The name’s Bond
I saw the new Bond movie at the weekend. Nothing like it to make me proud to be English. After all, it just couldn’t be done by, say, the Welsh. `The name’s ap-Llymrys Jones, Gwynfor ap-Llymrys Jones’ just doesn’t cut…
Month December 2006
Monday mornings
A dear friend from the UK told me this weekend that he’d been catching up on the Ref21 blog and noticing that we seemed to have far too much fun! Well, he is a friend and his perspective skewed as a…
A Good Reminder
First thing Monday morning is my main time of prayer for our missionaries. In reading and praying over recent missionary correspondence this morning I came across a good reminder from Robert Speer: “In this supernatural cause (world missions), which rests…
The Man from George Street, Part 2
A number of years ago in a Baptist church in Crystal Palace in southern London, the Sunday morning service was closing and a stranger stood up in the back, raised his hand; he said, “Excuse me, pastor; can I share…
The Man from George Street, Part 1
A member of Tenth Presbyterian Church recently gave me a sermon CD from the British evangelist Ray Comfort, with a marvelous real-life story of God’s work through the ministry of a man from Sydney Australia. My assistant Anne Davies has…
23 and 24
At the risk of doubling Derek’s envy, Eschenbach played Mozart piano concertos 23 and 24 to rapturous applause. Our seats are on the back side of the orchestra, in the third tier — perfect for this concert because we could…
Meet the Puritans
Perhaps we’ve already mentioned this volume–I can’t remember–but readers may be interested in the publication of Meet the Puritans: With a Guide to Modern Reprints, by Joel Beeke and Randall Peterson, published by Reformation Heritage. Its 900 pages contain biographical…
Some Words for Unheralded, Unknown, Unpublished Pastors
God bless you. I believe that future history (whether in heaven or on earth) will look back on these present years and realize that the most valuable servants in Christ’s kingdom were those humble, faithful, Spirit-filled men of God who…
Christ Gave… Pastor/Teachers
The current phenomenon of ministers downloading or otherwise cribbing sermons is yet another symptom of a church that is spiritually out to sea. The Bible says that the ascended Christ gave pastor/teachers to his church (Eph. 4:11), not that he…
Mozart
At the risk of waking the sleeping giant (Rodders) I thought I’d share with you my morning. It began with a headache (literally) which has all the portents of being here to stay! Then, exams — not the taking of…