Around the Web:
7 Signs We May Be Worshipping Our Family

Jason Helopolous writes at The Gospel Coalition about the challenges of balance.

• I love my family. I love being a husband. We celebrate sixteen years of marriage this week and I can’t imagine living life with anyone else. I love being a father. I have two kids that delight my soul. I can’t wait to see them in the morning before I head off to the church and I am always anxious to see them in the evening when I return. There are few things I enjoy  more in this life than being a father. I love my family. However, having said that, I want to be on guard against loving them inordinately.

This is an important word. Everything in its place. Read More.

When You Wonder If Your Work Matters

Kris Camealy has some thoughts for those times when your work doesn’t feel important.

• The kitchen mat underneath my feet at the sink does little to comfort the ache that shoots through my arches, and throbs in the balls of my heels. It’s made for people who stand a lot, which most definitely qualifies me for the purchase. I do stand for most of the day, sometimes at the sink, and other times in the school room. Sometimes it’s in front of the washer and dryer, or beside the couch, with my arms full of warm, clean clothing that I’m folding.

  My work today, includes preparing two meals from scratch and cleaning the kitchen twice, once after each subsequent meal. Tomorrow, they’ll be just as much work, and I’ll give the mat another testing to see if it helps. I admit, my expectations at this moment, are low.

Helpful. Gracious. Good. Read more.

Being A Better Online Reader

Maria Konnikova at the New Yorker talks about the challenges online reading seems to be creating.

• Soon after Maryanne Wolf published “Proust and the Squid,” a history of the science and the development of the reading brain from antiquity to the twenty-first century, she began to receive letters from readers. Hundreds of them. While the backgrounds of the writers varied, a theme began to emerge: the more reading moved online, the less students seemed to understand. There were the architects who wrote to her about students who relied so heavily on ready digital information that they were unprepared to address basic problems onsite. There were the neurosurgeons who worried about the “cut-and-paste chart mentality” that their students exhibited, missing crucial details because they failed to delve deeply enough into any one case. And there were, of course, the English teachers who lamented that no one wanted to read Henry James anymore. As the letters continued to pour in, Wolf experienced a growing realization: in the seven years it had taken her to research and write her account, reading had changed profoundly—and the ramifications could be felt far beyond English departments and libraries. She called the rude awakening her “Rip van Winkle moment,” and decided that it was important enough to warrant another book. What was going on with these students and professionals? Was the digital format to blame for their superficial approaches, or was something else at work?

Huh? I didn’t get that. Maybe I was just skimming? J.K., J.K., LOL Read more.

What A Christian Woman Knows About Beauty

This conversation about beauty and women is happening. I think it’s good and challenging that we’re acknowledging nuance. Rebecca VanDoodewaard chimes in at the Christian Pundit.

• There’s been a lot of talk about beauty around here lately. One friend has even labeled the ongoing conversation TBD—The Beauty Discussion. We’ve dragged Augustine, Reformers, Puritans, philosophers, and the Mahaneys into the discussion to help us and our daughters think about women and beauty as Christians. Here are five points:Physical beauty is as real as spiritual beauty. Our culture tells women that physical beauty is all that matters. Some Christians react to this by saying that spiritual beauty is the only real beauty. But that’s not true; God created real, physical beauty, and in this world we see lots of it, including in other people. Something purely physical can be beautiful (a flower, sunset, and Taylor Swift’s hair), and we can be thankful for it. There is a tension between physical and spiritual beauty as we strive to maintain body and cultivate soul, but one is not less real than the other, though one is less valuable than the other.

Read more.

A Chat with Andrew Peterson

Andrew Peterson launched The Warden and the Wolf King, the finale to the Wingfeather Saga, this week. And there’s this great interview from 12 minute muse:

• Andrew Peterson is the award-winning author of The Wingfeather Saga. Today marks the release of Book Four of that series,  The Warden and the Wolf King.  You may also know Andrew for his music. As a singer/songwriter, he has more than ten albums to his credit.  He is also the founder of The Rabbit Room, an online community focused on the intersection of life and the creative arts.In the interview, Andrew talked about his earliest attempts at writing fiction…

Take a listen!

Around the Warren:

A Thing Worth Doing

Taryn Hayes talks about things that are worth doing:

• In a world of Pinterest perfection, it’s easier than ever to suffer that paralysis of creativity that occurs in the face of others’ brilliance.  While we may observe with appreciation, we find ourselves unable to put our own pen to paper.  The empty canvas stays tucked away in the corner of the garage and we content ourselves with the works of others.Just like that: generations of beauty and blessings are lost.  Lost to the lie that if a thing is worth doing, it’s only ever worth doing brilliantly.

  It’s not a phenomenon unique to our technologically-advanced society.  In fact, it was the master of observation, G K Chesterton, who first turned that phrase on its head: “If a thing is worth doing,” he said…”it’s worth doing badly.”

Read more!

Young Mom, Don’t Despair

Quote from a great post by Rebecca Reynolds, image and prettification by Paul Boekell. Great:

See it closer.

Introducing Tales of the Kingdom

Laura Peterson brings us a review of Tales of the Kingdom. Looks great!

• It wasn’t until I was in college that I was introduced to David and Karen Mains’ Tales of the Kingdom series, but even after just the first few pages I knew they were going to be books that I would want to own and share with others. It’s difficult for me to explain what grabbed me about them; they remind me of Narnian allegories in some ways, Max Lucado’s children’s stories in other ways, Corrie ten Boom’s writing style in another way. They include all the ingredients that Lewis or Tolkien would list for a proper fairy story; princesses, dragons, an evil enchanter, a quest, a King and a Kingdom. They might be difficult to find in bookstores and libraries these days, but I’d recommend seeking out the original 1980s editions with illustrations by Jack Stockman. 

Check it out!

The Owl and the Pussycat

S.D. Smith brings us a poem from Lear.

• “What utter nonsense!” This is usually said to scold, but what if it were meant as a compliment? The world is awfully funny, though sometimes more awful than funny, and Christians need to laugh. We have hope and we have everything in Christ, our all. So we should be glad. Need help? How about a very silly poem? I first dove into Edward Lear upon the recommendation of Sally Lloyd-Jones, author of The Jesus Storybook Bible and other excellent books. If you read Sally’s work, you will detect the wild dose of silliness she stirs into the recipe of her writing. This can likely be blamed, at least in part, on her childhood obsession with the nonsense poetry of Edward Lear. Perhaps you could use this excellent ingredient to help flavor your life with joy. –Sam

Bring on the silliness! Read more.

Something to Do with Your Kids:

It’s lurking out there… the end of summer. Momtastic has some ideas for how to put an exclamation point on the end of your summer! Check it out!

And Something Fun to Watch

You like big water slides? These guys ride the tallest water slide in the world – for the first time ever.

Thank you for reading. We’re on your side.