Wisdom for Your Weekend is your regular installment of what we’ve been reading (and watching) around the web. Presented to you by Chris Pappalardo (and Allison Dolbeer, filling in this week), with occasional guidance from Pastor J.D., this is our attempt to reflect Proverbs 9:9: “Give instruction to a wise man, and he will be still wiser; teach a righteous man, and he will increase in learning.”
Articles of the Week
In the time you spend on social media each year, you could read 200 books, Charles Chu. Apparently, if Americans spent the hours we spend on social media and TV reading instead, we could get through 1,000 books in a year. Chu does the math and then throws the gauntlet: “Here’s the simple truth behind reading a lot of books: It’s not that hard. We have all the time we need. The scary part—the part we all ignore—is that we are too addicted, too weak, and too distracted to do what we all know is important.”
The Difference Between Nice and Kind—and Why It Matters, Barry Corey. In response to the current culture wars, Corey calls for the church to live out radical kindness, “not to be accepted but to be faithful …. Kindness is fierce, brave and daring. It’s fearless and selfless, never to be mistaken for niceness. They’re not the same and never were. Kindness is neither timid nor frail. Niceness is kindness minus conviction.”
How Do We Respond to the Manchester Arena Attack?, Stephen Kneale. After the tragic terrorist attack this week in Manchester, one local pastor shares how his church has responded and points out that “if there is anything good to come out of such a grossly wicked act of sin, let it be that it reminded us of our own mortality, it caused us to consider our own standing before God and it led us—not to superiority and moral relativism but—to repentance and faith in Christ.”
The Instagram Bible, Jen Wilkin. What if some of the Bible quotes written in calligraphy and surrounded by filigree and flowers that flood our social media and even hang on the walls of our homes give us all the feels but only preach the good news in part? “I do not ask the Instagram Bible to be all things. I can value, even enjoy it for what it is. But drawn by the glow of its inviting warmth, I must ask myself—and you—to view it with care.”
Don’t Waste Your Life Following Your Passion, David E. Prince. During graduation season, we often hear speakers admonish young people to be true to themselves and follow their dreams. But how can they pursue their passion when they never learn to consider God’s purpose, Word, and community? “The truth is, finding your passion is most often the product a lot of faithful work that is pursued to the glory of God because it is your duty.”
On the Lighter Side
25 Amazing Nerdcations. Are your summer plans still up in the air? Don’t be put off by the title—the term “nerd” is used pretty loosely these days, and there are some interesting options here for pretty much any … well … actually, it really is for nerds. But you may be surprised at how many of these sights you would travel to see and just how much of a nerd you really are.
