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→
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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
Was Christ’s Death A Sacrifice?
The blood-curdling scream signaled that she had not yet given up. Hours of pushing, and the baby had still not descended. The OB was weighing her options, while dad wiped mom’s forehead and encouraged her on. She screamed again, pushing and puffing and praying that this agony might soon draw to a close. The pain was so… intense, so utterly mind-numbing that she wondered, for the thousandth time, why she had wanted to have another child… This is a scene that plays out day after day in hospitals ..Continue reading→
Why Christians Venerate the Cross
For many people, an obstacle to faith in Jesus is the seemingly gory nature of the core tenets of Christian history. Jesus suffered a horribly violent end, yet Christians revere the cross that was the instrument of that torturous death. And they celebrate His victory over death by partaking of His “body” – honoring His last injunction to “take and eat” and “take and drink” of His body and blood. One challenger asked why Christians venerate the cross. If a friend were gunned down, he asked, woul..Continue reading→
Movies
Watch: Idris Elba on being the villain in Star Trek Beyond
The film comes out in ten days and I still don’t have a very clear sense as to what Star Trek Beyond will be about — but one thing we do know is that the big “villain” of this film will be an alien who questions the Federation’s assumptions about itself. This aspect of the movie is teased in a new featurette that went online today. Here is the featurette in question: Incidentally, the film premiered in Australia last week, but no reviews have surfaced yet (at least not in any of the trades), an..Continue reading→
The first four clips from Ben-Hur are now online, and a few other things we learned about the movie today
A lot of new footage from the upcoming remake of Ben-Hur went live today. First, the ShareBenHur.com website posted four clips from the film as part of a “faith-based” discussion guide. And then, a 20-minute montage of film clips was included in a simulcast hosted by Rick Warren and producers Mark Burnett and Roma Downey that was streamed to churches and other venues across the country. These clips give us our best look at the film yet, and they reveal some of the ways that this new version of B..Continue reading→
Box office: Pets, Dory set new records for animated films
A couple of animated films set a few new records at the box office this week. First, The Secret Life of Pets made an estimated $103.2 million between Thursday and Sunday nights, which is the biggest opening ever for an original animated film (previous champ: last year’s Inside Out, which opened to $90.4 million). The film also had the sixth-biggest opening of any animated movie ever, behind four sequels (Finding Dory, Shrek 2 + 3, Toy Story 3) and one prequel (Minions). Second, Finding Dory gros..Continue reading→
Prophet Joseph — episodes twenty-one and twenty-two
Synopsis. Joseph continues to encourage his fellow inmates. One day, while they are all on a food break at the quarry, Joseph sees a Canaanite chasing a runaway camel, and Joseph, without revealing who he is, asks the man for news of his family and gives him a cryptic message to take back to Jacob. Apopis is woken by a bad dream and learns that Inarus, too, has had a dream. They ask Joseph to interpret the dreams, and Joseph, to prove his words are trustworthy, makes a prophecy that comes true w..Continue reading→
Review: The Secret Life of Pets
Dear parents: It’s inevitable — you’re going to see “The Secret Life of Pets.” Your kids, who have likely already flipped for “Zootopia” and “Finding Dory,” will eat up this comedy about what dogs and cats do when their masters are away.They are going to love the cartoon antics, slapstick shenanigans and anthropomorphic tomfoolery. Sure, they may have just seen a giant octopus drive a truck in “Finding Dory,” but that won’t stop them from cackling with delight when a homicidal bunny causes a tra..Continue reading→
Chariots of Fire returns to theatres and gets a “sequel”
The Olympics will be upon us soon, and to mark the occasion, Chariots of Fire — the Oscar-winning 1981 film about two athletes, one Jewish and one Christian, who represented Great Britain at the 1924 Olympics in Paris — is coming back to theatres for one night only. An unofficial “sequel” has also started playing in China. The “sequel” in question is The Last Race, a Hong Kong-Chinese film that focuses on the last years of Eric Liddell, the Christian athlete from the earlier film. Liddell was bo..Continue reading→
Paramount releases new character posters for Ben-Hur
Paramount released three sets of posters today featuring the five main characters from Ben-Hur. Curiously, the main set of posters — released via the film’s official social media accounts — did not include any images of Jesus, but the other two sets (at least one of which is aimed at foreign audiences) did. Check ’em out below the jump. First, the main set, which consists of four posters — all of which, incidentally, say the film has been rated PG-13 for “sequences of violence and disturbing ima..Continue reading→
Watch: Trailers for eight independent “faith-based” films, all coming out between August and October of this year
The first months of the year and the last weeks of summer are the slowest moviegoing times of the year. Not coincidentally, perhaps, those are also the two times of year when a lot of the smaller, independent “faith-based” films tend to come out, since they don’t have to worry about blockbusters crowding them out of the multiplex. This year is no exception. In the last few weeks, I have received a lot of press releases and watched several trailers for “faith-based” films that are coming out betw..Continue reading→
“The Fight Within” hits theaters in August in a faith-film cage match
A young fighter grapples with the choices he must make to overcome a troubled past and survive in the world of MMA as he builds a new life of faith and love. “THE FIGHT WITHIN”—a muscular faith film set in the rough-and-tumble world of MMA (mixed martial arts)—premieres in limited theatrical release, nationwide August 12, 2016, from GVN Releasing. With a mashup of faith, fighting and romance, the film’s pro..Continue reading→
Music
Switchfoot and Relient K Announce Second Leg of Looking for America Tour
Switchfoot and Relient K announced this week that they've been enjoying their co-headlining tour so much that they'll be extending it into a second leg in 2017. "Our nation needs hope and healing more than ever- playing these songs of healing every night with our friends Relient K has brought such beautiful moments to life," Switchfoot explained through a facebook post. "In fact, we want to extend the tour and bring these songs to a few of our favorite cities that we missed along the..Continue reading→
Natasha Owens Releases Video For ‘Wings’
Natasha Owens has released the encouraging song "Wings" to Christian radio, and the message of the inspirational tune is already impacting radio and hearts all across the country. The song is the third single release from her latest recording, No One But You, available on iTunes, Google Play, and Amazon, among others. The reach of Natasha's ministry continues to expand. Including tour dates with Ryan Stevenson, ..Continue reading→
Ginny Owens Releases ‘Love Be The Loudest’ Friday, November 18
Award-winning singer-songwriter Ginny Owens releases her ninth studio album, Love Be The Loudest, this Friday, Nov. 18, on her indie label, Chick Power Music, with The Fuel Music distribution. The acclaimed new music shares a timely message for today's culture and will premiere on several different platforms this week, including two live events that will be available for audiences internationally. Two songs, the reimagined version of Owens' No. 1 hit song "If You Want Me To" and "The L..Continue reading→
Grayson|Reed To Release New Project ‘Walk’ January 13
Husband and wife duo, Grayson|Reed, will release their first project for Centricity Music, Walk, on January 13, 2017. The six-song EP will be available at all online music outlets, with a nine-song version of the record only being sold at Grayson|Reed concerts. Besides the amazing talents of Mike Grayson (Mikeschair) and Molly Reed (City Harbor), numerous producers took part in creating this project including Justin Ebach, Ben Glover, Jeff Pardo and Seth Mosley. Grayson|Reed co-wrote all the ori..Continue reading→
These Things Take Time EP by S.O.
Just over a year since his highly-acclaimed So It Ends album which charted well in the US and UK S.O. thought an EP would be the perfect transition after completing the So It Ends, So It Continues, So it Ends series of albums. "I thought it would be good to give the fans something," S.O. said. "When you make a trilogy, it's fine-tuned. These Things Take Time was a way for me to give the fans new music as I begin to work on my next project." The EP's artwork a picture of S.O. covered in clay suggests[...]Continue reading→
Waiting For The Dawn by Salt Of The Sound
Salt Of The Sound is the award-winning musical collaboration of Stockholm-based husband and wife duo Anita and Ben Tatlow. Their aim is to create songs that encourage a spirit of reflection both in church environments and in times of personal quiet, while also exploring musical styles and expressions that bring a freshness to the Christian music scene. Salt Of The Sound's new EP Waiting For The Dawn centres around the theme of light, which is echoed in different ways across all of the songs, and features heavily in the Advent traditions of Nordic countries. Waiting For The Dawn combines these[...]Continue reading→
Unto Us by JJ Heller
Track Listing 01. Winter Wonderland 02. Christmas Is Here 03. White Christmas 04. Unto Us 05. I'll Be Home For Christmas 06. Oh, To See Christmas 07. Count Your Blessings 08. Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas 09. Let It Snow 10. O Little Town of Bethlehem 11. O Come, O Come, Emmanuel 12. Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring 13. Silent Night Continue reading→
American
Disgusting Teen Vogue Article: “11 Thoughtful Gifts Your Friend Who Had an Abortion Would Appreciate”
Disguised as a compassionate way to help a friend, Teen Vogue pushed its pro-abortion agenda on vulnerable young teens again this week. Its latest piece encourages teen girls to support a friend’s decision to abort her unborn baby by giving her gifts. Certainly, a pregnant teenager deserves a lot of support and encouragement, but the only support that Teen Vogue suggests is through abortion. Author Witney Bell wrote: So your friend is about to have an abortion. Of course you want to be there ..
Senate Confirms Pro-Life Rep. Tom Price as HHS Secretary Despite Planned Parenthood’s Objections
Early Friday morning, the US Senate confirmed pro-life Congressman Tom Price as the next secretary of the Health and Human Services department. The vote came despite objections from the Planned Parenthood abortion business and other top abortion advocates — which had launched an all-out campaign in an attempt to stop his nomination. Price was confirmed early Friday, 52-47 after surviving yet another Democratic filibuster against a Trump nomination. An orthopedic surgeon by trade, Price was conf..
Pro-Lifers Will Protest at Planned Parenthood in 218 Cities in 45 States: Defund Planned Parenthood Now
As the fight to strip the nation’s largest abortion chain of its federal funding turns red-hot, the pro-life grassroots is stepping up to do its part. On February 11, “Defund Planned Parenthood” rallies will be held at Planned Parenthood locations throughout the United States to support the defunding effort and confront Planned Parenthood’s propaganda machine. The rallies are being organized by the #ProtestPP Coalition, of which the Pro-Life Action League is a primary co-sponsor, in concert wit..
ACLU Fights to Keep Dismemberment Abortions Legal That Tear Off Babies’ Limbs
Arkansas soon could see a lawsuit from the American Civil Liberties Union challenging the state ban on brutal dismemberment abortions, according to Newsweek. The state branch of the pro-abortion legal group said it plans to sue “as soon as practically possible” to stop the law from going into effect. Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson signed the law, the Arkansas Unborn Child Protection From Dismemberment Abortion Act, at the end of January. The legislation prohibits dismemberment abortions, a commo..
Australia
Going back for more of the same
The all-female remake of Ghostbusters, the latest dose of Star Trek and another version of Tarzan. This month, cinemas are again loaded with specific characters or storylines we’ve seen before. Films frequently must be part of a franchise, either as a sequel, prequel, remake, reboot or novel adaptation. Many of us lament such repetition. We complain that movie-makers have no new ideas. Box office results, though, suggest we are creatures of a..
This run club is running for a higher purpose
There are five people inducted into the BT Run Club’s “Hall of Pain”. They’re people who’ve truly encapsulated the club’s motto: “Run with endurance”, and they’re presented the award at the annual “Black Toenail” ceremony (black toe nails are a rather nasty sounding, common running injury). Running is hard, says the club’s founder Simon Elliot. But it’s a great metaphor for the Christian life. And that’s fitting, because the BT Run Cl..
Help China’s poor don God’s armour
The rise of false teaching and heresies in China underlines the need for greater access to affordable Bibles for China’s poor. Chinese Christians recognise that the Bible is the key basis from which to grow in faith and draw wisdom for their daily life. God’s word is also the bedrock of their strength in resisting false teachings and heresies, which are problems in the Chinese church. But so many Christians cannot afford to buy a Bible for themselves, much le..
US evangelicals’ support for Trump soars
Over the protests of some leaders, United States evangelical Christians are flocking to Trump, supporting him in higher numbers than the last Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney. Fully 78 per cent of white evangelicals (which includes pentecostals) say they would vote for Trump if the election was held today, according to a survey by the Pew Research centre. Recent local polls show that Trump is gaining on Clinton in crucial “swing” states.
Entertainment
WATCH: Patheos Exclusive Sneak Peek of ‘The Magnificent Seven’
“Scripture quotin’ and axe totin'” seems to be the best description for Jack Horne (Vincent D’Onofrio), one of the colorful characters in director Antoine Fuqua’s adaptation of the classic western, The Magnificent Seven (Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures and Columbia Pictures). With the town of Rose Creek under the deadly control of industrialist Bartholomew Bogue (Peter Sarsgaard), the desperate townspeople, employ protection from seven outlaws, bounty hunters, gamblers and hired guns, Sam Chis..
WATCH: Patheos Exclusive Sneak Peak of ‘The Magnificent Seven’
“Scripture quotin’ and axe totin'” seems to be the best description for Jack Horne (Vincent D’Onofrio), one of the colorful characters in director Antoine Fuqua’s adaptation of the classic western, The Magnificent Seven (Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures and Columbia Pictures). With the town of Rose Creek under the deadly control of industrialist Bartholomew Bogue (Peter Sarsgaard), the desperate townspeople, employ protection from seven outlaws, bounty hunters, gamblers and hired guns, Sam Chis..
Forget Judah: Ben-Hur is All About Messala
The 1959 version of Ben-Hur is a triumph of filmmaking—one that won 11 Oscars, boasts Charlton Heston at his prime and features one of the most iconic action sequences in cinematic history. The 2016 version of Ben-Hur is … serviceable. The chariot scene is a dynamic blend of live-action and CGI. A sea-based battle, captured almost completely inside the dark, dungeon-like recesses of a Roman warship, feels gritty and powerful. And the movie was clearly made with a faith-based audienc..
Ben-Hur Opens Today! Star Jack Huston Shares What Drew Him to the Movie
It’s opening day for the highly-anticipated new Ben-Hur movie and if Thursday night’s preview numbers are any indication, millions of movie-goers will be lining up to see Judah Ben-Hur’s epic journey this weekend. British actor Jack Huston (Boardwalk, American Hustle), who plays the film’s leading role of Judah Ben-Hur, shared what drew him to this film at a recent press interview in Los Angeles: The lovely thing about this film is that it’s for everybody — faith or no faith. If you’re looking a..
US
Martin Scorsese on vocation
Renowned film director Martin Scorsese talks about vocation in a recent interview. He didn’t make it through seminary but started to realize that you don’t have to be a priest to have a vocation. I have noticed more and more Catholics who have started understanding vocation in Lutheran terms. Scorsese also discusses his new film Silence, based on Shusaku Endo’s classic novel about the persecution of Jesuit missionaries in Japan in the 17th century. Currently in limited release, the movie is bein..
“Positive propaganda as the main theme”
Russia does it with RT. Arabs do it with Al Jazeera. Now, as of New Year’s Day, China has launched the China Global Television Network. I am impressed with how honest the still-Communist regime is in explaining its purpose: to promote “positive propaganda as the main theme.” Watch for CGTN on your cable or satellite TV system. And watch for Americans to swallow it whole. Having grown up during the Cold War, I find it hard to imagine a Communist propaganda network on our televisions, but then aga..
Top 10 Cranach posts of 2016
I know you are sick of holidays and want to get back to normality, but I can’t resist New Years retrospectives. Other blogs are looking back at their top posts of last year, based on the number of page views, so I did too. The most popular posts are from years ago, but somehow they got into Google’s algorithm. Now, if anybody in the whole world wonders, “Why do some people say ‘Merry Christmas’ and others say ‘Happy Christmas’?” Google takes them to Cranach. The same with St. Patrick’s prayer. A..
The Eighth Day
The Gospel reading for yesterday, commemorating the Circumcision and Name of Jesus, was Luke 2:21, the shortest text in the Lectionary. (See our recent post on the subject.) In the course of an excellent sermon that explored the depths of this one verse of the Bible, our pastor cited the significance of “the eighth day.” God created the universe in six days and on the seventh, He rested. Then on the eighth day, the creation began to unfold. Jesus rose from the dead on the day after the Sabbath; ..
Church & Theology
5 Christmas Gifts Every Christian Parent Can Give
Every mom and dad knows that one of the best things about being a parent is giving to your children. Parents delight in sacrificing to meet their children’s needs and to bring them happiness. That’s one of the reasons Christmas can be a stressful time of year for parents who are struggling financially. The best gifts you can give your children, however, are not tangible. Regardless of what wrapped presents you may or may not be able to give, here are five gifts every Christian parent can (and s..
My 5 Favorite Books of 2016
Follow @BrandonSmith85 For the last few years, I’ve posted a list of my five favorite books of the year. Only my 2015 list has survived, as the others were on my now-defunct personal site. There are a few reasons why I compile these lists. First, I love reading and I love to share what I’m reading. Second, I’m also always encouraged by others’ thoughts and their lists often help me pick out a few last books for my Christmas wish list. Third, I get a lot of books from publishers, and while I don’..
7 Tips for Effective Follow Up
This past weekend—Saturday and Sunday evening—was our annual Christmas musical at Lancaster Baptist Church. The amount of work put into these projections is staggering—not just in the thousands of hours given by the choir, orchestra, and drama teams, but also the thousands of invitations given out all across our community in the weeks preceding the musical. I think our church often enters this weekend a little exhausted. Yet, the exhaustion gives way to joy for all of us as we see people respon..
Growth Points 73: Preparing Gospel-Focused Christmas Messages
With just eight days between now and Christmas, I’ve counted seven Christmas services yet remaining before I sit down for Christmas dinner with my family. It’s a blessing throughout the month of December to focus on Christ’s birth and what He means to us. And yet, it’s a challenge to keep every one of those services unique and effective for the gospel. In this Growth Points video, I’d like to share a few thoughts that I hope will be helpful as you head into the final stretch of the Christmas se..