There’s a neat little selection of Kindle deals to work through. On the printed book front, Westminster Books has special pricing on some books by the late James Montgomery Boice.
A Prolonged Sabbath in a Culture of Productivity
This article spoke to me. “At the end of this, we should have something to show: a work of art, a new skill, a project completed, an intellect grown. To be sure, many of the resources on offer are fantastic. And I’m taking a deep breath because of the extra space in my weekly schedule. Indeed, as I’ve read from others, who knows what possibilities this limitation of movement will open up for us? Yet — can I allow myself and my children to give up being productive or educated or entertained for even a small amount of time? Can I allow us to be bored? To be unessential? To rest?”
William Standridge (1927–2020)
I was saddened to hear of the death of William Standridge, but am grateful for his life and legacy. What a man of God! “93 years on earth and 72 as a missionary in what I consider to be one of the hardest countries to minister in on the planet. Tilling the ground where few men had been before.”
Apart From Me You Can Do Nothing
Context always matters, as Ryan Higginbottom demonstrates in this brief look at John 15:5. “Perhaps you’ve heard that no one can do anything apart from Jesus. You may have been told this saying refers to our complete reliance upon God. Or, you may have read this phrase during leadership or evangelism training, urging your frequent communication with Jesus. Context matters. When we learn to read the Bible in context—not just as a collection of memorable phrases—we’ll find that some familiar verses take on richer and deeper meanings.”
More Than an Idle Threat
Al Mohler: “Over the course of this pandemic, I’ve consistently argued that churches should follow generally applicable shelter-in-place orders. … Indeed, governments are justified in ruling that all mass assemblies ought to cease for a definable period of time. That is rational government policy. If, however, policies target or single out churches and religious groups, this becomes an entirely different issue—it is an issue of an unconstitutional violation of religious liberty.” These are important distinctions and may become more important as the days go by.
What I Miss About the Physical Gathering of the Local Church
I miss these things as well!
Encouraged by Pandemic Pastors
Erik Raymond expresses some of the ways he has been encouraged by pastors as they carry out their calling during the pandemic. “I am thankful to God for how many pastors have responded to the changes necessitated by the coronavirus. Judging by my conversations with friends and what I see in my various feeds, many pastors are doing a commendable job caring for the flock. The pandemic brought a gear-shift for pastoral ministry. By God’s grace, many are doing well.”
The Beauty and Abuse of Empathy
Abigail Dodds: “As with all of God’s gifts that we wield in this sinful world, we can distort God-given empathy. Would you consider with me if it’s possible for empathy to become a tyrant? How can something so obviously needed to nurture children and care for the vulnerable go wrong? We can distort or abuse empathy in at least three ways.”
Flashback: We Murder Babies
Sure, that human being may be tiny, underdeveloped, within another person, and utterly dependent upon its mother, but humanity is not defined by size, level of development, environment, or degree of dependency.
You should be terrified if you have the truth and yet that truth does not grip, control, and transform you.
—Dale Ralph Davis
