Christians Ended Slavery in the West
“‘Amazing Grace’ and the abolition of slavery” (Christian Post, 1/19)

Real Social Change
‘Social change can’t happen without revival’ (Christian Post, 1/19)

News You Can Use
‘How Not to Pray; Learning from Pharisees and Pagans (Desiring God, 1/20)

WEF & Elite Hypocrisy (of course)
‘The rich and powerful flocked to Davos via private jet to discuss climate change, study finds’ (Yahoo News, 1/17) The WEF (not to be confused with the WWE) would be a laughing stock if it wasn’t so dangerous

RIP, Music Edition
‘David Crosby, Iconoclastic Rocker, Dead at 81’ (Rolling Stone, 1/19

A Discussion About God’s Word
‘‘Jesus Is Inescapable’: ‘Bible 101’ Authors On Why Scripture Is Here To Stay; Two Christian biblical scholars share how they zeroed in on key components of God’s Word. (Christianity Today, 1/13)

No, Next Question

‘Is Christianity Misogynistic?’ (Crossway, 01/09)

RIP
‘Died: Jack Hayford, Pentecostal Pastor Who Wrote “Majesty”; Foursquare leader put emphasis on praise and penned the most popular church song of the 1990s’ (Christianity Today,  01/09 also Christian Post) Hayford was a bridge builder who started ministry as a youth guy. He upheld traditional charismatic values, but was not prone to excess as a Pastor

RIP Music Edition
‘Jeff Beck, legendary rock guitarist and musician, dead at 78’ (CNN, 1/11)
‘Lisa Marie Presley, singer and daughter of Elvis, dies aged 54” (BBC, 1/13)

 Congo Safer Than Nashville
‘Pastor who fled war in Congo is shot dead, left like ‘trash’ in Nashville’ (Christian Post, 01/09)  This a sorry situation, it is illustrative of when a society looses a connection with God who is the standard of life and morality.

News You Can Use
‘Begin Where You Are; How to Renew Your Prayer Life’ (Desiring God, 1/12)

‘Died: Jack Hayford, Pentecostal Pastor Who Wrote “Majesty”; Foursquare leader put emphasis on praise and penned the most popular church song of the 1990s’ (Christianity Today,  01/09 also Christian Post) Hayford was a bridge builder who started ministry as a youth guy. He upheld traditional charismatic values, but was not afraid to challenge the excesses

About Those Kings
‘We Three Kings? Interpretations of the Magi “Traverse Afar”’ (Christianity Today, 12/19)

That He Was Born of a Virgin
‘What does the Bible say about the virgin birth of Jesus Christ? (Christian Post, 12/22)

He is Indeed
‘He is (still) there, and He is not silent; Francis Schaeffer’s classic defense of Christian truth turns 50’ (World, 12/19) One of the books we read early on in our faith. It is indeed a classic.

 Worship
‘Worship Isn’t About You’ (Desiring God, 12/17)

Faithfulness in a Hell
‘’Into Ukraine’ documentary highlights God’s faithfulness, resilience of Church amid terrors of war’ (Christian Post, 12/21) Our friends Dema and Maria obviously have a heart for Ukraine. Pray for peace

Bible is True
‘Professor says ancient inscriptions prove Old Testament account “reflects historical reality”’ (Christian Post, 12/20)

Of Course They Do
‘Taliban forbid women to attend universities in Afghanistan’ (World, 12/22) And apparently High School, going without a male relative to the Doctor, or riding in a taxi, etc. etc.

Feminism Looses At the Olympics
‘Female athletes slam IOC’s trans athlete participation guidelines as a “disgrace”’ (Christian Post, 12/22)

Merry Christmas

‘Calvinist Santa Puts Everyone On Naughty List’ (Babylon Bee, 12/23)

Souls Saved
‘Greg Laurie’s SoCal Harvest draws 50K attendees, sees over 8,600 decisions for Christ’ (Christian Post, 11/9)

Thanks for Your Service
‘Remembering the price they paid and the freedom they protected; Honoring our veterans means expressing gratitude’ (World, 11/11)

We Were There First Dept
‘Archaeologists discover Christian monastery in UAE that may predate Islam’ (Christian Post, 11/8)

Pray for Christians in Nigeria
‘Nigeria is deadliest nation for Christians for almost a decade’ (WKRN, EIN Presswire, 11/9)

Yawning in Church
‘You Should Be Bored in Church’ (Christianity Today, 10/5)

Freedom of Religion watch
‘Victims of religious oppression in Turkey reveal why Christian population is dwindling’ (Christian Post, 10/14)

Perhaps Not So Helpful
‘New transgender standards remove age limits; Some parents and doctors push back against pressure’ (World, 10/10) Gender dysphoria is very difficult, whether for the person facing it or the parents of a minor child.  Leaving aside the biblical standard of God giving either male or female chromosomes, the push for “gender affirming care” may not be so affirming. And questionable at the most generous, for minors. It may be science blindly following culture, and a sad one at that, rather than science and doctors first doing no harm. See also “Our voices can no longer be denied”

Bad Sign
‘High school class of 2022 had lowest ACT scores in over 30 years, data shows’ (AP, 10/14)

 No Devil
‘Skillet’s John Cooper says the devil didn’t create Rock music: “Belongs to God”’ (Christian Post, 10/7) He probably didn’t, but we remember Rock an Roll being the last of a triad mantra of rebellion

It Takes Time
‘But this isn’t how God works; Getting stronger doesn’t happen overnight. Neither does shaving a few seconds off your 40-yard dash time.’ (Christian Post, 9/30)

 RIP
‘Died: Brother Andrew, Who Smuggled Bibles into Communist Countries’ (Christianity Today, 9/27) God’s Smuggler was one of the first books we read after becoming a Christian in the early 70’s. more

 Free Will
‘Why do good parents have wayward children?’ (Christian Post, 9/27) This is true from the beginning, when one wasn’t just wayward but a murderer, and Judas who although chosen by Jesus was a betrayer leading to death. See John 18 this Sunday, 10/2/22

Not What You Think
‘Missionary Group Buys Luxury Yacht’ (Christianity Today, 8/22) along with some other news briefs

News You Can Use
‘How to Squander Your Spiritual Gifts’ (Desiring God, 9/15)

Christian Joy
‘Phil Wickham opens up about journey from “lifestyle Christianity” to rediscovering joy in God’s presence’ (Christian Post, 9/15)

Food For Thot
‘Maternal instinct a “myth”? NYT editorial slams Eve, Mary as examples of “perpetual servitude”’ (Christian Post, 9/16)

And there is a lot up there
‘Experts say ‘fireball’ streaking across sky in Scotland, Northern Ireland likely space junk’ (UPI, 9/15) So wear a hat

Kids say the Darndest Things
‘Does Jesus Wear Undies? My kids ask the darndest theological questions—putting my seminary degree to the test’ (Christianity Today, 8/17)

Who Disciples?
‘Don’t let the world disciple your children; Christian parents should say no to social media and smartphones’ (World, 8/19)

Who’s Your Father
‘God Wanted Me When the Foster-Care System Didn’t; I bounced from home to home before finding the Father my heart yearned for’ (Christianity Today, 6/21)

­­­­­­­­­­Lost and Found
‘Weapons used by Roman soldiers in destruction of Second Temple discovered in Jerusalem’ (Christian Post, 8/13)

 What Could Go Wrong?
‘Scientists Have Re-Created The Deadly 1918 Flu Virus’ (Forbes, 8/15)

I Robot
‘Tesla Robot: News and Expected Price, Release Date, Specs; and More Rumors; Dissecting the claims of robots to do all the boring tasks you don’t want to do’ (Lifewire, 8/23) or maybe Skynet smiles

RIP
“Abortion is leading cause of death worldwide for third year in a row” (Christian Post 1/6) This continues to be an abomination, worse and beyond any politician.

Knowing Everything, Now
“Living in An “On Demand” World: Instant Gratification and The Perseverance of the Saints” (Pathos Evangelical, 1/14)

Not so Good
“Share of Americans who donated to religious organizations remains at all-time low: Gallup” (Christian Post, 1/12)

Christian Nationalism
“Here’s where Christian nationalism comes from, and what it gets wrong; It was religious fervor that drove the Jan. 6 mob” (Dallas Morning News op ed, 1/9) Like most things, we don’t agree with everything in this opinion piece including the subtitle’s suggestion, but it does give a brief overview of what has become known as Christian Nationalism. The author leaves out the theonomy/theocracy theologies of the kingdom in amillennial and postmillennial reformed theology. The idea that the church brings in the Kingdom, which is NOT the understanding of the authors, and our, premillennial, pretribulation background. Nowhere in the bible does it even suggest that the United States is God’s special chosen country. It has been in our historian understanding that the U.S of A is the best Nation in history (other than the theocracy of Israel) and a grand experiment. Believers can and should be thankful and have a place as citizens.  However, it is not God’s chosen nation to bring in the utopian kingdom. The mission of Christians and the church is not political, but to witness about Jesus and disciple people in His teaching.

As to the questioning of the subtitle, “Christian Nationalism” was present at the riot on 1/6/21 but one is hard pressed to prove it was the driving force, see the horned Viking outfit. Religious fervor maybe, but probably not Christian religious fervor, even the Christian Nationalistic variety. And just to be clear, we do not support the shenanigans and riot that occurred that day. Protests and assembling for redress of grievances are fine. But not trespassing, destroying, stealing, and/or violence. Anywhere.

Deconstructing
“Christian Questions Faith After Receiving Wrong Order At Chick-Fil-A” (Babylon Bee, 1/14)