Pass it On: A Book Review

In Deuteronomy, Israel was charged to teach God's word to their children, "You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise" (6:7). Perhaps Solomon thought of this passage when wrote to his son in the book of Proverbs, “My son, if you…call out for insight and raise your voice for understanding; if you seek it like silver and search for it as for hidden treasures, then you will understand the fear of the LORD and find the knowledge of God” (Proverbs 2:1,3-5).

Much of the book of Proverbs was written from the King to his son, imploring him to seek the way of wisdom. Like all of God's word, Proverbs points us to Christ, wisdom incarnate, the One who became wisdom for us, fulfilling all the requirements of the law because we could not. His Spirit lives within us, teaching and guiding us in the way of wisdom so that we reflect and image Christ. Proverbs is a highly practical book, covering all areas of life, and helps us apply God's wisdom to our life.

Champ Thornton’s new book, Pass It On: A Proverbs Journal for the Next Generation, is both a study guide for the book of Proverbs and a gift to give away. Not only does it aid us in gaining wisdom from God's word in the book of Proverbs, but it is also a great way to pass on the word of God to the next generation. How is that? First, you use Pass it On yourself, studying Proverbs and making notes on what you learn along the way. When you finish your study, you pass on the book to a child, grandchild, or another loved one to benefit from and share in what you’ve learned.

The beginning of Pass it On explains the book of Proverbs, outlining its structure, patterns, and common themes and explains how the study is laid out. It then moves into the study itself which is divided into thirty-one chapters.

The author encourages the reader to study one chapter a week. For each chapter, the author gives an overview of the main points of that chapter, titled "Guided Tour." The "At a Glance" section provides the passage written out to read. A "Reflections" section allows the reader to write down the things that stand out in the chapter. In the "Going Deeper" section, the author asks probing questions to help the reader think through what was read and apply the passage to the reader's life. There's a "Connecting the Gospel" section which helps the reader study the passage through the lens of what Christ has done. One of my favorite sections is titled "Personalizing a Prayer" and encourages the reader to write out a prayer based on what was learned from the chapter. This prayer is intended both for the reader and the person who will later receive the book. Lastly is the "Sharing Your Story" section where the reader personally shares applications learned from Proverbs to the person who will eventually receive Pass it On. 

Pass it On is Christ-centered, showing how Christ is wisdom for us. "...true wisdom came to full bloom in the person of Christ. And because of his life and death, he stands as our ultimate Example and Source of wisdom. Jesus modeled perfect wisdom, rightly relating to God and everything else. And now he has graciously passed on to his people, that same wisdom. Thus, as the believing men and women of one generation have generously received the wisdom from God, so they must preserve this treasure for the next generation—and pass it on" (page 28).

This book is a great way to disciple and share with someone else the blessing of God's word and his wisdom for our lives. It's a practical way to live out the call in Deuteronomy 6 to pass on God's word to the next generation. And with the Christmas season around the corner,  Pass it On would make a wonderful gift.  

Are you interested in studying Proverbs? Is there someone in your life you'd like to pass on the gift of God's word and wisdom? Consider Champ Thornton's new book. Pass It On: A Proverbs Journal for the Next Generation is a gift that benefits both the giver and receiver.

Note: I received a copy of this book from the publisher for free for my review. The thoughts and opinions are my own. I am a member of the Amazon Affiliates program and links to books in this post are connected to my affiliates account with Amazon.com. 

The Psalms and Giving Thanks

This month marks that yearly tradition where we gather with friends and family around a table laden with food. For most of us, that means turkey and dressing (or stuffing, if you must), cranberry sauce, casseroles, and of course, pumpkin pie. Like the pilgrims before us, we give thanks to God for his rich blessings to us over the past year.

The holiday of Thanksgiving is an opportune time to dwell on what God has done and to give him the thanks he is due. The book of Psalms is a rich resource to aid us giving thanks, specifically the psalms of thanksgiving.

The Psalms of Thanksgiving

The book of Psalms was the hymnbook for God’s people. They used it in worship the way we use our hymnals or praise songs today. And just like music today, there were different genres or types of psalms sung at different times, depending on what was happening in the life of God’s people. The psalms of thanksgiving were one such genre and are closely tied to another genre, the psalms of lament.

When God’s people needed help and rescue, they sang a lament and cried out to God for help and mercy. These are the darkest of all the Psalms and ones where the psalmist voiced his deepest sorrows, fears, and griefs to God. “How long, O Lord? Will you forget me forever? How long will you hide your face from me? (Psalm 13:1). After God met his people in their need and delivered them, they responded with a song of thanksgiving, thanking God for what he had done. “I will extol you, O Lord, for you have drawn me up and have not let my foes rejoice over me” (Psalm 30:1).

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Ideas to Cultivate Community

I shared in my book, Closer Than a Sister, that as I wrote it, I had to live out what I was writing while I wrote it. That's because when I first had the idea to write Closer Than a Sister, I was enjoying sweet community and fellowship with my church family. But it wasn't until a year or so later that I signed a contract to write it, and, in a twist of irony, I had moved away from that community. I basically wrote the book community-less.

To be honest, it's challenging to write about something you no longer have.

You might be in a similar place. Perhaps you've just moved to a new place and are seeking community. Perhaps you've been in a church for a while and still feel like a stranger there. Maybe everywhere you have been in recent years fails to match the community you experienced at some point in the past. Whatever your current situation, if you are longing for community, I wanted to share a few suggestions for cultivating community in your local church.

Before I share those ideas, I want to say that I am intentional in using the term "cultivate." We can't create Christian community; God already has. Through the blood of Christ shed for his people, God created the church. It is filled with redeemed brothers and sisters who are united to Christ and to each other for all eternity. So the community already exists. But like a seed buried in the soil, we need to nurture it to help it grow.

From Closer Than a Sister: “Ultimately, to cultivate friendship, we have to be a friend. We often look for others who will be a friend to us, but the place to start is to be a friend to others. Be the friend you desire to have.”

1.       Pray: If you desire close Christian community, pray for it. Pray that God would bring you the people he desires in your life. Pray for opportunities to reach out and serve, to befriend others, and disciple someone else. Also, pray through all the twists and turns, ups and downs, and challenges you will likely encounter in friendship. Friendship and community is God's idea. He desires it for us. But it has to be rooted in him. Jesus has to be our friend first before we can be a friend to others. So abide in Christ through prayer through this process.  

2.       Participate: Participate in whatever your church currently offers. If they offer Bible studies, join one. If they have small groups which meet in other people's homes, attend one. If they have any fellowship opportunities, participate in them. The best way to know people is to be a part of what is happening in your church. You can't know others or be known by your church community when you slink into the last row just as the pastor begins the sermon and slide out right as he gives the benediction. Take advantage of any and every opportunity for fellowship and participation in the life of your church.

3.       Purpose: Purpose to engage with other people. Be intentional. Seek out others who are in need and meet those needs. Call someone whom you know is struggling and invite them to coffee. Be watchful for those on the outside, for those who are new or who don't seem to fit in and get to know them. Don't wait for friendship to happen to you, be a friend to others.

4.       Plan: Make intentional plans to develop community. For the longest time, my husband and I invited any new family who visited our church to share a meal with us. We made many great and lasting friends this way. Our home was like a revolving door; we always had people coming or going. We hosted small groups, Bible studies, parties, fellowship events, moms playgroups, and more in our home. And since moving to a new town, we've done the same thing. Plan to put something in the oven on a Sunday morning and invite a family from church over for lunch afterward. Choose a book and invite several people to read it with you. Meet together weekly or monthly to talk about it. Call a few other moms and invite them to meet at a park for the kids to play together. Consider starting a weekly play date with other moms. 

Just as it takes time for a planted seed to grow and develop into a full and thriving plant, it takes time for friendship and community to grow. Deep friendships are built over time and often through shared trials and challenges of life. The longer we walk with someone in our journey of faith, the more we experience together and the deeper our friendship grows. But you have to start somewhere, so why not start where you are right now? 

The Wonders of Being "In Christ"

One of the joys of homeschooling my children includes teaching them the parts of our English language that, when strung together, make up a sentence. Both my boys memorized a list of prepositions in elementary school. Prepositions are important words because they help us understand the relationship between two things. Without them, many sentences wouldn't make sense. After all, what would "My pen fell under the table" be without the word "under"? 

My youngest especially enjoyed learning prepositions when I gave him an activity. His favorite activity involved a small area rug in our school room. I had him stand "on" the rug. He stood "beside" the rug. He put his foot "over" the rug and "under" it. Best of all was when I asked him to roll himself up "in" the rug—like a burrito.

The word "in" is a preposition used throughout Paul's letters in the New Testament. This two letter word is part of a crucial doctrine for believers. Over and over, Paul teaches us that we are "in Christ." Being "in Christ" is a reference to our unity with Christ. When God the Son left the halls of heaven and wrapped himself in human flesh at the incarnation, he united himself to us in our humanity. He then lived the perfect life we could not live and died the death we deserved. Through the gift of faith, we are united to him in his life and death for us. Everything Christ did becomes ours.  

I talk about union with Christ in my book, particularly in terms of what it means for us as believers to be united to one another through Christ. Today, I wanted to share some of the wonders of what it means that we are "in Christ."

*It began in eternity past when God chose us in Christ. “He chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him.” (Ephesians 1:4).

*In Christ, we have forgiveness. “In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace”(Ephesians 1:7).

*In Christ, we are sanctified. “To those sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints together with all those who in every place call upon the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, both their Lord and ours” (1 Corinthians 1:2).

*In Christ, we have been given the Spirit. “In him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the praise of his glory” (Ephesians 1:13-14).

*In Christ, we are new creations. “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come” (2 Corinthians 5:17).

*In Christ, we are loved. “I in them and you in me, that they may become perfectly one, so that the world may know that you sent me and loved them even as you loved me” (John 17:23).

*In Christ, we are united with other members of the Body. “We, though many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another” (Romans 12:5).

*In Christ, we walk with Him. “Therefore, as you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in him, rooted and built up in him and established in the faith, just as you were taught, abounding in thanksgiving” (Colossians 2:6).

*In Christ, we have been raised. “And raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus” (Ephesians 2:6).

*In Christ, we have peace. “And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:7).

*In Christ, we have all we need. “And my God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:19).

*In Christ, we were made for good works. “For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them” (Ephesians 2:10).

Being united to Christ, being "in Christ," is the basis for every benefit we have. It's fundamental to our faith and the Christian life. As I wrote in my book,Closer Than a Sister: How Union with Christ helps Friendships to Flourish (Focus for Women) :

"In John 15, Jesus describes our union or connection to Him like that of a vine. ‘I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser. Every branch in me that does not bear fruit he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit. Already you are clean because of the word that I have spoken to you. Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing’ (vv. 1-6).

Only in union with Christ can we bear fruit. Only in union with Christ can we be His disciples. Only in union with Christ can we obey Him. Only in union with Christ can we do anything. Just as a branch receives its life and sustenance from the vine, we too receive our spiritual life and health from our union in Christ. We grow and bear fruit from the nutrients He provides. Our union with our Savior is our very life and breath. So then, if we are not united to Christ, we are not saved, we have no forgiveness, and no redemption. If we are not united to Him, we will not be sanctified or transformed into His likeness. If we are not united to Christ, resurrection from death is not ours. Apart from union with Christ, we are lost and without hope.[1] Christ is everything; therefore, union with Him gives us everything" 

When we understand this union, we realize its significance to our identity, to our growth in faith, to our sanctification, to our daily lives as believers. Take time today to dwell on the wonders of your union with Christ.

[1] Ryken, Philip Graham (Editor). The Communion of Saints: Living in Felowship with the People of God (Phillipsburg, NJ: P&R Publishing, 2001), p. 18.

What a Friend We Have in Jesus

“A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for adversity” (Proverbs 17:17). What a joy it is to have a friend, one we can confide and trust in, receive help and encouragement from, one who knows and loves us just as we are. To have a friend walk beside us in the darkest times is a great blessing.

But friendship, like all things in this fallen world, is broken. Because of sin, we have conflicts with others. We seek our own way. We hurt and betray one another. We know what it is like to have a friend fail us and let us down. We’ve probably had friends betray our confidences with others. Perhaps we’ve even had friends turn their backs and reject us. Certainly we know what it’s like when close friends from the past fade farther away through time and distance. Some of us may know the heartache of losing a friend through death.

As a result, it can be easy to grow cynical about friendship. We can be distrusting and cautious. We might find relationships online or through social media to be more appealing than flesh and blood friendships. We may keep the relationships we do have at a distance, never trusting enough to share what’s really going on in our heart. And some may give up on friendship altogether, preferring to handle life on our own...

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Rejoice with those Who Rejoice

Welcoming smiles. Homemade desserts. Fresh flowers. Laughter.

Don’t you just love a church family celebration? Whether it’s rejoicing over a baptism, celebrating a wedding, or showering a mother-to-be, we do a good job celebrating the goodness of God in our lives.

Except for when we don’t.

Rejoice with Rejoicers

“Rejoice with those who rejoice,” Paul exhorts (Rom. 12:15). “If one member suffers, all suffer together; if one member is honored, all rejoice together” (1 Cor. 12:26). These admonitions aren’t just nice things to do; they concern our unity in Christ and our unity with one another.

Through faith in Christ’s redeeming work, we’re united to him. And unity with him unites us to one another. Though we come to Christ as individuals, upon salvation we’re immediately joined to all the members of God’s family. We’re connected to believers past, present, and future, from all over the world. This family is different from one comprised of blood relatives; it’s a family born of Christ’s blood. Our unity is eternal.

That’s why Paul could say we’re to rejoice with those who rejoice. In our union, their joy is our joy...

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