Greeks expressed our concept of “forever.”  Jesus said that those who believe in him with have zoen ainion–a life that never ends (John 3:16).  Jesus is not telling us that we will transcend time or be taken up into some higher, supernatural realm, for as bodily creatures we will always live within the boundaries of space and time.  We will never step outside of time into God’s realm, but we will live forever in our redeemed creation.  Scripture describes this as everlasting life, a life that begins in this age (aion) and continues through every age to come.  Thus, the biblical writers do understand “forever” as “a uniform measurement of time, like days and years, marching endlessly into the future,” and they describe this passing of time with the adjectival form of the term aion.  (37-38)

This kind of clear, compelling, richly informed answer is littered throughout Christ Alone.  Buy the book, and buy one for a confused friend.  And hope that in the future, Wittmer picks back up with his practice of titling his books according to eighties pop songs, which is one of the strongest commendations of his work I can think of (great blog, too).

Next up, with Phil Newton, Brian Croft has published Conduct Gospel-Centered Funerals: Applying the Gospel at the Unique Challenges of Death (DayOne, 2011).  This is another practical text written by Croft that handles a needful matter of ministry: funerals.  Think about it.  Pastors will do many over the course of a career.  But what resources cover how to do them from a Christocentric perspective?  This is a needed and rich book.

Consider this excellent section on logistics of the service:

Depending on the situation, arrive at the location of the funeral service fifteen to thirty minutes before the funeral starts.  This allows you time to greet the family, check in with the funeral director, and ensure that plans haven’t changed since the director last talked with you (because they often do change).  This will also prevent what would be one of the most embarrassing moments of your ministry–being late to conduct a funeral (trust me–I know).  Inform the funeral director at this time whether you will ride with him to the gravesite or drive on your own in the procession.  Make sure that all those involved in the service are accounted for and have prepared what you have asked of them.  It is ideal to gather together others involved in the service a few minutes before starting in order to talk through the service, praying for the Lord to awaken souls to the gospel and comfort his hurting people.  (71)

As you can see, this is terrific counsel from a wise, godly undershepherd.  Pick up this little book and others like it (here and here).  You’ll thank Brian later.  Check out his helpful blog, too.

Do you preach to yourself?  You should.  Joe Thorn wants to help you do just that.  His Note to Self: The Discipline of Preaching to Yourself (Crossway/RE:LIT, 2011, foreword by Sam Storms) will guide you in this discipline that the Puritans championed.  The short, easy-to-read book packs a powerful punch in its 48 short chapters, each of which tackles a certain sin or struggle that requires self-exhortation to defeat.  Joe is a faithful pastor of Redeemer Fellowship in Saint Charles, Illinois; his gifts show through in this book.

A snippet:

Dear Self,

You should be sowing more grace.  You should be more generous with your time, money, and gifts.  The people around you, especially those who are unfriendly or even cross, need grace.  Consider how you often give what you think is justice–that is, what you think people deserve.  You tip less for bad service, ignore people who have snubbed you, or sigh and roll your eyes at the person taking up too much space at the coffeehouse.  You may not be doing evil, but you are not doing good. (75)

You see how helpful this book is (as is Joe’s blog).  It avoids the mistake of thinking that because we prize the gospel, we don’t need direct, specific engagement with sin.  We desperately do.  In general, the perspective of the book challenges us to take dominion of our sins, not to wallow in them.  Everywhere we have a weakness, that is where God desires to work.  All the things that Satan intends to discourage us by, God intends to encourage us as through the power of his Spirit he kills our sin.

If you’re lazy, if you’re lustful, if you’re angry, if you’re gluttonous, if you’re a liar, if you’re critical, if you find it easy to hate and grow jealous, if you are passive, if you don’t read the Bible or pray, if you don’t serve the church–in these and 100,000 other areas, God desires to perform surgery.  Everywhere there is sin, there is an opportunity for Christocentric dominion over that sin.  Joe helps us to see this truth, and that in itself is more than enough to commend the book.

Review by Nick Rynerson

Click Here to Pre-Order from Amazon.com

Last week (4/12-4/14) at The Gospel Coalition 2011 we were loaded up with free stuff (or, swag, if you will). Even more so for us bloggers fortunate enough to attend Band of Bloggers on Tuesday. It was a fantastic time listening to Steve McCoy, Justin Taylor and a bunch of other dudes discuss blogging and the Gospel. On the Band of Bloggers panel was Church Planter and fellow Acts 29 guy Joe Thorn. Thorn is a great guy and I have had the pleasure of meeting and listening to on several occasions, so when I found out he was writing a book and it was getting published though Re:Lit, I was stoked. I was even more stoked when I found out those signed up for Band of Bloggers would be getting a pre-released copy!

It’s a small book, not very intimidating and the text is of readable size: a good weekend read. But what a weekend it was, between Note to Self and The Greener Grass Conspiracy, I forcefully, yet lovingly was kicked in the rear end by the Gospel.

Note To Self is really like nothing I have ever read. It’s made for the trenches, battle tactics in the Spiritual War we fight as Christians. It is sort of to the Good Guys what The Screwtape Letters is to the Bad Guys, letters from the trenches. The concept is simple yet brilliant. It’s Joe (or you) preaching the Gospel to yourself amidst 48 real-time situations that we all have and will continue to face. What Joe does in Note To Self is take a section of scripture and in about 500 words engages in “self talk” as Martyn Lloyd Jones would call it.

Every section starts off with a rich verse of scripture at the top of the page and then the words Dear Self… What happens after that is straight up, honest Gospel talk. Every chapter points back to Jesus and how the Gospel actually matters pertaining to whatever subject Joe is dealing with. The way Thorn writes, you can tell he is not just some armchair theologian, but is living the fight with those, like me, reading what he writes. It is apparent that he gets the Gospel and he gets his sin when he says:

“Dear Self,

You are proud, and what makes this so dangerous is that you don’t realize just how proud you are….What you need is a clear picture of God, yourself and your hope; this only comes through law and gospel. You must see yourself as you really are — creature, not Creator; sinful, not righteous; undeserving, not deserving; dependent, not independent; made for his glory, not your own… This is the theology that erodes pride, builds humility and produces joy.” (P. 108)

Woah. Note To Self is really about 136 pages of that. Every single page of Note To Self is drowning in Gospel truths, so much so that it forces you to put a Gospel lens on everything from loving your wife (P.69) to complaining (P.109) to not being a Christian fanboy [personally my favorite chapter] (P.123) to being the Church [close second favorite] (P.87). It is a continual hammering of the Gospel into the thick skulls of prideful people. It doesn’t do this directly, but in fact the book is set up as to observe a man preaching the gospel to himself. It is sort of like watching game film of a good team as you prepare for the season.

When I was reading this, I felt as if I was reading Joe Thorn’s journal [minus the 'Love your husband' chapter, I just pretended that was his wife writing]. I felt as if I was experiencing a spiritual battle raging, very, very similar to the one that I fight day in and day out. It gives perspective to the war we are truly in and the weapon we’ve been given, the discipline of preaching [the Gospel] to ourselves. Reading it was challenging, as it confronted a lot of my own personal sin head on and didn’t let me shy away from it. It then applied the spiritual rubbing alcohol on to my wounded pride. Every night (as I read it before going to bed) I went to sleep more in love with Jesus than before reading this book.

I foresee this being an incredible resource for the Church in the years to come. As it is small, accessible, practical and biblical. Anyone can pick up this book and get something out of it. And that something is going to be gospel-centered. Because this book is not just gospel-centered, but gospel-submerged, and cannot be avoided. Charis is considering getting a bulk quantity and giving them out at Sunday service.

This book knows its limitations, it doesn’t try to be what it isn’t. This is not a systematic theology or a book designed to tackle any certain issue at length but a manual on preaching the Gospel to yourself in the midst of spiritual warfare. At times I wish he would elaborate more on some topics and wish he would’ve written like twenty pages on the issues of work and local church involvement instead of two, but like I said, not the purpose of Note To Self.

Oh, and did I mention how well written it is? It isn’t sloppy or indulgent. No word is wasted and the language is intentionally blunt, it comes off sharp and discerning. Joe Thorn also uses the word “legit” on Page 134, which in my book gives him 100% street cred [not a big accomplishment getting street cred from a white guy in central Illinois who listens to Steve Earle, but regardless...]

So whether you are a pastor or a non-Christian that is confused as to what the Christian life actually is or somewhere in between, Note To Self by Joe Thorn is a must read. You will finish the book with a new and more complete understanding of the discipline of preaching to yourself. The book is available now for Kindle at Amazon.com and will be available for purchase at the end of April. It’s cheap so do yourself a favor and get this book.

Rating: 9/10

Today marks the beginning of a regular occurrence, in that I will be posting a selection from The Valley each Friday morning here on the blog.  It’s something simple, but I trust it will be encouraging to you as you near the end of the week.

GREAT GOD,

In public and private, in sanctuary and home,

may my life be steeped in prayer,

filled with the spirit of grace and supplication,

each prayer perfumed with the incense of atoning blood.

Help me, defend me, until from praying ground

I pass to the realm of unceasing praise.

Urged by my need, invited by thy promises, called by they Spirit,

I enter thy presence, worshipping thee with godly fear,

awed by thy majesty, greatness, glory,

but encouraged by thy love.

I am all poverty as well as all guilt,

having nothing of my own with which to repay thee,

But I bring Jesus to thee in arms of faith,

pleading his righteousness to offset my iniquities,

rejoicing that he will weigh down the scales for me,

and satisfy thy justice.

I bless thee that great sin draws out great grace,

that, although the least sin deserves infinite punishment

because done against an infinite God,

yet there is mercy for me,

for where guilt is most terrible,

there thy mercy in Christ is most free and deep.

Bless me by revealing more to me more of his saving merits,

by causing thy goodness to pass before me,

by speaking peace to my contrite heart;

Strengthen me to give thee no rest

until Christ shall reign supreme within me,

in every thought, word, and deed,

in a faith that purifies the heart,

overcomes the world,

works by love,

fastens me to thee,

and ever clings to the cross.

["Meeting God" in The Valley of Vision: A Collection of Puritan Prayers and Devotions (ed. Arthur Bennett, Carlisle, PA: Banner of Truth, 1975), 146.]

If you’re interested in praying through The Valley of Vision on a regular basis, check out Joe Thorn’s, “Walking Through The Valley of Vision.”  He’s developed a great plan that will guide you through the entire collection in 13 weeks.

Below are the tools and resources I’m using in the coming year to continue to grow in the grace and knowledge of Jesus.  Whether you’re familiar with them or not, I hope that they’ll be of help in some way as you encourage others to grow in their understanding of God’s Word in the coming year.

YEAR LONG BIBLE READING PLAN|

There are scores of posts featuring the various plans to read through your Bible in a year.  One of the best I’ve seen is Nathan Bingham’s lineup.  Personally I am going to use the Read the Bible For Life plan (HT: Trevin Wax).  The video below explains what it’s all about…

CLICK HERE to download the full reading plan in PDF format.

DEVOTIONAL|

I’ve been using Ligonier Ministries’ Tabletalk Magazine for a couple years now, and I appreciate not only the depth of daily devotional writings, but the great articles by excellent and well-respected pastors/scholars in each issue (some include: R.C. Sproul, Tom Schreiner, Kevin DeYoung, John Piper, Donald Whitney, Sinclair Ferguson, and more).  Chris Donato has a post on what’s ahead for the first six issues of 2011.  Subscriptions are $23/year.  You can get a FREE 3-month trial here.

SCRIPTURE MEMORIZATION|

Tim Brister has developed a plan, called Partnering to Remember, that helps you memorize the entire book of Philippians by Easter.  It may seem a bit daunting at first, but I think he’s laid it out in such a way that it really can be done!

PRAYER|

Joe Thorn has a plan at his blog help you pray through The Valley of Vision. 

Joe writes:

The Valley of Vision is a collection of Puritan prayers, and one of the most helpful and refreshing resources on prayer I have found. It’s one of two or three books on prayer that I regularly recommend to people who want to grow in the discipline. I have benefitted from reading and praying through the book so much over the years I wanted to find a way to maximize its usefulness, and get the most out of it for my own spiritual growth. So, a couple years ago I developed a schedule and rhythm for my personal use of the Valley of Vision.

I rearranged the prayers into 3 daily readings, five days a week, and scheduled them to be read/prayed at 9am, 12pm, and 3pm Monday through Friday. This method took me through the entire Valley of Vision in 13 weeks, only repeating two prayers one time.

To continue reading and get a free download of the plan CLICK HERE.

What plans/resources are you using in 2011?

Here’s a portion of the post:

Ultimately God has promised to give us victory in the world through the gospel, and that gives great boldness! Jesus said that he would build his church, and “the gates of Hell would not prevail against it.” This means the mission will succeed, and not even death can stop it. So as we preach the gospel and make disciples we may experience affliction, but we will not be crushed. We may be perplexed, but we will not be driven to despair. The world may persecute us, but God will not forsake us. In fact we are overcoming the world, because Jesus has already overcome the world. God is crushing the head of Satan under our feet, and we are “more than conquerors.” (2 Corinthians 4:7-12 ESV; 1 John 5:4; John 16:33; Rom. 8:37).

This is why the church can be, should be, must be confident and courageous. We are on a mission from God, and He is with us. This is what led William Carey to not just say “expect great things from God; attempt great things for God,” but to do it. This is missional boldness, and can only lead to gospel boasting. It always makes little of self, and much of Jesus. It humbles a man, but also gives him zeal.

CLICK HERE to read the entire post.

CLICK HERE for info regarding Joe’s forthcoming book, Note To Self: The Discipline of Preaching to Yourself, published under the Re:Lit imprint through Crossway Books.

Nettles says experiential theology, or experimental Calvinism “pursues the purposeful application of every doctrine to some area of life that needs further conformity to Christ’s perfect humanity.”  Nettles commentary is exemplary of light and heat, and here are some excerpts I pulled from the interview:

Without a justification-driven, christocentric foundation all examination results either in self-righteousness or despair, legalism or antinomianism.

A clear and forceful integration of the biblical doctrines of the Trinitarian existence of God, the intrinsic glory of the Godhead, Christ’s infinite condescension, humanity’s fall and consequent just condemnation and punitive corruption, divine sovereignty in election, reconciliation and redemption, calling, resurrection, and eternal occupation—all of these and others constitute the pastoral task from the very beginning of establishing a worshipping congregation.

The biblical responsibility of the pastor consistently to place the believers in the context of this picture is at once both experimental and theological, practical and doctrinal. What we do and how we feel and how we respond to life’s details flows out of who we believe we are in God’s relentless push toward subduing all things to Christ, that in all things he might have the preeminence.

I will be chewing on these words by Nettles this week, and I encourage you to do the same.  Great stuff!

Scott Nichol #21 celebrates a goal with Derek Joslin #65 of the San Jose Sharks against goalie Pekka Rinne #35 of the Nashville Predators on November 17, 2009 at the Sommet Center in Nashville, Tennessee. (Photo by John Russell/NHLI via Getty Images)

The Sharks who were coming off a difficult 4-3 overtime loss to the Chicago Blackhawk’s were hopping they would not repeat the same mistake when they took on the St.Louis Blues on Tuesday night but were disappointed as they lost 4-3 in regulation.  The Sharks were unable to stop the Predators as they found themselves down by one goal early in the start of the first period. 

The win brought the Predators their third straight win and seventh in nine games while it was the second straight loss for the Sharks.  The scoring was started early by the Steve Sullivan, who scored the Predators first of two power play goals at 13:19.  Exactly 1:04 later rookie Scott Nichol scored his first goal of the season with a shorthander at 14:23 of the first. 

The Sharks looked like they were going to get back in the swing of things but instead the Predators padded their lead with two more goals as they were able to rattle rookie Thomas Greiss, who was making his fourth NHL start.  Jarred Smithson would finish the scoring in the first period for the Predators with his wrist shot at 16:06 that put his team ahead 2-1.  The non stop shooting from Nashville didnt stop there as they outshot the Sharks 14-9 in the first period and added two more goals to take a two goal lead over the their opponents. 

Joel Ward would score the last of Nashville’s power play goals at 8:16 in the second period.  Wards goal was shot at the blue line, taking advantage of the man advantage against the Sharks.  David Legwand would finish up the Predators scoring drives with his goal at 10:57 in the second.  With only 41 second left in the second Joe Thornton would come off the bench and score his sixth goal of the season off a pass from Frazer McLaren.  The late goal would come to late for the win even with a goal from Parick Marleau at 19:08 in the third.  The Sharks were unable to make any more magic happen with their offense as regulation came to an end with the Western Conference leading team having their first regulation loss since Oct. 22. 

Till next time, SharkGirl

My prayer life is so spotty largely because I get frozen when it comes to what to say or figuring out what I really want to pray about or how I’m really feeling about something rather than praying as a natural extension of my life and thoughts without all the constant metaprocessing and backstepping and analyzing. And deep down I find I’m also looking for an experience each time – some moment of peace or clarity or otherness that lets me know I’ve connected with God rather than just blabbered at the windshield. Miller has this to say:

Don’t hunt for a feeling in prayer. Deep in our psyches we want an experience with God or an experience in prayer. Once we make that our quest, we lose God. You don’t experience God; you get to know him. You submit to him, you enjoy him. He is, after all, a person.

I’ve heard the exhortation to be natural in prayer, to speak as I would to a friend rather than composing religious-sounding language. And I’ve heard the one that says don’t go experience-hunting. This though somehow strikes me differently. It goes beyond just prayer for me – it challenges my perception of God. If I’m looking primarily to experience God, then to me he is an event or a set of circumstances. If I’m looking to get to know him, then he is free to be a person, and experience is only a part of the relationship. Joe quotes Miller again as saying,

In prayer, focusing on the conversation is like trying to drive while looking at the windshield instead of through it. It freezes us, making us unsure of where to go.

With a relationship it’s like spending all your time thinking and discussing how the relationship is going rather than just having it. There are downsides to being überanalytical when there’s life to be lived.

His church recently began the idea of hosting spiritual conversations in a local Irish pub…of the attending group, 40% are outsiders (not connected to Redeemer/not Christ followers)