Blogs

Assessment: Are You at Risk of Generosity Burnout? | Adam Grant and Reb Rebele, HBR
Try this questionnaire to see if you need to say “No” more often.

Thinking Biblically about Authority: An Interview with David Wells | 9Marks
“In our culture, authority is resisted because it is seen as limiting personal options. It is seen to curtail individual autonomy. When autonomy to think, do, and say what we want is threatened, then our very self is endangered. This is what many think in our upside-down world.”

After Great Pain, Where Is God? | Peter Wehner, The New York Times
Poignant and perceptive:

“These days I find I’m more alert to the grief and sorrow around me than I once was. In part it’s a product of my age, of youth giving way. I’m guessing my situation is not that different from many of yours…”

When Children Worship | Donny Friederichsen, The Christward Collective
Read Donny’s encouragement for including children in the main worship service at church.

The Particular Temptations of Young Men | Tim Challies
“I love to spend time with young men, to counsel them, and to assure them that this time in their lives has great significance. As we speak, I find a number of common temptations they face while passing through their teens and twenties.”

Five Marks of a Servant Leader | Jon Bloom, Desiring God
“…the New Testament instructs us to exercise due diligence in discerning a Christian leader’s fitness (see, for instance, 1 Timothy 3:1–13). What traits do we look for in a leader that suggest his fundamental orientation is Christlike servanthood? This list is by no means exhaustive, but here are five fundamental indicators.”

Reading the Book Acknowledgments | Justin Taylor, TGC
Some humorous examples here:

“I know I am odd, but I almost cannot imagine reading a book and not wanting to read the author’s acknowledgments. Even in the most technical of books by the most erudite of authors, the acknowledgments serve as a reminder that the author is a human being, dependent upon the good graces of others to complete the long and lonely work of writing a publishable book…”

New Books

Looks like a great pair of books for all preachers.

How to Understand and Apply the Old Testament: Twelve Steps from Exegesis to Theology by Jason S. DeRouchie

How to Understand and Apply the New Testament: Twelve Steps from Exegesis to Theology by Andrew David Naselli

Kindle Deals

For your non-Kindle book buying needs please consider using Reformation Heritage Books in the USA and Reformed Book Services in Canada. Good value prices and shipping.

Women of the Word: How to Study the Bible with Both Our Hearts and Our Minds by Jen Wilkin ($4.99)

Women’s Ministry in the Local Church by J. Ligon Duncan and Susan Hunt ($4.99)

Walking with God in the Season of Motherhood: An Eleven-Week Devotional Bible Study by Melissa Kruger ($4.99)

Publishing is a scary business. It doesn’t matter if it’s a book, a video, a Facebook post, a blog, a Tweet, or an Instagram; whenever we press “publish” we just don’t know what’s going to happen.

Actually, come to think of it, we do. We’re going to get criticized. Sure, we may get some “Five Star Reviews,” some “Likes,” “Retweets,” “Shares,” and “Hearts,” but today it’s almost certain that we’re going to get some pain mixed in as well–the pain of rejection, the pain of mockery, the pain of dismissal, the pain of critique.

That’s why some people never press “Publish.” It’s why some of the best books ever written are never published. The fear of a negative reaction makes us retreat, often under the cover of false humility. Not publishing makes for an easier and more comfortable life. It protects our fragile ego and allows us to continue to be a critic rather than be criticized.

But, despite all the risks, many of us still venture forth, take a deep breath, press publish, and put our work out into the public domain. Then we wait for the response.

Then, crickets. Nothing. No one, or hardly anyone noticed. Not even a “Like.” Not even one one-star review?

Or perhaps some praise comes along, some encouraging comments, some good reviews. We receive it gladly. The ego basks in the acclaim of a total stranger. We’re tempted to re-post it, call attention to it, and exclaim how enlightened and discerning these readers are. But we’d rather be known for our humility than our pride. So we bite our egos and hope and pray that someone else will do the self-promotion for us.

Then, the dreaded first critique. Ouch! Then another. Double ouch! By the third, we are writhing on the floor and wishing we’d never written a word. We think, “Can I round up all my books and burn them so that no one ever knew they existed?”

Or, like some authors, we write lengthy painstaking defenses of our work, and how all our critics are wrong, and how they have mischaracterized and twisted every word, and how they are so dishonest and stupid and probably haven’t even read the book.

Or we can learn from our critics. Maybe they have a good point or two or three or more. They’ve wounded us, but the scars will stay with us and teach us to think better and express ourselves more accurately, more biblically, more comprehensively, and with better balance in the future.

And sometimes we just need to laugh–at the critics, at the criticisms, and yes, even at ourselves. One Amazon reviewer described my most recent book as “Tragically representative of modern-day American Christianity.” What can you do but laugh? The only surprise was that he still awarded it two stars!

There’s only one book I’ll defend to the death, and its author is God.

Blogs

10 Things You Should Know about Teenagers | Jaquelle Crowe, Crossway
From the author of This Changes Everything: How the Gospel Transforms the Teen Years.

Trusting God Enough to Lament | David A. Gundersen
“Psalmic complaint is a form of trust, because lamenting to God implies belief in his listening ear, his fatherly care, and his sovereign power.”

Young, Restless, and Reformed in China | Sarah Eekhoff Zylstra, TGC
“In August 2015, a Reformed pastor in China nailed 95 theses to his website.”

25 Signs of a Healthy Leader | Kristen McCall, SelmaWilson.com
“Even the best leader has potential to become unhealthy. That’s why regular assessments are vital.”

Become a Better Listener by Taking Notes | Sabina Nawaz, HBR
“Through my work with executive teams, I’ve developed a simple technique that can help anyone listen more effectively in meetings. I call it Margin Notes. You may already take notes during meetings, but unless you’re using them wisely to understand others and plan your response, you may still fall into the same trap of speaking before you think. Margin Notes allows you to think, process information, make connections between points of discussion, and ask effective questions instead of blurting out the first thing that comes to mind.”

Help Me Teach the Bible: Ed Welch on Helping Those Battling Shame, Addiction, or Anxiety | Nancy Guthrie, TGC
“In this conversation, Welch demonstrates how to present the Scriptures in a way that leads people who are seeking strategies or techniques for dealing with sins and problems to see that what they need most is a person, Jesus Christ. While admitting that applying Scripture to problems is hard work, Welch invites Bible teachers to move from teacher to friend by getting to know those we’re teaching enough to be affected by them. ”

Equipping You in Grace Podcast
Dave interviews me about my new book, Reset.

Kindle Deals

For your non-Kindle book buying needs please consider using Reformation Heritage Books in the USA and Reformed Book Services in Canada. Good value prices and shipping.

Praying Together: The Priority and Privilege of Prayer: In Our Homes, Communities, and Churches by Megan Hill ($3.99)

The Reason for God: Belief in an Age of Skepticism by Timothy Keller ($1.99)

Word-Filled Women’s Ministry: Loving and Serving the Church edited by Gloria Furman and Kathleen B. Nielson ($4.99)

Unashamed: Healing Our Brokenness and Finding Freedom from Shame by Heather Davis Nelson ($3.99)

You can read a transcript of this video at the Crossway blog.

You can read a transcript of this at the Crossway blog.

Porn, Technology, & Christians | The American Conservative
Rod Dreher warns:

If I posted every story I heard about the devastating effect pornography is having on Christian individuals, couples, and families, it would overwhelm you. It is impossible to guarantee that your kids will never see it when they’re young, but for pity’s sake, do you have to make it easy for them by giving them smartphones?

9 Things That Are Still Great About Facebook Despite Everything
Especially #1-6:

1. Facebook Allows You to Find People You’ve Lost
2. It Provides a Community You Might Otherwise Not Have.
3. Opportunities to Practice Good Discourse and Manners
4. Facebook Provides Opportunities for Prayer
5. Facebook Allows Closer Contact with Extended Family
6. It Helps Spread the Word about Causes You Care About

It’s A Problem Literature Reading Is Low. ‘Digital Temperance’ Can Help

We cannot discuss growing apathy over reading without considering the impact technology has had on our tastes. The most obvious way we see technology shape our reading (or lack thereof) is in the distractions and amusements it presents.

Over-Consumption of Internet Media | Thinking Out Loud
Whether it’s Facebook or internet porn, it’s really easy to spend sections of your day staring at your device, be it phone, tablet, laptop or desktop. There are general principles from scripture I think we do well to remember; these can give us guidance regardless of which type of addiction you’re dealing with.

• Self-Control
• Mind, Thoughts and Heart
• The Stewardship of Our Time
• Shifting Values
• Misdirected Worship

I Am iPhone: How Our Tech Endangers Our Relationships
“Certain family therapy theorists maintain that when you are working with a couple, there are always three people in the room to consider: the man, the woman, and the relationship itself. The more I have begun to work with couples, the more I’ve realized that this maxim is actually a half-truth. There are three people in the room, but far too often the third ‘person’ is one partner’s smartphone.”

5 Warning Signs for the Church in a ‘Facebook Culture’

Here are a five characteristics of a “Facebook culture” we must reckon with as believers:

1. Short Attention Span/Limited Learning Style
2. Low View of Authority/Overfocus on Equality
3. ‘Surfacey’ Interactions/Artificial Relationships.
4. Lack of Physical Presence
5. Low Commitment/Accountability

Internet Boundaries for Kids: 6 Tips for Online Safety — GRACE
There are many ways parents can help keep their children safe online, by creating healthy, clear boundaries:

1. Keep computers, tablets, and any other electronic devices in the public spaces of your home.
2. Teach your children basic safety procedures online.
3. Use the features already available to you on your devices.
4. Set clear rules for your home and family.
5. Explore software options.
6. Be involved.

Losing our humanity: Technology’s increasing authority in our lives | ERLC
“While technological advances are a great gift from God, they can and will be abused because we are broken and sinful. We have the innate ability to take the good that God gives us and manipulate it in an attempt to glorify and set ourselves as gods over our lives.”

New Book

The Tech-Wise Family: Everyday Steps for Putting Technology in Its Proper Place by Andy Crouch

More Digital Detox Resources here.