Band of Bloggers

The purpose of Band of Bloggers gatherings is to forward the discussion on gospel-centered blogging and leveraging our online influence for the glory of God.  On the side, we have been able to enjoy a great relationship with publishers and various ministries who are happy to give away copies of their newest releases to our bloggers and attendees who in turn promote, excerpt, and review them in the future.

When we began Band of Bloggers in 2006, we were thrilled to donate one book per person.  Since then that number has continued to increase until last year where we were privileged to give away 12 books per person. As we started planning this year’s gathering, I was very skeptical about the possibility of increasing that number. Fortunately, we received great assistance from John Starke of TGC Reviews, and together we were able to secure a total of (wait for it) . . . 17 books ($237 value) for all everyone attending this year’s gathering!

Here’s a complete listing of the books for this year’s giveaway:

1. Counterfeit Gospels: Rediscovering the Good News in a World of False Hope by Trevin Wax (Moody)
2. Don’t Call It a Comeback: The Old Faith for a New Day edited by Kevin DeYoung (Crossway)
3. Reverberation: How God’s Word Brings Light, Freedom, and Action to His People by Jonathan Leeman (Moody)
4. Desiring God: Meditations of a Christian Hedonist (25th Anniversary Reference Edition) by John Piper (Desiring God)
5. Taking Hold of God: Reformed and Puritan Perspectives on Prayer by Joel Beeke (RHB)
6-10. The Essential Edwards Collection (5 Books in Set) by Owen Strachan and Douglas Sweeney (Moody)
11. Christ Formed in You: The Power of the Gospel for Personal Change by Brian Hedges (Shepherd Press)
12. Faithful Preaching: Declaring Scripture with Responsibility, Passion, and Authenticity by Tony Merida (B&H)
13. When the Word Leads Your Pastoral Search: Biblical Principle and Practices to Guide Your Search by Chris Brauns (Moody)
14. Note to Self: The Discipline of Preaching to Yourself by Joe Thorn (Crossway)
15. Orphanology: Awakening to Gospel-Centered Adoption and Orphan Care by Tony Merida and Rick Morton (New Hope)
16. The Next Story: Life and Faith After the Digital Explosion by Tim Challies (Zondervan)
17. Radical Together: Unleashing the People of God for the Purposes of God by David Platt (Multnomah)

The last, but certainly not least(!), book we will be giving away this year is the just released book, Young, Restless, Reformed: A Journalist’s Journey with the New Calvinists by Collin Hansen, donated by Crossway Books. Many of you may remember Collin’s article with the same title in Christianity Today, and over the past two years, he has interviewed numerous folks from across the country regarding the Reformed Resurgence in America. In the coming days, I will be interviewing Collin about his book, and the podcast will be made available here on the Band of Bloggers website.

Thank you, Crossway, for the generous contribution, participation, and partnership with the Band of Bloggers! For those interested, you can also join the conversation on Facebook in a group Crossway started, appropriately called “Young, Restless, Reformed.”

The seventh book given away, the second by Reformation Heritage Books, is Walking as He Walked by Joel Beeke.   Here is how Derek Thomas describes this book: “A Christ-centered tour de force which gets us into Christ’s servant heart and asks the pointed questions of what that means for us who are in union with Him. Deeply and affectionately pastoral, Dr. Beeke gives us a magestirial example of puritan-infused, preached prose that is as fresh as the air we breath. Like the puritan Richard Sibbes, know to his contemporaries as ‘the sweet dropper’ Dr. Beeke has a similar touch, presenting to us the confidence, richness, depth, and encouragement of the gospel.”

I am excited about this particular resource as we explore gospel application in our daily lives.  I want to express my gratefulness to Reformation Heritage Books for their continued support and generous contribution to the Band of Bloggers!