Last spring I had the privilege of speaking at a conference for NFL players put on by Pro Athletes Outreach (PAO), a group which exists to unite a community of pro athletes and couples to grow as disciples of Jesus and positively impact their spheres of influence. They have a fantastic outreach to professional football and baseball athletes and their wives. I’ve seen firsthand the amazing difference they’re making. In the off-season I exchanged emails and texts with dozens of NFL players and cha..Continue reading→
Home
Thoughts
Motherhood Is a Marathon
I wanted to do great things for God. In the spring of my senior year of college, on the brink of embarking upon my own journey into adulthood, my future was undecided and that was simultaneously terrifying and thrilling. As a philosophy major, my path was narrower than I had realized, but I was sure it would take me on some grand and glorious adventure. I knew the chief end of man is to glorify God and enjoy him forever. “Glorify” sounds like such a grand term. It evokes images of battlefie..Continue reading→
1 Peter 5:7–8: How Not to Battle Anxiety
Anxieties attack our faith and torment our peace. The question with anxiety is not whether it will come, but rather, how can I fight it when it does? Watch NowContinue reading→
Is Love of Money Really the Root of All Evils?
Is the love of money the “root of all evils” or only the “root of all kinds of evil” (1 Timothy 6:10)? “All evils” is the formal English equivalent of the original Greek (pantōn tōn kakōn). It is remarkable that all older versions of the Bible translate 1 Timothy 6:10 in the more literal way: “The love of money is the root of all evils” (or all evil). This includes the Wycliffe Bible, Luther Bibel, Geneva Bible, King James Version, Douay-Rheims, Darby Bible, and Revised Standard Version. Bu..Continue reading→
Daily Wisdom
Proverbs 22:6
“Start children off on the way they should go, and even when they are old they will not turn from it.”Continue reading→
Mark 8:31 (08-31-16)
And he began to teach them, that the Son of man must suffer many things, and be rejected of the elders, and of the chief priests, and scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again.— Mark 8:31 (KJV) Thoughts on Today's Verse... Knowing Jesus is God's Messiah is one thing. Following Jesus as our Lord is quite another. Getting our minds, hearts, and lives to all line up is always a challenge. Once Jesus' disciples confessed him as the Christ, he knew he had to teach..Continue reading→
Psalm 95:6-7
“Come, let us bow down in worship, let us kneel before the LORD our Maker; for he is our God and we are the people of his pasture, the flock under his care. Today, if only you would hear his voice,”Continue reading→
John 8:30 (08-30-16)
As he spake these words, many believed on him.— John 8:30 (KJV) Thoughts on Today's Verse... While we often talk about Jesus as our Lord and Savior, we can also find it easy to ignore his voice. Let's make a commitment to read through each of the four Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke, & John) before the end of the year. And as we read, let's do it as a search for the heart of Jesus and ask God to help us know him better.Continue reading→
Prayers
Prayer for the Week
O God, you have taught us to keep all your commandments by loving you and our neighbor: Grant us the grace of your Holy Spirit, that we may be devoted to you with our whole heart, and united to one another with pure affection; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen. BCPContinue reading→
Living in Freedom
Passage: Galatians 5:1-6 Prayer: Dear Father, guarantor of freedom, Christ died to set all people free - if they will accept it! As for me, Father, I accept it and intend to live by it. Help me always to stand fast and never submit to a yoke of slavery! Help me to live in freedom from sin and to help other people see that to espouse rule-keeping is a form of slavery, a falling away from the grace of Christ. For it is through the Spirit, by faith, our trust in you, that we wait for the hope of righteou..Continue reading→
Children of Promise
Passage: Galatians 4:8-5:1 Prayer: Dear Father, Keep us from turning back to any weak and beggarly things. Help us to live in the glorious freedom brought by the Son of God. Let Christ be born in our souls, even if through great travail. Let him be the reality of our lives, hour by hour and day by day.Let us live as children of the free woman, the new Jerusalem which is above, not as children of the bondwoman. Make us the children of promise. Since it was for freedom that Christ set us free, let us li..Continue reading→
Adopted
Passage: Galatians 4:1-7 Prayer: Dear Father, Thank you for delivering us from slavery and immaturity. Thank you for sending Jesus Christ at just the right time, in just the right way, that he might redeem those under the law, and that we might all receive the adoption as sons. Thank you for sending the Spirit of your Son into our hearts, crying, "Abba! Father," so that we are no longer slaves but sons.In the name of Jesus I pray. Amen.Continue reading→
Church & Ministries
Celebrate Recovery and Mental Health
My name is Nate, I am a grateful believer in Jesus Christ who struggles with addiction and mental health issues. I serve as the National Director of the Mental Health Initiative for Celebrate Recovery. One in 4 people will experience some type of mental health issue this year, and over half of all people will personally go through some mental health issue in their lifetime. This is an issue of life or death for many people. Globally, one person dies every 40 seconds by his or her own hand. More..Continue reading→
How God’s Word Changes Our Lives
If you want to see lasting change in your life, you need to commit to a steady diet of God’s Word, the Bible. We all want to be spiritually and relationally healthy, but we fail to realize the power of this one habit – filling our minds daily with truth from our Creator. James 1:25 says, “The truly happy people are those who carefully study God’s perfect law that makes people free, and they continue to study it. They do not forget what they heard, but they obey what God’s teaching says.” Continue reading→
Young people say ‘no’ to flashy worship, seek church that treats them ‘like family’
Flashy worship services meant to attract millennials and teens are doing the opposite—turning them off instead. That surprising revelation emerged from a recent in-depth study of more than 250 congregations in the United States and published in the book "Growing Young: Six Essential Strategies to Help Young People Discover and Love Your Church," the Washington Post reports. The book's authors say today's generation is not interested anymore in things that church leaders consi..Continue reading→
Martin Luther King Jr promoted to sainthood by Holy Christian Orthodox Church
The icon of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., to be unveiled at his glorification this Friday. Across the globe Martin Luther King Jr, hero and martyr of the Civil Rights movement, is venerated for his inspirational leadership in his stand against racial discrimination. Now however, one Christian communion is about to officially pronounce him to be a Saint. Dr King was nominated for sainthood in June 2013 by the Holy Christian Orthodox Church, which claims a membership of 4 million churches acr..Continue reading→
Hot Topics
3 Motivations to Hate Sin
“We understand from the Bible that the wages of sin is death. Think about this, every single tombstone throughout history is a trademark of sin. Every minute 105 people die. That is 151,600 people per day and more than 55 million per year. Sin is destructive.” In counseling, parenting, and my own personal pursuit of godliness I have found that hating sin is an easily overlooked but never overstated priority. Sin brings consequences. Often these consequences are painful. It is a real temptation ..Continue reading→
Cyber Monday – 40% Off Ebooks & Audio Books!
40% OFF ALL AUDIO BOOKS! 40% OFF ALL EBOOKS! Just click on the green or red text above to go the respective pages. This sale is today only!Continue reading→
John Newton’s Christ-Centered Approach to the Old Testament
The coming of Christ was a wise and gracious appointment that put the truth of the depravity and helplessness of man, the mercy of God, and the truth of the Scriptures in the strongest possible light. It was at the time that most glorified Jesus Christ as the only remedy for sin and as the great Savior foretold through the ages that so many had already placed their faith upon. In his Review of Ecclesiastical History, John Newton provides a glimpse for us into his Christ-centered view of the Old..Continue reading→
One of the Easiest Ways to Glorify God
Thankfulness shows we appreciate God’s costly mercy in saving us. We were blind and dead in our sins, under God’s wrath, slaves of sin and Satan, without hope or God, and unable to save ourselves, when Jesus came down, suffered brutal torture, holy wrath and death to rescue us and bring us to God. How can we not be thankful? If for no other reason other than the fact that he saved us, we should overflow with gratitude all the days of our lives. Even if God never gave us another blessing in this ..Continue reading→
Life & Society
Jim Wallis: It’s An Embarrassment That Any Christian Would Vote For Trump
Evangelical support for Trump appears to be crumbling.Reuters Donald Trump is "antithetical to every Christian value" and it's an "embarrassment" that he's received widespread support from Christians, Jim Wallis has said. In an interview with Christian Today, Wallis – a leading evangelical figure and founder of Sojourners magazine – said Trump's campaign has been run by "stoking and fuelling racial, gender and religious bigotry". Since announcing his candidacy for president las..Continue reading→
Special Alabama Supreme Court to Hear Roy Moore Appeal After Sitting Justices Recuse Themselves
MONTGOMERY, Ala. — A special Supreme Court is expected to be appointed today in Alabama to hear the appeal of suspended Chief Justice Roy Moore as the sitting justices on the court recused themselves out of a desire to keep the ruling impartial. “Because the justices have personal knowledge of the facts and circumstances underlying this appeal, this appeal presents a situation in which all the justices’ impartiality might be questioned,” the court wrote in a 5-3 vote on Monday. Seven judges ar..Continue reading→
God & The Presidency: The Faith of Dwight D Eisenhower
A statue of Dwight D Eisenhower, America's 34th president.Reuters "Since the day of creation, the fondest hopes of men and women have been to pass on to their children something better than they themselves enjoyed. That hope represents a spark of the Divine which is implanted in every human breast." So said Dwight D Eisenhower, America's 34th president, and this week's subject of our series on the faith of presidents past. Having looked at JFK's Catholicism, Ronald Reagan&#..Continue reading→
Legal Challenge Dropped After Court Declares Gender Identity Laws Don’t Apply to Churches
DES MOINES, Iowa — A legal challenge that had been filed against the Iowa Human Rights Commission over its interpretation of local laws pertaining to gender identity has been dropped after a federal judge noted that churches are not generally considered places of public accommodation by the courts. “This lawsuit was necessary to ensure that the state won’t try to enforce the law against churches, and we’re pleased that Iowa churches now have the reassurance and clarity that they need,” said All..Continue reading→
Movies
Goodbye, Family Christian Stores
This week, it was announced that Family Christian Stores — one of the world’s largest Christian retailers — will close all 240 of its stores. This isn’t really shocking; Family Christian had gone through bankruptcy a few years back. But it will have an impact; more than 3,000 employees are going to lose their jobs as the stores shutter and Christian culture loses one of its largest and most diverse suppliers of books, music and trinkets. Granted, this is just the nature of the beast these days. ..Continue reading→
Have you caught up with “It’s My Favorite”?
Hey everyone, Not going to lie: it’s been a week. Work, school and home life have been busy, and the general insanity of our world right now has really robbed me of a lot of energy and will to write. It’s a shame, because I have some really good stuff on deck for you. One new series I want to write and one Oscar-related miniseries of articles, and I’m hoping that starting this weekend those will start posting. And in the weeks ahead I’m going to really be jumping into the reviewing pool again ha..Continue reading→
Watch: New music video for The Shack with new footage
Itching to see The Shack — or at least to get a taste of it before it comes out five weeks from now? Well, maybe this will tide you over: the powers that be have released two new songs from the film’s soundtrack, one of which even has a music video. Here is the video, for a new acoustic version of Skillet’s ‘Stars’: The studio has also released the full version of ‘Keep Your Eyes on Me’, which is sung by Tim McGraw and Faith Hill and has previously been heard in the trailers. Here is a Spotify ..Continue reading→
The Story of God: Proof of the Divine
Photo by Amanda Slater, Flickr. C.C. Licensing. Season two of “The Story of God with Morgan Freeman” airs Mondays at 9 p.m. (8 p.m. Central) on the National Geographic Channel. Once again, I’m writing about it here each week from a Christian perspective as a preview. This post is about episode three, the season finale, “Proof of God.” In the final episode of “The Story of God’s” second season, Morgan Freeman travels the world speaking to people who believe they’ve experienced proof — often tang..Continue reading→
Oscar nominations — my own two bits, and a complete list
It looks like La La Land is the movie to beat at this year’s Oscars. The film, a jazzy musical that stars Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone as a musician and an actress trying to make their way in Hollywood, racked up 14 Academy Award nominations this morning — tying the record set by 1950’s All About Eve and 1997’s Titanic. However, because La La Land was nominated twice for original song, it is actually nominated in 13 categories — which is more than the 12 categories that All About Eve was nominate..Continue reading→
Let’s talk Oscar noms!
Some quick thoughts on the 2017 Academy Award nominations, which were announced earlier today. A full list of nominees is available here. At first blush, my biggest surprise is that there isn’t a ton here I would bicker with. The list of nominees this year is really darn good, spread out over several movies. Maybe it’s because I saw fewer movies than normal this year or simply because so many of the nominated films are on my best-of list, but I can’t really find a bad choice among the films. Re..Continue reading→
Star Wars Episode 8 gains a title
Earlier today, the official Star Wars Twitter feed ended more than a year of speculation by revealing the title of the latest entry in the saga, due out this December: It’s official. STAR WARS: THE LAST JEDI is the next chapter of the Skywalker saga. This December. #TheLastJedihttps://t.co/ySkVwQcMTPpic.twitter.com/eHrPgbsRJq — Star Wars (@starwars) January 23, 2017 [Read More...]Continue reading→
Encountering the Mystical in the ‘The Fits’
The fascinating film about adolescent encounters with the sublime gives us plenty to ponder. If you’re looking for a film that inspires lively conversation, you’ve got to check out The Fits. Anna Rose Helmer’s debut feature film runs a brief, but intense, 72 minutes, leaving plenty of time for discussion and debate afterwards. It caused a stir last year at Sundance, and critics have been talking about it ever since. Fortunately, Amazon Prime subscribers can currently stream it for free—and for ..Continue reading→
Review: The Resurrection of Gavin Stone (dir. Dallas Jenkins, 2017)
The Resurrection of Gavin Stone is a “faith-based” comedy about a washed-up former child star who, having trashed a hotel roof bar, is told to do a couple hundred hours of community service at a Chicago-based megachurch and ends up starring in their Easter play. It’s a safe, formulaic and utterly predictable film — precisely the kind of “Christian” movie I tend not to review here — but because of my interest in movies about Jesus, I was interested in seeing how this film would depict the play. T..Continue reading→
Music
One-Way Conversations by Hollyn
Hailing from Ohio, this Dove Awards New Artist of the Year nominee has been working the past year on her debut full length album titled "One-Way Conversations". Listeners were introduced to this vibrant you lady on TobyMac's latest release with the songs "Backseat Driver" and "Lights Shine Bright" and later with her debut #1 single "Alone (featuring TRU)". As a songwriter, Hollyn co-wrote all of the songs on her debut full length album and worked with producers Bryan Fowler (Ryan Stevenson), Wit and 42 North (Andy Mineo), Cole Walowac of Capital Kings, Eric Ramey (Britt Nicole) and more. The album[...]Continue reading→
Run The Race (Single) by Holly Starr
The new single from Holly Starr, co-written with and produced by Bryan Fowler (Ryan Stevenson, Tobymac, Mandisa, Hollyn).[...]Continue reading→
The Garden (Deluxe Edition) by Kari Jobe
Grammy nominated Kari Jobe is the premiere female worship leader in Christian music. Coming off her last live album, Majestic, which featured the worship anthem 'Forever' and radio hit 'I Am Not Alone', Kari Jobe has returned to the studio to record her new album, full of brand new worship anthems for the church and for personal reflection. Finding inspiration from life's joys and hardships, Kari leans into the firm foundation of Christ through it all. With career sales that top 1 million, Kari still comes back to the reason why she started in the first place- leading people into[...]Continue reading→
Back To Life by Anthony Evans
Recording Artist and Worship Leader Anthony Evans' highly-anticipated new album Back To Life releases February 3, 2017 through Sherman James Productions. A collection of worship songs, this new album features NBC's The Voice alumnus on 11 worship-themed tracks exploring authenticity, vulnerability, honesty and the way that the culmination of those three things brought him Back to Life. It marks Evans' eighth solo studio album and will be available through all digital retailers and exclusively at Lifeway Christian Stores. Back To Life is available for pre-order on January 6, 2017. "Over the last year, God has given me one revelation after[...]Continue reading→
Canopy by nobigdyl.
"I wrote Canopy coming out of a time of isolation and darkness. It felt like my life was completely falling apart and I'd have to start over again from nothing. God showed me that sometimes there's safety and protection in isolation. Sometimes, the darkness makes it easier to see the light," confessed nobigdyl. when speaking of the anticipated release. 'Canopy' is nobigdyl.'s first album release since his debut in 2015 with the 'Smoke Signal' EP. Check out indie tribe and nobigdyl at his website, nobigdyl.com.[...]Continue reading→
Books
A Look at Notable 2016 Publications
TEDS President offers his list of best books “There is no end to the making of many books,” says the author of Ecclesiastes. In the United States alone, there were close to one million titles published during the past year, with revenue approaching $1.8 billion. Hundreds of titles competed for our attention during 2016. I offer the following observations with the recognition that I have no doubt missed several important works that some of you would have included in such a survey. The books not..Continue reading→
Recommended Biographies By or About Women
Faith Cook is an author, biographer, and hymn writer. She grew up as a missionary child in war-torn China and has chronicled her story in an autobiography. Her own biographical work has been on both men: Fearless Pilgrim: The Life and Times of John Bunyan William Grimshaw of Haworth and women: The Nine Day Queen of England: Lady Jane Grey, Selina: Countess of Huntingdon: Her Pivotal Role in the 18th Century Evangelical Awakening, and Anne Bradstreet: Pilgrim and PoetContinue reading→
Bibliotheca Bible – a Review
There are many things that I have great admiration for, but perhaps one of the things I enjoy the most is seeing a long-awaited, labor of love come to full fruition. The tenacity, hard work, dedication, and pitfalls along the way in seeing something through to the end is something that, for lack of better terms, gets me emotionally invested in a project. Yet not all projects are equal and not all catch my particular attention – but if we’re truthful, that’s precisely what makes these types of th..Continue reading→
Christianity Today’s 2017 Book Awards
Our picks for the books most likely to shape evangelical life, thought, and culture. Make a list of all the blessings the Protestant Reformation has brought, and eventually—long after jotting down iconic phrases like “salvation by grace alone through faith alone”—you’ll get around to the CT Book Awards. Books, of course, had existed long before Luther posted his 95 Theses. But there’s no denying that reading and the Reformation, with a vital assist from Gutenberg’s printing press, soared toget..Continue reading→
Where Should Our Women be Discipled?
Pastors and elders want thinking women in the church, right? And yet popular beliefs that came out of the nineteenth century’s cult of domesticity still seem to linger in the evangelical culture today. Back then, people taught that women’s brains were inferior to men’s intellectually and that women needed to reserve their energy and blood flow for reproductive purposes. These are ideas we usually joke about now, even to provoke a woman in innocent fun, because we know them to be scientifically p..Continue reading→
10 Books Every Christian Teenager Should Read
A reader recently asked the question: Do you have a suggested list of books for teenagers, something like a “Ten best books every Christian teenager should read?” It surprised me that I have never compiled such a list, especially since I’ve got two teenagers of my own. I decided I’d better remedy this oversight straight away. Here, then, is a list of ten great books every Christian teen ought to read—or at least consider reading. Please note that these are not necessarily the ten best books your teens will read in their lifetime. Not all of these books will stand the test of time as Christian classics. But each of them is suited to twenty-first century teenaged readers and together they will provide a foundation for the Christian life that will prove both deep and wide. I list them in no particular order. The Holiness of God by R.C. Sproul. It is rare that a book is elevated to the ranks of the classics, but The Holiness of God is a prime candidate. Sproul’s book will introduce teens..Continue reading→
Signposts to God and More (RJS)
Books, books, books … What is the best book you’ve read on Science and Christian faith? It seems to be the season … not the holiday season, but the book season. I recently received three new books. Books by a physicist, a biologist (with training in theology as well), and a philosopher. All three tackle questions of science and Christian faith. Each of the three presents an interesting perspective – and I intend to dig into them more completely over the upcoming months. Peter Bussey’s book, Sign..Continue reading→
2016 Reading Challenge Update: September & October
This year I have been participating in the 2016 Reading Challenge, a fun way to increase and diversify your reading through another year. I took the challenge and set this year’s goal at 104 books. However, because so much of my reading has to go toward reviewing books that are recently published and of interest to Christians (both for reviews published here and in WORLD magazine), I decided to pick from all over the list rather than working through it in order. What follows are the books I completed in September and October and, in parentheses, the reading challenge category they fulfill. Below that is the complete list of categories I need to cover. As you can see, I did not finish many books over the past couple of months, something that is not unusual as my reading ebbs and flows over the course of the year. You can see my previous updates for January, February, March-April, May, June, and July-August. Sexual Morality in a Christless World by Matthew Rueger. This is a brilliant w..Continue reading→
6 Reflections on Community Inspired by Bonhoeffer
My church has recently launched a series on community called Better Together. In conjunction with the sermon series, I, in collaboration with my senior pastor, wrote a small group curriculum to compliment the series. I love community, which is why I love small groups. Like many of you, I work hard on our small group system at my church to equip leaders and to help many in my church experience the fullness of community—the good, the bad, and the ugly. However, as I continue to reflect on communi..Continue reading→
American
Planned Parenthood Abortion Doc is 7 Months Pregnant, But Kills Babies Up to 24 Weeks in Abortions
This article is a follow-up to “Planned Parenthood Kills 323,999 Babies in Abortions, Provides Only 17,419 Moms Prenatal Care.” Another video features Dr. Sierra Washington, identified as a “pregnant provider” in her seventh month, who says that “I love taking care of patients. I mean that’s why I’m a doctor.” At Planned Parenthood’s Pacific Southwest affiliate (PPPSW) “taking care of patients” includes abortion, contraceptives, and hysterectomies, but not birthing or prenatal care. With clini..
Oregon Assisted Suicide Deaths Hit Record High in 2016 as Abuses Continue
The 2016 Oregon annual assisted suicide report is similar to prior years. The report implies that the deaths were voluntary (self-administered), but the information in the report does not address that subject. According to the 2016 Oregon assisted suicide report. There were 133 reported assisted suicide deaths in 2016. There were 204 lethal prescriptions obtained in 2016. There were 8 deaths from “other illnesses” which included illnesses such as diabetes, hepatitis and alcoholic liver disease..
Planned Parenthood Celebrates Jocelyn Elders, Who Claimed Pro-Lifers Have a “Love Affair With the Fetus”
Planned Parenthood celebrated former U.S. Surgeon General Jocelyn Elders last week to mark both Black History Month and “Condom Week.” Elders, a controversial figure under President Bill Clinton, was forced to resign after she made several comments about sex education and pro-lifers that sparked outrage. On Thursday, Planned Parenthood wrote on Twitter, “We salute Joycelyn Elders: 1st black US Surgeon General and all-around badass sex education advocate. #tbt #BlackHistoryMonth #CondomWeek” W..
Norway Will Spend $10 Million for Abortions After Trump Defunds International Planned Parenthood
Norwegian government leaders promised to give $10 million to a new global abortion fund this week after U.S. President Donald Trump signed an executive order prohibiting U.S. taxpayer funding to groups that promote or perform abortions overseas. Reuters reports Norway Prime Minister Erna Solberg said her country will dedicate 85 million crowns ($10 million) to support abortions world-wide. “At a time when this agenda has come under pressure, a joint effort is particularly important,” she said ..
Australia
Now outback kids can learn about Jesus, too
Remote schools across western NSW are being approached about the possibility of introducing Special Religious Education (SRE) classes by distance education. Generate Ministries – an employer of SRE teachers in NSW – is teaming up with Bush Church Aid to offer scripture lessons in schools where they are currently not offered. Currently only 60-70 per cent of NSW school students have access to SRE lessons, which “leaves open a massive deficit of..
Have Aussie dollars ended up in terrorists’ hands?
A manager of the World Vision office in Gaza has been charged with using millions of dollars of charity funds to support Hamas fighters in the region. The Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade released a statement that says, “World Vision has received Australian funds for programs in the Palestinian Territories.” Mohammad El Halabi was arrested on 15 June, as he returned home from routine meetings. After being kept in Israeli state detenti..
Olympian Eloise Wellings received Christ, never looked back
At 33 years old, Eloise Wellings is about to compete in her second Olympics in Rio as a middle-distance runner. But she has had a long road to the Games, including three thwarted attempts to represent Australia at the Olympic Games. Wellings was just 16 years old when she first qualified for the Sydney Olympics, but her Olympic dream was cut short when she suffered a stress fracture to her hip just three weeks after qualifying. “I was dev..
A day in the life of a hospital chaplain
We spend a day on the wards with Rev Stuart Adamson, one of ten accredited chaplains of different faiths and denominations at Prince of Wales and Randwick Hospitals Campus in Sydney. He is one of three Anglican chaplains and has a twin role as a chaplain and a trainer of chaplains at Anglicare. I’m usually up before my alarm. But I am on after hours on-call at the moment and when the alarm goes off at 6.45am I feel pinned to the bed. The call-out la..
Law & Government
Judge Refuses to Halt California’s Assisted Suicide Law
RIVERSIDE, Calif. — A Superior Court judge in California has refused to halt the state’s assisted suicide law amid a legal challenge from several local doctors and a Christian organization that represents physicians nationwide. As previously reported, last October, Democratic Gov. Jerry Brown signed into law the End of Life Option Act, which allowed terminally ill residents to seek help to end their lives. “I have carefully read the thoughtful opposition materials presented by a number of doct..
Arkansas Commission to Review Proposals to Place Ten Commandments, Homage to Satan at Capitol
Photo Credit: Stuart SeegerLITTLE ROCK, Ark. — A state commission in Arkansas has scheduled a date to review separate proposals to place a Ten Commandments monument and an homage to Satan on the grounds of the state capitol building. Arkansas Secretary of State Mark Martin has marked Sept. 13 as the beginning of discussions with the Capitol Arts and Grounds Commission on whether or not to allow the placement of the monuments. As previously reported, last year, Sen. Jason Rapert, R-Bigelow, had..
School District Asks U.S. Supreme Court to Declare Dept. of Education Lacks Right to Dictate Restroom Rules
WASHINGTON — A school district in Virginia filed an official petition for appeal with the U.S. Supreme Court on Monday, requesting that it declare that the U.S. Department of Education lacks authority to dictate that public schools must allow those who identify as transgender to use the restroom with the opposite sex. “The term ‘gender identity’ is nowhere in Title IX,” the writ of certiorari reads. “If ‘sex’ signifies, not biology, but rather one’s ‘internal’ sense of maleness or femaleness, t..
France’s top court to rule on legality of burkini ban
A burkini is a swimsuit that only leaves the face, hands and feet exposed. The row over France's controversial ban on women wearing burkinis has escalated with the country's top court to rule on whether the law contravenes human rights. The Council of State, a body that acts as both legal adviser to the government and as the supreme administrative court, will examine the issue on Thursday after photos emerged of a Muslim woman removing a long-sleeved top while surrounded by ar..
Entertainment
‘Hacksaw Ridge,’ for all its heroism and love, remains a paradox
I had a dream about Mel Gibson recently. His face was very close to mine and his beard was gone. He looked very serious. I congratulated him on his new film “Hacksaw Ridge,” his first in 10 years. But he held up a print out of one of my reviews from his 2004 blockbuster “The Passion of the Christ.” “But you didn’t review this one very well,” he said. I started to explain my issue wi..
Did The Walking Dead Go Too Far? A Watching God Podcast
Comment countMore than 20 million people watched last Sunday’s Season Seven premiere of The Walking Dead. No surprise there, given that AMC’s zombie show has been a ratings winner ever since its inception. The episode was brutal, with new Big Bad Negan killing two popular characters with his barbed-wire-wrapped baseball bat Lucille. No surprise there either, according to longtime fans. The Walking Dead has always been incredibly bloody. But for me, the episode was incredibly hard to watch. It fe..
‘Years of Living Dangerously’ Season 2 premiere Oct 30 NatGeo
Season 2 opens with David Letterman and Cecily Strong raining the bell on climate change On Sunday night, October 30, “Years of Living Dangerously” begins its second season and it’s message is loaded with doom, frustration and tinged with hope if only Big Corporations + government will get out of the way. David Letterman (and his beard) are in India, a country with almost 400 million people, the population of the USA, who live without electricity. All efforts to upgrade the decrepit grid or are ..
Before the Flood – Di Caprio & NatGeo unite on climate change
The Pope and Leonardo DiCaprio (Photo: L’Osservatore Romano) You may recall when Oscar-winning actor Leonardo di Caprio, an ardent environmentalist, met with Pope Francis in January. The Pope gave Leonardo bound copies of his two encyclicals and Leonardo presented him with a book of the art of the 15th century Dutch painter Hieronymus Bosch. It includes the triptych of “The Garden of Delights” with the Garden of Eden on one side, the end of the world, or Last Judgment on the other, and bodies in..
Health and Science
Scientists Who Set Out to Create Simple Genome Astonished by Sheer Complexity of Life
Describing their findings as “humbling,” researchers who set out to create a “minimal genome” have concluded that the basic elements of life are enormously complex and remain full of unsolved mysteries. In an article titled “Design and synthesis of a minimal bacterial genome,” a team of more than 20 scientists share the results of years of research on cellular genomes. The scientists, in an attempt to better understand the basic requirement for life, took a bacterial genome and stripped it down..
US
Discovering a different way of doing youth ministry
Most youth ministries are shallow at best, and youth worship is even worse. An evangelical worship leader lamenting those conclusions happened upon some YouTube videos from the Lutheran youth ministry Higher Things. Read the whole post, linked after the jump, which includes videos of both the worship services he is decrying and the worship services from Higher Things conferences. Also read the comments, which record other amazed and appreciative reactions to Higher Things and their approach to y..
Nationalism joins Islam as reasons for Christian persecution
Open Door, an organization that monitors Christian persecution, has released its annual report for 2016, which it calls “the worst year yet” for violence against Christians. The biggest part of the persecution is still committed in the name of Islam. No longer just a matter of the Middle East, Islamic persecution has risen dramatically in Africa. As nationalism re-emerges worldwide, ethnic nationalism has become an excuse to persecute Christians. This is happening especially in Asia, including I..
Fear of the working class
The editor of a liberal website has written about a plumber he had called to fix his drain. The plumber acted professionally and did the job. But he spoke with a Southern accent! He didn’t seem upset about the election! He might even have voted for Trump! The editor described his fear at having a possible Trump voter in his home. All this fear talk about Trump has me confused. I can see a generalized fear about the future of the country, but this is far more visceral. Gay people say how afraid t..
Obama commutes Pvt. Manning’s sentence for leaking military secrets
In one of his last official acts, President Obama used his Constitutional power to grant pardons to commute the sentence of Pvt. Bradley Manning, who leaked thousands of military and diplomatic secrets during the Iraq War. Manning, who has served 7 years of a 35 year sentence at the military prison in Leavenworth, Kansas, now goes by the name of “Chelsea” and has been seeking government-funded gender-reassignment surgery. Julian Assange, founder of Wikileaks who is holed up in the Ecuadoran emba..
Church & Theology
4 Ways Courageous Leaders Model Sustained Urgency
You can’t miss the urgency and passion with which Jesus carried out His ministry. Throughout His ministry, He spoke of musts, such as, “I must work the works of Him that sent me” (John 9:4). As spiritual leaders, we know there is urgency to our labor, but we don’t always maintain it. The truth is, urgency is not the default mode; complacency is. Strangely enough, it is our very successes in ministry that tend to feed complacency. It works like this: Success builds pride, and pride kills urgenc..
10 Diagnostic Questions to Assess Balance and Sustainability, part 1
We often speak of balance as if it is something you write out on paper and then have attained for life. The truth is, maintaining life balance takes constant adjustment. Like a sailor who is constantly analyzing the wind and adjusting his sails to reach an intended destination, balance for a spiritual leader requires sensitivity to the Holy Spirit and a willingness to make changes. Over the years, I’ve learned that, at times, the pace at which I do the work of God can hinder His work in me. But..
10 Diagnostic Questions to Assess Balance and Sustainability, part 2
In the previous post, we discussed the need to intentionally evaluate our balance and to make adjustments for sustainability along the way. (If you have not yet read that post, I’d encourage you to read it before reading this post.) Who do I fear? How is my tempo? How is my courage? How is my spiritual discipline? In this post, we continue with six more assessment questions. 5. Am I coming apart? We need to adjust the rhythm of our lives. We can’t constantly march to “Onward Christian Soldiers..
Answering Tough Texts of the Bible
As I’ve mentioned a few times (here and here), Trevin Wax and I host a podcast called Word Matters, which seeks to help Christians understand some of the most confusing passages of the Bible. We often discuss questions amongst ourselves, but we also like to ask guests to join us. If you’d like to check out, here’s a list of guests and topics so far: Michael Bird on Romans 7 and “the wretched man”Scot McKnight on Matthew 5 (oath-taking) and Matthew 7 (“I never knew you”)Rus..