Aaron Armstrong's Blog, page 19

The Kind of Encouragement We Need Now More Than Ever

Chances are, you probably need some encouragement. That’s not a new thing, of course, but encouragement has seemed to be in short supply since the beginning of 2020.

Back in the far-off days of December 2020, there was a greater sense of anticipation about the coming year than I’ve seen in a long time. And it’s no surprise why: For many of us, 2020 was a gigantic dumpster fire. The pandemic and its fall out disrupted our regular patterns of life at every level. 2021 wasn’t much better, and 2...

Certainty is not the enemy of faith

Normally, I don’t pay too much attention to the quotes people share online. But every once in a while I see one that makes my heart hurt. One of those is a quote from Ann Lamott: “The opposite of faith is not doubt, but certainty.”

Why does this quote bother me? Is it because I have no room for doubt or uncertainty in my theology? Not at all. But the concept behind it still bothers me. It speaks to a deep confusion I suspect many of us struggle with, which stems from our struggle with absolut...

Burnout, the Gospel, and Laying Your Burden Down

I’ll never forget Easter weekend in 2009—the weekend I realized I was experiencing burnout. I was making a sandwich on Sunday after church, exhausted after weeks of working seemingly nonstop in my job with a Christian ministry. I slept poorly, worked long hours, and barely took any time off. But it was worth it; after all, it was all “for the mission,” y’know?1

But this was my first real weekend in a long time, so long that I didn’t know how long it had been. I didn’t serve anywhere at church...

7 new books to read in 2022

As a reader, I’m always looking for new books to read every year. Some are for pure entertainment, others are to learn about different topics and skills. Here are seven new books to read in 2022.

Or at least the ones I’m interested in.

New Books To Read About Faith & Culture

Terms of Service by Chris Martin. This book focuses on what social media is actually doing to us from a theological perspective. Chris is one of the sharpest thinkers I know in this area, and I am confident that th...

What is the best Bible reading plan?

Every Christian has a Bible reading plan. Sometimes our plans are highly structured, like a chronological study or “read the New Testament in 30 days.” Others tend to be, essentially, a game of Bible roulette—we just pick a place and read, with no clear direction as to why. (Maybe not the best approach, but…)

In general, I believe reading plans are helpful. Structure, whether through general guidelines or a detailed plan, is beneficial for us:

A plan gives us a goal to shoot forIt encourag...

It’s More Than a Year of Health

I don’t like it when I read about anyone calling any year “a year of health.” Celebrities do this. Normal people don’t. And as I think about 2021, it’s clear to me that I didn’t begin it with a goal of it being a “year of health.” In fact, I didn’t really begin it with anything much in mind at all beyond just trying to get through it.

There were aspects I was excited about, of course. On January 1, my family had lived in our brand-new home for a whopping 2 days. I still had a job—something s...

The day God waged war

I’ve got a bit of a love-hate relationship with Christmas, or at least a lot of the trappings surrounding it. The struggle to create a “perfect” Christmas, the whole Christmas-karma nonsense… But one of the things I desperately struggle with is our lack of understanding of what Christmas is really all about.

Christmas—the incarnation—is a declaration of war. 1

And yet, more often than not, we shy away from this understanding, don’t we? We joyfully embrace what happened that day and all the ...

A Very (mal)Contented Christmas

It’s the most wonderful time of the year. The trees are decorated. The stockings have been hung with care. The lights are all over every tree. And Aaron is grinching about the whole thing. Which means it’s a perfect time for us to drop a very special episode of Table of (mal)Contents!

Listen in as we discuss

Our favorite books of the yearGetting and receiving books as giftsWhat’s happening with the show—are we back?A few of the books in this episodeSome of Aaron’s favorite...

My favorite books of 2021

It’s that time of year when websites make their own book awards, host galas, and share their favorite books of 2021. I am no different, except that I’m not creating a book award and my gala budget was slashed.1

So today, I am presenting, in article form, my favorite books of the year. As always, my picks cross multiple genres and mediums (print and audio, text and graphic novels). They also are not limited to books published in 2021. So, with that said, here are my favorites.

My Favorite B...

Speaking the Truth in Love, Division, & Contending for the Faith

Speaking the truth in love is not easy, especially when we’re on the “wrong side of history” as Christians. Access to abortion, support for same-sex marriage, and transgender ideology all create dividing points between Christians and non-Christians (and sometimes from one another too). Some lament these issues, saying they’re tired of the culture wars. Others have reminded us that there are good reasons that believers ought to continue to oppose gay marriage as a perennial example.

Younger Ch...