Stopping to Think

Geronimo's Story of His Life by Goyahkla Geronimo My rating: 4 of 5 stars This was a great look through the eyes of a famous warrior into like in the Southwest circa 1840-1900. Also gave you a peek into the mind of a man devoted to a people and a place. View all my reviews

Photo by Sigmund on Unsplash  There is a helpful book review/essay over at the site St. Eutychus, on the nature of preaching. Here's a brief excerpt: "Do I do my job best locked away in an office with the Bible and some commentaries open, typing into a word processor for 30 hours a week, or do I do my best listening to the wisdom of the body talking to others, with the Bible open, and thinking through how the passage best speaks to the diversity of people in the body, and to the world in a way that makes what is being said  plausible and engaged , rather than  detached and idiosyncratic . Let’s take Paul’s metaphor of the body seriously; and metaphorically — a metaphor is not an exaggeration of the true state of affairs, but an accessible simplification — a sign that points to a greater reality — a ‘simplification’ you use to make something more complex understandable… so when Paul speaks of the church as a body we’re not meant to think he’s over-applying the reality of our u

 This is a sermon from our Christmas Eve Service at Remsen Bible, I pray it is a blessing to you! God With Us Matthew 1:18-25, Remsen Bible Fellowship Christmas Eve Service, 12/24/2020 Text: 18 Now the birth of Jesus Christ took place in this way. When his mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be with child from the Holy Spirit. 19 And her husband Joseph, being a just man and unwilling to put her to shame, resolved to divorce her quietly. 20 But as he considered these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary as your wife, for that which is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. 21 She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.” 22 All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet: 23 “Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall call his name Immanuel”

On Reading Well: Finding the Good Life Through Great Books by Karen Swallow Prior My rating: 4 of 5 stars Prior engages the classical virtues and their role in our lives via a discussion of great literature and the role it can play in shaping said virtues with us. I was a little worried that this would simply be a collection of book reports, as it were, but was pleased to find more. Swallow has thought deeply about each of these virtues, and so is interacting not only with the chosen book for each chapter, but also theology, philosophy, and ethics. The entire book is worth reading. However, if you're on the fence, and happen to be one of those dinosaurs who likes to walk through a Barnes and Noble and thumbing through a book before purchasing, read the chapter on Kindness. It's worth the price of the volume. View all my reviews

  "A fool takes no pleasure in understanding, but only in expressing his opinion." Proverbs 18:2 We live in a day when the right to self expression, codified in America by our constitutional right to free speech, is not seen as something you are simply entitled to. Expressing what is happening to you and in you at any given moment is not something we are only allowed to do in our social media age, but is considered a positive virtue.  How does this line up with Proverbs? The writer in Proverbs 18:2 seems less enamored with free expression than the typical modern American. In fact, the free expression of one's opinion is juxtaposed, held up against and contrasted with, finding pleasure in understanding. Whereas the dispenser of this biblical wisdom might give advice that sounds like an old school dad- "you have two ears and one mouth, use them in that proportion" - the modern individual, who sees self-expression as the highest ideal, might counter - "ah, yes

Mansfield's Book of Manly Men: An Utterly Invigorating Guide to Being Your Most Masculine Self by Stephen Mansfield My rating: 3 of 5 stars After listening to an interview with Mansfield, I commented to my wife that this book sounded interesting, and she purchased it for me. I was disappointed. His telling of biblical stories (all the stories, actually) is thin. Not in a cliff notes, skip-the-fluff way, either. Lots of froth and extra words and not enough actual narrative. That said, I learned about a couple of guys I was previously unaware of. There are some good quotes. And he reproduces a few poems that will hopefully spark the interest of a few readers. View all my reviews

The Gospel Comes with a House Key by Rosaria Champagne Butterfield My rating: 5 of 5 stars Read it. Be convicted. Be moved to laughter and tears. Maybe argue a few points. But most of all, learn and apply. View all my reviews

The Superstition of Divorce by G.K. Chesterton My rating: 4 of 5 stars The original articles toward the front are typically brilliant Chesterton. The chapters he adds in addition to the original articles are good, though perhaps a bit tedious in comparison. The thing I found primarily fascinating was less his arguments, and more the fact that he saw this as a problem 100 years ago, at a time which many of a conservative bent today look back upon as some sort of golden age. But modernity and its individualism at the expense of the family was already doing the destructive work which we now see in fuller fruition. View all my reviews