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A La Carte (12/27)

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Waking Up Fragile – John Piper: “There are mornings when I wake up feeling fragile. Vulnerable. It’s often vague. No single threat. No one weakness. Just an amorphous sense that something is going to go wrong and I will be responsible. It’s usually after a lot of criticism. Lots of expectations that have deadlines and that seem too big and too many.”

New Species in 2011 – Here is a roundup of some new species discovered in 2011. They range from the world’s tiniest frog to a kind of orchid that only blooms at night.

Hobbit Hints – WORLD looks at the first trailer for The Hobbit movie (due in December of 2012) and speculates on plot changes.

5 Kinds of Books to Read – “There are a few reasons you may be wondering what sort of book you should invest your time into over the next week. Perhaps you have received a gift card or some cash for books. Maybe you have the rest of the week off work and you want to spend it well. It might be that you are feeling the post-Christmas blahs and realize you need to fight for joy. Here are a few recommendations in case you fall into any or all of these categories.”

Book Carvings – I think I’ve linked to these before. This is exceptional art work. If I were a rich man… (HT)

Re-Claiming the Bible – This is an interesting review of a new book by John Shelby Spong. It’s a positive review of what sounds like a wretched book, but I found it interesting to see how Spong, even near the end of his life and career, continues to express his hatred toward God by denying the Bible’s claims.

The most tremendous judgment of God in this world is the hardening of the hearts of men.

—John Owen

  • A La Carte Thursday 1

    A La Carte (November 27)

    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.

  • New-and-Notablenov

    New and Notable Christian Books for November 2025

    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 Collection cover image

    A La Carte (November 26)

    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.

  • Support

    Would you Consider Supporting My Work?

    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…

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    A La Carte (November 25)

    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.

  • Danger

    The Danger of Defensive Sanctification

    There is a certain kind of sober-mindedness that seems to come over Christians as they age. It can flow from many sources, I’m sure, but I think it often arises from a kind of fear—a fear that they may not finish their race without some kind of a major stumble. After living the Christian life…