Midweek Miscellanies (9/22/21) – An assortment of articles, book recommendations, blog posts, podcasts and other links that we hope you find helpful.
Do This Breathing Exercise for Healthy Christian Living: Dane Ortlund on the necessary connection of reading Scripture and prayer. “I like to think of Scripture and prayer as inhaling and exhaling because that shows the two necessarily go together. Some people might think they really need to be disciplined in their study of Scripture, but they neglect prayer. Or, others really want a strong prayer life, but they’re praying all kinds of things that are all over the place content-wise and aren’t shaped by Scripture.”
Ten Questions to Diagnose Your Spiritual Health: Questions to help diagnose our spiritual health.
The Dearest Place on Earth: “The church is a unique institution set up by God himself for his specific purposes. There is nothing else like it. Where else do members meet together weekly for singing and teaching? Where else is there a bond based not on social status, race, or poverty levels but rather on our redemption in Christ? Where else is there an expectation of love for neighbor and self-sacrifice for the sake of others? Where else do men and women consider themselves part of an eternal family?”
God is in the Details: This is a neat video that shows some of the incredible details in God’s creation.
5 Encouragements for Women in Midlife: Five encouragements to help Christian women navigate midlife well in an era that glorifies youth and is filled with new pressures, stresses, and changing roles?
Men – Seek Transparency Rather than Accountability: This is a good encouragement from Ray Ortlund: “I don’t like the word accountability. I don’t like the category of accountability. At times, it opens the door for men to be pressured, cornered, and coerced into admitting what they really don’t want to admit. But I would rather speak in terms of transparency because that’s mutual. We share transparency.”
The Death of Porn: Speaking of Ray Ortlund (see above) Tim Challies reviews Ray’s important new work “The Death of Porn. – “Here’s what I ask you to remember all along the way,” he says. “Your battle against porn isn’t about porn. It isn’t about sex. It isn’t about willpower. Your battle is about hope. It’s about your heart believing that in spite of your many sins—like my many sins—God rejoices to give you a future you can scarcely dream of. You’ll win your fight by believing that God’s love for you is too great to be limited to what you deserve.”
Hope for Waiting Hearts: “I recently heard a pastor say, “The waiting may be hard, but it never leads to disappointment.” The truth of that statement rests entirely on what we think we are waiting for. In other words, the question isn’t simply what am I waiting for, but what am I hoping in? I’m learning that waiting and hope are intimately tied together.”