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Weekend A La Carte (July 26)

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Vacations are [almost] always wonderful, but home is always best. As good as it was to be away for a while, it was even better to get back to my home and my routine and my normal life. I guess I’m kind of a boring person, but I value such things! Anyway, here is some recommended weekend reading for you:

This week saw the release of the first trailer for the forthcoming 50 Shades of Grey movie. Aimee Byrd says the whole phenomenon is 50 Shades of Strange, and especially when Christian women are unabashed in their love of the books.

My kids and most of their friends are obsessed with Minecraft, something I am largely okay with, especially when they play socially, hanging out in big packs in our living room. This article tries to get to the bottom of all that enthusiasm.

If you are on or near Canada’s East Coast, or just looking for a great excuse to go to Prince Edward Island, The Gospel Coalition Atlantic conference looks like it will be a really good event, and especially because the crowd won’t be too big. They’ve also introduced a women’s track this year. Aileen will be representing 20Schemes in the exhibitor’s area, so be sure to stop by and say hi to her.

Here’s an interactive introduction to the First World War. Isn’t it amazing to see what amazing rich content the web can bring us today?

Scott James recently wrote about The Virtue of Unread Books. I like this: “the array of books in our home is intended for ongoing, well-rounded usefulness. They’re there to show us what’s possible, not venerate what’s already been. Even the history books, which are expressly about what has already been, are there to light an inquisitive fuse and point us forward into new exploits.”

Kylie has written sweetly of those times when grief rears its painfully beautiful head.

Alexander

All my theology is reduced to this narrow compass – “Jesus Christ came into the world to save sinners.”

—Archibald Alexander

  • The Phrase that Altered My Thinking Forever

    This week the blog is sponsored by P&R Publishing and is written by Ralph Cunnington. Years ago, I stumbled repeatedly on an ancient phrase that altered my thinking forever.  Distinct yet inseparable. The first time I encountered this phrase was while studying the Council of Chalcedon’s description of the two natures of Christ. Soon after,…

  • Always Look for the Light

    Always Look for the Light

    For many years there was a little potted plant on our kitchen window sill, though I’ve long since forgotten the variety. Year after year that plant would put out a shoot and from the shoot would emerge a single flower. And I observed that no matter how I turned the pot, the flower would respond.…

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    A La Carte (March 18)

    A La Carte: God is good and does good—even in our pain / Dear bride and groom / Sin won’t comfort you / Worthy of the gospel / From self-sufficiency to trusting God’s people / The gods fight for our devotion / and more.

  • Confidence

    God Takes Us Into His Confidence

    Here is another Sunday devotional—a brief thought to orient your heart toward the Lord. God takes the initiative in establishing relationship by reaching out to helpless humanity. He reveals himself to the creatures he has made. But what does it mean for him to provide such revelation of himself? John Calvin began his Institutes by…

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    Weekend A La Carte (March 16)

    A La Carte: I believe in the death of Julius Caesar and the resurrection of Jesus Christ / Reasons students and pastors shouldn’t use ChatGPT / A 1.3 gigpixel photo of a supernova / What two raw vegans taught me about sharing Jesus / If we realize we’re undeserving, suddenly the world comes alive /…

  • Ask Pastor John

    Ask Pastor John

    I admit it: I felt a little skeptical about Ask Pastor John. To be fair, I feel skeptical about most books that begin in one medium before making the leap to another. Books based on sermons, for example, can often be pretty disappointing—a powerful sermon at a conference can make a bland chapter in a…