Daniel Darling, author, pastor, speaker - Page 268 of 272 - Conversations on Church, Community, and Culture

9/11 – 8 Years Later

January 1, 1970

 For my generation—I’m 31 years old—9/11 was as seminal moment. I still remember that day and following weeks exactly as they happened. I was working on staff at Victory In Grace Ministries. But really “working” is a bad word, because for several days were glued to the TV as the rest of America was.  I still remember the feelings I felt on 9/11. It was as if a giant protective bubble over America had burst and now were like everyone else on the planet: vulnerable, scared, angry. We had thought that two oceans could protect us and that we could wash our hands of the news overseas. But we couldn’t and we can’t. I watched those towers fall, I couldn’t get enough of the story. But I also remember a lot of good that came out this monumental tragedy. First, there was the unity. It wasn’t a fake unity, but something real, something human....

I Just Finished a Terrific Book

 The doorbell rang today and awaiting me was a beautiful new delivery of some books. One I had been anticipating for a while, by Kevin DeYoung, a thoughtful new voice in the evangelical world. The book is Just Do Something, A Liberating Approach to Finding God's Will.  Its a short book, but one loaded with powerful wisdom on finding God's will. The truth is that Christians make this much, much harder than it is. I'm not sure if its a conscience wracked by guilt in pinpointing exactly what God's will is (red Subaru or Yellow Nissan?), laziness that we gloss over with spiritual words, or just plain passivity. Either way, we've turned God's will into this yellow, hazy fog that nobody can seem to discover.  That's why I love Kevin's straightforward, Biblical advice. I finished this book tonight and posted this review on Amazon and CBD: So often Christians suffer from "paralysis by...

The Church Is Not Lame

I just finished a powerful, powerful book by Kevin DeYoung and Ted Kluck. I read a ton of books. Sometimes I read books that I can't wait to recommend. This is one. I am a big fan of the church, amidst a growing evangelical culture that is pooh-poohing the church. Every other day there is a book saying "The church must change." etc.  Kevin and Ted are young people who should be a part of this emergent crowd--but they're not. They're solid church people. And they're book is wonderfully readable. Here's the review I wrote on amazon:  A powerful, powerful book. I've been wanting to read this book since it came out. I enjoyed Josh Harris' Stop Dating the Church, which I felt was a concise apologetic for the church. But Kevin and Ted have given the body of Christ a wonderful gift in this book. I have grown weary...

Personal Project Updates

 Its been a while since I updated everyone on some projects I am working on, so here we go: Crash Course, Forming a Faith Foundation for Life - This is my second teen devotional. Like Teen People of the Bible, it will be a 100-day devotional. Crash Course is geared for jr high and high-school students and college freshman. The idea is to give them a "crash course" in the "fundamentals of life." It is divided up into five sections: Doctrine, Decisions, Direction, Devotion and Delight. We almost titled it "5 Big Things" because we boiled all of life down to the five important things you want a young person to know in order to be successful for life. I'm really excited about this book. It will be released next Spring by New Hope Publishers.  Instant Messages, Prayer for the Blackberry Generation - At...