THE NEWSLETTER OF IBTM
with Douglas Jacoby

.
10 April 2026

Good evening from Georgia! In today’s bulletin:

  • A top-notch article from Johnny Rivera
  • Five fresh Q&As
  • Reading ideas
  • Opportunities to give

APPROACHABLE LEADERSHIP
by Johnny Rivera

Healthy leadership depends on many things. Wisdom. Character. Courage. But one quality is often overlooked and yet deeply influential: approachability.

I was twenty-nine years old when I entered full time ministry. Before that, I had spent several years working in corporate America, trying to navigate that environment as a young Christian. Like many believers in the workplace, I did my best to live with integrity, build good relationships, and figure out what it meant to represent Christ in a secular setting.

When I eventually moved into full-time ministry, I assumed the leadership culture inside the church would feel different from what I had experienced in the corporate world. In many ways it was. But in some ways it wasn’t.  KEEP READING

FRESH Q&As

1741—Intellect, or heart? Who finds God?
1742—Why did God hurl Satan to earth to torment people?
1743—“Biblical” meditation—or is it pagan?
1744—A “second first Sabbath?”—Huh? (Luke 6:1)
1745—Should we read the Apocrypha? Why is it missing from our Old Testaments?

READ!

Like many of you, I love reading—usually at least 100 books a year. I consume Christian books, history, science, biography, and more—including fiction.

I just finished a deeply thought-provoking book, Ultra Processed People. In January I read Outlive, on “healthspan,” as opposed to mere lifespan. And in the autumn, I benefited greatly from The Fast 800. These are all interesting health-related works. A superb resiliency training program, along with these books, helped me to drop 40 pounds last year. These books were recommended by friends—the source of most of my reading choices. We all want to maximize our years of service to our Lord, and to that end, taking care of the “temple” is vital.

For works that may prove useful to your faith and personal ministry, let me point you to the living document Excellent Reads. Today I’d also like to feature 6 more of our books—below. Just click on the image to order. (Website members: be sure to log in and use your 15% discount code—today and whenever you are ordering.)

 

 

 

 

 

PRICE INCREASE
(repeated from the last bulletin)

Many of you are website subscribers. That is, you are paying a premium for extra material—and thereby supporting the work of the ministry. For that we are grateful. However, since 2008, when the premium option was first presented, overall cost of living has risen 49%!

With this in mind, the new annual website subscription price will be $52, instead of $36.50. That is, instead of effectively $0.70/week, it’s now $1.00/week. Still low, but 42% higher than before. This is our first ever price increase. Your current subscription will not be affected—until it renews. Thanks for understanding—and for your trust.

YOUR HELP SOUGHT!

Are you in a position to donate? The ministry recently bought $3347 worth of Bibles in Luganda (a language of Uganda). Gambia will receive $150 in evangelistic materials—$130 has been received, $20 to go. Another need is teaching materials for Indonesia: $100 of $780 has been raised to date. And there are many more needs.

Please visit our Support page. Indicate in the memo line where you’d like your donation to be applied. Thank you!

Yours in Christ,
Douglas

For all bulletins 2004-2026 (100s of pages of biblical material), click here. Access the website here. New material every week—typically, every day! Become a website member ($1/week, paid annually) here. Your membership is a tremendous boost to this ministry. To donate, click here.