It’s a beautiful day for a special girl’s birthday today. The ground here in Michigan has a gentle covering of snow and it is showing the earliest signs of winter. Kristi is my favorite daughter. She’s also my only daughter. Kristi always has a sunny smile and always has a way of getting a smile out of me. She’s also very good at getting along with her seven rascally brothers.

Happy 8th Birthday, Kristi!

I love you!

As great as the Ohio State victory over Michigan was, this is a disgrace.

Ohio State 14
Michigan 9

Those are the most beautiful numbers I’ve seen in a long time. We had a great time yesterday watching the game with some of our family and it kept us at the edge of our seats throughout.

Ohio State has had an awesome 13-0 season. Now for the Fiesta Bowl on January 3. All we need to know is who the opponent will be.

GO BUCKS!

As we look forward to Thanksgiving festivities next week, it’s a great time to focus on a thankful heart. I know that no matter what my circumstances, I always feel so much better when I am thankful. I was encouraged this morning as I listened to Nancy Leigh DeMoss speak on “Expressing Gratitude”. You can listen to it here.

She has a wonderful series on “The Attitude of Gratitude” currently on her radio program. It will encourage you and help you prepare to have a truly Happy Thanksgiving.

I was listening to a sermon of John Piper’s recently on abstaining from sexual immorality. While hearing his words I was struck by how seriously the church needs this message today when pornography is so easily available on the Internet, in video rental stores and on newsstands.

The assault on our eyes is never ending. While standing in the checkout at Wal Mart the other night I had nowhere to turn but straight-ahead for all the magazine covers on my left and right that beckoned me to look at the flesh revealed there. Some of this we can avoid seeing if we are disciplined. Other visual pleasures that assault our senses are unavoidable. Much of what would lure us into a sensual feast in the mind and in turn rule our thought life is actually like eating garbage and we can and must flee those temptations.

Piper addresses these issues and more and mentions a resource of his called ANTHEM–Strategies for Fighting Lust. Satan is at war for the control of our minds and if he wins he will direct all our lives. That puts us in the middle of a battle and warriors need to be trained and equipped. Add to or begin your arsenal by reading or listening (I suggest both but the audio version has more comments added by Piper), use Piper’s ANTHEM and share these with others. This will help start us on or keep us on the right path and help keep our lives under the Holy Spirit’s control.

James 4:7 Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. (NIV)

Hopefully you heard a great sermon this past Sunday.

I also enjoy listening to sermons on tape or as MP3’s–they’re portable. As a pastor I don’t have the privilege of being in a service very often when I can take in a sermon and be challenged by it since I’m usually the one doing the preaching. Listening to sermons is helpful in many ways.

I have a bit of driving to do each day and that time driving is more enjoyable when I can listen to something worthwhile. I also need to be stretched as a preacher. I learn a great deal from listening to good bible teachers, like sermon structure and making good application. I also need to be challenged with the Scriptures beyond my own study efforts. Listening to sermons helps me in all these ways.

Let me point you to a few pastors I enjoy listening to and find very helpful;
Alistair Begg
Greg Comfort
John Piper
Ray Stedman

Some of these pastors have sermons available for download in MP3 format which can be listened to on your computer or taken with you if you have an MP3 player. Some of them have streaming audio that can be listened to over the internet on your computer and some allow you to order tapes or CD’s.

However you chose to listen, it can be a real encouragement for pastors and others to take advantage of the availability of sermon audio on the internet. It’s not too often you have the opportunity to hear great Bible teachers from all over the U.S. and one who’s gone to be with the Lord whenever you choose.

One more closing piece of advice; don’t use these resources to replace your pastor if you aren’t the one doing the preaching. Use these sermons and others to encourage and build yourself up mid-week.

Do you know of other good resources like these? Leave a comment.

Top Ten Digital Photography Tips; a good entry level article for those just getting used to their new digital camera.

10 guidelines for building the credibility of a web site at the Web Credibility site is a helpful list for creators of web sites. Anyone building a web site should review these guidelines and refer to them every few months. I can see I now have some work to do on our church site and my own.

I’ve been pretty covered up lately and I still don’t have much time for posting right now, but here are a few things in the news that may or may not be worth checking out;
House Rejects Bankruptcy Bill Opposed by Christian Groups
Powell Condemns Anti-Muslim Comments by Christian Leaders
Pat Robertson Persists: Islam ‘Extreme and Violent’
British Hacker Case Largest Ever Against U.S. Military

And what would the news be without a little satire from Scrappleface;
Iraq Inserts Clause In U.N. Resolution

And last but not least–we’ve finally discovered what’s been holding the church back–we need more cushioning and cup holders. Ya–that’ll bring them in. Change can be good as long as we are still preaching the Word. The challenge is a balance between change for the right reasons and change to salve itching ears.

2 Timothy 4:2 Preach the Word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage–with great patience and careful instruction. 3 For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. 4 They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths.

John Piper’s recent message from Luke 9 is a challenge to follow Jesus many of us need to hear. I’m reading this sermon during a time in my life when I most need it but I can’t think of a time we all wouldn’t need to be challenged by these words from Jesus; “Follow Me.”