Wisdom For Your Weekend: your weekly installment of things we’ve been reading (and watching) around the web.
Articles of the Week
5 Misconceptions about the Pastor’s Wife, Lauren Chandler. If you are a pastor’s wife, none of these will surprise you. Read this list to hear Chandler’s word of encouragement. If you are a pastor, some of these may be new to you. Read this list to learn how to love your wife better. If you are an average church member, chances are you’re reinforcing these misconceptions. Read this list to break these damaging habits.
11 Steps to Memorizing an Entire Book of the Bible, Andy Naselli. This is a follow-up to Naselli’s helpful “14 Reasons to Memorize an Entire Book of the Bible.” Read his original if you need to be convinced. From experience, I (Chris) will say that I’ve found it incredibly fruitful to memorize extended passages of Scripture. And, for what it’s worth, it’s way easier than one-off verses. But you need a plan, and Naselli offers a solid one here. (Naselli’s method is an alteration of Andy Davis’ method. I like some of his changes, but not others. You can judge for yourself between the dueling Andys.)
Missions Is Changing; We Need to Keep Up, Keelan Cook. Globalization has its fair share of drawbacks, but one of the chief benefits is that people from every tribe, tongue, and nation are already in our backyard. International missions is literally something that every single Christian can be involved in—not just by praying or supporting missionaries, but by ministering to people from other nations here. Will we seize the opportunity?
5 Steps to Find Time to Write, Barnabas Piper. Stephen King said that the only equipment that a writer really needs is a door he’s willing to shut. It’s good advice. But who can find the time to run away to that closed-door writing paradise? Piper offers a few helpful tips for those of you wanted to take the step from “I’d like to write” to “I’m actually writing something.” (Though I’m skeptical how much actual writing work can be done during a boring meeting.)
Your Friends Are Changing Your Brain, Peter Leithart. We all know that our social interactions impact us. But the more research neuroscientists do, the more we’re realizing that social interactions change our brains. And that change is nearly identical to the response of physical stimuli. In other words, a broken heart and a broken bone actually hit the brain the same way. The opposite is true, too. Healthy social interactions lessen physical pain. Add this to the already long list of reasons to follow the biblical command: love one another.
On The Lighter Side
If Moms Talked to Each Other The Way They Talk To Their Kids, The Break Womb. Three items: (1) these ladies are drinking wine from coffee mugs. Not entirely sure why. (2) It’s a sad reality that some folks do, in fact, speak to each other much like this. (3) Adults really should have “goodbye songs.”
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.”
