God commands us to sing. Yet while some of God’s people are gifted singers, the plain fact is that others are not. In any congregation, it’s likely that some have near-perfect pitch while others are functionally tone-deaf. Those who struggle to sing may be self-conscious, tempted to stay quiet or to do no more than mumble along. Should they? Not at all, for singing is a matter of the heart before it is a matter of pitch or tone.
A La Carte: Rightly ordered desires / Ordinary wonders / For my good, not my comfort / Make room for special-needs families / Christmas spirit / Wisdom rarely makes you famous / and more.
Free Stuff Fridays: Book Giveaway! #Sponsored
There are few resources I rely on more than I rely on my commentaries. Over the years, I have developed an extensive collection and turn to them often. I try to keep tabs on new commentaries and thought I would let you know about some of the best options that were published in 2025
A La Carte: Doug Wilson vs public schools / Your church needs you to sing / Wicca’s origins and Christian Nationalism / Out of season / Amish millionaires / Two wedding aisles to walk down / and more.
A La Carte: Why I changed my mind on mixed martial arts / Misunderstanding porn / When time feels short / The Bible and friendship / Is God disappointed in me? / and more.
Each of us is familiar with the experience of being tempted to sin. Sometimes these temptations arise from outside of us and sometimes they arise from within. Each of our three sworn enemies—the world, the flesh, and the devil—has the ability to tempt us to do what God forbids or fail to do what God…
A La Carte: Christ or Christian culture? / How to see your own blind spots / Kevin DeYoung’s questions for Christian Nationalists / Beware of desensitization / I want to be the princess / and more.
A La Carte: Lab rats for gender drug tests / How your church can serve the poor / Cross-cultural ministry / Cross-cultural marriage / The gift of nothing to do / Kindle deals / and more.
I can be prone to self-loathing. Sometimes this takes the form of thinking about things I’ve done or recounting words I’ve said and detesting myself for them. Sometimes it takes the form of thinking about who I am and hating who God has made me to be, or thinking about the way God has gifted…
A La Carte: Should I stay or go? / Dust / Worshiping God at the ends of the earth / Why many reject penal substitutionary atonement / We have not arrived yet / Every human an image bearer / and more.
While it may be rare to find a church that dedicates a substantial portion of the service to prayers and Scripture reading, it would be rare to find a church that fails to dedicate a substantial portion of the service to singing. Christians love to sing, and we have always regarded it as an essential…
A La Carte: What’s the point of longevity? / The 12-hour rule / Thank the Lord for the hard stuff / People aren’t homogenous blocs / Before you say no to childcare / Kindle deals / and more.
Free Stuff Fridays: Book Giveaway! #Sponsored
Black Friday is upon us and with it the opportunity to save a bit of money as we shop for the holidays or build out our libraries. I have listed hundreds of deals below and will be adding to it throughout the course of the weekend. Note that I will update this list throughout the…
A La Carte: Telling a better story / Stopped pipes and stubborn people / Avoid announcement prayers / Girls are less interested in marriage than boys / Changing a church’s culture / Black Friday deals / and more.
A La Carte: John Piper on false teachings / Everything is television / Is it Satan or God? / The hard way is the easy way / Backward progress / Treat people like adults / and more.
Though the year is coming to its end, it’s not over yet! That means publishers still have some books to release—books we would not wish to overlook before 2025 gives way to 2026. Here are some of the ones I consider especially noteworthy. In each case, I’ve included the editorial description to give you a…
A La Carte: The other side of human rights / Biblical literacy / A ramp out of the worry rut / The depressed Christian / Quick no, slow yes / Do you see eternity? / and more.
I have been blogging at Challies.com on a daily basis for well over 22 years now. That long commitment has allowed me to write thousands of articles and hundreds of book reviews while also sending millions of visitors to other sites through the daily A La Carte feature. While I’ve also written a number of books, through…
A La Carte: Are you still gospel-centered? / Christian liberty / Triumph in trouble / Being faithful in little things / How we choose songs / I’m not sabbatarian / and more.
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Genesis 1 Genesis 3 Psalm 119 Matthew 18 John 3:16 John 10:10 Romans 1 Romans 8:28 Romans 12:2 Ephesians 5 Philippians 4:8 Colossians 3:16
