W4YW: Secrets of Pastors’ Wives, Success of Bill Gates, & Islam Facts

Wisdom For Your Weekend: your weekly installment of things we’ve been reading around the web.

Infographic of the Week

How Long Does It Take To Read Each Book of the Bible? Andy Naselli. Most of us struggle to find time to read the Bible. But how much time are we talking about, anyway? Naselli gives a helpful chart that should encourage us to tackle entire books of the Bible in one sitting. Take this as a helpful benchmark or as a personal challenge (Eleven minutes for Malachi? Just watch me!) His other tips for better Bible reading are top-notch, as well.

Articles of the Week

9 Secrets Your Pastor’s Wife Wishes You Knew, Christina Stolaas. “She’s always there. Sometimes in the background, sometimes with a welcoming smile up front, sometimes noticed and appreciated, sometimes being silently judged. Your pastor’s wife; the powerful force behind most church leaders often perceived as a mystery by the rest of the church. It doesn’t have to be that way. What if we just asked our pastor’s wife to candidly, honestly, even anonymously share some of their secrets? What if we invited them to share their hearts and tell us what they wished the church knew?”

What Not To Say When Your Friends Are Hurting, Brian Kammerzelt. Not all of these are categorically terrible, but Kammerzelt does have a point: far too many of our “consoling” words are inadvertently more hurtful than helpful. Avoid some of these common clichés the next time your friend is in pain.

9 Things You Should Know About Islam, Joe Carter. “Throughout the world, Muslims are observing their annual observance of Ramadan. Christians need to become more aware of Ramadan as well as the other practices and tenets of this fast-growing global religion. As an aid in that effort, here are nine things you should know about Islam.”

Why Bill Gates and Warren Buffett Are Successful . . . In One Word, Greg McKeown. When Gates and Buffett got together for dinner (at Gates’ mother’s house—why wasn’t I invited?), they were asked what one factor led most to their success. Their answer—focus. But as McKeown points out, there is a huge difference between focus as a noun and focus as a verb. And we need both. [Bonus: this article has a completely random picture of Gates & Warren playing ping pong. It’s adorable.]

On The Lighter Side

T-Rex, the Most Self-Conscious of the Dinosaurs, Doghouse Diaries.

Screen Shot 2014-07-11 at 8.37.45 AM