Even the best earthly fathers, as this song says, will let their children down at times, tragically some fathers will selfishly cause their children great pain. The imperfect fatherly love expressed in this song  points us to the perfect Father we all long for. The Father who truly knows us, and is able to perfectly love and protect us. The Father who  wants us to know him, and his Son Jesus.

I wish that I could be your everything
Be the one to give you all the things you need
Sometimes I’m gonna let you down
There’s Someone if you just believe
He’ll be your hero like He’s always been for me
Darling, Jesus is the one you need

I wish that I could be your everything
Be the one to give you all the things you need
Sometimes I’m gonna let you down
There’s Someone if you just believe
He’ll be your hero like He’s always been for me
Darling, Jesus is the one

Below are some resources and reflections from a variety of Christians – some are facing cancer, others whose cancer is now in remission, and still others who are now with Jesus. If you know of other resources, feel free to let me know in the comments:

 My God is true! Lessons learned along cancer’s dark road (Paul Wolfe tells his story of diagnosis, treatment and survival, and points to the glory and grace of God along the way. Above all he speaks of the faithfulness of God whose promises will certainly prove true. )

 ”Wednesdays were pretty normal“  writes Michael Kelley, looking for a bright spot amidst the chemotherapy routine brought on by his two-year-old son Joshua’s cancer diagnosis. His personal account of that fight to survive sparks a larger discussion of how Christians must learn to walk in the light of Christ’s promises despite the dark shadows of earthly pain. Indeed, it’s pain that sometimes opens the door to a deeper experience with Jesus, an authentic relationship that holds steady even when life loses the comfort of normalcy.

Paul Barnett, here (pdf) and here (blog)

Sandy Grant, The Briefing, (Matthias Media), here.

Although Amazon is not always the cheapest store, you can easily browse there and purchase elsewhere. I have added links to Kindle versions where possible, as it enables you to download a free preview of the book to your pc, mac, phone etc using the  free Kindle reading app .

I have set up this store to help others, not to make money. If anyone purchases a book through the store I receive a small percentage, which I would use towards costs related to running this website. However, feel free to buy any books you might like from a cheaper site or local store. Australian and UK readers may find better prices at  www.bookdepository.co.uk .

I hope to add more to these book lists as I have time. I’d love to hear any books you’ve found especially helpful. For other book recommendations on a wide variety of Christian issues, see this list from The Gospel Coalition .

1. Advent calendar packs. The Good book co. has produced three different packs which each contain a calendar and an accompanying book of short Bible readings. Our family has enjoyed and been helped by these. Links to calendar packs in their online stores here: UK store ,  US store  ,  Australian store .

2. Jotham’s Journey / Tabitha’s Travels / Bartholomew’s Passage. Each of these books contain daily advent readings of a historical fiction adventure set in Palestine in the lead up to Jesus birth. Each reading also considers and applies a Bible passage. Our family have enjoyed using two of the books in this series over the last couple of Christmases, and look forward to trying the third. The stories are well told, and provide helpful background and sense of expectation and wonder at the birth of the Messiah.

3. Behold the Lamb of God: An Advent Narrative.

While many find the music inspiring, the words are a profound recognition of God’s reign. Hallelujah literally means ‘Praise Yah’ – a shortened form of God’s name ‘Yahweh’. It is an invitation for us to join in praising God/the LORD. The lyrics are below, followed by the Bible verses they are drawn from.

 

If Jesus really rose from the dead, it transforms both the way we think of the future and the way we live in the present. Among other things it means forgiveness, hope, meaning and power to change are possible. But can we be sure Jesus rose?

‘Nothing in history can be proven the way we can prove something in a laboratory. However, the resurrection of Jesus is a historical fact much more fully attested to than most other events of ancient history that we take for granted. Every effort to account for the birth of the church apart from Jesus’ resurrection flies in the face of what we know about first-century history and culture. If you don’t short-circuit the process with the philosophical bias against the possibility of miracle, the resurrection of Jesus has the most evidence for it … first-century people … found the resurrection as inconceivable as you do. The only way anyone embraced the resurrection back then was by letting the evidence challenge and change their worldview, their view of what was possible. They had just as much trouble with the claims of the resurrection as you, yet the evidence-both of the eyewitness accounts and the changed lives of the followers-was overwhelming.’ (Tim Keller, the Reason for God)

Below William Lane Craig presents some of the historical evidence for Jesus’ resurrection:

The New Testament documents give us reliable, eyewitness, historical accounts of Jesus’ life, death and resurrection. As John writes: these are written so that you may believe Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and by believing you may have life in His name (John 20:31).

Related Links:

Isn’t believing in the resurrection ridiculous? (Christianity Explored)

Behold our God (Jonathan Ryan/Meghan Baird/Stephen Altrogge)

1. Who has held the oceans in His hand?
Who has numbered every grain of sand?
Kings and nations tremble at His voice
All creation rises to rejoice

CHORUS
Behold our God seated on His throne
Come let us adore Him
Behold our King nothing can compare
Come let us adore Him!

2. Who has given counsel to the Lord?
Who can question any of His Words?
Who can teach the One who knows all things?
Who can fathom all His wondrous deeds?

3. Who has felt the nails upon His hands
Bearing all the guilt of sinful man?
God eternal humbled to the grave
Jesus, Savior risen now to reign!

TAG
Men: You will reign forever!
Women: Let Your glory fill the earth

© 2011 Sovereigns Grace Worship (ASCAP)/Sovereign Grace Praise (BMI)

You Have Been Raised (Mark Altrogge/Bob Kauflin/Ken Boer)

1. How do we know we’ve been forgiven?
How do we know that we’ve been made  clean?
How do we know we’ll go to heaven?
How do we know we’ve been redeemed?

CHORUS
You have been raised, the tomb has been opened
Nothing can take away our hope in You
You have been raised
You have been raised, the work is completed
Hell and its powers have been defeated
You have been raised

2. Now we are free from condemnation
There is no judgment left for us to fear
We don’t have to wonder if we’re welcome
You are the One who’s brought us near

BRIDGE
The price You paid for us
Has fully been accepted
Because of Your shed blood
We cannot be rejected

© 2011 Sovereign Grace Praise (BMI)/Sovereign Grace Worship (ASCAP).

Jesus_Lives (George Romanacce/Bob Kauflin)

1. I no longer fear the grave
Christ has come
Took the sting of death away
Through His saving blood
Though my body fails and my flesh grows weak
Till my final breath to this hope I’ll cling

CHORUS
Jesus lives and so shall I
I’ll be raised from the dust with Christ on high
Jesus lives no more to die
And when He returns with Him I’ll rise
Jesus lives

2. In this fallen world I cry
For the day when Your glory splits the sky
And You come to reign
All creation waits for that promised hour
When the saints of God are revealed in power

BRIDGE
Not death nor any power of hell can separate me from
The love of my Savior

© 2011 Sovereign Grace Worship (ASCAP)/Sovereign Grace Praise (BMI).

 Alive (Steve & Vikki Cook)

1. My heart of stone was dead to You
Asleep within a world
That scorned its Maker
Until You breathed into my soul
And I woke up to You
My glorious Savior
You became my all
You became my all

CHORUS
Now I am alive, I am alive in You
You are alive, You are alive in Me
You called my name
And raised me from the dead
Now I am alive I am alive in You

VERSE 2
In You my life’s completely new
I’m blameless in Your eyes
Because of Calvary
The Father welcomes me with joy
Your Spirit makes me know
Your great love for me
Jesus, You’re my all
Jesus, You’re my all

BRIDGE
Bought with a price that cannot be measured
Chosen before all time
You are my joy, my prize, and my treasure
Jesus, You are my life

© 2011 Sovereign Grace Worship (ASCAP).

The Grave by Susan Enan

All of your work won’t fit in the earth
When you’re lying underground in the grave
Whatever a man in your balance can
There’s nothing you can buy in the grave

In the next age no stock exchange
Is gonna pass on the money we made
No lottery wins, political spins,
When were lying  underground in the grave

New surgery defies gravity
But it all falls away in the grave
And who’s gonna care what color you wear
There’s no fashion show in the grave

So swallow it down
No easy way round
Just  a hill for the thrills that we crave
But no medicine to stop kingdom come
It’s your time get in line for the grave

And we’ll all be the same
And we’ll go as we came
Side by side as we lie in the grave
We’ll all be the same
We’ll go as we came
Side by side as we lie in the grave.

The reality of the death we all face puts so many other things in life in perspective. There is ony one real hope in the face of death: Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die;  and whoever lives by believing in me will never die. Do you believe this?” (John 11:25-26, NIV)