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250+ movies Christians can love

Great minds think alike, and the same month I was first compiling this article two of those great minds belonged to a missionary in Brazil and an evangelist in California.

The evangelist, Ray Comfort, passed along a story, first told by Jeremy Archer, about a man who invited all sorts of folks into his house to meet his family. Often the visitors would talk crudely and angrily with each other, teaching his children words he'd rather they not know. But these visitors could also get his whole family laughing so the man decided to focus on the good they did, rather than the bad.

Over time, the man could see the visitors were having an impact on his family, and it wasn't a good one. He found that his own children were now using crude language and making coarse jokes. What was worse, the visitors were behaving outrageously, even taking their clothes off right there in front of his family!

That's hard to believe, isn't it? Why didn't the man just kick them out? Why didn't he protect his family from their influence? Well, it turns out this man had some sense, and as the visitors started getting naked, the man acted. Together with his family, the man finally "turned off the television."

That same month the missionary, Rev. Ken Wieske, expressed the same concern, titling a Facebook post "David vows to get rid of his TV." Underneath he included the text of Psalm 101 which reads (in part):

I will ponder the way that is blameless.
Oh when will you come to me?
I will walk with integrity of heart
within my house;
I will not set before my eyes
anything that is worthless.

The pastor's point was clear: most of what's on TV is worthless and if King David were here on earth today, he might well pitch his TV right out of the palace. Of course, it isn't quite as easy as that. Today we also have computers, and smartphones, so getting rid of the TV isn't going to restrict our access to fluff and filth that's so readily available.

So let's take this a step further. Yes, much of what's on TV (and on YouTube, Facebook, etc.) is worthless. But some of it isn't. Some of it is quite good. Excellent even! So if we were to make the same promise King David makes in Psalm 101 – to put away all that is worthless – what sorts of films and videos might we still watch?

I've got some suggestions below. My hope is that this list can help families find something worth watching. With nearly 250 suggestions, I'm also hoping there will be something for everyone. There's just one documentary included here, but you can find a whole bunch more in our list of "Faith and film: 100+ documentaries worth your time."

RATING SYSTEM

I've also included an entertainment rating. This is out of 10, and in my books, a 7 is a solid mark, 8 is something special, and 6 is still watchable but there is some notable flaw (maybe some corny writing, or a bad bit of acting, that sort of thing). The only reason I've included a few films that rate as low as 6 is because they have something about them that makes them valuable viewing – oftentimes their educational value. A 7 for a children's film means that this target audience will think it a 7, not adults. The same is true of a black-and-white classic. If you hate anything B&W, then you probably won't like one with a solid 7 rating (though maybe you'd be swayed by one with an 8, 9, or 10).

GOD'S NAME HONORED

One other note: none of these films and videos take God's name in vain. That's important. While a degree of violence and even sexual content of some sort can be appropriate on screen, the way God's name is abused on film just isn't.

More than 40 of the films below have the tag "FREE ONLINE" and can be viewed for free by clicking on the link provided.

ANIMATED VIDEOS (27 videos)

Shorter videos can be ideal when mom wants to take a nap but doesn't want the kids sitting in front of the TV forever.

THE GRUFFALO – 2009, 27 minutes – 8/10
HORTON HEARS A WHO – 1970, 30 minutes – 7/10
LIFE AT THE POND – 2004-2009, 30 min x 5 episodes – 8/10
LOST AND FOUND – 2013, 24 minutes – 8/10
VEGGIETALES (15) – only some are recommended – 7-8/10
WALLACE AND GROMIT: 4 SHORT FILMS – 1989-2008, 114 minutes – 8/10

ANIMATED "TORCHLIGHTERS" SERIES (10 videos)

There are 20+ videos in the Torchlighter series, and the ten below are all great. While I haven't seen the whole series yet, there are a couple I haven't included for two different reasons. The first was on St. Patrick. While legends abound, little firsthand material on Patrick's life exists, making it hard to separate fact from fiction. That difficulty should have been acknowledged. Then, in the one on Augustine, an animated Jesus makes an appearance, and while I'm not wholly sure of the wrongness of visually depicting Christ, I am also not sure of its rightness (based on the second commandment), so I haven't recommended it. There are three more, I haven't yet watched, which I suspect might be good: The Robert Jermain Thomas Story, The Gladys Aylward Story, and The Richard Allen Story.

THE CORRIE TEN BOOM STORY – 2013, 34 minutes – 7/10 – FREE ONLINE
THE ERIC LIDDELL STORY – 2007, 31 minutes – 6/10 – FREE ONLINE
THE GEORGE MÜLLER STORY – 2019, 30 minutes – 8/10 – FREE ONLINE
THE HARRIET TUBMAN STORY – 2018, 30 minutes – 7/10 – FREE ONLINE
THE JIM ELLIOT STORY – 2005, 30 minutes – 6/10 – FREE ONLINE
THE JOHN BUNYAN STORY – 2006, 30 minutes – 8/10 –FREE ONLINE
THE JOHN NEWTON STORY – 2021, 30 minutes – 7/10 – FREE ONLINE
THE MARTIN LUTHER STORY – 2016, 34 minutes – 7/10 – FREE ONLINE
THE RICHARD WURMBRAND STORY – 2008, 30 minutes – 6/10 – FREE ONLINE
THE WILLIAM TYNDALE STORY – 2005, 32 minutes – 6/10 – FREE ONLINE

ANIMATED (29 films)

It seems like cartoons used to be safe for kids, though boring for adults. Today, with the appearance of obscene animated fare like South Park and Family Guy, many cartoons are unsuitable for children, and for that matter, adults. But there has been a change for the better too – movies like Curious George and Meet the Robinsons show that some animated fare can keep the kids happy, and entertain their parents as well.

AN AMERICAN TAIL – 1986, 87 minutes – 9/10
BALTO – 1995, 78 minutes – 7/10
CHICKEN RUN – 2000, 84 minutes – 8/10
CHICKEN RUN: DAWN OF THE NUGGET – 2023, 101 minutes – 8/10
CURIOUS GEORGE – 2006, 88 minutes – 8/10
CURIOUS GEORGE 3: BACK TO THE JUNGLE – 2015, 81 minutes – 7/10
CURIOUS GEORGE: ROYAL MONKEY – 2019, 86 minutes – 7/10
FINDING DORY – 2016, 97 minutes – 8/10
Finding Nemo – 2003, 100 minutes – 8/10
FOX AND THE HOUND – 1981, 83 minutes – 8/10
THE MANY ADVENTURES OF WINNIE THE POOH – 1977, 74 minutes – 9/10
Meet the Robinsons – 2007, 95 minutes – 8/10
MINISCULE - 2014, 89 minutes – 7/10
Monsters Inc. – 2001, 93 minutes – 9/10
Monsters University – 2013, 104 minutes – 8/10
PAW PATROL: THE MOVIE – 2021, 86 minutes – 8/10
PAW PATROL: THE MIGHTY MOVIE – 2023, 87 minutes – 8/10
THE PEANUTS MOVIE – 2015, 88 minutes – 8/10
SGT. STUBBY: AN UNLIKELY HERO - 2018, 84 minutes – 8/10
THE SUPER MARIO BROS. MOVIE – 2023, 92 minutes – 7/10
TANGLED – 2010, 100 minutes – 9/10
TOY STORY 1, 2, 3, and 4 – 1995-2019, 81-103 minutes – 8/10
Up – 2009, 96 minutes – 9/10
WALLACE & GROMIT: VENGEANCE MOST FOWL – 2024, 79 minutes – 8/10
Wall-E – 2008, 98 minutes – 9/10
WINNIE THE POOH – 2011, 63 minutes – 8/10

See also "Leo Da Vinci: Mission Mona Lisa," "Long Way North," and "The Secret World of Arrietty" (Foreign Films), and "Animal Farm," "Boxcar Children," "Boxcar Children: Surprise Island," and "The Hobbit," "Lord of the Rings," and "The Phantom Tollbooth" (Based on a Book).

BASED ON A BOOK (23 films)

It's always hard to live up to the book, but some of these get awfully close!

20,000 LEAGUES UNDER THE SEA – 1954, 127 minutes – 7/10
THE ADVENTURES OF ROBIN HOOD – 1938, 101 minutes – 8/10
ANIMAL FARM – 1954, 72 minutes – 7/10
THE BOXCAR CHILDREN – 2013, 81 minutes – 7/10
THE BOXCAR CHILDREN: SURPRISE ISLAND - 2018, 82 minutes – 6/10
THE GIVER – 2014, 97 minutes – 8/10
THE GOSPEL BLIMP - 1967, 38 minutes – 8/10 – FREE ONLINE
Ivanhoe – 1952, 107 minutes – 7/10
THE HOBBIT – 1977, 77 minutes – 7/10
THE LION, THE WITCH, AND THE WARDROBE – 1979, 95 minutes – 7/10
THE LION, THE WITCH, AND THE WARDROBE – 2005, 125 minutes – 8/10
Little Women – 1949, 121 minutes – 8/10
LITTLE WOMEN – 1994, 118 minutes – 9/10
THE LORD OF THE RINGS (ANIMATED) – 1978, 133 minutes – 7/10
THE MAN IN THE IRON MASK – 1939, 113 minutes – 6/10 – FREE ONLINE
THE PHANTOM TOLLBOOTH – 1970, 89 minutes – 7/10
POLLYANNA – 2003, 99 minutes – 8/10
PRIDE AND PREJUDICE – 2003, 104 minutes – 8/10
THE PRINCE AND THE PAUPER – 1937, 118 minutes – 8/10
Prince Caspian – 2008, 154 minutes – 8/10
Rascal – 1969, 85 minutes – 7/10
SWALLOWS AND AMAZONS – 2016, 96 minutes – 7/10
SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON – 1960, 126 minutes – 8/10

See also "The 3 Worlds Of Gulliver" and "Lassie Come Home" (Children), "The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes" (Black and White Classics), and "The Hobbit Trilogy," and the "Lord of the Rings Trilogy" (For Mom and Dad).

BLACK & WHITE CLASSICS (20 films)

These have all stood the test of time and are still being watched again and again.

12 ANGRY MEN – 1957, 96 minutes – 9/10
THE ADVENTURES OF SHERLOCK HOLMES – 1939, 79 minutes – 8/10
THE AMAZING ADVENTURE – 1936, 62 minutes – 7/10 – FREE ONLINE
THE ABSENT-MINDED PROFESSOR – 1961, 96 minutes – 8/10
ADAM'S RIB – 1949, 101 minutes – 8/10
CASABLANCA – 1943, 103 minutes – 10/10
Citizen Kane – 1941, 119 minutes – 7/10
HIGH NOON – 1952, 85 minutes – 9/10
I Remember Mama – 1948, 134 minutes – 7/10
It Should Happen to You – 1954, 87 minutes – 7/10
THE MAN IN THE WHITE SUIT – 1951, 85 minutes – 8/10
THE MAN WHO SHOT LIBERTY VALANCE – 1962, 123 minutes – 8/10
MEET JOHN DOE – 1941, 122 minutes – 7/10 – FREE ONLINE
Mr. Deed Goes to Town – 1936, 115 minutes – 7/10
Mr. Smith Goes to Washington – 1939, 129 minutes – 8/10
Ninotchka – 1939, 110 minutes – 8/10
SEA HAWK – 1940, 127 minutes – 8/10
THE SIGN OF ZORRO – 1958, 90 minutes – 8/10
THE SHOP AROUND THE CORNER – 1949, 99 minutes – 9/10
The Tin Star – 1957, 92 minutes – 7/10

See also "Roman Holiday" (For Mom and Dad).

BLACK & WHITE SILENT CLASSICS (6 films)

As a subcategory to the above are a half dozen silent film selections. If you've never gotten into silent films, be sure to start with the comedies – there the overwrought acting just adds to the funny. And Buster Keaton is the best!

THE GENERAL – 1927, 80 minutes – 8/10
THE GOLD RUSH – 1925, 96 minutes – 7/10
GRANDMA'S BOY – 1922, 56 minutes – 7/10 – FREE ONLINE
SEVEN CHANCES – 1925, 56 minutes – 8/10
SHERLOCK JR. – 1924, 44 minutes – 8/10 – FREE ONLINE
Steamboat Bill, Jr. – 1928, 70 min – 7/10

BIOGRAPHICAL (20 films)

Most of these are Christian biographies, and being true gives them a leg up on fictional Christian fare that too often concludes with “happily ever after” endings, more fairytales than our one true faith. It’s simply a fact that here on earth bad things often happen to good, faithful Christians. I will also note that while many of these are great, others are merely okay (ranking only a 6), but are still included here because of their educational value.

THE CASE FOR CHRIST – 2017, 113 minutes – 7/10
C.S. LEWIS ONSTAGE – 2018, 76 minutes – 7/10 – FREE ONLINE
C.S. LEWIS: THE MOST RELUCTANT CONVERT – 2021, 93 minutes – 9/10
END OF THE SPEAR – 2006, 108 minutes – 7/10
FINAL SOLUTION – 2001, 102 minutes – 8/10 – FREE ONLINE
GOD'S OUTLAW: THE STORY OF WILLIAM TYNDALE – 1988, 93 minutes – 6/10 – FREE ONLINE
GOSNELL: THE TRIAL OF AMERICA'S BIGGEST SERIAL KILLER – 2018, 93 minutes – 8/10
I CAN ONLY IMAGINE - 2018, 110 minutes - 8/10
THE JACKIE ROBINSON STORY – 1950, 77 minutes – 7/10 – FREE ONLINE
JOHN HUS: A JOURNEY OF NO RETURN – 2015, 55 minutes – 7/10 – FREE ONLINE
MARTIN LUTHER – 1953, 105 minutes – 7/10 – FREE ONLINE
THE MIRACLE WORKER – 1962, 106 minutes – 9/10
SABINA: TORTURED FOR CHRIST, THE NAZI YEARS – 2022, 115 minutes – 7/10 – FREE ONLINE
SIGHT – 2024, 103 minutes – 8/10
THE SPIRIT OF ST. LOUIS – 1957, 135 minutes – 7/10
TORTURED FOR CHRIST - 2018, 77 minutes - 8/10 – FREE ONLINE
UNBROKEN: PATH TO REDEMPTION – 2018, 98 minutes – 8/10
UNSUNG HERO – 2024, 112 minutes – 8/10
A VOW TO CHERISH – 1999, 84 minutes - 8/10 – FREE ONLINE
THE WRIGHT BROTHERS – 1996, 27 minutes – 7/10

CHILDREN (16 films)

This is fare for younger children – not a lot of tension here. And that means, while the kids will probably like it, mom and dad might not. Because children often watch their favorite videos repeatedly, even dozens of times, it’s all the more important to make sure what they do watch is the good stuff.

THE 3 WORLD'S OF GULLIVER – 1960, 99 minutes – 7/10
BUDDY DAVIS' AMAZING ADVENTURES – 2011-2021, 6 episodes of 25-58 min – 7/10
THE CREATION ADVENTURE TEAM – 2001-2002, 40 min x 2 episodes – 7/10 – FREE ONLINE
THE DEFENSE OF NEW HAVEN – 2016, 82 minutes – 8/10 – FREE ONLINE
DUDE PERFECT: BACKSTAGE PASS – 2020, 84 minutes – 8/10 – FREE ONLINE
INCREDIBLE CREATURES THAT DEFY EVOLUTION I, II, & III – 2006, 47 minutes – 7/10
LASSIE COME HOME – 1943, 90 minutes – 8/10
A LEGO BRICKUMENTARY – 2015, 93 minutes – 7/10
MISTY – 1961, 91 minutes – 7/10
THE NEWTONS' WORKSHOP – 1997, 226 minutes – 7/10
ODD SQUAD: THE MOVIE – 2016, 67 minutes – 7/10
PATTERNS OF EVIDENCE: YOUNG EXPLORERS – 2020, 190 minutes – 7/10 – FREE ONLINE
THE RUNNER FROM RAVENSHEAD – 2010, 81 minutes – 7/10 – FREE ONLINE
THE SPARKY CHRONICLES – 2003, 28 minutes – 7/10 – FREE ONLINE
SPACE BUDDIES – 2009, 84 minutes – 7/10
THE WILD BROTHERS (8 episodes) – 2015-2020, 28-30 minutes each – 7/10

FAMILY FUN (29 films)

These are films that mom and dad can also look forward to watching. But that does mean that some of them have action or drama that may be too intense for your youngest children. So be sure to research age-appropriateness.

BABES IN TOYLAND – 1961, 105 minutes – 7/10
A BEAR CALLED WINNIE – 2004, 90 minutes – 7/10
BEYOND THE MASK – 2015, 103 minutes – 8/10
BORN FREE - 1966, 95 minutes – 8/10
CITY OF EMBER – 2008, 95 minutes – 7/10
CONDORMAN – 1981, 90 minutes – 7/10
THE COURT JESTER – 1956, 101 minutes – 8/10
Emil and the Detectives – 1964, 98 minutes – 7/10
THE FIGHTING PRINCE OF DONEGAL – 1966, 110 minutes – 7/10
GRACE UNPLUGGED – 2013, 102 minutes – 7/10
Greyfriars Bobby – 1961, 92 minutes – 8/10
HANGMAN'S CURSE – 2003, 106 minutes – 7/10
THE INCREDIBLE JOURNEY – 1963, 89 minutes – 8/10
JACK AND THE BEANSTALK – 1952, 83 minutes – 7/10
THE JENSEN PROJECT – 2010, 95 minutes – 8/10
JOHNNY TREMAIN – 1957, 80 minutes – 7/10
The Last Chance Detectives – 1994, 50 min x 3 episodes – 7/10
THE LEGEND OF 5 MILE CAVE – 2019, 90 minutes – 7/10
MY FRIEND FLICKA – 1942, 89 minutes – 7/10
Old Yeller – 1957, 84 minutes – 9/10
THE SECRETS OF JONATHAN SPERRY – 2008, 96 minutes – 6/10 – FREE ONLINE
Shark Boy and Lava Girl 3D – 2005, 93 minutes – 7/10
STORM: LUTHER'S FORBIDDEN LETTER – 2017, 105 minutes – 7/10 – FREE ONLINE
SWITCHED – 2020, 104 minutes – 6/10
THE SWORD AND THE ROSE – 1953, 92 minutes – 7/10
THE THREE INVESTIGATORS IN THE SECRET OF SKELETON ISLAND – 2007, 91 minutes – 7/10
TIME CHANGER – 2002, 99 minutes – 7/10 – FREE ONLINE
UNITARDS – 2010, 107 minutes – 8/10
A WEEK AWAY – 2021, 97 minutes – 9/10

See also "The Absent-minded Professor" (Black & White Classics).

FOREIGN (10 films)

Part of the pleasure of watching films set in foreign locales is that they provide a peek into unfamiliar cultures. Most of us will never be able to visit Mongolia or Iran but we can get an insight into the cultural life of those communities by watching their films.

ANTBOY - DENMARK – 2013, 77 minutes – 7/10 – FREE ONLINE
BELLE AND SEBASTIAN – FRANCE – 2013, 99 minutes – 8/10
CHILDREN OF HEAVEN – IRAN – 1997, 87 minutes – 7/10
Godzilla – JAPAN – 1954, 96 minutes – 7/10
LEO DA VINCI: MISSION MONA LISA – ITALY – 2020, 82 minutes – 8/10
LONG WAY NORTH – DENMARK – 2015, 81 minutes – 7/10
NOT ONE LESS – CHINA – 2000, 106 minutes – 7/10
THE RED BALLOON – FRANCE – 1956, 34 minutes – 7/10 – FREE ONLINE
THE SECRET WORLD OF ARRIETTY – JAPAN – 2010, 95 minutes – 8/10
THE STORY OF THE WEEPING CAMEL – MONGOLIA – 2003, 87 minutes – 7/10

"HALLMARK-Y" (10 films)

Before they got woke, Hallmark made a lot of films appreciated for being safe and good, and though they were rarely great there were a few of those too. Sometimes they'd even be based on Christian books. Not all of these are from Hallmark, but they are all of that sort.

AN AMERICAN IN AUSTEN – 2024, 84 minutes – 7/10
EXTRAORDINARY – 2017, 86 minutes – 6/10 – FREE ONLINE
GOOD SAM – 2019, 90 minutes – 8/10
HIDDEN PLACES – 2005, 86 minutes – 6/10
LOVE ON A LIMB – 2016, 84 minutes – 7/10
LOVE'S LONG JOURNEY – 2005, 88 minutes – 7/10
A ROYAL CHRISTMAS – 2014, 87 minutes – 7/10
SARAH, PLAIN AND TALL – 1990, 98 minutes – 8/10
THE ULTIMATE GIFT – 2006, 114 minutes – 7/10
UNLEASHING MR. DARCY – 2016, 84 minutes – 7/10

See also "Roman Holiday" (For Mom and Dad).

FOR MOM AND DAD (21 films)

These are films intended for an adult audience, movies and videos to enjoy with your better half...and sometimes with the older kids too.

2081 – 2009, 25 minutes – 8/10 – FREE ONLINE
ALLEGED – 2011, 93 minutes – 8/10
Anastasia – 1956, 105 minutes – 7/10
AUDACITY: LOVE CAN'T STAY SILENT – 2015, 50 minutes – 7/10 – FREE ONLINE
The Caine Mutiny - 1954, 124 minutes – 7/10
COURAGEOUS – 2011, 129 minutes – 8/10
FREEDOM – 2014, 94 minutes – 7/10
HIDDEN BLESSINGS – 2024, 107 minutes – 8/10 – FREE ONLINE
THE HOBBIT TRILOGY – 2012-2014 – 7-8/10
The Lord of the Rings Trilogy – 2001-2003 – 10/10
LIKE DANDELION DUST – 2009, 104 minutes – 8/10
ROBERTA – 1935, 106 minutes – 7/10
ROMAN HOLIDAY – 1953, 118 minutes – 8/10
The Second Chance – 2006, 102 minutes – 7/10
THE SONG – 2014, 116 minutes – 9/10
SOUND OF FREEDOM – 2023, 131 minutes – 8/10
TO SAVE A LIFE – 2010, 120 minutes – 8/10

See also "Using Hero," "I Can Only Imagine" and "A Vow to Cherish" (Biographical).

SPORTS (11 films)

These are a mixed lot, with Woodlawn definitely for older audiences and Going to the Mat something for a younger age group.

BACK OF THE NET – 2019, 86 minutes – 7/10
FACING THE GIANTS – 2006, 111 minutes – 7/10
FOREVER STRONG – 2008, 109 minutes – 7/10 – FREE ONLINE
GOING TO THE MAT – 2004, 82 minutes – 8/10
THE HORSE IN THE GRAY FLANNEL SUIT – 1968, 113 minutes – 7/10
HANS BRINKER OR THE SILVER SKATES – 1962, 90 minutes – 8/10
MERCY RULE – 2014, 119 minutes – 7/10
NEVER GIVE UP – 2023, 79 minutes – 6/10 – FREE ONLINE
OVERCOMER – 2019, 119 minutes – 7/10
TWELVE – 2019, 92 minutes – 7/10
WOODLAWN - 2015, 123 minutes - 9/10

See also "The Jackie Robinson Story" (Biographical), and "Extraordinary" (Hallmark-y), and the documentary "Long Short: the Kevin Laue Story."

WAR FILMS (20 films)

The Second World War might have been the first major conflict in which film could play a role, presenting stories intended to encourage those on the frontlines and at home. The most inspiring World War II films show ordinary, average people doing extraordinary, heroic things (many of whom were our parents, grandparents or great grandparents, hiding Jews or otherwise putting themselves at risk simply because they knew it had to be done). Many of the best World War II films were made during the war – they have a completely different feel, because no one at the time knew what the war’s outcome would be!

BATAAN – 1943, 114 minutes – 8/10
Decision Before Dawn – 1951, 119 minutes – 7/10
DESPERATE JOURNEY – 1942, 107 minutes – 8/10
Destination Tokyo – 1944, 135 minutes – 8/10
Edge of Darkness – 1943, 119 minutes – 7/10
The Fighting Seabees - 1944, 99 minutes – 7/10
FLYING TIGERS – 1942, 104 minutes - 7/10
THE FOREIGN CORRESPONDENT – 1940, 120 minutes – 7/10
THE GREAT DICTATOR – 1940, 125 minutes – 8/10
Hail the Conquering Hero – 1944, 101 minutes – 7/10
Objective Burma! – 1945, 142 minutes – 7/10
RUN SILENT, RUN DEEP – 1958, 93 minutes – 8/10
SABOTEUR – 1942, 109 minutes – 7/10
SAHARA – 1943, 98 minutes – 8/10
Sands of Iwo Jima – 1949, 100 minutes – 7/10
THE SILVER FLEET – 1943, 88 minutes – 7/10
They Were Expendable – 1945, 135 minutes – 7/10
To Be Or Not To Be – 1942, 99 minutes – 8/10
TWELVE O'CLOCK HIGH – 1949, 132 minutes – 8/10
Why We Fight – 1942-45, 417 minutes – 7/10

See also "Sgt. Stubby" (Animated Films), "Belle and Sebastian" (Foreign Films), "Sea Hawk", and "Casablanca" (Black & White Classics).

BONUS #1 - TV SERIES FOR KIDS (6 shows)

An episode of a TV show can make for a nice short break without blowing the whole evening. While these series have been vetted, it isn't possible to evaluate the whole run, so some of these have only been rated on the basis of the first three episodes.

ANNE OF GREEN GABLES: THE ANIMATED SERIES – 2003, 25 min x 26 episodes – 7/10 – FREE ONLINE
ADVENTURES IN ODYSSEY – 1991-2003, 27 min x 17 episodes – 7/10
CURIOUS GEORGE – 2006-2022, 24 min x 198 episodes – 8/10
THE INBESTIGATORS – 2019-2020, 15 min x 40 episodes – 9/10
JUNGLE BEAT – 537 minutes – 10/10 – FREE ONLINE
A SHOW ABOUT ANTHEM LIGHTS – 2022-, 12 min x 20 episodes – 7/10

BONUS #2 - TV SERIES FOR ADULTS (3 shows)

With TV series, it isn't possible to evaluate the whole run, so some of these will be rated by season, and others just by the first episode or three.

Danger Man (Season 1) – 1960-62, 25 min x 39 episodes – 8/10
DRAGNET (SEASON 1) – 1951, 26 min x 4 episodes – 7/10 – FREE ONLINE
SUE THOMAS F.B.EYE – 2002, 41 min x 57 episodes – 8/10 – FREE ONLINE

BONUS #3- OBSCURE BUT IMPRESSIVE (7 films)

These ones aren't easy to find, but for some, might be worth the hunt.

LORD JEFF – 1938, 85 minutes – 8/10
Minuscule 2: Mandibles from Far Away – 2019. 92 minutes – 8/10
The Pistol: The Birth of a Legend – 1991, 104 minutes – 7/10
Seasons of the Heart – 2003, 99 minutes – 8/10
Snuf de Hond in Oorlogstijd – 2008, 95 min – 8/10
THE WAY THINGS WORK – 2001, 300+ minutes – 8/10
Who is Simon Miller? – 2011, 85 minutes – 7/10

A version of this article first appeared on www.ReelConservative.com. This article was part of a magazine issue on movies (which you can find here) and was originally titled "200 Movies King David Might Watch."

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With great technological innovation comes great responsibility. In an era where the digital landscape transforms the way we live, learn, and connect, Reformed Christian schools stand at the intersection, navigating the delicate balance between embracing innovation and upholding their Bible-based values. The integration of various technologies – whether computers, YouTube videos, cell phones, iPads, or the hot-button topic of Artificial Intelligence (AI) – is forcing a profound question upon Reformed Christian education: How can we ensure that the transformative potential of technology aligns with and honors our Christian worldview? Are these tools mere distractions, pulling our focus away from the godly values our schools want to foster, or can these technologies be harnessed to deepen the connection between students and their Christian identity? As the debate rages on between an impulse to retreat from technology entirely and the temptation to embrace it wholeheartedly, Reformed Christians have some complex decisions to make about how we will use technology in our classrooms. Survey says To try to get an understanding of what’s happening in Reformed schools across Canada, I asked 20 of them to participate in a survey exploring their approaches to screen time, technology policies, and the broader digital landscape within their educational environments. The participating schools ranged from elementary to high school and consisted of Canadian Reformed, United Reformed, and confessionally Reformed (but not associated with a specific church) schools. Of the contacted schools, 12 schools responded. Questions ranged from yes or no questions to also allowing principals and school administrators to expand their answers in anonymous anecdotes. I also spoke with school principals who were willing to share more about their experiences. Among our survey respondents, the majority (92%) have specific policies regarding the use of technology in the classroom or on school property. It’s encouraging to know that most schools are recognizing a need to regulate the technology being used on campus. Most schools had guidelines for “Computer Usage Policy” for devices owned by the school as well as an “Acceptable use of personal devices policy.” One school said no phones at all Marc Slingerland is the principal at Calvin Christian School, a K-12 school in Coalhurst, Alberta. Slingerland said that his school has tried a few approaches with different rules for personal devices in different grade levels. Across the board, they had a no-phone policy, “no phones allowed to be seen or in class.” However, they found that for older students in grades 11 and 12, some parents felt more comfortable with them bringing phones to school knowing that they would be driving to the campus. Taking this into consideration, the policy was changed to allow for grades 11 and 12 to use phones during breaks in the foyer. The hardest part was that this became a long haul of policing students – Slingerland says they have now reverted to the original plan. “There’s a set time and a set place at which it’s allowed. It’s constantly policing the boundaries and if they’re just going to the locker to get a book, they can easily quickly just check it. So, we actually went back. This is now our second year with no student devices on school property at all.” When to introduce? When it came to the introduction of school computer labs or school iPads into classrooms, the prevalent sentiment was that the early stages of a student's development may be better navigated without the intrusion of technology. Paul Wagenaar is the principal at Jordan Christian School, a K-12 school in Lincoln, Ontario. When it comes to the younger grades, Wagenaar says that it’s rare for their school to introduce digital tech to students under grade 5. “We intentionally keep technology out of the classroom in the early years as much as possible. The extent of the technology would be that each classroom does have a projector. Once in a while, there will be a video or something that will be shown to the students. But no use of iPads, or any electronic device in our classrooms up until grade four.” Regarding the survey, most schools (with elementary-aged students) said that it’s between grade 3 and grade 5, that they start introducing technology like computers or laptops. “The exposure to technology in younger grades is limited to the teacher's laptop and projector,” one principal said. Benefits in older grades When it comes to older grades (grades 8 to 12), some schools pair each student with their own iPad or laptop just for their own personal use. This type of “1-to-1” approach aims to enhance the educational experience by embedding technology into the curriculum. This allows teachers to foster personalized learning, and prepare students for the digital demands of the modern world. Jordan Christian School has taken this approach in their high school. Their principal shared that each student has an Edsbee account, which is a web-based K-12 learning platform for teachers to upload assignments, and mark grades and attendance. The teacher will then enforce when the laptops should stay closed during lessons, and when the laptops can be used. Wagenaar says that he has found this useful in preparing students for post-secondary endeavors. “We feel that they need to be prepared for the world in which they live as well. So I think the benefit of students having their own device is that in those four years, they really learn it well, and they're well prepared for college or university or the workforce.” While some schools take the 1-to-1 approach, others opt for the use of computer labs or Chromebook carts. “The portable laptop cart has made student access to and use of technology much more convenient, with more opportunity than a standalone computer lab,” said one principal. In terms of technology tools deemed helpful, the respondents highlighted a variety of platforms and applications such as Kahoot, Google Classroom, Google Docs, and educational apps like IXL and Scratch Jr. Conversely, some tools, like YouTube, were identified as unhelpful due to potential distractions and inappropriate content. Interestingly, 75% of schools also said they have dealt with emerging technologies like AI in the classroom, including instances of students using AI to complete homework assignments. Filters and firewalls A large challenge in having digital devices in classrooms is the ability to monitor students, and keep them from getting into trouble online. All schools said that they use online security safeguards and firewalls to protect students from inappropriate websites and distractions (i.e., computer games). For many schools, it's up to the teacher to enforce policies on how to use digital devices in class. Some principals voiced that they turn the screens on an angle so that the teacher can see what's happening on the screen. One survey respondent mentioned that they use an app called “GAT Shield” which gives teachers access to see all of their students on their own devices. “Teachers can also lock webpages, close tabs, push websites, and send out individual or class-wide messages. Additionally, we have filters set up using some of their presets and our own to flag explicit material, inappropriate language, violent images – weapons, etc.,” this respondent noted. “When a student has tried to access this material, it sends a link/screenshot to the teacher and account administrator's emails.” In some of the specific policy guidelines, if students use devices in a way that violates school policy it can lead to the device’s confiscation for a period of time. Years of research With firewalls in place blocking video and audio streaming apps like YouTube and Spotify, it can help to combat distractions – yet distractions to videos or inappropriate online content are not the only things Christian classrooms should be aware of. In 2020, researchers and professors David I. Smith, Kara Sevensma, Marjorie Terpstra, and Steven McMullen put together a three-year study on the use of technology in Christian schools titled Digital Life Together: The Challenge of Technology for Christian Schools. This comprehensive study relied on a variety of research methods from documentary video, interviews with students, staff, and teachers, as well as focus groups. Two of the authors, Marjorie Terpstra and David Smith, are researchers at Calvin University's education department. Something notable they found in their research was students' openness to talk about their online shopping habits during class. Smith noted: “The most common form of distraction was going shopping. It wasn't playing games. It wasn't social media because that was mostly filtered out by the school. It's really quite a recent thing.” He mentions that distractions have always been a thing with or without technology in the class. Whether it’s passing paper notes or a student hiding the book he’s reading under his desk, it's not a new phenomenon. But, online shopping in class is something all too new. During one of the student interviews for the book, Smith mentions a student who was proactively open with her shopping habits… in Bible class. She shared: “It's great because in Bible class, you can take notes faster and you can get the assignments written faster, and then while the teacher's talking, you've got time to go shopping.” Smith says that parents and educators need to be aware of this online shopping phenomenon because this consumerism mindset is often something that is tossed under the rug: “Access to sexual material online, access to the wrong views about sex, some worry about cyberbullying and violence and violent material and so on. Very little worry about shopping, right? Because that's not something that the Western middle-class Christians worry about very much, we're as gung ho about that as everybody else.” Smith says that as Christians, we need to be counter-cultural in not succumbing to the world's ideas of “spending time lusting after consumer goods.” Parents and teachers need to change their mindset to acknowledge these discrepancies by teaching students to be discerning with their online habits. Christian education should be designed to equip students for the real world Overall, in conducting this survey with Reformed schools it's evident that technology in the class is something that we cannot run from. Instead we should be teaching students to use it well. Terpstra alludes to an important truth, that Christian education is an opportunity for students to grow in community with one another, learning how to live and make choices. “They get to enact their faith right now. It's not like you are in school so that someday when you grow up, you can enact your faith, but technology and other choices that we can make can help them to be Christians right now.”...

Pro-life - Fostering

Fostering? I could never!

“Oh, I could never foster. I could never part with kids after having them in my home for a while. It would break my heart. Fostering is not for me.” So many times we’ve had people say things like this to us. It can be a bit awkward. I mean… we foster… and we have for years. What’s that say about us and our hearts? You think that we don’t grow attached? Or that goodbyes are easy? Or that there’s no risk to our emotions? It’s not like we are so uniquely cut out for the task. Fostering is hard work and time consuming. It stretches you and can be taxing on home life. But it’s also beautiful in that it teaches you to love a stranger; to embrace a needy child. In essence, it’s the core of the gospel at work: to love a stranger. As former strangers now loved by God, wouldn’t He in turn want us to love strangers? It seems pretty important to Jesus in light of eternity. “They also will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?’ “He will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.’ “Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life.” (Matt. 25:44-46). Imagine… making time to care for the needs of strangers can affect our eternal destiny! I wonder if people who say, “I could never do that,” are also covering up a bit of a fear of the unknown, or attempting to disqualify themselves, or maybe just justifying not interrupting their life with other kids. Whatever the reasoning, be sure to talk about it with God. Maybe the timing is not right for you, or you have circumstances that are not conducive to fostering at this time. That’s ok. But for the most part fostering is something everyone can participate in, especially if you confess Christ and keep in mind what is important to Him. Taking a huge risk There’s a point where you have to set aside your worries and fears (says me the worrywart) to not focus on the hurt of goodbyes, but instead to think about the joy of hellos. To think about welcoming a child (yes, the least of these) into your home. With thousands of kids in need of care right now, there’s opportunity for you to open your door, and welcome one of them into your heart and your home. And yes, opening the door of your home, means opening your heart. And opening your heart means taking a huge risk… to love and to care for someone. When we love and care for someone, we risk that someday we may have to part ways, and say goodbye. But, better to have loved and feel the pain of separation, than not to have loved at all. We were made for relationship. We welcome people into our lives all the time: a new birth, a new friend, a new neighbor, a new wife, a new husband, a new family member, a new community, and maybe a new foster child. And whenever we welcome someone in, we know that at some point we’ll have to say goodbye. Kids grow up and move out, we might travel around, we might leave the country, and any one of us might die at any time. We part ways with people all the time. Life is full of goodbyes, and sometimes heart-wrenching goodbyes that leave us marked forever. Love is like that – it’s risky. And while we live on this side of heaven, love will be severed at some point. But as in any relationship, we don’t focus on the goodbyes. We focus on the time we get to be together, and then make the best of it. So, if you’re still thinking you are not even slightly prepared to foster because you can’t handle the pain of separation, I beg to differ. We face separation in all relationships. And if its fear of the unknown or not wanting interruption, well, that can be challenged. What if your life up to this point has been the training ground for you to take in someone new, to take in a stranger to love? What if life training for you included being stretched in new ways through fostering? Our story My wife and I have six children. They’re all grown up now. All of them except for one have moved out of the house. We often got strange looks when traveling about as family. People would ask, “Are these all your kids?” (No, we just collect them as we go.) “Yes, they’re all our kids.” “Must be a lot of work!” “Well, they didn’t all come at once and they all do help each other.” “Same woman?” “Yes, same woman.” And people would walk away in amazement. One guy pulled me aside and said, “Must’ve cost you a fortune!” I responded, “But the rewards far outweigh the costs.” Contrary to today’s cultural ignorance, large families are a wonderful thing. Kids are not a “cost,” they are a reward, a gift. And you raise them to contribute. Not only to society, but to the Kingdom of God. Despite some bickering and some fighting once in a while, there is a beauty to forming your own little family community that interacts with the broader community. Family is the place we learn how to live together as disciples of Jesus, how to love, forgive, grow in patience, accommodate, take care of the needs of others, reveal blind spots, and discuss how to live in our crazy world. Family is the training ground from which we shoot forth our kids like arrows into the world to go and make a difference in the name of Jesus. Life can be dreadfully lonely without family. When a couple of our oldest kids moved out of our home, we then had empty bedrooms. We wanted to fill them and invite others into that “family” thing we do, learning to live together as disciples of Jesus. So we thought to foster. Opening our doors to new children meant introducing them to Jesus. No force, just display. We called a family meeting to share with our kids our idea to begin fostering and to inquire of them if they’d be supportive of that. All were in favor (whether moved out or not). One ad, one phone call And then something crazy happened. My wife Joanne saw an ad in the newspaper for Bridgeway Homes, a fostering agency out in Cobourg, Ontario. She called and inquired about fostering. After a number of months of training and inspections, we became an official fostering home for them. But here’s the thing: Bridgeway only ever put out one ad in the Niagara area newspapers. And Joanne was the only one person to respond to it. Coincidence? I don’t think so. Through Bridgeway we began fostering. Numerous children came to stay with us, mostly for respite, so usually it was for one or two weeks at a time. One girl, a young teen, who had experienced a lot of moving around, got approval in mid-November to stay with us over Christmas and into the new year. She had had some deep questions about life that she had unpacked with me in my office and was so content to stay with our family that she was bursting with joy the day she unpacked. “Mark, I get to spend Christmas with you guys! I’m so excited!” Two days later the Children’s Aid stopped by our house when she was at school. They grabbed her stuff, told us they had found a placement for her and had to act quickly, and then went to pick her up from school to take her away. No goodbyes. Man, that hurts. One thing that hurts more than goodbyes, is not having a chance to say goodbye. I was crushed for days. “Mark…. Christmas with you guys….” Yes, fostering can hurt. I always hope that the kids we were blessed to have would be blessed in return for having met us. And then along came AJ, the foster boy we had for seven years. He had no idea of who God was, but after only 4 days with us he was already asking if he could pray. And in less than a month, he was asking my wife and I if he could call us “Mom” and “Dad”. About 3 years ago, when hospitalized, we were told he would die, so we experienced those kinds of goodbyes. But God’s plan was recovery! And now recently, due to increased care needs, he was moved out of our home – another goodbye. Fostering… it’s living, loving, laughing, leaving…. but often lasting. Everyone can participate Remember I said, “fostering is something that everyone can participate in.” I did not say fostering is something that everyone can do (although I think most can). But fostering is something everyone can participate in. This is where “wrap around” is key. If you cannot foster yourself, everyone can help – everyone can wrap support arms around someone who is fostering. You can open your home for visits or respite, you can drop in and help out, you can make a meal for the foster family, you can take foster kids out on trips with your kids, you can support the foster parents, you can offer to drive for outings, you can ask how to be of help, and you can pray for all involved. Dispelling a few excuses But I just can’t. How about talking about it? And also take it to God. List off all your reasons and tell Him why you can’t. It’s not like God will be shocked or overwhelmed. But He may ask you to shift from “I can’t” to “trust Me.” And if you seriously can’t take someone in yourself, find someone who did take a child in and ask how you can be of help, how you can be part of a “wrap around.” I’m too busy. When in life will you not be busy? It’s generally when we are laying on a hospital bed or recovering at home that we finally slow down and realize we’ve been occupying ourselves with a whole lot of “stuff.” And in times we are not occupied, we are preoccupied. We like to busy ourselves! Being busy is what we gravitate to. Often we hear, “So, are you keeping busy?” The challenge for the rest of our life is to create space in our schedules — space in which we allow God to act. Maybe even space for a certain child to enter into. The timing is not right. We can always come up with reasons why the timing is not right. We’re too young. We’re just married. Our family is too big. Our family is too small. We don’t know what to do. The system is too complicated. We’re too old. And the list goes on. Analyze your situation and write down what it is that you think is getting in the way and see if, how, and when the obstacles can be removed. Some might be legitimate, others might be you just making excuses. But do determine a time. Fostering is something that everyone can participate in. I don’t say this to make you feel guilty, I say this to make you think about it. I have shared our experience; yours will be different. Think pro-life Perhaps you’ve never considered that being pro-life is synonymous with being “pro-fostering.” Pro-life means having an open door. If someone didn’t abort as we’ve asked, and now can’t raise their child, it’s logical that a pro-lifer would step up to help. And that may include fostering. But wait, what about all the sign-up requirements for fostering agencies? When they come to assess your home and start asking you about life, simply state what’s right and true and allow the chips to fall where they may. Be shrewd as serpents, innocent as doves. We proclaim truth even in this, and suffer the consequences if need be (or the agencies do if their requirements exclude us). But imagine if fostering agencies had 500 Christian homes in the waiting and it was only one or two silly stipulations getting in the way. That would make it their problem. But you and me would stand ready to serve. Obviously in all circumstances you do not want to jeopardize your own health or family. It’s of no use stepping up to help another child or family only to ruin your own. But just be honest with yourself and your family whether the reasons for avoiding fostering or a fostering “wrap around” are substantial enough to wait for another time. We may set the bar so high for an “ideal time” that it never comes. And we’d say that old line once again, “Fostering? I could never!” No, we don’t want to go there. Remember, these things are of eternal significance. “God sets the lonely in families, he leads out prisoners with singing.” – Ps. 68:6 Mark Wanders lives in Smithville, ON with his wife Joanne. He writes regularly on his blog site: www.theartisanpost.com. Picture at the top is of Mark and AJ, used with permission....

News

Health minister will protect kids from nicotine, but not castration?

Last week, the federal government announced that it will “explore legislation and regulatory options” to address the growing popularity of youth using certain “stop smoking” aids. Specifically, the government is focusing on restricting access to nicotine pouches, which are tobacco pouches placed between the gum and cheek, with the intent being to counteract nicotine cravings. Zonnic is one of the popular brands approved in Canada, with Health Canada stating that the 4 mg per dose “is usually recommended for adults who smoke 25 or more cigarettes a day and want to quit smoking.” These pouches release the same addictive chemicals found in cigarettes, vape products, and chewing tobacco. In July 2023, Canada approved Zonnic as a natural health product, allowing it to be sold at any store with no restrictions. But these products have been marketed to teens with different candy-like flavors and colorful packaging. Federal Health Minister Mark Holland was having none of that: “To the tobacco companies that continue to look for ways to use loopholes to addict people to their products: Get away. Stay the hell away from our kids.” The BC government already took action last month, ensuring this product can only be sold over the counter in pharmacies. Yet, this same “keep away from our kids” minister, just last month, criticized the Alberta government for new policies that focused on protecting minors from gender transition hormones and procedures, banning males from female sports, and giving more parental control over sexual education curricula. Holland stated that the policies are “deeply disturbing.” Holland listens to the science regarding addictive drugs harming minors. Yet, when it comes to so-called “gender-affirming care” that does irreversible harm to children including sterilization, castration, and other genital mutilations (more harm than nicotine products could do), he would rather align with an ideological stance that fails to affirm a child's God-given sex. ...

News

Election day delay could cost taxpayers millions

On March 20 the Liberal/NDP government proposed bumping the 2025 election date back a week because the election would otherwise be at the same time as Diwali, the Hindu festival of lights. Critics have noted that moving election day back a week would also guarantee that any MPs first elected in 2019 would now be eligible for pensions that they wouldn’t have gotten if they’d lost. An MP needs to serve 6 years to be eligible for a pension, and for those elected on Oct 21, 2019, the 2025 election date of Oct 20 would have left them a day short. If current polling numbers persist, the government could expect a lot of their MPs to lose, but this election-day delay would give them a going-away pension bonus. Among the other electoral changes being proposed are an expansion of 2 more days of advance polls, giving voters seven days in total – six advance days and election day – to be able to vote in person. The government also wants to make it easier to vote by mail, and allow electors to vote anywhere in their electoral district. These changes are being done in the name of “encouraging participation in the electoral process.” However, that doesn’t seem a pressing issue – over the last 30 years, electoral turnout has stayed consistently within 60%-70% of eligible voters. Looking south of the border, we can see that what’s more important is the perceived trustworthiness of the election. Canada has not had allegations of stolen elections, as is almost commonplace in the US. That’s because Canada’s federal elections, as they have been run over the last many decades are the most verifiable in the world, with each voter checked off a list at their poll, and every ballot evaluated by two Elections Canada agents as well as representatives from each major party. These competing interests provided the ultimate verification for each election. Mail-in balloting and vote-anywhere initiatives might make it marginally easier to vote, but cause complications – last election 90,000 mail-in ballots arrived too late to be counted – and muddle the transparency. The more heated our politics become, the more important it is that our elections are not only trustworthy, but are obviously so....

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Saturday Selections – Mar. 23, 2024

How to undermine election trust The title of this video – "how to steal an election" – isn't as much the issue here as the fact that results beco...

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More Canadians are “Alberta bound”

“It’s good to be Alberta bound” sang Canadian folk legend Gordon Lightfoot. Looking at Statistics Canada’s Quarterly Demographic Estimates, ma...

News, Transgenderism

Leaked documents show “gender medicine” is neither science nor medicine

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Saturday Selections – Mar. 16, 2024

Click on the titles below to go to the linked articles... If $50/hr is a good minimum wage why not $100... or $1,000? (9 min) A Californian legislat...

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Christian healthcare workers taking province to court over vaccinations

In the fall of 2021, Hilary Vandergugten was working as a charge nurse in the emergency department of a hospital in the Fraser Valley when British Columbia (BC) health authorities ordered all healthcare workers to get the COVID-19 vaccine. Vandergugten wasn’t willing, and like many in her position, lost her job. Two-and-half years later, Vandergugten is still unable to work as a nurse in BC. She can, however, practice just south of the border in the US. “There is an obvious nursing shortage and doctor shortage in our province, but seems to completely ignore that,” said Vandergugten. The BC Ministry of Health reports that almost 2,500 healthcare workers lost their jobs after refusing to get vaccinated, and that doesn’t take into account healthcare workers who opted for early retirement, so the loss of healthcare workers could be quite a bit higher. When Vandergugten refused to get vaccinated she was initially ordered to go on unpaid leave on Oct. 26, 2021. While on leave, Vandergugten went to her family doctor to get lab work done to prove that she had immunity from the virus, as she had already had COVID-19. However, her lab work was not accepted, and on Feb. 3, 2022, Vandergugten was officially terminated from her position at Langley Hospital. Challenging the courts During this time of uncertainty, Vandergugten started meeting with “the Ark,” a fellowship of Christian healthcare workers who also lost their jobs due to vaccine orders. This fellowship joined a judicial court challenge started by doctors who had lost their privileges to practice in any hospital or government owned clinics. “We as nurses started to get together in the Lower Mainland here in Greater Vancouver, just a bunch of Christian nurses that had all found each other in this process. We just started getting together, supporting each other and praying and then became involved with this court challenge.” During this time, Vandergugten said that many court challenge opportunities came up, whether it be suing the union or the health authority. Yet, she says none of them aligned with the group's Christian values. They then were asked to join a case that resonated with them, challenging Dr. Bonnie Henry, BC’s provincial health officer, stating that her mandates were extreme and that she overused her emergency powers. Vandergugten’s name was put on the affidavit, the legal document that served as the evidence for the case. The courts heard their case for judicial review in November and December of 2023, and they are currently waiting to hear a decision. The decision date was set for the end of February, but they now understand that the courts can delay until the end of June. Vandergugten notes: “Lots of people at church are asking about it and praying for a favorable ruling. I will say to them, ‘You know what, if there is an extension that also is in God's timing and God's timing is perfect.’” Winning the case wouldn't automatically reinstate their jobs right away, but it could set a precedent for going forward with challenging their jobs. “There's still a battle that we need to win. This is just one case. For us to actually get our jobs back and be reinstated to the jobs that we were in, is still a far way off.” Crazy anti-vaxxer Vandergugten says that for her, the decision to not get vaccinated was not what the mainstream media deemed as “crazy anti-vaxxers.” Prior to the vaccine, she worked for months in the emergency department at the peak of the pandemic. Once the vaccine came out, Vandergugten started seeing a rise in what she wondered were potential vaccine injuries. “Working on the frontline in the emergency department, there was an increase of early miscarriages and vascular injuries, strokes or blood clots or macular eye injuries. I knew that right away, that's a vaccine injury.” She says that it was disheartening to see this up close, especially when she felt any sort of disposition would mark you as a conspiracy theorist. “It’s hard to sort out actually. It’s hard to validate for yourself, when you see what's happening in front of you daily at work, and try to have conversations with colleagues who refused to engage. People accused me that I was being crazy and making stuff up.” Spiritual and relational growth in times of grief Hilary and her husband Sprout. As challenging as this time has been, Vandergugten has found peace through solely relying on Christ. “It has been very beautiful, right? Like, you rely daily, you know, for emotional support, for spiritual support that He will heal those holes, but also that will open my eyes to others that are hurting, right?” She says that one of the greatest gifts to come out of this has been the connections made with other Christian healthcare workers through “the Ark” group. In addition to praying for each other, they have created work opportunities. No longer able to work in care homes because of their vaccine status, many people will reach out to “the Ark” group to find home care jobs for those who lost their jobs. She said some people will ask for unvaccinated nurses to take care of their loved ones instead of sending them to a nursing home. “This has been an unbelievably beautiful gift of just strong Christian women, not all of the Reformed faith – there are Mennonites and Pentecostals. But it’s just this beautiful gift from God that we can be together and pray for each other and encourage each other. And all of us have said our faith has become so much stronger.” In addition to her spiritual growth, Vandergugten says that this adversity has strengthened her marriage. She is grateful for her husband's support in leading her family through this difficult time, and for his ability to defend and protect her. She mentioned how she didn’t have the “traditional” type of marriage – she had always worked even if only part-time. This led her to let go and let her husband lead. “My marriage has become stronger because of it. It has been beautiful for our marriage, defending his wife repeatedly. My husband has this line, saying the collateral damage of COVID has been beautiful.” Times of uncertainty lead to new opportunities Once Vandergugten and her sisters, also nurses, were fired, they thought they would prepare for the long haul so, they began the process of studying to get their American licenses. They have since passed these examinations and now have the ability to work south of the border. “We wrote our NCLEXs and got our American licenses. I actually work in Washington State, which is about an hour and 15 minutes from my home.” To continue to hold a nursing license, a nurse needs to maintain a certain amount of hours. Vandergugten is grateful to be able to continue getting hours, because if BC health authorities do ever open up the restrictions for unvaccinated nurses, she’ll be able to return. She fears others will be ineligible to practice due to a lack of hours. Although this work is a blessing, at times, Vandergugten also finds it painful. “It's beautiful that I'm able to work there, that I'm able to be back doing what I love to do and have done for 28 years,” she said. “It's just painful that I have to cross the border and leave our healthcare system, with it being so short of so many nurses.” Why bother? Vandergugten says that she received some pushback from others questioning why she would even fight something like this. She says that we still live in a country with a democratic judicial system so we should exercise our rights. “We actually still live in a democracy, you've got elected people, who are making laws and rulings that affect the people, the common people like us, and then we have a judicial system that holds the elected people accountable,” she said. “We need to continue to honor this process and use it because otherwise we are not in a democratic society and I'm not acting like a citizen of a democracy, rather, I'm acting like I'm a subservient part of a totalitarian government. Right? And those are some of those fundamental freedoms that people forget. We shouldn't be afraid to exercise that.”...

In a Nutshell

Tidbits – March 2024

The world’s only pro-life comedian? Nicholas De Santo is an Iranian-Italian who performs what he calls the “only pro-life stand-up act” which, he notes, also means it is “the world's funniest pro-life stand-up act.” Here’s a good bit from a set he did at London’s Backyard Comedy Club to a very receptive audience. “So, in the US the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade and that was a serious blow to casual dating and casual sex, but it was a major victory for babies who want to live so, that's half full. And it was a major victory for Catholic biology. Do you guys know Catholic biology? I was born in Italy; I went to Catholic school. According to Progressive biology, they say “my body, my choice” because according to Progressive biology a woman, at some points in her life, she has a second beating heart, an extra pair of kidneys, and four extra limbs. But according to Catholic biology, a woman throughout her life has only one brain, one heart, and so forth so. In other words, if you are a woman and you ever find a second beating heart in your body, it's not your body! And if you're a man and you ever find a second beating heart in your body, it's not your body…and also you are not a man.” On the point of being open-minded “My friend said that he opened his intellect as the sun opens the fans of a palm tree, opening for opening’s sake, opening infinitely for ever. But I said that I opened my intellect as I opened my mouth, in order to shut in again on something solid.” – G.K. Chesterton English: that weird and wonderful language I’ve wondered if dad jokes might be a particularly or at least especially English thing. As a mishmash of so many other languages, there’s so much potential for wordplay. Here are just a few puns and ponderables: Before was was was, was was is. The word queue is just a Q followed by four silent letters Jail and prison mean the same thing, yet jailer and prisoner are opposites You have fingertips, not toetips, and yet you can tiptoe, not tipfinger How can wise man and wise guy be antonyms? We have players in a recital, and reciters in a play. Cough, rough, dough, bough, and through should rhyme but don’t. While you can drink a drink you can’t eat an eat or food a food. Your nose can run and your feet can smell! Why English is so hard They say Albert Einstein didn’t speak in full sentences until he was five. Maybe he just didn’t have anything to say, or perhaps learning English is hard enough to challenge even a genius. Just consider one small part of the process that, at first glance, might seem easy: creating plurals. Dog becomes dogs; cat becomes cats – it’s as easy as adding an S, right? Not so fast! Below is a part of a poem, credited only to Anonymous, that tackles the problem of plurals. This is just one verse, but there are many more plural problems where this came from! If the plural of man is always called men, Why shouldn’t the plural of pan be called pen? If I speak of my foot and show you my feet, And I give you a boot, would a pair be called beet? If one is a tooth and a whole set are teeth, Why shouldn’t the plural of booth be called beeth? Why English is hard - part II A native English speaker knows never to speak of a “red massive bull.” Instead, he’d describe it as a “massive red bull” …but he wouldn’t know why. That’s because there is a rather precise ordering of adjectives that we all mostly know, even though we don’t know that we know. While it isn’t absolutely fixed, the order of adjectives most English folk agree to goes roughly like this: quantity, opinion, size, age, shape, color, origin, material. So, for example, we might ask for three Grade A eggs (quantity, opinion) but not Grade A three eggs. Or we’d talk about one hundred, enormous, old, round Englishmen (quantity, size, age, shape, origin) but not English, round, old, enormous, one hundred men. This knowledge is a gift to you as a native speaker, but it’s quite the challenge for any latecomer to our country. So, the next time you hear your Dutch grandmother, or maybe some newer immigrant, talk a little peculiarly, you’ll know why (and you’ll be sure to cut them some slack). How English is going to become easy While our native tongue does sometimes tie us up, the next generation can look forward to a much-simplified version. I had my own ideas for streamlining things that involved doing away with the letter C completely, substituting K where it was a hard sound and substituting S everywhere else. Kan’t we all agree that’d be niser? I took the idea to Merriam Webster (the dictionary lady) and she asked what I was going to do with the C in CH and I kouldn’t kome up with mukh of an answer for her. Anyways, Merriam did share with me her own simplification plans, giving me a peek at an upcoming edition of her dictionary. She’s managed to do what I could not – they’ve streamlined everything! She wasn’t sure exactly when this edition was coming out, but she knew it would be very soon. Here are a few entries from the first page: a noun Anything that identifies as the letter A Aaron noun Anything that identifies as Aaron ABBA noun Anything that identifies as ABBA asinine adjective Anything that identifies as being asinine Why today’s temperature? Those that hold to a millions-of-years-old earth also hold that the earth has been both vastly warmer and enormously cooler during that time. So why then do the global warming proponents among them think that the temperature we have now is the one we must maintain? This is an urgent question, as it is on the basis of today’s temperature being the right one that carbon taxes are being implemented, fossil fuels are being made more expensive, and consequently energy, and all that requires energy to produce (i.e., homes, food, heating, clothing, and, well, everything) more expensive as well. That’s even making things tough in Canada, but it’s that much worse for those around the world who have much less. Equal pay laws hurt those they are supposed to help There's both a theological and practical objection to "equal pay for equal work" laws, no matter how well-intentioned they might be. The practical objection is laid out by Milton Friedman in the quote below: "...the actual effect of requiring equal pay for equal work will be to harm women. If women's skills are higher than men's in a particular job and are recognized to be higher, the law does no good, because then they will be able to compete away and can get the same income. If their skills are less, for whatever reason...and you say the only way you are able to hire them is by paying the same wage, then you're denying them the only weapon they have to fight with. If the unwillingness of the men to hire them is because the men are sexist pigs... nonetheless you want to make it costly to them to exercise their prejudice. If you say to them you have to pay the same wage no matter whether you hire women or men then here's Mr. Sexist Pig: it doesn't cost him anything to hire men instead of women. However, if the women are free to compete and to say 'Well now, look, I'll offer my work for less,' then he can only hire men if he bears a cost. If the women are really good as a man, then he's paying a price for discrimination. And what you are doing, not intentionally but by misunderstanding, when you try to get equal pay for equal work laws is reducing to zero the cost imposed on people who are discriminating for irrelevant reasons. And I would like to see a cost imposed!" The theological objection is covered in the "Parable of the Workers in the Vineyard" (Matt. 20:1-16). While the parable is about grace, not economics, what it illustrates is true: “Don’t I have the right to do what I want with my own money? Or are you envious because I am generous?” If an employer wanted to pay the last worker more than the rest, but pays others what he agreed to, what business is the last worker’s wages to us? Or the first? Mo Willems’ sage advice Mo Willems, the author of the delightful Elephant and Piggie children’s book series, has some good advice for adults too. Here’s a trio: You only have one chance to make a twenty-third impression. Better to say, “I love you more than ever” than “I used to love you less.” Better to say, “You are one in a million” than “There are 7,960 others just like you out there.” Some truths are simply written on our hearts In a 1998 debate with atheist Peter Atkins in which Atkins touted science as the ultimate arbitrator of truth, William Lane Craig highlighted how there are fundamental truths that science can’t prove. Craig is a theistic evolutionist, but does well here. “I think that there are a good number of things that cannot be scientifically proven, but that we’re all rational to accept. Let me list five. “Logical and mathematical truths cannot be proven by science. Science presupposes logic and math so that to try to prove them by science would be arguing in a circle. “Metaphysical truths like, there are other minds than my own, or that the external world is real, or that the past was not created five minutes ago with the appearance of age are rational beliefs that cannot be scientifically proven. “Ethical beliefs about statements of value are not accessible by the scientific method. You can’t show by science that the Nazi scientists in the camps did anything evil as opposed to the scientists in Western democracies. “Aesthetic judgments cannot be accessed by the scientific method because the beautiful, like the good, cannot be scientifically proven. “And, most remarkably, would be science itself. Science cannot be justified by the scientific method, since it is permeated with unprovable assumptions.” Just one issue? “If you're pro-life, you realize abortion is murder. How can you say ‘it's one of many issues’ and vote for a pro-choice candidate? What policy of theirs could be so good that it's worth allowing millions of babies to be killed?” – Seamus Coughlin...

News

Saturday Selections – Mar. 9, 2024

Click on the titles below to go to the linked articles... College isn't for everyone (3 min) Christians listening to this Mike Rowe clip might hear echoes of Paul's message in 1 Cor. 12:12-31, about how the Body has many members. We're not all the same, so we shouldn't presume that university is for everyone. This is a clip from Rowe's free 20-minute mini-documentary called The Case for Trade School. Good news: the Earth is getting greener Even NASA is sharing this, though with a negative spin (they can't get away from their cataclysmic take). Millions of Americans are banned from pumping their own gas Under the pretense of "safety" millions of Americans are prohibited from pumping their own gas. But is it really so unsafe? No, as all of us who manage to pump our own gas without blowing ourselves up can attest. So then what's the real reason for the ban? It's a case of private interests using the levers of state power to fight off their competition. And that's far from unusual. When is a question better than an answer? John Stonestreet – riffing off of Christian apologist Greg Koukl – offers 6 simple, great questions that'll help you stand up for the truth. "Time to admit genes aren't the blueprints for life" Have you heard that your cellular DNA is the instruction sheet or blueprint for your cell and body? Well, now it seems that was a gross oversimplification. This article is complex too, but here's the key: scientists keep discovering the life is more and more complex than they'd previously thought. And evolution only makes sense if we are simple enough to have come about without design or direction. Equal pay for equal work laws hurt (4 min) Milton Friedman offers up a practical objection to "equal pay for equal work" laws, no matter how well-intentioned they might be. ...

Drama, Movie Reviews

Love’s Long Journey

Drama / Family 2005 / 88 minutes Rating: 7/10 Missie LaHaye isn’t quite the perfect wife – she’s an impossibly bad cook – but she is good with a gun, and in the Wild West that’s far more important. Our story begins with Missie and her husband Willie heading out west to start their own ranch, far from their family, and far from anyone they can count on. But even in the Wild West friends can be had – Willie hires a group of castoff ranch hands that no one else wants, and Missie befriends her Indian neighbor, creating a community out of this group of outsiders. And when Missie becomes pregnant, and bandits come looking for their savings, it is these friends that Missie and Willie will have to rely on. Caution The only caution regards the violence. One bad guy is shot and killed, but it isn't gory, and he does have an opportunity for redemption. Conclusion There are now nine other films in this series, and all are more or less based on a series of novels by Christian author Janette Oke. But in the two that precede this one – Love Comes Softly (2003) and Love’s Enduring Promise (2004) – both included an instance of misuse, or at the very least questionable use, of God’s name. Fortunately, Love's Long Journey can be enjoyed all on its own. See the trailer below. ...

Book Reviews, Graphic novels

Shackleton: Antarctic Odyssey

by Nick Bertozzi 2014 / 125 pages Sir Ernest Henry Shackleton was obsessed with reaching the South Pole. He tried to be the first to get there, se...

News

Lawyer learns she should double-check ChatGPT’s work

Internet, RPTV

Talking to teens: How does social media fit into a Christian worldview?

News

Saturday Selections – Mar. 2, 2024

Click on the titles below for the linked articles... How did we get the Bible? (12 min) Was the Bible authorized, or simply recognized, by the Churc...

Economics - Home Finances

Tiny home contentment

As dusk was settling in on a foggy November day in BC’s Bulkley Valley, I parked my car on the driveway next to the home of Matt and Montana Slaa. String lights were glowing around their home, which overlooked a rolling field, and also came equipped with a stunning view of two mountain ranges. It wasn’t hard to find the entrance, as there was only one door. Matt and Montana, along with their daughter Gabriella, welcomed me into their tiny home. I had to be careful where to put my shoes, as there was no boot room or entryway, and I had a hard time reaching the hanger for my coat as it was about 8’ high. But it only took a few seconds to feel an overwhelming sense of coziness and tranquility, radiated by the character of both the home and my hosts. In an age where it has become a momentous challenge for young men and women to get into the housing market, I visited with Matt and Montana to discover whether their outside-the-box solution of living in a tiny home with children is a practical solution that others may want to consider, or more of a romantic notion than a practical one. When dreams and practicality unite With marriage, God joins two people into one. For Matt and Montana, that happened in the summer of 2020. Montana grew up in Smithers, the daughter of a school teacher and an artist. Matt’s family moved into the area as his father is a pastor who accepted a call to serve in a local Reformed church. “I always wanted to live in a cabin,” shared Montana. “It was right from when I was young. That was my dream.” The happy couple as they move in... Matt was in university while they were dating, preparing to become a teacher. They wanted to get married, but how were they going to afford that? “I felt like I had to come with a financial plan for Montana and her dad,” Matt explained. The problem was that he still had to do more studies to get his education degree to become a teacher. That itself would come with a big cost, as they were planning to move away and study for a year in PEI. They proceeded to estimate the cost of building a tiny home, using the money they had saved. They had a year and a half to plan the project, using software from SketchUp to design it around the materials they collected. “We did it very cheaply,” explained Matt. “Wood and windows we collected from someone who was getting rid of them for free.” At this point in the conversation, Montana kindly offered me a cup of tea. Since a coffee table doesn’t fit in the room, she pulled out a tall block of wood, which they use not only as a coffee table but also a dinner table (when it is laid down on its side), and a stool for their daughter to stand on when helping with the dishes. I learned that the Slaas didn’t experience tiny home living prior to jumping in with both feet. Most of their inspiration came from online research and books, but they “just learned along the way.” At one point they decided “we've seen what we want to see. So we stopped looking at ideas, and worked with what we had liked, to come up with our own plan.” They purchased a 20’ trailer to go under the home for about $5,000, and built the home 22’ long and 10.5’ wide. That is about the maximum width to still be road legal if it was ever to be moved. Since both Matt and Montana are tall, they didn’t bother with a loft but kept the ceiling vaulted, with a curved ceiling over their bed. Their bed is raised, with a lot of storage underneath, and space too for Gabriella to enjoy some quiet time. Windows dominate two of the walls, to take in the views of fields and mountains. Freedom from debt and materialism Spending more time outside was part of the appeal for the couple. The small quarters force them to get outside for more space. A highlight of each morning involves Montana taking Gabriella out to the chickens, which currently live in a greenhouse for the winter, to collect the eggs. I asked them what else inspired them about tiny house living. For Matt, a big motivation was the freedom that comes from building his own place and living mortgage-free. “That is what came first.” But he was quick to see that it provided so much more, including spending a lot of time together. “So many people, when we talk about tiny homes are like, ‘we can never live that close.’ But we love it.” The couple acknowledged that they aren’t naturally bent towards a minimalist lifestyle. But this home forces them to do with less. “We always say you fill the space that you have,” Matt said. “So every few months, we have to do a purge through all our storage space.” “There's so many things that you don't really need because you have something that works,” added Montana. “Just the other night we were talking about how we don't have an electric mixer, even a handheld one. It's going to be another thing that we have to put somewhere. I have one whisk and I use it for everything. We make whipping cream all the time.” They originally didn’t think they needed a toaster either, but decided that toasting their bread over the fire wasn’t a sustainable option. “We just learned to really love the idea that we can do it with less,” said Matt. “And then there's the financial benefit of that too. We started to save a lot of money.” Matt contrasted this with the year they spent in PEI, where they lived in a larger home that was 600 or 800 square feet. “We saw an espresso machine for sale, it's like, ‘oh, you should get that.’ And we loved it. But there were so many things that were like, ‘oh, we should get that’ or ‘we should do that.’ Just because it was possible. Before you know it, we had spent quite a lot of money doing all these things. And we had to sell a lot of it when we left, so that we can fit back into this.” Building from scratch Tiny homes have become popular, and it isn’t hard to buy them new or used throughout the world. I asked Matt if he had experience building homes before tackling this project. He always loved creating things as he grew up, and did some woodworking. But for the most part, he figured it out as he went and thinks most people can do the same. “I'm convinced that given enough time, and commitment to learning, you can do it.” That even included the wiring, though not without getting shocked once. Northern BC gets cold over the winter, and the Slaas’ walls are framed only with 2x4 lumber. Yet the home stays plenty warm thanks to a tiny wood stove. The stove requires very small pieces of wood, so they use less than a cord of wood each year. (A cord is 4’ wide by 4’ tall by 8’ long – equivalent to a pickup truck load piled high.) This is about 20 percent of what most homes in the area use. And the stove plays an important role in keeping the home dry, which can be a challenge for a small space with a few people breathing, cooking, and showering in it. Because the fire burns out after about four hours, the Slaas sometimes wake up to a cool home (about 12 ºC). But it warms up quickly again when a new fire is lit in the morning. Matt showed me their bathroom, complete with a compostable toilet. A small bin of wood shavings paper sits next to the toilet, to assist with the composting. I don’t notice any smell (an improvement over many bathrooms with flush toilets). They also have an on-demand hot water system for their shower, but the water has to be collected in a bucket so the showers aren’t long. Their total cost to build the home was about $15,000. That includes the trailer under it, the wood stove, and the propane water heater, which were the more expensive components. Prioritizing family With another baby due in the new year, the couple has started building a second unit, with about the same dimensions, next to this home. The plan is to connect the two dwellings with an indoor walkway – a four foot-wide hallway which will also be their new main entrance/ boot room. The added space will make it much easier to put the children to bed without worrying about waking them up, and Matt and Montana are also looking forward to an eating area. The new quarters won’t be built on a trailer, but this new unit can still be loaded onto a trailer if it needs to move in the future. A little help in the kitchen can always be had. The Slaas are realistic that this setup is not going to be too long-term, because they hope to have a big family, the Lord willing. That is why they are building the addition as a separate structure. “The idea is that, very easily, we can pull it apart. And it will be its own tiny home unit,” Matt explained. “We could sell it, or Airbnb it, or rent,” added Montana. “But we are determined to make it work as long as we literally possibly can. And even after that, we are quite keen to explore other options,” shared Matt. “I've looked at yurts that are almost 1,000 square feet. And they're $40,000 to $50,000. Why not?” I asked Montana what it is like to be a mom in a tiny home. “There's definitely things that you just do differently,” she explained. “Like sometimes I think, oh, it'd be really nice if I could get up more easily without waking up in the morning. So most of the time, I would just stay in bed with her until she wakes up because I don't want to disturb her. I get up, I sneak out of bed and then sit here, in the dark, so that she can keep sleeping, and I quietly just read and do really quiet things…. “As soon as you have kids, it is not about you. It's a sacrifice that you make. And it's a really good one…. “But then we just do our morning routine and eat breakfast together and then we try to get out of the house and go outside and do the chickens in the morning and that breaks up the morning for Gabriella. And she does get a little bit cranky in the morning. I think sometimes she just gets kind of bored.” Gabriella doesn’t get the boatload of toys that many other children experience, even in homes with less means. She plays with kitchen utensils and the kindling for the fires, in much the same way that kids play when their parents are camping. “So we've been really trying to teach her that it's okay to play or read a book by herself.” Gabriella also ends up doing a lot with Montana. “She'll stand at the counter on the stool with me while I make dinner or do the dishes, she loves to help with the dishes. She wants to do what I'm doing. And I think that it's a big difference to having a house with more rooms.” Montana admits that some things just don’t work in the tiny home, including her passion for painting. That’s hard to do with a little one in close quarters, so Gabriella will often go up to her oma’s house for an afternoon, which is on the same property. Hospitality can also be a challenge. “Generally, if we have people over, it's for coffee. Maybe a cup of tea and chat for a couple hours,” explained Matt. It doesn’t work well to have people over for a meal unless they can eat outside, which is seasonal and weather-dependent. Saving to buy dirt A look inside, with bed in the back, play nook underneath, and the wood burning stove to the left. They are also transparent that this is not meant to be an alternative to getting into the real estate market, but a step towards it. “This allows us to dream of and hope for a future in buying real estate, because we do hope to have our own property, hopefully with a good bit of land, that we can farm and garden and have lots of animals,” Matt shared. Because they live on someone else’s property, tiny home living allows them to save a lot of money. Some time ago they put a note on Church Social (a congregational app) to see if anyone would be up for having them park their home on their property, and were amazed that four or five families were willing. Their monthly costs for utilities total about $100, so they are able to save $20,000-$30,000 a year towards buying their own land, which they hope to do in about five years. “This lifestyle allowed us to go to PEI to go to school for entire year, not even working, and to be loan free and to come out so much further ahead than we could have,” shared Matt. “So financially, it's a no-brainer.” “If we had a $400,000 home we'd be struggling to buy groceries. That doesn't sound at all better than where we're at now.” Matt later added that because of this arrangement “we've never had any financial stress whatsoever.” This is far less expensive than renting. Most Canadian communities, including Smithers, have seen rental rates skyrocket to between $1000 and $2000 per month for a modest unit with one or two bedrooms. Matt noted the contrast: “If you live in your tiny house for a year and a half, it's paid off.” He also respectfully disagrees with those who challenge them that a tiny home won’t increase in value. “If you build it yourself, you can almost always sell it for what you spent on it if you're smart with it. And likely more. And you have an option of renting it out.” Matt emphasized the importance of keeping the costs down by working with what is available rather than insisting on a particular design. “We're not set on what's on our walls or whatever we're going to put on our ceiling. Something might come up that will work good for us.” “The fact that we built it ourselves makes a big difference too. We built it while we were engaged and it's kind of part of our marriage story, our love story. I think if you just bought a tiny house for $100,000 you wouldn't be that attached to it or invested in wanting to stay in it.” Matt explained that because tiny homes are built on a trailer, they aren’t subject to the rules that governments have about building structures on a property. It is similar to an RV being parked on a property. Contentment personified As I left their home and drove to mine, one word was impressed on me: contentment. In 1 Timothy 6: 6-8 we read that: “godliness with contentment is great gain, for we brought nothing into the world, and we cannot take anything out of the world. But if we have food and clothing, with these we will be content.” I also can’t help but be convicted at how much effort we put into pursuing possessions, caring for them, storing them, and then getting rid of them. Instead of giving us contentment, they so often choke us like thorns among the wheat (Matt. 13:22). “In a sense, we feel very wealthy,” Matt reflected. “We have so much more than what so many people have. And we're so thankful for how the Lord has directed us along this path and taught us to love it.” Pictures are thanks to the Slaas. For bigger pictures, read this article as it is featured in the Jan/Feb 2024 issue....

News

Saturday Selections – Feb. 24, 2024

Click on the titles below for the linked articles... Shane & Shane with "You've already won" (7 min) Love this one – this is why we can take on that scary world out there without fear. Repetitive near the end, but it's a point we'd benefit from hearing on repeat. Court recognizes frozen IVF embryos as children The IVF "industry" has frozen hundreds of thousands of embryonic children and killed hundreds of thousands, and perhaps millions, more. So we can be thankful for a ruling this past week that had the University of Alabama hit the pause button on their IVF treatments. "Alabama’s IVF industry may be forced to make radical changes in its practices. The sole dissenting justice said as much in his opinion: 'the main opinion’s holding almost certainly ends the creation of frozen embryos through in vitro fertilization (‘IVF’) in Alabama.'" The case for phone-free schools (10-minute read) "...Students around the world became less likely to agree with items such as 'I feel like I belong at school,' and more likely to agree with items such as 'I feel lonely at school.' That's roughly when teens went from mostly using flip phones to mostly using smartphones. It's also when Instagram caught fire with girls and young women globally, following its acquisition by Facebook. If we must pick a date for the start of selfie culture and its poisonous levels of visual social comparison, I'd say it's 2012." Big Tech and the role of families and government When social media companies do damage to teens and won't self-police, is it time for even the strongest small-government proponents to look to the State to intervene? John Stonestreet makes the case. Farewell to a pro-life hero John Barros wore dents in the sidewalk of the abortion clinic he witnessed in front of. He saw horrors. But he also saved babies. As he told his fellow demonstrators "Isn’t it amazing what God will do if you just show up?” When tree rings go bad When you hold the marvel of a smartphone in your hand, or consider the complexities that were conquered to put a man on the moon, you might think much of Science and what scientists have been able to do. But there is a difference between that kind of repeatedly and immediately testable science and the very different and much more uncertain historical science that's being used to promote everything from the theory of evolution to the theory of cataclysmic global warming. There we are dealing with could-haves and maybes, but in adherents' arrogance these findings are too often delivered as discoveries and facts. And now it seems too-certain-by-half might be a thing with tree ring findings too, as John Robson details below. ...

News

BC says goodbye to phones in school

Last month, the Premier of British Columbia, David Eby, announced that schools must implement restrictions on cellphones. It would be up to local districts to decide how these restrictions would be enforced, but Eby stated that the expectation is to remove phones from the classroom. One exception would be cases where students with disabilities require them as part of an accommodation. Additionally, the government plans to launch two new services, one to help people remove explicit images of themselves from the internet, and the other to help victims pursue online predators for damages. Legislation is also planned to hold social media companies accountable for online harms. This means that the government could take legal action against major companies like Facebook for harms to individuals they may have had a role in. These changes come in the wake of the tragic suicide of Carson Cleland, a 12-year-old BC boy who fell victim to a sextortion scheme in October 2023. Sextortion is when an online predator tricks someone into sending nude images of themselves. Then the predator usually asks for money or for more explicit images. If the victim won’t comply then the predator will threaten to share these images with the victim’s friends or family. Parents must remain their children’s first line of protection, but the pervasiveness of social media, and its negative impact on children, has gotten to the point where even proponents for smaller government, like Christian commentator John Stonestreet, are calling on the State to enact legislation to address these issues....

Assorted

What makes a person instantly unattractive?

I asked this question on a Facebook page for secular women over 60 years of age: “What makes a person instantly unattractive?” I was intrigued by the breadth of answers, but not surprised at those at the top of the list. Within two days I received more than 150 answers. There were trends – answers could be grouped together in 12 different characteristics, so I compiled what I had and ordered them according to the number of answers that were received for each characteristic. Why undertake such a study? I did it for a couple of reasons: A desire to share Christ – In this data, I was hearing from mainly non-Christians. So what types of behavior might make us immediately repugnant to them? Let’s take a look at ourselves and determine whether we are acting in loving ways in order to share Christ. A desire for friendship – Many people are lonely, and some have difficulty building friendships. While it isn’t always our fault, it might be helpful to compare these unattractive traits and prayerfully analyze whether we might find room in ourselves for improvement. Being attractive Proverbs 16:21 says: “The wise of heart is called discerning, and sweetness of speech increases persuasiveness.” Here is a clue towards being a witness for our Lord. And Peter tells us in 1 Peter 3:15-16: “But in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect, having a good conscience, so that, when you are slandered, those who revile your good behavior in Christ may be put to shame.” Being unattractive Let’s take a look at the top twelve characteristics that make a person instantly unattractive, in the order of the number of votes received: Bad attitude Potty mouth/cursing Smoking Body odor/poor hygiene/dirty or unkempt clothes Bad breath Arrogant/entitled/rude Lying Boasting/bragging Complaining/ungrateful spirit Being unkind Bad manners Being bossy/loud/yelling To be honest, years ago it never occurred to me that people might dislike my loudness and yelling, or what I eventually discerned to be my bossiness. These are the top twelve characteristics that may make us instantly unattractive to other people. Where might we improve? Is it possible that some of these characteristics are making us less lovely to be around? Do we come across in any of these ways to our neighbors, coworkers, fellow church members, or prospective friends? How is your attitude when life isn’t going as you would prefer? Working on it Think about 1 Corinthians 13: “Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth.” This description of real love is a tall order, but it is not beyond what we can learn through the power of the Holy Spirit working in our lives. Without love, we are a noisy gong and a clanging cymbal; we are nothing. This chapter goes on to get rid of nearly half the list immediately: arrogance (6), boasting (8), unkindness (10), and being bossy (12). It pretty well covers bad attitudes (1), lying (7), and complaining (9) as well. Manners (11) are just a culturally agreed upon way to show respect and love for one another. For example, no one wants to watch someone’s food roll around inside his mouth, or be commanded without a please and thank-you. In regards to potty mouth/cursing (2) and hygiene (4), we could say that these come under the law of kindness as well. If we put others first instead of ourselves, we will consider the language that we use, and not make others uncomfortable. We will “do unto others as we would have them do unto us” by not causing others to have to put up with a stench in our presence. A smoker can at least be courteous around those who are sensitive to the odor of tobacco (3). And we can make the effort to clean our teeth and mouths as well as possible (5) to consider the sensitivities of others. Conclusion None of us enjoy being around people who exhibit unattractive characteristics. Now that we know what many other people find obnoxious, we can all take a look at ourselves to see how we can become lovelier....

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