Best of the Week for May 1
In Best of the Week we link to a handful of the best articles, videos, books, etc. that we have come across in the last week. We hope this will point you to some of the right places and give you gospel-rich tools and thoughts for life and mission.
Ask Good Questions on Sunday Morning
“Our pleasantries make it clear we’re not sticking around. We have food to eat, sports to watch, and naps to take. My friends, this ought not to be. After worshiping our Father together, should we dash past our brothers and sisters?”
Good post about how we engage one another in the brief moments after the weekend gathering ends, before we head back into the week. Asking good questions is a skill (so is listening), both are based on taking an actual interest in others, and we all have room to improve.
Why Pray If God Has Already Decided Everything?
“We must never presume God will grant us apart from prayer what he has ordained to grant us only by means of prayer.”
This is a short take on one of the hard questions of faith: If we believe God is sovereign, why pray? There is a wealth of doctrinal conversation behind the answer, but the answer really is pretty simple.
Grace and the Non-Instagrammable Church
“No, the actual church isn’t the church in the stock photos. (Not sure what those guys raising their hands out in the middle of wheat fields are doing but I’m fairly certain it does not resemble what takes place in your worship service.) The actual church is a motley crew of sinners who are more primed together to really experience grace than they would be if they were all apart.”
Good post on why the mess of the church (meaning the people) is a good thing, as much as we’d like to avoid it. When we can finally be honest about it, that’s when grace begins to do its heavy lifting.
The Wisdom of the Folly of the Gospel
“We have to give up on the idea that we know what is best, or at least a better way. Jesus Christ, dying on the cross, and then giving the message of the gospel to a bunch of fishermen, is the wisdom of God. Sending out men and women all across the world to places where they do not even speak the same language, is the wisdom of God.”
For those times when we are tempted to question God, this is a timely post. Our questions usually come from an assumption that we know what’s best. But it’s pretty silly when that logic leads us to question the God who created our brains, the air, and logic itself.
Flight Lapse #1 – Milky Way
“Flying through the night, while the world beneath us is at sleep, is a pretty common thing as a longhaul pilot.”
This is an incredible time lapse video of the view from the cockpit on a night flight from Europe to South America.
FlightLapse #01 – MilkyWay from SkyProduction on Vimeo.
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