IX Marks recently posted a quote worth thinking about from missiologist George W. Peters: “An unfortunate and abnormal historic development  has produced autonomous, missionless churches on the one hand and autonomous churchless missionary societies on the other hand.” Too true, don’t you think?  

Soph’s happily playing over at a playdate and I’m here working hard on my speaker notes for my three conferences next month. (Yes, yes, a generous friend did quickly and happily offer to help me. See what a whiner–for no legitimate reason–I really am? Thank God for His grace!!) In my “organizing” stage of prep, I came across a section of notes from a women’s retreat I did years ago and thought it might be interesting to you. I think that some of these words MAY be directly cribbed from Lane & Tripps, “How People Change” and/or Plantinga’s “Not the Way It’s Supposed to Be: A Breviary of Sin”–the two…

Oh my stars! I was feeling so self-conscious about my previous post (Was I too whiny? How can I complain when I have such a blessed life? Maybe I should just take it down …). But then you all started sending such sweet, “I can relate! And I’m clinging to Christ too!” and “Don’t be too hard on yourself!” emails that I thought MAYBE I might just leave it up. And THEN? Dear Anita send me a GREAT HARVEST gift bag filled with LITERALLY our FAVORITE things: The whole wheat bread we used to eat before we moved to thrift store, week-old, 75 cent loafs; raspberry jam–truly our family’s FAVORITE!–granola…

We’re in Chapter 17 of Book 1 in our Blogging the (John Calvin) Institutes journey this week–and I have already been tremendously blessed. I appreciate the many detailed explanations and biblical examples of how all things are divinely ordained by God; the providence of God is to be considered with reference to both the past and the future; God takes care of the whole human race, but is especially vigilant in governing the church, etc. I must admit that “my carnal sense murmured” when he discussed when “calamity takes precedence even of birth”–but we must “use modesty, not as it were compelling God to render an account, but so revering…

I am SO far behind the times technologically-wise, that I could only SURMISE what terms like iPhone / iApp actually MEAN. But assuming that most of you are WAY more savvy then me, I wanted to link you over to Carolyn McCulley’s great post on an iPhone app that helps to coordinate MEALS for families in need. We’re still doing this diaconal service the old fashioned way at our church (calls and lists and more calls), but I have tried my best to pass along various websites that help too. (So far, to no avail in our local church.) Maybe the iApp will tip our leaders over into embracing how…