Laudable Linkage

Posted on August 17, 2024 by Barbara Harper

I have not done as much blog reading this week with family here, but I have found a few thought-provoking posts:

How Can Christians Fight the War on Lies, HT to Challies. “This post-truth age poses profound challenges for Jesus followers. How does the church proclaim the gospel in a world where all truth claims are viewed with suspicion? How do we engage in meaningful dialogue when emotional resonance often trumps logical argument? And perhaps most critically, how do we maintain the integrity of our witness when the very concept of objective truth is under assault?”

Is Modern Tolerance an Aspect of Love? “What is the role of government? According to scripture, it is to protect us from evil, not protect evil.”

Impossibly, Gradually, Miraculously Changed, HT to Challies. “The apostle Paul talked about our slow path to holiness. We are, he said, being transformed (that’s the certain part) from one degree of glory to another (that’s the slow part) into the image of the Lord (that’s the beautiful part). More miraculous than an ocean of polished shell and glass, more changed than a river full of rocks is the transformation of a human heart by the Holy Spirit.”

Don’t Forget to Remember: Lessons from a King and the Pride That Hides. “Asa didn’t fall into overt, obvious pride. The Scripture doesn’t say anything about his rebellion or foolishness, arrogance or selfishness. His was a sin harder to detect: the pride that hides. It hides behind Bible readings and worship songs, formal prayers and spiritual disciplines.”

Seven Encouragements for Parents of Prodigals, HT to Challies. “I don’t think we or anybody has ever gotten to the bottom of it and its amazing portrait of the gracious heart of God.”

I Do Not Know This Year, Lord, HT to Challies. This poem about trusting God for the year ahead was apropos for me since my birthday is coming up next week.

Better a brief warfare and eternal rest, than false peace and everlasting torment.
—C. H. Spurgeon

Laudable Linkage

Posted on June 10, 2023 by Barbara Harper

Some of the good reads found this week:

Don’t Be Taken In by the Tolerance Trick, HT to Challies. “Real tolerance, I explained, is about how we treat people, not ideas. Classic tolerance requires that every person be free to express his ideas without fear of abuse or reprisal, not that all views have equal validity, merit, or truth.”

Quarantine Is Not a Good Option for parenting styles, HT to Challies. “As tempting as it might be, don’t move your family to a plot of land without internet, electricity, and running water. I’m suggesting that instead of being overwhelmed, we intentionally inoculate our children. Let me explain.”

The Lord Opened a Door for Me . . . So I Shut It, HT to Challies. I’ve included this mainly because it’s a great example of how to respond when a Bible passage doesn’t seem to make sense or seems to go against another passage. “When I find something odd like this in the Bible—when I’m apparently not on the same wavelength as God and his apostle Paul—the correct starting point is to assume I am the one who needs to adjust his thinking. So what can I learn here that might turn the ‘huh?’ moment into an ‘aha!’ moment?”

The Inefficient Church. HT to Challies. “I’m all for certain kinds of efficiency. I just placed an online order to save a trip to the store. But I’m for the right kind of inefficiency: the inefficiency of caring enough to slow down and treat people like people, to know their names, and to actually care.”

The Best Use of Your Short Life, HT to Redeeming Productivity. “Joni’s husband is gone. Her firstborn has passed. Her sister lived to 108 but left us last December. Her joints ache. She grieves over the dramatic moral collapse of our society. She’s ready to go home. So the question returns: ‘Why am I still here?'”

What Can You Do to Help Your Husband be the Best Dad? “In those first few months of parenting, the reality of our differences becomes more obvious than ever before. And with that, the temptation to nag is nearly unbearable. Trust me … even for those who thought we would never nag!”

10 Ways to Help a Musically-Challenged, Older Believer Worship Through Song. “I’m that person. I love to sing God’s praises, but I know nothing about music. I’m also old enough that I’m offered the senior discount at restaurants. Here’s how you might help people like me worship better.”

Laudable Linkage

Posted on October 26, 2019 by Barbara Harper

Here’s my latest collection of good online reads:

Seven Deadly Sins for Writers. Even though this post is aimed at writers, its discussion of the pervasiveness of pride applies to anyone.

Tolerance Trouble, HT to Challies. “The Corinthian church boasted about its tolerance of the incestuous man who was permitted to retain membership and acceptance within the Corinthian church. They were congratulating themselves for such open-mindedness when they should have been weeping.”

And concerning tolerance of a different kind: What Does 2 John Have to Teach Us about Partnering with False Teachers?, HT to Challies. This was refreshing to read because this is what I’ve believed for years, but have not seen many people writing this publicly.

What It Means to Pray “Your Kingdom Come.” The True Woman blog, which is under the umbrella of Nancy DeMoss Wolgemuth’s Revive Our Hearts ministry, is doing a series on the individual phrases in what we call “the Lord’s prayer.” I thought this one was particularly good.

Wives Who Churn About Husbands “Leading Spiritually,” HT to Lou Ann. Though this is addressed to home school moms, it applies to any Christian wife.

Sorry, Banning Plastic Bags Won’t Save Our Planet, HT to Challies. “As with other environmental issues, instead of tackling the big-picture problems to actually reduce the plastic load going into oceans, we focus on relatively minor changes involving consumers, meaning we only ever tinker at the margins.”

A True (Humorous) Look at the Writing Process. Although I have only reached the first three stages, and I’m writing nonfiction, I can relate!

Finally, I thought this was funny: a dog’s melodramatic reaction to having its nails clipped: