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A La Carte (6/12)

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Three Buzzwords – “When writing and speaking about Christian themes, it can be easy to adopt the popular language associated with an idea without realizing the implications of the words we use to describe, teach, or communicate these concepts. It’s important for us to think through the way we talk and grasp the influence that our language has on how we understand certain concepts.” Here are three buzzwords we should think about.

Putting Sin to Death – Here is wisdom from the Puritans on putting sin to death. And while we’re on the subject of the Puritans, Paul Tautges has been reading Thomas Brooks and came up with several important counseling principles.

Breaking Ties with the Boy Scouts – I appreciate R.C. Sproul Jr’s answer to this question: “Should my family, or my church break ties with the Boy Scouts of America, given their decision to welcome openly homosexual scouts?”

False Sense of Progress – Maybe this is part of email’s tricky allure: “we like to feel that we’re making progress. So if you get to erase ten e-mails from your inbox, you feel like you have achieved something. But if you think carefully about it, it’s not clear that you’re going to get something out of it.”

Praying Terrifying Prayers – Erik Raymond writes about those times when we need to pray terrifying prayers.

Satan watches for those vessels that sail without a convoy.

—George Swinnock

  • Pastoral Prayer

    A Pastoral Prayer

    Every now and again I like to share an example of a pastoral prayer from Grace Fellowship Church. I do this because there are few examples of pastoral prayers online and I thought these may serve to inspire themes, passages, or ideas as other pastors and elders prepare to lead their churches in prayer. Please…

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    Weekend A La Carte (March 22)

    A La Carte: In case I die unexpectedly / The daily midlife crisis / Anora and the end of #MeToo / Building the habit of family worship / We are not Númenóreans / Iain Murray / and more.

  • The Future of New Calvinism

    The Future of New Calvinism

    I was intrigued by Aaron Renn’s recent article The Maturation of New Calvinism. His thesis is that “New Calvinism has shifted from an ‘All-Star team’ model designed to exert influence over the broader evangelical world to a post-superstar model that primarily serves its own community. This represents the maturity of the movement, perhaps putting it…

  • A La Carte Friday 2

    A La Carte (March 21)

    A La Carte: Coming tariffs on books / When God used a stutterer / Not peculiar enough / What leadership is and does / Staring into an abyss / Standards for good writing / Surrender to ministry / and more

  • A La Carte Thursday 1

    A La Carte (March 20)

    A La Carte: My Jesus poster / Stability on an emotional roller coaster / What pastors owe their congregations / Why friction is good for you / Permissive parenting and civilizational decline / Kindle deals / and more.