Knowable Word

Helping ordinary people learn to study the Bible

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Announcement: Monday Posts

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Your Mondays are about to become less full. Or less bothersome and weary. Or more empty and devoid of wisdom…

With the completion of my Proverbs series, I’ve found myself in something of an existential crisis. “All things are full of weariness…The eye is not satisfied with seeing nor the internets filled with blog posts” (Eccl 1:8, translation according to a recent re-interpretation of the Hebrew text). In addition, my wife will soon groan in the pains of childbirth (Rom 8:22) as our new baby arrives in power and great glory sometime around Thanksgiving.

So I’ve decided to reduce my posting to twice per week for a time.

You might ask, “How long?” And you wouldn’t be the first (Psalm 13:1). And I’d be tempted to retort with something like, “Until cities lie waste without inhabitant, and houses without people, and the land is a desolate waste” (Is 6:11), but I won’t.

So for now we’ll just all have to content ourselves with Knowable Word posts on Wednesdays and Fridays, and we’ll be blessed if we do (Phil 4:11-12).

Leading with Influence Live Show

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Join me this Tuesday, August 5, (11 PDT / 2 EDT) for a live show on Innovate 4 Jesus as I join Chris Hogan, Joshua Reich, and host Justin Blaney to discuss leading with influence.

Do you have questions about leadership and influence? Tweet your questions with #I4JLIVE or comment on the blog post here: www.i4j.org/lead. We’ll be taking questions from right now until Tuesday’s show!

To jog your thinking, you may want to check out the article I wrote for The Gospel Coalition about 1 Thessalonians and how Paul led with influence.

Knowable Word Unplugged

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Announcement: I need to unplug from blogging for a week so I don’t go bonkers. I promise I’ll spend the time in quiet rest and reflection on my life’s purpose.

What does man gain by all the toil
    at which he toils under the sun?
A generation goes, and a generation comes,
    but the earth remains forever. (Eccl 1:3-4, ESV)

In the meantime, I have some lovely content from the blog archives that I’ll re-post this week. Enjoy!

Announcing My First Book!

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How’s your time in the Word?

Pre-order now from Cruciform Press. Coming soon to Amazon.

I’ve blogged long enough that most of my ideas now lie buried deep within this site’s bowels. I’ve done my best to make the most important posts accessible in the main menu, but there’s only so much I can do without exhausting new visitors. And some of those ideas deserve to stay buried. After all, didn’t the Sage of Israel once say something about the making of many blogs (Eccl 12:12)? It’s in the Hebrew, I assure you.

Well, I’ve done my best to assemble all the really important stuff in one place for you. And the nice people at Cruciform Press offered to blow off the dust, spiff it up, and publish this baby. I must say it’s made my life much more interesting of late.

Be honored, dear reader, for you are privy to this special, humorous announcement—bowels and all [1]—with Scripture liberally removed from its context. I need to keep you on your toes (which look great in sandals this time of year, by the way—Song 7:1), and my About page practically promises I’ll do it from time to time. Those whom I love, I discipline (Heb 12:7-8). The rest of the world must hold themselves content with the respectable—not to be confused with boring—Public Service Announcement.

You may like to know that my friend and former pastor Tedd Tripp wrote the book’s Foreword. And Wheaton College English Professor Leland Ryken has praised the book for “the accuracy of the proposed methodology for interacting with the Bible, and the practical approach to the subject.” Jerry Bridges, author of The Pursuit of Holiness [2], wrote, “I look forward to using it to improve my own Bible study.”

If you’ve benefitted from this wonderful OIA approach to the Bible (observe, interpret, apply), this book could be your opportunity to help train others. And if you get to read the book, I’d be tickled to hear what you think; so please feel free to drop me a line.

Pre-order now from Cruciform Press. Coming soon to Amazon.
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[1] Though for the record, my wife and exactly 50% of my children simply do not appreciate my sense of humor. I wonder what is the proportion among the blog’s readership…?

[2] This is one of those affiliate links that help you to support this site at no extra cost to yourself.

I Cry from the Miry Pit

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Though Friday posts normally cover some topic on Bible study method or leadership, I’m compelled this week to bare a piece of my soul before you. Please hear my plea, and do not close your ear to my cry for help.

The Problem

I need a new author photo.  Apparently, thisPeter is boring.

Now I’m not one to shun innovation. I won’t sit here and say, “Why were the former days better than these?” for it is not from wisdom that I would ask this (Ecc 7:10).

No, I want to move forward (Ex 14:15). It’s a new day (Gen 32:31), and sophisticated bloggers have more interesting author photos than this. I have no problem with appearing to be sophisticated. It makes my wife laugh, and I prefer to hear that happy sound as often as possible.

How can you help?

We’ve got a few contenders for the gold medal. You are on the panel of impartial, expert judges. The hopes and dreams of a generation depend on your decision. Which one will it be?

Number 1

Peter 1I like this one, but my wife thinks it makes me look too boyish.

Number 2

Peter 3The charming smile of a man enamored with Christ.

Number 3

Peter 4The sophisticated pose.

Number 4

Peter 5The action shot.

Call me a sucker, but I’m interested to know what you think. We chose our last 2 baby names with help from a Facebook poll. Why not do an author photo with a poll, too?

Question: Which photo do you like the best? Which one most inspires you to study the Bible?