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→
Hot Topics
Doxological Calvinism
Doxologies punctuate the Bible because they punctuate the life of faith. This at least was Paul’s understanding of the life of Abraham: “he was strong in faith, giving glory to God” (Rom. 4:20). Let me invite you to take a simple word-association test. The usual procedure for such a test is that the administrator says a word and the subject responds with the first word that comes to mind. Thus, the word horse might immediately prompt the word cart from some people, but race (as in horse race) f..Continue reading→
The Kingdom Comes Not Through Maneuvers But By Repentance
Today’s Essenes are the gnosis-exalting hip churches and the law-exalting fundy churches, each preaching legalism of a different sort and rendering different sorts of people untouchable. They advocate withdrawal from either “church people” or “the world,” as if true kingdom enlightenment exists in an ecclesiological utopia hermetically sealed off and protected by either their cultural savvy or their cultural avoidance. Being asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, he answered..Continue reading→
NT Commentaries Withdrawn Over Plagiarism Allegations
The author, Peter T. O’Brien, was presented with the findings and provided the following response: “In the New Testament commentaries that I have written, although I have never deliberately misused the work of others, nevertheless I now see that my work processes at times have been faulty and have generated clear-cut, but unintentional, plagiarism. For this I apologize without reservation.” At the beginning of July 2016, Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co. received allegations against one of its New..Continue reading→
5 Lessons My Parents Taught Me About Sexuality
“These days, as I get older and consider marriage and my future, it’s the God-designed preciousness of sex that I think about more often. Sex, I’ve learned from my parents, is something to be esteemed without being glorified. While portrayed as a cheap commodity in culture today, God created it as a valuable gift.” “Sexuality”is an electric buzzword in our culture, igniting opinions like wildfire. With clashing commentary from secular society, Christians in recent years have increasingly recogn..Continue reading→
Life & Society
[Audio] How Pastors Can Preach about Religious Freedom
My friend Dr. McKay Caston (who happens to also be my pastor) preached a sermon recently that demonstrates how pastors can and should preach about religious freedom. It is fine example of speaking the truth in love and preparing a congregation for the rising tide of persecution in America. McKay has agreed to let me post the audio here and share his sermon notes below. You can follow his blog here. I encourage you to share them with pastors and church leaders and prayerfully encourage them to en..Continue reading→
Movies
Watch: New footage from Star Trek Beyond as it premieres at Comic-Con, plus a new featurette on Captain Kirk
Star Trek Beyond opens in regular theatres tonight, but some lucky fans got to see the film last night at the San Diego Comic-Con, where it was shown on an outdoor IMAX screen with live orchestral accompaniment. The studio has posted a number of clips from that event — clips that include bits of new footage that we haven’t seen before — as well as a new featurette on Captain Kirk. Check ’em all out below the jump. Here is the featurette on Captain Kirk: And below are the videos from Comic-Con, ..Continue reading→
Four things from the Young Messiah DVD commentary
At last, I have acquired a copy of the American Blu-Ray of The Young Messiah! While it doesn’t have all that many bonus features, it does have a few of them, which is more than I can say for the Canadian disc, which has none. (The American Blu-Ray also comes with a DVD copy of the film, which the Canadian Blu-Ray does not.) The bonus features include a 10-minute featurette on the making of the film and about seven minutes of deleted scenes, none of which add all that much to the story. But the d..Continue reading→
Watch: Spock and McCoy disagree on their next course of action in a new Star Trek Beyond clip
Star Trek Beyond comes to theatres tomorrow night, and the stream of promotional videos shows no signs of letting up. The latest clip from the film expands on a moment that we’ve seen in the trailers, in which Spock and McCoy are surrounded by some drones after they are stranded on a mysterious planet. Check it out below the jump. Here is the clip (and by the way, did the original Spock ever address Doctor McCoy by his first name “Leonard”, the way he occasionally called Kirk “Jim”?): The studi..Continue reading→
Grace and beauty in “Babette’s Feast”
Hey everyone, Chris here. I’m currently on vacation with my family. But awhile back, I was introduced to a new film writer whose insights I’m greatly enjoying. His name is John Irwin and he blogs about film at beezfilms.blogspot.com. Looking at his list of favorite films, I found that we shared a few in common, and I asked him if he’d like to write about one of our shared favorites, one I’ve wanted to write about for awhile but just haven’t had the time. So today, enjoy this guest post from John..Continue reading→
Ben-Hur news round-up: Is the new film a “Trojan horse”?
Another week, another round-up of Ben-Hur news items, plus a few new TV spots. First, Christian Today has a few quotes from Roma Downey, who calls the film “the most riveting opportunity of our [i.e. hers and Mark Burnett’s] careers”: “It’s a feast, a beautiful re-imagining of this epic story. I think that the movie in many ways is a Trojan horse, because it’s an action/adventure movie and it delivers on that, and viewers won’t be disappointed with that. It’s epic. But…it’s a story of redemption..Continue reading→
Is there a big spoiler in the new Star Trek Beyond TV spot?
So a bunch of Star Trek Beyond reviews went online last Friday, and I read a few of them to get a sense of what the movie would be about. Some of them hinted at a major revelation that comes up late in the film, but they declined to say what it was. Now, however, Paramount has released a TV spot that might just give it away. It’s possible, of course, that the spot in question doesn’t show the precise spoiler that the reviews avoided describing, but it does hint at something very significant abou..Continue reading→
Hail, Caesar! and the road-to-Damascus experience in film
Is Hail, Caesar! the first movie from a major Hollywood studio to depict Saint Paul’s road-to-Damascus experience on the big screen? I think it might be. Last year, I looked at a dozen different filmed versions of the road-to-Damascus story and posted images from all twelve of them, but they were all either produced for television or made by independent church-based filmmakers. I couldn’t — and still can’t — think of a single major mainstream film that has ever portrayed it. Apart, that is, from..Continue reading→
Box office: Ghostbusters gets off to a good but not great start, while animated films continue to set new records
After months of controversy, an all-female reboot of a popular comedy franchise had a good but not great start at the box office this weekend, while a couple of animated films continued to set new records for the animation medium. Ghostbusters — a reboot of the 1980s spooky-comedy series that has been hugely controversial online because it has four women in the lead roles instead of four men — grossed an estimated $46 million between Thursday and Sunday nights. That’s a personal best for directo..Continue reading→
Review: “Ghostbusters”
“Ghostbusters” is what happens when originality clashes with lucrative intellectual property. Truthfully, Paul Feig’s remake of Ivan Reitman’s beloved 1984 comedy is about as good as you could hope for. In its best moments, the cast makes you forget about the original and accept this new version as its own funny, weird thing. But those moments are too often undercut by awkward references to the first film, as if it’s haunted by the specter of Peter Venkman. Feig veers from the trend of doing a b..Continue reading→
Music
Ripcord by king Stevian
king Stevian releases his first single Ripcord to start 2017 off. For his upcoming Album he gives praise to the Father in heaven in Jesus name.[...]Continue reading→
Newsboys Honor Veterans By Partnering With Guardian For Heroes Foundation At Recent Show
Late last month, the Newsboys packed out an arena in Nashville with their 'Love Riot' Tour. The concert served as a benefit for the Guardian for Heroes Foundation, established by late U.S. Navy SEAL Chris Kyle. The Foundation helps combat veterans transition into life after the military. RELATED Newsboys Shine Spotlight On Heroes During the show that night, Chris Kyle's brother Jeff spoke about the mission of the organization. BeastMode for the Brave endurance athlete George Ch..Continue reading→
For KING & COUNTRY Unveils New Christmas Song
Today for KING & COUNTRY unveiled their new Christmas single, "Glorious," as part of the Into The Silent Night (Extended) EP. The EP also includes "Little Drummer Boy," "Angels We Have Heard On High," "Into The Silent Night" and two recordings of their previous Christmas hit "Baby Boy." RELATED for KING & COUNTRY Announces Details Of Fall Tour "Christmas is coming, but #GLORIOUS is here! I just saw it's 0.69 on iTunes, for now. We've been working on this since Feb! And how about a ha..Continue reading→
Shawn McDonald Launches PledgeMusic Campaign For New Album
Shawn McDonald has launched a PledgeMusic campaign and pre-order for his new album. "I create with all of me and I love what I do. To thank you guys for allowing me to continue to write and do what I love, I wanted to invite you to be a part of my new album like never before. We've crafted what we hope are some really cool ways for you to engage, support and be a part of the making of a new record. For me this is a journey, it's just faith and I choose to put my journey into song and ..Continue reading→
Casting Crowns Announces Spring Leg Of ‘The Very Next Thing’ Tour
Multi-platinum selling and GRAMMY® winning group Casting Crowns will hit the road again this spring for the second leg of "The Very Next Thing" Tour, featuring K-LOVE Radio's Male Artist of the Year Danny Gokey and special guests Unspoken. Presented by Compassion International and Museum of the Bible, the 40-city arena tour kicks off Feb. 16, in Baltimore and will make stops in markets like Philadelphia, Milwaukee, Chicago, New York, Pittsburgh, Raleigh, Orlando, Tampa, Grand Rapids, Minnea..Continue reading→
Ellie Holcomb To Release Sophomore Album ‘Red Sea Road’ January 27
The 2014 GMA Dove Award winning New Artist of the Year Ellie Holcomb will release her sophomore album, Red Sea Road, on January 27, 2017. This record celebrates the Hope we have in Jesus, and the powerful & personal ways Ellie has seen Him make Red Sea Roads through some of the most heartbreaking times of her life. RELATED Ellie Holcomb Expecting Second Child "The past two years for our community have been heavy, full of suffering and loss," shares Ellie Holcomb. "Red Sea Road is a record full..Continue reading→
Spencer Kane Video Nominated For MTV’s Cover Of The Month
Solo pop singer turned Anthem Lights member Spencer Kane is up for MTV's Cover Of The Month for his video of Shawn Mendes' "Mercy." "I need your help! MTV asked me to submit my MERCY video to their COVER CONTEST and I did. PLZ click this and clap 10 trillion times, and I may be able to win," he posted to social media this morning. RELATED Spencer Kane Fills Open Spot in Anthem Lights Kane shared his "Mercy" cover to Spotify, iTunes and YouTube last week, where it already has over 8,0..Continue reading→
Anthem Lights’ New Album Gets Fully Funded On Last Night Of Kickstarter Campaign
Pop group Anthem Lights has spent the last month raising money for their new album Painted Skies. With just over a day to go in their Kickstarter campaign they were less than fifty percent funded, but much to their amazement, the project was fully funded (112% to be exact) on the last night of the campaign. RELATED Spencer Kane Fills Open Spot in Anthem Lights "Do you believe in miracles?? If anyone has been waiting to pledge, NOW is the time. It doesn't look good guys, but we are incredi..Continue reading→
Trip Lee Announces New Mixtape
Rejoice hip-hop fans Trip Lee is back. The longtime Reach Records veteran officially announced his anticipated mixtape The Waiting Room after teasing it for the past month on social media. This announcement comes on the heels of the debut single "Too Cold" last week. The official pre-order for The Waiting Room is live through Reach Records, and on the album's official page they provide some background on the album "Throughout the 10 songs that make up The Waiting Room, Trip wrestles with j..Continue reading→
American
Birth Control and Contraception Don’t Reduce Abortions Despite False Claims From New Study
As congressional efforts to defund Planned Parenthood gain momentum, it is unsurprising that the abortion provider is fighting back. The group recently funded a study – carried out by the liberal think tank Child Trends — which makes some outlandish claims about the purported health benefits of contraception. The study claims that if all women of childbearing age could access a complete range of contraception methods, both the unintended-pregnancy rate and the abortion rate would fall by more t..
Activists Celebrate Abortion Provider Appreciation Day, “We’re Grateful for Abortion Doctors”
There is so much going on, including plans to cut the half-billion dollar stream of federal dollars to Planned Parenthood, you might anticipate that the largest provider of abortions on the face of the planet might pay less attention than usual to the “National Day of Appreciation for Abortion Providers.” I went to PPFA’s twitter account and after searching in vain for a reference, plugged the word “abortion” into the search engine. For the period of the last two days, the word appeared just th..
Amazing Video Shows Huge Pro-Life Flashmob at Peru March for Life
Organizers of the Peru March for Life created an enthusiastic new video recently that shows a flashmob celebrating the lives of babies in the womb. Churchpop reports the pro-life organizers created the music video to promote the upcoming march. The video shows a lively crowd of young pro-lifers gathering in downtown Lima, dancing and singing as they celebrate the lives of babies in the womb. The pro-life event, Marcha por la Vida, is scheduled for March 25 in Lima. The theme this year is “Take..
Her Abortion Was Botched So Badly it Left Part of the Baby “Putrefying” Inside of Her
Jane nearly died from an illegal, botched abortion prior to Roe v. Wade. And for that reason, she is fighting to keep abortion legal today. She and three other women who had illegal abortions prior to Roe recently shared their horrific abortion experiences in a video by The Scene, according to the Daily Mail. Jane, whose last name is not provided, said she had the abortion in 1968 after a man broke into her room, raped her and threatened to kill her. One horrifying event led to another when sh..
Australia
The business of our mission
BIBLE SOCIETY NEWS Saturday 10 December 2016 Bible Society and Koorong now share a huge 2500-square-metre warehouse at Erskine Park in western Sydney. From here, hundreds of thousands of Bibles and Christian books are shipped to all corners of Australia and the Pacific under the watchful eye of warehouse manager John Park and his staff of 40. John is enjoying his expanded role with responsibility for six new staff and managing extra sales. “All the extra money profited or saved within thi..
Reading of God’s wonderful love
BIBLE SOCIETY NEWS Friday 4 November 2016 Imagine not being able to read this sentence. Perhaps you can’t get your head around that because you have been able to read and write since you can remember. But according to the latest UNESCO figures, 758 million adults (aged 15 years and older) across the world remain unable to do so. Imagine – nearly 760 million adults are not able to read and write in their heart language! Let’s put it another way: 33 times the total population of Australia is il..
A fun format freshens the word of God
BIBLE SOCIETY NEWS Friday 25 November 2016 Although the nations in the South Pacific enjoy a long history of Christian mission, many contemporary churches still don’t have the Scriptures in their own language, and those that do are forced to read old-fashioned Bible translations that don’t really connect with a new generation of Christians. Bible Society South Pacific is committed to meeting this need, and is in the middle of a ten-year project to provide updated and new biblical materials to ..
Celebrate the Bible with us in 2017
We’re celebrating the Bible in 2017 and on Sunday March 5th a very special event will take place in partnership with Hillsong and live streamed in churches across the nation. Key speakers include Anglican Archbishop Glenn Davies and Hillsong’s Brian Houston, with more announcements to be made prior to the event. The post Celebrate the Bible with us in 2017 appeared first on Bible Society.
Law & Government
Missouri Lawmaker Introduces ‘Right to Life Act’ to Outlaw Abortion in State
Photo Credit: Oriol MartinezJEFFERSON CITY, Mo. — A lawmaker in Missouri has presented a bill that would end abortion in the state with no exceptions. Rep. Mike Moon, R-Ash Grove, introduced the “Right to Life Act” in the legislature on Monday, which recognizes the unborn as being persons from the point of conception and therefore entitled to the right to life. “The life of each human being begins at conception and is hereby deemed a person,” it declares. “As with all persons, unborn children ..
US House Votes to Permanently Ban Taxpayer Funding of Abortion
WASHINGTON — The U.S. House of Representatives passed the No Taxpayer Funding for Abortion and Abortion Insurance Full Disclosure Act on Tuesday, essentially placing a permanent ban on taxpayer funding of abortions, as outlined in the Hyde Amendment. The matter now moves to the Senate for consideration. The Act had been introduced by Rep. Chris Smith, R-New Jersey, a longtime supporter of the Amendment, which was first passed in 1976 to ban the use of Medicaid funds for abortion, with the excep..
Kentucky Abortion Facility to Close After License Denied, Leaving One Remaining Provider in State
LEXINGTON, Ky. — An abortion facility in Kentucky is set to close later this month after state officials denied its owners a license, leaving just one abortion provider in the state. The closing of EMW Women’s Clinic in Lexington was announced on Friday by the Kentucky chapter of the National Organization for Women as it relayed a message from the facility’s executive director. “As you know, for the past 6 1/2 months we have diligently pursued obtaining a license to operate an abortion facilit..
Democratic Rep. Files Resolution to Recognize ‘Darwin Day’ on Feb. 12
WASHINGTON – A Democratic lawmaker filed a resolution in the House of Representatives that, if approved, would recognize February 12, 2017, as “Darwin Day” and celebrate the father of evolution’s contributions to science. House Resolution 44, filed on Wednesday by Democratic Rep. James Himes of Connecticut, seeks to honor Darwin on the 208th anniversary of his birth. “Charles Darwin’s theory of evolution by the mechanism of natural selection, together with the monumental amount of scientific e..
Entertainment
Liam Neeson sees God as love, not a stern master (interview)
Actor Liam Neeson plays the apostate Jesuit priest Fr. Ferreira in Martin Scorsese’s new film “Silence.” I interviewed Neeson by phone on Jan. 18. It was a short interview (about twelve minutes). You can read my interview with Matt Malek, an executive producer on the film and my review at Sister Rose Movies and at the National Catholic Reporter.NCR: Have you seen the film? Neeson: Yes, twice in fact. What did you think of it? When you’ve worked on a film and see it for the first time, there’s a ..
Driven by Mystery: An Interview with the Producers of “The Story of God”
By Wesley Baines Who is in charge of the universe? Big questions like these are the currency that National Geographic’s beloved documentary, “The Story of God” deals in, and it has yet to shortchange its viewers. For those unfamiliar with this groundbreaking series, viewers are invited to join Freeman as he travels the world, exploring the nature of faith and religion. With the inaugural episode of the show’s second season, airing on January 16th, these questions continue, as narrated by the div..
The Story of God: Are We All Chosen?
Comment countNational Geographic’s fascinating series The Story of God With Morgan Freeman kicks off its second season Jan. 16. The first episode is titled “The Chosen One,” and it focuses on those whom, in a variety of religions, believe that they’ve been picked to do special work. Some of these folks have daunting tasks to fulfill. The show begins with 9-year-old Jalue Dorjee, a soccer-loving, Pokemon playing kid from Minnesota who was told he’s the reincarnation of a famous Tibetan lama. That..
‘Patriot’s Day’ inspires and surprises
Patriots DayMost people will remember April 15, 2013, when brothers Tamerlan (Themo Melikidze) and Dzhokhar (Alex Wolff) Tsarnaev set off two homemade bombs at the finish line of the Boston Marathon. It was Patriots’ Day in Massachusetts, the day of the Boston Marathon, held annually to commemorate the first two battles of the Revolutionary War: Concord and Lexington. Click here to continue reading at St. Anthony Messenger, February, 2017 (scroll down). P.S. I am adding this today, January 12: I..
Health and Science
Bird or Dino? Fossilized Feathered Tail Ignites Debate Between Evolutionists, Creationists
MYANMAR – Evolutionists are heralding the discovery of a well-preserved feathered tail in Asia as evidence that dinosaurs once had plumage, while creationists maintain that the specimen likely came from a bird. Last week, a team of researchers consisting primarily of scientists from Canada and China published a journal article in “Current Biology.” The article, titled “A Feathered Dinosaur Tail with Primitive Plumage Trapped in Mid-Cretaceous Amber,” describes a piece of amber, approximately th..
Evidence of a Young Moon? Study Forces Scientists to Rethink Lunar Dating Techniques
Could the moon be younger than most realize? A new study shows that craters on the moon form quicker than previously thought, which means many features on the lunar surface are not as old as astronomers had predicted. Astronomers at Arizona State University and Cornell University recently set out to measure the formation rate of craters on the moon. To do so, they compiled thousands of high-resolution “before and after” images of the moon’s surface captured by NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbite..
Christian Scientist Fired for Challenging Evolution Awarded Financial Settlement
LOS ANGELES – An evangelical Christian scientist who was fired after discovering evidence that seemingly contradicted the evolutionary timeframe has been awarded a generous settlement after taking his case to court. As previously reported, Mark Armitage was a scientist at California State University—Northridge (CSUN) who discovered soft tissues on a large triceratops horn that was believed to be at least 65 million years old. However, the discovery became mired in controversy when Armitage desc..
‘Increasingly Aggressive’ Atheists Target Children in New Evolution-Promoting Book
An evolution-propagandizing illustrated children’s book is drawing praise from the secular community and currently ranks as a best seller on Amazon.com. “Annabelle & Aiden: The Story Of Life” is a 26-page children’s book that was published last month. Advertised as an “inspirational storybook” that will help kids “gain a basic understanding of evolution,” the book walks readers through the history of life according to Charles Darwin. Featuring a “wise owl” who describes..
US
C. S. Lewis, atheist
C. S. Lewis, one of the foremost Christian apologists, had been for 15 years a convinced and rather militant atheist. My friend and former colleague Joel Heck has written a splendid study of Lewis’s atheism, published by Concordia Publishing House: From Atheism to Christianity: The Story of C. S. Lewis There are many kinds of atheism, just like there are many kinds of Christianity, and Joel unpacks the influences, books, and ideas that defined Lewis’s particular variety of unbelief. In tracing L..
The three causes of war
The great Athenian historian Thucydides said that there are three causes of war: (1) honor (2) fear (3) national interest. Jonah Goldberg discusses those factors and cites modern historian Donald Kagan, who says that honor comes first as the reason why a nation goes to war. That motive is far more common, he says, than national interest. World War I was surely caused by many nations’ sense of honor. World War II was caused by Germany and Japan’s radical sense of national pride and the honor (and..
Immigration chaos
President Trump’s executive order blocking entry into the United States of citizens of seven nations has created chaos at airports around the world, as Iraqis with green cards, visas, and airplane tickets were suddenly not allowed to get on flights or to go through passport controls, leading to people being trapped in airports and demonstrations breaking out worldwide. The chaos also broke out within our government: The acting attorney general said the Justice Department will not defend the pres..
LCMS president on immigration issues
Cuban immigrants head to Ysleta Lutheran Mission in El Paso When it comes to immigration issues, there is the obligation of the State to enforce the law. But, for the Church, there is also the obligation to minister to those in need. Now that President Trump is cracking down on immigration–rightly so, many of us would say–our Lutheran Hispanic congregations and our various Hispanic ministries are dealing with a sense of panic and insecurity among many of those to whom they are ministering. LCMS ..
Church & Theology
What Happens to Us When We Read the Bible?
Superhero movies and the latest iteration of Star Wars show the power of a good story. Grown men and small children alike dress up in costumes, stand in line for hours, and spend $62 on a bucket of popcorn just to watch larger-than-life heroes do the unthinkable. People are riveted by a good story that seems otherworldly, and they’re willing to scrounge up the money and time to invest if they’re convinced they’ll enjoy themselves. Through my work with the Holman Christian ..
What the “Gospel of Jesus’s Wife” Teaches Us about Manuscript Evidence
Last week, I taught for two days at City Church’s Institute, wherein my church offers an opportunity each summer for church members (mainly college students) to learn theology, church history, cultural engagement, etc. along with a church internship and a mission trip (or two). One morning, I taught on the development and authority of Scripture. My lecture started with general and special revelation, and then moved into oral tradition and eventually all the way to the for..
A Grave Concern for Christians in America
In current deliberation among California legislators is Senate Bill 1146. I am gravely disturbed by this bill that strikes a direct blow to religious liberty and severely infringes on personal freedoms and the freedoms of Christian institutions in California. The so-called “Equity in Higher Education Act” is designed to erode the free exercise of religion given us in both the United States Constitution and the California Constitution, by limiting the involvement of colleges to have students, fa..
Why the Trinity Debate Matters for the Pulpit and the Pew
In case you missed it, there’s been an online debate about the Trinity that has scholars and pastors and even institutions on edge. The debate online has stayed at a rather high academic level, but to give you a primer, here are just a few of the articles: This article by Liam Goligher started it all (here)Bruce Ware’s response to Goligher (here)Michael Bird’s overview of the concerns (here)Fred Sanders’s outline of foundational Trinitarian affirmations (here)Matt Emerson’..
Finance
Tackling Student Loans
$37,172 This is the average debt load a student will end up with after graduating college. If you’re like the 66% of all undergraduate students who have taken a student loan, you probably want to get rid of those things as fast as possible. It’s easy to get caught up in the borrowing maze in college and managing your loans can become a headache quite fast. With lenders selling your loan to other places and changing their name – it’s hard to keep everything straight! Here are a few things to help ..
20 Beautiful Homemade Christmas Gifts
The holidays are great, but buying gifts can get expensive. Real expensive. But if you’re like me, you enjoy giving gifts to people and watching them open them on Christmas day. Even better is giving someone a homemade gift that you invested your own time and energy creating. Making a homemade Christmas gift or decorations can be economical and thoughtful at the same time. If you’re the DIY type of person, consider one of these 20 homemade Christmas gift ideas to make this holiday season memorab..
12 Theses on a Christian Understanding of Economics
The Christian worldview reminds us that we must live with the recognition that we will give an account to the Lord for our stewardship of our resources. Regrettably, many American Christians know little about economics. Furthermore, many Christians assume that the Bible has nothing at all to say about economics. But a biblical worldview actually has a great deal to teach us on economic ma..
5 Helpful Moving Tips: What To Do When You’re About to Move
Moving usually isn’t the most enjoyable thing to do, especially if you’re making a move in the heat of summer. You have to consider all sorts of things like travel logistics, getting your stuff (which always seems to multiply) into a moving truck (which always seems to be smaller than you thought), and setting up everything at your new place. Sure, actually moving your stuff might take a weekend but there are a few things you should do ahead of time to make your move go as planned. Since moving into a new place usually doesn’t happen often, most people are just not sure what to do when moving. Don’t let your big move sneak up on you. Get organized and plan ahead with these moving tips. You’ll be glad you did. 5 Things to Remember When Moving1. Start Looking EarlyAssuming you don’t already have a place, you’ll need to lock this part in right away. When we were planning on moving to a new city for my wife to attend medical school, we started looking at rentals 6 months in advance. Colleg..