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Book ReviewsDon’t let the pigeon stay up late!
by Mo Willems 2006, 34 pages Rating: Good/GREAT/Give My kids and I love this for two very different reasons. They love it because they get…
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NewsSaturday Selections – November 6, 2021
Safe spaces should be about being safe to share ideas, not being safe from ideas (5 min) CNN host Van Jones wouldn’t be called a conservative…
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Apologetics 101Wrong questions lead to wrong answers
Why don’t brilliant scientists see evidence of God’s design in Nature? Because they deliberately limit the questions they are willing to ask. ***** The conflict…
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Book ReviewsBell Mountain
by Lee Duigon 267 pages / 2010 Rating: GOOD/Great/Give Jack and Ellayne are two children on a mission from God: they are going to ring the…
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Remembrance DayOperation Manna
**** You can download or listen to the podcast version (6 minutes) here. It was a bad time to be Dutch. The winter of 1944-1945 was…
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AnimatedPeppa Pig: The balloon ride
Animated / Children’s 52 minutes/ 2014 Rating: 7/10 UPDATE: PEPPA HAS BOWED THE KNEE TO THE LGBT LOBBY Peppa Pig is a lovable little pig,…
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Adult biographiesOut of the depths
An Unforgettable WWII Story of Survival, Courage, and the Sinking of the USS Indianapolis 208 pages / 2016 by Edgar Harrel, USMC Rating: GOOD/Great/Give In 1944…
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In a NutshellTidbits – November 2021
Chesterton on whether love is blind The world tells us that we shouldn’t try to change those we love, that if we really love them…
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NewsSaturday Selections – October 30, 2021
Do intersex people prove there are more than two genders? We live in a broken world, and that means that sometimes people are born with…
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InternetCensorship isn’t Christians’ biggest social media problem
Not so long ago, I was having a conversation with someone about why I write so much about Christians’ concerning relationship with the social internet….
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FamilyOdd Squad: The movie
Children’s / Family 65 minutes / 2016 Rating: 7/10 Odd Squad is an organization founded to correct the “strange, the weird, and most especially the…
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MagazineSept/Oct 2021 issue
WHAT’S INSIDE: Why and how the Nicene Creed came to be / Improving the elders’ home visits / Big reads in small books / Are…
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NewsSaturday Selections – October 23, 2021
“Who’s on first?” gets a modern update At the risk of killing the joke, it’s worth a moment’s reflection on what makes this funny. In…
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Soup and BunsHow to approach a porcupine
Some Christians seem quite like porcupines. They are so bristly and sharp that people are reluctant to come close to them for fear of getting…
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TheologyWhat leads to true repentance? Godly vs. worldly sorrow
A child caught stealing a cookie may burst out in tears. But what is it that they are crying about? Is it for their sin?…
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News4 times as many Canadians died from abortion as Covid
Official estimates are that approximately 30,000 Canadians died from Covid over the last 18 months. To combat the illness, provincial governments locked down businesses for…
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FamilyThe Sword and the Rose
Family / Drama 1953 / 92 minutes Rating: 7/10 When I first found this film and read in the description that the hero was Mary…
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Graphic novelsLuther: the graphic novel
by Rich Melheim illustrated by Jonathan Koelsch 2016 / 72 pages Rating: Good/Great/GIFT I’ve reviewed other “comic biographies” and never enjoyed one more. Luther is scripted like…
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Science – GeneralWhy animals don’t get lost (and no, it’s not because they’re willing to ask for directions)
Since the advent of global positioning satellites, or at least since their availability for civilians, scientists have found many uses for these devices. One of…
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NewsSaturday Selections – October 16, 2021
When your children don’t respect you Here’s some advice you might not expect: if your 7-year-old doesn’t respect you, you need to repent. Euthanasia fallout…
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DocumentaryRaised on Porn: The New Sex Ed
Documentary 37 minutes / 2021 Rating: 8/10 This is not pleasant to watch, and for parents, it might be downright scary. But the story it…
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AssortedWhat does God’s “favorite” Bible verse tell us?
We all have our own favorite books, chapters, and verses in the Bible. I love the last 5 chapters of Job, where God answers Job…
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DocumentaryExpelled: No intelligence allowed
Documentary 95 min / 2008 Rating: 8/10 Comedian Ben Stein (who once also wrote speeches for Richard Nixon) is our guide in this film that…
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Adult biographiesSteal Away Home: Charles Spurgeon and Thomas Johnson
by Matt Carter and Aaron Ivey 290 pages / 2017 Rating: Good/GREAT/Give This is two biographies in one, about the little know relationship between the “Prince of Preachers”…
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NewsSaturday Selections – October 9, 2021
Who cares about the national debt? This is an American presentation, but the point syncs up with the Canadian situation too. Secular prof discovers that…
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TheologyDid Adam have enough time to name all the animals?
Some people argue that the activities assigned to Adam on the sixth day, described in Genesis 1:26-28 and Genesis 2:19-20, were too many for him…
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In a NutshellTidbits – October 2021
Evolving “facts” When a student visited his old university during a 20-year reunion he discovered that his old Evolutionary Science professor was still working there….
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DocumentaryOn Earth as it is in Heaven
Documentary 2020 / 112 minutes Rating: 8/10 This is a great, free introduction to Postmillennialism, a particular view about how God will bring about the…
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NewsSaturday Selections – October 2, 2021
Going after Facebook (7 min) The way Facebook uses “fact-checkers” makes them bad arbitrators of the truth. (You can find RP on MeWe here and Twitter…
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NewsChina takes a pro-life turn
This comes under the category of: “Come and see what God has done: He is awesome in His deeds…” (Ps. 66:5). A country notorious for forced sterilizations…
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DocumentaryUnlocking the Mystery of Life
Documentary 2003 / 67 minutes Rating 8/10 This documentary is a couple of decades old now, and it’s more important than ever. When it was released,…
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Christian educationUS homeschooling grows by a million
In 1973, there were as few as 13,000 children being homeschooled across the United States. From those small beginnings, the movement has grown over the…
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Adult fictionChasing Shadows
432 pages / 2021 by Lynn Austin Rating: GOOD/Great/Give Chasing Shadows takes place in WWII Holland and is a novel about choices and consequences. Miriam, a…
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NewsSaturday Selections – Sept 25, 2021
Man has no idea how life could come from non-life (4 min) This is Dr. James Tour pitching his course on how abiogenesis – life…
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DramaEnd of the Spear
Drama 2005 / 108 minutes Rating: 7/10 This review first appeared in the January 2006 issue How does a Christian group succeed in presenting a…
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AssortedGezellig: cozy, restful
When I think of my mom, an image that often comes to me is one of her sitting in her rocking chair, holding her cup of…
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DocumentaryTrans Mission: What’s the Rush to Reassign Gender?
Documentary 2021 / 52 minutes Rating: 7/10 Trans mission is a new, free documentary making the case against the “transitioning” of children – the chemical and…
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Adult biographiesDancing Under the Red Star
by Karl Tobien 368 pages / 2006 Rating: GOOD/Great/Give This is American Margaret Werner’s perspective on the USSR’s forced labor camps – the Gulag – that…
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NewsSaturday Selections – Sept 18, 2021
Worst pro-choice argument he’s ever seen Tim Barnett takes on a popular but bizarre pro-abortion argument involving tapeworms. Evolutionists show, once again, how imaginative they…
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TheologyShould we baptize infants? Resources that make the case
On the evening of Sept. 27, 2018, two Reformed pastors debated “Should we baptize infants as well as adults?” Pastor Jared Hiebert, of the Covenant…
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AnimatedBalto
Family /Animated 1995 / 78 minutes Rating: 7/10 In 1925, the city of Nome, Alaska was hit by an outbreak of diphtheria, a coughing sickness…
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EconomicsThe hidden tax of inflation
Prices are on the rise in many countries around the world. Price increases are measured by a statistic called inflation, which expresses the percent prices…
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Book ReviewsTikki Tikki Tembo
retold by Arlene Mosel 1968 / 48 pages Rating: Good/Great/GIFT My full first name is Jonathan, but long ago I learned there were benefits to…
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Book ReviewsThe Phantom Tollbooth
by Norton Juster 1961 / 255 pages Rating: GOOD/Great/Give What kind of book is suitable for study in the Fifth Grade, and in First-Year university English…
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NewsSaturday Selections – Sept 11, 2021
Focusing on income equality is envious and unjust God wants us to help the poor (Deut 15:7-11), but He also told us not to covet…
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TheologyHeaven-bound: What will it be like?
We’ve all been told there’s no such thing as a stupid question. And we all know that just isn’t so. That may be why in…
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DramaFreedom
Drama 2014 / 94 minutes Rating: 7/10 Like many a film “inspired by true events,” this isn’t good history but it is pretty decent cinema….
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ParentingA Tale of Two Fathers
“…even as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before Him. In love He…
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Science – Creation/EvolutionSquirrel wonders (and the failure of evolution to explain them)
One of the most abundant wild mammals living in moderate latitudes is the common squirrel. Squirrels thrive in almost every habitat, from tropical rainforest to…
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Book ReviewsElla’s big chance: a fairy tale retold
by Shirley Hughes 48 pages / 2003 Rating: Good/Great/GIFT This unique spin on the story of Cinderella is so good it improves on the original….
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NewsSaturday Selections – September 4, 2021
Why does it seem like the smartest people in the room aren’t Christian? (5 min) Michael Krugor, author of Surviving Religion 101, with some encouragement…
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DocumentaryBeyond the Gates of Splendor
Documentary 96 min; 2005 Rating: 7/10 In 1956 a team of five missionaries were killed by the Waodani tribesmen they were trying to befriend. The…
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DramaThe Jackie Robinson Story
Drama 1950 / 77 minutes Rating 7/10 This is the true story of the first black man to play Major League Baseball, made all the…
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Book ReviewsA Family Secret (2 books)
by Eric Heuvel 2009 / 64 pages Rating: Good/Great/GIFT It’s Queen’s Day in the Netherlands, and the celebrations include nationwide rummage sales. So young Jeroen…
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NewsO’Toole: doctors shouldn’t be forced to murder aging adults themselves, but need to make sure the murders get done
On Aug 6, the leader of Canada’s Conservative Party, Erin O’Toole, unveiled an election platform that promised conscience protection for medical professionals. The relevant section…
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Recent ArticlesWhen Steve wants to be called Sue
It had seemed a regular Monday morning before co-worker Steve arrived. Now his outfit had everyone buzzing: instead of his standard slacks/dress shirt combo, he’d…
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In a NutshellTidbits – August 2021
Now, that’s a Nicaean pun! A self-described “heretic,” famous for formerly being the lead singer of a popular Christian band, got some attention this summer…
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NewsSaturday Selections – August 28, 2021
God won’t give you more than you can handle? (6 min) Tim Barnett explains why the assertion that “God won’t give you more than you…
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MagazineJuly/Aug 2021 issue
WHAT’S INSIDE: When Steve wants to be called Sue / Conservative media fail their shibboleth / On mandatory vaccines / Does marriage impact IQ? /…
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ParentingChristian fathers are coaches
Have you ever felt frustrated in dealing with your children? Have you found yourself complaining to your spouse that your child “just doesn’t listen well”?…
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Media bias“Conservative” media fails the test
In the lead-up to the Olympics, one New Zealand athlete got more attention than his athletic ability warranted. What drew the media spotlight to him…
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Adult non-fictionIn the Beginning: Listening to Genesis 1 and 2
by Cornelis Van Dam 2021 / 371 pages Dr. C. Van Dam begins his latest book by explicitly laying out his presuppositions. He’s upfront about his…
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Church historyWhy and how the Nicene Creed came to be
The word “orthodoxy” comes from the Greek orthos which means right, true, or straight, and doxa which is praise, or opinion. Therefore, orthodoxy is having…
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HistoryResidential schools: what worldview is to blame?
We’ve seen at least ten Canadian churches burnt down and others damaged by fire since unmarked graves at two former residential schools became front page…
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NewsTexas declares that cutting off children’s body parts is child abuse
In August, Texas Governor Greg Abbott asked his Department of Family and Protective Services (DFPS) to review whether transgender surgeries on children could be classified…
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NewsSaturday Selections – August 21, 2021
A pro-life opportunity (2 min) The folks who brought us The Magical Birth Canal, No Uterus, No Say, and Modern Child Sacrifice is looking for funds to…
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Book ReviewsNathan Hale’s Hazardous Tales (3 books)
Nathan Hale’s Hazardous Tales are a growing series of fast-paced, thoroughly researched, historical graphic novels. The best of these making learning easy, with humor and history intermixed…
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Recent ArticlesNeither poverty nor riches? Making God our priority in prayer
People prefer to be rich rather than poor. It’s therefore striking that the Bible gives us a record of this prayer in Prov. 30:8: …give…
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Apologetics 101Surviving Religion 101: Letters to a Christian Student on Keeping the Faith in College
by Michael J. Kruger 2021 / 262 pages. Rating: GOOD/Great/Give From time to time I search online for “ex-Can RC.” I’m curious as to why people would…
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FamilyPride and Prejudice (2003)
Romance/Comedy 104 min / 2003 Rating: 8/10 When a book is adapted for the screen, readers want it to be as close to the book…
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Book excerptsYou will be offensive (and need to speak the truth anyway)
An excerpt from Rachel Jankovic’s “You Who? Why You Matter and How to Deal with It” **** Imagine you have always believed that it was…
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NewsSaturday Selections – Aug 14, 2021
Save the planet by not having kids. What would you say? God says that children are a blessing and when we start with that premise,…
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EconomicsWhat does a Reformed entrepreneur look like?
What is it about Reformed Christians that has so many wired to be entrepreneurs? Think about all the landscape professionals and nursery operators in Ontario,…
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Church historyHow and why the Apostles’ Creed came to be
The Apostles’ Creed, as we possess it today, was not the first formally adopted or crafted creed. That honor belongs to the Nicene Creed. However,…
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Book ReviewsAnansi and the Moss-Covered Rock
by Eric A. Kimmel 32 pages / 1988 Rating: GOOD/Great/Give Things begin with Anansi (uh·naan·see) the spider making quite the discovery: a strange moss-covered rock that…
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NewsSaturday Selections – Aug 7, 2021
The Genius of Flight (11 min) A close look at birds reveals the Genius behind the design of their feathers, heart, muscles, navigation system, and…
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HumorWhat is humor?
What is humor? It seems a simple question, with a very obvious answer: humor is whatever makes us laugh or smile. But then what of…
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NewsOn mandatory vaccines and “My body, my choice”
Don’t we live in strange times? Thousands of people are calling on governments all over the world to mandate vaccines for everyone twelve years old…
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Adult biographiesCome Back, Barbara
by C. John Miller & Barbara Miller Juliani 182 pages / 1997 Rating: GOOD/Great/Give This is the true story of a prodigal that came back. Barbara Miller,…
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NewsSaturday Selections – July 31, 2021
Unequal results aren’t proof of injustice The impartiality that God calls us to is that of equal treatment (Lev. 19:15, Deut 1:16-17, James 2:1-7) not…
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FamilyThe General
Comedy 80 min / 1927 RATING: 8/10 The General is equal parts comedy and action, with just a dash of romance thrown in as well….
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TheologyOn the Regulative Principle of Worship, and elements vs. circumstances
Many moons ago, in the days of Pine, Lynx and dial-up modems, there was an online discussion group known as Ref-net. I can’t say I…
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Adult biographiesThe Wright Brothers
by David McCullough 320 pages / 2015 Rating: Good/GREAT/Give Match an astonishing story with a superb storyteller and what more could we ask for? David…
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NewsSaturday Selections – July 24, 2021
Was Jesus copied from an Egyptian deity? (4 min) Christians are sometimes scared to investigate the outrageous claims against the Bible that are so prevalent…
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DramaAnd then there were none
Drama 1945 / 97 minutes Rating: 7/10 The film is based on the Agatha Christie mystery of the same name, one of just three English…
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In a NutshellTidbits – July 2021
Is it in the Bible? Many common phrases either have their origins in the Bible, or are direct quotes from the Bible. But some phrases…
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TheologyCriticizing like a Christian
“Any fool can criticize, condemn and complain – and most fools do” – Dale Carnegie ***** In his bestseller How to Win Friends and Influence…
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Adult non-fictionThe Pastor as Counselor: The Call for Soul Care
by David Powlison 2021 / 76 pages Some have difficulty applying adjectives like “kind” and “compassionate” to biblical counseling. But when I think of the…
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NewsSaturday Selections – July 17, 2021
A monarch’s journey (3 min) This butterfly accomplishes its fantastic journey in not simply a matter of months, but a matter of generations – they…
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Pro-life – AbortionCan a politician be personally, but not politically, pro-life?
Sometimes we’re limited to just two options. Two thousand years ago Jesus told us, “Whoever is not with me is against me” (Matt. 12:30a). But even when…
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Internet3 simple reasons we believe misinformation
Last week I came across a great article in the MIT Technology Review called, “Why Generation Z Falls for Online Misinformation.” The article highlights a…
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Pro-life – AbortionThe wonder of the womb
If you haven’t seen any of the YouTube videos of Dr. Kristin Collier talking about the unborn, you’ve missed out. This Christian physician and University…
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Adult non-fictionWhy Pro-life? Caring for the unborn and their mothers
by Randy Alcorn 172 pages / 2012 Randy Alcorn has written a much longer pro-life book called Pro-Life Answers to Pro-Choice Arguments, but while I…
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NewsSaturday Selections – July 10, 2021
Is Joe Biden Catholic? Joe Biden thinks he can be for the murder of 800,000 unborn children a year and still be a good Roman Catholic. While…
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TheologyEnvy dressed up as equality
A few weeks ago two of my daughters were fighting over a stuffed animal, both insisting it was theirs. I wanted to stop the fight…
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FamilyThe Fighting Prince of Donegal
Drama / Family 1966 / 110 minutes Rating: 7/10 Halfway through The Fighting Prince, I figured out why I was enjoying this so much, and why…
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HistoryResidential schools and the devastation of State-perpetrated family breakup
For the past several months, Canada has been convulsed by the heartbreaking rediscovery of hundreds—and likely thousands—of child graves outside residential schools where Indigenous children…
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Apologetics 101Tactics in defending your faith
In 2018, Stand to Reason‘s Tim Barnett teamed up with Reformed Perspective, traveling to churches across Canada to speak on “Tactics in Defending our Faith.” This…
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Adult biographiesRadiant: Fifty remarkable women in Church history
by Richard M. Hannula 330 pages / 2015 Rating: GOOD/Great/Give I found this book very interesting and met a lot of fascinating women. Professor Eta Linnemann…
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NewsSaturday Selections – July 3, 2021
Insects flying in slow motion (6 min) Kids will enjoy this cool video of 11 different bugs taking off, some elegantly, others not so much:…