Skip to content ↓

A La Carte (September 29)

tuesday

Observation: If you use a certain app and it becomes important to your life or workflow, it’s almost always worth paying for the Pro version. You get better features and you get to support the people who make it. That’s a win-win.

It is another good day for Kindle deals! The collectors will want to take a look.

(Yesterday on the blog: No One Believes in Social Injustice)

We Live In Unprecedented Times

“We live in unprecedented times.” We’ve heard that a lot lately. But is it true? And if so, in what ways? “In reality, the pandemic has done nothing more than speed up trends which were already apparent. The certainties of our age; scientific advance, social change, economic growth and freedom from poverty, war and disease are built on sand. They certainly make life comfortable for those who benefit from them, but these unprecedented times will not last forever.”

Unequally Woked

I’m linking to this not only because of the great title, but also because I think it works toward something important in the third point. I know the article will antagonize some people, but one way or another we really do need to consider what Samuel James says there.

Is Your Website Sending The Right Message To People Who Visit?

Your website is most often the first impression people have of your church, ministry, or business. What are people seeing when they visit yours? Mere Agency knows how to build sites that make the right impression. They’ve done it for hundreds of organizations of all shapes and sizes and can do it for you. (Sponsored Link)

True, Lasting Refreshment

“There’s something refreshing about a change of season. There are many reasons I enjoy summer, but by this time of year I’m done with the heat, I’m done mowing grass, and I’m ready to bundle up next to a fire. Although temporary, the refreshment provided by a change of season is always welcome, especially during a difficult year.” Yet all these things are just temporary…

If You Could See What You Will Be

“Some of the sweetest and deepest promises of God are also some of the most neglected, often because they either feel too great to grasp or because they don’t seem to immediately intersect with life today. For instance, is any promise more staggering and yet forgotten than what God says about our glory? The one worthy of all glory not only commands us to glorify him in whatever we do, but he also vows, almost unthinkably, to one day glorify us. Can you imagine it?”

How Algorithms Discern Our Mood From What We Write Online

On the one hand it’s interesting that algorithms are increasingly able to gauge our mood. On the other hands, it’s concerning that they may soon be able to take action on their assessments.

God or Satan? On David’s Sin in 2 Samuel and 1 Chronicles

Sinclair Ferguson: “God may lead us into temptation to show us our sin and to chasten us for it. This is part of the meaning of the strange (to us) parallel passages in 2 Samuel and 1 Chronicles in which God and Satan are both said to have incited David to number Israel…”

Flashback: Three Vivid Images of Unity in Diversity

Our only hope for true and deep and lasting unity in diversity is the gospel of Jesus Christ! God receives all the glory when he so transforms people that their deepest divisions are willingly set aside and swept away by love.

The Master says (and the experience of His people has confirmed) that men of strong faith are men of much prayer.

—Andrew Murray

  • Are We Living in the Last Days

    Are We Living in the Last Days?

    The world is a mess. The world is a mess and seems to be getting messier. I could draw up an inventory of all the wars and conflicts, the diseases and disasters, the rise of immorality and decline of virtue, but that would be to tell you what you have already observed and already know.…

  • A La Carte Friday 2

    A La Carte (March 29)

    A La Carte: How to protect your kids from sexual abuse / Talk to God about what hurts / How’s your Bible reading plan going? / Resentment between men and women in the church / and more.

  • A Batch of New Books for Kids

    A Batch of New Books for Kids (and Teens)

    Every month I put together a roundup of new and notable books for grownup readers. But I also receive a lot of books for kids and like to put together the occasional roundup of these books as well. So today I bring you a whole big batch of new books for kids of all ages…

  • A La Carte Thursday 1

    A La Carte (March 28)

    A La Carte: The case against the abortion pill / What I’ve learned about grieving with hope / Heartbreaking deception: teen girls, social media, and body image / Could podcasts save the church from stupidity? / Count it all joy / and more.

  • 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.