Rod Dreher's younger sister, Ruthie Leming, was diagnosed with terminal cancer when she was only 40 years old. A beloved middle school teacher, mother to three young girls, and the happy wife of her high school sweetheart, she faced cancer with the conviction that whatever happened to her, God would bring good out of her illness. Her small town of St. Francisville, Louisiana, (population 1,700) rallied to her side during the struggle. But she died in her husband's arms, in a harrowing scene vividly recounted by Rod Dreher in his new book, The Little Way of Ruthie Leming: A Southern Girl, a Small Town, and the Secret of a Good Life.

The whole ordeal led Rod, a journalist who had worked in Washington, D.C., Philadelphia, New York, and Dallas, to re-evaluate his life and move home for the first time in 20 years. He joined me to discuss faith, tragedy, family, love, and the secret of a good life. You can download or stream the audio below.

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Rod Dreher on the Little Way of Ruthie Leming

Shortly after John Piper concluded his 33-year pastorate at Bethlehem Baptist Church in Minneapolis, FakeJohnPiper tweeted his week one retirement to-do list: "Catch up on 'Little House on the Prairie' reruns. Arc Leviticus. See if Savers is hiring. Write three books."

During The Gospel Coalition 2013 National Conference earlier this week, I asked the real John Piper what's left for week two of retirement. But we also discussed what he won't miss about being a pastor. He explained what young Christians who look up to him for his writing and conference speaking need to know about the day-to-day pastoral care that shaped this broader influence. He also shared why he regrets so much about his time at Bethlehem.

Our interview also ranged beyond his time at Bethlehem to discuss next steps. One of Piper's role models, Jonathan Edwards, died before he finished his History of the Work of Redemption. What would Piper want to finish writing before he dies? And does he agree with his many critics that the Reformed resurgence would die with him if Jesus called him home tomorrow?

We closed the interview by discussing why he's more encouraged or discouraged today compared to when he started at Bethlehem, whether we should blame the divided and ineffective church for worrisome cultural trends, and what one fruit of the Spirit he prays God would give us Christians in this era. Watch, stream, or download audio of the full 30-minute interview to hear his surprising responses.

Tomorrow in Minneapolis, Bethlehem Baptist Church plans to celebrate and give thanks for John Piper during a 6 p.m. service at Grace Church Eden Prairie.

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Piper on Regrets and Retirement

Every Christian is a storyteller. To share the gospel is to tell someone a story about what God has done for the world through Jesus Christ. To be entrusted with the gospel is to own the responsibility to tell this story to others. Sharing the gospel with someone means you tell them story of redemption—sin, sacrifice, forgiveness, renewal, and redemption.

The Gospel Coalition and the Austin Stone Church recently collaborated to create the Storyframes Collective for the purpose of celebrating the extraordinary work of God in the lives of ordinary people.

Through excellence in the art of storytelling (film, photojournalism, spoken word, and writing), this project aims to recount God's redemptive, transforming work in the lives of our brothers and sisters. In form, this website collects encouraging stories about God's grace. In function, we want these stories to inspire you to praise God.

Audio

The Gospel Goes Further - "I remember that fear gripped me, I knew what was coming. I remember thinking please, God, don't let it happen. And it happened anyway."

Video

When Love Leads - In the face of betrayal and on the brink of divorce, David and Marlena discover afresh the pursuing love of Jesus. "Forgiven to Forgive" is this couple's story of betrayal, distance, confession, redemption—and of the marriage-mending power of the gospel.

Jacob Chen: An Adoption Story - "Jacob Chen: An Adoption Story" follows the Chen couple as they meet their adopted son, Jacob, for the first time. As the film demonstrates, adoption can be an outward witness to and expression of worship for God's adoption of us—and a way to showcase the gospel in living color to the world (Gal. 4:4-7).

Living with Cerebral Palsy - "The hardest thing is loneliness. I am my own greatest enemy when I am left to my loneliness." This is a story of how Roger finds hope in the midst of living with cerebral palsy.

Written

In the Name of the Father

The Gift of a New Family

Partnership in the Gospel

We hope you not only enjoy reading, hearing, and seeing these stories, but also take time to observe the stories of those around you. Tell others the story of what God has done for the world in Jesus Christ, and tell us your story — what God has done in you.

We divide our energies and activities between doing and thinking. Some of us would rather think, and some of us would rather do. Some of us would rather study the Bible in our small groups and churches. Some of us would rather love one another, enjoy fellowship, and reach out to neighbors with the good news of Jesus Christ. Since we don't always understand how God has gifted others in different ways, we tend to judge one another for inclining in one direction or another. We blame those fat and lazy Christians for sitting around debating theology while the world falls apart. Or we blame those shallow and weak Christians for ignoring theology while the world falls apart.

Why do we seek to separate what God holds together? Without leading to action, knowledge merely puffs up. But if not based on knowledge, action dries up. That's why the most practical thing you can do to love God and your neighbor is study the Bible. Only there will you learn who God is, what he's done for us, and what he asks us to do in this world.

At the National Conference of The Gospel Coalition, starting one week from today in Orlando, we believe that serious action will follow serious biblical exposition of the Gospel of Luke. As Mark Mellinger and I discuss with TGC president Don Carson in the latest podcast, we trust that as thousands see how Jesus set his face toward the cross and resurrection that awaited him in Jerusalem, they will understand the centrality of this gospel in all things. And with this knowledge they can work out what it means to share that message in every culture, whether back at home or around the world. They will learn how to teach about the Son of God in Muslim contexts that reject him. They will be encouraged to withstand the judgment of bigotry on university campuses where Christians endure the intolerance of tolerance. And they will rejoice in the acts of God then and now with hopeful reports of the advance of the gospel around the world. Listen to the whole interview for Carson's perspective on the conference and all these issues that will be addressed next week in Orlando. With 300 seats still available, we hope to see you soon.

As the podcast continues, The Gospel Project managing editor Trevin Wax talks with Halim Suh, pastor of teaching and theology at The Austin Stone Community Church. They discuss the faltering faith of Abraham, through whom we can see that perfect faith sometimes wavers but still saves. We're not saved by the quality of our faith but the object of that faith. Then Mark and I conclude the podcast discussing how The Gospel Coalition National Conference aims to practically equip teachers in Orlando that they might return home and do likewise. To that end, TGC has teamed up with LifeWay to release a new study called The Gospel of Luke from the Outside In. Written by David Morlan, a Lucan scholar and Denver church planter, and edited by Carson, this 12-week group study will be on sale in Orlando. Below you can watch Carson preview the curriculum, which features his video teaching on Luke. You can also order the leader kit and member books. Using this study guide, we hope you'll see how Jesus loved the unknown, outcast, and hopeless—like you. 

You can stream the full podcast below, download the mp3, or subscribe to Going Deeper with TGC on iTunes or through your other mobile devices.

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Going Deeper with TGC, 4-1, with Don Carson 

When gay marriage was unpopular a few short years ago, advocates appealed to tolerance and minority rights. But now that public opinion has shifted, supporters of gay marriage warn skeptics to get in line, or else. You can't blame Christians for wondering if the game has been rigged.

In a recent article for The Gospel Coalition, Greg Forster described the predicament facing Christians still contending for gay marriage. Following up, he argued that we need new methods in the fight for marriage. Even after writing two articles, Forster had a lot more to say about what these new methods might include. Mark Mellinger and I interviewed Forster about easy divorce, religious freedom, and glimmers of hope in a culture ravaged by the effects of broken marriages. And at a time when soaring support for gay marriage puts pressure on the Supreme Court to strike down bans across the nation, we look at the influence of television on shaping morality, for better and worse. You can hardly produce a television show today unless it features a sympathetic gay character. But how might our neighbors' attitudes change if we told stories of marriage in its gritty beauty, such as the relationship between Eric and Tami Taylor of fictional Dillon, Texas, in Friday Night Lights?

If we have learned anything from the last decade, we should know that electing the right politicians won't solve what ails marriage. We should have learned that lesson when Ronald Reagan backed no-fault divorce as governor of California in 1970. We believe humans flourish when they obey biblical morality, but we're not afraid of religious freedom. We're not fighting to get the civil order to exclusively reflect Christianity. Love for our neighbors compels us to pursue more than a moral majority of 51 percent to enforce the definition of marriage. We want our neighbors to know Jesus Christ and the power of the Holy Spirit. Forster helps us see the need for more sophisticated, faithful, long-term thinking about cultural change in light of the gospel.

As the podcast continues, The Gospel Project managing editor Trevin Wax talks with Halim Suh, pastor of teaching and theology at The Austin Stone Community Church. Suh has written two small-group studies on Genesis and covered the first five books of the Bible for The Gospel Project. As Suh explains, when you miss the beginning of the story, you're lost, no matter where you come in. He also discusses the two creation accounts of Genesis 1 and 2 and why we're tempted to divide God and relate to him in ways we individually prefer.

Wrapping up, Mark and I preview the upcoming National Conference of The Gospel Coalition, starting April 6 in Orlando. We discuss auxiliary events hosted by Reformed Theological Seminary, the conference Premiere Sponsor. When you register to join us in Orlando next month, you can watch these dinner panels of RTS professors on "Having Confidence in the Scriptures" and "Seeing Christ in the Old Testament."

You can stream the full podcast below, download the mp3, or subscribe to Going Deeper with TGC on iTunes or through your other mobile devices.

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Going Deeper with TGC, 3-22, with Greg Forster

When we think of the Trinity, we tend to think of systematic and historical theology: ancient councils, obscure debates, and dangerous heresies. But what difference does the Trinity make in our ministry today? What does the Trinity tells us about the character of God and the character of ministry on his behalf?

I sat down to ask those questions of two professors of divinity at Beeson Divinity School in Birmingham, Alabama. Robert Smith Jr. passionately calls his students to find the intratrinitarian presence in the passages they preach. "I must put Trinitarian spectacles on every time I look at the text," he told me in this interview. "God never acts outside his Trinitarian nature."

But ministry today often breaks down into what Smith calls "trinitarian turf wars." Some churches pride themselves on being Spirit-led. But others make a priority of preaching expositional messages centered on Christ. Must we choose? Is it even possible to neglect the Holy Spirit in our ministry? Listen to the interview to hear Smith describe the role of the Holy Spirit as public relations expert for Jesus Christ.

Graham Cole, Anglican professor of divinity at Beeson, observes a difference in theology we confess and theology we practice. As he explains in this interview, we're tempted to become "functionally Unitarian" in our prayer. But the Trinity truly sets Christianity apart from other attempts to describe God. Cole has studied Islam for 30 years, and the Muslim message of submission differs fundamentally from the good news of Trinity, which tells us God is relational on the inside. Cole goes on to describe the character of "love-led" Christian ministry.

As the interview concludes, Smith explains the difference it makes when someone at Beeson Divinity School starts to really get the Trinity in his preaching classes. Likewise, Cole describes the influence of the Trinity on his courses about prayer. As Cole explains, "Our prayers really tell people what our theology is."

You can stream the full interview below, download the mp3, or subscribe to TGC audio on iTunes or through your other mobile devices.

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Smith, Cole, Hansen on Trinitarian Ministry

Your Protestant church probably doesn't observe the church calendar that marks such events as Epiphany and Pentecost. You might even regard this structure as legalistic, subversive of the true gospel of grace.

But make no mistake: you follow some calendar. It might be the school year, based on the agricultural seasons of planting, growing, and harvesting. Or it might be the so-called Hallmark Church Calendar: Valentine's Day, Mother's Day, Fathers's Day, Fourth of July, Veterans Day, and so on. The same goes for our liturgy. Every church has a liturgy. The only question is whether it's edifying and biblical.

Perhaps responding to the secular calendars adopted by so many Protestant churches, many congregations across the denominational spectrum have reached back into Christian history to clean up and capture structures that follow the story of Scripture. Lent is one such season leading up to Easter marked by fasting, repentance, and anticipation. Though typically associated with Roman Catholics, Lent has been infused with gospel-centered theology by many evangelicals today.

But not everyone thinks it's a good idea to observe Lent. After all, it's not prescribed by Scripture. The fast may send mixed messages to believers with a Roman Catholic background. By requiring Christians to practice something not mandated by God's Word, we may be inhibiting spiritual freedom. And the church calendar—even Easter—may imply that some days are more holy than others. Good Friday and Christmas might have gone mainstream, but many Protestants even today believe they distract from the Lord's Day and thus do not mark them on their calendars.

In the latest edition of Going Deeper with TGC, host Mark Mellinger and I talk about the origins, theology, and practice of Lent with Ligon Duncan, senior minister of First Presbyterian Church in Jackson, Mississippi. He traces the roots of Lent to Pope Gregory the Great in the 500s and explains its explicitly meritorious purpose. And he cites the history of Reformation in Switzerland, which began with eating sausages during Lent. Whether you side with Duncan or agree with Lutherans and Anglicans that we can keep liturgical ceremonies while adapting their theology, you'll benefit from listening to Duncan and going deeper with the sources he mentions:

• Hughes Oliphint Old, The Reading and Preaching of the Scriptures in the Worship of the Christian Church
• David Peterson, Engaging with God: A Biblical Theology of Worship

As the podcast continues, The Gospel Project managing editor Trevin Wax talks with 9Marks editorial director Jonathan Leeman about the Old Testament wisdom literature. How do we read and rightly apply these passages? Leeman walks through Psalm 20 to show how we read through the lens of what Jesus Christ has accomplished on our behalf. Wax closes by asking Leeman how we should interpret Song of Solomon: is it a love poem or allegory of Christ and the church?

Finally, Mark and I wrap up by previewing Kathleen Nielson's new series on Flannery O'Connor. I also discuss Wheaton College president Phil Ryken's workshop at The Gospel Coalition National Conference on How Pastors Can Encourage Artistic Gifts. You can register for the conference and sign up to learn from Ryken. Stay tuned to the very end of the podcast to learn about an upcoming series led by Ryken on a Pulitzer Prize-winning novel beloved by many pastors today.

You can stream the full podcast below, download the mp3, or subscribe to Going Deeper with TGC on iTunes or through your other mobile devices.

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Going Deeper with TGC, 2-22, with Ligon Duncan

There's something about reading accounts of churches enjoying unusual fruit in evangelism and discipleship that makes us to long for the same in ours. Accounts like the 18th-century Great Awakening in New England stir us with hope that a spiritually dry and hostile region can suddenly fill with low-hanging fruit.

Speaking several times recently at the Multiply Conference in Australia, Don Carson gives an account of the French Canadian Revival during the 1970s. It's a moving account of the Lord's work among struggling churches and faithful missionaries and pastors. Here's the gist: before 1972, French Canada, which had about 6 million people in the region, had about 35 evangelical churches. None of these churches had more than 50 people in attendance. Most churches had 30 to 40 on good weeks. But between 1972 to 1980, through door-to-door evangelism, campus Bible studies, and the like, ministers began to harvest large amounts of spiritual fruit all at once. During this eight-year span, the number of churches exploded from 35 to more than 500!

Carson then offers lessons we can learn from the both the "lean years" and also the "high growth years." For pastors and ministers longing for gospel renewal in their churches and cities, and for those experiencing revival right now, these are encouraging and helpful lessons.

Lessons from the 'Lean Years'

1. You must begin to view opposition and persecution as a privilege. All those who live righteously will be persecuted (2 Timothy 3:12). Apostles rejoiced at being counted worthy to suffer. Enemies treated Jesus this way, so why do you think you'd escape (John 15:20)? You must view suffering and persecution this way, or you will descend into self-pity.
2. Pursue evangelism no matter how difficult. Keep thinking of creative ways to share the gospel. At one point Carson says, "At the end of the day, although church planting is more than evangelism, it's never less. Evangelize or die."
3. Work on the biblical texts that talk about endurance, perseverance, steadfastness, and the like.
4. Develop confidence in the doctrine of election. "Why don't you go someplace in the world where you'd see more fruit?" Carson asked his father after years of seemingly fruitless service in French Canada. His father turned to him and said, "I stay because I believe God has many people in this place" and turned and walked out of the room. Carson remarks,  "I don't think you can really serve faithfully and well and enduringly unless you do believe in the doctrine of election. At the end of the day you are called to be faithful, but when you see conversions, you recognize that it's the work of God. If you believe God has many people in this place, your job is to preach until they're found."
5. Recognize the strange mix of God's supernatural work. Don't look at movements that have great fruit and try to simply copy everything they do.

Lessons from the 'High Growth Years'

1. If you start getting rapid growth think especially hard about patterns of training and education. Don't think that education and training slows the Spirit's work.
2. Do everything in your power to keep the press out. Downplay things. One of the things that preserved French Canada was the language barrier. People from other parts of the world didn't come flying in to "catch the blessing." Don't talk so much about the growth. Instead, talk about the gospel; talk about Jesus; talk about Bible study.
3. Do what you can to funnel all the God-given, Spirit-powered energy to Bible study and understanding the gospel, and teaching people to teach the Bible. If you don't funnel the energy there, it will be funneled somewhere else.
4. Start carefully, prayerfully, and humbly to institutionalize. Revivals almost never start with a plan. But any movement that never institutionalizes will fizzle and disappear within a decade or so. Institutions sometimes steer movements into dead legalism, but without institutions, you don't preserve much. Cautious institutionalizing can pass along and preserve what is faithful to Scripture and the gospel.

Carson also talked at length in Australia about prayer and had a Q&A afterward that revealed other insightful lessons. Be encouraged to pray hard and ask God to do more than we could ever plan or imagine.

Other talks D.A. Carson gave from the Multiply Conference include:

When the Bible Is Silent

When the Bible Is Silent Q&A

Lessons from French Canadian Revivals

Lessons from the French Canadian Revival Q&A

The Implications of Complementarianism

The Implications of Complementarianism Q&A

Our Exalted Identity in a Holy Church

Teach Us to Pray

Our Exalted Relationship with Each Other

Almost every day, it seems, we read news of another daunting challenge to Christians who seek to love our neighbors by teaching and practicing a biblical view of marriage. Just this week, one of the most prominent ministers in the UK, Steve Chalke, announced his support for same-sex relationships. The European Court of Human Rights ruled against Christians seeking protection from being coerced to recognize the legitimacy of same-sex relationships in their work. And American evangelicals continue to debate how to respond after Louie Giglio became the target of criticism from gay-rights groups and withdrew from offering a prayer at President Obama's inauguration.

More than ever, we need to learn from the example and counsel of Christians who have fought in the grace of God and power of the gospel to pursue holiness and shun the temptation of homosexuality. Sam Allberry shared one such inspiring story and showed us how the gospel can be good news to gays. Another powerful, prophetic voice for our time comes from Christopher Yuan, co-author of Out of a Far Country: A Gay Son's Journey to God, A Broken Mother's Search for Hope. In the latest edition of Going Deeper with TGC, Yuan talks with Mark Mellinger and me about costly discipleship and how the gospel of Jesus Christ offers hope the world cannot match. He discusses the limitations of the gay/straight paradigm and why he declines to call himself a "gay Christian." He also challenges the church to make room for biblical singleness, because "living as a single is not a curse." Listen for his insight about the similarities between the Muslim and gay communities, then check out his recent review of a new book from the founder of the Gay Christian Network.

As the podcast continues, The Gospel Project managing editor Trevin Wax talks with 9Marks editorial director Jonathan Leeman about the Old Testament historical narratives and how we understand and teach about such squeamish issues as God's judgment and the Canaanite conquest. Finally, Mark and I wrap up the podcast by previewing a new event scheduled to follow The Gospel Coalition 2013 National Conference. Tim Keller will kick off a Faith at Work post-conference where various speakers from various vocations will aim to connect Sunday worship with Monday work. So even if you're not a pastor, we hope you'll join us in Orlando and stick around the afternoon of Wednesday, April 10, for several hours of focus on connecting the gospel to everyday life in the workplace.

You can stream the full podcast below, download the mp3, or subscribe to Going Deeper with TGC on iTunes or through your other mobile devices.

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Going Deeper with TGC, 1-17, with Christopher Yuan

Even in elementary schools girls already grade each other's appearance and claim they need to diet. We laugh at Honey Boo Boo on TV and sign up our kids for fitness classes. Mothers apologize to one another when their daughters don't match the culture's one standard of beauty: tall, thin, and shapely in the right places.

And yet, as writer and women's Bible study teacher Jen Wilkin observes, we would not all look the same way even if we all fulfilled our New Year's resolutions to eat well and exercise regularly. So why do we grade ourselves and one another so harshly? Why do we convince our sons they need the perfect Justin Bieber haircut and talk to them about women in such a way that we unwittingly dictate what a wife needs to look like?

Earlier this week Wilkin wrote a tremendously helpful article aimed especially at Christian women to encourage them to "banish body-talk to the same list of off-limits topics as salaries, name-dropping, and colonoscopies." In the latest edition of Going Deeper with TGC, Wilkin talks with Mark Mellinger and me about why women should stop telling their friends they look skinny and start complimenting them about godly attitudes and behavior. Wilkin even responded to my unexpected question about plastic surgery. So go easy on her for an impromptu response on one of the most personally explosive issues of our day.

As the podcast continues, The Gospel Project managing editor Trevin Wax talks with Eric Geiger, vice president of the church resources division at LifeWay and co-author of Creature of the Word, about how pastors and other leaders align their churches according to theology, philosophy, and practice. They discuss thorny issues of change and the local church's relationship with the past. Finally, Mark and I wrap up the podcast by reflecting on my controversial top 10 theology stories of 2012.

You can stream the full podcast below, download the mp3, or subscribe to Going Deeper with TGC on iTunes or through your other mobile devices.

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Going Deeper with TGC, 1-3, with Jen Wilkin