What is Prayer?

From John Bunyan: "Prayer is a sincere, sensible, affectionate pouring out of the heart or soul to God, through Christ, in the strength and assistance of the Holy Spirit, for such things as God has promised, or according to the Word of God, for the good of the church, with submission in faith to the will of God."

Thriving at College

This new book by Alex Chediak looks to be the perfect resource for anyone enrolled or planning to enroll in college. WTS has a special this week only where you can get one copy for 50% off and additional copies for 40% off.

The list of endorsements is longer than I've seen on any recent book. Check it out here.

FYI - this looks to be a great resource for churches to give away on graduation Sunday.

The Power of God's Word

I am absolutely loving Jonathan Leeman's new book, Reverberation. Here is a small taste from chapter 2:

5 Reliable Statements:

1. God's Word is an Extension of God - you can measure a person's opinion of God by his or her opinion of God's Word.

2. God Acts Through His Word - it is the way He accomplishes His purposes.

3. God Acts Through His Word by His Spirit - God's words have power because they move by God's Spirit and do exactly what the Spirit wishes.

4. God's Word and Spirit Act Together Efficaciously - When God speaks, some kind of change always happens (it is effective).

5. God Speaks Through Human Preachers and Human Words - God uses the means of human communication to speak.

"There is no greater power a church has at its disposal than preaching the Father's Word of the Son working through the Spirit."

Carson on Matthew

Mark Dever tweeted this about Carson's Matthew commentary:

"If I could only have one commentary in my library, it would be Don Carson's commentary on Matthew."

2 Clearance Titles

WTS has 2 good books on clearance right now: Think by John Piper and Baptism: Three Views (both $5 each). They have limited quantities.

Don't Waste Your Sickness

I've been sick since Sunday. I was reminded today of a post I did about making the most of sickness from a few years ago: Don't Waste Your Sickness.

Tempted and Tried

Really looking forward to Dr. Moore's new book.

Glory of Christ Conference Audio

Here is the audio from The Glory of Christ Conference:

The Glory of Christ - Justin Childers

The Glory of Christ's Life - Andy Raynor

The Glory of Christ's Death - Jonathan Brooks

The Glory of Christ's Resurrection - Dan Rolfe

The Glory of Christ's Present Work - Justin Nale

The Glory of Christ's Excellencies - Jason Gault (Audio coming soon)

The Glory of Christ

The audio from my sermon from Sunday night at the Glory of Christ conference is online. You can get it here.

Glory of Christ Conference

If you live in Eastern NC, join us for a conference on the glory of our Savior. Christ Baptist is one of 5 churches sponsoring this conference. It starts Sunday evening at Wilson Presbyterian Church at 6:30pm. You can get all the details on the speakers and locations on this flyer. Please post this info on your blog, facebook, or Twitter (and actually personally invite your friends).

Book Review: Practicing Affirmation

I'm not good at practicing affirmation. And, I want to be better at it. Because the Bible says we are to outdo one another in showing honor. We are to think on and affirm whatever is good and right and godly. We are to commend the commendable.

So, I was super excited to see Sam Crabtree's new book, Practicing Affirmation. I was excited because this is a unique book that helps us with something that most of us have never even thought about.

The subtitle of this book is "God-Centered Praise of Those Who Are Not God." Basically, the point of the book is that God is honored when we recognize and verbalize His work in others. We praise God by affirming and encouraging each other.

In the forward to this book, John Piper says, "If God is sovereign, and every good gift is from above, then not praising the good in others is a kind of sacrilege and soul-sickness." He goes on to say, "When our mouths are empty of praise for others, it is probably because our hearts are full of love for self."

Every evidence of good in another person is blood-bought. No one is good apart from the grace of God. Thus, we must open our eyes and recognize and affirm God's work in others all around us. We must regularly and consistently identify evidences of God's grace in the lives of others.

Crabtee shows from the examples and commands of Scripture that not affirming others is robbing God of His glory. And, he helps us avoid the pitfalls and dangers of flattery and pride.

Crabtree has a whole chapter on mistakes he has made, a chapter with answers to some of the most common questions, and a chapter with 100 ideas for those who need help getting started.

This is a good and practical book that should be read by any and every Christian. I hope this book has massive influence in churches where God-centered affirmation is far too rare. I hope God uses this book to strengthen His church and exalt His name. Get a copy for yourself and a friend.

2nd Radical Book from David Platt

Looks like David Platt will have a new book coming out in a few months. Check out the title. I love it!

Free Desktop Wallpaper

I've been trickn' out my destop these last few months with Challies' free wallpaper calendars. You can see what he's got for March here.