Darryl Dash's Blog, page 31
October 24, 2023
The Danger of Drifting and Neglect
Hedonic adaptation — our tendency to return to the same level of happiness regardless of what happens to us — is a gift. It allows us to endure hard things and still find peace despite the hardships of life.
But it’s also a challenge. Sometimes we take things for granted that should continue to amaze us. Hedonic adaptation is one of the reasons we read passages of Scripture and shrug, why we sing some of the amazing songs of the faith (“Amazing love! how can it be That Thou, my God, should die fo...
October 22, 2023
The Antidote to Abandoning Your Faith (Hebrews 1:1-4)
Big Idea: The antidote to abandoning our faith is riveting our attention on Jesus, because there’s no-one like him.
Have you ever been tempted to walk away from Jesus and from the church?
Maybe you’ve experienced church hurt. In 2004, Ray Ortlund Sr. became the pastor of a 2,500 member church. “A group of people in the church made it their purpose that I would not be their pastor any longer, and they succeeded in their purpose,” Ray said. “It just about took me out.”
Ray and that church split ways ...
October 21, 2023
Saturday Links
Curated links for your weekend reading:
A Healthy Church Is a Messy Church
No church is perfect, and every church, if it’s growing and the Spirit is working, is messy.
While churches are independent and autonomous, they also are interdependent for the sake of those who don’t know the Lord. This is primarily accomplished through starting and strengthening churches.
The 5-Foot Bookshelf: 57 Great Books Every Christian Should Own
Recommended Christian books for those with lim...
October 17, 2023
Faithfully Present
I had a sad moment this week.
We had our real estate agent come to our condo to take a look as we begin to think about selling our place. We’ve lived in only a few places since we got married 32 years ago, and by far, this is our favorite. To think of selling this place fills us with some sadness, even though we know it’s time.
Honestly, sometimes I want to be able to inhabit more than one place at a time.
I’m glad I had just read Adam Ramsey’s book Faithfully Present: Embracing the Limits of Where...
October 14, 2023
Saturday Links
Curated links for your weekend reading:
How Joni Eareckson Tada Blessed Me (Forty Years Ago)
For all she has done publicly, I suspect her greatest impact may be through personal interactions.
Lust, Idolatry and the Power of a Stronger Desire
Both Moses and Jesus bind commands about true worship, idolatry, and lust together.
A Point-by-point Response to the Film “Cessationist”
Sam Storms responds in part one, part two, part three, part four, part five, part six (with more to come)
October 10, 2023
Forgetting Our Family History
“Hobbits have a passion for family history,” we read in The Fellowship of the Ring. That can be a good thing; we’re a lot better off when we remember lessons from the past.
But a passion for family history won’t do much good if we forget it in times of trouble.
When the band of hobbits approached a rock-chamber, they found old bones, empty jars, and broken pots, all signs of a troll-hole. At first, they wondered if the cave had been abandoned, but they soon discovered the presence of three large t...
September 30, 2023
Saturday Links
I’ll be taking a week off. God willing, I’ll post again on Tuesday, October 10.
Curated links for your weekend reading:
TGC Announces The Carson Center for Theological Renewal
Today the Center launches with thousands of Bible and theology resources available and ready to search. But with translation projects underway and new resources under development, we’re just getting started.
The 28 Most Important Bible Events — and Why They Matter
Understanding the most important Bible stories will help you get...
September 26, 2023
A Pastor’s Last Message to the Church
Last Sunday, Liberty Grace Church celebrated its tenth anniversary. I also concluded my ministry as founding pastor. Last week, in my weekly email, I sent a final message to the church.
In January of 2022, I received a copy of a friend’s last email to the church he pastored. That pastor — Pete Blundell — had some great things to say to his church as he finished his ministry there. I liked his email so much that I sent it out to Liberty Grace Church at that time.
I never could have guessed that, tw...
September 23, 2023
Saturday Links
Curated links for your weekend reading:
Attack at Dawn: The Spiritual War Against Ordinary Devotions
Ordinary devotions are nothing less than war.
In a blur of married and modern life, are we still awake to our beloved? Will we never pause to really see her who is beside us on this grand adventure?
The Secret to Loving Your Wife Better: Love Jesus Better
After two decades of marriage, I have noticed a pattern: when I am closer to Jesus, I am usually closer to my wife.
September 19, 2023
Marriage is a Steel Trap
The date was 1990. I was a newly engaged seminary student. Just a few weeks earlier, I’d proposed to Char, and she’d accepted. We were planning our wedding which was going to take place just a few months later.
I sat in the seminary classroom near the back. The subject: marriage counselling. The professor: a Christian counsellor. Notebook open, pen in hand, I couldn’t wait to learn about the journey I was about to begin.
I wasn’t prepared for what he said.
“Marriage is a steel trap,” he said.
I look...
