Matt & Elizabeth Schmucker have written a collection of 39 Lessons, 20 Tips and 10 “Don’ts” For Parenting, which is included in this month’s 9Marks newsletter.

A sample:

Lessons

13. Pack in truth while your children are little and trust the Lord to unpack it in his time.
18. On some days, it’s just fine to accomplish nothing more than keeping your kids fed and safe.
21. There’s nothing wrong with boredom for your children. It causes them to be creative.
25. Kids can memorize scripture very quickly.
39. God elects. God saves. Parents cannot do this heart-changing work. At best we can pray and point to the One who can cause our children to be born again.

Tips

3. Talk to both good and not-so-good parents; you’ll learn lessons from both.
15. Martin Luther said he had the responsibility to be the worship leading pastor in his own home. His home was to be both a school and a church. Fathers, do you have this mindset?
17. Don Whitney encourages “brevity, regularity and flexibility” in family worship.

Read the rest

Matt Waymeyer links an article on dispensationalism:

For those of you dispensationalists out there who are wrestling with the question of the relationship between the church and the New Covenant, here is an excellent online resource. The article is “Dispensationalism, the Church, and the New Covenant” by R. Bruce Compton, and it was published in the fall of 2003 issue of Detroit Baptist Seminary Journal. Compton concludes that the church presently participates in the soteriological blessings of the New Covenant, but the covenant will be fulfilled in a future restoration of the ethnic nation of Israel at the second coming of Christ. Regardless of where you land on this issue, or whether or not you end up agreeing with Compton’s conclusions, you will find his discussion of the subject and his exegesis of the relevant passages to be very helpful. Definitely a must-read on this issue.

Read more.

Timmy Brister gives an update on Tom Ascol:

That was the report we received at the conclusion of this evening’s service when Tom Ascol (our senior pastor) returned from Alaska. When asked how he feels in relation to his health prior to the lightning strike, he responded that he feels 100%. We praise God for the way God has been answering the prayers of so many people.

(Earlier post, original post)