Weekend Links - October 26, 2013

Happy Saturday, everyone! I'm thinking my crew is going to have the flee the premises today: the owner of our rental house is still working on the foundation and between the drilling, the pounding, and whatever else it is they're doing down there, we're all a little on edge. I'm not sure exactly where we'll go but I'm hoping a thrift store will make the agenda.

Now for the links:
Spiritual / Inner Life

• 3 Ways to Stop Stressing About Giving by Jeff Anderson at Relevant. My two cents: giving is like anything else. Practice makes better, if not perfect. So practice giving, even if - especially if - you think you can't afford it.
• Related: Church Giving Drops to Depression Era Lows. The sad thing to me is that at the high point in 1968 Americans were still only giving 3.1%. Really?
• The Gospel of Ghoul by Timothy George at First Things. I am not a fan. That's not surprising since scary things, scary movies, etc. are not my idea of fun or a good time no matter what the motive.
• Fun and Substance in Youth Ministry by Mark Howard. Encouragement for those of us working with young people.
• What the Church Can Learn From Chick-Fil-A by David Mathis. Thought this was interesting. What sets Chick-Fil-A apart in my family's mind: they've thought of the little things. A step stool in the bathroom so little folks can wash their hands. Hand sanitizer by the play set. Free refills brought to your table. I could go on.
• Is Feminism a Source of Good in the Church? by Denny Burke. This is a controversy I've recently seen playing out on several blogs I enjoy.
• Doubts: Fatal or Futile? by Jonathan Holmes. Helpful post.
• Four Reasons the Gospels Could Not Be Legends by J.D. Greear. Jesus is alive! Everything I believe is based on that one truth and that truth is not simply wishful thinking. My favorite quote from the post: "I don’t believe in Jesus based on blind faith. I believe in Jesus for the same reason these first believers did: because I am convinced the testimony of the apostles is true, that Jesus really did resurrect from the dead. And if Jesus really is alive, that changes everything."

Marriage / Parenting

• Standards and Solidarity: Ten Ways to Give Your Child the Gift of Purity by Leila at Like Mother, Like Daughter. Auntie Leila's wisdom is sound. (You are reading Like Mother, Like Daughter, aren't you? It's one of my all time favorite blogs.)
• The Why and How of Basic Internet Safety at Home by Brian Vinson.
• So You Think You Should Adopt? Please Think Again! by Rachel at Children's Home Society. Rachel is an adoption advocate and she offers some needed balance to this issue.
• Want Your Youngest Child to Succeed? Treat Him Like He's Your Oldest by Sarah Weir. I don't completely buy into the "birth order" concept but I do believe in parenting fatigue. That is: we ease up as we go on because we are tired. Some of that easing up is OK but some isn't and does a disservice to our younger children. Anyway, it's food for thought.
• The Terrors of the Minivan: Why Popular Culture Wages War Against Large Families by Bonnie Ramthun.

Homeschooling / Education

• How Handwriting Trains the Brain by Gwendolyn Bounds in the Wall Street Journal. In our homeschool we're still teaching cursive. It's nice to have that instinct reinforced.
• Words of Wisdom: Laura Berquist on Classical Education Done Well by David Kern at Circe Institute. 
• 17 Phrases You're Probably Saying Wrong by Sarah Brooks. Let's all do our part to make Facebook better and share this post over and over again until these mistakes have been beaten out of our friends and family are no longer prevalent. "For all intensive purposes" is my favorite. And by favorite I mean, "phrase that makes me want to slam my head against my desk." (Although I might disagree with her on #14, the "think" versus "thing" argument. I've done some research and it is not as simple as she makes it sound.)

Homekeeping

• 15 Organizing Tasks You Can Do in 15 Minutes from I Heart Organizing.
• 21 Things to Stop Wasting Your Money On from One Good Thing By Jillee.
• God Save the Pallet! Reclaimed Pallets Revamped Part II and Part I from Dishfunctional Designs. There are a couple pallets around from this renovating they're doing to our current home. Maybe I need a Union Jack pallet coffee table? Yes, yes I think I do.
• 5 Ways to Insulate Your Windows for Winter from Apartment Therapy.

Uncategorized

• The Art and Science of the Humblebrag by Tim Challies.
• How Science Goes Wrong from The Economist.

That's all for this week. What caught your eye?
This post is linked here:


Come see what other folks are linking to or share your own links posts.