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A La Carte (January 6)

thursday

Grace and peace to you today.

Westminster Books is offering 50% off their top sellers from 2021.

There are a couple of new Kindle deals today.

(Yesterday on the blog: The Squiggly Line of God’s Providence)

Greedy for Gain

“There’s something ugly, something character revealing, about the politician who squeezes absolutely every inch out of their entitlements. Those who make sure that every dollar of those things that they can technically claim is used up, and who spend the time to do so.” And, as Stephen McAlpine points out, it’s not just politicians…

I Must Die

“Death is an enemy, no doubt. It’s seeks to undo everything God intended. Yet, the work of dying to self is a sanctifying work, a work that removes, slowly overtime, what is unlovely in our character and replaces it with true life, light, and love.”

Being Somebody

“At my house growing up, I was somebody. When my mom asked if somebody would bring in firewood, or let the dog out, or fetch the groceries, I knew she was talking to me. As the youngest child, I ended up being the last somebody in the house besides my parents, so I got to be somebody a lot.” Seth bridges from this to an encouragement to press on in the work the Lord has called you to.

Distinguish Details

This is a brief, helpful discussion of the distinction between studying details in sermon preparation and actually telling everyone about details in sermon delivery.

No Creaky Wallet Love

Glenna Marshall: “I used to think that love was something God doled out with miserly resistance. I pictured Jack Arnold, the disgruntled dad of the 1988 television series, ‘The Wonder Years,’ slowly opening his wallet, which creaked with stinginess as he forked out a couple of dollars for Kevin’s allowance. Kevin held his breath, eyes fixed on his dad’s tight-lipped grimace. A raise in allowance hinged upon his ability to either please his father or catch him in a good mood. If his dad was in a bad mood, that wallet would snap shut faster than you could say ‘please.’”

Five 2022 Resolutions for your Consideration

It may be a week late for New Years resolutions, but Chopa Mwanza still has a few you may wish to consider.

Flashback: How Is God Present in Our Pain?

In our pain we know God is not absent, but in our pain we also wonder whether God is present. Or perhaps more correctly we wonder how God is present.

A true Christian does not cloak or excuse his unbelief, but honestly acknowledges it before God.

—A.W. Pink

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    A La Carte (October 8)

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  • What Is “The End” of Religious Liberty?

    This week, the blog is sponsored by Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. This article is adapted from Jason G. Duesing’s chapel message, “A Portrait of the End of Religious Liberty,” given during the Spring 2024 semester at Midwestern Seminary and Spurgeon College. You can watch the full message here.   The beautiful hymn in Philippians 2 tells of the humbling, sacrifice,…

  • We All Want More of God

    We All Want More of God

    We all want more of God. Anyone who professes to be a Christian will acknowledge a sense of sorrow and disappointment when they consider how little they know of God and how little they experience of his presence. Every Christian or Christianesque tradition acknowledges this reality and offers a means to address it.

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    A La Carte: Lighten my load or strengthen my back / Why Gen Z men are staying in church / Do hurricanes just happen? / Failure happens slowly before it happens suddenly / A tale of two wisdoms / Kindle deals / and more.

  • Breadth and Depth

    Breadth and Depth

    One of the key principles of properly understanding and applying the Bible is this: Scripture interprets Scripture. Christians sometimes speak of “the analogy of faith” to express the fact that we have properly understood one part of the Bible only when we have interpreted it in the context of the whole Bible.

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    Weekend A La Carte (October 5)

    A La Carte: Reminders for parents of wayward children / Those who make them become like them / Suicide pods and the trivialization of death / Thoughts on pastors’ pay / What does it mean to preach Christ? / and more.