I have several good reads to share today:

Hope In Hindsight: Navigating Unexpected Journeys, HT to the Story Warren. “Just as Stephen looked to the stories of Scripture to remind him of who God is and what he has done, we can do the same when we face uncertainty in our futures. When plans are interrupted, when hardship comes, and when we’re confronted with the reality of sin and death in a fallen world, we can look to the story of Scripture and the story of our life and see the goodness of God woven throughout.”

Maybe You Don’t Need a Therapist, HT to Challies. “I’ve found that for a growing number of people there is an assumption that to be a human is to need therapy. We’re all maladjusted, and the purpose of therapy is to adjust us so that we’re high-functioning members of society, living flourishing, mentally healthy lives. In this model, therapy is something like a weekly medicine we all need to mentally survive a hostile world.” But such an approach raises concerns, which the author discusses.

When Spiritual Disciplines Took Over My Life, HT to Challies. “Scrupulosity can be jaw-droppingly deceptive. Spiritual disciplines are essential for growth, and we want to encourage one another to practice them. But there’s a difference between healthy spiritual practice and someone who’s struggling with OCD. Since the outward behaviors may be the same, we need to look below the surface to identify scrupulosity.”

On Biblical Mandates and Cultural Expectations, Part 3. “Once we’ve invested the time and effort it takes to be informed about what the Scripture says, and what the law requires, and what the culture expects, we need to get down to the business of making decisions about how we respond to specific demands from those authorities.”

The Rise of Hyperpleasures, HT to Redeeming Productivity. “If humans experience pain and pleasure on a 1-10 scale, then hyperpleasures are those activities which take us ‘off the scale,’ so to speak. They give us experiences that make us feel like a 20, 30, 100, 1,000, and so on. The particular number is arbitrary, of course, but the principle remains — these are pleasures that go far beyond the ordinary range of enjoyment, principally by removing those discomforts we experience in our ordinary pleasures.”

It Takes Years to Grow, HT to Challies. “We think transformation will be quick, and sometimes it is. But generally speaking, God isn’t in a rush. There’s a certain kind of holiness and beauty that develops only after decades of walking with God. You can’t microwave it. But when you see it, it’s a beautiful thing.”

Mom and Dad: Show Your Need, HT to Challies. ““I have one regret of how I parented . . . I wish I would’ve shown my kids my need for Christ more. I worked so hard to show them my godliness that I didn’t show them my need. I should have been more transparent. I should have shown them just how much I needed Jesus.”

To Everything in Motherhood, There Is a Season. “It would have been impossible for me to explain my grief in that moment. I was missing something. Not people necessarily, but a time of life with those people. . . Yet, each new season brings new joys.”

People Who Were Bookworms As Children Often Display These Seven Unique Traits, HT to Linda. “Many of us were those so-called bookworms as kids, and it’s fascinating to see how this early love for reading has shaped us into the adults we are today. You see, spending all that time with our heads buried in books did more than just help us ace our English tests. It subtly carved out traits within us that are not only unique but pretty advantageous, too.”

Do Quests, Not Goals, HT to Redeeming Productivity. “The conventional term for this sort of personal campaign is a ‘short-term goal.’ But I suggested to OBW participants that they drop the G-word in favor of something more fanciful: the quest. If that sounds a bit whimsical, hear me out. Whereas ‘goal’ has become a tired and bloodless descriptor for the (supposed) intention to do something great, the word quest instills the right mentality for achieving a real-life personal victory.” I’ve never thought of a “goal” as tired and dull, but the quest mentality does have some good points.

This is a good time for my occasional reminder that linking to a site doesn’t mean 100% endorsement of everything on that site.

Any theology that minimizes God’s holiness and tolerates people’s deliberate sinfulness
is a false theology. — Warren W. Wiersbe,
from Be Decisive (Jeremiah): Taking a Stand for the Truth