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Weekend A La Carte (June 15)

A La Carte Collection cover image

I am grateful to Moody Publishers for sponsoring the blog this week so they could tell you about a timely new book titled Known for Love. In it, Casey Hough provides a biblical and theological framework for thinking through the hard situations we encounter with family and friends. Drawing from a well of faithful biblical scholars, Hough provides insights for everyday Christians living in a sexually broken world.

Westminster Kids Week wraps up with a neat new title from Paul Tautges.

Today’s Kindle deals include some newer and older titles.

(Yesterday on the blog: Making Good Return)

The Lord Sees: Learn to Rest in God’s Justice

Trevin Wax: “The heart’s silent cry, giving rise to tears of anguish no one else sees—the aloneness compounds the heartache. In those moments when you’re wronged, or your name is slandered, or your intentions are questioned . . . In the times when you feel alone or abandoned . . . In the aftermath of saying what’s true and paying a price, when you’ve experienced the deep wounds of injustice or betrayal . . . the Lord sees.”

3 Reasons Why Your Small Group Is Not a Church

Church is good. Small group is good. But it’s important that we maintain the distinction between them. “I will explain three reasons why your small group is not a church, but keep in mind that all three reasons (not just the first) are simply clarifying and unpacking this fundamental point: churches wield heaven’s authority, small groups do not.”

How Can I Be a Godly Father?

Joel Smit considers a few biblical fathers and their examples of faithfulness or lack of faithfulness. “These Old Testament stories are given by God for more than just parental instruction, but at the same time, they are not less than that. Therefore, they offer us both warnings and opportunities to learn how to best lead our children (and ourselves) toward godliness.”

Gender in the Void

Doug includes some interesting points in his look at the deconstruction of gender. “Gender exists, and it is a real thing. That is why the sexual revolutionaries have the footing to speak rationally about it; we all have an objective point of reference. They must borrow from the traditional worldview to make any sense of their own. However, they refute themselves when they lean on the historical understanding of gender in their attempts to undermine it.”

Are Images of Christ OK?

TGC has a pair of articles that each answer this question: Are images of Christ OK? The negative response is linked above while the positive response can be found here. (For what it’s worth, I’d lean well toward the “no” side.)

The Getting of Wisdom

“We are a culture obsessed with assessment. In addition to physical assessments, these days, there are all kinds of tests to measure our personality, emotional state, intellect, productivity, and relational capacities. Do you know what we’ve never been able to find a tool to measure? Our wisdom.”

Flashback: Fruitfulness and Usefulness

Look inside, to be certain, but also look outside to ensure the fruit of your relationship with the Lord is a gift not only to you, but to all you know, all you love.

Human fatherhood exists to display the beauty of God’s Fatherhood. Our highest calling as fathers is to be the image of God’s fatherhood to our children.

—John Piper

  • Men in the Image of Women and Women in the Image of Men

    Men in the Image of Women and Women in the Image of Men

    God made men and God made women. God made men distinct from women and women distinct from men. God made men and women equal in worth and value while also making them distinct in some purpose and function. It’s all obvious stuff, this—obvious matters of differences between the sexes.

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    A La Carte (April 14)

    A La Carte: The healing of that old ache / Grounds for everyday smiles / A “quiet revival” in the UK / When Scripture gets stale / Praying when it feels like God isn’t listening / Kindle deals / and more.

  • A Less Busy Heart

    In the midst of our busy lives, we can sometimes wonder whether we really have the time to pray. Won’t prayer hinder our productivity? Won’t prayer keep us from getting done all the things we need to do?

  • A La Carte Collection cover image

    Weekend A La Carte (April 12)

    A La Carte: Designer babies / The dragon and the rooster / Leper Christianity / Theologians against nature / Faithful and small / The missing heart of AI sermons / Douglas Groothuis books / and more.

  • Good News Rock Bottom

    Good News at Rock Bottom

    Life most certainly brings its challenges. Some of these are just little ruts along the way, some are deep and dark valleys, and some are lower still—the kind of rock bottom experiences that are so dreadful we wonder if we will be able to endure them with our faith intact.