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Weekend A La Carte (December 16)

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I’m very grateful to BJU for sponsoring the blog this week to provide a A Biblical-Theological Examination of Melancholy. Sponsors play a key role in keeping this site going, and I’m grateful for each one.

Westminster Books is wondering if you know of an aspiring pastor, missionary, counselor, or teacher. If you do, they’ve got a gift they’d like to send them.

There are pretty much always some new Kindle deals on Saturdays, and today is no exception.

(Yesterday on the blog: Like a River)

Why I Changed My Mind About Deconstruction

While writing a book about deconstruction, Tim Barnett wondered “why so many who deconstruct their faith end up leaving the faith that was once for all delivered to the saints.” He puts the pieces together in this article at Stand to Reason.

Yes, There’s Room for Women in Missions

“If you spend any time in Christian missions, you’ll almost certainly notice more women serving than men. That’s what I’ve observed wherever I’ve traveled overseas, and the statistics bear this out. For over a century, women have made up the majority of the evangelical missionary workforce.” Elliot Clark reflects on that reality.

Sheila Wray Gregoire, Sex and the Evangelical Girl

Anne Kennedy has a helpful assessment of what Sheila Wray Gregoire teaches about sex in her books and podcasts.

15,409 Days: Psalm 90 and Wisdom

“15,409 days. That’s how long my dear wife lived on this Earth. When we were dating, we obviously had no idea. When we got engaged, there were no mystical revelations. And when we got married, this number certainly wasn’t written on the back of the marriage certificate for us to see.” Andy considers what might have been different had they known.

Did Paul Write the Pastorals? Seven Questions for Those Who Think He Didn’t

“Unless and until adequate answers can be given to these questions, the claim that the Pastoral Epistles are the work of the apostle Paul himself, and not of a pseudepigrapher, or even of a close disciple writing after his death, must be allowed to stand as a valid position based on proper scholarly criteria.”

Shepherd Feet

“Shepherd feet make paths. Up hills and through fields. As shepherds do what shepherds do. Tending flocks. And keeping watch. Under sun and stars and moon. Alert for thieves and predators. Protecting the sheep. And little do they know. Their ordinary feet are about to change. Into the extraordinary. Beautiful feet.”

Flashback: Purposeful and Persistent Parenting

John and Cindy Raquet parent as weirdly as any of us, but their weirdnesses generally overlap with my own, and it’s for that reason that I so enjoyed reading their book Purposeful and Persistent Parenting.

Grace does not make sin safe. But grace does make sinners safe.

—Matt Chandler

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    A La Carte (April 23)

    A La Carte: Climate anxiety paralyzes, gospel hope propels / Living what God has written / How should I engage my rebellious child? / Satan hates your pastor / How to navigate our spiritual highs / The art of extemporaneous preaching / and more.

  • The Path to Contentment

    The Path to Contentment

    I wonder if you have ever considered that the solution to discontentment almost always seems to be more. If I only had more money I would be content. If I only had more followers, more possessions, more beauty, then at last I would consider myself successful. If only my house was bigger, my influence wider,…

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    A La Carte (April 22)

    A La Carte: Why my shepherd carries a rod / When Mandisa forgave Simon Cowell / An open mind is like an open mouth / Marriage: the half-time report / The church should mind its spiritual business / Kindle deals / and more.

  • It Begins and Ends with Speaking

    It Begins and Ends with Speaking

    Part of the joy of reading biography is having the opportunity to learn about a person who lived before us. An exceptional biography makes us feel as if we have actually come to know its subject, so that we rejoice in that person’s triumphs, grieve over his failures, and weep at his death.

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    Weekend A La Carte (April 20)

    A La Carte: Living counterculturally during election season / Borrowing a death / The many ministries of godly women / When we lose loved ones and have regrets / Ethnicity and race and the colorblindness question / The case for children’s worship services / and more.

  • The Anxious Generation

    The Great Rewiring of Childhood

    I know I’m getting old and all that, and I’m aware this means that I’ll be tempted to look unfavorably at people who are younger than myself. I know I’ll be tempted to consider what people were like when I was young and to stand in judgment of what people are like today. Yet even…