Looking Forward - Restaurant Edition

Over the past decade or so, the culinary prowess of Mobile has seen a tremendous increase. It has been really neat to try and support as many homegrown restaurant's as possible. Our time in quarantine has made me reminisce and hopefully get to visit some of these places in the near future.


Burgers:

Callaghans Irish Social Club - This little gem is nestled in the Oakleigh District in midtown Mobile. Located at 916 Charleston St, Callaghans is a must visit. The bacon cheeseburger is top notch. You will not regret making a visit.

Runner Up -  Butch Cassidys and Loda Bier Garten


Mexican:

Bariachi Mexican Kitchen - Bariachi Mexican Kitchen is a fairly new establishment that is in the old Mellow Mushroom building on Airport Blvd. The al pastor street tacos are my go to. The chips and salsa are wonderful as well.

Runner Up -  Roosters and Rio


Mediterranean:

Mediterranean Sandwich Co -  Med Sandwich Co has several locations but my favorite is the one on Airport Blvd across from Montlimar Dr. The best thing about Med Sandwich Co is that they serve up mediterranean food with a southern twist. My go to, the Dixie Chicken is a panini with chicken and Connecuh sausage(!). Their sides are wonderful too. Go ahead and get the bacon carbonara orzo, you wont regret it. Not only is MSC my favorite mediterranean place, its my favorite restaurant period right now.

Runner Up - Jerusalem Cafe


Hibachi:

Sit Down - See-Wee-Roll - The food is great and and it's all you can get. Combine that with a nice sushi selection and See-Wee-Roll is hard to beat.

Fast Food - Japanese Express - The food is high quality, the pricing is good, and its fairly quick. A hard to beat trio.



Favorite Steakhouse:

Briquettes - This is usually the go to restaurant when my friends and I get together and for Sophie and I on date nights. Briquettes is probably my second favorite restaurant in Mobile. The prices are good, the steaks, entrees, and sides are all excellent. Briquettes is also home of the best appetizer in Mobile, the Philly Cheese Steak Wraps.



Best Comfort Food:

Judy's Place - Judy's Place recently had to move into a bigger building due to their popularity. The food and the prices are equally great. On weekdays you cant miss it as you cruise down government street due to all the work trucks filling the place. You know its good when you see a parking lot full of work trucks.

Runner Up - Mary's Southern Kitchen


Brunch:

Spot Of Tea - I have been to the Spot of Tea a few times and it's always top notch. Whether you are looking for a hearty breakfast or something a little on the sweeter side the Spot Of Tea can cook something up for you. Nestled in downtown Mobile, the location and atmosphere definitely add to the experience.

Pizza - Ashland Midtown Pub - Ashland Midtown Pub is very underrated when it comes Mobile restaurants in general but they ought not be. Their pizza's are some of the very best Mobile has to offer and the rest of their menu is great as well.

Runner Up - Pizzeria Delphina


Best Dessert:

Cammie's Old Dutch Ice Cream - It would be a travesty to come to Mobile and not stop by Cammie's Old Dutch Ice Cream in Midtown. It is a Mobile dessert staple serving up excellent ice cream at equally excellent prices.

Runner Up - Flour Girls


Coffee:

Let me preface this by saying that I have no idea what good coffee is, I just like fru fru drinks.

Yellow Hammer - I love everything about this place. From the culture of generosity and transparency to their ability to make some delicious coffee drinks. I have been following Yellow Hammer since their inception and it has been super fun to watch them grow. Do yourself a favor and grab a drink from them.

Runner Up - Carpe Diem and Serda's


I am sure there are some categories I left out but the idea of this is to get people thinking of places they miss and want to support once we are released out into the wild, not be bored to death. Lets all be diligent in spending our money in places that make our local cities what they are. 

Home Inspections and Sin

Over the last few months, I have been in the process of purchasing a home. It is a newly built home that, as of this writing, has a few things left to finish. The home-buying process is new to me so the whole thing has been quite the journey. One of the things debated about on new construction is whether or not you should get a home inspection. This is not a post about that but it is about something God showed me during the process.

I have been watching this house being built over the last 7-8 months. I walked through it when it was nothing but a slab and frame. I have continued to visit this location weekly and sometimes daily over the last few months. I have walked inside it, around it, you name it. From my perspective, everything looked great. On the day of inspection, I met the home inspector at the house after he was done with his walk through. He proceeded to show me several things that needed to be fixed by the builder. I had never noticed any of these during my time at the house. It definitely takes a trained eye to catch what the inspector found.

I was driving to get some fuel after my appointment and it hit me. My experience with the home inspector is also my spiritual experience. When I take a look at myself, I know something could be wrong but, because of my sin nature, I often miss the root of what's really wrong. Things seem fine to me, because I do not have a trained eye. This is where the importance of the Word of God comes in. Like the home inspector is experienced in looking for faults in a house, the Bible exposes the faults in us. Faults we often fail to see. In order for us to take a true inventory of self, we have to hold the Scriptures up to our hearts and ask God to expose the sin in our lives. Sin that, for the most part, we don't even see. God reveals the power of His Word to us in His Word.

For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart. 

                    Hebrews 4:12

Every analogy falls apart at some point and this one is no different. The difference between the Bible and a home inspector is that the Bible offers the solution to the problem, while the home inspector cannot fix the problems found. The thing is, we often err in our reading of the Bible as we use it much like a home inspection report that is looked at then dismissed. We can continuously look at the Law and compare our lives to it and, if we are not honest with ourselves and repent, we will become self righteous in thinking that we obey the law or we despair realizing that we cannot match up and thus give up.

Thankfully God in His great grace and mercy has not only revealed to us through His Word that we are rebels, full of hatred towards Him, but He has also offered a solution to our problem in Jesus Christ. A correct reading of the Bible looks a lot like the home inspector turning the report over to the home builder or owner. The Bible gives us a report of what's wrong, but also shows us where to go to remedy the issues found. It shows us that God, being rich in mercy, sent His only Son to purchase a people for Himself that He had chosen before the foundation of the world, that they may be saved from the wrath to come, eternal damnation. All we have to do is cast ourselves onto Jesus, repenting of our sins and trusting in Him for our righteousness.

The Scriptures attest to this as well..

For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. For one will scarcely die for a righteous person—though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die—but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.  Since, therefore, we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God. For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life. More than that, we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation. 

          Romans 5:6–11

The bottom line is that we need to continually measure ourselves by God's holiness, as revealed in His word, and when we fall short, as we all do, we must run to Jesus to ask for forgiveness and grace to mortify our sin. Don't be afraid to allow the Bible to find your faults. This is one of the biggest ways our joy as Christians is increased, and in reality, that's what we want and what truly gives us life.

Top 10 Books of 2017

While I did not read near as many books as I would like to, (something I resolve to do in the New Year) I did read a few good ones. Here are my top 10 books of 2017.



1) Not Yet Married - Marshall Segal

Having followed Marshall Segal's articles on singleness and dating for quite some time, I had a pretty good idea of how this book would unfold. I have been anticipating reading it since it was announced. Singleness and dating amongst Christians is one of the weaker and under addressed areas of Christianity, especially theologically, in my opinion. There are tons of books on dating and the such out there that provide application but not much that is theologically robust. Where Marshall excels is giving the "Not Yet Married" a big view of God and a big view of marriage. In light of this, he explains the importance of dating and why we should get it right. My favorite chapters were Chapter 10 (The Best Book on Dating) and Chapter 15 (The Third Wheel We All Need). In Chapter 10, Marshall shows us how the Bible, while never addressing dating specifically, has MUCH to say about how Christians should date. Chapter 15 is filled with wisdom on having accountability during the dating season. Not Yet Married is built on the foundation that dating is for pursuing clarity in whether a couple should marry, postponing intimacy for those who end up married. I highly recommend this book to anyone who is not yet married. I would also recommend married couples take up this book to help in giving wisdom and guidance to not yet marrieds they have influence over.

2) 12 Ways Your Phone Is Changing You - Tony Reinke

In my opinion, this is the most important book released in some time. It is fundamental in helping us see how our smartphones affect us in both the good and the bad. I found Tony's balance to be most helpful in that he presents the facts and his opinions, but leaves the application up to ones leading of the Spirit. The way he contrasts the temporary and the eternal is hands down my favorite part of this book. If you are interested in why social media is so attractive (often addicting), and why you find it so hard to put your phone down, this book is for you.

3) The Imperfect Disciple - Jared C. Wilson

Every now and then you come a cross book that is a balm to your soul. This is one of those books for me. Jared does a wonderful job of helping us to take our eyes off of ourselves and put them on Christ. His ability to make Christ big while simultaneously humbling the believer is impressive. I can safely say that in reading this book you will find yourself, convicted, comforted, and exhorted to look to Christ!

4) The Whole Christ - Sinclair Ferguson

One of the biggest reasons to read this book is to correct our understanding of legalism and antinomianism. We often try to correct an error of clinging to one with the other. Sinclair shows us how this itself is an error as they are both birthed from the same womb. Only the gospel can correct a clinging to either of these two errors. I think you will find this book most helpful. Pastors should consider putting this in the must read category.

5) Union with Christ - Rankin Wilbourne 

Followers of Jesus are most often described as "Christians" these days. That was not so in the New Testament. Followers of Jesus were mainly described as "In Christ". Rankin Wilbourne clears the fog on what exactly it means to be in Christ and how that helps us on our road to being more like Jesus.

6) A Peculiar Glory - John Piper

God has provided a way for all people, not just scholars, to know that the Bible is the Word of God. John Piper has devoted his life to showing us that the glory of God is the object of the soul's happiness. Now, his burden in this book is to demonstrate that this same glory is the ground of the mind's certainty.
God's peculiar glory shines through his Word. The Spirit of God enlightens the eyes of our hearts. And in one self-authenticating sight, our minds are sure and our hearts are satisfied. Justified certainty and solid joy meet in the peculiar glory of God.

7) Johnstown Flood - David McCullough 

David McCullough is hands down one of my favorite authors. His ability to bring you into the story is amazing. Johnstown Flood is no different. This is a powerful, definitive book, and a tribute to the thousands who died in America's worst inland flood.

8) Conscience: What It Is, How to Train It, and Loving Those Who Differ - Andy Naselli and J.D. Crowley

I should probably have this book higher as I tend to think the majority of our disunity in American Christianity today is due to a lack of understanding of the conscience. This book sheds light on an often misunderstood and neglected topic.

9) An Infinite Journey - Andy Davis

After we've come to faith in Christ, God leaves us in this world for a very clear purpose: his own glory. But how are we to glorify God for the rest of our lives? The Bible reveals that God has laid before every Christian two infinite journeys which we are to travel every day: the internal journey of growth into Christlike maturity, and the external journey of worldwide evangelism and missions. This book is a roadmap for the internal journey, laying out how we are to grow in four major areas: knowledge, faith, character, and action. In this book, we'll learn how God grows us in knowledge, faith, character, and action. We'll also discover that spiritual knowledge constantly feeds our growing faith, faith will transform our character, our transformed character will result in an array of actions more and more glorifying to God, and our actions will feed our spiritual knowledge. This upward spiral will lead us to become more and more like Jesus Christ in holiness.

10) Romans 9: God's Sovereign Purpose - Martyn Lloyd-Jones 

As my church went through Romans this year we approached one of the more difficult chapters in the Bible. To get a better understanding, I turned to one of the most respected voices of all times on the book of Romans, Martyn Lloyd-Jones. I do not know if you will find a more faithful handling of Romans 9 than you find here by Dr Lloyd-Jones. At some point in my life, i hope to read his exposition of the other chapters.

Top 10 books of 2015

Here is my list of the top 10 books I have read this year.

1) Rejoicing in Christ by Michael Reeves

I have only read one other book, Richard Sibbes "The Bruised Reed" that increased my affections for Jesus as much as Rejoicing in Christ has. This book has been most refreshing to my soul as it took my eyes off of me and placed them on Christ.

2) Prayer - Timothy Keller

I'm inclined to say that prayer is one of the hardest if not the hardest disciplines of the Christian life. There are a lot of resources out there but In this day and age it's all about "new practices" that will revolutionize your prayer life. In this book Timothy Keller takes us back to what the Saints of old wrote about prayer. In a way that only Keller can do he has taken their thoughts and made them teachable in the 21st century. His ability to use illustrations to bring their thoughts into light is outstanding. We would do well to listen to the old guys more on all the issues of the Christian walk. I am thankful that he not only taught me about prayer but actually made it so i could put into practice what I learned. Just as Every Good Endeavor was the most applicable book I've ever read on vocation, Prayer is on the discipline of prayer.

3) Baptists in America - Thomas Kidd

In Baptists in America, Thomas S. Kidd and Barry Hankins explore the long-running tensions between church, state, and culture that Baptists have shaped and navigated. Despite the moment of unity that their early persecution provided, their history has been marked by internal battles and schisms that were microcosms of national events, from the conflict over slavery that divided North from South to the conservative revolution of the 1970s and 80s.

4) Wright Brothers - David McCullough

Two-time winner of the Pulitzer Prize David McCullough tells the dramatic story-behind-the-story about the courageous brothers who taught the world how to fly: Wilbur and Orville Wright.

5) Preaching and Preachers - Martyn Lloyd-Jones

There isnt much I can say about this book that others haven't. It is a must read for new and old pastors alike as well as those contemplating pastoral ministry. This book reaffirmed my lack of calling to be a preacher, but as someone who desires to disciple young men, some of which may be called to ministry, this book was extremely helpful.

6) Young, Restless, Reformed - Colin Hansen

For nearly two years, Christianity Today journalist Collin Hansen visited the chief schools, churches, and conferences of this growing movement. He sought to describe its members and ask its leading pastors and theologians about the causes and implications of the Calvinist resurgence. The result, Young, Restless, Reformed, shows common threads in their diverse testimonies and suggests what tomorrow's church might look like when these young evangelicals become pastors or professors.

7) The Unfolding Mystery - Edmund Clowney

Beginning with Adam and Eve and closing with the last of the prophets, Dr. Clowney takes a fascinating walk through the Old Testament, revealing Christ in places where he is usually overlooked.

8) Fierce Convictions: The Life of Hanna Moore - Karen Swallow Prior

While reading this book, I couldn't help but think of how I had never heard of Hannah More. It is a great travesty that Hannah More has been forgotten as time moves on. It would do every one well to read this book, especially Christians. If you want to see what it looks like to use your God given gifts to impact peoples lives and partake in bringing the Kingdom of God to this world then you should pick up this book.

9) Eight Men Out - Eliot Asinof

The headlines proclaimed the 1919 fix of the World Series and attempted cover-up as "the most gigantic sporting swindle in the history of America!" First published in 1963, Eight Men Out has become a timeless classic. Eliot Asinof has reconstructed the entire scene-by-scene story of the fantastic scandal in which eight Chicago White Sox players arranged with the nation's leading gamblers to throw the Series in Cincinnati.

10) The Drama of Scripture - Craig G. Bartholomew, Michael W. Goheen

The Drama of Scripture is one of the best books I have read in a while. Most Christians approach the Bible as a roadmap to life or a book on how to live their life when in reality it is a story about God. A story about His creation, the fall, redemption through Jesus Christ, and ultimately the restoration of all things. This book gives the reader a great overview of the Biblical Metanarrative.