Tag: Mark Rico

Links for the Weekend (2026-07-10)

Posted onAuthorRyan Higginbottom

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

‘I’m Not Feeling It Today’: Bad Reasons We Neglect the Bible

David Mathis writes about the relationship between spontaneity and habit and how this relates to Bible reading. He advocates “planned spontaneity” and gives five practical suggestions.

Joy in God’s presence disappears when I don’t make a habit of pursuing his presence. Daily communion with the living God doesn’t just happen as we go about our daily lives. Setting our minds on things above doesn’t just happen. God means for us to take some initiative and put in a little effort to do the mind-setting and heart-calibrating, and in those arrangements God loves to bless his people with surprising showers of his grace that have all the joy of the best spontaneity.

The Value of Spiritual Disciplines

Jennifer Weichmann writes about how being a runner has informed her understanding of practicing spiritual disciplines.

Like we can see the effects of a habit across years of practice, spiritual disciplines operate the same way. As consistent running makes the runner stronger and faster, so also a disciplined believer strengthens their faith across time through habits like prayer and Bible reading, and also through the easier to dismiss habits of Scripture memory, fellowship, and fasting. These rhythms of spiritual disciplines matter because habits build, habits sustain, and habits drive.

Lassitude

Our poem of the week: Lassitude, by Mark Rico. This poem is (to me) an on-the-nose description of how July heat feels.

On the WPCA Blog This Week

This week on the blog we published an article written by Cliff Lester called The Grace of Thinking Soberly. 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 (2026-04-10)

Posted onAuthorRyan Higginbottom

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

The Bible Isn’t a Smartphone

I enjoyed reading T. M. Suffield’s thoughts on the difference between instruments and devices, particularly as it relates to the way we read the Bible. I think you’ll benefit from his exploration of how we read the Bible and how that forms our expectations of our interaction with the Bible.

I think we do the same thing in much subtler ways too. Do we come to the Bible expecting to find answers provided to us, or expecting to have to work to discover what it would say to us? Do we come to the Bible as though it doesn’t require anything of us to understand, or do we expect to have to change to become the sort of people who can read it? Does the Bible act on our behalf, or do we by the Holy Spirit use the word of God to engage differently in the world?

What is the Unforgivable Sin?

Gavin Ortlund tackles this question about the “eternal sin” and he reads the Bible closely to arrive at his answer.

Meditation XX

Our poem of the week: Meditation XX, by Mark Rico. This poem is an exploration of the way God waits and how we long for his presence while we wait.

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.