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A La Carte (May 5)

tuesday

RHB and other publishers have come through with a few good Kindle deals, so the avid collectors want to take a peek.

(Yesterday on the blog: COVID-19, Pandemics, and Ventilators: Chatting with a Doctor on the Front Lines)

Murray Campbell: “As we approach two months of COVID-19 restrictions, I have noticed a number of trends beginning to emerge among Australian Churches. These indications are based on my own experience and the many conversations I am having with pastors across the country. Also, standing behind the observations are these 3 theological premises: God remains Sovereign over the world today; Human nature doesn’t change. The Bible’s doctrine of total depravity remains the status quo; The Gospel of Jesus Christ remains good, true, and powerful today.”

How Starbucks Created America’s Coffee Craze (Video)

This video is undoubtedly too positive toward Starbucks, but it’s still an interesting little biographical sketch of the company that kicked off America’s coffee craze.

COVID-19 and the Church

9Marks has launched a mini-site to resource churches and pastors as they continue to lead through the pandemic.

Headed Home

Randy Alcorn: “Because we’ve already lived on earth, I think it will seem from the first that we’re coming home. The New Earth will strike us as familiar because it will be the old earth raised, as our bodies will be our old bodies raised. The New Earth will be the home we’ve always longed for.”

Embracing Fragility

“This pandemic should cause us to embrace our fragility. To remind ourselves that even with our advancements in science, our state of the art technology, our unprecedented standard of living, and our greater life expectancy, we can lose it all in a blink of an eye. We are not God.” But this should not cause us to despair. Far from it!

The De-conversion of Saruman: Five Lessons to Learn

Michael Kruger shows how Saruman provides some lessons on de-conversion. “Tolkien’s world is more nuanced than just the good guys and the bad guys. Instead, there are actually good guys that become bad guys—which makes things very complicated. It’s a perfect picture of de-conversion.”

A Greater Healing

You may enjoy this new poem from Leanne Todd. Having been touched by pain and disability, she writes about healing and a greater healing.

Flashback: 2 Ways To Look at the People in Your Church

You can’t act surprised when a hospital is full of sick people and shouldn’t be surprised when a church is full of messy, sinful people.

God’s meticulous sovereignty—whether we live or die—serves his holiness and righteousness and goodness and wisdom. In Christ we are not his dispensable pawns. We are his valued children.

—John Piper

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    A La Carte (November 12)

    A La Carte: Humbly admitting we are vulnerable to sexual temptation / On aging into childhood / The criticized leader / Kevin DeYoung’s “plus one” approach to church / pitfalls in women’s ministry leadership / and more.

  • Dr Google

    Doctor Google, Influencer Moms, and the Local Church

    A family member was recently paying a visit to a doctor who provided his diagnosis of the condition and suggested a course of treatment. My family member listened patiently but then said, “I was wondering if we could actually try another treatment instead.” The doctor playfully rolled his eyes and said, “I see you’ve been…

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    A La Carte (November 11)

    A La Carte: Why am I so spiritually dry? / Holy imposter syndrome / When those we respect disappoint us / Through many tribulations / Answering a question that hasn’t been asked / Book and Kindle deals / and more.

  • Intact

    Intact and Unmoved

    Corrie ten Boom knew what it was to suffer deprivation, to have to do without so many of life’s luxuries and even its necessities. Arrested and sent to a concentration camp for her role in sheltering Jews from the Nazis, she spent almost a year in confinement and suffered the loss of her father and…

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    Weekend A La Carte (November 9)

    A La Carte: Waiting on God / Approach, My Soul / Chronic illness / A comforting verse for not so great preachers / Love the church like Jesus / and more.

  • Free Stuff Fridays (P&R Publishing)

    This week the blog and giveaway have been sponsored by P&R Publishing. Calvin, Spurgeon, and Luther appear alongside Wordsworth, Twain, and Emerson in a vibrant celebration of God’s creation. Ryken joins great works of poetry, hymnody, prose, and art with accessible literary analysis. “John Calvin referred to nature as the theater of God’s glory. Dr.…