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Magazine, Past Issue
Nov/Dec 2025 issue
WHAT'S INSIDE: You can't fight screens with nothing
Given how popular our summer screen-fast challenge was, it’s evident that our tech usage is an issue that deserves ongoing attention in Christian homes. It was great so many of us could take a break from our phones, but if we’re going to limit our screen-time for the long-term, we need to think of what we’re going to do instead. So, what alternatives do kids (and adults) have to screens?
1. Get outside
One option: in this issue, school teacher Dave Penninga shares stories from his own childhood to speak to the impor- tance of risky play. He’s also working from Jonathan Haidt’s recent book The Anxious Generation - How the Great Rewiring of Childhood is Causing an Epidemic of Mental Illness. Penninga makes the case for parents to back off some, and allow more unsupervised outdoor play.
2. Stack bricks – our “Building Block” contest is back!
Lego is another great alternative to screens. Earlier this year, more than 500 youth pulled out their bins of Lego and entered our first-ever “building block” contest. It’s back and in time for Christmas break. Be sure to point your little, and not-so-little, ones to the back cover for details.
3. Write or record – we need you to share your training, experiences, wisdom, or story
In light of what we confess in Lord’s Day 12 of the Heidelberg Catechism, that every Christian shares in Christ’s anointing as a prophet, priest, and king, we are grateful to launch a new contest where you have an opportunity to share your own message in writing, audio, or video. Perhaps you have training and education that would be a huge help to others, or you have experienced a trial and have learned lessons that you could share to the benefit of many. Maybe you have a story to encourage or warn your siblings in Christ. This is your opportunity to inspire and bless Christ’s Church!
Not only could your work be published, thanks to the generosity of a donor, there is a whopping $7,000 in cash prizes! Find the details on pages 2-3.
Keep the printing presses rolling
As the year draws to a close, we respectfully remind our readers that Reformed Perspective is only able to publish this magazine (and produce many other resources) and give it away for free because of the generosity of people like you, who recognize the importance of thinking, speaking, and acting for God’s glory. As you can read on pages 82-83, our donors allowed us to take 4 big steps forward this year. Are you willing to help keep the presses rolling through 2026?
We have three options for you to read the magazine. First up is the flipbook edition, with its turning pages. Below that, you can click the cover to view the pdf in your browser, or click here to download the PDF (13 mb)
INDEX: RP Contest: Your Turn / What will Canada look like in 2040 / Vera's story: the fight for her life... / Why Charlie Kirk's death hit so hard / The importance of risky play / Introducing the ARPA Academy / Why you (or someone you know) should plan to go to Calgary's 2026 Summit Reformed Young Adult Conference / Why I don't have a bucket list / Christine Farenhorst's annual Christmas story: Learning / Interview with an artist: Paul Roth loves painting her studio / Come & Explore: Have you ever wondered... / Why it's good for teens and kids to do chores / In a Nutshell / Post Tenebras Lux: Martin Luther and the road to Reformation / More than the magazine / E.D. Update: our donors enabled us to take 4 big steps forward in 2025 / RP contest: can you build it better?
News
Arctic sea ice remains steady for past two decades
If you’ve ever fallen for the “Heads I win, tails you lose” trick, the mainstream media’s climate change reporting might strike you as familiar. Whatever the latest news might be, the spin is in just one direction: the planet is in crisis. It happened again, just recently, with what should have been good news for all.
Based on data from the US National Snow and Ice Data Center, Arctic ice decreased to 4.602 million square kilometers on September 10th, the low point for the year, corresponding with the warmer temperatures of summer. The number is 1.2 million square kilometers greater than where it was at in 2012, and close to half a million more than 2007 levels. In general, the ice trend has been close to flat over the past two decades.
Hurrah, right?
Where the mainstream media did cover the story, the data didn’t change their long-standing climate alarmism. As EuroNews.com reported it:
“Scientists say this is a temporary slowdown that may continue for a further five to 10 years. When it ends, it is likely to be followed by faster-than-average sea ice decline.”
The spin goes beyond the media. “While this year’s Arctic sea ice area did not set a record low, it’s consistent with the downward trend” reported NASA. And the World Wildlife Federation still warns:
“Polar ice caps are melting as global warming causes climate change. We lose Arctic sea ice at a rate of almost 13% per decade…. If emissions continue to rise unchecked, the Arctic could be ice-free in the summer by 2040.”
What isn’t being publicly acknowledged is that the projections of the leading scientists and their spokesmen have often been wrong. One example: the former US vice president Al Gore, while accepting a Nobel Prize for his climate advocacy back in 2007, spoke of a study saying the North Polar ice cap could be gone during summer months just 22 years from then (or 2029). He went on to add, “Another new study, to be presented by U.S. Navy researchers later this week, warns it could happen in as little as 7 years” (i.e., 2014).
This doesn’t mean that the Arctic ice won’t decrease further, or that the climate isn’t changing (it has been changing since creation). But it does mean that we need to humbly acknowledge our finite and limited understanding of this world, in contrast to God’s sovereign hand over His creation, including Arctic sea ice.
Today's Devotional
November 17 - Breaking up the Sunday cliques
“Let brotherly love continue. Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for thereby some have entertained angels unawares.” - Hebrews 13:1-2
Scripture reading: Acts 2:40-47
Perhaps your church is planning on sending out invitations to your Christmas season worship services. I know of a church that sent out about 1,000 invitations last year, being delivered by church members who did a lot of >
Today's Manna Podcast
Christ Triumphant!
Serving #1029 of Manna, prepared by P. Holtvluwer, is called "Christ Triumphant!".
