May 29, 2009 by C.J. Mahaney
Categories: Reading
Meet Randy Alcorn.
Randy is the founder and director of
Eternal Perspective Ministries (EPM) and a prolific writer. Alcorn has authored a small library of over 30 titles, which include non-fiction books…
- Heaven
- Money, Possessions, and Eternity
- The Purity Principle
- The Grace and Truth Paradox
- The Treasure Principle
- Pro-Life Answers to Pro-Choice Arguments
…and a number of best-selling novels:
- Safely Home
- Deadline
- Dominion
- Deception
- The Ishbane Conspiracy
- Edge of Eternity
Randy lives in Gresham, Oregon, with his wife, Nanci. They have two married daughters and four grandsons.
But you may know all this already. So who is Randy Alcorn? What is he doing awake at 2:00 in the morning? And why does he want me to live a long and healthy life?
Let’s find out.
Randy, please describe your morning devotions. What time do you wake up in the morning? How much time do you spend reading, meditating, praying, etc.? What are you presently reading?
My wife, Nanci, likes to go to bed at 9:30. We read for forty minutes or so until she’s ready to sleep, then I get up to go study, research, and write. Since I rarely go to sleep before midnight, and often at 2:00 or 3:00 a.m., my wake-up time varies day to day. Generally, I sleep between six and eight hours and usually don’t have morning appointments, to allow flexibility in my study. (On Wednesday mornings I meet with two of my pastors who are dear friends, and we open the Word together.)
My devotional approach is eclectic. Some years I go through the Bible in a reading program. Other times, as I’m doing right now, I simply open God’s Word to a portion of Scripture and meditate on it, asking God for guidance. I don’t mean that I stick my finger in the Bible and just read wherever it lands—although I have done that and it can be fun. My normal approach to Bible study is to pore over texts that relate to something on my mind and heart. Sometimes this has been prompted by my research on current book projects.
For instance, I just finished
If God is Good …, a book on the problem of evil and suffering. (I didn’t solve it, by the way, but what an enriching study of Scripture.)
At one point, every morning for two or three weeks, I re-read Romans 8. In the last two years I read nearly one hundred books on evil and suffering, and my mind keeps going back to portions of this chapter in Romans. Morning after morning, reading that chapter, I find new things. Now, if you had asked me a month ago whether I planned to study one chapter of Scripture for the next three or four weeks, I would have said no. But here it is: Romans 8. God has put it on me, and it’s so rich.
This morning, I went from Romans 8 to the book of Job. Sometimes my Bible study is systematic, other times I find myself going from place to place in my Logos Bible study software, wherever I sense the Spirit of God leading me. No matter what approach I take, Bible study is pure pleasure for me.
Every book I write involves much Scripture, except my novels, but even then I meditate on Scripture related to a theme in the novel (for instance, passages on persecution when writing
Safely Home, my novel set in China).
I believe that all study of Scripture should be devotional, so on some days I have the privilege of doing ten hours of mostly biblical and devotional study.
What book(s) are you currently reading in these three categories: (a) for your soul, (b) for pastoral ministry, or (c) for personal enjoyment?
Hard to break it down, but I just finished
The Ultimate Guide to Christian History, and am reading the following (I like to have a number of books in process and jump back into whichever draws me most):
John Newton: From Disgrace to Amazing Grace by Jonathan Aitken;
A.W. Tozer: In Pursuit of God—A Biography by James L. Snyder;
Choosing Gratitude by Nancy Leigh DeMoss (prepublished manuscript);
The Shorter Writings of J.I. Packer;
Nero Wolfe: Murder by the Book by Rex Stout; and Francine River’s novel
Redeeming Love, a retelling of Hosea and Gomer’s story set in the old west.
I am always pulling from my shelf something by C.S. Lewis. And I’m also enjoying reading the notes in my ESV Study Bible (many thanks to Wayne Grudem and Justin Taylor and all who labored to put it together).
Yes, the ESV Study Bible is a rich resource, Randy. I highly recommend it!
Join me next time as I resume my interview with my friend Randy Alcorn.
Welcome back to the third and final installment of my interview with Mike Pierson, the senior pastor of Providence Church in Bethel Park, Pennyslvania. You can read part one
here and part two
here.
Mike, what single bit of counsel has made the most significant difference in your effective use of time?
I’m a procrastinator who is trying, by God’s grace, to stop procrastinating. This quote, which I got from your blog C.J., now hangs on my wall and I read it regularly.
No unwelcome tasks become any the less unwelcome by putting them off till tomorrow. It is only when they are behind us and done, that we begin to find that there is a sweetness to be tasted afterwards, and that the remembrance of unwelcome duties unhesitatingly done is welcome and pleasant. Accomplished, they are full of blessing, and there is a smile on their faces as they leave us. Undone, they stand threatening and disturbing our tranquility, and hindering our communion with God. If there be lying before you any bit of work from which you shrink, go straight up to it, and do it at once. The only way to get rid of it is to do it.
-Alexander MacLaren (1826–1910), Scottish preacher
What single bit of counsel has made the most significant difference in your leadership?
The Gospel would not be good news if it did not reveal the glory of Christ for us to see and savor. It is the glory of Christ that finally satisfies our soul. We are made for Christ, and Christ died so that every obstacle would be removed that keeps us from seeing and savoring the most satisfying TREASURE in the universe—namely, Christ, who is the image of God.
-John Piper, God is the Gospel, p. 62.
Quotes like this from John Piper have shaped every aspect of my leadership; preaching, counseling, leadership development, etc.
Where in ministry are you most regularly tempted to discouragement?
If I am not very purposeful, I can become discouraged when people leave the church. I usually wonder what I as a pastor, or we as a church, could have done differently to minister to them.
Do you exercise? If so, what do you do? If not, why not? (Please be specific.)
I am a sporadic exerciser. I have both a weight machine and a stair climber that I use sometimes regularly and sometimes not. I much prefer a sport to just exercising.
Currently, what sport do you like to play and/or watch?
If there is a ball, I love it. Baseball was my favorite growing up, but I have really become a fan of football and college basketball. My oldest son Andrew just completed a “dream” High School football season where his team made it all the way to the State Championship before losing their only game of the year (in overtime). Our family and friends had more fun than ought to be allowed tailgating and cheering him on. My other children play baseball, volleyball, and basketball and I love watching, and even coaching at times. Watching my children compete is a pure joy.
I love the Steelers (Super Bowl Champs), the Pirates (will they ever win again?) and the UNC Tar Heels (NCAA basketball champs).
I get to enjoy the occasional game of basketball or ultimate Frisbee and I like to golf. In our basement I play basketball against my sons Caleb and Mitchell. I play on my knees to even out the height advantage. I usually lose.
If possible, I would engage in some athletic competition almost every day.
What do you do for leisure?
Any and all sports above but mostly watching my children play.
Anything with Carla, my wife. It doesn’t matter if we sit at Starbucks, dine at a nice restaurant, or take a walk together. I just love talking with her and looking into her eyes.
If you were not in ministry, what occupational path would you have chosen?
I so desperately wanted to be a professional baseball player. I lived it, I dreamed it, and I gave much to it. However, I was a long way from it. I have been both a Social Worker specializing in children and teens and an insurance agent in my father’s business. I could have been happy doing either had I not been called into the ministry.
My friend, I’m grateful to God that you were called into the ministry. Thanks for your time, Mike!
May 26, 2009 by C.J. Mahaney
Categories: Interviews | Preaching
Welcome back to my interview with Mike Pierson, the senior pastor of Providence Church in Bethel Park, Pennsylvania. You can read part one
here.
Mike, if you could study under any theologian in church history (excluding those men in Scripture) who would it be and why?
This is a tough choice. I’d love to travel around with George Whitfield and watch him preach the gospel.
However, my one theologian would be Jonathan Edwards. I love his view of the glory of God that allowed him to make insights like:
God is glorified not only by His glory’s being seen, but by its being rejoiced in. When those that see it delight in it, God is more glorified than if they only see it. His glory is then received by the whole soul, both by the understanding and by the heart. God made the world that He might communicate, and the creature receive, His glory; and that it might [be] received both by the mind and heart. He that testifies his idea of God’s glory [doesn’t] glorify God so much as he that testifies also his…delight in it.
I would want to experience revival with him and also sit and discuss the theological underpinnings behind his responses to it. If I studied under him, I’d have to ask him to speak about 10 grade levels lower than he usually spoke.
What single piece of counsel (or constructive criticism) has most improved your preaching?
I struggled greatly with fear and unbelief in preaching. God has used so many means to deal with this sin as it relates to preaching. One story that was particularly helpful was a story of how Corrie ten Boom’s father helped her trust God in fearful situations (as told in
Overcoming Fear, Worry and Anxiety by Elyse Fitzpatrick).
Father sat down on the edge of the narrow bed. “Corrie,” he began gently, “when you go to Amsterdam, when do I give you your ticket?”
I sniffed a few times, considering this.
“Why, just before we get on the train.”
Exactly. And our wise Father in heaven knows when we’re going to need things, too. Don’t run ahead of Him, Corrie.”
God used that story to help me see the foolishness of worry leading up to the preaching event afraid that somehow God will desert me in the pulpit. Now, almost every Sunday during worship, I look at the pulpit and thank God that, not now, but when I stand in the pulpit, He will anoint me to preach His word. He has been so faithful to do this.
What books on preaching, or examples of it, have you found most influential in your own preaching?
The Sacred Anointing: The Preaching of Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones by Tony Sargent. His example is where I learned to cry out for the presence of God while I prepare and preach.
Yes, that is a very helpful book on preaching. Thanks, my friend! Join me next time for the third and final portion of my interview with Mike Pierson.
May 22, 2009 by C.J. Mahaney
Categories: Interviews | Reading
Meet Mike Pierson.
Mike, 44, is the senior pastor of
Providence Church in Bethel Park, Pennsylvania, a suburb of Pittsburgh. Mike says he and his family “stumbled” into the church for the first time in 1997. A few years later Mike was sent from Providence Church to attend the Pastors College. After graduation in 2001, Mike returned to Providence Church and spent another year as an intern and became the senior pastor in 2002.
Mike and his wife Carla have been married for nearly 23 years. They are blessed with five children. You may recall that I mentioned Mike in the introduction to our “Ordinary Pastors” blog post, which you can read
here.
Mike, please describe your morning devotions. What time do you wake up in the morning? How much time do you spend reading, meditating, praying, etc.? What are you presently reading?
Currently (and I say that because I’ve been known to change schedules frequently) I wake up around 6:30 and try to spend 45 minutes in morning devotions before work. My normal routine would involve some time of “Biblical Meditation” where I will read and meditate on fairly small portions of scripture. My goal is not quantity of reading in this setting but concentrating on soaking in the passage and allowing it to affect my soul and prayers. Right now I have been going slowly through the book of Acts specifically looking for and meditating on 3 things:
- The work of the Holy Spirit
- Gospel presentations / how salvation is talked about
- Miracles and healings
I’m usually reading though some book during my devotions too. I’m so aware that I need to understand and apply the gospel more and more to my life. Reading and re-reading small chunks of
The Gospel Primer by Milton Vincent helps me to apply the gospel to my own life daily and consistently. I love this book and highly recommend it.
As for praying, probably my most helpful, but sporadic, practice is to use biblical prayers (the Lord’s prayer, Paul’s prayers in Eph. 1 and 3, and Phil. 1, etc.) and praying those phrase by phrase. I attempt to let each word or phrase inform the content of prayers in my own words.
I also find it so helpful for my soul to worship at home too. I use CDs and I crank up the music because I can’t sing well and my only instrument is the drums.
What book(s) are you currently reading in these three categories: (a) for your soul, (b) for pastoral ministry, (c) or for personal enjoyment?
For my soul:
The Gospel Primer (Milton Vincent). What a book. Buy it, read it, read it again. Read it slowly. Keep reading it.
Spiritual Depression (D. Martin Lloyd-Jones).
Age of Opportunity (Paul Tripp). Is there a better book to help the heart of a father of teens? If so, I haven’t found it.
When Sinners Say ‘I Do’ (Dave Harvey). I’m especially enjoying the chapter on mercy in marriage.
For pastoral ministry:
The Christian Ministry (Charles Bridges). The chapter entitled “The Want of Faith” is being used by God to address unbelief and is having a transforming effect on my view of God.
Revival and Revivalism (Iain Murray). I just started reading this after subjective impressions that the Lord wanted our church to begin to pray for revival on a more consistent basis.
For personal enjoyment:
Not much. The last book I read in this category was
Quiet Strength by Tony Dungy.
When you finish a book, what system have you developed in order to remember and reference that book in the future?
I wish I had a system, but I don’t. I do underline and write in margins so I can go back and find parts that were helpful. I always read with a pencil in hand.
Join me next time for part two of my interview with my friend, Mike Pierson.
Get to know Toby Kurth and you will observe his passion for the advance of the gospel through urban church planting. But urban church planting is more than a passion for him. He has previously assisted in several church contexts and helped in the 2004 launch of
Sovereign Grace City Church in Brooklyn, New York. Last year Toby graduated from the Pastors College and he now leads Christ Church, a church plant in urban San Francisco.
During our recent
Pastors Conference, Toby explained the reasons why he wanted to plant in the city. He explained his path to planting in San Francisco, recounted some of the answered prayers along the way, and explained why this pursuit promises both reward and difficulty.
Listen to Toby’s 10-minute update for an inside look at the most recent Sovereign Grace church plant:
Download MP3 (2.4 MB)
Right now Matthew Wassink is preparing for a Greek final, studying the book of Acts and the Pauline epistles, and finishing up a research paper on Spirit baptism. The 10-month Pastors College program is coming to an end, and graduation is only days away. But the academic rigors and deadlines are nothing new for Matthew, who graduated from seminary in 2008.
At our recent conference Matthew walked through his Pastors College experience to explain a few of the ways he and his wife have benefitted over the past several months.
Along the way Matthew shared his path into Sovereign Grace Ministries and the evaluation process that preceded the PC. Matthew’s entire story is marked by humility, trust in God, and faith for the future. His experience is a moving testimony about the difference the Pastors College makes.
Listen to the 17-minute testimony here:
Download MP3 (3.9 MB)
Ian McConnell grew up in North Philadelphia, the oldest of six boys in a “rough-around-the-collar” Irish-Catholic family. Today, by God’s grace, Ian is an urban church planter and the lead pastor of Grace Bible Church in Philadelphia. On July 5, Grace Bible Church will celebrate their adoption into the Sovereign Grace family of churches.
At our 2009 Pastors Conference, Ian shared his passion for urban church planting and told the story of his path into Sovereign Grace. You can listen to the 14-minute audio clip here:
Download MP3 (3.2 MB)
Cedric Moss was the senior pastor of Kingdom Life Church in Nassau, Bahamas long before he ever heard of Sovereign Grace Ministries. One day, wanting to better understand the gospel personally and to more passionately preach it to his church, Cedric searched online and stumbled upon Sovereign Grace Ministries. In 2004 Cedric attended our pastors conference as a visitor, hoping to observe from a distance.
In reflecting upon the trip Cedric says,
I was a pastor who was weary in the ministry and skeptical about church associations and networks, having been closely associated with a few and having given up on them. However, to my surprise, in Sovereign Grace I found men who were genuinely interested in me as a pastor, not the size of my church, or getting my church’s name on a list.
During our
2009 Pastors Conference, Cedric shared the rest of the story, which you can hear in this 16-minute recording:
Download MP3 (3.7 MB)
Hearing updates from various pastors was a personal highlight at our recent Pastors Conference. Over the next few days I will have the privilege to share these testimonies with you.
Among these men was Wolfgang Wegert, senior pastor of Arche Church in Hamburg, Germany. In his update, Wolfgang highlighted a recent trip by Dave Harvey, Jeff Purswell, and Pete Greasley to Hamburg as Sovereign Grace considers how to best serve the Arche Church and the region of central Europe.
But I was unprepared for the concluding words of Wolfgang’s update. The concluding words are the words of a humble man. And his update left me humbled and deeply affected.
With his son Christian providing translation, you can listen to Wolfgang’s complete ten-minute update here:
Download MP3 (2.4 MB)
-----------
Related post: For more information about Wolfgang Wegert and the church in Germany, see this video, part of the 2008 Sovereign Grace Mission Presentation.
Welcome back to my interview with Grady Van Wright, senior pastor of Sovereign Grace Church in Houston, Texas. Read part one of the interview
here.
Grady, what single piece of counsel (or constructive criticism) has most improved your preaching?
The one counsel is the centrality of the gospel in preaching. Though every passage is not a gospel passage, every passage either leads to the gospel or emanates from the gospel. My job is to get to the gospel either forward or backwards.
What books on preaching, or examples of it, have you found most influential in your own preaching?
Preaching and Preachers by Martyn Lloyd- Jones. I own the actual lectures, which were later transcribed for the book, and listen to them quite often. As to the question of influence in my own preaching—I don't hold out hope for any transfer of this man's exceptional gifting to my preaching! But his persistent belief and exhortation that the “Spirit's unction” should attend all preaching has influenced my preaching tremendously.
What single bit of counsel has made the most significant difference in your effective use of time?
Laziness isn’t inactivity—it’s not doing what needs to be done at the time it needs to be done.
What single bit of counsel has made the most significant difference in your leadership?
Don’t love in order to lead them, lead because you do love.
Where in ministry are you most regularly tempted to discouragement?
My discouragements are almost always rooted in my sinful desire to control those things that are beyond my control, which incidentally includes everything! Somehow I can forget this when a counseling session doesn't go well, or when I am uniquely aware that my mistakes and failures contributed to those times not going well. It is then that I am tempted to believe that the sovereign God released a task to me and I let him down. Pray for me that I be reminded in those times that God knows me well, and that He would in no way, whatsoever, release anything to me!
Do you exercise? If so, what do you do? If not, why not? (Please be specific.)
This interview was going so well! Now that’s a convicting question. I feel like asserting my Fifth Amendment privilege! I could say, given the second law of thermodynamics,
what’s the point? Also, I could just say it hurts but I know, “no pain, no gain.” I think I’ve just settled for “no pain, no pain.” A lot of people don’t read this blog, do they, C.J.?
Currently, what sport do you like to play and/or watch?
I still enjoy marksmanship and can be found at the firing range on occasion. My oldest son is a fencer and I enjoy watching him.
What do you do for leisure?
I love reading; watching documentaries, particularly biographies of historical figures; and the outdoors, camping, hiking, picnics, etc.
If you were not in ministry, what occupational path would you have chosen?
Well, I was pursuing pharmacology (that would be the legal kind, white smock and all) before I enter the ministry 15 years ago and I suspect that's where I would have ended up.
Thank you, my friend, for taking time to answer my questions!