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A La Carte (May 30)

tuesday

Good morning!

If you didn’t check in yesterday, you’ll want to take a quick look at the updated list of Kindle deals for both yesterday and today.

(Yesterday on the blog: The Calm Will Be the Better)

7 Reasons Why Your Church Should Engage in Door-to-Door Evangelism

“Door-to-door evangelism tends to get a bad rap, and many Christians question its effectiveness. But in our experience, the people in our community have responded positively. At about half of the homes we visit, someone answers the door and a positive conversation ensues.” It’s hard to argue with that!

On Not Giving Up

Joe explains how pastoral ministry “seems to have changed from golf to hockey. Golf is hard, but it’s a game of technique. Improving your technique is the answer to most of your frustrations on the course. In hockey, you’ve got all the technique development challenges that go along with golf, but you also have to account for the reality that someone is trying to punch you in the face or check you into a wall at full speed.”

What is the difference between the Dutch Reformed view and the Lutheran view of baptism? (Video)

I don’t agree with either of these positions on baptism but do appreciate the way Dr. Godfrey distinguishes between them. Also, for Baptists like myself, this is a brief but helpful explanation of infant baptism: “Baptism comes to everyone baptized with the strong promise of God that God will save everyone who receives the promises of baptism in faith.”

Offerings at the Door of Eden?

Okay, so this may be conjecture, but it’s interesting to consider.

How to Pray at a Military Grave

“When we recently moved to Washington, DC, there was one tourist attraction on the top of my list to visit: Arlington National Cemetery. Eighteen years ago when I went for the first time, it was an interesting historic place. But as I prepared for my second visit nearly two decades later, it was different. Now I have friends buried there.” This leads to a helpful reflection on how (and how not) to pray at a military grave—or any other grave.

Reconstructing My Faith

“Ten years ago, I fled the only life I had ever known and escaped the abuse and control of the church where I grew up. For more than 25 years, my entire world revolved around church and what the leader told us to believe and how to live. Although we identified as an independent, fundamental, spirit-filled Baptist church, we had all the hallmarks of a cult. I never imagined that I would end up questioning everything and leaving it all behind.”

Flashback: Another Week in a Difficult and Hostile World

The people come to church each week weary and hungry, eager to be fed. And it is the task of the pastor to meet their need for spiritual sustenance, to equip them for their God-given duties, to feed them good food.

Why should the frail creature doubt the wisdom and the goodness of the strong Creator? Why should the child distrust the love and wisdom of the Father?

—J.R. Miller

  • What God Wants You To Forget

    What God Wants You To Forget

    We are never far from reminding God of our credentials, of providing him with a curriculum vitae that lays out all we are, all we have been through, and all we have accomplished for his sake. We are never far from making the subtle turn from grace to merit, from what is freely given to…

  • A La Carte Collection cover image

    A La Carte (March 27)

    A La Carte: New music / Millennials and GenZ / Scotland’s new hate crime law / Cate Blanchett, Easter is for you / Why the Reformed pray for revival / What truly happened to Jesus on the cross? / and more.

  • New and Notable Books

    New and Notable Christian Books for March 2024

    As you know, I like to do my best to sort through the new Christian books that are released each month to see what stands out as being not only new, but also particularly notable. I received quite a number of new titles in March and narrowed the list down to the ones below. I…

  • A La Carte Collection cover image

    A La Carte (March 26)

    A La Carte: God delivers from the suffering he ordains / The beautiful partnership of family and church / The end of religious liberty / On whales, menopause, and thanks to God / Ordinary women, extravagant gifts / and more.

  • Marriage: A Dance of Beauty and Chaos

    This sponsored post was provided by Burke Care, and written by Jen Arend, which invites you to schedule care today with a certified biblical counselor. As the music swells, she begins her descent down the aisle. All eyes are on her, especially her groom. She is radiant, majestic, and filled with beauty. Her gaze meets his tear-filled…

  • Does God Care How You Cook Your Goat?

    Does God Care How You Cook Your Goat?

    It is one of those biblical commands that has always perplexed me. If it appeared just one time in Scripture I might be tempted to pass it by. But it appears no less than three times, in Exodus 23:19, Exodus 34:26, and Deuteronomy 14:21. The repetition tells me that God is quite concerned that his…