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Indigenous peoples, News

112 Canadian churches vandalized and burned

Since the allegations of “mass graves” on Canadian residential school grounds began in 2021, more than a hundred of the country’s churches have been burned or vandalized. A list of these churches is being compiled by True North News, and the number has now grown to 112. True North’s list includes a Google map that identifies the location of the churches. The CBC has examined 33 of the fires that resulted in churches being burned to the ground, noting that most of these were on reserves or in small towns, and to this point only two have been ruled to be accidental.

The same article noted that over a 24-month period from 2019 to 2021, the RCMP in Alberta recorded 8 confirmed arson or attempted arson cases against Alberta churches, compared to more than triple that – 29 cases – in the 27-month period from June 2021 to September 2023, after the mass grave announcement in May of 2021.

The CBC report quoted University of Alberta professor Paulina Johnson, who explained what she thinks is the motivation for some of the arsonists. "It gives them a voice. Because for the longest time, Canada hasn't really actually acknowledged us."

In recent years Indigenous people in Canada have gotten notable acknowledgement, especially in the provinces’ education systems that are replete with mandated materials on Canada’s “first peoples.” But Johnson’s comment does point to a deeper truth: our country’s approach towards Indigenous people – segregating them to reserves, and throwing money and empty words in the face of disturbingly high rates of suicide, crime and incarceration rates, poverty, and unemployment – does little to fix the real hurt.

The first real step to meaningful change is a recognition of sin. Sin has been committed against Indigenous peoples in the past. However past sin never justifies more sin in the present. Canada needs leaders (in universities, police forces, law firms, government, and churches) that are willing to acknowledge truth, repent of sin that they have committed, and embrace the peace that comes from forgiveness and grace.

But is our secular government capable of real repentance? The critical theory they’ve embraced only exacerbates the problem, focussing on one narrative – overthrowing the “oppressor.” Facts about whether mass graves actually exist don’t matter a whole lot when the goal is to empower the “oppressed.” And what’s more empowering for the “oppressed” than to become the “oppressors”? Burning down churches has its own twisted logic then. But what is the end of this path? God warns us that vengeance will merely continue the cycle of brokenness and despair (Gal. 6:8, Prov. 24:29).

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Education

Podcasts to get you educated, not schooled

Only universities give degrees, but you can get an education even while you’re driving, jogging, or mowing the lawn ***** About forty years ago, when I was taking my Bachelor of Education degree at the University of Alberta, I got schooled, but not all that educated. I was schooled in both senses of the word – both getting some training in how to teach, and just plain made to feel like a fool. GETTING SCHOOLED AT A SECULAR U My “Educational Foundations” professor was, I found out, a lapsed Catholic, and proselytizing atheist. I’d met atheists before – kids in my neighborhood as I grew up – but never one who was educated and articulate and eager to use class time to pitch his anti-Christian worldview. My instructor seemed pretty confident about his atheism, and that left me shook. And it got me studying how to better understand the Christian worldview and be able to defend it. This self-study is really where my education started. My actual education degree never did set me up well to make year plans (the first thing a teacher needs to start organizing the courses they teach), but the very secular university’s library thankfully included several books on worldview and apologetics. I started my defense of my faith in two different libraries – the university’s, and also my dad’s much better stocked basement bookshelves (better in quality, if not in quantity). In short, while university did not educate me well, it did provoke me (and even equip me, to some degree) to educate myself. Could that happen now? It seems doubtful. I wonder whether the university library would still stock books as useful as the ones I took out to learn more about the Christian worldview. As well, how many (even lapsed) Catholics or Christians of any kind are still teaching in secular universities? Even if you wanted to build up your faith in university, you would still face the monumental challenge of trying to absorb solid Christian teaching while (as I had to do at some points) reading (and taking notes on!?) fifty pages a night from the secular textbooks mandated for the courses you were taking. GETTING AN AUDIO EDUCATION So, how now shall we learn? If you don’t need or want post-secondary education, or you’re finished yours, and (like all of us), your time is limited, and (like many of us), you’re “not a reader” (!?) then what? How can you get not schooled, but educated? One answer has been promoted by Jordan Peterson, who believes that this generation could be the best educated in history, because we have access to the internet, and through it, to podcasts and videos from the best thinkers of our day. One way to see the potential advantages of Peterson’s suggestion is to compare this method of self-education with one from a hundred years ago. The Everyman’s Library book collection started in 1906 to promote the reading of classic literature. One obvious advantage of internet education over Everyman’s Library is cost. The cheapest volume I could find from Everyman’s had a price of £10.99 or roughly $20 Canadian. Meanwhile podcasts and YouTube videos are free (although there is always more material behind a subscription paywall!). The second advantage of education online is the time involved. Although I can always find time to read a book (brushing your teeth, during breakfast…), reading generally demands exclusive attention, while “talking head” videos and podcasts can be heard while you are otherwise active (of course, not while juggling or other involved activities). It is worth noting that audio books have the same advantage. The final advantage of internet learning over the Everyman’s Library is the sheer volume of material on the internet. Of course, that can be pretty overwhelming; hence the list of great places to listen below. DISTRACTION VS. EDUCATION A couple words of caution are warranted. First, the internet can be a dangerous place to spend your time, even when you are getting educated. It’s easy to go down rabbit trails, because everything connects to everything else. The very fact that book learning involves more commitment in time and money tends to promote greater care in the selection of authors and their work. As we often hear about grocery shopping, stick to your list. Browsing the internet may not be as expensive as browsing the supermarket, but it is potentially at least as great a waste of time. Secondly, let me offer a word about “outrage porn.” Podcasts and video creators make money on getting more clicks and longer time on their platforms from their audience, and one sure way to do that is to stoke our anger…. but God warns us against both anger and worry about things that we have no power to change. James exhorts us to be “slow to anger, for the anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God” (James 1:19-20), while Christ, who is Himself “gentle and lowly” (unlike many podcasters), asks, “which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life?” (Matt. 11:29, 6:27). A good rule of thumb is to focus on podcasts or YouTube channels that bring an appreciation of God’s glory in creation and redemption into your life, that make you more effective in your service to God and your neighbor, or that equip you to be salt and light in a society that desperately needs both, and needs even more the Christ that they deny. 6 TO START WITH With all that said, here are half a dozen great bets for your internet time. Click on the headings below for links to their respective websites. 1. Real Talk Let’s begin with what might already be near and dear to RP readers: Real Talk, which you can also find on our own Reformed Perspective app. The two hosts have settled into a great rhythm, with over 100 episodes behind them. When the podcast started in July 2020, both Lucas Holtvlüwer and Tyler Vanderwoude appeared together to interview guests with extensive practical experience in such areas as Christian education and the missional church, with feedback every second episode. As time went on, each became more confident to host certain episodes solo, and the feedback episodes are now called “Real Talk Roundup” and feature other RP personalities, best book lists, and other highlights, with recent topics of real relevance, like “Death and Dying” and “Parenting and Pornography.” You can find them on YouTube, Apple Podcasts, Amazon, Spotify, and www.RealTalkPodcast.ca. 2. Two Stewards For more Canadian content, check out the Two Stewards. As the homepage says, they explore “money, economics, real estate investing and more from a Christian worldview.” Although the podcast opens with the warning that Mark Krikke and Brent Vanderwoude are not giving professional financial advice, the listening enjoyment they do provide is packed with plenty of insight. For example, they rightly saw the latest hostility to giving your children an inheritance as motivated by covetousness, and contradicting the Biblical commendation for “ good man leaves an inheritance to his children's children” (Prov. 13:22). Wisdom backed up by God’s Word combined with good-natured banter between the two stewards (and with their guests) makes this podcast both entertaining and thought-provoking. Find them on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and YouTube. 3. The Briefing… and more While Albert Mohler, a Southern Baptist, has experienced his share of controversy, his website has a wealth of listenable resources: •    The Briefing – Mohler’s take on the day •    Thinking in Public – roughly hour-long interviews with noted Christian and/or conservative writers •    Speaking and Teaching – shorter takes on a variety of Christian and current topics •    and clips from his “Ask Anything” tours. These can all be found on Apple Podcasts, YouTube, Spotify, and AlbertMohler.com. 4. Ligonier From a solidly Reformed (and generally paedobaptist) perspective, Ligonier Ministries has even more resources than Mohler, some of them current, and many more in archives: seven different podcasts of varying frequencies, at least 545 sermons from the late R.C. Sproul, daily videos on doctrinal issues, and more than 100 teaching series from multiple teachers (with multiple videos in each series) all of which are available on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Ligonier Ministries also has a YouTube channel that includes enlightening and sometimes entertaining clips of question-and-answer sessions from Ligonier Ministries conferences, with answers from such well-known writers and speakers as Stephen Nichols and Sinclair Ferguson. 5. Breakpoint this Week Another solidly Christian organization, Breakpoint Ministries gives you several ways to get educated while listening, including the daily Breakpoint Podcast and a podcast called Breakpoint This Week – with a focus on applying Christian worldview to current events and trends. A recent daily podcast applied the Biblical command to “bear one another’s burdens” to the stress of intensive parenting, while the September 13 weekly podcast discussed, among other topics, abortion distortions in the presidential debate and the younger generation’s view of 9/11. Breakpoint This Week can be found on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. 6. Created to Reign The Cornwall Alliance has a solidly Christian perspective on economic and environmental stewardship, as is evidenced in their multitude of current articles. That worldview is evident in their podcast too, hosted by Dr. E. Calvin Beisner and Dr. David Legates, and titled Created to Reign. Two recent episodes of Created to Reign explained why free markets are generally not only more effective in helping the poor, but more just. Find it on Spotify, Amazon Music, and Apple Podcasts....

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Internet

Stop swiping, start serving

Romans 13:13 in the age of online escapism ***** I’m going to go out on a limb and suggest that in the past few weeks, you have probably not gotten rip-roaring drunk nor participated in a debauched drinking party. You have probably not given yourself over to rampant sexual immorality or a life obsessed with sensuality. At least, I hope not. I raise these particular issues because Paul raises them in his letter to the Romans. As he helps the Christians in Rome understand how the gospel is meant to work itself out in life, he lists three pairs of sins that are unfitting for Christians. “Let us walk properly as in the daytime,” he says, “not in orgies and drunkenness, not in sexual immorality and sensuality, not in quarreling and jealousy” (Rom. 13:13). It seems to me that if he went to the trouble of listing such sins, we should go to the trouble of considering them – and not only as vague representative sins that other people may be tempted to commit, but as actual sins that may be present in your life and mine, whether subtly or explicitly. Using rather than loving It is my understanding that what binds these sins together is that they are a failure to love. After all, Paul makes clear that the great implication of the gospel he has outlined in the opening chapters of Romans is love! Your duty, your calling, your responsibility, your privilege is to love others as a display of God’s love for you. And each of these sins represents a failure to do so. And so you can’t love others when your life is marked by drunkenness or partying. And what stands behind these sins is a desire for escapism. It could be bingeing on alcohol or on Netflix, on video games, or on social media – whatever causes you to lose control of your time and devote too much of it to pursuits that are ultimately vain and distracting. If you are utterly devoted to addictive substances or addictive entertainment, that will necessarily diminish your willingness and ability to love others. You also can’t love others when you’re given over to sexual immorality and sensuality. By definition, when you commit sexual immorality you are using other people instead of loving them. You become captivated by that sin so that your focus in life becomes satisfying yourself instead of blessing others. Quarrelsome much? And then you can’t love others when you are quarrelsome or jealous. That’s because you are failing to love others with your words and attitude. I think I’ve met more quarrelsome people in Reformed churches than anywhere else in the world. Quarrelsome people usually think they are wise or discerning or otherwise gifted by God, but more often they are prideful and rebellious. They get pleasure from an argument, they gain satisfaction from playing devil’s advocate. And often at the root of it is jealousy – they are jealous of what other people are or what other people have. If that’s you, you need to consider that being quarrelsome is not some minor peccadillo, but a major transgression that is listed alongside drunkenness and adultery. You need to put such sins to death and direct your passion, your time, and your intensity to loving other people and devoting yourself to their good. Wasted potential I recently found myself pondering this: How many men could be serving as elders in any given church, except that they have sold themselves out to sexual immorality? Or how many men and women could be serving as deacons in any given church (if that church opens the office of deacon to women), except that they’ve devoted vast amounts of time to hobbies or games that just don’t matter that much? Or how many church members could be leading important ministries, except that they spend hours on social media thinking that some daft controversy on Twitter in any way impacts the real world? And all the while there are people right before them who need to be loved and cared for and shepherded. The local church desperately needs qualified elders, committed deacons, and faithful ministry leaders, but so many have disqualified themselves. What does it say about you if you know more about the controversies in the wider church than the needs in your local church? Hear it from me: the real troubles of the real people in your real church have nothing to do with what happens on Twitter or YouTube. The more time you spend clicking and scrolling and swiping, the less you’ve got to give to the people you have covenanted with, the people you can actually impact, the people who need to be loved. Your church needs people who are experts in love, not experts in controversy and celebrity. Put away whatever is captivating you when you should be captivated by Christ. Stop swiping and start serving! Indulgent sins, sexual sins, social sins – all these are a failure to love. If you’re in bondage to any of these sins, plead with God for his help in putting it to death. But don’t stop there. Consider how as you labor to diminish the power of that sin in your life, you will at the same time increase love in your life. Consider how you can replace self-indulgence with expressing love to others, self-centeredness with a life of blessing and serving others. For this is why God made you, why he called you, and why he saved you – so you could live a life of doing good to others for the glory of his name. This first appeared on Challies.com and is reprinted here with the author’s permission....

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News

Stats Canada: birth rate now at just 1.26 children per woman

Statistics Canada is reporting that the country’s birth rate has dropped to among the lowest in the world, at just 1.26 children per woman, and British Columbia leads the downward trend with a birth rate of just 1 child per woman. To put these numbers in context, for a country’s population to remain stable – neither growing nor shrinking – each woman needs to have, on average, 2 children – one to replace her, and one to replace her spouse. The real number is even a smidge higher at 2.1, to account for children that don’t make it to adulthood. But outside of Nunavut, at 2.48 children, no province or territory is even at replacement level. Saskatchewan is next best, at 1.63 children. So how might this impact Canada’s population over the coming decades? For simplicity’s sake, we’ll drill into this using a sample population of just 100, with 50 men and 50 women. If each of these women averages 1.26 children, then in one generation we’re down to a population of 63. Let’s round that up to 64, or 32 men and 32 women. If those 32 women then average 1.26 children each, we’re down to a population of just 40. In just two generations we’ve seen the population drop by 60%. Applied to Canada’s current population of 40 million, that would see us drop all the way down to 16 million in two generations. So why is Canada’s population still growing, and growing fast? We’re up by more than a million over just the last few years! This is due to an influx of immigrants – more than a million over the last few years. The growth isn’t coming internally. Massive immigration is one short-term means of forestalling population collapse, but it isn’t a long-term answer, because birth rates are falling all over the world. And if the population decreases everywhere, there won’t be immigrants knocking on our door. What’s the solution? Everyone seems to be looking to the government, but to this point, no program in any country has done much to slow the decline. The case could be made that the government isn’t the answer, but it is part of the problem – every childcare program meant to make having children easier needs to be paid for with higher taxes, and higher taxes make it that much harder to get by for one-income families where a mom wants to stay at home. So what is the answer? Our culture needs to turn to God, not government. Do we sometimes find that a hard message to share? Well, thankfully, God is making it easier for us, by “platforming” us via the size of our families. It used to be you'd need to have 6 children or more to stand out, but now just 4 will give you an opportunity to let your light shine as people ask why so many? We can glorify our God, and help our country, just by speaking to the blessings He has given us in our children. This chart is adapted from Stats Canada’s “Fertility indicators, provinces and territories: Interactive dashboard” posted to StatsCan.gc.ca on Sept. 25, 2024. Used with permission. This does not constitute an endorsement by Statistics Canada of this product....

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News

Saturday Selection – Oct 12, 2024

Click on the titles for the linked articles... Public school vs. home school The Babylon Bee, helping us tell the difference... Noise cancellation: a remarkable design solution in biology Here are some biological features that require precise design (and which therefore evidence a precise Designer) that you've probably never thought of before: "Snakes should be immune to their own poison. Electric eels should not shock themselves. And protection from self-generated noise requires a preplanned noise cancellation system." Kevin DeYoung on making better arguments The key here is to argue the facts of the matter – the what rather than the why. You might think you know why your opponent is taking their stand, but if they haven't stated it, then don't pretend you are a mind-reader. Address the argument they have made, rather than the secret motivations they may or may not have. The four gifts children need from their fathers It's not complicated. It does take effort. Here's an article every father would benefit from reading. The four gifts are: Presence Other mentors Wisdom Blessing 3 painfully obvious suggestions to reduce your child's screen time "A major concern of paediatricians today is excessive screen time in children. Here are three (painfully obvious) suggestions for avoiding and reducing screen time. Unfortunately, these are increasingly becoming viewed as unnecessary or unreasonable by some parents: Read a lot of books Talk to your kids about normal life every day Don’t use digital devices as the default activity..." Anne Wilson - Sunday Sermons Catchy song, with a curious video about a helpful man who stops to help a stranded woman... but first takes time to teach a kid how to hit a baseball. Guess he knew she wasn't done singing yet. ...

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In a Nutshell

Tidbits – September 2024

Lord of the Rings on dating If you’re having trouble mustering the courage to ask out the girl you’re interested in, just know you aren’t alone. Dilly-dallying when it comes to dating is common to many a man… and even a hobbit or two. As a certain Jesse Cox tweeted, in the Lord of the Rings films we see: “… Samwise Gamgee traveled across the world and carried his best friend up a volcano in order to gain the courage to ask out a girl who was already interested in him.” Samwise did finally get around to it, and his Rosie said yes, and they went on to have 13 kids. But hobbits live longer than we do, so if you’re going to have 13 kids too, don’t be dithering as long as Sam! Dads rock “If masculinity were truly toxic, then kids growing up without fathers would presumably be better off than those who have them. But they’re not.” – Noelle Thea I wish this guy had won The new girls' team? This past election I recognized the gentleman at the door as a fellow youth league basketball coach. He was running for the public school board, so we got to talking about what he’d do when the transgenderism the government was pushing made an appearance in our small town. What would he do if a visiting girls' basketball team included a couple of very confused guys? His answer? He’d get the guys' team to identify as girls, just for the day, then beat the out-of-towners by a hundred or so. And, hopefully, that would put an end to that. I’ve shared his plan with friends, and the question comes up: would it be honest? I think so, and far more honest than letting the transgender lie go unopposed. After all, no one involved in this stunt – on either team or in the stands – would think our boys are really saying they are girls. These young men would be making the exact opposite point, loudly and clearly, and be protecting our girl athletes too. If we wanted to be even more up front we could have our guys explain that they “identify as girls to the same extent that #3 and #11 on the other team are girls.” No lie there. We can see this sort of thing in the Bible too – consider how the prophet Nathan used an entirely fictitious scenario to have David judge his own adultery (2 Sam. 12:4). The Bible teaches (see also 1 Kings 20:27-43, not to mention Josh. 2:1-7) that there is a time when a lie can serve the truth. In this high school setting the real deception is on the other side, and the proposed stunt would only expose their lie. Last year Canadian powerlifting coach Avi Silverberg did something like this in his sport. The bearded Silverberg showed up at a women’s event, and then, according to the New York Post, he “casually bench-pressed nearly 370 pounds,” beating the previous Alberta women’s record by almost 100 pounds. And who held that record before him? A confused guy by the name of Anne Andres. Silverberg exited without explaining himself, but his point was quite clear. Christians could do something like this and be even clearer. The problem isn’t primarily that these confused men are ruining women’s sports. The real battle is over whether God made us male and female (Gen. 1:26-27). For the sake of our confused world we need to bring them God’s clear proclamation, and not simply the half measure of someone's common sense. Darkness is an opportunity to show the way, shining the light of the Gospel – it's an opening for evangelism, if we take it. Then and now “The early church wanted to know 'What must I do to be saved?’ Today’s church is asking, 'What can I do and still be saved?’” – Paul Washer Same outfit on repeat Author Amy Krouse Rosenthal once decided to conduct a year-long experiment that involved wearing basically the same outfit every day – a solid black top and gray pants, with the occasional black dress thrown into the mix. She had several of each, enough to make laundry easy to manage. She didn’t tell anyone about her experiment except for family and a few close friends. As she described the experiment, it seems like she didn’t even know why she was doing it. A bit of it was about how it might be freeing to never have to spend time thinking about what she would wear. But it wasn’t like she spent all that much time thinking about it in the first place. After more than six months of it, she was getting tired of her limited options, and found that “getting dressed was always easy but never pleasing.” Still, she finished off the year. And, after 12 months, here was her biggest illumination: “No one noticed. Not one single person ever said to me, Amy, why are you wearing those same gray pants and black shirt every time I see you? This information is equal parts humbling, depressing, and liberating." Humbling, yes, to realize that folks aren’t paying much attention to us. But liberating, too, because it means that as embarrassed as you might have felt today, folks probably aren’t going to remember how you tripped over your own feet. Getting cut down to size can be a very good thing, so long as we remember Who really is the center of the universe, and remember too, our special status, being made in His Image (Gen 1:26-27). Down low on the Down Under Did you know that boomerangs are Australia’s biggest export? And they're also their biggest import. A poem for the upcoming election season I met a traveller from an antique land Who said: Two vast and trunkless legs of stone Stand in the desert. Near them, on the sand, Half sunk, a shattered visage lies, whose frown, And wrinkled lip, and sneer of cold command, Tell that its sculptor well those passions read Which yet survive, stamped on these lifeless things, The hand that mocked them and the heart that fed: And on the pedestal these words appear: "My name is Ozymandias, King of Kings: Look on my works, ye Mighty, and despair!" No thing beside remains. Round the decay Of that colossal wreck, boundless and bare The lone and level sands stretch far away. — Percy Shelley, "Ozymandias" Hasn’t he heard “Boy named Sue”? “I don’t like country music, but I don’t mean to denigrate those who do. And for the people who like country music, denigrate means ‘put down.’” – Bob Newhart Best ads from the 2024 US election Election campaign ads are too often just name-calling but every now and again they say something significant. What follows are a few of this year’s more revealing ads. A Trump campaign ad highlighted how Kamala Harris has supported taxpayer-funded sex changes for prisoners. The ad’s tagline? “Kamala’s for they/them; Trump is for you.” In an ad for Kamala Harris, voters were urged to vote for change: “There’s promise that lies in change, and the time for change is now… it’s time for hope, for change….” The Babylon Bee spoof of the ad wasn’t all that different: “'I will fix things if you vote me into office,' says woman currently in office.” The Constitution Party ran an ad that pulled no punches: “… We’re reaping what we’ve sown. The blood of millions of babies cries for vengeance, and God hears their blood. We must repent as a nation to avoid the wrath of God for killing His children. That means we must stop voting for Democrats that murder babies by abortion." In a nostalgic turn, the Trump campaign shared Ronald Reagan’s closing comments from his 1980 debate with Jimmy Carter: “Are you better off than you were four years ago? Is it easier for you to go buy things in the store than it was four years ago? Is there more or less unemployment in the country than there was four years ago? Is America as respected throughout the world as it was? Do you feel that our security is as safe? That were as strong as we were four years ago? If you don’t think that this course that we’ve been on for the last four years is what you would like to see us follow for the next four, then I could suggest another choice that you have.” Thermostat, not thermometer "There was a time when the Church was very powerful – in the time when the early Christians rejoiced at being deemed worthy to suffer for what they believed. In those days the Church was not merely a thermometer that recorded the ideas and principles of popular opinion; it was a thermostat that transformed the mores of society. Whenever the early Christians entered a town, the people in power became disturbed and immediately sought to convict the Christians for being 'disturbers of the peace' and 'outside agitators.' But the Christians pressed on, in the conviction that they were ‘a colony of heaven,’ called to obey God rather than man. Small in number, they were big in commitment... By their effort and example, they brought an end to such ancient evils as infanticide and gladiatorial contests. Things are different now. So often the contemporary church is a weak, ineffectual voice with an uncertain sound….” – Martin Luther King Jr....

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News

Saturday Selections – Sept 28, 2024

Click on the titles for the linked articles... Glen Campbell: I'm not going to miss you Before his death in 2017, Glen Campbell had become about as big a musical star as can be. But then dementia hit, and even as performing was one of the last things he forgot, most everything was taken away from him bit by bit. In this song, he shares how the worst wasn't his to bear – that was going to be on his wife and family – because "I'm not going to miss you." A kick in the pants reminder that to dust we will all return (Gen. 3:19). But God's people can endure even this, knowing that something better waits (John 14:2-3). Defying the trend: mothers of large families Catherine Pakaluk is a Catholic who wrote a book about the 5 percent of US women who chose to have five or more kids. She interviewed 55 women from different religions and races and here's some of what she found. Is it biblical to want to influence our culture? Christians sometimes act as if we think God's Word is only relevant to believers. But if God is sovereign over the whole world, and if His ways are the best ways, and if His love is evident in His commandments, then of course we're going to want to point others in a Godward direction. Loving our neighbors as ourselves means sharing how we've been blessed so they can be too. Rules of success for motivated 13-year-olds There's a pretty clear biblical backing to many of the 50+ tips this 73-year-old Christian economist offers up. I might pick nits with a few (like his pre-nuptial suggestion - I'm not marrying anyone if I thought I'd need a pre-nup with them) but overall these could make for some great conversation starters with your kids just before they hit their teens. 5 things Science can't explain, but Theism can Christian philosopher J.P. Moreland once described himself as a creationist 3 days of the week, and a theistic evolutionist the other 4. In this article he's leaning more into the latter than the former, but shares points that creationists can largely agree with too. You're woke, why aren't your jeans? Was it only 5 years ago that woke was a joke? (If you haven't seen Real Talk's episode on woke-ism, check it out here.) ...

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News, Politics

Alberta planning to enshrine right to refuse vaccinations

Alberta Premier Danielle Smith announced in late September that her government is planning to amend and strengthen the Alberta Bill of Rights when the Alberta legislature sits again later this fall. As she explained via a video message: “As our society evolves, so too must our laws, to ensure our rights and freedoms are properly protected in an ever-changing world.” Smith’s first proposed change is to ensure that: “…every individual in our province who has the mental capacity to do so, will have the right to decide whether or not to receive a vaccination or other medical procedure.” But the revisions aren’t limited to vaccinations. The changes will also strengthen property rights to ensure that Albertans can’t be deprived of their property without due process and just compensation. And they also include a plan to further affirm the rights of legal and responsible firearm owners. As the premier declared: “In my view, these amendments to the Bill of Rights are not just legal changes. They are a reaffirmation of the values that make Alberta one of the freest jurisdictions on earth.” However, some are questioning the motives and the real impact of such changes. Mount Royal University professor Lori Williams argued that “she’s clearly playing to in the hopes that they will not call her leadership into question in the leadership review at the beginning of November.” The Alberta Bill of Rights was passed in 1972 and updated in 1980 and 2000. Unlike the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, it isn’t a constitutional document, so it is easily alterable. That means that even while other bills and policies in the province are supposed to align with the Alberta Bill of Rights, the legislature can as easily override the Bill of Rights as they can amend it. This highlights the differences between the rights God gives vs. rights from the State. As well motivated as the premier’s efforts might be, if the New Democrats win the next election, they could quickly take these new “rights” away. In contrast, God grants irrevocable rights via the prohibitions in His 10 Commandments – for example, by banning murder and theft He gives a right to life and property. These rights may still be violated by sinful man, but they can never be erased. Both the Alberta Bill of Rights and the Canadian Charter pay lip service to this truth by recognizing in their preambles that the rights they seek to recognize are founded on the supremacy of God. Picture credit: Screenshot from a Sept. 24 post to x.com/ABDanielleSmith...

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Dying Well

Will you die well?

We spend a lot of time preparing for things. Every day we prepare for school, work, or whatever else may be on our plate. We ensure we brush our teeth, get dressed, are well nourished, and aware of what is on our calendar. We fill our vehicles with fuel and ensure they still have insurance. We like to be prepared, especially if something big is coming our way. But something really big is coming our way, any moment now, and many of us aren’t actually prepared for it. You are going to die. Are you ready to die? More than that, will you die well? When we face things we don’t like, our western culture tends to resort to one of two methods. The first is to minimize it, living as if it isn’t a big deal, and the second is to try and control the situation. Evasion #1: Minimizing In recent decades, death is purposely being hidden. The days of wearing clothing to show you are mourning the loss of a loved one has long passed. Instead of being buried, 77% of deaths in my home province of BC result in cremation. After all, cremation is simple – it doesn’t require a casket, a plot in a graveyard, a funeral, a headstone, or even much of a wait. The body is simply “gone” with just some ashes remaining. Funerals have also been replaced with “memorial gatherings” or “celebrations of life” where a few words are spoken, pictures shared, and some drinks are poured. During and post-Covid, even many of these empty practices have been abandoned. With fewer children and broken families, many Canadians are approaching death realizing that they won’t be leaving much of a hole in anyone’s lives. Sure enough, when they die their rooms are emptied, the walls are painted, and the next tenant moves in shortly after. Did anyone even notice? We can point to culture, but how are we preparing for the prospect of our own deaths? A former pastor of mine shared that he prefers to preach at a funeral over a wedding. At a funeral people are usually listening – thirsty souls needing spiritual water. At a wedding most people are distracted, waiting for the message to wrap up so we can carry on with the other plans. The problem is that much of our lives can be characterized by distractions from what really matters. When it is our funeral, we won’t have any time left to pay attention. We are either ready or we aren’t. Evasion #2: Pretending to be in control Since humanity is not able to escape death, it is becoming common to do what we can to control it by ending life on our own terms. Since “assisted death” or MAiD was legalized in 2016, the numbers have jumped as much as 30 percent each year since. Well over 50,000 Canadians have already been killed this way. The National Post recently shared the story of Dr. Ellen Wiebe, who grew up in a Christian home and has killed over 400 people in BC. She calls her work “incredibly rewarding” stating that “it’s the last thing I’ll give up.” Why is it so important? “It’s about honouring people’s wishes, empowering people to have control over their own lives.” Again, Christians can face the same temptation, in at least two ways. First, many religious leaders claim that “MAiD” is a blessing to be embraced, as it allows people to die without facing more pain. And, without “assisted death” even being considered, other Christians do everything they can to fight against God’s clear plan to let our earthly life come to an end. We seek to control our death through every medical option available, or by becoming bitter at God for interfering with our hopes and plans. Dying well God has made it clear to us that minimizing death, or trying to control it, are both foolish. Since our first parents ate from the tree of knowledge of good and evil, death has been unavoidable (Gen. 2:17). And even if a doctor and the government are willing to end our lives, every one of us will still stand before God to give an account (2 Cor. 5:10-11). So if we want to live and die well, we need to understand life and death from God’s perspective, not our own. The Apostle Paul gives us the answer so beautifully in Ephesians 1 and 2. I urge you to stop reading this article and go to your Bible to Ephesians 1:1-2:10 right now. It will likely be some of the most valuable time of your day. Did you notice how many times Paul wrote about being “in Christ” and “in Him”? What God makes very plain to us in these verses is that if we want to die well, we need to die in Christ. Left to ourselves, death will have the victory over us. It doesn’t matter if we attended a Reformed church all our lives, were well respected by others, and are surrounded by a large and loving family. As Paul shares in Ephesians 2:1: “And you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked... following the prince of the power of the air...” We were dead, even if our hearts were still beating. Thankfully the message doesn’t stop there. In verses 4-8 we hear the Gospel. Let it sink in: “But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ – by grace you have been saved – and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God...” When we die in Christ we are saved from eternal death by Christ’s death, and can look forward to being raised to eternal life, just as Christ did. That is why, in his letter to the Philippians Paul was able to testify, “For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain” (Philippians 1:21). As Pastor Jonathan Parnell shared in his article "Die Well" on DesiringGod.org “Death is gain because when all is lost, we still have all we ever really wanted, and now we have him in a deeper, richer experience that, as the apostle Paul says, is ‘far better’ (Philippians 1:23).” To live in Christ means to surrender everything to Him. Not control, or fight or hide, but surrender. “I am not my own but belong, in body and soul, to my faithful Savior Jesus Christ” (Heidelberg Catechism, Lord’s Day 1). Paradoxically, living well means dying to ourselves – even dying everyday (1 Cor. 15:31), so that we can experience abundant life – eternal life in Christ. Victory in Christ When we are in Christ we don’t have to minimize death, or try control it. We can rest in God’s good plan for our life. This doesn’t take away from the fact that death is our enemy. It stings. I’m “only” 43 but have felt the pain of death acutely many times. I’m not looking forward to experiencing it even more in my remaining days. Yet it makes all the difference in the world to understand that in Christ, death doesn’t have the final word for my loved ones or myself. Because He died for us and conquered the grave with His resurrection from the dead, “death is swallowed up in victory” (1 Cor. 15:54). It is now a gateway to life. Real life. Eternal life. “Thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Cor. 15:57)....

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Dying Well

The five Ws of funeral planning

I can think of many times I’ve answered the phone at the funeral home and the person on the other end of the line expressed a need to plan a funeral, but didn’t know where to start. They wanted to have the conversation, but did not know what questions to ask or how to begin the conversation. Hopefully, by asking and answering some basic questions I can help prompt your thoughts and ideas about end-of-life planning. Who? Funeral planning can be done by anybody. At some point in the Christian life, we are confronted with our own mortality and that gets us thinking about our exit plan. Christians should give careful attention to funeral planning, since a funeral is a final witness to those left behind about what we believe and hold dear, and is an opportunity for the gospel comfort to be presented to our family and friends and leave a lasting impression. My father, a retired pastor, has said on occasion that he prefers to preach at a funeral rather than a wedding, because those in attendance at a funeral are usually listening more closely. A great question to ask yourself is, “What do I want my funeral to communicate?” Funerals are for the living, so funerals must be relevant and meaningful to those left behind. Planning ahead for your own funeral may be the only time you arrange an event for everyone in your life to attend but not yourself. Funeral planning is often done by the recently bereaved. Death comes sooner than expected many times, and a sudden, tragic loss can cause us to go numb, and feel like we are going through the motions in a daze. A trusted funeral director is vital to help you navigate all the decisions that need to be made and help you to stay within budget as plans are formulated. Ultimately, your executor (or if there is no will, your closest kin) has legal authority to make your funeral decisions. They should be carefully selected and clearly informed of your wishes. What? Planning ahead can take many forms. It can simply be a conversation between spouses, parents and children, or friends about wishes a person may have regarding a funeral. It could also involve a conversation between a parishioner and a pastor about what text, songs and message should be incorporated into the funeral liturgy. Planning ahead can also involve some more practical steps, such as purchasing cemetery interment rights, selecting a funeral home to assist your family, choosing services and other items like a casket, cemetery vault, marker or monument, and even setting aside the funds to pay for them. In many areas you can research some of this information ahead of time from a funeral home’s website to educate yourself. There is typically no cost for a funeral planning consultation appointment and recording your preferences on file at a funeral home. If a death has already taken place, decisions need to be made rather quickly. There could be as many as 25 or more things to decide in a short period of time about a loved one’s funeral, ranging from which funeral home should look after the arrangements to what outfit he or she should be dressed in, to who the organist or pianist should be. Choose a funeral director who you know is going to be a helpful guide through all the decisions that need to be made. When? Funeral planning should be done at your own pace. Any cemetery or funeral provider who is aggressively pursuing you or pressuring you should be avoided. Your funeral provider should provide plenty of information and choices and show a long-term commitment to your local community. Look for a referral if you are new in town. Planning ahead for a funeral is often done in conjunction with retirement planning, or when a family home or other assets are sold, or when conversations about aging and end of life tend to come up naturally. Funeral planning without making a will is like building a chair with only two legs. These things should be done in tandem. The timing of funeral planning conversations can be difficult to navigate, especially when one party is more willing to discuss the topic than the other. But talking about it doesn’t make it happen any sooner, it only helps you to be more prepared. Maybe that sounds cliché, but there is truth to this statement, especially as we confess God’s providence in life and in death. Involving other family members, such as adult children, in the conversation can be helpful to move along in a productive way. Funeral planning should be done earlier than you might think. For those who are married, funeral planning is a mutual gift that you can give to your spouse (kind of like when my wife and I signed our wills on our anniversary). It allows you to make decisions together. I have seen many surviving spouses burdened with making the final decision on all the details when nothing has been planned ahead of time. If you are single, planning ahead allows you to have some control and say over the details of your own funeral, rather than leaving everything in the hands of your executor. Planning early also allows you time to consider all the options, and plan for the expenses. Where? Conversations can be shared anywhere. They can happen while on a drive, over a cup of coffee or a glass of wine, at a family gathering, or while sharing a quiet moment. Somewhere along the way you need to capture the content of the conversations and put it on paper. We often sit around the family kitchen table to help people, whether for planning ahead, or when someone has died. Arrangements can also be discussed at the funeral home by appointment. Why? Planning ahead has a financial benefit, as a prepaid funeral arrangement offers guarantees and the investment of funds that protect the family from any future inflation of costs. Planning is preparing. It allows you to face difficult realities with loved ones, and to say confidently that even though it will be so hard, we will be able to face death, that last enemy, standing on God’s promises, as they are boldly proclaimed to us as part of a well-planned funeral. Having those conversations ahead of time can really make all the difference and set us off in the right direction on the grief journey when the time comes to say goodbye to a loved one. Garnet VanPopta Rick is a funeral director at Kitching, Steepe & Ludwig Funeral Home in Hamilton, Ontario. You can email him at [email protected]....

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News

President Trump runs from his pro-life past

Donald Trump once had the distinction of being the most pro-life president in living memory. In his first term in office, he put into place the Supreme Court judges that overturned the 1973 Roe vs. Wade decision which had legalized abortion across the country 50 years before. Roe getting struck down was a ruling no one had expected, and almost no one could even have imagined. Yet, it happened, thanks largely to President Trump. But in a campaign stop in late August, the former president made quite the reversal. Instead of helping the unborn he pledged to put more babies in harm’s way. He told a crowd at Potterville, Michigan: “I’m announcing today in a major statement that under the Trump Administration, your government will pay for, or your insurance company will be mandated to pay for, all costs associated with IVF treatment, fertilization for women.... because we want more babies, to put it very nicely.” He positioned the policy as pro-family, but because abortion is regularly part of IVF treatments, this is far from pro-family. As John Stonestreet explained in a recent Breakpoint.org column: “As commonly practiced, IVF almost always involves creating multiple embryos, since ‘excess’ embryos improves the chance of achieving pregnancy. In most cases, the embry- os that are created are then screened for ‘viability.’ Those deemed unviable are either destroyed or stored. Embryos are transferred into the woman’s uterus, either one at a time or multiples at a time. If pregnancy is achieved before all embryos are transferred, the rest are frozen, disposed of, donated to medical research, or stored for later use. If multiple pregnancies are achieved, a ‘fetal reduction’ is often recommended and performed.” By one estimate, more unborn children could be be murdered under Trump's announced policy than are currently being murdered via legalized abortion. Roughly one million American children are aborted annually, and the estimate is that another 1.2 million unborn children are also intentionally killed each year via the IVF process. Should IVF become free, as under Trump's plan, there's reasons to believe that IVF treatments could double, which would also double the death total. That's the result of what Trump is promising. Trump's personal life, his frequent crudity, and more so, his promotion of homosexuality and gambling, have all been marks against him as a candidate. So the case for Trump has always been that despite his lack in so many important areas, he was still (clearly) the lesser of two evils compared to his pro-abortion Democratic opponents Hillary Clinton and Joe Biden. However, even while the 2024 Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris is every bit as bad on abortion as her predecessors, this time, with his IVF policy, Trump may have managed the impossible, outdoing Harris's body count by as many as a million dead children a year. That would make him the lesser of two evils no more. Does that mean Christians should vote for Harris? Or does it mean that sometimes candidates are just too evil to support, even if they are less evil than their rival? Picture credit: Lev Radin / shutterstock.com...

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Dying Well

Write your own eulogy

Crystalize what’s most important in your life **** My neighbor wrote my eulogy last week, or what I hope will be at least a part of it. It was her daughter’s birthday, and I had popped over with a present. Neither mother nor daughter was surprised when it turned out to be a couple of books, and that’s what prompted the mom to say: “Jon, when you die, I think everyone at the funeral will have gotten a book from you.” I’d like that to be true. I do think birthdays and anniversaries are a wonderful excuse to pass along a good book, and while I haven’t reached near everyone yet, the Lord willing, I do still have time. So, yes, “book giver” is something I’d love to have included in my eulogy. What would you like included in yours? Eulogies are most often written for us by our family after we have passed on, but some years back Dr. Gary North challenged his readers to write their own eulogies. He first wanted them to write up a good resume to detail what they’d already done, and then they were supposed to write their eulogy to lay out what they intended to do. After both were complete, North challenged his readers to focus in on the differences. “How well does your résumé match what you would like said in your eulogy? If there is a big discrepancy, work on both…. There should be more to your life than your résumé. If there isn't, start working on improving your eulogy. Then work backward.” This talk of dying is all about bringing focus to how we can live out our purpose. God created us to glorify Him, and to best do that we need follow just two commands: to first love God with all our heart, soul, and mind, and second, to love our neighbor as ourself (Matt. 22:37-39). So writing a eulogy is really just casting our eyes to the future to see how we might go about loving God and Man. Write it when you’re young While North’s proposal was an exercise aimed at everyone, there’s distinct benefits for young and old. Young people writing eulogies? Yes, because there’s benefit in asking, “How would I like to be remembered?” sooner rather than later. The earlier we get to it, the more time we’ll have to live out whatever goals we set. Like to be remembered as a generous donor to missions and Christian schooling? That might be achievable if you start charting this course in your teens. Would you love to be known as a nurturing parent? Best to write that down long before your kids move out. Want to be called a doting grandmother to dozens? It’s more realistic if you’re busy having, and loving, your own large family now. It’s a different twist on goal-setting, because eulogies don’t focus on our typical aspirations. A big house is nice, but have you ever heard that mentioned at a funeral? We’d all love to be able to explore the globe, but who’d want to be known simply as a world traveler at the end of their life? What priority do you want to give to your job? There are all sorts of careers that’d be worth a mention as your son or daughter sums up your time on earth, but only so long as they were a means of serving God, and hadn’t become a god to you. That’s how writing a eulogy early can show you what sort of goals are worth setting. Typing it out when you’re young is also a reminder to not put off what you can do today, since none of us have a promise of tomorrow. In his book Seasons of Sorrow, Reformed pastor and author Tim Challies wrote about his son Nicholas’s sudden death. The young man was just 20 when he died, and at the time was attending seminary and engaged to be married. While those plans were cut short, his father could take comfort in being able to write in his obituary: “ eventually became convinced that Jesus Christ is the Savior of the world, and that he ought to be a follower of Jesus.… All who share his faith commend him for running his short race well and anticipate the day when they will see him again.” Worth doing when you’re old There’s a different value in writing your eulogy when you’re older. It may be less about setting major new goals – limits on time and strength don’t allow a man in his sixties to take on studying to be a doctor, or starting a pig farm. But new ventures are still possible since retirement may bring time to do activities that just weren’t possible before. I know a man who took up painting and got quite good at it, leaving works that adorn the walls of family and friends. When infirmity took that away he turned to crafting poetry, glorifying his Maker in an entirely new way. But in these later years one benefit to writing a eulogy comes in the clarity it brings to revisions that should and could be made. A young man can fool himself into thinking he has all the time in the world to make amends. But once there’s no denying death’s approach, we can’t miss the need to make the most of the short time we might still have. It’s only fiction, but in Where the Blue Sky Begins, a terminal cancer diagnosis is what gives the main character her clear mission – she’s put it off for years but she’s sure God wants her to ask forgiveness of seven people she’s wronged. The very reason we might not want to write our eulogy at this age – all the regrets we don’t want to think about – is a big reason to do it. Sin has stained all our stories and what we’ve done can’t be undone. But it can be forgiven. Ships may have sailed, but course corrections are always possible because our God is merciful. Just think of the thief on the cross. We don’t know how old he was, but we know he had no strength and no time to offer – stuck as he was, he couldn’t do anything other than profess Jesus as righteous. But that was quite the plot twist, and whatever his story’s beginnings, he had such a spectacularly God-glorifying final chapter it was included in the Bible (Luke 23:39-43). Not all revisions are going to be this dramatic, but we all have sins we can flee from. Think of common examples: a stern mother can’t get back those early years, but she may now have time to craft a different entry as a grandma. Maybe you spent too much time watching hockey, or obsessing about the royals, or reading trashy fiction? Whatever our sins, so long as breath remains, we can repent. And then possibilities will exist still to glorify our Maker. For many a faithful saint these final chapters can also be about etching deeper what’s already been put down. My parents have gotten to a stage where getting out of bed has become an accomplishment, but they continue doing what they’ve always done, showing what a great marriage and sacrificial love looks like. It comes out in small ways, maybe bringing another cup of coffee, or holding hands during Jessica Fletcher but it’s more of what’s been going on for half a century now. It was also quite something to see my wife’s grandmother holding forth on her deathbed, still loving on the people gathered around her, more concerned about how they were doing than the pain she was feeling. And knowing she had just hours and not weeks, she took the opportunity to share some pointed advice because it was clear she had no time but the present. When years and maybe decades may still remain, polishing can be done. A good young elder can continue on as an older elder. Retired businessmen can burnish their legacy by mentoring younger entrepreneurs. Paul tells us that older men and women are to teach the younger generation (Titus 2), and Asaph tells us to share with our children what God has done in our own lives (Ps. 78). So long as breath remains, opportunities to honor God continue. Writing a eulogy in our later years can be about adding on an exclamation mark to what we already have down. Conclusion When I first started writing this article, I intended to share my own eulogy as an example. But if this exercise is going to be as brutally honest as it is meant to be, the results aren’t really for public consumption. I will share a couple of broader lessons learned. Like every Christian parent, I want to make it easy for my kids to say about me – to know about me – “He loved his Lord.” And I want my neighbors to know it too. There’s that old joke that goes, “if the government ever brought up charges against you for being a Christian would there be enough evidence to convict you?” Would your neighbors be able to join in on the prosecution side? Maybe like you, I have some work to do here. I’ve also realized, at least at this point of my life, I can most glorify God by being a patient father. There’s all sorts of other things I can work on too, and goals I should follow through on (like a book I’ve yet to start). But right now, every day again – almost moment by moment – I have repeated opportunities to help or to hurt the mood of my household. I can do so either as a harried, slightly grumpy, justice- more than mercy-minded, busy dad, or as a happier, calmer, more patient parent who better reflects his Father in Heaven. This second option is easy enough to write down, but if it’s going to be a goal and not simply a wish, steps need to be taken, and what will that look like? This eulogy-writing is only useful if it leads to concrete actions. So if I’m grumpy because I’m too busy, then I need to either take less on, or take steps to be better at organization. I know I’m a better saint when I’m well rested, so bed time needs to become a priority. If I really want to be remembered as a patient dad, what am I going to do about it, and what am I willing to give up to achieve this goal? That’s what I’ve learned, but now how about you? What are your friends and family going to say about you when you’re gone? And what can you do about it still now?...

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Saturday Selections – September 7, 2024

The importance of "social trust" What can we do when people stop trusting? One common approach is to outsource trust to the government. Get the government to inspect, certify, and license folks to prove they are trustworthy. The problem here is that this makes trust an expensive commodity: licenses, inspections, and certifications all cost money and time. And it also presupposes that the one entity we can trust is our government, and their competence to be able to assess everyone else. The video supposes we can turn the tide by being trustworthy ourselves. That's a start, certainly, but while that would benefit your customers, it wouldn't benefit your interactions with the rest of your untrustworthy society. What this video is calling for then (though it doesn't know it) is revival. Only God can change hearts en masse! It's a young world after all On offer here, four evidences of a young solar system. 11 things to know when Jehovah’s Witnesses are at the door They might present themselves as Christian, but they believe in a very different God. How do we give hope and help to women who struggle with postpartum depression? Two biblical counselors offer hope in this 30-minute podcast that's also available as a 15-minute read. Are the "5 Love Languages" real? Gary Chapman's 1992 bestseller The Five Love Languages proposed that there are 5 very different ways that people express love, and that we could all get along better if we understood each other's primary love language. I had a friend who benefitted from the book when she realized that while she appreciated physical affection – she was a hugger – her mom just wasn't. But, she'd often buy her daughter presents. Chapman's book helped my friend realize how often her mom was thinking of her, how much her mom did indeed love her, even though her mom never gave her an encouraging hug. So, for some the book was quite impactful. But further study finds that while we might have different tendencies, our "love languages" aren't as distinct as the book made them seem. Even my friend's dear ol' mom, who wasn't a hugger, might have appreciated a hug. Why Christians need to stop using the term "same-sex attracted" English professor and former homosexual Rosario Butterfield explains that we should not identify with our sins. She is not speaking primarily to Christians who are simply using this term for the sin they are struggling with (though she has thoughts for them too). Rather, this is directed more at Christians who, though they might be remaining chaste, are claiming same-sex attraction as a part of their identity. ...

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