Weekly Brief is your 1-minute smart and fast report to keep you informed of important Bible-related trends, statistics, articles, and pivotal happenings on the Web and at Bible Gateway. Forward to your friends and share with your followers to encourage them to subscribe.


 

Terminal Illness Brings Intimacy with God: An Interview with John Paine

 

How can a terminal diagnosis lead to experiencing God's intimate, comforting, tangible presence? At middle age, John Paine thought he knew what it meant to have a relationship with God. But his journey into true, mystical intimacy with God began when a neurologist diagnosed him with ALS, or Lou Gehrig's disease. Bible Gateway interviewed John Paine about his book, The Luckiest Man: How A Seventeen-Year Battle with ALS Led Me to Intimacy with God (Thomas Nelson, 2018).

Become a member of Bible Gateway Plus and get immediate 24/7 access to the NIV Cultural Backgrounds Study Bible and other valuable Bible commentaries.


 

Devotional Reflections on Handel’s Messiah: An Interview with Jessica Miller Kelley

 

George Frideric Handel's Messiah is one of the most beloved musical works of the western world, playing an especially sentimental role in many people's Christmas traditions. The libretto of the work, taken directly from the King James Version (KJV) text of 14 books of the Bible, has turned many phrases into memorable, singable, cherished lines of Scripture. Bible Gateway interviewed Jessica Miller Kelley (@JMillerKelley), editor of the devotional book, Every Valley: Advent with the Scriptures of Handel's Messiah (Westminster John Knox Press, 2014).

Become a member of Bible Gateway Plus and get immediate 24/7 access to the Zondervan Illustrated Bible Backgrounds Commentary and other valuable Bible commentaries.



Take advantage of Bible Gateway's Deal of the Day

 

Browse exclusive discounts on the best Christian books, Bibles, studies, and more! Check every day for the Deal of the Day in the Bible Gateway Store. And sign up to receive our Deal of the Day newsletter!

Browse the Christmas section in the Bible Gateway Store.

Browse the Homeschool section in the Bible Gateway Store.

 

 

Celebrate National Bible Week

 

This week is the 77th commemoration of National Bible Week in the USA, November 18-24, 2018, sponsored by the National Bible Association and the US Catholic Council of Bishops. Here are resources on Bible Gateway to help you encounter the Bible in a new way.

See the Scripture Engagement section on Bible Gateway.

 
 


See more Bible-related articles in this week’s Bible News Roundup.
See previous editions of Bible News Roundup and Weekly Brief.

 
 
 
 

Help For You to Focus on Christ This Christmas

 

Advent is almost upon us. That means it’s time for Bible Gateway's free Advent and Christmas devotions. This year, we’re bringing back several favorite classic devotionals, and introducing a new one that will help you renew your focus on God’s Word this holiday season.

 

 

The Year I Dreaded Christmas

 

Read this warm-hearted memory by Walter Wangerin, author of Wounds Are Where the Light Enters: Stories of God’s Intrusive Grace (Zondervan, 2017), of his childhood Christmas Eve Day 1955 and the bursting forth of withheld joy by his father: "In the 1950s the milkman delivered milk to the doors of houses—six bottles in a wire basket, each with a bulge at its neck....The milkman brought his wares along Ada Boulevard in a horse-drawn wagon. Especially in winter Mother said, 'Tune your ears to hear his coming.' In the cold Canadian air we could hear the kindly congregational clinkings even before the wagon turned onto our street. It was our job to rush outside and bring the bottles in before the cream froze and lifted its hat on an ice-cream column...."

Also see Preparing for Jesus: Meditations on the Coming of Christ, Advent, Christmas, and the Kingdom (Zondervan, 2011) by Walter Wangerin.


The Missing Ingredient of Advent

 

Rick McKinley, Chris Seay, and Greg Holder, authors of Advent Conspiracy: Making Christmas Meaningful (Again) (Zondervan, 2018), ask, "What do we worship during Advent? “Jesus” is the right answer, of course, but is it the true answer? Does the way we spend our time, money, and energy testify that we worship God incarnate?...."


A Prayer of Thanksgiving

 

"Dear God, You have invited us to give you thanks, and this is what we wish to do. We are living in a time of great anxiety, but you have offered us a way out of anxiety. We long to know your loving care...."

Browse the Christian Living section in the Bible Gateway Store.


How to Conduct a Word Study with Bible Gateway Plus

 

Bible Gateway Plus offers you a unique way to dig deep beneath the surface of Scripture. With Bible dictionaries, such as Mounce’s Complete Expository Dictionary of Old & New Testament Words, you'll gain greater insight into the meaning of biblical words to enhance your Bible study—even if you have no knowledge of Greek or Hebrew!


Do You Live in a “God Has a Plan” State or an “I Can Do All Things” State?

 

The most-popular Bible verses on Bible Gateway last year divide the United States into two camps: states in which the most-popular verse (aside from John 3:16) is Jeremiah 29:11, and states in which the most-popular verse is Philippians 4:13.


3 Common Arguments Against Trusting the Bible

 

Here are three frequently quoted statements people use to say the Bible is untrustworthy, along with reasons why they’re mistaken....

 

Get your questions answered with Bible Gateway’s new Online Bible Learning Program. Get 20% off now! Use coupon code LEARN.


Enter Bible Gateway's 25th Anniversary Sweepstakes for November

 

Enter every month! This month enter for your chance to win the NIV Thinline Large Comfort Print Heritage Bible, Premium Leather, Black, Premier Collection (Zondervan, 2018)—which has a suggested retail value of $149.99. One winner will be selected at random.


Tell Us What Bible Gateway Means to You

 

We're hearing from many of you during our year-long 25th anniversary celebration, such as: "I love the way when I search for a Scripture by word or phrase, that the verse not only shows up, but the option of seeing it in context." Tell us what Bible Gateway means to you—and tell your friends and followers by using the #MyBibleGateway hashtag to communicate the fun!


You're Invited to The Case for Christmas Free Online Bible Study with Lee Strobel

 

Sign up now for The Case for Christmas, the new 4-week Advent online study starting Sunday, November 26 with bestselling author, apologist, and Bible teacher Lee Strobel, who says, "This is the greatest story ever told!.. Not just because it’s amazing. Not just because it blows your mind. But because it’s true! And because it’s true, it makes a difference to each one of our lives."

Read the Bible Gateway Blog post, The Case for Christ: An Interview with Lee Strobel and these posts by Lee Stobel, Can Science Explain All the Complexities of Our World? and Would You Believe a Healing Miracle Caught on Tape?.


Spotlight: Lexham English Bible (LEB)

 

This feature in Weekly Brief is intended to help you become aware of the plethora of Bible versions available for you to freely read on Bible Gateway. This week read:

 

Tell your pastor to visit the Pastor Resources Page on Bible Gateway.



Reading the Bible in multiple languages and multiple versions is always just a click away online at Bible Gateway and in print from the Bible Gateway Store, where you'll save money while supporting the ministry of Bible Gateway when making a purchase.

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