Blogging for God's Glory: The Friday Five with Tim Challies

February 16, 2011 by Daniel Darling

Continued from Page 1

4) Your first book was The Discipline of Spiritual Discernment. When we hear the word discernment, instinctively we think of a sort of nitpicky legalism. But you say that every believer should be discerning?

The Discipline of Spiritual Discernment came out of a time when I was wrestling through what it really meant to be discerning. As you say, many people understand discernment as a habit of those who are always looking for something to complain about. And I suppose there's an undeniable connection between discernment ministries and people who are constantly picking fights and complaining about the Christian world. I addressed these people in one of the book's chapters, though I'm not so sure that many of them listened. I don't think you'll find my book on the suggested reading lists for most discernment ministries. I see discernment as an integral ministry within the church and one that is positive, not negative, within the life of a local body. It's to our shame that the word has been co-opted by those who cast it in a negative light.

5) You have a new book coming out in a few months, The Next Story, about living virtuously in a digital world. This seems like such a needed book as Christians in our generation grapple with just how to redeem technology for the Kingdom.

Yes, I do have a new book coming out in April, 2011. In fact, I'm taking a break from editing it to complete this interview. Now you didn't actually ask a question here, so I'll go ahead and create one. I think the greatest Blue Jay in history must be Roy Halladay. I know that many people will disagree with me and point to George Bell or Carlos Delgado or Roberto Alomar or any number of other guys. But Halladay gets my vote because he was a product of the Toronto system and pitched here for most of his career. It was here that he really grew up and here that he became the Cy Young winner (though I'm guessing he picks up another one this year). So he was a Toronto guy in a way someone like Alomar never was (even though Alomar was an integral part of those two World Series victories in ‘92 and ‘93). So yes, there are good arguments to the contrary, but I'll stick with Halladay. Giving him up to Philadelphia this past off-season was a harsh blow. I think it will be a long, long time before Toronto sees another guy like him.

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About Daniel Darling

Daniel Darling is the Senior Pastor of Gages Lake Bible Church in the northwest suburbs of Chicago and the author of Crash Course and iFaith. His columns appear at Crosswalk.com. Follow him through Facebook, Twitter, or his personal website.

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