This, again, in the morning romance, one of many prayers for the day.

Oh, Father, help me trust in your magnanimous heart of love and not shrink back in faithless fear.

In Jesus name, amen.

This today in the morning romance with Jesus from a sermon by Charles Spurgeon.

Who would know God’s hate of sin must see the Only Begotten bleeding in body and bleeding in soul even unto death. He must, in fact, spell out each word of my text and read its innermost meaning: “He hath made him to be sin for us.” Oh depth of terror, and yet height of love! . . . How acceptable with God must those be who are made by God Himself to be “the righteousness of God in him!” I cannot conceive of anything more complete.

We turn to the book of Ezra for the answer. Twice chapter seven says the hand of God, the good hand of his God was on him (vv. 6 & 9). Every man of God worth his salt covets this.

Why was Ezra so graced? Verse 10 explains:

For Ezra had set his heart to study the Law of the Lord, and to do it and to teach his statutes and rules in Israel.

Many thanks to Justin Taylor for calling attention to this young man who may well fall into such a category. Decide for yourself with this video of his recent message at the 2009 Southern Baptist Convention in Louisville, Kentucky. His recitation from the Psalms alone in the beginning makes the investment of time worthwhile. The message he brings will challenge you. It did me.

David Platt: SBC Pastors Conference 2009 from Todd Thomas on Vimeo.

In reading over my journal from this time four years ago, the entries reminded me of two generous gifts Nancy and I received from God’s people. One came from our church in Idaho; the other came from the good people of OGC. Both churches took special offerings to help defer expenses that insurance didn’t cover as well as to help with our mega-deductible.

The receipt of those gifts so encouraged us! Today it made me think of Paul’s words in 2 Cor. 9:12.

For the ministry of this service (he’s talking about giving) is not only supplying the needs of the saints, but is also overflowing in many thanksgivings to God.

Among the varied fruits of sacrificial giving is the overflowing of many thanksgivings to God for the generosity of His people and the supplying of significant needs. God gets the glory when His people give generously to the needs of the saints.

Do you know someone in need whom you can bless with a gift? Take it from the Apostle Paul, your giving will result in the overflowing of many thanksgivings to God.

Randy Alcorn goes after guidelines to keeping your TV a servant rather than a master. You can read the full post including the motivations he gives here.

These are the things he lists:

1. Keep track of how much time you spend watching.

2. Decide in advance how much TV to watch per week.

3. Use a schedule to choose programs for the week (perhaps at family time)— then stick to your choices.

4. Keep your television unplugged, store it in a closet, and/or put it in a remote part of the house .

5. Periodically “fast” from television for a week or a month. Notice the “cold turkey” effects.

6. Choose programs that uplift rather than undermine biblical values.

7. Use the “off” switch freely. If it’s wrong and you keep watching, you’re saying “I approve.”

8. Use the channel changer frequently. Even decent programs often have explicit commercial clips of the latest adultery-rape-murder-madstalker-child-kidnapper movies.

9. Watch and discuss programs together as a family—to avoid passivity and develop active moral discernment through interaction.

10. Don’t allow young children to choose their own programs—that’s the parent’s responsibility. As they get older, they can choose, but parents should always have veto power. Use it with sensitivity, but use it.

11. Don’t use television as a baby sitter. Provide healthy alternatives, such as reading, projects, play and interaction with parents, siblings, and friends.

12. Spend an hour reading Scripture, a Christian book or magazine, or doing a ministry for each hour you watch TV.

13. Consider dropping cable, Showtime, HBO, or any other service that you determine is importing ungodliness or temptation into your home.

14. If you find you can’t control it—or you’re tired of the battle—get rid of your television.

Bless her heart, Nancy, my bride, cares about health with a passion. I sat down to dinner with her on Saturday night to this lovely dish. I had to take a picture. As I uploaded it today, I got to thinking about just how much she cares for me in the way she looks after the food I eat.

Let me count the ways. That’s ground venison in the sauce. We know just where that animal had been. Free range, no hormones, lean, delicious meat. That’s spaghetti squash. I know it looks like pasta, but it’s not. It’s a vegetable. Got to admit, I miss pasta. By the way, aren’t you glad Jesus didn’t say, I am the vegetable of life? I am. Anyway, we don’t use pasta as a rule with meat because the protein and carbs don’t combine well and make it difficult on the system to digest. Add that to your Did you know? list of things.

Let’s see, what else? Basil garnish, from Nancy’s herb garden. Spring water from Zephyr Hills. Of course, my seemingly endless supplements. Anybody who has been to lunch or breakfast or dinner with me knows about that. Oh, yes, and then the plastic ware. Metal is TOXIC to the body, you know.

So welcome to my culinary world. If you are what you eat, then I’ve got a leg up on the competition. Thanks, babe, for keeping me alive, Lord willing, for as long as possible so we can serve the King as much as possible with good health and well souls (3 John 2).

Ungodliness is a poison which drinks up all serenity of conscience and inward springs of joy.

William Gurnall

A blog post yesterday from missionaries aiming to get to Salerno with Campus Crusade for Christ. Today comes a blog post from one couple on our team already there. You can check it out here.

Oxford Club met this morning. What a band of brothers. Where would we be without godly men in our lives? We tackled the first half of chapter 18 in J. I. Packer’s book, Knowing God. It dealt with the doctrine of propitiation.

Here are portions of my journal from 8.8.05. I was still finishing up a combo treatment of radiation and chemo for tongue cancer at the time.

(I almost posted a picture of a tumor that looked similar to the one on the right side of my tongue before my blessed ENT removed it from my mouth. It was far too ugly to subject any viewers to. I called it the monster. It was. It’s gone. It hasn’t come back. Thanks be to God. This is no small thing. I saw my oncologist recently who told me about another patient of his. She has head and neck cancer. The disease is out of control. Eventually it will eat through her carotid artery. What God spared me from! Amazing. Grace. Mercy. Every day is a gift, especially Sundays. Oh, Lord, have mercy on that woman. If she doesn’t know You, bring her to your blessed peace through the redeeming work of Jesus.)

I went to church, if only for twenty minutes, yesterday, for the first time in weeks. I miss the worship of God’s people. I shared and did the pastoral prayer. It was sweet. They greeted me with a standing ovation! (OGC loved me/us well through our cancer storm on our Sea of Galilee) They did not know I was coming. I cried and pointed heavenward. This is about God; it’s not about me. I am SO weak; He is MEGA strong. I testified of the truth of Romans 8:32 and future grace. I prayed. I exhorted. I blew them a kiss and left. Thank you, Lord. I won’t soon forget that Sunday. (I haven’t)

There is nothing like God’s people, the church for which the Son shed His blood, when they/it practice fervent love towards those who suffer.