Gratitude is a Christian mandate, and the most honest Christians are the most grateful. I am sincerely grateful to the many people who, especially during the writing and preparation of this volume, were of particular help to me.
These would include two cohorts of students who served as interns in my office. They represent the very best a school can hope for: Cheston Pickard, Tyler Kirkpatrick, Zach Carter, Joshua Easter, Troy Solava, Mitchell Holley, Ryan Modisette, Cory Higdon, Bruno Sanchez, David Lee, and Ryan Loague.
Jon Swan, my personal librarian, is always an incredible help. I deeply appreciate him, and I am thankful for his superb organizational skills and insights.
Tom Hellams and Jon Austin make the trains run on time in my office and they are colleagues for whom I am very thankful. Colin Smothers, producer of The Briefing during this period, was always ready to offer additional insight and reflection.
Above all others on the team, I want to thank Sam Emadi—now Sam Emadi, PhD—for his skill and commitment as Director of Research in my office. His keen mind and eager heart are great gifts to us all, but I am particularly in his debt.
The editorial staff at Thomas Nelson, led by Webb Younce, are wonderful professionals whose care for authors and expertise in publishing are great gifts.
Finally, I want to thank my wife, Mary, who has never failed to be anything but wise, loving, supportive, encouraging, loving, energizing, and caring, not only for this project and everything else I have done, but of me. Saying thank you is not enough, but it is at least a good place to start.
Gratitude at the start, gratitude at the end, and gratitude at every point along the way. Thank you, dear reader, for sharing this gratitude with me.