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A La Carte (October 26)

tuesday

May the God of love and peace be with you today.

Logos users may want to check out some bundled deals of resources I recommend.

There’s an eclectic little mix of Kindle deals today and I expect quite a few more tomorrow.

(Yesterday on the blog: Why I Owe Everything To Don Lewis)

Friendship: The Foundation of Paul’s Global Ministry

Caleb Greggsen: “Spurred on by this urgent desperation [to change the world], Christians often look to the book of Acts. They want to find the apostle Paul’s secret sauce. How did he get the gospel to go forward? What can we learn from him? Which methods are we applying incorrectly? Which methods would produce the harvest we pray for? But Paul’s actions in Acts aren’t the first place we should look to learn from his ministry.”

Our Scattered Longings

“Like most girls my age, I struggled with my own body. The number on the tag of my pants seemed like the gateway to true happiness. I scanned the girls in my middle school and high school and concluded If only I looked like her… The end of that sentence was long. I’d be happier. More comfortable. More adventurous. Confident. Assertive. And obviously no longer single.”

Why Christians Should Avoid Alarmism (And What To Do Instead)

Akos Balogh writes about the ways in which Christians can be prone to alarmism. He also writes about the cost it exacts from us.

10 Truths About the Holy Spirit from Romans 8

Ryan Higginbottom looks at a much-loved chapter of the Bible to see some of what it tells us about the Holy Spirit.

Look Up

This article deals with the way we can be so focused on our little problems that we forget to elevate our gaze.

The Dreaded Answer

“We absolutely hate it. It’s vile and wretched and rarely the answer we want to hear. Yet, unfortunately, we often find it a regular part of life. What is this four-letter response that leads us to wince when we hear it?”

5 Steps for Connecting (or Reconnecting) With A Church

This one may be helpful to people who are between churches. “I hear many people say that they want or need to get plugged into a local church, but they aren’t sure where to start. Maybe you are one of those people.”

Flashback: The Influenced Will Be Like the Influencer

…bit by bit, day by day, sermon by sermon, podcast by podcast, we will come to resemble the people we follow. For good or for ill, we will imitate them until we are like them.

Contrast yourself not with those below you, but with God above. We are too prone to compare our white robes with the stained garments of others, rather than with those robes which were whiter than a fuller could white them.

—F.B. Meyer

  • Breath

    A Sudden Stopping of the Breath

    I recently encountered a poem I enjoyed and wanted to share with you. LeRoy Tate Newland was an American pastor, a missionary to Korea, and a poet. Among his poems is this brief reflection on the death of a Christian (which, appropriately, is titled “A Christian’s Death”). I hope you enjoy it as much as…

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    Weekend A La Carte (April 5)

    A La Carte: The Lioness, the Witch and the Wardrobe / Are people basically good? / Who gets to define a healthy baby? / Go, gently / Films that defined Christian politics / Rethinking our mission field / and more.

  • Sermon Introduction

    Three Levels of Sermon Introduction

    Though every sermon necessarily needs a beginning, it does not necessarily need a formal introduction. Though it has to begin somewhere, there is no rule that it must begin with some kind of story or illustration. A preacher can jump straight into his text if he so desires. Some do.

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    A La Carte (April 4)

    A LA Carte: Causes of division in the church / Union with Christians / The 1%-er rhetoric / Pray or sleep? / Distinguishing shame from guilt / Many more Kindle deals / and so on.

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    A La Carte (April 3)

    A La Carte: Never too late to learn how to pray / Walking with those who weep / Rethinking the role of pastor’s wife / What does the Bible mean when it teaches wives to submit? / Does God want some to go to hell? / Kindle deals / and more.