THE HIDING PLACE: A few weeks ago, I pointed to the Christian Audio Free Book of the Month for May (which was a gospel gem by Spurgeon). For the month of June they have another classic available for a free download: 'The Hiding Place'. "The amazing story of Corrie ten Boom, a heroine of the Dutch Resistance who helped Jews escape from the Nazis and became one of the most remarkable evangelists of the 20th century, is told in her classic memoir, now retold for a new generation".

THERE IS NO AGE LIMIT FOR KINGDOM WORK: Here is a challenge against putting a 'best before date' on serving the Lord. “I fear many older saints believe their age restricts them from redemptive work. For some, the lie that claims their time is long past has triumphed in their hearts. For others, the aches and pains of aging has slowed them down enough that simple comforts are more intriguing than God’s mission of redemption. I can’t possibly know all the reasons why older Christians get off mission, but I know many do. Not all, but many.”

HAVING CONFIDENCE IN PRAYER: Using Elijah as an example, Simon van Bruchem writes to encourage and inform our prayer-life. "James holds the prophet Elijah to be an example of the power of prayer in James 5:17-18. Of course, this is true: Elijah prayed, and the rain stopped. He prayed again, and the rain restarted. The message to take from that, according to James, is not that Elijah is a special person whom God listens to more closely. No, the message is that Elijah was a man just like us. Prayer is not dependent on the pray-er but the one who is prayed to".

WHY ARE THERE SO MANY VERSIONS OF THE BIBLE?: Maybe you have asked this question before... Here is a readable explanation of at least some of the reasons we have a range of options when it comes to English translations of the Bible (which ones are better is a somewhat different question that this article doesn't address). "Why are there so many different translations of the Bible? Go into any Christian bookstore, and you can find an entire shelf—sometimes an entire section!—of different Bible translations. There’s the King James Version (KJV), the New King James Version (NKJV), and the Revised Standard Version (RSV). There’s the Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB) and the English Standard Version (ESV) and the New Living Translation (NLT) and the New International Version (NIV). And then, to top it all off, many of these have other editions, like the military edition, the sports edition, the men’s and women’s and teenagers’ and students’ and businessperson’s editions. Why?"