Wednesday Link List

Welcome to the link list for January 6th… I think I’m having an Epiphany.

• For a Nashville songwriter and producer, it may not be “the thrill that’ll getcha when you get your picture on the cover of the Rolling Stone;” but getting written up in Christianity Today when the article is all about the cult you belong to might cause you to change priorities. So it’s no surprise that Ed Cash has left The Gathering…
• …Still, I don’t think we’ve heard the last of this story. Some family members react.
• Essay of the Week (if you haven’t already heard about it): Jory Micah fighting the assumption that the complementarian position is the only one that’s ‘clearly Biblical.’
• Video(s) of the Week: Just about anything from last week’s Urbana 2015 conference in St. Louis. (Eyes starting to water up from thinking about watching some of the sessions.) 
• Rethinking our Priorities: Perhaps it’s not about passion and it’s more about hunger.
  
• You call them “atheist chaplains.” The UK’s National Health Service calls them “Non-Religious Pastoral Carers.” 
• Quotation of the Week: “In crisscrossing the Christian blogosphere, visiting local churches, and viewing Christians posting in social media, I’ve witnessed repeated thought patterns based on ‘insufficient’ theology. Too many statements made by supposed believers lack something essential to well-rounded Christian belief.”
  
• I wish Americans knew how bizarre this story appears to those of us in the rest of the civilized world: A look at how Texas churches must notify church attenders of what type of handgun concealment or non-concealment is permissible. (Begs the question: Why bother having a public worship service at all? Why not just produce a weekly podcast?)
• Scot McKnight looks at the Anabaptist view in Zondervan’s new Counterpoints title, Five Views on the Church and Politics.
• Pastor Place: Planning a sermon series schedule for 2016 is not the same as overall strategic planning. 
• Controversy of the Week: The Washington Post weighs in on the potential firing of Larycia Hawkins at Wheaton College, and its place in the school’s history.
  
• Keeping a close watch on the rise of Driscoll in Arizona.
• A few of these go against the standard operating procedure of the modern megachurch, but here are 9 pleasant surprises that make first-time church visitors return…
• …Also at ChurchLeaders.com, Is Gun Control a Christian Issue?  
• Twitter Account of the Week: The director for Ravi Zacharias International Ministries in Canada, Andy Bannister.
  
• Tim Challies reviews two of the latest books published to help us understand the terror that is ISIS.
• David Murray reviews a new Zondervan title tackling the problem of student debt.
• At least one person marked Epiphany on their blog.
  
• Barnabas Piper made the December installment of the Young Influencers List.
• So were you able to spot the panda among the snowmen? Here’s another one to try. See if you can spot the angels who appear in the middle of this charismatic service. (As the strains of In Christ Alone compete with another soundtrack playing at the same time.)
• Finally, since Donald Trump is now due to speak at Liberty University, a writer at Religion News Service puts together a draft of a speech for Hilary Clinton.