Monthly Archives: November 2016

BreakPoint

BreakPoint –  The Election is Coming: And So is the Day After

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Well, perhaps you’ve heard: there’s an election next week.

And I’ve never seen the nation or the Church more divided over politics. For the most part, evangelicals are angrily—and I do mean angrily—split over whether to vote for one of the two most disliked candidates in history, to vote third party, or whether to even vote at all.

The anxiety, the anger, and the vitriol are over the top. So with the election just a few days away, let’s take a breath and do a reality check.

First and foremost, the ultimate reality is this: Jesus Christ is risen from the dead. As I said recently on Focus on the Family with Jim Daly, this is not just a spiritual truth, it is the singular truth of the universe. The entire story of human history centers on Jesus’ resurrection from the dead. Yes, we have two horrible candidates for the presidency.

Yes, Supreme Court seats are at stake. Yes, the Church is coming under enormous and fiendish pressure from all sides. But none of that, not an iota, changes the fact that Christ is risen. To be a Christian in this world means to place our ultimate hope in that incontrovertible fact, not in the electoral process, in our nation, or in anything else.

And second, even so, you need to vote. And here’s why. God has placed you and me in this country, in our particular state, in our particular community at this particular time. And as my fellow Focus guest Carrie Gordon Earle said on that same broadcast, we—unlike many of our Christian brothers and sisters around the world—have the opportunity to vote, and to use that vote to do good.

I can’t and won’t tell you how to vote for President. But not showing up at the ballot box is not an option for a believer. Besides the presidential race, there are Senate and House seats up for grabs. Don’t forget state representatives. And of course ballot initiatives in your area.

Continue reading BreakPoint –  The Election is Coming: And So is the Day After →

Denison Forum

Denison Forum – THE SURPRISING WAY TO LOWER YOUR RISK OF DYING

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There’s very good news in today’s Cultural Commentary. But you’ll have to look beyond the news to find it.

Today’s headlines are not helpful to our quest for encouragement: Life expectancy for Americans is declining. Seventy-four percent of Americans say the country is on the wrong track, up nearly 50 percent from 2012. As the political season grinds to a conclusion, one woman quoted by The Washington Post spoke for many: “All of my friends and family are so ready for the country to move beyond this election. Me, too. I’d rather feel hopeful than hopeless.”

To feel hopeful on this All Saints Day, don’t look to your culture. Instead, look to your church. Here’s why: a Harvard professor has shown that religious attendance will increase your health, happiness, and sense of purpose in life.

Tyler VanderWeele is professor of epidemiology at the Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health. His research with Harvard colleagues indicates that attending religious services brings about better physical and mental health. Significantly better, in fact.

Adults who attend a religious service at least once a week have a much lower risk of dying over the next decade and a half. They are more optimistic and have lower rates of depression. Churchgoing protects against suicide and provides greater purpose in life. Attending religious services also increases the likelihood of a stable marriage and leads to greater charitable giving and civic engagement.

It’s especially noteworthy in our “spiritual but not religious” culture that general spirituality does not provide such benefits. As the author notes, “Research has shown that service attendance, rather than private spirituality or solitary practice, strongly predicts health. Something about communal religious participation appears to be essential” (his emphasis).

Continue reading Denison Forum – THE SURPRISING WAY TO LOWER YOUR RISK OF DYING →