This next post in our series of questions and answers with speakers at our 2011 Conference for Pastors features Paul Miller, author of A Praying Life.

Your father, Jack Miller, is well-known for his impact as a pastor, evangelist, missions organizer and author. What impact did he have on your life, especially as regards living a life of prayer?

I watched my dad become passionate about prayer during my teenage years. He learned it when he was a professor at Westminster Seminary from watching ministries in Europe, particularly Francis Schaeffer’s L’Abri in the late 60s. When Dad and I started World Harvest Mission in 1983 that became an important part of the DNA of our work. So the value…

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This is our third question and answer post with Joel Beeke on the subject of prayer (read the first and second posts).

What are some significant things you have learned from Christians abroad about prayer?

I’ve learned from the Irish to adore God Himself in prayer; from the Welsh, not to give up on praying earnestly for revival; from the Koreans, to discipline yourself to devote time to corporate prayer; and from a South African friend, the importance of intercessory prayer and maintaining a prayer list for your own spiritual benefit. 

Joel is scheduled to deliver two messages on prayer at our Conference for Pastors later this month. Register now and join us!

See the conference sp…

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This is the second question we put to Joel Beeke, upcoming speaker at our 2011 Conference for Pastors. (Read his answer to our first question.)

You wear many hats: seminary president, publisher, author, pastor, husband, father, etc. Such a heavy load must make prayer a difficult thing to fit into your schedule. What has been your experience? And what counsel would you give to those who feel too busy to pray?

Like every other Christian, I suppose, my experience has been that the more I am given to truly pray in my prayers the more keenly I feel how little I truly pray.

My mother is the greatest prayer warrior I know; for decades, she has regularly spent two or more hours per day in earne…

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This is the first post in a series of questions and answers with those who will be speaking at our 2011 Conference for Pastors. The questions will address a variety of topics, at times focusing more on prayer, which is the conference theme.

The following question was put to Joel Beeke.

You have written much on the lives and thoughts of the Puritans. Which Puritan do you think has the most to teach us about prayer? What would he teach us?

His response:

I’m sending a book to the printer this week, Taking Hold of God: Reformed and Puritan Perspectives on Prayer, which should be available in time for the conference. Three chapters are devoted to the Reformers: Luther, Calvin, and Knox. …

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Two days ago at our National Conference, Sam Storms and Justin Taylor took the stage just before lunch to make an unexpected announcement: after 3 years of undercover communication and composition, a special book had been prepared.

There on stage, Sam and Justin presented to John Piper a book written in his honor: For the Fame of God's Name: Essays in Honor of John Piper.

Sam began by reading from "A Note to John Piper," the first section of the book, in which he and Justin express (and defend) their hearts in masterminding the project. Then Justin read the name of each of the 27 contributors and the titles of their chapters (see below).

It was a weighty moment—in the happiest sens…

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Discussions about suffering and God's goodness must go to the cross. For an example of what that looks like, consider this portion of Randy Alcorn’s newest book The Goodness of God: Assurance of Purpose in the Midst of Suffering. 

Jesus Christ’s life and death demonstrate that God has never dished out any suffering he hasn’t taken on himself.

His death on the cross is God’s answer to the question, “Why don’t you do something about evil?” God allowed Jesus’ temporary suffering so he could prevent our eternal suffering . . .

God wrote the script of this drama of redemption long before Satan, demons, Adam and Eve—and you and I—took the stage. And from the beginning, he knew that the utterly …

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As I prepare for my seminar Friday at our National Conference on “Rethinking Productivity in Light of Justification by Faith Alone,” I'm realizing that a lot of things in my preparation probably won't make it into the actual seminar. Here's one such segment which, although it might not make it in to the seminar, is absolutely critical to the way we should be as Christians and why things like learning to be more productive matter:

Christians are to be eager and enthusiastic in dreaming up ways to do good for others. We are to not just to do good when the opportunity comes to us—although we are to do it then, also—but we are to think hard about ways we can be proactive in serving people. And…

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As an event planner, I am often tempted to worry as I look toward upcoming conferences. Silly questions (that don't sound so silly in my head) come to mind and plague my heart:

• "Will people want to come? Will the conference be a blessing to them? Will the event be edifying and God-glorifying?"
• "Did we do enough promotion? What if no one finds out about it? What if the Google Ads don't work?"
• "What about all the things yet to be done? What if we can't get all the projects done on time?"
• "Will we meet budget? What if things end up costing more than we thought?"

And so I have to battle against the temptation to sin by casting my cares on the Lord through prayer and h…

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Dear Friends at Bethlehem and Beyond,

I’m writing to invite you to an unusual conference. This Fall’s Desiring God National Conference is one of the most extraordinary we have conceived. Our expectations are very high that its effect will be mind-sharpening, heart-humbling, mouth-seasoning, backbone-strengthening, and Christ-acclaiming. Our theme is The Power of Words and the Wonder of God...

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