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A La Carte (August 27)

thursday

This is my final day of quarantine! After two weeks isolating in the US followed by two isolating in Canada, I’m very nearly free…

There are a few new Kindle deals to consider and they include a book by MacArthur as well as the ESV Prayer Bible which I’m pretty sure I’ve never seen on sale before.

(Yesterday on the blog: How Everything Became About Race, Gender, and Identity)

COVID And Culture Shock Feel The Same To Your Brain

I found this rather interesting—a comparison between culture shock and entering into a pandemic world. “As we have both watched and experienced the events of 2020, something has seemed oddly familiar. Every part of life seems to have changed, nearly overnight. Stores are different. Work is different. Interactions with friends and with strangers – it’s all different. Yet in a way this scene seems to be a re-run. Because, in a way, it is. This scene is familiar because it mirrors culture shock.”

Courage Takes More Than a Keyboard

“Everyone knows by now that our social-media projections are not true to life. But there’s a particular danger for those Christians who are more interested in curating ideas than images. It’s never been easier to ‘defend the truth’ in a vapid, performative way, like the Pharisees who made life and devotion hard on the people without even lifting a finger to help (Matthew 23:4)…”

The End of Sex Scenes

I’m skeptical but hopeful that the combination of MeToo and COVID will mark the decline of movie sex scenes.

Once More on Faith and Fecundity

Kevin DeYoung recently got in hot water for suggesting Christians fight the culture war by having more children. In this article he follows up by clarifying what was unclear and doubling down on the main point.

How COVID-19 Broke the Airline Pricing Model (Video)

This is an interesting look at how COVID-19 disrupted and broke the airline pricing model.

Longing For Home

“We all want a safe, comforting place to call home. A place where we can curl up in a comfy chair with worn arms and a cozy blanket. A place where we can have messy hair and makeup-less faces without feeling self-conscious. A place where people who we love and who love us in return are eagerly awaiting us. A place where we can cry and our tears won’t make others feel awkward. A place where the people know our sins and love us still but strive to guide us toward holiness.”

Discourse with Enemies

Lee Gatiss reflects on Jesus’s gentleness and humility before others and says, “In our own polemics and public engagement, we would do well to meditate more on this aspect of the Lord’s example, not to mention His intense prayerfulness.”

Flashback: Love Is a Risky Business

God’s knowledge of us is unlimited by the past, present, and future. He already knows our deepest, darkest secrets, and he loves us still.

God hath long contended with a stubborn world, and thrown down many a blessing upon them; and when all his other gifts could not prevail, He at last made a gift of Himself.

—Henry Scougal

  • weekend 3

    Weekend A La Carte (May 23)

    Work will always matter / The rise of techno-feudalism / The gospel according to Karl Marx / The challenge of Eastern Orthodoxy / My manifesto on AI and religion / Steve McQueen, born again, set free / Cornfield baptism / 5 things most people don’t know about writing books

  • Authority

    How Men Can Use Their Authority Well

    There are few topics that have proven trickier to navigate than the topic of authority. We know we need authority to function as families, churches, and nations, yet there is something deep within our sinful humanity that causes us to rebel against it wherever it exists. We both want it and despise it. 

  • fri 3

    A La Carte (May 22)

    The ancient world had no word for child abuse / What I wish I had learned in theological college / Pray to the Lord of the harvest / What God is healing while not healing my health problems / Are you willing to show up? / Artificial preaching / Sales and deals / and more.

  • thurs 3

    A La Carte (May 21)

    One step becomes a three-day walk / Tolkien, foolishness, and the ordinary means of grace / The staggering beauty and burden of church life / Denominational health / Three truths to combat your news anxiety / Don’t do the Devil’s work for him / and more.

  • The Most Neglected Element of Worship

    The Most Neglected Element of Worship

    There are some elements of public worship that receive a great deal of attention. These elements are taught, practiced, rehearsed, and perfected until they are as good as they can be. In most churches, this includes the music, of course, and often the preaching. Why do these receive so much attention?

  • wed 3

    A La Carte (May 20)

    The pastor who refuses to back down / The missionary with Ebola / Why we don’t trust pastors / Rushing our quiet times / The other side of seminary / The remedy, the problem, and the church / Why we need to interpret the Bible / Kindle deals / and more.