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A La Carte (January 24)

monday

Good morning. Grace and peace to you.

There’s a nice little list of Kindle deals for the collectors.

(Yesterday on the blog: The Best Friendship in the World)

The Countries Where It’s Most Dangerous to Be a Christian in 2022

Joe Carter looks at a recent report about the countries where it’s most dangerous to be a Christian.

Ten Words for a Broken Society (#9: No False Witness)

Bruce Ashford continues his interesting series on the Ten Commandments. “Whereas the third commandment forbids us from telling a lie about God or attacking his name, the ninth commandment prohibits us from bearing false witness against our neighbor, i.e., from attacking our neighbor’s name: ‘You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor’ (Ex 20: 16). And while this speaks specifically to courtroom situations, its implications are much broader.”

3 Things God Will Never Do with Your Sin

“Consider for a moment how we ‘deal’ with others. We keep fresh in our minds their injustices toward us. We nurture the memory of their faults and failings. We never let them forget what they did and we often make sure others are mindful of it as well. We seek every opportunity, often secretly and surreptitiously, to make them pay for their transgressions. We hold it in our hearts and over their heads and persuade ourselves that it’s only fair that they be treated this way.”

Marks of Manhood

Nick Batzig: “At a time when there is more confusion in the culture about gender and role relations, it would help us to take a step back and consider what Scripture sets forth as the model of manhood, namely, the Lord Jesus.”

When the Nest May Never Be Empty

Parents typically look forward to the day the nest will be empty. But for some, that’s just not reality. “When independence is the end goal for following Jesus, or for parenting, our faith is, unrecognizable from what God himself describes.”

A Proverb on Having Your Cake

I find idioms fascinating, perhaps especially when they originate from a different culture.

Flashback: Aging Brings Life-Shaping Decisions

In every way, we must be disciplined in our pursuit of God, we must build habits of holiness. We must not succumb to the ease of complacency.

They are fools that fear to lose their wealth by giving, but fear not to lose themselves by keeping it.

—John Trapp

  • Pleasure Obligation

    A Pleasure More Than An Obligation

    Christians are often portrayed as downcast and dour, as people who are trapped in a system of beliefs that robs them of joy and life. And with a bit of honest self-examination, we can probably think of times when we have fit the cliché.

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    Weekend A La Carte (March 14)

    A La Carte: The West’s strange genius / Healing the way women hurt each other / AI skeptics / The world after reading / What about the children? / What caregivers should know about dementia / and much more.

  • Sex and Self-Forgetfulness

    Sex, Self-Forgetfulness, and the Joy of Serving Your Spouse

    I often think there is a kind of paradoxical quality to sex within marriage. It’s paradoxical in that few things have greater ability to bring blessing (through its right use) or to bring cursing (through its misuse). Not only that, but few things bring greater joy to a marriage, and also, in so many cases,…

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    A La Carte (March 13)

    What happened to our pastor? / Youth ministry needs seasoned saints / God’s sovereignty when things don’t go as planned / Preach sermons that algorithms don’t reward / A pastor remains in Beirut / and more.

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    A La Carte (March 12)

    The grief ambush / Forgotten, and that’s good / The foibles and fallibility of Christian leaders / Welcome back, church planting / Weakness is not the enemy / Bad reasons to read the Bible / Bible and book sales.