Recommendations, Abortion, Parenting, Relationships, Wisdom
John Beeson
This Week's Recommendations

  1. Go ahead, bring a knife to a gunfight: Tim Challies says, “They say you should never bring a knife to a gunfight. It’s a colorful little proverb that emphasizes the value of proper preparation, yet I’m not sure it’s a proverb God cares much for. I sometimes think of the biblical judge Shamgar, who entered a battle armed with only an ox-goad—a stick used to poke oxen to get them to comply with directions. Shamgar brought an ox-goad to a sword fight, yet emerged victorious and with 600 Philistines dead at his feet.

  2. Help! I think I’m a bad parent: Adam Griffin says, “Our inadequacy in parenting is a great gift. If we weren’t inadequate, when would we run to Jesus?

This Week's Recommendations
Christian Living, Prayer, Wisdom
John Beeson
A Prayer for the Loud Lord

Today I have the opportunity to share another one of my daughter, Camille’s poems. She wrote this poem during her time serving at the Grand Canyon this past summer. –John

a prayer for the Loud Lord

 

You are loud here. winds wind through royal blue stone, drowning my breath.

so small. so fleeting. so futile. but the vapor of a whisper.

i don’t need to go anywhere to find you. You are here. 

A Prayer for the Loud Lord
Culture, Fear, Identity, Prayer
John Beeson
Shame and Single Serve Vodka Bottles

What is the most frequent item I pick up during my prayer walks around our campus?
Mini vodka bottles.

They’re everywhere — three billion of them are sold annually in the U.S. I’ll find them tossed onto the roadside, likely flung from moving cars. But more often, I find them in quiet clusters, tucked into corners of our church parking lot. Every bottle tells a story. Every bottle raises questions.

Why is the most common brand I find unflavored vodka?

Why would someone throw a mini bottle out of a moving vehicle?

Why pull into a church parking lot…just to drink?

Shame and Single Serve Vodka Bottles
Recommendations, Culture, Death, Suffering, Wisdom
John Beeson
This Week's Recommendations

  1. Are we the idols? Andrew Noble says, “It is strange to become an idol, isn’t it? It’s hard to wrap your mind around. Yet every day, people are morphing into something like mud. Instead of functioning as images of God, they worship idols and turn into lifeless dust. Life goes wrong when we don’t worship right.”

  2. Weakness in God’s economy: Kirsten shares, “As I consider my heart, my struggle does not come in whether or not I believe that God is able to heal; I believe that God is able to do all that pleases him. Rather, my struggle comes in believing whether or not God is willing; at least in the timeframe I am hoping and praying.”

This Week's Recommendations
Christian Living, Gratitude
John Beeson
How Hard Is Your Heart?

You can tell a good piece of fruit or vegetable by its color and by its feel. The avocado, though, is tricky. A novice might think that a bright green, hard avocado is the best, but counter-intuitively, the best avocados are dark, with shades of brown, giving easily to the touch. The heart of a growing Christian also gives easily to the touch.

When we seek out counsel, the state of our hearts can resist the very thing we want. A soft heart can turn mediocre counsel into pearls of wisdom. A hard heart will turn the wisest counsel into sawdust.

How Hard Is Your Heart?

Theology

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All In Orphan Care by Jason Johnson

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All In Orphan Care by Jason Johnson

There is a unique beauty in orphan care. Jason Johnson in All In Orphan Care puts it this way: “Caring for the marginalized, oppressed and orphaned is not only one of the clearest expressions of the heart of God but also one of the most tangible demonstrations of the gospel this world will ever see.” I’m so grateful that God has allowed our family to get a taste of experiencing our Heavenly Father’s love anew through our own journey in orphan care. And as we launch our first Orphan Weekend this weekend, I’m so excited to see others at our church get a taste of God’s love through this lens.

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The Pilgrim's Progress by John Bunyan

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The Pilgrim's Progress by John Bunyan

I first read Bunyan's masterpiece in college. It was lost on my youth. Being groomed by some thoughtful literature professors who had an allergic reaction to allegory I found the book dull on every level. I thought it was trite, preachy, simplistic, and I didn't connect with it on an emotional level.

I picked up the book again because of a nagging suspicion that it was me, not Bunyan that failed in our first meeting. I'm so glad I did.

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Soul Depths and Soul Heights by Octavius Winslow

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Soul Depths and Soul Heights by Octavius Winslow

Written 140+ years ago (1874), the Puritan Octavius Winslow's collection of sermons on Psalm 130 is fresh, deep, and timely. 

Winslow walks through Psalm 130 phrase by phrase, following the ardent prayer of a man who is distressed by God's anger against his sin. Winslow follows the earnest penitent turning to God, and longing for forgiveness. The trajectory of the Psalm is upward: depth; prayer; conviction; light; hope; waiting; watching; longing; confidence; assurance; and joy. 

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