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A La Carte (March 8)

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I apologize to the email subscribers who did not receive yesterday’s A La Carte. The fault was mine!

Westminster Books has a special deal on a new book for pastors. Several other titles for pastors are similarly discounted.

(Yesterday on the blog: God’s Grace for Every Family)

5 Qualities We Should Look for in Our Political Leaders

Kevin DeYoung outlines some qualities we should look for (and hope for and wish for) in our political leaders.

Nihilism—in Nazi Germany and Today

Carl Trueman: “We have witnessed amazing technological advances since the 1940s. The transformation of humanity from a given, limited, teleological essence to a potency whose limits and ends are merely technical problems to be overcome is now complete (at least in the cultural imagination). Ironically, human technical brilliance has served to make human beings into nothing of any great significance. We are the only creatures on the planet who are intelligent and intentional enough to have abolished ourselves.”

CityAlight – Jerusalem (Live)

CityAlight is celebrating 10 years since their first single by releasing a previously-unreleased video of what I still think is one of their best songs.

Is My Child Transgender Because of Me?

“One of the great anxieties that parents face is the fear of what our own sins could do to corrupt our kids. It can be a paralyzing anxiety, one that has come up on the podcast in many different forms.” John Piper addresses such a distressed parent in this Ask Pastor John.

Are Leaders Necessarily Readers?

You’ve heard it before, I’m sure: leaders are readers. But is that necessarily the case? Stephen takes a slightly contrarian position here.

Good People Get Good Things

Most people and most religions operate (whether subtly or explicitly) in such a way that good people get good things and bad people get bad things. Sometimes even Christians.

Flashback: Most To Jesus I Surrender (or Maybe Just Some)

Do we really fully surrender to him those things that we love most, or do we effectively bring him what is lame and spotted, what is of little consequence and low on our list of priorities?

We may meet death in confidence and victory only if our hopes are firmly and entirely grounded in His merits on our behalf.

—Guy Prentiss Waters

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    A La Carte (November 21)

    A La Carte: Lessons from Trump’s and Harris’s social media campaigns / What is my spiritual gift? / The messages we receive / 10 mistakes I’ve made in preaching / Big Kindle and book sales / and more.

  • 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…

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    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.

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    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,…