Life is busy. We all (well, at least I) have the tendency to rush through each day trying to accomplish as much as humanly possible. A day turns into a week. A week turns into a month. Then *blink* it is Christmas again. All the while, much of what we do is simply rote repetition: wash, rinse, repeat.

Below is a simple guide that I have found helpful in my life. It was written by Don Whitney and he graciously gave me permission to reprint it here.

Ten Questions to Ask at the Start of a New Year or On Your Birthday

Once, when the people of God had become careless in their relationship with Him, the Lord rebuked them through the prophet Haggai. “Consider your ways!” (Haggai 1:5) he declared, urging them to reflect on some of the things happening to them, and to evaluate their slipshod spirituality in light of what God had told them.

Even those most faithful to God occasionally need to pause and think about the direction of their lives. It’s so easy to bump along from one busy week to another without ever stopping to ponder where we’re going and where we should be going.

The beginning of a new year is an ideal time to stop, look up, and get our bearings. To that end, here are some questions to ask prayerfully in the presence of God.

1. What’s one thing you could do this year to increase your enjoyment of God?
2. What’s the most humanly impossible thing you will ask God to do this year?
3. What’s the single most important thing you could do to improve the quality of your family life this year?
4. In which spiritual discipline do you most want to make progress this year, and what will you do about it?
5. What is the single biggest time-waster in your life, and what will you do about it this year?
6. What is the most helpful new way you could strengthen your church?
7. For whose salvation will you pray most fervently this year?
8. What’s the most important way you will, by God’s grace, try to make this year different from last year?
9. What one thing could you do to improve your prayer life this year?
10. What single thing that you plan to do this year will matter most in ten years? In eternity?

In addition to these ten questions, here are twenty-one more to help you “Consider your ways.” Think on the entire list at one sitting, or answer one question each day for a month.

1. What’s the most important decision you need to make this year?
2. What area of your life most needs simplifying, and what’s one way you could simplify in that area?
3. What’s the most important need you feel burdened to meet this year?
4. What habit would you most like to establish this year?
5. Who is the person you most want to encourage this year?
6. What is your most important financial goal this year, and what is the most important step you can take toward achieving it?
7.  What’s the single most important thing you could do to improve the quality of your work life this year?
8. What’s one new way you could be a blessing to your pastor (or to another who ministers to you) this year?
9. What’s one thing you could do this year to enrich the spiritual legacy you will leave to your children and grandchildren?
10. What book, in addition to the Bible, do you most want to read this year?
11. What one thing do you most regret about last year, and what will you do about it this year?
12. What single blessing from God do you want to seek most earnestly this year?
13. In what area of your life do you most need growth, and what will you do about it this year?
14. What’s the most important trip you want to take this year?
15. What skill do you most want to learn or improve this year?
16. To what need or ministry will you try to give an unprecedented amount this year?
17. What’s the single most important thing you could do to improve the quality of your commute this year?
18. What one biblical doctrine do you most want to understand better this year, and what will you do about it?
19. If those who know you best gave you one piece of advice, what would they say? Would they be right? What will you do about it?
20. What’s the most important new item you want to buy this year?
21. In what area of your life do you most need change, and what will you do about it this year?

The value of many of these questions is not in their profundity, but in the simple fact that they bring an issue or commitment into focus. For example, just by articulating which person you most want to encourage this year is more likely to help you remember to encourage that person than if you hadn’t considered the question.

If you’ve found these questions helpful, you might want to put them someplace—in a day planner, PDA, calendar, bulletin board, etc.—where you can review them more frequently than once a year.

So let’s evaluate our lives, make plans and goals, and live this new year with biblical diligence, remembering that, “The plans of the diligent lead surely to advantage” (Proverbs 21:5). But in all things let’s also remember our dependence on our King who said, “Apart from Me you can do nothing” (John 15:5).

Copyright © 2003 Donald S. Whitney. All rights reserved. For more short, reproducible pieces like this, see www.BiblicalSpirituality.org

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On November 9th, 2011, I am giving away a kidney. The left one to be precise. Seriously.

The journey to this point has been a long one. For the recipient of my kidney, the story is even longer.

Ryan (that’s his name) has a rare disease in which his body attacks his kidney. In his early 30s (like me), Ryan currently lives with about 5% kidney function and has nightly dialysis in order to remove the toxins in his body. He’s a young guy, loves Jesus, works to protect abused and neglected kids at the Washington State Department of Social & Health Services, is recently married, and won’t live long without a kidney transplant. So, I’m going to give him one.

I met Ryan a few years ago when I lived in Washington. Ryan and I attended the same church in Washington, Oikos Fellowship, and my family and I got to know him over our time there. One day a friend of ours asked Jennifer to watch her kids so that she could go down to Seattle for some medical tests. It was then that we first learned about Ryan’s condition.

After a few weeks our friend told us that she was not cleared to donate her kidney to Ryan and that they would have to begin looking for a new potential donor. She said that the search was difficult because Ryan has O+ blood which is cool to have because you can donate to anyone, but tricky because you can only receive from someone with that type. When I heard this, my very first thought was, “I have O+. I could donate.”

I picked up the phone and gave Ryan a call. The truth is, I didn’t really know Ryan that well. We were acquaintances and spoke from time to time, but that was about all. The common bond we shared was the mercy of Christ in our lives and the connection of our church.

When I got Ryan on the phone, I’m pretty sure I said something along the lines of, “Hey, I heard you need a kidney and I think I have one you can use.” We talked for a bit and I got the details of his condition and the journey he’s been on with the disease. I got the number for the transplant center from him and gave them a call, throwing my hat into the ring. That was over a year ago.

About 6 months ago I received a call from the transplant center. They let me know that 2 other recipients had been through the screening process and been rejected for various medical reasons. They wanted to know if I was still interested in being a donor. I said yes and the testing began. Over the course of several months I was poked, prodded, and asked to pee in no less that 7 containers. Then, in September I was asked to fly out to Seattle for some final testing to ensure that I was a perfect match for Ryan. Long story short, I am.

So, we set a date and on November 9th Ryan and I will enter our respective surgery rooms and they will take out my left kidney and put it into Ryan. The result, God willing, is that Ryan will gain 20+ years of normal, dialysis-free, life and I will continue to live the normal life I already have. While there are risks for both of us, the risks for Ryan are far greater. For me, there is only minimal risks which are common to any surgery, a 3-6 week recovery period where I can’t lift anything over 10 pounds, and long term, studies show that kidney donors typically live very normal lives with no adverse effects from the surgery. For Ryan, his body will have to learn to use another person’s kidney. This is no small task and will require Ryan to take anti-rejection medication for the remainder of his life.

While that is the more “technical” side of the journey, I want to share some of the personal and spiritual aspects as well. To begin with, my wife and kids are all on board with this decision. As a family, we have prayed almost every night for nearly 2 years that God would heal Ryan and give him a kidney (Philippians 4:6). As a family, we have offered up prayers that if God would so chose, I was willing to be the donor. As a family we have placed our hope and trust for Ryan and this situation fully into the hand of the Lord. So when the call came that I may be the donor, it was simply the next step for us in our trusting God’s grace and provision (Proverbs 3:5-6).

One question that I commonly get when people find out that i’m donating a kidney to someone who isn’t a super-close friend or family member, is “why?” I’ve thought about that question a lot over the past year and it really comes down to two things: He needs it and I can do it. It seems like a somewhat simplistic answer for such a big decision, but through this journey I’ve come to realize more and more that this is just the kind of guy I am. When I meet people or situations that need something, I immediately begin to think about how I, or someone I know, could help. The best I can tell, it is just the way God wired me.

As a Christian, there is no doubt that my faith and hope in Jesus has played a part in this journey. I continue to think about the great lengths by which Christ gave of himself for me. As one who was far off and undeserving of mercy, Christ died to reconcile me to God (Romans 5:6-8). When you experience the gospel, it actually helps you to understand that life is about so much more than your own self-preservation. In the gospel you are free from the fear of saving your own life, but as Christ did, you can lay down your life for others (Philippians 2:3-8). Jesus lead the way in this not only in his death and resurrection, but even before that as he, the one through who all things were created (Colossians 1:16), knelt down and washed the feet of his disciples (John 13:1-17). Not worried about self exhalation, status, or the praise of men, he humbled himself and served others. Whether washing feet or laying down our lives, the gospel empowers us to live lives to the glory of God (1 Corinthians 10:31). And, for me, that path has lead to donating a kidney. But not only that, it is the very same gospel that leads me to love my wife (Ephesians 5:25), my kids, my neighbors. The gospel radically reorients our lives and frees us to no longer simply seek our own good, but rather the good of others to the glory of God (1 Corinthian 10:31).

As we progress down this road, I would ask for your prayers. Please pray for a smooth and successful surgery. For speedy and full recovery for Ryan and myself. For the peace of Christ to guard our families (Philippians 4:6-7). And most importantly, for the glory of God to be seen in all we do.

My good friends at Logos Bible Software are undertaking an ambitious new project that is taking them into new territory as a company. For years Logos has excelled at taking books written in English and converting them into their digital format. However, what about the hundreds, if not thousands, of great theological texts that are locked up in other languages? For example, Geerhardus Vos’ Reformed Dogmatics (5 vols.), which can only be found in German. Well, Logos thinks they have the solution: crowdsourcing.

Logos has added Geerhardus Vos’ Reformed Dogmatics (5 vols.) to their current pre-pub system and, if enough people say they will buy it once it is produced, Logos will hire out a scholar to translate the work into English and then release it for Logos Bible Software. If the program is a success, you can guarantee you’ll see Logos spearheading the charge to translate many, many more titles.

So, if you’re excited about seeing great theological works translated into English, then support this effort by pre-ordering this work. (Note: When pre-ordering through Logos your credit card will not be charged until the product actually ships. Which for this work will likely be months from now.) So, go pre-order it today and be one of the first people to have the joy of reading Voss in English.

More Info:
- Product Page
- Logos Blog Post about the effort
- Logos Pre Pub System

The next time you sit down to read your Bible, take a moment to reflect on the prayer of a pastor who, in March of 2010, held the New Testament, in his own language, for the very first time (Prayer is at minute 1:45 of the video, but watch the whole thing).

O God, O God. The plan which you had from the beginning, regarding your Kimyals which already existed in your Spirit. The month that you had set, the day that you had set, has come to pass today. Oh my Father, my Father. The promise that you gave Simeon that he would see Jesus Christ and hold his arms before he died. I also have been waiting under the same promise, O God. I have also been waiting under that same promise, O God. You looked at all the different languages and chose which ones will be put into Your Word. You thought that we should see Your Word in our own language. Today, the day you had chosen for this to be fulfilled, has come to pass. O God, Today, you have placed Your Word into my hands, just like you promised. You have placed it here in our land. And for all this, O God, I give You praise.

While reading Zacharias Ursinus’ commentary on the Heidelberg Catechism the other night, I came across a quote that I had once heard, but had since misquoted and, honestly, never knew where it was from. I was happy to finally come across the quote in print.

Our safety does not lie in our own hands, or strength; for if it did, we should lose it a thousand times every moment.

Zacharias Ursinus and G. W. Williard, The Commentary of Dr. Zacharias Ursinus on the Heidelberg Catechism (Cincinnati, OH: Elm Street Printing Company, 1888), 19.

The quote comes from Ursinus’ commentary on the first question of the catechism:

Question 1. What is thy only comfort in life and death?

Answer: That I with body and soul, both in life and death, am not my own, but belong unto my faithful Saviour Jesus Christ; who, with his precious blood, has fully satisfied for all my sins, and delivered me from all the power of the devil; and so preserves me that without the will of my heavenly Father, not a hair can fall from my head; yea, that all things must be subservient to my salvation, and therefore, by his Holy Spirit, He also assures me of eternal life, and makes me sincerely willing and ready, henceforth, to live unto him.

In the his commentary on this question, Ursinus helps the Christian remember that the comfort we receive through Christ is held in the powerful hand of the God. I find this…well… comforting.I leave you with this final thought:

This, therefore, is that christian comfort, spoken of in this question of the catechism, which is an only and solid comfort, both in life and death—a comfort consisting in the assurance of the free remission of sin, and of reconciliation with God, by and on account of Christ, and a certain expectation of eternal life, impressed upon the heart by the holy Spirit through the gospel, so that we have no doubt but that we are the property of Christ, and are beloved of God for his sake, and saved forever, according to the declaration of the Apostle Paul: “Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress,” &c. (Rom. 8:35.)

Zacharias Ursinus and G. W. Williard, The Commentary of Dr. Zacharias Ursinus on the Heidelberg Catechism (Cincinnati, OH: Elm Street Printing Company, 1888), 18.

photo credit: dhwright

I was reading Michael Horton’s new book, The Christian Faith: A Systematic Theology for Pilgrims on the Way, and that line struck me. Death is an enemy, not a friend. Perhaps it is my longing to be with Christ (Php 1:23) or my love for the song “I’ll fly away,” I often, in the life of a Christian, forget that death is still an enemy. I found Horton’s comments encouraging and helpful.

Part of the curse is the separation of the soul from body (Ge 2:17; 3:19, 22; 5:5;Ro 5:12; 8:10; 1co 15:21). Death is an enemy, not a friend (1Co 15:26) and a terror (Heb 2:15), so horrible that even the one who would triumph over it was overcome with grief, fear, and anger at the tomb of his friend Lazarus (Jn 11:33-36). Jesus did not see death as a portal to “a better life.” Looking death in the eye, he saw it for what it was, and his disciples followed his example.After the deacon’s martyrdom, we read, “Devout men buried Stephen and made great lamentations over him” (Ac 8:2). the reason that believers do not mourn as those who have no hope (1Th 4:14) is not that they know death is good, but that they know that God’s love and life are more powerful than the jaws of death. Although believer, too, feel its bite, Christ has removed the sting of death (Jn 14:2-3; Php 1:21; 1Co 15:54-57; 2Co 5:8). That is because “the sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law,. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ” (1Co 15:56-57). Downplaying the seriousness of the foe only trivializes the debt that was paid and the conquest that was achieved at the cross and the empty tomb.

P. 911 // The Christian Faith: A Systematic Theology for Pilgrims on the Way

A footnote in Leon Morris’ commentary on John 1:14 caught my heart and mind this morning. I hope you enjoy it as I did:

Laurence Housman brings out something of the wonder of it all:
“Light looked down and beheld Darkness.
‘Thither will I go,’ said Light.
Peace looked down and beheld War.
‘Thither will I go,’ said Peace.
Love looked down and beheld Hatred.
‘Thither will I go,’ said Love.
So came Light and shone.
So came Peace and gave rest.
So came Love and brought life.
And the Word was made flesh and dwelt among us.”

Leon Morris, The Gospel According to John, The New International Commentary on the New Testament (Grand Rapids, MI: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1995). quoting Little plays of St. Francis: a dramatic cycle from the life and legend of St. Francis of Assisi. p. 202

Photo Credit: Flavio@Flickr

O Living God,
I bless thee
  that I see the worst of my heart as well as the best of it,
  that I can sorrow for those sins that carry me from thee,
  that it is thy deep and dear mercy to threaten punishment
    so that I may return, pray, live.
My sin is to look on my faults and be discouraged,
  or to look on my good and be puffed up.
I fall short of thy glory every day by spending hours unprofitably,
  by thinking that the things I do are good,
    when they are not done to thy end,
    nor spring from the rules of the Word.
My sin is to fear what will never be;
I forget to submit to they will, and fail to be quiet there.
But Scripture teaches me that thy active will
  reveals a steadfast purpose on my behalf,
  and his quietens my soul, and makes me love thee.
Keep me always in they understanding
  that saints mourn more for sin than other men,
    for when they see how great is they wrath against sin,
      and how Christ’s death alone pacifies that wrath,
        that makes them mourn the more.
Help me to see that although I am in the wilderness
  it is not all briers and barrenness.
I have bread from heaven,
  streams from the rock,
  light by day,
  fire by night,
  they dwelling place and thy mercy seat.
I am sometimes discouraged by the way,
  but though winding and trying it is safe and short;
Death dismays me, but my great high priest stands in its waters,
  and will open me a passage,
  and beyond is a better country.
While I live let my life be exemplary,
When I die may my end be in peace.

The Valley of Vision. p. 85

I started reading John Piper’s The Legacy of Sovereign Joy: God’s Triumphant Grace in the Lives of Augustine, Luther, and Calvin the other night. In his intro about the importance of studying the great saints of the past, Piper reminded me, through the words of Luther, how often I stop there and how insufficient that is. In his (and Luther’s words):

But let us be admonished, finally, from the mouth of Luther that the only original, true, and life-giving spring is the Word of God. Beware of replacing the pure mountain spring of Scripture with the sullied streams of great saints. They are precious, but they are not pure. So we say with Luther,

The writings of all the holy fathers should be read only for a time, in order that through them we may be led to the Holy Scriptures. As it is, however, we read them only to be absorbed in them and never come to the Scriptures. We are like men who study the sign-posts and never travel the road. The dear fathers wished by their writing, to lead us to the Scriptures, but we so use them as to be led away from the Scriptures, though the Scriptures alone are our vineyard in which we ought all to work and toil.

John Piper, The Legacy of Sovereign Joy : God’s Triumphant Grace in the Lives of Augustine, Luther, and Calvin (Wheaton, Ill.: Crossway Books, 2006), 37-38.

All too often I drink only from the sullied stream and ignore the pure mountain stream. May God have mercy and change my drinking habits.

Photo Credit: Horia Varlan

I am indebted to Joe Thorn, pastor of Redeemer Fellowship in Saint Charles, IL, as he has help to inspire an awakening of prayer in my life.

He recently shared on his blog a discipline he’s incorporated into his life of stopping, three times a day, to meet with God in prayer. This isn’t simply a time of spontaneous prayer, rather Joe sits down for a few minutes with great men and women of faith from the 16th and 17th century and communes with God through the prayers that they prayed.

The Valley of Vision is a collection of prayers written by various Puritan authors and contains some of the most humble, honest, and theologically rich prayers I’ve ever encountered. Following Joe’s guide for Walking through The Valley of Vision I too have begun meeting with the Puritans for prayer and can not commend this practice high enough. Since beginning, I have begun to look forward to these appointments with God throughout my day. I long to take these 5 minute breaks to call upon God while meditating upon his person, character, and works. It has truly been a refreshing experience.

In fact, the process has been so enjoyable that I’ve ordered a second copy of The Valley of Vision so that my wife can start using Joe’s guide as well. The beauty of this is knowing that every day, three times a day, we are stopping to pray the same prayer together, even if we aren’t in the same place. Knowing that we are communing with God, meditating on the same words, adds an even greater joy to the encounter for me.

Now, I’m sure there are some of you who might think that praying a prayer written by another person might be a strange or empty endeavor. If you are one such person, then why not just give it a try. Slowly read the following prayer, taking the words and passions they convey as your own. I trust you will be blessed, as I have been. What is more, I believe that as you commit to this as prayerful worship and communion with God, He too will be blessed.

The Savior

Thou God of all grace,
Thou has given me a Saviour,
produce in me a faith to live by him,
to make him all my desire,
all my hope,
all my glory.

May I enter him as my refuge,
build on him as my foundation,
walk in him as my way,
follow him as my guide,
conform to him as my example,
receive his instructions as my prophet,
rely on his intercession as my high priest,
obey him as my king.

May I never be ashamed of him or his words,
buy joyfully bear his reproach,
never displease him by unholy or imprudent conduct,
never count it a glory if I take it patiently when buffeted for a fault,
never make the multitude my model,
never delay when they Word invited me to advance.

May they dear Son preserve me from this present evil world,
so that its smiles never allure,
nor its frowns terrify,
nor its vices defile,
nor its errors delude me.

May I feel that I am a stranger and pilgrim on earth, declaring plainly that i seek a country,
my title to it becoming daily more clear,
my meetness for it more perfect,
my foretastes of it more abundant;
and whatsoever I do may it be done in the Saviour’s name.

Bennett, Arthur G. 1975. Valley of Vision: A collection of Puritan Prayers & Devotions. p.44, Banner of Truth.

photo credit: Julie_Berlin