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A La Carte (March 9)

wednesday

Good day! May the Lord bless you and keep you today.

There are lots of good books in today’s list of Kindle deals.

Good Habits from Painful Beginnings

This article considers the way that good habits often have their genesis in painful beginnings. “How often does God allow something negative or painful in our lives so that we begin something new—a new habit that is for our own good?”

Pastors Aren’t the Brand

“We’re told these days how important it is to develop a personal brand.” Yet as Darryl tells us here, neither the pastor nor the church should be a brand.

Is your church website accomplishing the right things?

It’s the first impression people have of your community. It can be a powerful tool for communication with your congregation. Is it doing what it needs to do? The team behind WhiteHorseInn.org, ElisabethElliot.org, and even Challies.com, also makes sites for local churches! In March only, mention ‘CHALLIES’ to receive 30% off your first year of service with MereChurch. (Sponsored Link)

This American High

“Thirty-five years ago, I loved foolish bits of sticky paper. Thirty-five years from now, what will be my lament? Today I cling to my home, my security, my liberty – the very things I view as blessings from God – but will I have used them to serve and save eternal souls? Or will these ‘blessings’ have distracted me from what is most important?”

Are You Standing in God’s Way?

Can we stand in God’s way? “You may dismiss this question on its face. After all, how could anyone resist omnipotence? Who could thwart his plans and purposes? In an absolute sense, I agree. We can no more resist God than an ant can resist a boulder rolling to land upon its sandy domicile.”

The Goal Is to Make the Metaverse our “Primary” Reality

As we begin to hear more and more about the metaverse, it’s good to remind ourselves of the total and sweeping goals of those who are designing and advocating it.

50 for the 50th

RYM is collecting top-ten lists of Christian books and sharing them here.

Flashback: The Celebrity Pastor We’ve Never Known

The holiest moments of pastoring are the ones that are seen by the fewest people. And in the end, I’m convinced these are the ones that mean the most. Most people will forget most of your sermons, but they’ll remember that when they called, you came.

The keeping up of appearances is an exhausting way to live.

—Dane Ortlund

  • Southern Africa

    A Trip to Southern Africa

    I don’t often write trip reports after I travel, except, of course, in the form of books and documentary projects like Epic and From the Rising of the Sun. Yet, I thought I would make a rare exception after returning from my recent journey to Southern Africa (and, strangely, Northern California). While I am accustomed…

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    A La Carte (December 10)

    A La Carte: Top 10 theology stories of 2025 / Mama, you don’t have to save Christmas / Giving up all your Sundays to advent / An empty chair at Christmas / Pray for the church in Rwanda / Kindle deals / and more.

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    A La Carte (December 9)

    A La Carte: Reforming generosity / Let the young man come to church / Your wife is beauty / Combating imposter syndrome / Be known, not impressive / Dan McClellan / and more.

  • AI Slop

    The Rise of AI Book Slop

    We often hear these days of “AI slop,” a term that’s used to refer to the massive amounts of poor-quality AI-created material that is churned out and unceremoniously dumped onto the internet. This was once primarily artistless artwork and authorless articles, but has now advanced to much bigger and more substantial forms of content.

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    A La Carte (December 8)

    A La Carte: A plea to older women / Let someone serve you in suffering / Why AI writing can’t compete / Influencers / The hidden danger in online sermons / Discipling young people / Excellent Kindle deals / and more.

  • Hymns

    Pitch Perfect and Tone Deaf

    God commands us to sing. Yet while some of God’s people are gifted singers, the plain fact is that others are not. In any congregation, it’s likely that some have near-perfect pitch while others are functionally tone-deaf. Those who struggle to sing may be self-conscious, tempted to stay quiet or to do no more than…