Welcome to the online home of Tim Challies, blogger, author, and book reviewer.
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Boredom isn’t what it used to be. Boredom used to be the absence of stimuli, the lack of interest in any available activity. Boredom was being left alone with your thoughts. Today, though, boredom has taken on a new character. Today, boredom is the presence of a screen and an ever-scrolling timeline of social media. What used to be staring blankly at a wall or into the sky has been transformed to staring vacantly into a glowing rectangle. When we …
Today’s Kindle deals include a whole series of excellent books from 9Marks. The Church of CrossFit I see this all over the place: Once church has disappeared, people will replace it with something or anything. Loving the People You Love to Hate Jared Wilson: “Here’s how you know if you hate something someone has done or if you actually hate that person, according to C.S. Lewis…” The Birth of the Camera Phone (Video) Here’s the unlikely origin story of a …
I’ve been surprised at how much people are enjoying these little summaries of our worship services at Grace Fellowship Church. I probably shouldn’t be, though, because I rather enjoy experiencing worship in other churches and learning how different communities of Christians worship the same God in different contexts. So here is another explanation of how we worshipped, this one drawn from one week ago. The service’s cast of characters included Paul as the preacher, Josh as the lead worshipper, and …
What would it be like to spend time with history’s greatest theologian? Imagine if you had access to the greatest theological mind since Christ, not just for an hour or a day, but for years. Think of all the questions you might ask. Think of all the ways you could observe and imitate a life lived full-out for the glory of God. There is one young man who had the remarkable privilege of being the protégé of none other than …
Westminster Books has discounted a selection of new books from Crossway. The Success Affair “Working with such couples, I’ve found it interesting to note when the affairs happen. Often pastors get into an affair when ministry is going well, when they are achieving their ministerial career goals and dreams. Why is this so? Why would someone have an affair when everything seems to be going well?” Ecumenical vs. Evangelical This is a fantastic little overview of the history of ecumenism. …
God had promised his people a land. He had promised to lead them out of captivity and into a place of their own. And now he had delivered them from their bondage in Egypt, he had led them across the Red Sea, he had remained with them for forty years of wandering, he had taken them safely across the Jordan River. Now just one great barrier remained—the people who already inhabited that land. The first city they encountered was the …
It has been a bit of a slow week for Kindle deals, but there are at least a couple there worth checking out. The History of Pews Here’s a tongue-in-cheek history of the humble church pew. “Seating in churches didn’t really become a thing until parishioners got bored enough to wish they were sitting down—that is, about the time of the Protestant Reformation.” We Need to Learn from Christians from Other Cultures “When we talk about church in America with our …
I fear there is a plague of complacency among Christians today. Whatever happened to zeal? Whatever happened to Christians who are on fire to know and obey God, who have (in the words of John Reynolds) “an earnest desire and concern for all things pertaining to the glory of God and the kingdom of the Lord Jesus among men?” Yet while zeal is a noble trait, it must be properly directed, for not all zeal is good. Here are some …
Westminster Books is offering a solid discount on a very good collection of commentaries. You can’t go wrong with any of the ones they’ve highlighted. Teens Who Choose Life in Unplanned Pregnancies Need Support and Respect, Not Shame Here is a wise and winsome response to an article that was all over the news a couple of weeks ago. “Maddi’s story has served to become part of a bigger conversation about how Christians can both encourage and uphold standards of chastity …
It’s a fair question for the Arminian to ask: How can you preach the free offer of the gospel when you believe in a limited atonement? How can you preach the “whosoever” of John 3:16 if you cannot be certain that Christ’s atonement was for every person? How can you say, “Turn to Christ and be saved all the ends of the earth” if Christ’s atoning sacrifice does not extend to all humanity? First, a brief theological refresher. The doctrines …
Today’s Kindle deals include a few books that you may want to add to your collection. The Popular Christian Article We Need Fewer Of Yes! “The internet could use more of a lot of things. It could use more hilarious gifs, more cute animal pictures, and absolutely more people being nice. But there’s one thing it could use fewer of—Christians speaking with simultaneous confidence and inexperience.” Puberty Blockers Aren’t the Answer to Gender Confusion A new study shows what should …
Oh, Envy. You are a cunning enemy, a persistent foe. You linger on the sidelines of our lives, whispering your cunning words of discontentment. “You deserve better. You should have what he has. His success should be your success, her life your life.” The Old Testament tabernacle had one exceptional feature that set it apart from the temple: It was portable. As the Israelites wandered the wilderness, slowly making their way to the Promised Land, they could pick up that …
I wrote this short, fast-paced, practical guide to productivity to share what I have learned about getting things done in today’s digital world. It will help you learn to structure your life to do the most good to the glory of God. Read More
Today’s Kindle deals do not include the most exciting list of titles I’ve ever dug up, but there may still be a book or two to catch your eye. Do More Better, my book on productivity, is about to release a new Student Edition. We’re asking people to helps us choose a cover. Vote here. Also, if you’re a representative of a Christian college or high school, we’d love to talk to you. Cover and content customizations are available in some cases. Is …
This sponsored post was provided by Christian T. George, Assistant Professor of Historical Theology and Curator, The C.H. Spurgeon Library at Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. David once said, “There is only a step between me and death” (1 Samuel 20:3). Charles Spurgeon almost took that step many times. His mother, Eliza, gave birth to sixteen children after Spurgeon was born. Half of them died. Diseases like the plague that shut down Spurgeon’s school in Newmarket could have easily killed the preacher …
Is there anything more tragic than time? Is there anything that brings about deeper grief than seeing time pass us by, than acknowledging how much has already elapsed and how little remains? We who were made to live forever are now given a mere “threescore years and ten” (Psalm 90:10) before we are gone. “If a person lives many years, let him rejoice in them all,” says wise old Solomon, “but let him remember that the days of darkness will …
Today’s Kindle deals include a number of interesting books, most of them from Crossway. Every Christian Ought To Be a Good Historian Have I mentioned how glad I am that Michael Haykin is blogging? “Many in the modern world, sadly even Christians, see the past as little more than this: a tiresome account of a few big names with little wisdom to impart for life today. At best, it may offer a couple of hours of entertainment and diversion via …
It has been too long since I’ve shared a selection of letters to the editor. Here are a few of the most noteworthy that have come my way recently. They cover blogging, preaching, gossip, and more. Letters on Nobody Respects a Blogger Thank you, thank you, thank you, from the bottom of my heart, for not using the dreaded “Sign up for my newsletter” popup. I consider it one of the scourges of the internet. On every encounter, my reaction …
It’s little surprise when privileged men rise to prominence. Born into high circumstances, given an exceptional education, and exposed to remarkable opportunities, no one marvels when these men are successful. But we take notice when men rise from the lowest and least likely of circumstances to change the world. This is the case with a Christian man who became one of history’s greatest evangelists. He grew up in abject poverty and received only a meager education, yet he thrived because …
This print shows that as we preach to ourselves, evan-gelize to others, worship in community, and celebrate the ordinances the use and function of the gospel in our lives must and does increase. buy
The Trinity is a simple yet infinitely complex mystery. The Three in One shirt displays that theological concept in a minimalist simple design that is sure to spark some questions. buy
