Life2gether

Tim Keller’s book The Meaning of Marriage: Facing the Complexities of Commitment with the Wisdom of God will be released November 1.

Here’s part of the description:

There has never been a marriage book like THE MEANING OF MARRIAGE.

Using the Bible as his guide, coupled with insightful commentary from his wife of thirty-six years, Kathy, Timothy Keller shows that God created marriage to bring us closer to him and to bring us more joy in our lives. It is a glorious relationship that is also the most misunderstood and mysterious. With a clear-eyed understanding of the Bible, and meaningful instruction on how to have a successful marriage, The Meaning of Marriage is essential reading for anyone who wants to know God and love more deeply in this life.

It’s already available for pre-order. I can’t wait to read it.

(HT: Matt Perman)

Parents of LaGrange Baptist Church:

Do you feel the pressures of home life? Come join us for Parent Chat on Sept. 7, at 6:45 PM, as we hear how God’s grace frees us in the midst of these pressures. We’ll have an assortment of desserts and coffee as Pastor Tony leads us. If you have a child in SEEDS (1st – 6th grade) we encourage you to start the evening with your child in the SEEDS room and we’ll dismiss you to Parent Chat at 6:45. Mark your calendars. Invite your friends!

Divorce affects the lives of so many children in our society today, but how can the church respond?  I appreciate Wayne Stocks and his heart to help hurting children and their families through his new website called divorceministry4kids.com. Here’s why he started the website:

Since 1972, over 1,000,000 kids each year have joined the ranks of the children of divorce. These kids face struggles which are very unique and very real. And, unfortunately, many of our churches are ill-equipped to deal with the special needs of this growing segment of their congregations. Whether they worry about addressing the issue of divorce for fear of alienating their congregations, pretend that the problem simply does not exist, or simply fail to recognize the magnitude of the issue, many churches are ill-equipped to deal with, or minister to, children of divorce.

Read the rest … and check out Tony Kummer’s podcast with Wayne about the website

A Guide to Biblical Manhood by Randy Stinson and Dan Dumas looks to be a great resource to read through with the men of your church. Stinson and Dumas outline the essentials of what it means to be a godly husband, a godly father, and godly leader in a short, readable and practical format. It’s clear that their aim is that you would read this book and then lead with your actions.

Dumas says, “In your marriage, don’t go home and say, ‘Honey, things are going to be different around here. Here are five things I’m gonna start doing.’” Just lead. Don’t announce it. At the first opportunity you get, just do it. Let her discover it. The last thing you want to do is over-promise and under-deliver.”

Get the book here for less than $5.

Glenn Stanton:

“Christians divorce at roughly the same rate as the world!” It’s one of the most quoted stats by Christian leaders today. And it’s perhaps one of the most inaccurate.

Based on the best data available, the divorce rate among Christians is significantly lower than the general population.

Here’s the truth….

Be honest.

A. Your iphone/ipad
B. Your kids
C. Your wife
D. Your bible

My guess is that many of us hold and look at A & B the most. I wonder what would happen if we flipped that around and held and looked at C & D more.

Jim Luebe, a man who impacted me in college, recently wrote this helpful article on the subject of biblical love:

“A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” –John 13:34,35

There’s a clear connection between unity in the body and the advancement of the Gospel. But this truth cuts both ways. A lack of love and unity can be a severe hindrance to the advancement of the Gospel.

Many of us are unaware of the main reason overseas missionaries return prematurely from the mission field. It’s not because of inadequate funding. It’s not due to challenges from hostile governments. The primary reason they return home is conflict on their teams!

Relational conflict and differences of opinion are inevitable when you live and work closely with people. You don’t have to be a missionary to experience this. In fact, you don’t have to look any further than your own marriage. How can it be that the person you love the most in the world is also the person you sin against most often and from whom you continually need to seek forgiveness?

Here are seven simple (but not easy) biblical steps that can help you foster love and unity in any relationship.

Be humble. (1 Peter 5:5,6)

Believe the best in people. (Philippians 4:8)

Keep short accounts and take pains to have a clear conscience with both God and people. (Acts 24:16)

Don’t let a root of bitterness grow in your heart. (Ephesians 4:31)

Overlook offenses when possible. (Proverbs 19:11)

Make every effort to do what leads to peace and to mutual edification. (Romans 14:19)

Be controlled by the Holy Spirit. (Ephesians 5:18)

Search your heart and think about the close relationships you have. Ask God if there is anything you need to do to “have a clear conscience before God and man” (Acts 24:16). For the sake of the Gospel, let’s work at loving one another.

One of the most encouraging parts of the DG conference for me happened during the Q&A time with all the speakers. The panel was asked the following question: Should we be having a daily quiet time or prayer time with our wives? Here’s Francis Chan’s humble response:

FC: I’m learning a lot from this conference and especially from Joel’s talk last night (on Family Worship). I want to build up and so I don’t want you to follow my example. My wife and I don’t pray regularly together. When needs arise, we pray. I don’t have a regular family worship time. I spend a lot of time with children one-on-one. I’m thinking of Ephesians 4:29—I don’t want to say anything that won’t build you up, but I want to be honest with you. I look at what Joel was saying and I want that. I have issues in my life. But I almost feel weird sometimes talking about spiritual things with my family. Maybe it has something to do with my upbringing. When I do pray with my wife, it is awesome. I just have this weird block with praying with my wife.

Later he added this:

FC: We prayed a lot when we were dating. When we got married, she told me honestly that she thought we would pray and read more together. I was concerned for her walk and that everything was through me. I told her if I saw her praying and reading on her own more often, then it would be easier for me to do that with her. I have some great examples here and I’m going to go home and start trying this daily thing.

I got the opportunity to meet Chan after the conference, and I let him know how much I appreciated his honesty and vulnerability. I told him that we (as young leaders) need to see models of broken, humble leaders like himself. He said that he already called his wife and prayed with her on the phone. Wow. I am convinced that Chan’s confession will have a ripple effect on hundreds-perhaps thousands-of men who struggle to pray with their wives.

I’ll end with Piper’s challenge to the pastors (and all of us men!):

JP: Try this: go home, and if you never regularly pray with your wife, tell her you are going to try some new things. When you wake, roll over, take her hand, and say a short prayer before getting out of bed. Start there. Praying together is an awesome barometer of how things are going. If you can’t talk to God together, you can’t talk to each other. This is important for Francis and me and you to start doing this. Just take thirty seconds when you go to bed and commend both of you to the Lord. “Lest your prayers be hindered” should start at home. This is the most intimate relationship you have on the planet. Jesus is the most intimate vertically. If those don’t connect, there is something wrong.