Latest / Pastor John Piper's answers / Make the Bible Part of Your Everyday in 2024

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Make the Bible Part of Your Everyday in 2024 · Pastor John Piper's answers

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  Hi. My name is Angie. I am a wife and a mother of
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  four here in Dallas, Texas. You are listening to the Ask Pastor John
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  podcast with John Piper. Angie is a precious ministry partner of ours and I
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  want you to meet her in a moment be first. As we stand on
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  the threshold of a brand new year. We're talking about Bible reading and the
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  question is from an anonymous listener, a man and a new believer, which
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  is wonderful. We love getting messages from new believers. Here's his email.
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  Pastor John, thank you for this podcast. I'm simply overwhelmed at how much
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  I don't know about the Bible. As a young Christian, I want to
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  be knowledgeable about scripture so that it can guide me and so that I can
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  use it to guide others in the future. But there's so much I don't
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  know where to begin. If I were studying for an exam in class,
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  I would start with a list of essential topics to be tested on. But
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  with the Bible, I feel like the test is life and I don't know
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  what I need to know to be prepared, if that makes sense. In
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  other words, where do I start? What is the first and most essential
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  thing I need to know to follow Christ by reading his word. Well,
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  my answer is probably going to be a little bit frustrating, because he's asking
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  for a particular truth in the Bible, and I'm going to say Bible,
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  Bible, Bible, Bible. I have never met a mature, fruitful,
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  strong, spiritually descerning Christian who is not full of scripture and devoted to regular
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  meditation on Scripture and given to storing it in the heart through Bible memorization.
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  And that's not a coincidence. So what I want to do is persuade our
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  new believing for ends and that it is absolutely essential after coming to faith in
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  Christ, to be radically, deeply, experientially devoted, unshakably, unwaveringly persuaded
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  that reading and meditating on and understanding and memorizing and enjoying Scriptures is absolutely essential
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  for the Christian life, which would include being in the Word capital w every
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  day with the aim that we will meet God there and little by little the
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  glory of His truth will feel and transform our lives. And that may seem
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  obvious to them or to others, but it isn't obvious because I know fairly
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  well along Christians who don't do this. They don't do this, and they've
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  been Christians four years and they're lackadaisical. They think it's optional because they know
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  so much already and they read so many other books. I don't regard that
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  as a very good habit at all. I think it's dangerous. So I
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  have ten reasons that I believe this. Ten reasons to make the Bible,
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  reading, Bible understanding, Bible memory essential to Christian life. Resist feelings of
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  self sufficiency that say I don't need the Scripture every day. So here are
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  my ten reasons. Scripture saves to heed to yourself and to your doctrine.
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  Hold fast, for by doing that you will save both yourself and your hearers.
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  Verse Timothy four to sixteen. Salvation has happened to God's people. Salvation
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  is at this moment happening to God's people. And salvation will happen completely at
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  the resurrection of God's people, and it is happening now by means. Paul
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  says, hold fast to the teaching and save yourself. God saves us daily
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  by Scripture number two, Scripture frees from Satan. You shall know the truth,
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  and the truth will make you free. John eight thirty two. In
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  the context is that Jesus is showing the Jewish leaders that though they think they
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  are not slaves, you are of your father, the devil, and your
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  will is to do your father's desires. Satan is your enemy, young Christian.
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  He is a thousand times stronger than you are. So John writes to
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  the young believers. I write to you, young men, because you are
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  strong, and the Word of God abides in you, and you have overcome
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  the evil one. This is our only hope for defeating a supernatural enemy.
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  Every time Jesus was tempted by the devil, he struck back with the sword
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  of the Spirit, which is the Word of God, and he had it
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  memorized so he didn't have to carry a book in the wilderness. Reason number
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  three. Scripture imparts grace and peace. May grace and peace be multiplied to
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  you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord. Knowledge of God.
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  Gain through scripture is not identical with grace, but Peter says it is
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  a means of grace. If we want to be made peaceful and powerful through
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  divine grace. Peter says it happens in the knowledge of God and of Jesus,
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  our Lord. That knowledge is found in one place. Scripture Number four
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  scripture sanctifies Jesus prayed Father, sanctify them in the truth. Your word is
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  truth. Sanctification is the process of becoming holy, that is, becoming more
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  like Christ and like God, who is perfectly holy. This is not optional.
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  Hebrews twelve fourteen says, pursue the holiness, without which we will not
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  see the Lord. We don't become perfect in this life, but we do
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  become holy. God sanctifies is people and Jesus praise to his Father. Sanctify
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  them in the truth. Your word is truth. It couldn't be more plain
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  or more important. Number five scripture gives joy. You receive the word,
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  Paul says, in much affliction to the Thessalonians, with the joy of the
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  Holy Spirit verst. Thessalonians one six or Psalm one, verse two. His
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  delight is in the law of the life Lord, and on his law he
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  meditates to day and night. Life without joy is unbearable. The Christian life
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  is a life of many afflictions, but in them all God sustains joy,
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  and he does it by the scriptures. Reason. Number six scripture protects us
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  from destructive error until we attain the unity of faith, Paul says, and
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  the knowledge of the Son of God, so that we may no longer be
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  carried to and fro by every wind of doctrine. How do young Christians stop
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  being leaves blown around by cultural and theological winds and opinions? Answer the unity
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  of faith and the knowledge of the Son of God, knowledge that they experience
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  not as the opinion of man, but as the word of God that's found
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  in one place the scriptures. Scripture is the hope of heaven. That's number
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  seven. Scripture is the hope of Heaven. And what I mean by this
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  is that full understanding, full enjoyment of the truth of Scripture will be experienced
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  only in Heaven Verse Corinthians thirteen twelve. Now I know in part, then
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  I shall understand fully even as I have been fully understood the knowledge of God,
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  all the fullness that are created being can properly comprehend and enjoy. The
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  knowledge of God will not be withheld from us indefinitely. The frustrations of our
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  present limitations of understanding and enjoyment will be removed. How fitting it is then
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  that we be ever growing now in what will be our final joy in the
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  age to come. Reason number eight. Scripture will be resisted by some.
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  The time is coming, Paul says, when people will not endure sound teaching,
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  but having itching ears, they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their
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  own likings Tewod Timothy four to three. In other words, we need to
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  know the scriptures so that we're not taken off guard, or knocked off balance,
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  or led away by false teachers. We need to receive the scriptures regularly
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  to be ready to meet those who refuse to receive the scriptures. Reason number
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  nine. The right handling of scripture is approved by God, Paul says in
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  two Timothy two fifteen. Do your best to present yourself to God as one
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  approved a workman who has no need to be ashamed rightly handling the word of
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  truth. It is a precious thing to be assigned to do a very important
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  task, and then to find the Master Worker approving of what he's asked you
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  to do. We're all assigned in some measure to handle the word of God,
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  and what a wonderful opportunity to be pleasing to the Lord. Finally,
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  number ten, Scripture gives and sustains life. Jesus said, man shall not
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  live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of
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  God Matthew four four. Spiritual life, eternal life, just like physical life,
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  must be fed not by bread, but by the word of God.
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  If you think that you have eternal life as a kind of vaccination against hell,
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  which needs no nourishment, you don't know what spiritual life is. So
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  there are ten reasons for why young believers should resolve with all their might,
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  all the might that God gives them to make reading and meditating on and understanding
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  and memorizing the scriptures essential non negotiable in their Christian life. I have never
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  met a mature, faithful, strong, spiritually discerning Christian who is not full
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  of scripture that this pointed. Thank you faster, John, And before we
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  end, I want to invite our friend Angie on you heard Angie at the
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  beginning of this episode. Angie, you and your husband Brad and your entire
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  family are precious friends of ours. We first met I believe in downtown Atlanta
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  at a ministry partner meeting on New Year's Eve, and we rung in twenty
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  twenty together as families. It was an unforgettable time for the rankies. I
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  know that for sure you have for years made this podcast possible. It's an
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  honor to do this work because I know that we have friends like you and
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  Brad behind every single one of our episodes two thousand and three episodes to date.
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  You truly are a partner of ours and we are grateful to God for
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  you as a ministry partner who supports this podcast and who also listens in What
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  does it represent to you? The Ask Pastor John podcast? I think for
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  me has been an incredible daily opportunity to hear from Pastor John literally audibly daily.
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  However, often with moments of gospel centered encouragement. It's almost like a
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  quick coffee with a dear friend that provides an opportunity to stir affections for Christ
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  and so in ten minutes, an opportunity to grow together and to grow in
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  that affection for Christ. As a mom and a wife in the place that
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  I'm at, and knowing how people listen to these podcasts and just in their
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  car, in their carpool line, and just even as they're cleaning dishes,
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  in my sake, respect that people listen, and especially during these crazy days
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  right now on so many levels. I think it is just a constant encouragement
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  to realize we have brothers and sisters who are helping to stir affections for Christ.
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  So I just commend you guys on how steadfast and faithful and diligent you
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  all are. I mean, every writer, every writer of articles, writer
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  of books, Well, we adore you all. We are mutually thankful for
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  each and every one of you. Super encouraging Angie, thank you, love
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  your personalities coming out in audio, it's great. Tell us the brief version
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  of your story of how you became a ministry partner with us. Brad and
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  I have been consumers, if you will, of Desiring God for about twenty
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  years, meaning we first heard of Pastor John twenty years ago. The book
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  Desiring God. All that we've learned about Pastor John kind of led us to
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  the ministry of Desiring God and with that we consumed and we're spectators and learners
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  and listeners for years and years and years. And then about a year and
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  a half ago it dawned on us that we could take a next level step
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  of becoming partners and really joining in kind of taking more of a family ownership
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  if you will, of our relationship with the ministry and with everybody on staff
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  with Desiring God. And we really wanted that now that we had been partakers
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  in so many ways for years, it felt like there was a missing step
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  for us that just to complete that relationship and that partnership, and so it
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  was a real natural desire of just wanting to jump in deeper in whatever capacity
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  that we could. And at that moment it was to partner financially, but
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  what it became more of for us was partnering relationally to journey together in a
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  deeper way with Desiring God. We're so grateful to God for you, Angie,
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  and for Brad and for your precious family, and my wife and I
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  have been the object of your love and prayers and encouragements over the years.
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  And if you're listening and you know the benefit of this podcast, you've experienced
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  it, why not take the next step with us and become a monthly ministry
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  partner. It would help ensure that we can continue to make Ask Pastor John
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  episodes and all the resources at Desiring God and getting them spread around the world
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  as well. If you're ready to take this next step with us, consider
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  joining US with a thirty dollars a month partnership. You can do that today
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  at Desiring Good dot org forward slash donate. That's Desiring Good dot Org forward
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  slash donate. Deeply appreciated. I'm Tony Ranky. I'll see you on Thursday.