Good morning. Grace and peace to you.
Today’s Kindle deals include several titles by Nancy Guthrie (along with some others).
(Yesterday on the blog: God Graciously Condescends)
Murder of Crows? The Oddities of Collective Names
This is a thoroughly enjoyable reflection on the way we names collectives, whether of birds or people. “Given enough time, virtually every hobby develops its own bizarre vocabulary — wacky insider terms that sound absolutely alien to normal people. To say that someone ‘hit four sixes in an 18-ball 39’ sounds like a ludicrous math problem, unless you’re wise to the jargon of cricket. Instructing someone to ‘raise pressure foot and pivot’ could result in bodily injury, unless that someone is a quilter. It’s true that every generation has its lingo, but so does every worthwhile hobby.”
It’s You. Hi. You’re the Problem. It’s You.
Guilty as charged. “We are quick to think that the reason we experience conflict is because someone else is the problem. You fight with your boss because he’s a jerk. You fight with your wife because she’s unreasonable. You fight with your neighbor because she’s obnoxious.”
A Royal Lesson on the Rumor Mill from The Princess of Wales
This is a lesson we would do well to heed.
Pastoring is Tortoise Work: A Lesson for the Young and Aspiring
“Talking with a fellow pastor I know and trust, I recently asked a question. ‘What’s one quality you believe is indispensable for an effective pastor?’ After a moment’s thought, the answer came: patience.” That is well worth considering.
The Island of Lost Boys
Bethel McGrew writes about some of the lesser-known detransition stories. “When transgenderism was a budding fad, some people looked into their crystal balls and shrewdly predicted that a reckoning was coming. It wouldn’t be immediate, of course. It would take time for young people to realize they’d been screwed over. And it would take courage. Lots and lots of courage.”
What Must the Label “Evangelical” Do to Be Saved?
“Names and labels get … complicated when it comes to religious, social, and theological movements, especially when the name of the movement—as in the case of evangelicals—has a very important word embedded in it: evangel, the gospel.”
Flashback: Always Count the Cost
We must be willing to have others consider us fools or fanatics, to have our words twisted and even our purest actions misrepresented. We cannot expect or even hope that we will gain the favor of God and the favor of men.
Here is the history of the grass—sown, grown, blown, mown, gone; and the history of man is not much more.
—Charles Spurgeon
