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A La Carte (10/28)

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William P. Young Responds
In an interview with the Christian Post, the author of The Shack responds to critics of his book. “‘These men do not know me at all,’ he said of critics such as Mohler, Challies, and Mark Driscoll, pastor of Mars Hill Church in Seattle who Young said had not even read the book before criticizing it. ‘[B]ut in the process,’ he continued, “what they have written have actually told us much more about them than about the book.’”


Fireproof
Rick Pearcey writes an excellent article on Fireproof. “No one is confusing Fireproof with Hamlet. But the creative rebels in that church in Georgia are crafting a humane entertainment alternative that has Hollywood scratching its head. There’s no telling where they will end up, but they’re heading in the right direction. Should they pass by C.S. Lewis, he’ll no doubt wave. We look forward to their next stop.”


Kaleidescope
I think some of the most interesting and poignant blog posts come from overseas. In this case it comes from Ali who is “a pediatric nurse with Mercy Ships on board the world’s largest non-governmental hospital ship, the M/V Africa Mercy.”


Dangerous Time to Be a Black Baby
This is tragic. “Currently, white women’s rates of abortion have declined to 10.5 abortions per 1,000 women while black women’s rates are an alarming 50 abortions per 1,000 black women. Put in terms of actual pregnancies, the figures are shocking: Nearly half of all African American pregnancies end in abortion. Since 1973, the number of abortions by African American women has totaled more than twelve million. “


Jerry Bridges on The Beatitudes
Jerry Bridges recently preached four messages on “The Beatitudes: Humility in Action.” They are available here for free download.


The Osteens as Spiritual Midgets
Newsweek’s Lisa Miller has a reflection on the Osteens based on “Love Your Life,” the new book by Victoria.


Palin Deserves Respect
I thought this was an interesting article. It is written by the director of Women’s Watch Inc., a nonprofit women’s advocacy group based in Cape May. She laments the sexism that has been so evident in the Sarah Palin saga. “Instead of engaging Palin on the issues, critics attacked attributes that are specifically female. It is Hillary’s pantsuit drama to the power of 10. Palin’s hair, her voice, her motherhood, and her personal hygiene were substituted for substance. That’s when it was nice.”


  • Pleasure Obligation

    A Pleasure More Than An Obligation

    Christians are often portrayed as downcast and dour, as people who are trapped in a system of beliefs that robs them of joy and life. And with a bit of honest self-examination, we can probably think of times when we have fit the cliché.

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    Weekend A La Carte (March 14)

    A La Carte: The West’s strange genius / Healing the way women hurt each other / AI skeptics / The world after reading / What about the children? / What caregivers should know about dementia / and much more.

  • Sex and Self-Forgetfulness

    Sex, Self-Forgetfulness, and the Joy of Serving Your Spouse

    I often think there is a kind of paradoxical quality to sex within marriage. It’s paradoxical in that few things have greater ability to bring blessing (through its right use) or to bring cursing (through its misuse). Not only that, but few things bring greater joy to a marriage, and also, in so many cases,…

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    A La Carte (March 13)

    What happened to our pastor? / Youth ministry needs seasoned saints / God’s sovereignty when things don’t go as planned / Preach sermons that algorithms don’t reward / A pastor remains in Beirut / and more.

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    A La Carte (March 12)

    The grief ambush / Forgotten, and that’s good / The foibles and fallibility of Christian leaders / Welcome back, church planting / Weakness is not the enemy / Bad reasons to read the Bible / Bible and book sales.