On Saturday I’ll be sharing some reader recommendations. If you have something to recommend, it’s not too late! Click here and let me know what you’re watching, reading, using, eating, drinking, or otherwise enjoying.
Sales & Deals
Today’s Kindle deals include books on singleness, Mormonism, philosophy, and more.
Recommended Reading
Understanding Revelation: Who Are the 144,000? I have been enjoying Benjamin L. Gladd’s series on the book of Revelation. In this entry he explores the much-disputed 144,000. “Though we could say a great deal about how the 144,000 relate to other portions of Revelation, let’s just consider 7:4–8 and see how the group figuratively refers to the church between the two comings of Christ.”
Should I Plead My Righteousness? Dan Crabtree asks a question that is maybe a bit more complicated than it first appears. “Should we pray to the Lord to deal with us according to our own righteousness? Should we ask, ‘Father, please help me because I’m innocent in this’? Can we humbly say, ‘O God, please give me what I deserve’?”
Soul-Stirring Stories from the East and the Global South A would-be suicide bomber who now pastors in Turkey; war-weary Ukrainians bringing hope to their neighbors; a Rwandan pastor who forgave the man who killed his family. Ellen Vaughn writes, “[My] focus in telling these strange stories to myself and to you is to remind us of something more elemental: the absolute mystery and power of the gospel. Many of us have forgotten the main thing. There is power in the name of Jesus.” Use code CHALLIES and get 30% off at thegoodbook.com. (Sponsored)
Rummaging Through Bins, All for a Walk. In an especially sweet article, Marie Garreau draws a biblical lesson from a life experience. “I glanced about to see if anyone watched before lifting the lid to the trash can. No one. So I peered in—nothing. We moved down the back road behind the nice houses to the next one, looking for all intents and purposes like rummaging vagabonds—except, we weren’t.”
Science Can’t Tell Us the Most Amazing Things About the Human Body. Chase Krug has a thought-provoking article about the human body. “Because of the amazing insight furnished by modern research, it’s natural to assume that the key to discerning the most profound truths about the body’s design and capabilities lies in scientific inquiry. Intuitive as it might seem, I believe this assumption is mistaken.”
The Ministry of Saying Less. Peter Mead explains how you might serve best by saying a whole lot less. “In preaching, teaching, counselling, and leadership, there is something to be said for saying less. I am not suggesting that we become aloof and mysterious. But there is a danger that we can say so much that people start to miss what they most need to hear.”
Don’t Let AI Steal Your Blessing. This is wise counsel for those who use AI: make sure it doesn’t steal your blessing. “Artificial intelligence (AI) has been a hot topic for quite a while. Think 1984, James Cameron’s The Terminator. Rogue AI coming to destroy humanity. Little did Cameron know at the time that AI’s most powerful form would be used for making Will Smith eat spaghetti and creating terrible music. And while, at least for now, I’m not concerned about AI overlords destroying humanity, I still find myself worried. I’m not worried that AI will take my job or my life, but I’m concerned that AI will take my blessing.”
Enjoying
Here are a few things I have been enjoying recently.
Shipwrecked: Nightmare at Sea. This new Netflix documentary tells about the sinking of the Costa Concordia. It’s probably just an average documentary in a lot of ways, but I was delighted to hear a Christian couple speak explicitly of their faith and their trust in the Lord. I found that especially encouraging.
Siri AI. I don’t generally use beta software, but I made an exception for the new iPadOS. Apple products have fallen very far behind their competitors when it comes to their digital assistants, and I was eager to try the new Siri AI. While I can say that I have not been blown away, I am thankful that it has come a long way when compared to its predecessor, especially when it comes to voice-to-text, which I use constantly.
Japanese Cheesecake. I had never had Japanese cheesecake before this weekend, when we visited some church members and they served it to us. I will most definitely be having it again. It is much lighter and airier than other cheesecakes and, in that way, very enjoyable. Highly recommended!
Flashback
Why Marriage Is Better Than Cohabitation. Marriage offers a number of important benefits that are absent from cohabitation—benefits that extend to couples, to their children, to their families, and to society as a whole. Christopher Ash helpfully outlines these in his book Married for God.
Until you see the cross as that which is done by you, you will never appreciate that it is done for you.
—John Stott
