Books of the Year

On December 27, 2012 By BrianIn Book Look

Tis the time of year to make lists of the best books of the year. Of all the books I read, three stood out as the best. They are:

Holy Available
by Gary Thomas
The basic idea is that Jesus is still active today, and we need to be available to be used by him. You can read my Book Look for a fuller summary. It is incredibly quotable. I quoted from it several times here on the blog:

Humility: The Forgotten Virtue
by Wayne Mack

I read two books on humility this year which complemented each other well. This one digs into the Scriptures to explore our humility before God and with one another. You can read my Book Look for further information. This book also provided some good quotes:

Humility: True Greatness
by C. J. Mahaney

This one briefly looks at our humility before God, and then at the humility of Jesus. Half of the book then explores practical ways to grow in humility. This last section was especially helpful. Here is the Book Look for more information. A few quotes:

Book Look: Humility and Humility

On May 8, 2012March 21, 2015 By BrianIn Book Look

I have been sharing quotes from two books on humility for the last few weeks. Both are excellent books that I want to commend to you.

Humility: The Forgotten Virtue is by Wayne A. Mack (with Joshua Mack). The Macks explore our humility before God based on both God’s superiority to us and God’s purity compared to our sin. They then explore humility toward each other, and the follies of sin. They close with two chapters on how to grow in humility. As I was reading, I thought perhaps I was reading Jerry Bridges – which is to say that the entire book is a wonderful exploration of the Biblical passages that deal with the issue, organized as I have outlined above. As such, the book could be used as a rich Bible study. Indeed, each chapter ends with application and discussion exercises.

Humility: True Greatness by C. J. Mahaney explores humility in three parts. First, he defines humility and pride. Mahaney focuses on our humility before God based on God’s purity compared to our sin. Second, he looks at Jesus, who humbles himself to save us from our sins. Third, he takes well over half of the book to suggest practical ways to grow in humility. This section alone is worth the price of the book.

I would recommend both books together. Read the Macks as they dig deep into a Biblical exploration of humility, and then turn to Mahaney for the practical applications. Both books deal with both issues, but the Macks just dig deeper and Mahaney applies further.

Humility vs pride is an issue for all of us. And so these are two excellent books that I would recommend be read by all of us that we might grow in our passion for God and compassion for people.

Pride and Worry

On May 3, 2012March 21, 2015 By BrianIn Humility Quotes

I have to remember that whenever I feel buried under care,
the real issue is pride and my self-sufficiency.
I must deliberately and specifically cast my cares upon Him
and thereby humble myself.
Don’t be mistaken. God hasn’t gone anywhere.
He’s just as sovereign, just as good, just as faithful.…
The issue isn’t God. It’s my pride that resists trusting in Him through dependence upon Him.
– C. J. Mahaney in Humility

Media Madness

On September 10, 2009 By BrianIn Habit of Stewardship, Idolatry

We are surrounded by media – TV, movies, radio, music, internet, books, magazines, newspapers, mail, the list goes on. We are bombarded with media. Its presence and influence is pervasive; it is everywhere.

Jesus died on a cross and rose again that our sins might be forgiven, that we might be reconciled to God, that we might have a new life in Christ, and the hope of heaven and the resurrection.

How does Christ’s salvation relate to the media? How should what Christ has done for us affect the way we interact with the media that is all around us? The book of Ephesians gives us the answer.

The first half of the book speaks of Christ’s salvation. God chose us to be holy and blameless before him (1:4). Through Christ, our sins are forgiven, and we have a great inheritance (1:7, 11). We were dead in our sins following the evil tendencies of a world opposed to God, but God has made us alive in Christ to do good works. All of these blessings come by God’s mercy, grace, and love as we receive this salvation from sins by faith (2:1-10). And this salvation is available to all of us (2:11-3:13).

This great salvation then ought to affect the way we live (4:1). It should affect how we interact in the church (chapter 4), in our culture (5:1-20), in our families (5:22-6:4), and in the workplaces (6:5-9). As media is such a pervasive part of our culture, the words in Ephesians 5:1-20 can easily be applied to how we interact with the media. So we find four principles:

1. Guard your heart. Verse 2 tells us to love as Christ loved us and gave himself as a sacrifice to God. Christ loved God and us, and we should love that way too. But it is possible for us to come to love the media – to put it before God and the people around us. In other words it can become a god, an idol. It can dominate us, control us – we have to have that new book, we have to see that new movie. We become puppets, and the media pulls our strings. Guard your heart, don’t let the media become your god.

2. Use discernment. Verses 3-10 point us here. Verse 10 tells us to discern what is pleasing to God. So we need to ask, does this media choice please God. If not, don’t watch/listen to/read it. Verse 3 points to the sex issue. Does this media cause you to lust (impurity)? Does this media celebrate sexual immorality – that which God will judge (v6)? If so, turn it off, get rid of it, walk out. Verse 4 points to the language issue. Again, does this media engage in that which God will judge, that which we should not even associate with (v7)? This may rule out most sitcoms, late night shows, and many movies (even kid movies!), but again is our goal to live for media or God?

There is a wonderful phrase in Latin that Craig Cabaniss mentions in his chapter on media in the book Worldliness, edited by C.J. Mahaney. The phrase is Coram Deo – “before the face of God.” Everything we do is done in God’s presence. Is it pleasing to him? If Jesus walked this earth today, would you invite him to watch that movie, listen to that music, surf that site, read that book? The fact is, he is with you as you do all those things. Is it pleasing to him?

In Psalm 101:3, the psalmist says, “”I will not set before my eyes anything that is worthless.” Have you made that commitment? Is your goal to please God? Use discernment.

Before moving on, we need to consider the message in a particular media choice. Romans 12:2 warns us not to be conformed to the world – that is, the evil tendencies of a world opposed to God. Does this media choice conform me to the world’s way of thinking. Is it teaching truth or lies? There is a grave danger here. We are tempted to focus on language, sex, etc., but “clean” movies without those things can teach lies, can oppose God and his Word. And this includes Christian media. We need to think critically whenever we come to the media. What is the message? Does it agree with Scripture? Use discernment.

3. Practice good stewardship. Verses 15-16 tell us to make the best use of our time. Is this media choice the best use of my time right now? Am I spending too much time with a particular type of media? Is there something else I should be doing? Even if our media passes the discernment test, we can spend too much time in front of the TV, on the internet, etc. We can neglect family, friends, time with God, outdoor recreation. Practice good stewardship.

4. Finally, enjoy gratefully. Verse 20 calls us to give thanks for everything. Cabaniss ends his chapter on media with this point, and it is a good one. If our media choice passes the discernment and stewardship and heart principles, then we can enjoy it gratefully. The other three principles remind us of the dangers of media; this point reminds us that there is a lot of good media out there that we can enjoy and give thanks to God for.

Christ purchased for us a great salvation that should affect the way we live in our culture, how we interact with the media. Guard your heart. Use discernment. Practice good stewardship. Enjoy gratefully.