February Digital Smorgasbord

This week I'd like to share some articles I think you'll find helpful or edifying.

✧ The Christian Life Is More than ‘Tryin’ to Get the Feeling Again’

Many of us, when we first came to faith, felt electrified by the gospel and captivated by the Spirit. Scripture leaped off the page. Every sermon hit home. Worship moved us to tears. Prayer came easier. We craved togetherness with the community of faith.

For many of us, when those initial excited feelings fade, we wonder if we’ve lost “the love [we] had at first,” as Jesus said to the Ephesian church (Rev. 2:4). If I’m no longer “in love” with the Lord the way I once was, and if I no longer feel the same joy and enthusiasm about spiritual activities, am I backtracking? Am I regressing?

Because we tend to measure God’s activity by our experience, we think he’s only “showing up” when we feel a certain way. We assume he’s near only when we feel passionate.

So what happens when we don’t feel that enthusiasm anymore?

✧ A Present-Day Inkling Has Been Hiding in Plain Sight
Did you know How to Train Your Dragon was a Christian story? I did not.

Cressida Cowell's 'How to Train Your Dragon' series is a triumph in Christian storytelling. ...

Hiccup the character is much the same in the books as he is in the films, but what doesn’t quite come across as clearly in the movies is Hiccup’s unabashed role as a Christ figure.

✧ 10 Single-Volume Commentaries, Suggested by Logos Users
The links in this list are to the Logos version, but these are all available on Amazon or at ChristianBook.com. If you don't have a good single- (or in one case, two-) volume commentary, there are some excellent choices here. The NIV Application Commentary on the Bible is a particularly useful tool because of the focus on application.

✧ New Research Confirms Jesus’s Miracles
"Confirms" probably isn't the best word here, but this article provides an interesting look at new research into a term used in Josephus' controversial statement about Christ.

It turns out that once we’ve understood paradoxa for what they are, a compelling confirmation of Jesus’s miracles comes to light from a first-century Jewish chronicler. I speak of course of the famous historian Flavius Josephus.

✧ You’re Wrong About What Sex Trafficking Looks Like (video)
Here's a video I dearly wish were unnecessary.

We’ve been taught to look for trafficking in all the wrong places. This video exposes the lies that keep exploitation hidden in plain sight, and what noticing it actually requires. We’ve been taught to look for trafficking in all the wrong places. Most people are oblivious to human trafficking, mistaking it for obvious kidnappings, which prevents recognition and reporting. This video explores why, despite advanced technology, human trafficking continues to grow, emphasizing the critical need for human trafficking education. It highlights the importance of understanding the true nature of sex trafficking awareness to better identify and combat this pervasive issue.

Image via Pixabay