A father’s advice to a child living away from home

My daughter is going away to college in the Fall. And I have been thinking much lately about that transition, so when I read the following set of letters written by John Newton, they resonated well with me. They are written to his niece whom Newton and his wife had raised as their own daughter, […]

Newton on the benefits of affliction

Few people have cultivated satisfaction in suffering. It is difficult to see the blessing of hardship. Even believers can develop an unbiblical worldview that assumes that suffering is the signal of God’s absence and maybe even of His displeasure. Yet if there is no suffering, how will we ever demonstrate to the world that God […]

Prayer Answered by Crosses

Echoing the same theme that I found yesterday in John Donne’s poem, “Batter My Heart” (aka “Holy Sonnet XIV”), John Newton penned “Prayer Answered by Crosses.” It is yet another testimony that grace is found in burdens. God’s favor is evidenced in the revelation of “the hidden evils of my heart.” These devices and more […]

Newton’s counsel on worldliness

Today at lunch I was reading William Carson’s Letters of John Newton. You can tell by his letter to this woman that she had asked something about how to resist the temptations of the world. His counsel is wise even for our own day: You would have me tell you what are the best means […]

In the world, but not of it

How the believer in Christ relates to the world is an old question. Both Christ and the apostles addressed the question. “I have given them Your word; and the world has hated them, because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. I do not ask You to take […]

Everything God sends is needful

Yesterday morning in our worship service, we introduced Thomas Watson’s exposition of Romans 8:28 — All Things for Good — as our book of the month (review forthcoming). The truth of God’s sovereignty in all things is a precious comfort and a source of stability to the believer. And Watson is hardly the only writer […]

What disobedience ultimately is

What is disobedience? Ask any child or teen and you will likely get a response something like, “not doing what I was told to do.” That answer is not significantly different from what most adults might say — “disobedience is a failure to do something commanded by a superior or authority figure in one’s life.” […]

Pondering David and Paul, pride and hope

Pride is sneaky and subtle. When a man is humbled and broken, pride raises a small voice that whispers, “you are doing well to be so humbled. How good you are…” When a heart is weak, pride suggests, “You are strong and able…” When an obvious grace from God has been received, pride ponders, “how […]

God moves in a mysterious way

In his book, The Hidden Smile of God, John Piper recounts the story of hymn writer William Cowper (pronounced “Cooper”). His is a sad tale including the death of his mother at age six, his abandonment by his father into boarding schools where it seems certain he was abused, and his constant battles with despair […]

Amazing Grace, Newton and Wilberforce

My family and I rarely go to see movies in the theater; we may make an exception in the next week or two. Today “Amazing Grace,” the story of William Wilberforce is opening in theaters nationwide. If you are interested in knowing about the philosophy of the filmmaker, read the speech given by Michael Flaherty, […]

These Inward Trials

These Inward Trials I asked the Lord, that I might grow In faith, and love, and every grace; Might more of His salvation know, And seek more earnestly His face. I hoped that in some favoured hour At once He’d answer my request, And by His love’s constraining power Subdue my sins, and give me […]