A La Carte (August 5)

I am on the way home from my family vacation—two weeks away with the people I love the most. It was enjoyable and relaxing.

Now that I’m back from vacation, I’m back to updating Kindle deals. You’ll find a number of new ones.

(Yesterday on the blog: Come Behold the Wondrous Mystery)

The Last Days of John Allen Chau

Outside has a long and detailed profile of John Allen Chau, focused on his final days.

You Were Right, Dad

I very much enjoyed this one. There are many times when parents need to push their kids to do the uncomfortable thing. Usually the parents are right.

Your Kids Can’t Get a New Father but You Can Get a New Phone

The headline tells you most of what you need to know, I think.

Should the Rich Be Allowed to Buy the Best Genes?

Genetic engineering is sure to cause all kinds of problems. (This is not a Christian perspective on the matter, but is still very interesting.) “From my balcony, I marvel at the diversity of the passing humanity. There are people short and tall, gay and straight and trans, fat and skinny, light and dark, and even a few wearing Gallaudet University T-shirts excitedly using sign language. The supposed promise of CRISPR is that we may someday be able to pick which of these traits we want in our children and in all of our descendants. We could choose for them to be tall and muscular and blond and blue-eyed and not deaf and not … well, pick your preferences.”

If You Send an MK Some Cookies

This is a great look at what happens when you send an MK some cookies. Kind of.

Westminster Abbey

I rather enjoyed this poem

Why Haddon Robinson Says Less Is More in Preaching

“As I have reflected on preaching, it strikes me that less is more. When I got out of seminary, I thought more was more. I thought the essence of preaching was to give everything in the passage and give it all the same kind of weight. As a result, my sermons were weighty and heavy but they were not good communication.”

Flashback: Condone, Condemn, or Mourn?

It is so easy for us to stand apart from the culture and do no more than express self-righteous judgmentalism toward it. But those of us who grieve deeply over our own sin will not do this.