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Weekend A La Carte (February 22)

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I’m grateful to Ligonier Ministries for sponsoring the blog this week. They want you to know that a 40th anniversary edition of The Holiness of God is available when you provide a donation of any amount. Many would echo me when I say it’s one of the best and most formative books I’ve ever read.

Today’s Kindle deals include a selection of newer books and classics.

(Yesterday on the blog: Either/Or or Both/And?)

Augustine’s ‘Ordo Amoris’ and Immigration Policy

J.V. Fesko considers the “ordo amoris” and draws out an interesting point of encouragement. “For the last several decades, politics has become a battle of sound bites; more recently, our nation has undone 400 years of literacy by plying cultural memes as an engine of political and cultural warfare. In an otherwise bleak landscape, Vance’s invocation of Augustine’s order of love means that, whether right or wrong, he has appealed to a substantive idea rather than a sound bite or meme.”

The Unspoken Tongue

Joshua reflects on the silence of death. “Muffled tears and soft words broke the moment now and again, like small pebbles tossed onto the calm, unbroken surface of a lake. However, all these noises seemed swallowed up within the silence itself – the silence was roaring. One would expect the normal reaction to death and loss to be tears and grief; but when you come face to face with the beast itself, silence often feels most natural.”

Sin Casts a Long Shadow

Paul Levy reminds us that sin casts a long shadow.

But for the Cross of Christ (Video)

You may enjoy this new song from Bryan Fowler. “What is the truth / That ever anchors me / Amidst the waves of all my guilt / That Christ has shed / His blood and pardoned me / At the cross, at the cross.”

Prayers for Scrupulosity

Aubrynn shares some prayers she prays as she faces scrupulosity. They will be helpful, though, even for those who do not.

Don’t Wait to Be Thankful

Erin writes transparently about an especially difficult time in her life and faith. “I’m done waiting to be thankful. Today I give God praise that the dark thoughts have been absent. Even if they return tomorrow, that doesn’t erase the fact that I’ve had three days without them, and it doesn’t erase the fact that God heard my prayers and the prayers of those who love me. Tomorrow’s troubles don’t negate today’s blessings, and nothing can take away God’s goodness.”

Flashback: When We Go Unnourished

…if you, my friend, fail to nourish your soul, you have no cause to be surprised when your soul feels dry, when your faith feels parched, when you seem only to whither and fade.

The Jesus admired by liberals and skeptics would never have been convicted of blasphemy and crucified.

—Michael Horton

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    A La Carte (August 26)

    A La Carte: How much church can I miss? / Gentleness / I miss the pews / Teaching children (and adults) to read / It’s a virtue / Extraordinary results and ordinary means / Book and Kindle deals.

  • Go Into All the World: Embracing the Mission Mandate of God’s Covenant

    Though unashamedly committed to the Biblical doctrine of election, the Reformed faith does not allow the believer to attempt the impossible task to curiously investigate God’s decree, and to speculate about who is and who is not elect. Rather, the Reformed faith emboldens the church to proclaim the gospel to all people, nations, and tongues…

  • Vulnerable

    The Times When You Are Most Vulnerable

    This is an opportunity that exists in any suffering: To answer the sneers of the world. So you can show the world around that no matter what God takes from you, you will continue to love him, you will continue to praise him, you will continue to cling to his promises. To show that as…

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    A La Carte (August 25)

    A La Carte: A world of opinions / Don’t hand education over to AI / A reflexive fear of AI doesn’t serve Christ / The hidden blessing of being a single parent / 3 things to avoid in Christian bookstores / Many Kindle deals / and more.

  • Grounded

    Are You Grounded?

    Psalm 92 commends those who do not merely go through the outward motions of religion, but who genuinely and from the heart love to praise and honor God. “The righteous flourish like the palm tree and grow like a cedar in Lebanon. They are planted in the house of the LORD; they flourish in the…

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    Weekend A La Carte (August 23)

    A La Carte: The changing of the Evangelical guard / Open homes in a closed-off world / Don’t dismiss brain rot / We were made for less / The praise of men / A godward focus / and more.