Skip to content ↓

A La Carte (December 1)

thursday

The beginning of a new month is a good time to remind ourselves that right now, at this very moment, God is reigning from his throne.

This month Westminster Books has great deals on all kinds of ESV Bibles.

There are a few Kindle deals to look at today.

(Yesterday on the blog: No, It Wasn’t the Vaccine)

Disney’s ‘Strange World’ Embodies Strange New World

Brett McCracken: “Two 2022 releases: Disney’s Strange World and Carl Trueman’s Strange New World. Any youth unfortunate enough to have seen the former should be required to read the latter. Disney’s film represents the cultural sickness Trueman’s book analyzes.”

What Does It Mean to Enter into Temptation?

“Jesus doesn’t say, ‘Watch and pray, so you won’t be tempted.’ There is no way you can get into a place in the Christian life where you are no longer tempted. He says, ‘Watch and pray, so that you will not fall into temptation.’ Literally it says, ‘so that you will not enter into temptation.’”

The Life and Ministry of Rev. William Pettigrew

I appreciate Boboy Nameirakpam Singh introducing us to “the first Christian missionary in Manipur, one of the northeastern states of India.”

Gospel Diversity & not hiding our light under a bushel

“Many of us insist that our churches are open to everyone. We want our churches to express the manifold wisdom of God and the glory of Christ through the gospel. I am quite sure everyone who says these things genuinely means them. But many of us are in contexts that make it harder to see.”

Preacher, What’s on Your Kids Menu?

John Joseph encourages preachers to ensure there’s something “on the menu” for kids during the sermon.

Sunday evening exhaustion

“Do you ever get to the end of a Sunday feeling shattered? If you’ve come to church in the morning, gone to someone’s house for lunch (or done the actual hosting), made it to the afternoon service, then talked to people after the service, by the time you get home, you can be exhausted, and frazzled. Rather than being replenished by Sundays, it’s easy to feel drained.”

Flashback: Services Shaped Like an Hourglass

We begin our service distracted, narrow our focus to Jesus Christ, then broaden our gaze to living in this world for God’s glory. We do it again the next week, and again the week after that.

Prayer is a very hard thing to do because it seems like we aren’t doing anything. But it’s also hard because it’s a humble act. We must humble ourselves before God’s mighty hand regularly and cast our cares on Him.

—Tony Merida

  • Closet

    How To Learn To Pray

    Christians are well-resourced with tremendous books that teach the theology and the practice of prayer. Many churches and ministries offer powerful classes that teach why we must pray and how we must pray. We are truly blessed.

  • A La Carte Collection cover image

    Weekend A La Carte (January 25)

    A La Carte: The digital allure of being attended to / He Is Making All Things Right (a new song) / To the parents of the wild ones / Five things you can control / Parenting and pornography / and more.

  • Children Theology

    How To Teach Kids Theology

    Churches have few responsibilities more urgent and few honors more profound than teaching and training children. Every week these little ones show up with their parents and every week there are opportunities to reach them with truths that will change their hearts and transform their lives. It is little wonder, then, that there are multitudes…

  • A La Carte Collection cover image

    A La Carte (January 24)

    A La Carte: Love your (actual) neighbor / Whiteness: an African translation / How Jesus helps my unbelief / Could you be a global nomad for the gospel? / God doesn’t work for me / Kindle deals / and more.

  • Books for Parents

    Books about the Challenges of Parenting in a Modern World

    Every generation of parents faces challenges as they raise their children in the discipline and instruction of the Lord. While some challenges are the same from age to age, others are unique to a particular time and context. Perhaps the greatest challenge of our day relates to new notions of gender, sexuality, and identity. Today’s…