John Beeson

October 12, 2017

Science, Recommendations, Culture, Christian Living, Marriage, Nature

This Week's Recommendations

John Beeson

October 12, 2017

Science, Recommendations, Culture, Christian Living, Marriage, Nature

1. The Stanford Medicine Report on How Men and Women's Brains Are Actually Different: After nearly 20 years of data, it is clear that there are biological differences between men and women, "The two hemispheres of a woman’s brain talk to each other more than a man’s do. In a 2014 study, University of Pennsylvania researchers...found that the females’ brains consistently showed more strongly coordinated activity between hemispheres, while the males’ brain activity was more tightly coordinated within local brain regions."

2. 6 Character Traits to Look for in a Potential Spouse: Really good lists here. Thoughtful inclusions that ring true to unseen obstacles many couples face. I particularly appreciate the inclusion of "controls his passions" and "is in the process of becoming a leader" for a potential husband and "Knows how to admit she's wrong, ask for forgiveness, grant forgiveness, and give grace when you fail her" for a potential wife.

3. Just-Around-the-Corner-Spirituality: Mike Emlet reflects on the promises we tell ourselves about the next season of spiritual growth that will be just around the corner: "The blessed and contented life is not somewhere around the corner where we can imagine living in the perfect spiritual greenhouse to nurture growth. It’s right here, right now, as we learn to experience the sufficiency of Christ’s strength for us in the midst of the good, the bad, and the ugly."

4. Your Sanctification is a Gift: I love this perspective that Tim Challies offers -- something I've never quite thought of this way before. "Your continual growth in holiness is not something you emphasize merely for your own benefit or your own assurance, but something you pursue for the benefit of others. This message cuts hard against the individualism of western society, so is one we need to hear again and again. A wife’s sanctification is a gift she gives her husband. A pastor’s sanctification is a gift he gives his congregation. A parent’s sanctification is a gift he gives his children."

5. Just How Big is the Universe? I love feeling my mind dwarfed by presentations like this.

John Beeson

October 5, 2017

Recommendations, Christian Living, Parenting, Marriage, Consumerism, Nature

This Week's Recommendations

John Beeson

October 5, 2017

Recommendations, Christian Living, Parenting, Marriage, Consumerism, Nature

1. Please Stop Saying Christianity is a Relationship, Not a Religion: Kevin Halloran responds to the claim that Christianity is a relationship, not a religion, "Christianity isn’t a dead religion of boredom at church, life as a hypocrite, and trying to be better than everyone else. It’s having the God of the Universe who was once my enemy as my loving Heavenly Father. It’s having my sins forgiven through Christ’s blood and communion with God by His Spirit. It’s living hope for this broken world and the promise of restoration. And, oh yeah, I have an eternal inheritance that no man, demon, or trial can EVER snatch away from me. Now that is a religion and relationship worth pursuing religiously.”

2. Why Your Child's Feelings Shouldn't Be the Final Arbiter for How You Parent: Melissa Edgington with this counter-cultural truth: "We have been taught to pay special attention to our kids’ feelings and to validate them as much as we can. I’m not saying this is a terrible practice. I mean, it’s never bad to consider someone’s feelings. But can I say with all honesty that about 85% of a kid’s feelings about things are irrelevant? Kids feel 147 different ways before lunchtime. They get upset if their graham cracker is broken. They cry like their heart is broken because a dog licked their elbow. Worse than that, they will kick and scream like you’re murdering them because you’re trying to buckle them into a carseat or keep them from grabbing a hot burner or stop them from running into the street. If we pay attention to every feeling that a kid has, we will be paralyzed and completely ineffective as parents."

3. 10 Common but Illegitimate Reasons to Get a Divorce: Tim Challies shares from Jim Newheiser's new book on marriage helpful responses to these ten common reasons given for divorce.

4. They Shall Know Us by Our Clutter: Kristin Du Mez reports, "I recently came across the results of this anthropological study, published in 2012: Life at Home in the Twenty-First Century: 32 Families Open Their Doors... the authors analyzed and cataloged the visible possessions in each and every room of the 32 households—counting, documenting, examining, and coding artifacts in situ, in their place. Devoting thousands of hours to data collection, they hoped to glean insights on the acquisition and organization of material artifacts, and on how families interacted with their possessions, and with one another. The results of the study are at once illuminating and devastating. Their most striking findings concern the sheer magnitude of our material possessions."

5. Yosemite: Range of Light: The whole earth is full of his glory!

John Beeson

September 28, 2017

Christian Living, Parenting, Leadership, Recommendations

This Week's Recommendations

John Beeson

September 28, 2017

Christian Living, Parenting, Leadership, Recommendations

1. How to Talk to a Child You're Disciplining: Simple but important advice. " Words like these will reassure your children of their value to you. They will underscore that the foundation of your relationship is bigger and stronger than any wrong act they could perform. Words like these mirror how God the Father loves you."

2. 7 Questions to Ask Your Staff on a Bi-Annual Basis: These are great questions from David Fantin. I especially like #1 and #3: "how is work affecting your soul?" and "are you being utilized to the best of your abilities?"

3. Do You Regret Your Dating History? Marshall Segal reflects, "Nearly two thirds of not-yet-married Christians express regret over previous relationships. That means the critical questions in dating are not just whom to date, how to date, and when to wed, but what to do when we get it wrong. And the reality is most of us get it wrong at some point along the way."

4. I Am Not a Pirate: The first story about how the worst pirate in the world met the best pirate in the world is especially good.

5. How Geography Made the US a Superpower: This is such a unique way to read the history of the United States. Beyond discussing how geography made us a superpower, the video talks about why cities ended up where they did and how those cities were shaped as well.

John Beeson

September 21, 2017

Recommendations, Christian Living

This Week's Recommendations

John Beeson

September 21, 2017

Recommendations, Christian Living

1. Every Interview with Every Football Coach in 90 Seconds: Football season is upon us. Jon Crist nails every word ever spoken by a football coach. In a minute and a half.

2. How Do I Stop Worrying? David Powlison offers sage advice. Third of his six steps is that we ask ourselves, "Why am I anxious? Worry always has its inner logic. Anxious people are “you of little faith.” If I’ve forgotten God, who or what has edged Him out of my mind and started to rule in His place? Identify the hijacker. Anxious people have fallen into one of the subsets of “every form of greed.” What do I want, need, crave, expect, demand, lust after? Or, since we fear losing the things we crave getting, what do I fear either losing or never getting? Identify the specific lust of the flesh. Anxious people “eagerly seek” the gifts more than the Giver. They bank treasure in the wrong place. What is preoccupying me, so that I pursue it with all my heart? Identify the object of your affections."

3. Offer Thanks: Josh Buice: Paul offered thanks and appreciation to others, so should we.

4. Hope in the Midst of a Recidivism Nightmare: Whatever your political stripe, we all must agree that the situation of imprisonment in America needs to be fixed. Marian Hatcher tells briefly about her hopeful story in Cook County and shares, " Among the nation’s 2,700 drug courts, Cook County is considered in the 10 model programs for prisoners. The jail has seen an 81 percent drop in felony convictions three years following prisoner release for those who have gone through their drug court program."

5. The Problem of Nice and the Promise of New: Michael Lawrence on the allure of nice, "These days, there are lots of different kinds of nice. There’s the polite but detached tolerance of “live and let live” nice. There’s the socially conscious and politically engaged nice. There’s religious nice in many different denominational and faith-community forms. There’s “spiritual but not religious” nice. There’s even what’s known in my town as “Portland nice,” a sort of non-confrontational, “let’s not make anyone feel uncomfortable, even though we’re silently judging and dismissing you in our minds” nice. But for all the different kinds of nice, the appeal of nice hasn’t changed much in the last two thousand years. To be a nice person, a good person, a person who’s becoming a better person, is to feel good about yourself."

John Beeson

September 14, 2017

Evangelism, Theology, Recommendations, Christian Living, Biblical Studies

This Week's Recommendations

John Beeson

September 14, 2017

Evangelism, Theology, Recommendations, Christian Living, Biblical Studies

1. 3-2-1 Animated Gospel Presentation: A simple five and a half minute gospel presentation by Glen Scrivener. It is clear, thorough, and compelling. I encourage you to watch it and consider using it yourself.

2. Why the Internet will Strengthen, Not Hurt the Church: Paul Alexander reflects that "When YouVersion launched there were 12 versions of the Bible available in 2 languages. Today there are more than 1,200 versions of the Bible available in more than 900 languages! YouVersion is working to make God’s Word available to every person on Earth, no matter where they live or what language they prefer."

3. 7 Things Evil is Not: What the Death of My Son Taught Me: This weighty piece by Khaldoun Sweis is worth reading whether you are struggling with suffering or in a time of peace. He shares, "I held my son Enoch’s little hand as he died, and went through a suffering that no words could express. A perpetually wounded heart that would not mend, a broken body for which there is no antidote, or a destroyed home that can never be the same…There are more books and articles on this topic than any other in theology. But because it is so personal, we need to be reminded of the simple truths about it."

4. Lies About Cultural Awareness: Jared Olivetti, over at Gentle Reformation, elaborates on these four lies: Lie #1 – You can understand a complex subject in a very brief time; Lie #2 – You should understand as many complex subjects as possible; Lie #3 – Your opinion on those many and complex subjects is valid; Lie #4 – You are angry at all the right things.

5. Does "Blessed shall he be who takes your little ones and dashes them against the rock!" really belong in the Bible? Paul Carter with an excellent reflection on one of the most difficult passages in the Bible, Psalm 137. "They say that the Book of Psalms was the songbook of the early church – but how could anyone who knows and loves Jesus read or sing – let alone pray a sentence like that? We were told to love our enemies; we were told to turn the other cheek – how in the world does this go with that?"

John Beeson

September 7, 2017

Recommendations, Nature, Parenting, Church, Christian Living

This Week's Recommendations

John Beeson

September 7, 2017

Recommendations, Nature, Parenting, Church, Christian Living

1. Sea Lions, Sharks, Dolphins, and a Whale take on a Shoal of Sardines: This is incredible to watch.

2. How to Ruin Your Teens for Life: Eleven ways to make sure your teen is not prepared for the future by Tricia Goyer.

3. Entertainment and Worship: Joe Thorn with a nuanced perspective on entertainment and worship: "The nineteenth-century pastor Charles Spurgeon said, “The devil has seldom done a cleverer thing than hinting to the church that part of their mission is to provide entertainment for the people, with a view to winning them.” It may not be new, but it is increasingly popular, especially in light of our entertainment-driven culture."

4. Will We Be Married in Heaven? Randy Alcorn responds to what he says is the most frequently asked question he gets about heaven: "there will be one marriage in Heaven, not many. That marriage will be what earthly marriage symbolized and pointed to, the marriage of Christ to His bride. So we will all be married—but to Christ... However, I do envision that people who’ve had important roles in each other’s lives will continue to be friends—and that would include a lot of people who’ve been married. So although married couples’ relationships will look different in Heaven, that certainly doesn’t mean that earthly marriage is unimportant and that God doesn’t use it in our lives in profound ways."

5. What if There are More Categories Than Creation vs. Nurture? Justin Taylor explores the idea of creation nature, sin nature, sin nurture, and grace nurture. It's a very helpful way to think about this issue from a gospel perspective.

John Beeson

August 31, 2017

Recommendations, Nature, Church, Christian Living, Theology

This Week's Recommendations

John Beeson

August 31, 2017

Recommendations, Nature, Church, Christian Living, Theology

1. Time Lapse of the Earth: So stunning, this footage from the International Space Station looks fake.

2. Is the Attractional Church Dead? This is the first of a two part series by Jared Wilson that reflects on some of the reasons why the attractional model might have numbered days. In the second part he reflects on why it might not be over yet. " The attractional church has spent decades discipling its customers toward a more self-involved, individualized faith. They should not be surprised when this self-involved individualism gets fully embraced and people “peace out” showing up to church on the weekend."

3. The News of the Attractional Church's Death is Greatly Exaggerated: Jared Wilson responds to himself with five reasons why the attractional church is not only alive, but is going to keep going strong. " We were never properly grounded, so we are easily led astray. Further, we’ve been accustomed to siding with the crowd and discipled according to a Christianity that apes the culture, so when preachers and teachers come along who are marrying Christianity with the culture’s views on sexuality, the fingers feel good on our ears."

4. 12 Principles for How to Deal with Christians Who Disagree with You: Wow, this is good. I'm going to come back to Andrew Naselli's chart here many times, I'm sure. Where have I disagreed like a heretic? Where have I disagreed in an unloving way? Where have I disagreed with a spirit of judgmentalism?

5. What Happens to Babies? Dr. Tom Schreiner answers the very difficult question: "what happens to babies when they die?"

John Beeson

August 24, 2017

Nature, Recommendations, Theology, Culture, Biblical Studies

This Week's Recommendations

John Beeson

August 24, 2017

Nature, Recommendations, Theology, Culture, Biblical Studies

1. Darwin's Spider Shoots a 25+ Yard Web: Isn't God's creation incredible? If this was a movie, you would think it was over-the-top.

2. The iPhone's Story: Wall Street Journal tells the behind-the-scenes story of how the iPhone was born.

3. We Were in Marital Hell: Kay Warren has a beautiful way to use her raw transparency for the purpose of speaking deep truths. She poignantly shares, "I don’t approach this subject from the Hallmark-card version of marriage but from the blood, sweat, and tears of the trenches where our marriage was forged and is sustained. I know what it’s like to choose to build our relationship; to seek marriage counseling again and again; to allow our small group and our family into the struggle; to determine one more time to say, “Let’s start over” and “Please forgive me, I was wrong” and “I forgive you.” I know what it’s like to admit that my way isn’t the only way to see the world and to try to imagine what it’s like to be on the other side of me; to choose to focus on what is good and right and honorable in my husband instead of what drives me crazy; to turn attraction to another man into attraction to my husband... We’ve beaten the odds that divorce would be the outcome of our ill-advised union."

4. Christ's Transfiguration is a Sneak Peak of Our Future: Michael Kibbe with an absolute gem of an article, "As with the Son, so with the sons and daughters—transfiguration happens through suffering. The glory that shone in Jesus’ face on the mountain was a foretaste of things to come, not only for him but for us as well. This is why Jesus is called the firstfruits of the new creation (1 Cor. 15:20) and the firstborn from among the dead (Col. 1:18). When we see Jesus’ face burst with light on the mountain, we are invited not only to recognize how utterly different from us he is as the divine Son of God, but also how like him we may be, if we follow him down the mountain to the cross."

5. 6 Tech Habits Changing the American Home Tech Habits Changing the American Home: Barna shares research on six tech habits that are negatively impacting our homes.

John Beeson

August 17, 2017

Recommendations, Church, Consumerism, Christian Living, Culture

This Week's Recommendations

John Beeson

August 17, 2017

Recommendations, Church, Consumerism, Christian Living, Culture

1. Church Hunters: Jon Crist's mockumentary skewers church shopping with a smile.

2. What If I Can't Find the Perfect Church? Josh Buice shares why "Nonattendance was not an option for the early church and it shouldn’t be an option for the modern church."

3. The Challenge of Really Loving Your Church: Jonathan LaBarge offers not-so-easy wisdom: "Father Cyprian wrote, “No one can have God for his Father, who does not have the Church for his mother.” There will be many times when we will have to say to the church, “I do not much like you right now, but I do love you.”"

4. Diagnosing and Mortifying the Sin of Complaining: Geoffrey Kirkland reflects, "Everyone does it. It’s all around us. In fact, it’s so normalized and pervasive that we hardly even recognize when it actually occurs. The sin of complaining is one of those “respectable sins.” That is, it’s one that’s hardly spoken about, seldom preached against, and still less frequent, a sin with which Christians persistently wage violent war. Complaining is ugly. Complaining is one of the most commonest and frequent sins that’s almost as easy to find and common as the air we breathe."

5. How We Spend Our Days: How the average American adult spends their days. An infographic. Lots of fascinating gems in here: religious and spiritual activities are doubled by shopping which itself is doubled by personal care.

John Beeson

August 10, 2017

Recommendations, Church, Culture, Nature

This Week's Recommendations

John Beeson

August 10, 2017

Recommendations, Church, Culture, Nature

1. Why is the Very Hungry Caterpillar so Hungry? What a beautiful short video about God's marvel of the caterpillar.

2. 7 Reasons Not to Go to Church: Scott McKnight summarizes John Pritchard's book Why Go to Church where he reflects on the most common reasons people don't go to church – here are his top three: 1. I don’t believe in God; 2. The Church is a hierarchical, controlling institution in an age of freedom and choice; 3. I used to go, but I just don’t see the point.

3. 10 Reasons to Go to Church: Scott McKnight's rejoinder of his first post: Here are the top 5: 1. Because we’re on a journey; 2. Because we’re looking for a framework to live in; 3. Because it’s a place of moral seriousness in a trivialized culture; 4. Because churches make an honest attempt at community in a culture that’s forgotten how to do it; 5. Because I’m a learner, and church seems to be a community of learners.

4. 10 Spurgeon Quotes on Death: Charles Spurgeon's reflections on death are worth reflecting on. This one might be my favorite: “He who learns to die daily while he lives will find it no difficulty to breathe out his soul for the last time.”

5. Why the Overpopulation Myth Persists: I just had a conversation with a very smart person who still believes in the threat of overpopulation. Jon Dykstra explains how the overpopulation myth was developed, why it persists, and what significant real-life damage was caused by this myth.