I wasn’t able to track down any interesting Kindle deals today, but it has been a good couple of weeks, so I won’t complain. I’ll try again tomorrow.
I’m Really Not Busy…
“We appear to have created a culture where the only people who are not ‘busy’ are people who are, well, a bit sad. Busyness has become the mark of a full and satisfied life. But is it really so?” It shouldn’t be!
“Confusion” and “Failure”: Other Roman Catholic Blows Against Pope Francis
I appreciate Leonardo De Chirico’s interpretation of recent events in the Roman Catholic Church. “The turmoil in the Roman Catholic Church has reached a further disruption point. At the beginning of February, two independent but influential texts circulated widely that expressed strong criticism against Pope Francis. In Europe, the German Cardinal Gerhard Müller issued a Manifesto of Faith that raised serious concerns over the downplaying of Roman Catholic identity under the present-day pontificate and suggested corrections to it. In the USA, the acclaimed journal First Things posted an article by R.R. Reno whose devastating thesis is evident from its title: ‘A Failing Papacy’.”
Christianity Isn’t Just One Truth among Many (Sponsored Link)
We live in a skeptical and relativistic age. In this hostile environment, Christians may find it difficult to stand for what is true. After all, telling the truth often means telling people things they don’t want to hear. To equip you to present and defend the truth, I’ll be speaking at Ligonier’s Southern Ontario Conference, Truth in a Truthless Age, along with W. Robert Godfrey, Steven Lawson, Albert Mohler, and Stephen Nichols. I hope you’ll join us on November 8–9 and be encouraged to bear witness to the way, the truth, and the life (John 14:6).
Parents of Kids Who Think They Are Trans Speak Out
“When a child says he is transgender, we are expected nowadays to accept and celebrate this announcement. But there are many parents who are not celebrating. They are suffering in silence. They know their children were not born in the wrong bodies and that hormones and surgeries are not the answers to their discomfort and confusion. Their stories are heartbreaking. Here they are, in their own words.” This is tough to read, but really important. (See also, Al Mohler’s The End of Parental Rights? A Chilling Case From Canada.)
What Happened to the Man Cave?
I hate the term “man cave” and am glad to hear of its demise! “Bridges interviewed all kinds of couples, but he quickly noticed a trend among heterosexual men in their 30s: Their man caves were almost always unfinished, and had sat that way for years. If they used them at all, it was rarely — maybe for an annual Super Bowl party — and if they didn’t, it was because, they claimed, they weren’t ready to be seen yet.”
How Do We Explain Talking Donkeys and Burning Bushes?
This is a good answer to a common question (or a variation on a common question).
The Tragedy of Sparing Others from Obedience
“The Bible makes difficult, counter-cultural demands. It poses to us a question: do we believe obedience offers our people something better than the things we’re asking them to forsake? As pastors, we face this question in every sermon and every counseling session. Will we unashamedly call our people to obedience, even when—especially when—it comes with a high cost?”
A Sermon Notes Sheet for Young Children
Parents may find this a helpful worksheet for helping their children engage with the sermon.
Flashback: The Training Ground of Sound Doctrine
Every Christian is responsible to learn sound doctrine, to be trained in the truth in order to discern error. Here are three means God has provided for us to train ourselves in sound doctrine.
Nothing so clears the vision and lifts up the life, as a decision to move forward in what you know to be entirely the will of the Lord.
—John Paton
