It’s that moment when I walk out to my dad’s office, enter calmly, then burst out with “Why is it that all the people I connect with have been DEAD for 400 years!???” The fact that all he does is look at me and quietly take off his glasses, waiting for the rest of the storm to hit, is a testament to his vast patience and experience with dramatic daughters. When I finish talking, he says, “You must have been reading the Puritans.” He’s right. We have noticed that it’s like a different world when you open something by Owen, Manton, Brooks, or Swinnock. It’s this lovely place where they understood the gospel, had their priorities straight, and knew what it meant to stand firm for an undiluted preaching of the truth, never allowing the world a foothold, never compromising with iniquity, and most importantly, were working to live holy lives to the glory of God. Heaven on Earth, by Thomas Brooks, is encouraging as he speaks about assurance of salvation, and his other works are comforting when he addresses affliction. Jonathan Edwards doses out conviction by the bucketful, and spurs you on in your prayer life in sermons like “Hypocrites Deficient in the Duty of Prayer,” and “The Most High: A prayer-hearing God.” Manton’s “Sermon’s on Hebrews 11” are chalk-full of clear definitions, and unbelievably helpful in showing how faith and hope work together in your Christian walk. When I have spent some time in these books, I am disappointed to close them and return to my day to day life, where the vast majority of people simply do not get it. The great thing is, those men listed above (And I didn’t even tap half the list of books I am in the middle of), have finished the race. They stayed strong until the end, and that is part of what makes their writing so good. They didn’t stop halfway through and give up. They didn’t take the last part of their life over to apostasy and heresy. I meet people all the time who have no idea what a pastor really does. I even know people who think that being a pastor means you relax all week, then jump up on Sunday and share some thoughts. Embarrassingly enough, in the evangelical world (and admittedly, saying “evangelical” can encompass a wide range of people), there is a small percentage who truly understand what kind of labour and work it is to stay faithful, day in and day out, spurning all distractions and shaking off discouragement, to do the preaching that God has called them to do.
And that is one of the reasons why going to the conference this weekend was so great. To be able to sit and listen to men who have given their lives to ministry encouraging Christians and pastors to stay faithful was wonderful. These men understand. They get it. They know the struggles of serving, of dealing with people, of working day in and day out, in season and out of season, to preach the undiluted truth. They are in the trenches of ministry, fighting constantly against the devil to lead the people in their church to a high call of Godliness and holiness.
The last month has been rough. I’ve been sick on and off, and that means that sleep has not been my friend. I’m just so tired. In my case, tired means I can get discouraged and cynical. (And when I say “can”, what I mean is “I have definitely been edging toward depressed, discouraged, cynical, and grumpy.”) Being in the sessions we sat through helped with some of that. It was a good reminder that the five or six churches I like are not the last churches on earth working for the truth. In addition to that, with a group that size, there is a high concentration of Christians in one place. Generally you end up chatting with random people at conferences, and it’s a great feeling when one of the people you talk to says something specific that you have thought a hundred times. That happened a couple times this weekend. A few different people I spoke to said things that just brought a smile to my face. It’s amazing that in one or two sentences, they can confirm that they are on the same track as you, fighting the same battles, and understand all the same struggles. When you meet someone you connect with at a fundamental level, it’s a rare joy. It is worth hanging on to people like that. It’s encouraging, and suddenly the dead people in the books I read aren’t the only ones who I connect with. Whoa, there are still people in the world who understand this Christian life! There are still people who are hungering after the truth and love to hear the doctrines of grace preached! And even better, they are right here in this room. It’s beautiful. Almost every song we sang, I stayed silent for one verse, just to listen. Hearing thousands of voices singing the words to Holy, Holy, Holy, is indescribable. For a few moments, there is a glorious unity, a joining of minds and hearts in worship that is very difficult to attain. Most of all, you know that in that room, God is being glorified, by thousands at once. We are singing to the same righteous One, the same King, the same Sovereign.
And that is reason 214 to go to conferences. You learn so much. The sessions are packed with good stuff, full of teaching and preaching that you could listen to for hours.
I came back with a million thoughts running through my head. More than a million, actually. I was disappointed that Phil Johnson couldn’t preach on Sunday, but my dad’s message was on the sovereignty of God, and it was precisely what I needed to hear. My God ordains all things, and He will ultimately be glorified. That is such an encouragement! Whatever is happening in our lives, whatever is going on in the world, in the end we are only here for a few years. “The years of our life are seventy, or by reason of strength eighty, yet their span is but toil and trouble; they are soon gone, and we fly away.” And when it’s over? “As for me, I shall behold your face in righteousness; when I awake, I shall be satisfied with your likeness.”
Priorities are straight. Lovely feeling, that.
Now, it’s time for me to get away from my poorly organized writing, and finish my hazelnut-englishtoffee-caramel latte. Hopefully this afternoon I’ll get to spend some time out back with the punching bag. Such a good workout. But first I’m leaving you with an excerpt I enjoyed, even thought it only goes with part of my post.
“Learn then this basic truth, that the Creator is absolute Sovereign, executing His own will, performing His own pleasure, and considering naught but His own glory. “The Lord hath made all things for Himself” (Prov. 16:4). And had He not a perfect right to? Since God is God, who dare challenge His prerogative? To murmur against Him is rank rebellion. To question His ways is to impugn His wisdom. To criticise Him is sin of the deepest dye. Have we forgotten who He is? behold, “All nations before Him are as nothing; and they are counted to Him less than nothing, and vanity. To whom then will ye liken God?” (Isa. 40:17, 18)… If the Lord Jesus possesses all power in Heaven and earth then none can successfully resist His will.” (The Sovereignty of God, by A.W. Pink)
