We are digging out after a whopper of a snowstorm that, since it was accompanied by extreme cold, hit this area hard. It sure makes the world look beautiful, though.
Today’s Kindle deals include several books that were released just last year. Disrupted Journey is a good one, as is Every Believer Confident. Andrew Wilson’s God of All Things is a couple of years older, but won some notable awards.
If you haven’t yet read From the Rising of the Sun, 10ofThose has it at a very low price—and cheaper still if you buy in bulk.
(Yesterday on the blog: That’s Your Uncle Nick)
Making Sense of Praying With Faith
“Few means of grace are so well known and yet so misunderstood as the ‘prayer of faith’ or the act of ‘praying by faith.’” Peter Witkowski takes an interesting direction in this article by distinguishing between two different divine wills and how we should pray in relation to each of them.
Can Unbelievers Perform Good Deeds?
“If Scripture says that no one does good, are the good deeds of unbelievers really good at all? It is a question that surfaces regularly—sometimes in theological debate, sometimes in pastoral conversations, and often quietly in the conscience of many thoughtful Christians.” Alistair offers a good explanation of the good deeds done by believers and unbelievers.
Book Brief. Strangers by Belle Burden is the divorce memoir du jour, and launched straight onto the bestseller lists. In it, Burden, a gifted writer, describes the sudden and unexpected news of her husband’s affair and his desire to leave her. Though Belle lives a life very different from my own (as a wealthy, progressive New Yorker), her shock, pain, and long journey to acceptance are relatable and have helped me better understand those who have to endure a divorce they did not initiate and did not want.
5 Reasons You Need Sabbath Rest
Like many Baptists, I find it difficult to accept that the Sabbath command remains binding upon Christians today. However, I can certainly see the benefit in treating one day very differently from the others and making it a day of deliberate rest. Megan Hill writes about that in this article
Is Sex as Dangerous as Christians Make It Seem?
A young lady wrote to John Piper to ask him if sex is really as dangerous as Christians make it seem, and his response is wise and pastoral. “Sarah, you are probably more right than you know. Christians do make a big deal out of sexual behavior — probably a bigger deal than you realize. So, your question is a good one. Why is sex such a big deal for Christians? Why do Christians preserve the act of sexual intercourse for monogamous heterosexual marriage? Let me try to answer this first with a personal question for you, Sarah, and then a longer explanation from the Bible.”
The Art of Clear Teaching and Preaching
Writing for TGC Australia, Murray Capill looks to the past for some helpful pointers on the art of clear teaching and preaching.
Beyond the Manosphere
If you have a free article left at WORLD (they give you 5 free per month), you may want to use one of them to read this article by James Wood. “Although many sense that traditional religion is compatible with their masculinity, it is often the manosphere that speaks most directly to their frustrations. Richard Reeves, author of Of Boys and Men, notes that mainstream institutions failed to address men’s concerns and left a vacuum these influencers now fill. Yet the validation they offer is frequently coupled with the stoking of resentment.”
Flashback: If I Could Change Anything about the Modern Church
How would it change your worship if you were constantly confronted with the reality of death in this way yet also comforted by the proximity and the nearness of those who had gone before?
Prayer is verbalized dependence on God.
—Tony Payne
