Skip to content ↓

A La Carte (July 1)

friday

Happy Canada Day to all my fellow Canadians. 🇨🇦

At Westminster Books you’ll find a deal on a resource meant to help younger people engage with the great hymns of the Christian faith.

Today’s Kindle deals include a couple of books.

(Yesterday on the blog: Seasons of Sorrow: The Release Event (You’re Invited!))

The Triviality of Pro-Choice Memes

After SCOTUS handed down its decision, “there was much justified jubilation, as well as frustrated weeping, regret, sorrow, fear, and the full panoply of human emotion that such a movement towards costly justice could be expected to engender from advocates and foes. And, of course, in our culture that has displaced reasoned discourse with the image, the ad, and the infographic, there were many annoying memes.”

Is Church Growth Desirable or Dangerous? Yes.

There are lots of good thoughts in this one. “A lack of prayer is a mark of self-sufficiency, and it is simultaneously a cause of self-sufficiency. There could be few things more dangerous for the souls of church leaders than to lead prayerlessly and then to see growth. Woe to him who does not pray for what he needs, but a double-woe to him to whom God grants success apart from prayer.”

Valor Without Renown

Kristin reflects on valor without renown (and life without social media).

If You Find Listening to Sermons Boring, Try This

“During my lifetime I reckon I’ve heard about 4,000 sermons. Often I have been challenged, uplifted, provoked, transformed. Sadly, other times, I have been bored.” Here are some ways to gain more from the sermon.

Gospel Light in the Red Light District

Lauren Ray shares some of her efforts to represent Christ in Amsterdam’s infamous Red Light District.

Gen Z Mental Health Crisis: How Pastors Can Make a Difference

I’ve heard so much about the Gen Z mental health crisis—as have you, I expect. This article shares ways that pastors (and others) can make a difference.

Flashback: You Don’t Really Know Who Your Friends Are Until…

Jesus is unchanged and unchanging. He will not bow to the changing culture, he will not cede to the rising tide. Jesus will only ever be who he is and who he has always been. And each of us has a choice to make.

Don’t ever degenerate into giving advice unconnected to the good news of Jesus crucified, alive, present, at work and returning.

—David Powlison

  • Finn

    I’m a Grandfather!

    Yesterday Abby and Nathan welcomed their first child into the world: Finnegan Safir Nicholas Elfarrah. Because they live just minutes away, Aileen and I were able to be there shortly after his birth to rejoice with them and to meet our first grandchild. We are thrilled beyond measure. And he is cute beyond belief. They…

  • A La Carte Collection cover image

    A La Carte (November 20)

    A La Carte: Pray till you pray / Do children need to consent to puberty? / Pleading for Sodom / A thought experiment / 10 mistakes when reading the Bible / Kindle deals / and more.

  • A La Carte Collection cover image

    A La Carte (November 19)

    A La Carte: Good night, my son / The longing for justice following sexual assault / Daughter of encouragement / Mistakes I made as a theological student / The dangers of disordered love / Kindle deals / and more.

  • What Grieves the Heart of God

    What Grieves the Heart of God?

    What pleases God? What delights his heart? And what displeases God? What grieves his heart? If asked, I think most of us would assume that if we ever grieve the heart of God it will be through denying the gospel or committing a grave moral scandal. Or if we do so as a local church,…

  • A La Carte Collection cover image

    A La Carte (November 18)

    A La Carte: When God does not need our service / How to forgive and move on / A devotional for depression / Can a speeding ticket change your heart? / Is it I, Lord? / Kindle deals / and more.