Newsletter - February 26th, 2003
Ukraine, a year later, Mr. Beast and generosity, and a charitable debate
Hello friends,
I am writing after a full week. We are in the midst of school season, with my teenage kids going to and fro with school and sports, and other activities. I attended the Governor’s Prayer Breakfast in Oklahoma, hosted by my friend Joel Harder. I also had the chance to speak to Pantego Christian School in nearby Arlington to both middle school and high school. I spoke on Genesis 1, 2, and the imago Dei. I also continued the semester of teaching. This spring I’ve been teaching two classes: The Church and the Digital Age as well as Religion and Public Policy. It’s all part of our new Faith and Culture Concentration at Texas Baptist College.
Besides that, a number of meetings, among them with Zondervan, who is publishing my next book, Agents of Grace: How to Bridge Divides and Love as Jesus Loves. It’s both a personal story about my story of growing up in the church (and not being mad about it!) and a plea for love, forgiveness, courage, and unity. It’s my most personal book yet. I’m thankful for my friend J.D. Greear, who wrote the foreword. The book drops in May and I’ll have more information for you in the coming weeks. I’m very excited and pray it serves the church in these troubling times.
In Texas, we are making our way through winter and into spring. We’re still wearing sweatshirts and vests but rarely jackets. Soon, the hot weather will come and we’ll forget we were ever cold.
Here are a few things I’ve been working on:
A World Magazine column defending Youtube star Mr. Beast against people who were mad at him for the crime of generosity:
“Only in an upside-down culture such as ours is the act of giving money away to those who are genuinely in need considered a bad thing.”
A World Magazine column on the importance of being rooted in the local church even as we try to impact the world:
“It is in our humble weekly gatherings—in cathedrals and caves, storefronts and under steeples—where the Spirit chooses to most fully dwell and God chooses to act. It is the witness of the church, where ordinary sinners are regenerated through the power of the gospel, that most impacts the world.”
A newsletter, if you missed it, on appreciation for Tim Keller and one on Asbury.
What I’m Reading:
Brent Leatherwood, president of ERLC, wrote an important piece reflecting on the one-year anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
A good companion piece is this one on what Baptists are doing to help the people of Ukraine
Christianity Today had a good write-up of the way the leaders at Asbury shepherded students at the revival.
Theologian Fred Sanders wrote another helpful reflection on Asbury.
Samuel James with a typically great and thought-provoking word on the way justice, mercy, and compassion have been tribalized in a way that clouds the way we look at abuse, mental health, and other issues.
This preaching clip from my friend Justin Wainscott was so encouraging:
This debate, hosted by TGC Jonathan Pennington and Jen Wilkin on public versus private schooling is really good. Though we’ve employed all three (public, private, homeschooling), our family tends to side with Dr. Pennington, but this is an example of a robust, but charitable debate about an important, but tertiary issue:
What books I’m reading:
I’m two-thirds of the way through Walter Isaacson’s Albert Einstein, His Life, and Universe. It’s absolutely fascinating. I’ve also just begun Biblical Critical Theory by Chris Watkin.
P.S. As you make your way toward Easter, you might consider The Characters of Easter.