Category: Links

Links for the Weekend (2026-02-13)

Posted onAuthorRyan Higginbottom

Each Friday, I’ll post links to 3–5 resources from around the web you may want to check out.

In Praise of Godly Mothers-in-Law

Tanner Kay Swanson has written a helpful article describing her relationship with her mother-in-law and what it takes for that relationship to be healthy.

Beneath my mother-in-law’s lack of boasting is a lack of envy. She sees me not as her competitor in all things marriage and motherhood. She sees me as her son’s wife, the woman to whom he now owes first allegiance. She sees me as her “adopted” daughter, a young woman with fears and needs and dreams, just like all her kids. Ultimately, she sees me as “one for whom Christ died” (Romans 14:15) — as a sister she’ll have forever, countless ages after marriages and titles like “mother-in-law” and “daughter-in-law” fade away.

Life is a Vapour. Enjoy it.

Here are some reflections on the book of Ecclesiastes. What does it mean for us that life is a vapor? How should we live in light of that?

The wise King said that vapour-life is not a curse if you learn to enjoy it (Ecclesiastes 5:18-20). But can you really enjoy life, when you see how transient it is? When it slips through your fingers no matter how tightly you clench them? Yes, you can.

Two videos

Here are two videos which might encourage you in your faith this weekend.

Note: Washington Presbyterian Church and the editors of this blog do not necessarily endorse all content produced by the individuals or groups referenced here. 

Links for the Weekend (2026-02-06)

Posted onAuthorRyan Higginbottom

Each Friday, I’ll post links to 3–5 resources from around the web you may want to check out.

Love Is the Interpreter

A keen observation from Tim Challies here: knowing the author of the Bible is a sure way to grow in our love for the Bible.

Yet each of us can attest that we did not always love God’s Word. It was not always sweet to our taste and not always our delight. In fact, there may have been times in which we hated it, in which we found it bitter, and in which we mocked and belittled it rather than find delight in it. There were times when the Bible was like those musicians—we skipped it, we tossed it, we moved on to something we liked better.

When Life is Hard, Keep Reading Your Bible

Glenna Marshall reminds us how much we need the Scriptures when life is hard.

The daily act of opening my Bible and digging in wasn’t a distraction from my troubles. It was guidance and hope in them. The Lord gave me peace—not in changed circumstances but in the grounding of my soul in the Word of my God. He never changes. He is always true. He is the source of joy and hope. The ordinary rhythms of study directed my soul when life got really hard really fast.

Jesus Loves the Self-Righteous Sinner

If you’ve accepted that God loves loud rebels but have more trouble believing that God loves the self-righteous, this post is for you.

Most of us are comfortable with a Jesus who loves the prodigal, but less comfortable with one who loves the self-righteous. Yet if we let Scripture shape our understanding of Christ’s love, we see that Jesus is not only kind to the hurting but also to the proud. Consider Luke 15. In one of Jesus’ most famous stories, a father runs to embrace his rebellious son after he returns broken and ruined by sin. But that’s not where the story ends. The older brother—the hard-working, well-behaved son—refuses to join in the celebration of his lost brother now found, resentful and convinced of his own moral superiority.

On the WPCA Blog This Week

This week on the blog we published an article I wrote called The Parable of the Dog and the New Master. If you haven’t already seen it, check it out!

Note: Washington Presbyterian Church and the editors of this blog do not necessarily endorse all content produced by the individuals or groups referenced here. 

Links for the Weekend (2026-01-30)

Posted onAuthorRyan Higginbottom

Each Friday, I’ll post links to 3–5 resources from around the web you may want to check out.

5 Reasons You Need Sabbath Rest

The Sabbath helps to reorient our lives and hearts. Megan Hill urges us to pay attention to the Sabbath.

The disruption of Sabbath rest is a chance to remember that even our schedules are under the Lord’s authority. Once a week, the Lord breaks into our routine and reminds us that our appointments and plans aren’t ultimate, nor are they prioritized according to our desires. When the first day of every week belongs wholly to him, it reorients every minute of every day that follows.

Fruitful to the End

Beth Ferguson writes about fruitfulness and aging.

Years temper us; hardships deepen our prayers; losses refine our loves. Have you noticed that some of the most joyful people are not the youngest, but those who have walked with God for decades? They know storms, but they also know the One who calms them. Their laughter has layers, and their peace has been tested. Abiding through time transforms us. With age, we may not move as quickly, but in Christ we ripen more fully.

Resources to Help You Meditate on Scripture in 2026

Here is a link to a bunch of free resources to help you read, study, and meditate on the Bible. (It’s a Crossway link, so you’ll also find resources they want you to buy, too!)

Note: Washington Presbyterian Church and the editors of this blog do not necessarily endorse all content produced by the individuals or groups referenced here. 

Links for the Weekend (2026-01-23)

Posted onAuthorRyan Higginbottom

Each Friday, I’ll post links to 3–5 resources from around the web you may want to check out.

The Great Omission

Writing for Christianity Today, Jen Wilkin points out the decline in Bible literacy and offers some concrete ways for churches to turn things around.

To start, we have forgotten that discipleship requires learning. We have reduced its definition to attendance, service, giving, relationship-building, and mostly peer-led, feelings-level discussions. But at its most fundamental level, discipleship is a process of learning—of renewing our minds to no longer conform to the world. 

When Waiting Draws Us Near to God

Bethany Broderick writes about an influential worship service at her church and how it taught her to wait on God.

Yet when we look at God’s story of redemption, we see waiting can be a blessing in God’s economy. Abraham waited for the promised son. The Israelites waited to be delivered from Egypt, then waited again to enter the Promised Land. David waited to be crowned king. Time and again, God wove waiting into the story of his people in order to draw them closer to him.

Unsuspected Mercies

Our poem of the week: Unsuspected Mercies, by Kate Bluett. This is a wonderful, lyrical poem about the mercies of God that show up in unexpected places.

On the WPCA Blog This Week

This week on the blog we published an article I wrote called From God’s Promises to Faith. If you haven’t already seen it, check it out!

Note: Washington Presbyterian Church and the editors of this blog do not necessarily endorse all content produced by the individuals or groups referenced here. 

Links for the Weekend (2026-01-16)

Posted onAuthorRyan Higginbottom

Each Friday, I’ll post links to 3–5 resources from around the web you may want to check out.

You Have Time to Read the Bible in the New Year

Glenna Marshall used to tell herself that she didn’t have time to read the Bible. She’s changed her mind, and she wants to change yours too.

In the many years since then, I’ve often been told my others that they don’t have time to read the Bible regularly. It’s one of the most common excuses I get now as a Bible teacher. It might be the thing holding you back right now. But I’m lovingly calling your bluff. You do have time to read the Bible. And so did I during all those years I swore I didn’t. Here’s how I know.

On Marriage

Jen Pollock Michel reflects on her years of marriage and offers some advice to those who are younger.

The only certain thing you choose when you marry someone is the certainty of change. Prayerfully, you want to seek a commitment—and a friendship—that will sustain you through all the beauty and brokenness of life. A health diagnosis. A bunch of kids. A job layoff. An incredible career success. You want a friendship that weathers the change that will inevitably befall both of you, a friendship that is committed to remembering the beauty and good you saw when you were falling in love—and forgetting the many lapses since.

In the face of loss, what does “grieving with hope” look like in the day-to-day?

CCEF counselor David Gunner Gundersen answers this question in a video. (A transcript is also available.)

Note: Washington Presbyterian Church and the editors of this blog do not necessarily endorse all content produced by the individuals or groups referenced here. 

Links for the Weekend (2026-01-09)

Posted onAuthorRyan Higginbottom

Each Friday, I’ll post links to 3–5 resources from around the web you may want to check out.

Gospel-Centered Resolutions

This is a helpful explanation of how the gospel can reshape our approach to resolutions.

The gospel challenges our normal approach to resolutions. Rather than starting with our desires, it reminds us that our desires are deceitful. We need to look elsewhere for our goals. Rather than telling us how to find value, the gospel reminds us that our value has been established by the blood of Jesus on the cross. Rather than telling us to try harder and be better to accomplish our goals, the gospel is the “power of God for salvation to everyone who believes” (Rom. 1:16). A gospel-centered approach is simply truer. It is more life-giving. It is powerful. If you’ve given up on resolutions before, don’t lose hope. Instead, give up on “you-centered” resolutions and replace them with the gospel.

5 Habits for Better Prayer in 2026

This writer offers suggestions for mindsets toward prayer in the context of maintaining a relationship with God.

Prayer is, first and foremost, being in our Father’s presence. One of the most common hindrances to prayer is the fear of not “doing it right,” like a student hesitant to attempt a tricky math problem. Yet prayer is about cherishing a relationship, not cracking a formula. It’s not the eloquence of our words but the posture of our hearts that the Lord considers.

The Key to Finding the Author’s Emphasis When You Read the Bible

Jon Nielson offers some suggestions to find the structure of Bible passages.

This tool operates on the basis that every passage in the Bible has a clear structure, and the structure is important because it shows us the focus or thrust of the passage. In other words, the way the biblical author puts a passage together can show us what that author means to emphasize, highlight, and bring out for his readers. Very often, the structure of a passage is the main key to interpreting it well, understanding it rightly, and applying it faithfully to our lives. This is why the construction tool is so important—it helps us see what the biblical authors want us to see.

On the WPCA Blog This Week

This week on the blog we published an article I wrote called The Bible Is Not About You. If you haven’t already seen it, check it out!

Note: Washington Presbyterian Church and the editors of this blog do not necessarily endorse all content produced by the individuals or groups referenced here. 

Links for the Weekend (2026-01-02)

Posted onAuthorRyan Higginbottom

Each Friday, I’ll post links to 3–5 resources from around the web you may want to check out.

Freedom in Devotions

At the beginning of a new year, this post is a good reminder about the goal of our spiritual practices. (It also sounds a warning about the traps we can fall into.)

Once we come to grips with the honest truth that our status with God is completely unearned and freely given to us by grace through faith in Jesus Christ, that may reveal our true motivation in doing all these things. If my true motivation was tied up in a belief that I was earning (or forfeiting) the blessings and favor of God, then I’ve forgotten the goal of devotions in the first place.

How do I deal with anxiety and depression related to aging?

This video from CCEF is full of biblical advice about anxiety related to aging. (A transcript is also available.)

If you have lingering regrets, speak them to the Lord and let his grace and mercy meet you. He has born your guilt and shame, and it’s okay to lament the loss of vitality in various areas of your life. By speaking of your disappointments and fears and sadness to the Lord, you are doing what so many of the Psalms model—faithful and trust-building crying out to the Lord.

All Flesh Shall See

Our poem of the week: All Flesh Shall See, by Kate Bluett. This is an Advent poem which also keeps the Good Friday work of Jesus in view. (I just discovered this poet on Substack and I think she’ll be making repeated appearances in these links in the coming year.)

Note: Washington Presbyterian Church and the editors of this blog do not necessarily endorse all content produced by the individuals or groups referenced here. 

Links for the Weekend (2025-12-19)

Posted onAuthorRyan Higginbottom

Each Friday, I’ll post links to 3–5 resources from around the web you may want to check out.

Note: We will take a break from posting links next week (December 26) and will return with plenty of goodness on January 2, 2026. Merry Christmas!

Make Repentance Part of Your Holiday Preparation

This short Advent meditation, written by Betsy Childs Howard, helps us reflect on the call of John the Baptist: repentance is the best way to prepare for the kingdom of heaven.

Repentance may be a kind of death, but it leads us to new life. The heart of the Christian faith isn’t making ourselves look better on the outside but having God truly cleanse our hearts.

Cultivating Christmas Wonder

John Stonestreet uses T.S. Eliot’s poem “The Cultivation of Christmas Trees” to help us think about Christmas. He urges us to cultivate wonder and expectant waiting.

A childlike faith will allow us to see Christ’s birth in view of His death and Resurrection, as well as our roles as reconcilers in God’s unfolding story of reality. We thus can live in view of His return and triumphant reign. As Eliot put it, may Christ’s first coming fill us with hope for His second, when every knee will bow and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord.

Four Advent Villanelles from Anna A. Friedrich

Our poem(s) of the week: Four Advent Villanelles, by Anna A. Friedrich. All four of these are worth reading slowly and savoring.

Thanks to Cliff L for his help in rounding up links this week!

Note: Washington Presbyterian Church and the editors of this blog do not necessarily endorse all content produced by the individuals or groups referenced here. 

Links for the Weekend (2025-12-12)

Posted onAuthorRyan Higginbottom

Each Friday, I’ll post links to 3–5 resources from around the web you may want to check out.

Gift Giving in an Age of Abundance

Here’s a reflection on giving gifts and how to love others around the holidays.

Love affirms the existence of another being. In what way are we affirming and delighting in them if we are just going through the motions of buying them gifts? It must be in the intentionality, the attention to the personhood that the gift becomes an affirmation of their being. When you deeply consider the person and their needs and desires and state in the world, and find a gift that suits them perfectly, that is an act of love that affirms them. It shows them that you sacrificed time and effort into finding something meaningful for them.

Revitalizing a Stagnant Marriage: Connection & Intentionality

Marriages of many years can drift into coldness. This podcast episode from CCEF counselors (transcript available) helps us spot and correct this problem. I’ve listened to this and found it quite helpful.

Your Body Has Been Made

Our poem of the week: Your Body Has Been Made, by Mark Rico. This Advent poem is a wonderful meditation on the angel’s announcement to Mary.

On the WPCA Blog This Week

This week on the blog we published an article I wrote called Your Church Needs You to Sing, and So Do You. If you haven’t already seen it, check it out!

Note: Washington Presbyterian Church and the editors of this blog do not necessarily endorse all content produced by the individuals or groups referenced here. 

Links for the Weekend (2025-12-05)

Posted onAuthorRyan Higginbottom

Each Friday, I’ll post links to 3–5 resources from around the web you may want to check out.

Somebody Knows the Trouble I’ve Seen

Advent may have special meaning for those with chronic conditions, for Advent reminds us that Jesus entered our world as “the ultimate expression of sympathy and care.”

Christians can go boldly to the throne of grace because Jesus stepped willingly into our crucible of grief. He knows what we need because, in his humanity, he once needed it himself. The old spiritual originally lamented, “Nobody knows the trouble I’ve seen; Nobody knows my sorrows.” But happily, along the way, someone noticed the flawed theology and changed the last two words: “Nobody knows, but Jesus.”

Don’t Think Lower Thoughts of Yourself than God Does

Those who are prone to mean and hateful thoughts about themselves will especially appreciate this article. Tim Challies’ list of what God thinks about us is worth framing.

And invariably, God’s judgment of me is far more favorable than my judgment of myself. He sees me as someone he loves, someone he cares for, someone he is proud of, someone he does not condemn. He thinks only the highest thoughts of me. He does not loathe, condemn, or despise me, but loves me with all the love he has for his very own Son, for, by the gospel, I am in his Son. And who am I to disagree with his assessment?

Stay Put and Make Disciples

This is a plea to aging saints to, when possible, invest in the places they’ve been for so many years.

For decades, God has been preparing you for these golden years. They are golden. You’ve never had so much life experience. And if you’ve been faithful and walked by the Spirit, you’ve never had more wisdom. You’ve lived long enough to appreciate the energy of youth, and you’ve seen the pivotal place of godly patience in tempering that enthusiasm. Oh, how our young adults need your perspective, guidance, and counsel.

Note: Washington Presbyterian Church and the editors of this blog do not necessarily endorse all content produced by the individuals or groups referenced here.