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A La Carte (October 19)

thursday

As a devotee of chronological Bible-reading plans, I was pleased to learn of the new ESV Chronological Bible that Crossway just announced and released. It’s available in hardcover and TruTone.

(Yesterday on the blog: On the Day When God Fails in Just One of His Promises)

The Remembrance of Blood

This is a strong article by Andrew Roycroft. “As Christians what do we have to say about human life, large scale bloodshed, and the injustice that often follows it? Does the Bible provide us with a framework for processing and addressing these issues in a morally satisfying way? How can we think well about the legacy of blood that stains the conscience of the world we live in?”

Remember Sybil

“Remember Multiple Personality Disorder (MPD)? The 1980 diagnostic manual called DSM-III defined MPD for the first time, but the psychiatric professionals in 1994 changed the diagnosis (in the DSM-IV) to Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID). According to Psychology Today the change was ‘to reflect a better understanding of the condition—namely, that it is characterized by fragmentation or splintering of identity, rather than by proliferation or growth of separate personalities.’ (PT, 9.21). Splintering rather than separate.” Nathan draws an important lesson from this.

Is It Wrong to Have Sex Before Marriage?

Obviously it is wrong, but it’s important we consider the reasons for this (as Kevin DeYoung does here). “Not long ago, an American politician found herself in an awkward situation when she mentioned at a prayer breakfast that she was running late for the event because her fiancé wanted to have sex that morning. From her public admission, it was clear that the woman and her fiancé were living together and were in a sexual relationship. What was also clear is that the woman—a professing Christian at an evangelical church (with her pastor in the audience)—didn’t realize she had said or done anything wrong.”

Prayer Requests from a Church in Israel

Randy Alcorn passes along prayer requests from a local church in Israel. It is good to know how to pray for our brothers and sisters there.

“Have you ever met a chronic navel-gazer? Well, if you haven’t before, you have now. Hi, my name is Brittany. Nice to meet you.”

Trust the Lord in Your Marriage

We know that God calls us to “trust in the Lord with all your heart.” In this article, Jacob calls us to do so in a very particular area.

Flashback: 5 Bad Substitutes for Discipline

Because discipline is unpopular and unpleasant, parents often find themselves looking for substitutes. In her book Parenting Against the Tide, Ann Benton lists five poor substitutes for disciplining our children—five poor substitutes that fail to address the heart.

Believers don’t depend on luck, chance, fate, or fortune. We trust a God who has planned all things for our good and His glory. Trust, rejoice, obey.

—Dustin Benge

  • A Deadly Enemy

    One of the most poignant of Jesus’s parables tells the story of a persistent widow. Having faced injustice at the hand of an adversary, this woman appealed to the local judge. She asked him to use his power and authority to right the wrong that had been done to her. But to her sorrow, she…

  • A La Carte Collection cover image

    Weekend A La Carte (March 1)

    A La Carte: Christians and romantasy / Own your faith / Piper’s advice for reading Romans / You’ll ruin everything / Don’t scratch the itch / Correctly confess your sins / and more.

  • New and Notable February

    New and Notable Christian Books for February 2025

    February is typically a solid month for book releases, and this February was no exception. As the month drew to its close, I sorted through the many (many!) books that came my way this month and arrived at this list of new and notables. In each case, I’ve provided the editorial description to give you…

  • A La Carte Friday 2

    A La Carte (February 28)

    A La Carte: Rhett & Link and cherry-picking Jesus / lost pieces of a good romance / New from CityAlight / Tim Keller was the king of endnotes / Lead a church without losing your soul / Do we ever stop grieving? / Book sale / and more.

  • A La Carte Thursday 1

    A La Carte (February 27)

    A La Carte: Different than I expected / The indispensable inefficiency of prayer / Dumb church / Pleading the blood / Love songs and Christian marriage / Acts of God / and more.