I sat down to write three different times this week but never found the words. I kept getting this sense that what needed to be said (for now) had been said already and it was more about remembering those words and putting them into practice.
That said, I hope you’ve found time to meet with the Lord this week, remembering words He has spoken in times past, and that these have been sweet and fruitful times of great affection, not just in thought but also in action. He is God with us, God among us, and I pray that has been made even more evident to you this week.
Besides this, I’ve been spending more time in worship lately, along with doing quite a bit of reading.
I used to record more of my personal worship time, including some of the spontaneous songs that would come as I read the Word, prayed and waited on the Lord. And so it was fun to record one of these songs again last week. Here’s a link to listen, plus if you scroll down the list you’ll find some of the older material.
Lastly, I wondered if it might be helpful to list out some of the books I’m currently reading. I know I’ve found great value in hearing book recommendations coming from sermons or older works. It’s helped me to build up a little library of books I consider to be very encouraging.
Books I’ve recently started:
The Sermon on the Mount by Norman Vincent Peale (a simple book with beautiful illustrations originally printed using wood engravings. We’re using this at dinner to go through the Sermon on the Mount as a family)
Returning to Holiness by Dr. Gregory R. Frizzell (An appeal to purity and holiness in more of a workbook format, asking some probing questions as to areas of potential sin)
Rees Howells: Intercessor by Norman Grubb (My top book recommendation for those who are feeling a stirring in their heart for revival or hungering for greater satisfaction in Christ. I expand on that thought here.)
The Great Revival in Wales by S.B. Shaw (A collection of news printings and personal testimonies from the revival in Wales. Evan Roberts is the name most widely remembered from this move of God.)
Others I am still slowly working my way through:
The Life of General William Booth Volume 1 by Harold Begbie (Excellent writing and a top-notch biography about the husband and wife who founded the Salvation Army)
Romans Chapter 9 by Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones (I’ve really been enjoying this book from his Romans commentary series. It has taught me a lot about God’s covenant)
Prayer and Praying Men by E.M. Bounds (This is part of a multi-book series on prayer. I pick up one of these books from time to time just to be encouraged to keep praying and never give up.)
Revival Lectures by Charles Finney (Originally purchased this book after hearing about it from a Keith Green story. It’s a very helpful and practical look at how Finney approached his ministry)
The Works of Jonathan Edwards Volume 1 (This one will probably take a lifetime to finish, it’s quite thick! I started with his exposition on revival.)
The Christian in Complete Armour by William Gurnall (An absolute classic, although I’ve not made much progress on it lately, I find it very helpful every time I pick it up. I usually only make it a couple of pages before I’ve come to several points that need addressing before I can move on.)
What are you reading right now? Leave a note in the comments.
A parting thought
Would any of you have an interest if I started some kind of book-sharing library for Kingdom Heard readers? You could request a book and then I’d ship it out to you. Once you were done reading you could ship it back to me or to the next person on the reading list.
If you’d use something like this, leave a comment or send me an email.
A reading list and a library?
A reading list and a library?
A reading list and a library?
I sat down to write three different times this week but never found the words. I kept getting this sense that what needed to be said (for now) had been said already and it was more about remembering those words and putting them into practice.
That said, I hope you’ve found time to meet with the Lord this week, remembering words He has spoken in times past, and that these have been sweet and fruitful times of great affection, not just in thought but also in action. He is God with us, God among us, and I pray that has been made even more evident to you this week.
Besides this, I’ve been spending more time in worship lately, along with doing quite a bit of reading.
I used to record more of my personal worship time, including some of the spontaneous songs that would come as I read the Word, prayed and waited on the Lord. And so it was fun to record one of these songs again last week. Here’s a link to listen, plus if you scroll down the list you’ll find some of the older material.
Lastly, I wondered if it might be helpful to list out some of the books I’m currently reading. I know I’ve found great value in hearing book recommendations coming from sermons or older works. It’s helped me to build up a little library of books I consider to be very encouraging.
Books I’ve recently started:
The Sermon on the Mount by Norman Vincent Peale (a simple book with beautiful illustrations originally printed using wood engravings. We’re using this at dinner to go through the Sermon on the Mount as a family)
Returning to Holiness by Dr. Gregory R. Frizzell (An appeal to purity and holiness in more of a workbook format, asking some probing questions as to areas of potential sin)
Rees Howells: Intercessor by Norman Grubb (My top book recommendation for those who are feeling a stirring in their heart for revival or hungering for greater satisfaction in Christ. I expand on that thought here.)
The Great Revival in Wales by S.B. Shaw (A collection of news printings and personal testimonies from the revival in Wales. Evan Roberts is the name most widely remembered from this move of God.)
Others I am still slowly working my way through:
The Life of General William Booth Volume 1 by Harold Begbie (Excellent writing and a top-notch biography about the husband and wife who founded the Salvation Army)
Romans Chapter 9 by Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones (I’ve really been enjoying this book from his Romans commentary series. It has taught me a lot about God’s covenant)
Prayer and Praying Men by E.M. Bounds (This is part of a multi-book series on prayer. I pick up one of these books from time to time just to be encouraged to keep praying and never give up.)
Revival Lectures by Charles Finney (Originally purchased this book after hearing about it from a Keith Green story. It’s a very helpful and practical look at how Finney approached his ministry)
The Works of Jonathan Edwards Volume 1 (This one will probably take a lifetime to finish, it’s quite thick! I started with his exposition on revival.)
The Christian in Complete Armour by William Gurnall (An absolute classic, although I’ve not made much progress on it lately, I find it very helpful every time I pick it up. I usually only make it a couple of pages before I’ve come to several points that need addressing before I can move on.)
What are you reading right now? Leave a note in the comments.
A parting thought
Would any of you have an interest if I started some kind of book-sharing library for Kingdom Heard readers? You could request a book and then I’d ship it out to you. Once you were done reading you could ship it back to me or to the next person on the reading list.
If you’d use something like this, leave a comment or send me an email.
In love,
Derek