Your weekly installment of what we’ve been reading (and watching) around the web.
Articles of the Week
The Evangelical Conscience, Still Uneasy 70 Years Later, Richard Mouw. For evangelicals who have read the book, it seems strange to think that Carl F. H. Henry’s The Uneasy Conscience of Modern Fundamentalism was published two generations ago. Sure, we have shed the label of “fundamentalism,” opting instead to call ourselves “evangelical.” But the problems that Henry identified in the 1940s—problems about our Christian approach to engaging our culture—still linger with us. Read Mouw’s summary, or better yet, pick up Henry’s book and see for yourself.
Three Reasons Bible Difficulties Are a Good Thing, Mark Ward. Most believers, especially new believers, wish that the tough parts of the Bible just weren’t there. (Don’t act all holy: We know your heart.) Difficult Bible passages make us ask difficult questions and often leave us feeling uncomfortable. As Ward points out, those are just a couple of the reasons we should be thankful for those passages. You now have one fewer excuse for skipping the book of Ezekiel.
Three Things Parents Can Do to Help Keep Your Kids from Sexting, Jessica Harris. Twenty-first century technology comes with some twenty-first century temptations. If you’re a parent, you’d be naïve to ignore sexting because you think your kids “just aren’t like that.” Newsflash: We’re all like that—if by “like that” we mean incredibly tempted to our culture’s favorite sins. The good news is that we can actually do something to stem the tide. Don’t put your head in the sand, parents. One day your kids will thank you.
How to Lead a Bad Meeting, Andrew Wilson. I (Chris) am thankful that I rarely experience meetings like Wilson describes here, full of directionless musings with no end in sight. But I’ve been there. And I’m guessing you, too, can think of many meetings that have been so lacking in focus that you battled the urge to say, “I’m sorry, but what are we meeting about, anyway?” There’s actually an easy way to fix this. From all of us meeting-attendees to all of you meeting-leaders, we urge you: Please listen to Wilson.
On The Lighter Side
Hipster Thanksgiving, Harvard Sailing Team. Pastor J.D. and I hope you get the distinct pleasure of spending your Thanksgiving with some people just like this. “Happy Thanksgiving? More like You’re Welcoming.”
Wisdom for Your Weekend is presented to you by Chris Pappalardo, with occasional guidance from J.D. Greear. 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.”
