Skip to content ↓

A La Carte (12/7)

A La Carte Collection cover image

Yesterday we went out and put ourselves through the yearly ritual of buying a Christmas tree. Those things aren’t getting any cheaper, are they? The local place had really nice trees but wanted $55 for them. After seeing how nice they were (and comparing gas prices to the distance we’d have to drive to get one for a lot cheaper) we caved. Sigh.

Liam Neeson and Aslan – Liam Neeson recently said some interesting things about portraying (the voice of) Aslan in the Narnia movies. STR comments: “Poor Liam Neeson. He can’t win. He probably feels like he has to distance himself from the narrow, Christian message of The Chronicles of Narnia by recreating Aslan for himself in a more palatable, relativistic form to avoid upsetting the culture at large. And why not, if all that matters is what a text means to us, rather than what the author intended that text to mean?”

The Deadly Fruit of Gender Selection – CBMW writes about a sad case. “What happens when a left-wing academic persuades parents to ‘reassign’ the gender of one of their children? A recent story out of the United Kingdom tragically illustrates the answer. It also displays with stunning clarity the infinite chasm between God’s unfathomable wisdom and the utter foolishness of what the apostle Paul calls the wisdom of this age.”

A Must-Read – Aaron Armstrong recently reviewed Cruciform’s book Servanthood as Worship and declares that it is a must-read.

Like Monopoly in the Depression – This article in the Washington Post says that Settlers of Catan is the great boardgame of this generation. Which makes me wish I’d actually played it. We own it, but haven’t ever gotten 3 people who wanted to play it at the same time.

Books vs E-Books – This is an interesting infographic from Newsweek. It does some comparing and contrasting between books and e-books.

Food-Court Messiah – I posted this once before, but people keep sending it to me, telling me I need to put it in A La Carte. So I’ll do so again. And gladly, because it’s really good.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SXh7JR9oKVE?fs=1&hl=en_US

Glory follows afflictions, not as the day follows the night but as the spring follows the winter; for the winter prepares the earth for the spring, so do afflictions sanctified prepare the soul for glory.

—Richard Sibbes

  • A La Carte Collection cover image

    Weekend A La Carte (November 2)

    A La Carte: Coldplay’s prayer in Melbourne / Zombies, Heath Lambert, and gatekeeping biblical counseling / Keep the Feast (a new song) / Stop playing the numbers game / Squandering security / and more.

  • Giveaways / Free Stuff Fridays Collection cover image

    Free Stuff Fridays (Ligonier)

    This week’s Free Stuff Friday is sponsored by Ligonier Ministries, who also sponsored the blog this week.  Yesterday was Reformation Day, when many Protestants celebrate the sixteenth-century recovery of the biblical gospel. It was while Martin Luther was studying the book of Romans that he rediscovered the doctrine of justification by faith alone. So, today…

  • Daily Liturgy Devotional

    Why Not Use a Daily Liturgy for Your Devotions?

    Trends come and go. Certain habits or interests rise for a time, wane, then rise again, often at unexpected moments. One of the recent trends I have found particularly surprising and also particularly interesting is the rise (or re-rise, if you prefer) of liturgy. This may be liturgy within formal worship services of the local…

  • A La Carte Collection cover image

    A La Carte (November 1)

    A La Carte: When a Berkeley feminist had three sons / The tragedy of IVF / What if I don’t feel forgiven? / Piper on how not to respond to suffering / What sola scriptura protects us against / Kindle deals / and more.

  • New and Notable Christian Books for October 2024

    New and Notable Christian Books for October 2024

    As October draws to its close, I wanted to ensure you know about at least some of the most notable books it brought our way. I did not see quite the quantity of new books I have seen in some previous months, but there were still some special ones. For each, I’ve provided the publisher’s…

  • A La Carte Collection cover image

    A La Carte (October 31)

    A La Carte: What is the Reformation? / More than a list of problems / A surprising story / More than songs of praise / Do elders need to evangelize? / Preach the gospel / and more.