Explore App - The Good Book Company

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Explore app

I really like The Good Book Company. Brad Byrd is a friend and is always telling me about new resources they are putting out. But before he could even tell me about it, I noticed the Explore app on The Good Book blog and downloaded it on my phone. It's excellent.

It's a self-paced devotional that you can use daily or use as you want. You start with 28 daily devotions free as an introduction to the devotional, and then you can subscribe to more. And these aren't just written by some no-name dude behind the scenes. They come from guys like Tim Chester, Christopher Ash, and Tim Keller. 

Go to your app store and find Explore and give it a try. I think you'll like it.

Lots-o-Links 1.18.12

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Web link

The Death of the Fringe Suburb

For too long, we over-invested in the wrong places. Those retail centers and subdivisions will never be worth what they cost to build. We have to stop throwing good money after bad. It is time to instead build what the market wants: mixed-income, walkable cities and suburbs that will support the knowledge economy, promote environmental sustainability and create jobs.

Seven Tips for Talking with Your Neighbors About Jesus

For whatever reason, it’s easy for Christians to clam up and get weird when talking about their faith in the day-to-day. Here are a few tips to make bridge those inhibitions and get the conversation going...

An Appreciation of Bird By Bird by Anne LaMott (get it at Amazon or on Kindle)

I thought I was teetering on the edge of crazy with no way to explain to anyone for fear they would quickly need to catch a bus. I was not crazy, or at least not in an inordinate way. With each turn of the page a brilliant sky of possibility opened up to gaze in. Now I might look crazy to some when looking up into that firmament. But, I knew I wasn't the only one. 

Richard Baxter on Meditation

The duty which I press upon thee so earnestly, and in the practice of which I am now to direct thee, is, “The set and solemn acting of all the powers of thy soul in meditation upon thy everlasting rest.” More fully to explain the nature of this duty, I will here illustrate a little the description itself-then point out the fittest time, place, and temper of mind, for it.

Groundhog Day is coming, and it's Groundhog Days in Woodstock, IL -- the movie Groundhog Day was filmed in Woodstock, IL 1992 and released in 1993. Watch it again this Groundhog Day. And if you are in the Chicagoland area, stop by Woodstock for the festivities.

Stephen Miller: God & Sinner Reconcile

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I get excited thinking about the direction some are taking with worship music. While there's a glut of stuff out there that all sounds the same to me and that I just can't listen to, there's a new breed of creative, biblical/theological worship guys at solid churches who are changing the game. I want to do what I can to encourage the creation of new, good worship music. Some of the music I've pointed to before includes Sojourn, Bifrost Arts, Aaron Ivey, Joe Day, Page CXVI, and others. Today I want to introduce you to someone who may be new to you.

Stephen Miller, worship leader at The Journey church in St. Louis, has a new worship album out today: God & Sinner Reconcile. I've been enjoying it for a couple of weeks. It's entered the rotation of music for personal worship as well as what we listen to on Sunday morning as a family before gathering with the church. I've also shared it with our worship leaders. I hope many of my readers will check it out and pick it up.

Check out Stephen Miller's website, Facebook page, and Twitter feed. Then grab a copy of God & Sinner Reconcile. It's only $6.99!

Beeke: Sibbes on Entertaining the Holy Spirit

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Recently was encouraged by Joel Beeke's talk on Richard Sibbes on Entertaining the Holy Spirit in your own soul via the Puritan Reformed Theological Seminary podcast. He gives some historical context of Sibbes' life and offers some wonderful quotes and exhortations.

Grab the podcast feed for numerous other encouraging talks from Beeke, David Murray and others. One of my favorite podcasts going.

New Avett Brothers Album Almost Done

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Avett

"We're right at the finish line," singer-guitarist Seth Avett says of his band's seventh album. "It's just the formalities now." The folk-rock crew recorded more than 20 tunes in Asheville, North Carolina, last year for the follow-up to 2009's breakthrough album, I and Love and You, once again working with producer Rick Rubin.

Read the rest at Rolling Stone. And while you are thinking Avett, Emotionalism and Four Thieves Gone are both $5 right now.

The Poison Tree, Best Album of 2011, FREE!

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Poison

It's time to give away some copies of The Poison Tree's self-titled debut album, which I named my best album of 2011. From my Best Albums of 2011 post...

Lovely & subtly massive. Cinematic. Baritone vocals. Literary. Charming. Moody. Introspective. Wistful. Barely wet city streets. Black and white. Hands-in-pockets. Collar pulled tight. Good penmanship, elegant words, antique fountain pen on an antique journal on an antique table in a sparsely decorated and lonely room. Life...experienced. Calmly dramatic. This album is almost completely and shamefully neglected. It's a rarely reviewed 2011 masterpiece. It's not #1 because it's neglected. It's #1 because it's gorgeous and brilliant.

You can download it for $4.99 today, and I very much encourage you to buy it. But I also want to give away a physcial CD to three of my readers (thanks to Steve Salett, The Poison Tree, for being so gracious as to provide copies to give away).

Here's how you enter to win (U.S. residents only)...

STEP 1: Copy & share the following without the quote marks on Twitter (if you aren't on Twitter, use Facebook, or do BOTH!): "Win @stevekmccoy's #1 2011 album, The Poison Tree. RT this & comment at Reformissionary to enter! http://bit.ly/zqn9TY "

STEP 2: Leave a comment below (so I can verify you did step 1). Include your full name and real email address (kept private) so I can contact the winners. In your comment, guess how many writing divices (pens, pencils, markers) & other utensils are in the two coffee mugs on my desk. It's a number between 1-100. I'll buy a free download of The Poison Tree to the first person to guess it exactly (if not a winner of a CD).

I will randomly choose 3 winners in the late afternoon/early evening on Friday (6th).

Challies Reviews Keller's The Meaning of Marriage

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Meaning of Marriage

Tim Challies provides an excellent review of Tim Keller's newest book, The Meaning of Marriage. Below is his strong conclusion, but go and read the whole review and buy the book.

This is a powerful book; it is my new favorite book on marriage and the best of all the books I read in 2011. The Meaning of Marriage elevates marriage, making it something beautiful and holy and lovely. And with it comes friendship and companionship and sex and everything else God has packaged into the marriage relationship. This book celebrates it all and it does it within the greatest context of all—the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Having read the book through two times, I’ve found myself wondering how to best measure or evaluate it, but perhaps these criteria are useful: Would I want to read it with my wife or would I encourage her to read it on her own? Would I recommend it to the people in my church? In both cases the answer is an unreserved yes. In fact, I bought the audio book and listened to it with my wife and her assessment is the same as mine: Though there are many great books on marriage, this is the one we will recommend first.

Dirty Three for $4.99

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Dirty three

Dirty Three is some of my very favorite, go-to music for reading and concentration-based study. It's beautiful and different: violin, guitar, and drums. It's like a post-rock classical style, but you have to hear it to understand. So cool. A bunch of albums are $4.99...

2012 Reading Plans

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Bible-Reading

I'm working on choosing (or tweaking) a Bible reading plan for my family for 2012 so the kids can each work through some of their ESV Student Study Bibles, and so we can enjoy daily family discussions on what we are all reading at the same time. Thought it might be nice to list a couple of resources I'm looking at for the Bible as well as other good theological and devotional resources. 

Justin Taylor has a wonderful (fairly comprephensive) post on many reading plans out there, including options you may not think of on your own. He also has a post that includes a reading plan for Calvin's Institutes.

Joe Thorn's reading plan for the Puritan prayers found in Valley of Vision might be a great way to start the year devotionally.

The ESV has a number of plans available, and the ESV Journaling Bible I now use daily has a plan in the back I'm considering. 

David Murray, who has quickly become one of my favorite thinkers through his blog and Puritan Reformed Theological Seminary podcast, has a yearly children's morning and evening Bible reading plan. The explanation is here, and the plan is here.

Please feel free to share other plans you recommend or the plan you are using next year.

TONS of Good & Cheap Music 12.24.11

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Music brain away

Amazon is having a massive sale on MP3 albums. All are $5 or cheaper. Nearly all of my Best Albums of 2011 & honorable mentions are super-cheap! And there are many more great albums for sale beyond my list. Check these out!

NEW = Recently found & added to the original list

From my Best Albums of 2011 list...

Honorable mentions...

 Other recommended albums for $5 and under...

Bad Art & the Tortured Beauty of the Cross

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Wonderful, thoughtful discussion between Scotty Smith (Pastor, Christ Community Church, blog), Greg Thornbury (Union University), and Mike Cosper (Sojourn Music) on good art and bad art. I've been thinking through some of themes they discuss as they relate to some music I've been listening to this year. I'm working on a post on one singer/artist in particular who I think many Christians would hate, but for all the wrong reasons.

Anyway, that post is for another day. Watch this great discussion (via). And by the way, this is the best video thumbnail of my friend Greg Thornbury EVER.

Coach the People Who Get It

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Bob Logan with another helpful post on coaching the people who 'get it.' 

Among people who indicate receptivity to missional living, some will be willing to go the extra mile in living it out. Look for those who “get” missional living and are willing to take risks, even if they’re not great at it.

These are the people you need to be investing in...

He then offers some simple questions to use in coaching them...

  • Where are you now?
  • Where do you sense God tugging on your heart lately?
  • Where does God want you to go?
  • What actions might God be leading you toward?
  • What are the next steps you can take?

Go read Logan's entire post, and follow his blog. Solid stuff there regularly. For example, I recently posted on his post, "Creating a Coaching Culture."