Skip to content ↓

A La Carte (5/11)

A La Carte Collection cover image

I was doing a phone interview last night and had a rather awkward moment. I was in the basement and as I was answering a question, I spotted a hamster in the window well, trying to get into our house (or get out of the window well). I hadn’t expected that. When the interview wrapped up, I managed to track down its grateful and relieved owner (who lives 2 doors down). End of story.

More Friends Online – This seems rather significant. “There really is something in that lingering suspicion that most users of social networking sites have more friends in cyberspace than reality.The average person has in fact double the amount of online friends than physical ones.”

Underage Facebook Users – I am often asked in interviews how we should train our children to use social media responsibly. Here’s a good place to start: don’t cheat the system and get them a Facebook account before they are old enough to legitimately have one. And yet there are currently 7.5 million Facebook users who are underage (who have lied or whose parents have lied to get them an account).

Starbucks, Vocation and the Mundane – Here are some interesting thoughts from Matt Perman about vocation.

Unspoken Truths – As cancer ravages his body, Christopher Hitchens is finding his voice leaving him. You can’t help but pity the man; you can’t help but pray for him.

The ‘Education’ Mantra – “One of the sad and dangerous signs of our times is how many people are enthralled by words, without bothering to look at the realities behind those words.” Ain’t that the truth! Thomas Sowell writes about “education” and how it is one of those words.

Thriving at College – Speaking of education, my friend Alex Chediak wants you (or your kids or your grand kids) to thrive at college. And that just happens to be the title of his new book. Here is a very positive review of it.

The King’s English – Now this is pretty clever. This video ties into a unique blog effort. In honor of the 400th anniversary of the King James Version, this blogger “will blog on a phrase each day that has passed into common parlance: popular phrases like ‘labour of love’, ‘beast of burden’, ‘wits’ end’ and ‘scapegoat’; but also phrases that should be more popular, like ‘filthy lucre’ and ‘gird up thy loins’.” (see http://kingsenglish.info/)

We spend our years with sighing; it is a valley of tears; but death is the funeral of all our sorrows.

—Thomas Watson

  • A La Carte Collection cover image

    A La Carte (July 1)

    A La Carte: The Queen of Sheba tries AI / Did we sin our marriage away? / When to stop treatment / Essential practices when comforting the grieving / Jesus doesn’t use fake plants / Kindle deals.

  • Satan Can Stage a Quiet Revival Too

    Satan Can Stage a Quiet Revival Too

    We are hearing encouraging reports of a kind of quiet revival that is spreading throughout the West. There appears to be a small but noticeable interest in the Christian faith by groups that, until recently, had eschewed it

  • A La Carte Collection cover image

    A La Carte (June 30)

    A La Carte: The gift of what I’ll never write / Bible reading blues / The gift of middle age / So, you can’t seem to function today / Neither authoritarian nor anti-institution / Kindle deals / and more.

  • Hell

    Let Them Leap To Hell Over Our Bodies

    One of the most sacred and most important of our tasks in prayer is to intercede on behalf of the lost. We know that every one of our friends, neighbors, and family members needs to hear the good news of the gospel and repent and believe. We know that God is the Good Shepherd, who…

  • A La Carte Collection cover image

    Weekend A La Carte (June 28)

    A La Carte: Why you escape to the mountains / Evangelism for introverts / Come, Let Us Return to the Lord (a new song) / My child’s success isn’t my crowning glory / Watering dirt / and more.