There have been comings and goings in the US office this past week.
We've said "farewell" to Daniel (Brodi) Broaddus. Brodi has been the engine of The Good Book Company US looking after customer services, logistics, finance and much, much more - and he has done an outstanding job. Please do pray for him as he goes off to seminary. He will be much missed but we're excited about the gospel work he's heading towards in the future.
But we've said "hello" to not one but two new members of staff as well!
Angela Esatto is the US office's new part-time Executive Assistant where she will be responsible for human resources, book-keeping and making sure her colleagues are in the right place at the right time (no small challenge). A homeschooling mum of five boys (yes, five boys) Angela is an avid blog-reader, a keen cook and a big fan of the great outdoors.
Matthew Endres is a recent graduate of Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary and he's been married a whole 3 weeks! Matt is going to be responsible for product administration and customer services, making sure you get the products you need at the time you need them.
We thank the Lord for all our staff. Please do pray for Angela and Matt - that they will settle into the Good Book family quickly; that they will enjoy serving God through Christian publishing and that they will enjoy helping you open up the Bible ...
We're conscious, here at The Good Book Company, of our need for prayer. We want to be working in God's strength - for God's glory - in God's Kingdom not just pottering about doing what we think is good and right. If you could remembers us in prayer, that would be so much appreciated. To that end, this Wednesday we're continuing to pop up some prayer requests - asking you to pray for us department by department. This week, design:
The design department oversees all things visual here at The Good Book Company. This include the development of covers and internal layouts for our books and resources, typesetting, illustration, advertising, and working with freelance illustrators and designers on larger projects.
It's a busy time at the moment, with several large projects underway.... continue reading
1. Grace Transforming - half price ebook!
Get the ebook version of Grace Transforming for just £4!
2. Own Your Desperation (New eBook from Piper)
A new, free ebook from John Piper.
3. (English) Relief Project: Titus For You
Support The Gospel Coalition’s new relief project of Titus For You.
4. Keswick Convention 2014 Talks
Listen to the talks from this year’s recent convention (Registration required).
5. And finally...
Our video of the week, ‘Following Jesus’ from Live Grow Know Session 1:
Found something that you think should make it on to the On to a Good Thing round-up? Send it to: ontoagoodthing@thegoodbook.co.uk
This week we're thrilled to welcome a new member of staff into the UK office. Here's a little about him ...
What are you going to be doing at TGBC?
You tell me! I’m coming here to be the print buyer. [Blank Look] Oh you don’t know what that is? Well me neith… I mean, I will be finding the best deals to get our books printed with different printers, and helping advise the team here about what can be realistically and cost effectively printed when they are considering design questions. Then I think I’ll also be helping out with some IT stuff, so I have something cooler to talk about at dinner parties.
What were you doing before TGBC?
Before starting here I was working as the centre manager of a local charity in Basingstoke, that worked with mainly young people in the community to help grow confidence and boost social interaction, primarily through the performing arts. Despite this I’m still as wooden and uncoordinated as they come, and worked behind the scenes, specialising as a jack of all trades, managing their IT, Website, Policies and the staff & volunteer team, while dabbling in the finances, fund raising, event planning and general admin sides, all with a major in crisis control.
What do you enjoy doing when you're not at work?
In my spare time I’m a theoretical fiction writer (which is to say I think about writing more than I actually write). I enjoy watching high quality TV Drama, and can wax lyrical about Breaking Bad for hours on end. I enjoy playing football and other sports, and am a big New England Patriots fan, and love watching all and any American Football as the ultimate sporting fusion of brains and brawn. I also enjoy any excuse to cook or eat good food, especially if there is some nice wine and half decent company involved.
What can we be praying for you this week?
If you could please pray for me as I adjust to starting my new job and all that it involves. For a smooth process of finding somewhere to move to and commuting in until I do. And for good gospel opportunities with friends and ex-colleagues before I leave Basingstoke.
We are utterly and completely dependant on the grace of God for everything we have, even life itself. What is more, if we have any hope of life after death - eternal life - it is only because of God's free and undeserved grace for us in Jesus Christ. Only when we understand this is it possible for us to have the relationship with God we truly need. If we understand our absolute need for Jesus - then his grace changes everything.
Phil Ryken, in Grace Transforming, reassures us that grace is not only greater than all our sin, it is also a release from human pressures and the fuel for a fruitful joy. This book will remind you of the grace that first transformed your soul.
Get the ebook HERE for just £4 until midday Thursday. Simply use the code gte0814 at the checkout.
Over the 25 years since I've become a Christian I've heard quite a few talks on the cross. I've read a few books too. And, as I've worked my way through the pages of Scripture, I've noticed it's a subject that pops up time and time again! In broad brush-strokes, at least, I get what Jesus has done for me. So why, oh why, would I spend 2 hours of my holiday reading a book about the cross from the publishing company that employs me?
The answer is simple. Our Lord's work on the cross isn't something to understand and then move on from - it's the core of our salvation, the foundation of our daily living and our hope for the future. It never gets old, it never gets dull. And that's something, Marcus Nodder author of Why did Jesus have to die? knows very well.
In his eminently readable book - part of the Questions Christians Ask series - Marcus dispels some of the myths around the cross. It's not just a logo or a great sacrifice that inspires us to try harder to live a loving and sacrificial life. Nor is it yet another dying and rising myth circulating in the ancient world. It's the best news imaginable for a lost and hurting world.... continue reading
See, I will create
new heavens and a new earth.
The former things will not be remembered,
nor will they come to mind.
But be glad and rejoice for ever
in what I will create,
for I will create Jerusalem to be a delight
and its people a joy.
I will rejoice over Jerusalem
and take delight in my people;
the sound of weeping and of crying
will be heard in it no more.
Isaiah 65:17-19
Some people, both Christian and as well as non-Christian, find it easy to understand God and Jesus, but struggle to understand quite how and where the Holy Spirit fits into the picture. Who exactly is he? And how does he work in our lives?
The Bible tells us that we need to be led by the Holy Spirit (see for example Romans 8:12-14 and Galatians 5:16-25). Therefore, it must be possible for every one of us to hear and discern the promptings and guidance of the Holy Spirit within us! So that should mean that we can hear the voice of God. But if God were to speak out loud to us all the time so that we know it is God speaking to us, then we wouldn't need faith to hear him. On the other hand, if God speaks so softly to us that we need to get into the habit of listening closely to the Holy Spirit and drawing closer to God in order to hear him better, then there is a lot of faith involved, and it requires cultivating a deeper, more personal, more intimate relationship with the Lord and being guided by his Spirit. But where does the Spirit fit in and how can he help us? And how does the Spirit relate to the Bible?... continue reading
