Recommended Books (Autumn 2021)
If you have not yet noticed, we are all very limited. Our wisdom flickers and fails constantly. Of course, the ultimate source of wisdom is the fear of the Lord, but we can also garner wisdom from observing the created order. It is especially helpful to consider the thinking of others who have devoted time to study subjects with which we are unfamiliar. Even authors who write on topics with which we are expertly familiar offer new and...
The History and Purpose of Hospice Care
Psalm 90 encourages “us to number our days carefully so that we may develop wisdom in our hearts.”[1] While we may not know when we will die, we do know that we will die one day if the Lord does not return first. Here, in this liminal space, at the end of life, hospice care might step in to help. Few people think about their wishes regarding end-of-life treatment, much less communicate it. Yet our Christian faith is central to our...
Getting Introspective about “The Rise and Fall of Mars Hill”
For the past couple of months, like thousands of others, I have been engrossed in Christianity Today’s podcast “The Rise and Fall of Mars Hill,” hosted by Mike Cosper. The podcast, which is still ongoing, covers the origin, rise, and demise of Mars Hill Church in Seattle, Washington, along with the fall from grace of its founding pastor, Mark Driscoll. So far, I have found myself laughing (often uncomfortably) at some of the...
Reflecting on Andrew Peterson’s Wingfeather Saga
Sometimes people ask you about your favorite this or favorite that: your favorite color or animal or food or movie or book. For my part I hesitate to answer in such superlative terms because I like all kinds of things. Additionally, the identification of a favorite anything creates heightened expectations in others’ imaginations upon which reality cannot deliver. We have this experience when everyone you know says, “That movie is...
Book Review: Small Church Essentials: Field-Tested Principles for Leading a Healthy Congregation of Under 250
Small-church pastors often set out to read practical ministry books only to find that most of them are geared toward larger churches. The ideas they promote would not work in a smaller congregation, so the small-church pastor must take the general principle of what the book teaches and adapt them for his own setting. Of course, pastors of larger churches must also discern how to apply the principles set out in a book, since so much...
The Role of Mary in the Modern-day Church
by Hannah Goucher Church history offers two specific viewpoints on Mary, the mother of Jesus. Since the medieval period, the Roman Catholic Church has praised her with highest regard, esteeming her at the same level as Jesus. In contrast, modern evangelicals have seemingly done all they can to remove her from prominence, effectively resulting in the removal of a biblical example of faithfulness. When looking at the views of the...
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