Apologetics, Evangelism, Heaven, Hell, Spiritual Growth
John Beeson
Will You Open the Door

Over and over again belief is directly connected to us becoming children of God, being given eternal life, being saved, and pleasing God.

But that raises an important question: what is belief? Most of us, when we think of belief, we think of it as accepting something as true. Merriam-Webster offers three definitions of belief. The second and third definitions reinforce our instinct: (2) “something that is accepted, considered to be true, or held as an opinion.” (3) “conviction of the truth of some statement or the reality of some being or phenomenon, especially when based on examination of evidence.”

Will You Open the Door
Recommendations, Church, Family, Parenting, Education, Social Media
John Beeson
This Week's Recommendations

  1. The case against social media: Jon Haidt and Zack Rausch say, “Across surveys in multiple countries, many young people report that social media has harmed them directly and indirectly. They describe widespread experiences of cyberbullying, sexual exploitation, sleep disruption, lower confidence, and worse mental health. They also express strikingly high levels of regret toward the major platforms they have used for years. In a Harris Poll survey of members of Gen Z, nearly half reported that they wish that TikTok, X (Twitter), and Snapchat were never invented — despite using those platforms for several hours a day.”

  2. Six selfish reasons to have kids: Kevin Kelly says, “Now after only two generations

This Week's Recommendations
Culture, Consumerism, Wisdom, Spiritual Growth
John Beeson
Redeem the Time

“In 2025, the average person worldwide [spent] 6 hours and 45 minutes staring at screens every single day — almost half of all waking hours.” For Americans, 3 hours of that time were spent watching TV and videos and 1.5 hours were spent on social media. We would do well to heed the wisdom of Author Annie Dillard who reminds us that, “How we spend our days… is how we spend our lives.” Her observation is not just poetic, it’s diagnostic.

We just launched a sermon series entitled Feedback Loop, inviting us to live wisely in an age of foolishness.

Redeem the Time
Forgiveness, Culture, Identity, Prayer, Spiritual Growth, Suffering
John Beeson
Don't "Give Yourself Grace"

My friend was lost. Over cups of coffee, he shared what had been bottled up inside of him for months. It was hard to figure out which came first, his depression or his spiritual spiral. Secret porn and drug addictions were now coupled with a full-blown affair, culminating with his wife demanding that he move out. He was confused and hurting, hard-hearted and spiritually blind. “My girlfriend tells me I just need to give myself grace,” he shared.

“Give yourself grace” has become a common refrain in our culture.

Don't "Give Yourself Grace"
Recommendations, Culture, Death, Family, History, Parenting, Nature, Spiritual Growth
John Beeson
This Week's Recommendations

  1. The birds and the bees, baby and me: Karen Swallow Prior says, “Childlessness can be a calling in the same way that being a parent is a calling, or as marriage or celibacy can be callings. Not to be called to something is inherently to be called to something else, even if that something else is elusive for a while.”

  2. Sabbath is more than self-care: Megan Hill says, “The Sabbath unplugs us from our daily work. But simply unplugging is only half the story. On the Sabbath, the Lord frees us from work and frees us unto worship.”

This Week's Recommendations

Frodo

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The Ring of Fellowship

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The Ring of Fellowship

JRR Tolkien had an elevated view of friendship. For years, he met with an informal group of literary friends called the Inklings at the Oxford pub, the Eagle and The Eagle and the Child (or, as the group called it, “The Bird and the Baby). Tolkien and CS Lewis were fast friends. Tolkien’s Ent Treebeard was fashioned after Lewis, and Lewis likely fashioned his protagonist Ransom in his Space Trilogy on Tolkien.

Both were shaped by The Great War, their love of languages and myths, and by their devotion to Christ. Tolkien, in fact, was crucial in Lewis’s conversion.

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The Front Lines

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The Front Lines

In JRR Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings, two of Frodo’s hobbit companions, Merry and Pippin, get kidnapped by the orcs and eventually are rescued by the Ent, Treebeard. Meanwhile, the rest of the Fellowship prepare to confront Saruman and his forces at Isengard, attempting to weaken him so that Frodo and Sam can complete their mission to destroy the ring. In Peter Jackson’s movie adaptation, Merry and Pippin beg the council of Ents (called Entmoot) to make haste so that they can join their friends on the verge of war.

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