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A La Carte (4/23)

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Kony 2012 in Numbers – This post, which also includes an infographic, discusses Kony 2012 as a phenomenon (rather than talking about the ideology of the campaign). Studied from a social media perspective, it’s a complete triumph.

Extreme FOMO – “We are living in an era of extreme FOMO, more commonly known as Fear of Missing Out. As the tweets, Facebook status updates, check-ins, Instagram photos, and Tumblr posts pour in, it can start to feel like your friends, coworkers, and even your frenemies lead lives that are infinitely more interesting than yours. Social media is a blessing and a curse that way.”

Malls – “These land-devouring, car-dependent malls were invented 60 years ago, with Seattle among the pioneers. Now they are in terminal decline. There was a better idea in Kansas City, but unfortunately it was eclipsed by our mania for malls.”

Introducing The Stranger – Last week I mentioned that Leland Ryken was beginning a series discussing literature. This post introduces Camus’ The Stranger and gives us the kind of format Ryken will be using as he goes through various books. It looks like a promising series.

Pastoral Reflections on Homophobia – This is an article worth reading.

Why Do Old Books Smell? – It’s distinctive, isn’t it, that old book smell? This video explains it.

One may live as a conquerer, a king or a magistrate; but he must die as a man. –Daniel Webster


  • A La Carte Friday 2

    A La Carte (December 26)

    A La Carte: Don’t fight the wrong war / What is tech good for? / AI griefbots / Dieting to the glory of God / Discipling younger men / John Piper on complacency / and more.

  • A La Carte Thursday 1

    A Very Christmasy A La Carte

    A La Carte: Awkward family Christmas photos / Wesley and Watts / An Irish Christmas / Marginalizing the Messiah / Jesus showed up / Perfect peace / Kindle deals / and more.

  • General Market Books

    10 General Market Books I Enjoyed in 2025

    While the bulk of what I read every year is published by Christians and for Christians, I do also enjoy reading books for the general market. On that note, here are 10 of the general market books I read and especially enjoyed in 2025.

  • A La Carte Collection cover image

    A La Carte (December 24)

    A La Carte: Brain implants / Recovering Christ at Christmastime / How to create sabbath / Things I didn’t know about marriage / A true baptism / and more.

  • A La Carte Collection cover image

    A La Carte (December 23)

    A La Carte: A generation’s boredom / The joy of making discoveries / John Piper’s devotional life / Sermon criticism / Enduring shame for the cause of Christ / Kindle deals / and more.

  • The Collected Best Christian Books of 2024

    The Collected Best Books of 2025

    I probably don’t need to tell you how much I love books in general, and Christian books in particular. One of my favorite times to be a reader is in mid-December when people begin to share their picks for the top books of the year. I collect all of the lists written by sites or…