Aaron Armstrong's Blog, page 68

Our anxiety cannot overcome Christ

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For the last couple of weeks, Emily and I have been working through an issue that has been causing a tremendous amount of anxiety in our home (which is made more difficult by the fact that I’m off traveling at the time of this writing). Since the issue came to our attention, we’ve been working to get it resolved. We’ve done all we can, and now it’s in the government’s hands. All we can do now is wait, and pray.

This kind of anxiety is what we’ve been living with on and off for about two year...

Weekend reading (9/30)

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One Reason to Establish Traditions in Your Home

Michael Kelley:

I wonder if many of us are too busy, too pragmatic, too focused on simply getting through the day to instill anything like this. Are we doing anything that would cause our children to ask, “Why do we do this?” Traditions like that open the door for great stories, great memories, and great faith. Those are the moments to be passed down. And the Bible is full of them.

Think Fake News Is Scary? Try False Teaching

Jen Wilkin:

Growin...

Kids ministry is gospel ministry

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Ever since I’ve been a Christian, I’ve served in Kids ministry. For the majority of the last 12 and a half years, this has been a massive part of how I’ve served in the church. Why? Initially, because I was asked. That’s about it. The second time, it was because I actually did want to be a part of discipling kids, but I also wanted an outlet to teach. The third time, it was just because I wanted to serve wherever I could help with making disciples.

People give Kids Ministry a hard time becau...

Links I like (9/28)

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Don’t Be a Do-Gooder: Pastoral Reflections on Goodness

Aaron Menikoff:

The word “good” is nearly meaningless today. The cook will take it as a criticism when you tell him dinner was simply good. He’ll think if you really liked the meal, you’d have said it was terrific, fantastic, or awesome. Compared to adjectives like these, “good” is average at best.

This deflated understanding of good makes it harder for us to appreciate the Bible. For example, when Paul lists “goodness” as a piece of the...

One thing you can’t afford *not* to do when reading the Bible

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Reading the Bible is absolutely essential to a Christian’s growth in his or her faith. All of us probably know this (even if we don’t always do it). But it can’t be overstated: There is no book more important to us as believers. There is no book that will shape us like this like this one. And there’s one thing that is absolutely essential for us to commit to as we read it. Prayer. I love the way J.C. Ryle put it:

Is the Bible the Word of God? Then be sure you never read it without fervent pr...

Links I like (9/26)

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Don’t Sacrifice Truth on the Altar of Community

Michael Kelley:

And there’s the rub. I would argue first of all that community, though important, is not the most important thing we are involved with as Christians. As Christians, we deal in the truth first and foremost. That’s not to say we don’t have our opinions, and that it’s not right for us to express them. But when we gather together as Christians, we must both implicitly and explicitly acknowledge that what we’re after is not what we t...

He knows

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I’ll be honest: my head hasn’t been in the game for the last few days. We got a bit of scary news the other day that’s got me frazzled.1 A few days ago, I could barely sleep. I got maybe four hours, split up into fits and spurts. Each day since has been progressively getting better in that regard, but the issue is still sitting in the back of my mind, stealing brain power that I would rather have directed to something I can deal with.

So as you can imagine, I’ve been praying a lot. Like a lo...

We are what our Creator says we are

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How do you understand what it means to be human? Most of us think about humanity in terms of potential or utility—what we might be, or what we actually do. When someone asks us what we do for a living, for example, we say “I am a [fill in the blank].” When we talk about protecting the most vulnerable, it’s usually with an eye toward what they could be, whether a doctor, dentist, or delivery person.

I don’t think this kind of utilitarian approach to defining humanity works. It’s what we see t...

Weekend reading (9/23)

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How Many Christians Were There in 200 A.D.?

Philip Jenkins:

At first glance, the Christian world was impressive in its scope and geographical range, to the point where it seems to constitute almost a parallel to the Roman Empire – almost a shadow Christian Empire in waiting. But then we turn again to the likely numbers, with just 250,000 believers in that wide world. Without any firm basis for such estimates, let me propose some possible figures for the largest communities, remembering that...

The bookman cometh

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It’s been a good couple of weeks for new books arriving at the Armstrong house! So good, that I want to share with you all. Check it out:

New books with pictures:

Batman/Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Adventures Aquaman Vol. 3: Crown of Atlantis New Teen Titans Vol. 7 Batman Vol. 3: I Am Bane

New book-books:

Sing! by Keith and Krysten Getty Steal Away Home by Matt Carter and Aaron Ivey Exploring the Bible by David Murray (which is absolutely beautiful!) Making All Things New by David Powlis...