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A La Carte (December 29)

Today’s Kindle deals include a list of three classics by Francis Schaeffer. They are nice and short which is ideal if you’re participating in a reading challenge this year. Yet they also pack a punch.

Borrowed Convictions

This is a helpful reflection from Jeremy Walker. “A list of gurus is not the same as a developed set of theological convictions. Neither is it the same as having a spiritual home with true shepherds caring for your soul.”

The Great American Word Mapper

This is brilliant. You can plug in words and see where in the US those words are used. Be sure to click the “foods” button (and probably avoid the swear button).

Pro-Lifers Look Forward to 2017

Whatever else 2017 has brought, it’s brought a new sense of optimism to the American pro-life movement. WORLD explains.

One Reason To Dedicate Yourself to Bible Reading in 2017

Here’s just one more good reason to commit yourself to reading your Bible in 2017.

Suffering is a Doorway, Not a Dead End

In that moment of suffering, “one of the most helpful things is to remember what is on the other side of that door. Suffering for Christ is not a dead end (though it might feel like it!). Rather, it is always a doorway to greater joy and life. Here are three ways that is so.”

Did Ellis Island Officials Change the Names of Immigrants?

Smithsonian takes on the persistent myth that officials at Ellis Island changed the names of immigrants.

This Day in 1876. 140 years ago today hymnwriter Philip P. Bliss and his family died when a bridge collapsed under the train they were riding. Bliss composed ‘Man of Sorrows—What a Name!’ and the music for ‘It is Well.’ *

We Need To Talk About Church Scheduling

Here’s a challenging article about church scheduling and how a church can unintentionally harm its people by demanding or expecting too much of them.

Of Golf Balls and Badminton Birdies

This is a good little analogy that is particularly appropriate to pastoral ministry.

How To Protect Your Children From Abuse

I dislike the clickbait headline for this one, but it’s still worth reading as a pediatrician tells parents how to protect against sexual abuse.

Flashback: How Should Christians Use Guns?

John Piper sparked a firestorm in a response to Jerry Falwell Jr. on Christians and guns. Then a whole lot of other people added to the conversation.

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A single day in hell will be worse than a whole life spent in carrying the cross.

—J.C. Ryle

  • Gods Great Big Global Church

    Announcing: God’s Great Big Global Church

    Coming soon: God’s Great Big Global Church—my new children’s book that introduces kids to ten churches around the world and the joy of worshiping God together. Pre‑order is now open.

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    A La Carte (March 26)

    Decisions in the room / What does the Bible say about demons? / Why rationalists are asking AI to read their future / Tiny changes, massive payoffs / Stop scrolling and start singing / Kindle and commentary deals / and more.

  • Marriage

    When Your Spouse Stops Being Your Project

    Many marriages stall at the same point: each spouse convinced the breakthrough will come only when the other finally changes. What if the real breakthrough begins somewhere else?

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    A La Carte (March 25)

    Embracing slow sanctification / Men are lost / Your attention isn’t failing, your environment is / Notes on justice / Ships passing in the night / It is Christ who saves, not Christians / and more.

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    A La Carte (March 24)

    Check your guns at the door / Counseling the victim identity / Christian sexual ethics / Leaders are readers / Missionary meditations from the Middle East / Personal callings / and more.

  • Here We Stand! A Call from Confessing Evangelicals for a Modern Reformation

    Thirty years ago, evangelical leaders gathered in Cambridge, MA, to take a stand for truth. That moment led to the Cambridge Declaration—and sparked a call for a modern Reformation. Now, Here We Stand! returns in a newly revised edition from Alliance Publishing with new insights from leading voices like Carl Trueman, Sean Michael Lucas, and…