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A La Carte (November 27)

A La Carte Thursday 1

Happy Thanksgiving to my American friends and family! May this be a day in which you truly give thanks to God for his many mercies. Check in tomorrow for my annual roundup of Black Friday deals for Christians.

Today’s Kindle deals include yet another roundup of books that should be of interest to Christian readers.

(Yesterday on the blog: New and Notable Christian Books for November 2025)

What False Teachings Should Make Me Leave a Church?

We all know that false teaching may require us to leave a church. In this article, John Piper considers the kinds of false teaching that would require this.

Everything Is Television

This article is not by a Christian writer (so far as I know) but is really interesting in the way it shows how sooner or later all of our new media end up mimicking television. It offers lots of helpful food for thought. (On a somewhat similar note, this video: You didn’t lose your attention span. It was stolen.)

Is it Satan or God?

“There are multiple instances in the Bible where Satan (or an evil spirit) acts with malicious intent toward a human, but where the Bible indicates that God is working behind the scenes—even moving events toward the fulfillment of his purposes (which are always good and wise).” This is a crucial dynamic to understand.

Treat People like Adults

“I fear that, without really intending to, churches have a habit of infantilising people. We should treat people like adults.” I do not disagree with this!

The Hard Way Is the Easy Way

Reagan Rose: “It’s a lesson we have to drill into our heads: Every time we choose temporary comfort over doing the hard thing, we aren’t avoiding the pain; we’re just putting it off. Eventually, procrastination has to be paid back with interest. Laziness promises peace now, but compounds pain in the future. It makes the fool’s bargain of trading temporary discomfort for long-term regret.”

Backward Progress

Jacob writes about backward progress. “Backward progress is the progress that is made by reversing course. Just like the person who has to go backwards to make the correct turn, sometimes the only way forward is to turn around.”

Flashback: How I Review a Book

A question I often receive is this one: “Can you give me some advice on writing a book review?” …I typically use a loose formula that I think can be helpful and that often resonates with readers.

If you experience gratitude as a burden, you don’t know gratitude, because true gratitude is not an exertion of the will; it’s an overflow of a sense of being treated better than you deserve.

—John Piper

  • How to Evangelize and Disciple in a “Live Your Truth” World

    Our culture lacks any coherent, unifying worldview. We’ve moved on from post-truth postmodernism to “Live your truth” metamodernism, where good vibes matter more than consistent ideas. In this world, few see the conflict between “trans-affirming” and “pro-woman.” And the same person using mushrooms to aid spiritual “connection” tells us to “trust the science” about human…

  • AI

    A Simple Way To Ensure You Use AI Well (And Not Poorly) 

    Every new technology introduces both benefits and drawbacks to its users and to the wider culture. The world being what it is, there are always plusses and minuses, so that even as a new tech gives with one hand, it takes away with the other. We are quickly learning that Artificial Intelligence is no exception…

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    A La Carte (February 16)

    A La Carte: God is glad to forgive you / Gen Z needs this doctrine / The draw of Eastern Orthodoxy / Rest for the restless / Finding love after loss / Kindle and book deals / and more.

  • Duty

    For Our Good, Not For Our Bondage

    Matthew Henry once said that when we are out of the way of duty, we are in the way of temptation. Yet Jerry Bridges warns that the spiritual disciplines are privileges to be used, not duties to be performed. So are they duties or are they not?

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    Weekend A La Carte (February 14)

    A La Carte: Satan wants you alone this Sunday / The discipline of unlearning / Asking a pastor to step down / Holy humor / Intentional thankfulness / and more.