Some of the young adults at Covenant are challenging themselves to memorize Jonah 2. Way to go! I think I’ll join you and post a video link after I get it down.

Ever thought deeply about the story of Jonah? It’s a simple story, but its simplicity has a way of clarifying life—our priorities, our choices, our relationship with God. Here is the sermon I preached yesterday on the final chapter of the book.

Lampham’s: Where Writers Work

On meditation:

There is as much difference between a truth remembered, and a truth meditated on, as between a cordial in a glass, and a cordial drunk drown.

— Thomas Watson, meditator, metaphor-lover, Puritan

I finished Marcus Aurelius’ Meditations today and I’m trying to take his advice: “To read attentively—not just to be satisfied with ‘just getting the gist of it.’ And not to fall for every smooth talker.” 📚

Dance classes have started again for the Chelpkas and all five kids are involved now. They love it so much and work hard. I’m very proud of them.

The reading spree continues! 📚 Today I finished On the Apostolic Preaching by Irenaeus and Gregory of Nazianzus by Brian Matz.

I picked up Irenaeus’s book hoping to learn something about preaching in the early church. What I got was a reminder that the Bible has an “integrity and purity” manifest in its unified message about the Son of God. Preachers who want to expound that message and preach Christ with confidence need to be competent in the various connections the Old and New Testaments make with each other. Also called Proof of Apostolic Preaching, it’s a nice little handbook on biblical theology from the late second-century.

Gregory of Nazianzus was a pastor-theologian in early fourth-century. I read Matz’s book as a part of a larger project to become familiar with the church father designated by the Council of Chalcedon as Gregory the Theologian. Expect to hear more about Gregory in the coming months.

In other ancient news, I’m almost done with Marcus Aurelius’ Meditations and have a lot to say about it. Not sure where, when, or if to say it, but there’s a lot of food for thought anyway. For that, I’m thankful.

Over the weekend I finished Eugene Peterson’s memoir, The Pastor. I highly recommend it. 📚 At one point, his son points out (as a compliment) that he only preaches one sermon. That might be said of his books too: there is only one. And as a memoir, his is particularly good. After I have more time to think, I look forward to sharing about it and offer some critique as well.

On being anxious :

Anxiety does not empty tomorrow of its sorrow—only today of its strength.

— Charles Spurgeon, 19th century English preacher

“Let’s make lunch for Mommy! I’ll pick the ingredients.”

I finished Saving Eutychus: How to Preach God’s Word and Keep People Awake today. By Gary Miller and Phil Campell, it’s a breezy read with lots of practical advice on how to preach more clearly. It helped me. Recommended.

Singing this at church tomorrow:

What thou, my Lord, has suffered was all for sinners’ gain:
Mine, mine was the transgression, but thine the deadly pain.
Lo, here I fall, my Savior! ‘Tis I deserve thy place;
Look on me with thy favor, vouchsafe to me thy grace.

What language shall I borrrow to thank thee, dearest Friend,
For this, thy dying sorrow, thy pity without end?
O make me thine forever; and should I fainting be,
Lord, let me never, never outlive my love to thee.

By Bernard of Clairvaux (1091-1153)

The number of people in 2015 that watched a Bob Ross marathon: 5.6 million.

The snuggle is real.

“You can observe a lot by watching.” —Yogi Berra

For a class I’m teaching on covenant theology (i.e. the study of God’s promises), I read The Covenant Life: Appreciating the Beauty of Theology and Community by Sarah Ivill. It’s a book written for Christian women to help them learn about God’s Covenant of Grace and what it means to live by it, as individuals and as part of a community. It’s a nice introduction to covenant theology. Men can enjoy it too. 📚

Currently reading: The Pastor: A Memoir by Eugene H. Peterson 📚

Tim Herrera: “Our brains tend to prioritize immediate satisfaction over long-term rewards.”

Of the many books on leadership I’ve read, Mark Strom’s Lead with Wisdom: How Wisdom Transforms Good Leaders into Great Leaders is one of my favorites. That’s why it is a part of the leadership development going on at my church.

Lead with Wisdom is both profound and practical. Like most books on leadership, you can get some great tips/reminders with a quick skim, but this one deserves a careful read. And then a re-read six months later. And then every so often when you get in a slump. Anyway, that is how it has been for me.

Here are just a few of the places marked in my copy.

What is wisdom?

Wisdom is reading and living the patterns of life.
How do you find wisdom?
Personally I find it helpful to think in terms of attentiveness and presence. Wisdom asks me to pay attention to life; to notice and wonder and consider. Life is so big. Sometimes I can’t start ‘out there’; I have to start ‘in here’. It isn’t natural for me to pay attention or to be present to what is happening around and within me. I’m too busy. Too distracted. But sometimes, without warning, a door opens to wonder. I start to pay attention. Stillness becomes possible. I may find myself uncommonly present to others and to the world, its beauty and its travail. That is where my learning starts.
Leadership doesn’t require a fancy title and a corner office.
Position is only a context for leading.
What to do before a meeting:
  • Take some time on your own.
  • Put your notes away.
  • Think about the people.
  • See them as people, not colleagues.
  • Imagine them flourishing.
  • Commit to being present to bless.
When leading people, language matters:
...official labels or definitions rarely carry the key meanings. We find those in the informal language: in the anecdotes, analogies, and metaphors that people use to assure themselves they know what’s going on. These might be true and strong, or false and weak. If a leader is to stimulate change, she must get inside this language and—subtly—strengthen or subvert it as appropriate.
Mission statements require meaningful stories.
Until there is a story, there is no vision. Until there is an argument for that story, there is no strategy.
The three factors of a good reputation:
Competence gets us in the game. Integrity keeps us there. Brilliance gives us the edge.

I found a collection of mealtime prayers in a Bible that once belonged to my wife’s great-grandmother. (There’s no attribution information other than that.) I formatted it to fit a single page and did some light editing, mostly to update the English. The prayers are all short but rich in biblical piety. That makes them pretty kid-friendly. And our kids do love the chance to pick one from the list and lead the family. Maybe you can use it too. A PDF download link is at the bottom.

  1. For the continuing of your lovingkindness unto us, we give you all thanks, O Lord. Fulfill all our needs and save us, for Jesus’ sake. Amen.

  2. You have saved and preserved us, O Lord. May we by our lives never bring reproach upon the name of Jesus, but ever learn to live for you, and to your honor. Amen.

  3. Lord, may you never cease your kindly care over us, and may we also continue unceasingly to bless you for all your past and present blessings. Amen.

  4. Do bless our meal today, and may your Spirit fill us with gratitude for all these abundant blessings. Amen.

  5. Give us grace to be grateful for the blessings which you have so bountifully spread before us today. In your own name we pray. Amen.

  6. O God who satisfies our mouths with the good things, we praise you for your gracious providence, and invoke your blessing as we partake. Amen.

  7. We give you thanks for life and all its blessings. Give this food to nourish our bodies, and your Word of Truth to sustain our souls. Amen.

  8. Keep us ever humble, Lord, that we may be the ready recipients of your goodness. Deliver us from pride and wickedness, and supply our wants. Amen.

  9. O Lord, we thank you for life and the joy of living, for health and strength, and for these blessings fresh from your hand of love. Through Jesus Christ. Amen.

  10. All things come to you, O Lord, and for these and all your blessings we give hearty thanks, in the name of Christ our redeemer. Amen.

  11. Bless, O Lord, this provision of your goodness to our use, and us to your service, for Christ’s sake. Amen.

  12. Thanks be to you, O Lord, for these and all the blessings so generously provided. We thank you in the name of Christ. Amen.

  13. Lord, we thank you for this food. Sanctify it to our use, pardon our sins, and save us for Christ’s sake. Amen.

  14. O God, your mercies are fresh every day and call forth each day anew our voices of thanksgiving. Through Jesus Christ. Amen.

  15. We thank you, our Heavenly Father, for these your good gifts. Bless them to our use, sanctify us and save us, for Christ’s sake. Amen.

  16. Our Father, we ask you to bless the food before us to our physical needs, and feed our spirits with your truth, for Jesus’ sake. Amen.

  17. Dear Lord, accept our sincere thanks for these new blessings, and hear us in our prayer for pardon. In Jesus’ name we ask you. Amen.

  18. The strength of the hills, and the depth of the sea, the earth and its fulness belongs to you; and yet to the lowly you bend your ear, so ready to hear their humble petitions. Amen.

  19. We are ever conscious, Lord, of our sinfulness and our constant need of you. Support our lives by your grace, and bring us safely to your heavenly home. Amen.

  20. Cover all our sins with you pardon, O Christ, and make us strong to overcome all sins, especially the sin of ingratitude. In all these bounties help us to see you, and glorify you. Amen.

  21. Lord, you art a fountain that never fails. Fail us not in this, our physical need. And help us to call on you for the daily supply of spiritual power we need. Through Christ. Amen.

» Download 21 Prayers for Mealtime as a one-page PDF.