Tools for the Great ComMission #FIVE

John Piper speaks at a youth conference in the late 1990s, pleading with youth to embrace the cause of Christ. Think about tragedy in your life and in the lives of others, then compare it to the tragedies mentioned here.

Music Worth Checking Out #SIX (FREE DOWNLOAD)

Hymns
Anathallo
(Worship/Indie/Experimental) FREE!---->

Anathallo is an obscure and eclectic band of 8 multi-musicianary followers of Christ. Their two latest full-lengths--Floating World and Canopy Glow--are masterpieces of artistic songwriting, and I whole-heartedly recommend them to anyone who loves mostly soft, concept music that weaves a story through the whole album.

The Hymns album to the right is an EP release that the band recorded and sold for a homeless mission. The EP is out of print, but if you follow the link (below), courtesy of the band itself, you can download the album for free.

Link: the long way home - Free Anathallo Hymns Album

Songlist:
01. It is Well With My Soul
02. I Need Thee Every Hour
03. Come Ye Sinners, Poor and Needy
04. All Creatures of Our God and King
05. Before the Throne of God Above
06. Wondrous Love

"Before the Throne" is a personal favorite, and Anathallo's rendition is beautiful. Don't miss it!

Thought for today...

I have not lived a long life, but I do know of love and of death; of which I can say the healing of the soul stands between the extremities of greatest consequence of both. The body and mind are simply vessels; to loose them for sake of a washed soul is among the greatest lives you can live.

"The body they may kill: God’s truth abideth still." -Luther, 1529

Disasters are Times for Opportunity

Don't waste it. Show Christ in your giving and praying and fasting.

Matthew 25:31-46



(Link to pictures: Boston.com)
(Link to charities I trust: Here. Give with a thankful heart.)

(Thanks to Pastor for these.)

"I will teach you to forgive one another"

This is a long-time favorite of mine.
Put it on fullscreen and open your heart.



(Audio: Some Seek Forgiveness, Others Escape by Underoath)
(Video: The Passion of the Christ directed by Mel Gibson)

Piper on Abortion

(HT ERC Pastor's Blog)

God's Grace in the Old Testament

There are many places in the Old Testament where God reveals His grace.

Stories like the creation, the flood, the Exodus, Ruth, David, and Solomon are all examples of God's saving power among those who did not deserve it. These stories are testaments of both His grace then and displays of His grace to come in Christ.

The following is a psalm of David that has been one of the most important texts for me on repentance and God's grace to me.

Psalm 32

Blessed is the one whose transgression is forgiven,
Blessed is the man against whom the Lord counts no iniquity,
and in whose spirit there is no deceit.

For when I kept silent, my bones wasted away
through my groaning all day long.
For day and night your hand was heavy upon me;
my strength was dried up as by the heat of summer. Selah

I acknowledged my sin to you,
and I did not cover my iniquity;
I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the Lord,”
and you forgave the iniquity of my sin. Selah

Therefore let everyone who is godly
offer prayer to you at a time when you may be found;
surely in the rush of great waters,
they shall not reach him.
You are a hiding place for me;
you preserve me from trouble;
you surround me with shouts of deliverance. Selah

I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go;
I will counsel you with my eye upon you.
Be not like a horse or a mule, without understanding,
which must be curbed with bit and bridle,
or it will not stay near you.

Many are the sorrows of the wicked,
but steadfast love surrounds the one who trusts in the Lord.
Be glad in the Lord, and rejoice, O righteous,
and shout for joy, all you upright in heart!