Tag Archives: The Gospel Coalition

Saturday Six-Pack (42)

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Welcome to the weekend and to the Six-Pack. Below is the latest installment of best-of pieces I’ve recently read online. You know the routine: Most are faith-focused or ministry-minded; others are covered under the banner of who-knows-what!

If you need direction, begin with my two *Picks of the Week*, and move out from there.

For a steady stream of such links, follow me on Twitter ( @JasonBandura ) to the right of this post.  Sharp quotes and solid articles are tweeted 3-4 times daily.

Today’s edition:

1) The Beauty of Ambiguity
Paul Young, author of “The Shack”, posted this on his blog five years ago. Today, I direct you that way.

2) What a Coffin Maker Can Teach Us (*PICK OF THE WEEK*)
Joel Miller posted in reference to a three-minute video, which features Marcus Daly reflecting on his work of coffin-making. There is something profound here that is worth your time.

3) Common Fault Lines in Maintaining an Evangelical Approach to Homosexuality (*PICK OF THE WEEK*)
In this TGC piece, Kevin DeYoung attempts to identify some of the ways that Evangelicals get into trouble in their efforts to voice their views on homosexuality. I greatly appreciate the nuanced nature of this contribution.

4) Heaven is Real: A Doctor’s Experience with the Afterlife
In case this topic intrigues you but you’d prefer not to commit the hours necessary to read an entire book, Newsweek featured this piece on neurosurgeon Dr. Eben Alexander and his remarkable account.

5) 13 Things Americans Do That the Rest of the World Finds Bizarre
Enjoy this piece (by Business Insider) sent to me by one of my American friends. Then create your own list of ones that weren‘t covered!

6) Leaving Westboro Baptist Church
A regular reader sent me this one–thanks Dave. Give a listen to this CBC interview of how two former members of the infamous church became friends with a prominent Jewish blogger via Twitter. No joke!

There you have it. May your weekend be full of awareness and enjoyment of the God who already fills it with Himself and every good thing.  Blessings on you, my friends.

YOUR TURN: Direct other readers to the best stuff with a comment below, or weigh in on what you read.  Your input makes this post better!

[You can subscribe to this blog via RSS or email, in the upper right corner of this page.]

Sunday Six-Pack (29)

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Welcome back to the Six-Pack, my friends!

After a couple weeks of family vacation, and one additional Saturday (plus one extra day!) to get myself back up to speed, here is the latest installment of internet keepers.

As per usual, these articles are typically ministry-minded or faith-focused, with enough flexibility to toss in the occasional who-knows-what.

If six is more than you can handle today, begin with my two *Picks of the Week*, and move from there.

For a steady stream of such links, follow me on Twitter ( @JasonBandura ) to the right of this post.  Sharp quotes and solid articles are tweeted 3-4 times daily.

Today’s edition:

1) Recommended: A Diary of Private Prayer
This quick book review is getting the first slot this week because of the value that could be discovered by following. I have used Baillie’s prayer guide on and off over the past few years–what a gem of a book! If your prayer life could use structuring and support, read this post. And then do some online shopping for a used copy of potentially life-shifting book.

2) Why You Shouldn’t Have a Position on LGBTQ’s (*PICK OF THE WEEK*)
How does your church handle discussions surrounding homosexuality and gay rights? Less than comfortably, I imagine.  The following article sprung out of a Facebook post that opened with this: To the question, “What is your position on LGBTQ?” I think the best answer (in these times) is “we have no position” The question itself misses the point of any other answer? Agree?

3) We Wait Too Long to Train Our Leaders
A recent piece from the Harvard Business Review raises the corporate equivalent of what I’ve long thought about churches.  To my ministry friends, what do you think your church has missed out on, as a result of under-developed leaders?

4) Uh Oh, Canada!
Nearly six months ago, Leadership Journal’s blog published this short piece summarizing the results from a study that indicates that young adults are departing from churches at some unfortunate rates. One of the major reasons has nothing to do with Young Adults Ministries.

5) The Myth of Human Progress (*PICK OF THE WEEK*)
Some have posited that postmodernism’s birth sprung from such catastrophic events as the two world wars, in which humanity’s confidence in itself and in its inevitable escalation upon the evolutionary ladder were cracked beyond repair. Living squarely within a generation labeled “postmodern”, I am not certain that the illusion has dissipated at all.  This article, from TruthDig spells out some such thoughts quite poignantly.

6) Ministry Lessons From the Good Times and the Bad
Ministry is certainly an “up and down” experience on multiple levels simultaneously. Wrapped into any graph of a pastor’s journey are facets of personal life, inner journey, and societal dynamics, not to mention the unique and multiple-layered movements occurring within a given congregation or denomination. Don Carson, for TGC, recently highlighted lessons he’d gleaned in the highs and the lows of decades of ministry.

Blessings on you, my friends.  May your weekend be refreshing in rest, play, and worship.

YOUR TURN: Direct other readers to the best stuff above by making a comment below, or weigh in on what you read.  Your input makes this post better!

[You can subscribe to this blog via RSS or email, in the upper right corner of this page.]