Pre-marital counseling
Ron Edmondson suggests seven areas to address in pre-marital counseling.

93% of Protestant pastors feel privileged to be in their positions
Ed Stetzer at LIfeway has some (surprising?) new research on how pastors view themselves, their callings, and their relationships.

A pause for thought
Jeremy Walker persuasively argues for more pauses and less instants in our lives

Caring for a loved one with cancer? Don’t forget about the kids
Crossway posted this helpful advice from June Hunt’s book: Caring for a loved one with cancer

Mentoring future leaders
Chris Bass calls pastors to push mentoring up to the top of their to-do list.

An A Capella Fella
As one these kind of fellas myself, I enjoyed Barry York’s brief and positive post on the subject.

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Good time to be a pastor. Apparently they are the happiest people in their work.

Pastor Mike Pohlman asks his church: “Are we too busy”

Pride cometh before the bad sermon says Tim Raymond. It sure does.

Tim Challies asked Pastor Brian Croft how he organizes his prayer life.

Every wondered what Biblical Counseling really is? Here are 15 definitions.

Phil Monroe highlights a church that models how to take abuse prevention seriously.

And here’s a great little book Dealing with depression. When the Gospel Coalition gave it a positive review, I grabbed a copy, and can heartily recommend it.

One of the elders in my congregation wrote a little devotional, A Watered Garden, that will search and warm your heart.

Want a winter reading project? Here’s a fantastic list of books on Christ-centered Bible reading compiled by Dane Ortlund at the Gospel Coalition

I also enjoyed Dane’s post on Gospel Men: Four ways masculinity is expressed by Christian men today; three wrong, one right.

And here’s a post to encourage pastor’s wives and other home engineers.

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I’m so thankful for Nancy Guthrie’s pioneering work in providing Christ-centered Old Testament Bible studies for small groups. You’ll want to visit her new website, Seeing Jesus in the Old Testament.

 Paul Tautges gives us 10 questions to ask before confronting a brother or sister in Christ.

Nine Marks supplies 20 Practical Ways for Pastors to love their wives and families (scratch #15). Or if you want to go the other way here are 25 ways to provoke your children (and probably your wife too) to anger.

Feeling depressed? It may be what you are putting in your mouth. Or it could be Superpastor syndrome. And while we are on the subject, here’s the kind of massively helpful research that’s beginning to surface from the new brain imaging technology. It shows how two different treatment models, talk therapy and drug therapy, affect different parts of the brain.

This could save your marriage. Bob Kellemen on How to (and how not to) say “Sorry!”

If you are preparing a sermon for Sunday, read Writing naked first. Extract: “My best tip is this: buy a cheap digital recorder. Say what you want to say, as if the person you seek to persuade is standing there, listening. Then type that up. Simplify. Send.” (Substitute “Preach”)

How can I develop spiritual discernment? Tim Challies answers:

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Gospel-driven effort
Important conversation between Kevin DeYoung and Tullian Tchividjian about the role of effort in sanctification. Once again, Kevin manages to think my thoughts more clearly and express them more articulately. It’s a weird and humbling feeling.

Key sentence from Kevin: “I agree sanctification requires the fight of faith to believe this scandalous good news of the gospel of justification. I disagree that this is the only kind of effort required in sanctification.”

The truth about anti-depressants
Well, it’s not the whole truth, but this is a helpful and simply graphical presentation about anti-depressant medication. And while we are on the subject, here’s an important post by Phil Monroe, a Christian Psychologist, on how to begin bridging the divide between various Christian counseling camps.

Questions and Thoughts on Ministerial Calls
How can I entice you to read these posts by Carl Trueman? (Part 2 is here). Try this excerpt:

Perhaps Reformed theology in general and Presbyterianism in particular are especially vulnerable to regarding intellectual achievement as identical with qualification for office.  This is unfortunate.  If a  man cannot string a decent  sentence together from a pulpit, has the personality of a ping-pong ball or the social graces of a pit viper, he will be a disaster in the ministry.  The first will simply not be able to preach, the second will not be able to connect with people, and the third — well, we all know such types and we know they only ever seem to grow churches on the basis of similarly angry people leaving the church down the road and coming to join them.

Spurgeon on the folly of preaching too long

A woman on working with women
Proclamation Trust asked Brenda Beckett, Children and Families worker at All Souls, to give pastors advice for working with paid female staff and unpaid female helpers. (Part two is here).

Book Recommendation: Note to Self by Joe Thorn.

What a great little book this is for Christians of all ages and stages of maturity. Joe describes it as a book on ‘How to preach to yourself.” I’ve been reading one of the 2-page “Dear Self” meditations every day with my Bible reading. It’s been so profitable and edifying. Here’s a video of Joe talking to Justin Taylor about his book.

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The Washington Post’s Steven Pearlstein on the inevitable “revolution” coming to a school or Seminary near you.

And while on the subject of Seminaries, William Evans has a helpful article on how to choose the right one for you. Using his categories, I would describe Puritan Reformed Theological Seminary as (1) A school for pastors, (2) Catechetical, and cheating a bit on (3) I would tick both Confessional & Ecumenical. We adhere to the Three Forms of Unity and the Westminster Standards. But we also have students from all kinds of backgrounds – Continental Reformed, Scottish and American Presbyterian, Baptist, etc.

Kevin DeYoung his usual balanced self on Obedience is possible, prescribed, and precious.

Tyndale House’s Bible Study Toolbar looks well worth a try.

And Logos’s new e-book store, Vyrso (should have focus-grouped the name!) looks like a great shortcut to Christian e-books. Good prices too.

“To create something great, you have to cut it in half… keep shortening it… and really figure out what really needs to be there.” Jason Fried of 37 Signals on sermon preparation (well, not really, but it could be).

John Cleese, yes that John Cleese, on creativity and productivity.

Book recommendation: Al Martin’s Preaching in the Holy Spirit ($6).

Excerpt: “It is better to preach a ragged and less than neat sermon in the power of the Holy Spirit, than to preach a neat and polished sermon without His unction” (p. 60).

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As a passionate believer in Martyn Lloyd-Jones view of regular evangelistic preaching, I enjoyed this on Evangelistic Preaching without bolt-ons

Ten things Seminary never taught me. I think most pastors could get to 100 things quite quickly, but this is a good start.

Should non-preachers reading preaching books? I hope so, because I’ve written one for non-preachers that Evangelical Press will be publishing this summer.

A God-sized vision by Collin Hansen is an inspirational read for young and old. Our children especially need to read books like this.

Can you sing songs that celebrate God’s justice. Some thoughts on the imprecatory Psalms by Martin Downes.

Reflections on leaving pastoral ministry (temporarily). I’ve been really enjoying Trevin Wax’s blog posts recently. He puts a huge amount of work into his writing and comes across with a real servant’s heart. Like Trevin, I too get asked what it feels like to have left pastoral ministry. Having never preached, counseled, and problem-solved so much in my life as I have in the past three years, I never know quite what to say. 

This not so safe place. This is “Furnace Theology.”

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I shall live for God, not the ministry
“Without remaining resolved in steadfast surrender to God, ministers living for the ministry will either leave the ministry, or, what’s worse, the ministry will leave them.” This article by Burk Parsons could revolutionize your ministry. It certainly challenged me.

Seeing the grace of the Gospel in a car break-in
You’ll want to check out Brian Croft’s nicely re-vamped Practical Shepherding blog. Get a sample of his practical and grace-filled writing with this post.

Discipleship and Planting Churches
My friend and colleague, Bill Vandoodewaard, has penned an encouraging article for Reformed church planters.

No time to read?
Matt Perman with some good quotes to motivate the hard work of reading in pastoral ministry.

Books on Covenant Theology
A helpful booklist here from Proclamation Trust. My favorite, and one of five ministry-transforming books in my life, is The Christ of the Covenants, by O P Robertson.

Pastoral Moves
9 Marks Journal on how to leave your congregation…well.

Do small groups fit Reformed Ecclesiology?
Michael Ives raises some good questions. We don’t need to answer his question in the negative to profit from some of the concerns here.

Five Steps to easy preaching
Not.

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Marriage, Singleness & Family Preaching Resources

At Unashamed Workman, Colin Adams has compiled an extensive list of audio, web & book resources on marriage, the family, etc.

Preaching with/without notes
And while you’re at Colin’s blog, check out his three posts on: “Does your manuscript serve your sermon?” (Part 1, Part 2, Part 3). Then you might want to bounce that off my own thoughts on this important subject (here and here).

Evaluating Sermons/Leadership
J W Hendryx has some helpful guidance when it comes to calling a pastor.

How to preach poorly
From IX Marks.

Greg Beale on Preaching
At Life Reformation, Bill Boekestein summarizes Greg Beale’s address at Westminster Theological Seminary’s 2010 Institute of Biblical Preaching.

Practical Shepherding
I link to just about everything Brian Croft writes, so you’d save yourself a few clicks if you just subscribed to his blog. But here’s a roundup of some of his latest posts: Embracing the pleasant…unpleasant moments in our ministries; Reasons to enjoy visiting the sick; How soon should a new convert pursue a call to the ministry?

The hole in our holiness
Brave post from Kevin DeYoung which begins: “I have a growing concern that younger evangelicals do not take seriously the Bible’s call to personal holiness…” I’m glad Kevin is prepared to use his highly-influential virtual pulpit in this way. And please go on to read at least some of the 129 comments! They give a really helpful insight into the challenges that pastors are facing when calling people (especially younger people) to holiness and, even more importantly, defining it.

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Learning to grieve
Go to the Shepherd’s Notes website and scroll down to five moving posts on the kind of bereavement grief experienced by the parents of disabled children. And while we are on the subject, you won’t want to miss Greg Lucas’ latest post on visiting Jake.

Preparing for church
One for distribution at every church door I would think.

Tough-guy Christianity
Who are the real spiritual hard men?

Help, he’s struggling with pornography
Brian Croft has some short simple advice to those caught in this sadly common snare. I’d also highly recommend his little booklet of the same name.

Business and Ministry
Couple of thought-provoking articles on the relationship between business and ministry. Michael Dewalt on What is more important, being a ministry or being a business? and this one on what Pastors and business leaders can learn from one another.

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How to organize your library
Pastors and students, if you want a guilt-trip, read Andy Naselli on how to organize a theological library. My only hope of attaining to this is in heaven. Seriously though, there are some good tips here. But don’t let perfection be the enemy of progress.

Pastoral Accountability
Not being a settled pastor in one congregation, I’ve been feeling the need for more formal accountability in my wider ministry. My local church and I have been working on this and while looking for resources I came across this great questionnaire used by John Piper at Desiring God.

The Cult of Personality and the Myth of Influence
What do you appreciate most about your pastor? The White Horse Inn reveals some worrying answers.

Ten things I wish someone had told me about ministry
Tim Challies put me on to this one.

Feeling others’ pain
In pastoral ministry, we will often come across suffering people who cannot really express themselves or describe their situation. Then there are others who are just not very open; they try to hide what’s going on in their lives, sometimes because they are afraid of how other Christians will respond. That’s where the eloquent pens of others, even if they may not be Christians, help us to enter into the sufferings of others with knowledge and sympathy. And that’s one of the reasons why I subscribe to the Postpartum Progress blog, where I can read moving articles like this from Alexis Lesa on Postpartum anxiety and the incessant fear of losing our loved ones.

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Wrestling with an Angel
If you have been blessed by Greg Lucas’s posts at Wrestling with an Angel, then you will certainly want to buy his new book of the same name. And if you need further persuasion, then read his latest blog post about the mysterious communication between God and Greg’s disabled son, Jake.

Salvation Reading List
Keith Mathison has an excellent survey of a number of books dealing with the doctrine of salvation in general and Calvinism in particular.  He helpfully distinguishes which books would be best for different levels of Christian maturity.

Earnestness in preaching
Before you stand up to preach on Sunday, read this from Brian Croft. I couldn’t agree more.

A Pastoral Epistle from Scotty Smith
Want to avoid some mistakes in your first few years of ministry. Then read this reflection on his early years from Scotty Smith who has now accumulated 30 plus years in the pastoral ministry. Brian Croft also gives some wise advice to young pastors about what they should do in their first year of ministry.

Seven questions to ask before preaching
Francis Chan with some soul-searching questions.

Logos v Bible Works v paper?
Phil Johnson in the Logos corner, Dan Philips fights for Bibleworks, and Frank Turk wants to go back to the paper age

Truth and Wikipedia
Anyone interested in the cause of Truth in society  should read Tim Challies’ helpful analysis of the impact and influence of Wikipedia. Part 1 and part 2.

Truth and donuts
Not sure that Americans (or Scots) need to read this.

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Five ways shepherding helps a pastor grow
This is a summary from Darrin Patrick’s new book The Church Planter (via Burk Parsons).

Training Christian Leaders: An urgent need
Lots to challenge Seminaries and Churches in Collin Hansen’s interview of David Helm.

Mercy Ministries
What do you do when individuals appear at your church with begging bowls? Nick Batzig has put together a helpful checklist of advice for churches and Christians in these situations.

Stretches to relax brain and body
Pastors spend a lot of time sitting at desks in horrible body-twisting postures. Sometimes I go home thinking I was laying bricks all day rather then mining the Word.  Here are some stretches to ease the aches and pains (hope this isn’t yoga!).

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Temptations of a Shepherd: Hiding from God
Darrin Patrick: “You can be a really good shepherd and a really bad Christian.”

Are you a Christian: Diagnostic Test
Trevin Wax highlights some helpful questions for pastors to use fon challenging nominalism. I think they would also be helpful for encouraging assurance in doubting believers. They are taken from True Christianity, one of Owen Strachan and Doug Sweeney’s introductory books on Jonathan Edwards.

Evaluating our ministries
Another helpful post on this from Brian Croft

Advice for Theological Students and Young Pastors
And here’s some more from Kevin DeYoung.

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Puritan Preaching
Innovative and insightful analysis of Puritan Preaching by Joseph Steele.

Death is not Dying
Most of you have probably seen this but its huge pastoral usefulness was brought home to me again recently. Rachel passed into glory a few months after this recording.

Word Studies
I probably shouldn’t do this…but here is how to do Word Studies without knowing Hebrew and Greek (three steps along the top bar). And for the more gifted at biblical languages, here’s a more detailed article on word studies. I found the summaries at the end of each section extremely helpful.

The Church’s Mission
Martyn Lloyd-Jones quoted by Kevin DeYoung.

Collaborative Sermon Preparation
Well I usually agree with Brian Croft; I link to almost everything he posts. But this article confirms to me yet again that we should call no man Master. I don’t think Paul had collaborative sermon preparation in mind in his pastoral epistles.

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