ABC canceled Roseanne after Roseanne Barr posted a racist tweet about former President Obama’s aide Valerie Jarrett. (I will devote tomorrow’s Daily Article to this evolving story.) Shares of Walt Disney Co. declined after box office sales for Solo: A Star Wars Story came in below expectations.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped nearly 400 points yesterday as a political crisis in Italy affected global markets. Oil prices also fell after reports that Saudi Arabia may lead an effort to pump more crude into the market. And the Wall Street Journal warns that Europe’s new privacy rules are thwarting security researchers and police around the world.

What do these stories have in common? They illustrate the fact that we can neither control nor predict the future. I raise this rather obvious point because it is relevant to two of the most moving books I’ve read in a long time.

Two transformative books

I just finished Kate Bowler’s heartbreaking and hopeful Everything Happens for a Reason: And Other Lies I’ve Loved. Dr. Bowler is a graduate of Yale Divinity School and teaches religion at Duke Divinity School. Her new book is transparent, funny, and thoughtful. She is one of the most gifted writers I know.

She is also battling Stage IV cancer.

Continue reading Denison Forum – “Roseanne” cancellation shows we cannot predict the future →

The Golden State Warriors and Cleveland Cavaliers have met in the NBA Finals the last three years. Now they’ll meet again, after the Warriors defeated the Houston Rockets last night. The Cavaliers’ LeBron James will be playing in his eighth-straight championship series.

When the playoffs began, these were the teams favored to reach the finals. It seems fitting that they will compete once again for the title.

In other news, however, the world seems anything but fair.

Mike McCormick and Aaron Smeltzer of NBC affiliate WYFF in Greenville, South Carolina, were killed yesterday as Subtropical Storm Alberto swept ashore on Florida’s Panhandle. The storm spread as far as North Carolina, where a tree fell on their vehicle. Forecasters expect heavy rain and flooding today.

In other weather news, Ellicott City, a community of 66,000 in Maryland, is dealing with its second devastating flood in two years. One official spoke for many: “My heart is broken thinking about what people are going through here, and the people’s lives who were devastated two years ago and they rebuilt, and now they’re faced with the same daunting task again.”

And lava from Hawaii’s erupting Kilauea volcano has reached the Puna Geothermal Venture plant. Though officials were prepared, a rupture could set off an explosion, releasing hydrogen sulfide and other dangerous gases into the environment.

Today’s news reminds us that we are not in control of our world—and never were.

“You, O Lord, are God alone” Continue reading Denison Forum – Two television journalists killed as Alberto makes landfall →

On June 21, 2006, in the Nuristan Province of Afghanistan, Staff Sergeant Jared Monti’s sixteen-man patrol came under fire. One of his men was wounded and fell over a ridge into what the soldiers described as a “death zone.”

Despite an intense firefight, he tried three times to save the soldier. On his third try, Jared was killed. He was posthumously awarded America’s highest honor for heroism, the Medal of Honor.

Paul Monti started an organization in his son’s memory called Operation Flag for Vets. Their volunteers recently planted 57,000 flags at the Massachusetts National Cemetery.

Paul drives Jared’s pickup truck, the military decals still on it. He explained: “It’s got his DNA all over it. I love driving it because it reminds me of him, though I don’t need the truck to remind me of him. I think about him every hour of every day.”

A Nashville songwriter heard this story and turned it into a song that country singer Lee Brice recorded. “I Drive Your Truck” earned Song of the Year honors at the 2013 Country Music Awards. As of this morning, the YouTube video had more than twenty-eight million views. I urge you to watch it on this Memorial Day.

“The fate of unborn millions”

On August 27, 1776, George Washington addressed his soldiers before the Battle of Long Island. This was the first major battle after America declared her independence.

Gen. Washington stated: “The time is now near at hand which must probably determine whether Americans are to be freemen or slaves . . . The fate of unborn millions will now depend, under God, on the courage and conduct of this army. Our cruel and unrelenting enemy leaves us only the choice of brave resistance, or the most abject submission. We have, therefore, to resolve to conquer or die.”

We are now part of the “unborn millions” whose lives are indescribably different because of the soldiers who died to purchase our freedom and those like Jared Monti who died to preserve it.

“That’s the day the pool opens”

Washington, DC, will host America’s largest Memorial Day parade today. But we don’t have to be in our nation’s capital to participate in this day of national observance.

We can display an American flag, which is to be at half-staff until noon today. Military.com also suggests that we visit a local veterans’ cemetery and/or war memorial; take cookies, books, or movies to a nearby veterans’ hospital; watch a movie and learn about famous battles of the past; and ask our children to create a card or picture to be sent to a soldier serving overseas.

In addition, we can participate in the National Moment of Remembrance.

Two decades ago, children touring Washington, DC, were asked what Memorial Day means. They responded, “That’s the day the pool opens.” A Gallup poll showed that only 28 percent of Americans knew the true meaning of Memorial Day.

As a result, the National Moment of Remembrance was begun by presidential proclamation in the year 2000. All Americans are asked to pause at 3:00 pm, wherever we are, for one minute of silence. Major League Baseball, NASCAR, the Statue of Liberty, the Empire State Building, and the Liberty Bell are among today’s participants.

“Stones of remembrance”

Remembering our past is a biblical principle and priority.

The Jewish people still gather each Passover to remember the day they were liberated from Egyptian slavery (Exodus 12:21–28). After they crossed the flooded Jordan river, the people gathered twelve “stones of remembrance” from the river bed to build a “memorial forever” (Joshua 4:1–10). Jesus taught us to take the bread and cup of the Last Supper “in remembrance of me” (1 Corinthians 11:24–25).

Why is remembrance especially important in these days?

When we remember the valor of our past heroes, we are inspired to emulate their courage in serving our nation and her people today (cf. Hebrews 12:1). When we remember our unity in waging our war for independence and world wars for democracy, we are inspired to serve and sacrifice together for our good and God’s glory (cf. Acts 4:32).

When we remember the grief of Paul Monti and all whose loved ones we memorialize today, we are inspired to pray for them with compassion (cf. John 11:35). And when we remember the price Jesus paid for our salvation, we are inspired to love him with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength and to love our neighbor for whom he died (Mark 12:30–31).

In fact, such remembrance is so important that every day should be Memorial Day.

“Ever mindful what it cost”

“The Star-Spangled Banner” was not officially adopted as America’s national anthem until 1931. Before that, the song “Hail, Columbia!” served in this capacity for many events. Joseph Hopkinson (1770–1842), a lawyer and congressman, wrote it for the inauguration of George Washington. It is played today whenever the vice president enters an event.

The first stanza:

Hail, Columbia! happy land!
Hail, ye heroes, heav’n born band!
Who fought and bled in Freedom’s cause,
Who fought and bled in Freedom’s cause,
And when the storm of war was gone,
Enjoyed the peace your valor won.
Let independence be our boast,
Ever mindful what it cost,
Ever grateful for the prize,
Let its altar reach the skies.

May we be “ever mindful” what freedom cost, this day and every day.

Denison Forum

“Sadly, based on the tremendous anger and open hostility displayed in your most recent statement, I feel it is inappropriate, at this time, to have this long-planned meeting. Therefore, please let this letter serve to represent that the Singapore summit, for the good of both parties, but to the detriment of the world, will not take place.”

With these words, President Trump notified Kim Jong Un yesterday that he was canceling their June 12 summit in Singapore.

This decision followed a series of ominously worded statements from North Korea. Their senior envoy for US affairs had threatened to call off the summit and warned that their regime could “make the US taste an appalling tragedy it has neither experienced nor even imagined.” The envoy also described Vice President Pence as a “political dummy.”

The White House says back channels for discussions with North Korea are still open but states that the regime must first change its rhetoric.

A “challenging threat environment”

The threat of North Korea is just one of the challenges we face as a nation.

Continue reading Denison Forum – President Trump cancels North Korea summit →

There is a critical shortage of foster parents in America today. As one example, the city of Philadelphia has issued an “urgent” plea for more foster homes.

At the same time, the city has halted referrals to Catholic Social Services (CSS), an agency that has worked in the city for decades and oversees about one hundred foster homes. The Wall Street Journal explains the reason: the agency holds Catholic beliefs about same-sex marriage.

“Who is really intolerant here?”

CSS works with children regardless of gender, sexual orientation, or race. On religious grounds, however, they will not certify same-sex or unmarried couples as foster parents, referring them to another state-approved agency. More than two dozen such agencies exist.

CSS says no gay couples have ever sought their help for certification. Nor has anyone filed a complaint after being turned away.

Nonetheless, Philadelphia has denounced CSS as discriminatory and launched an investigation into their practices. Unless the group agrees to provide written certifications for same-sex foster parents, the city will terminate CSS’s contract in June.

One foster parent affected by the city’s decision has opened her home to more than 130 children over the last forty-six years. Philadelphia honored her as one of its foster parents of the year in 2015. But because she is certified through CSS, her home has been vacant since April.

The city claims that foster parents could simply work through another agency. However, switching agencies can be a bureaucratic challenge. In addition, CSS provides its foster families with holistic support, making social workers available for calls at any hour.

As the Journal notes, “Philadelphia is penalizing Catholic Social Services because its beliefs about marriage don’t mesh with progressive cultural values. To protect the city’s conscience, Philadelphia demands that Catholics violate their own. Who is really intolerant here?”

“No longer welcome in American culture”

These are troubling times for those of us who affirm biblical morality.

We’ve grown accustomed to being ridiculed in popular culture (a character on The Simpsons calling Christianity a “dopey religion” is just a recent example). We recognize that our affirmation of biblical marriage will continue to anger those who brand us “intolerant” and “homophobic.”

A perceptive Time article headlined, “Regular Christians Are No Longer Welcome in American Culture.” In his keynote address at the recent First Amendment Lunch in Washington, DC, Albert Mohler described the times in which we live:

“Religious freedom, freedom of speech, and the freedom of the press, along with the other rights recognized and respected within the Bill of Rights, are all threatened even as other rights are marginalized. Even more distressingly, a new regime of invented rights threatens to replace the rights that are clearly enumerated within the text of the Constitution.”

When the growing bias against biblical morality affects innocent children, the “culture wars” have moved to an especially troubling place.

Use our influence to advance biblical morality

How should we respond?

Engage in the political process. I’ve often stated my belief that God is calling more Christians into public service than are answering his call.

Pray for those in authority (1 Timothy 2:1–2). Ask God to guide them and to bring them to repentance where necessary. Encourage believers who are running for office and serving in political leadership, asking God to use their witness for his glory and our good.

Defend believers whose rights are under attack. For example, the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty brought a lawsuit on behalf of Catholic Social Services against the city of Philadelphia, claiming that the city has breached its contract with CSS and is violating the group’s right to religious liberty. Organizations such as Kelly Shackelford’s First Liberty are doing outstanding work in defending Christians whose faith is under legal assault.

“You can turn the world around”

If you’re wondering whether your faith and faithfulness can make a real difference in our culture, remember how God works. He uses a shepherd’s sling to slay a giant; he turns a boy’s lunch into a feast for thousands; he transforms Galilean fishermen into world-changing apostles.

His kingdom is like a mustard seed that becomes a tree so large “the birds of the air come and make nests in its branches” (Matthew 13:31–32).

Why does he do this?

Paul explained: “God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong; God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are, so that no human being might boast in the presence of God” (1 Corinthians 1:27–29).

Read again the last phrase: “so that no human being might boast in the presence of God.” The King of the universe most uses those who most glorify him. Self-dependence is spiritual suicide. Christ-dependence is spiritual victory.

Edmund Burke warned: “Nobody made a greater mistake than he who did nothing because he could only do a little.” By contrast, Thoreau asserted: “Live your beliefs and you can turn the world around.”

Will you “live your beliefs” today?

Denison Forum

There is good news and bad news in today’s news.

Let’s start with good news for those of us who believe life is sacred from conception to natural death: The Trump administration has announced its intention to propose new regulations regarding abortion. The ruling would prohibit Planned Parenthood and other abortion referral entities from receiving grant money through Title X, the government’s family planning program.

Title X funds cannot be used for abortion, but Planned Parenthood still receives more than $50 million from the program for other services. Under the new policy, clinics could not accept the money at all if they recommend or perform abortions.

I agree with Russell Moore, president of the Southern Baptist Convention’s Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission, who called the ruling “a responsible and commendable step toward our goal of totally separating taxpayer funds from Planned Parenthood and the abortion industry.”

In bad news, viral outbreaks in India and Africa are escalating. More students have been killed in schools this year than soldiers in combat zones. A sixteen-year-old has been charged with first-degree murder in the death of a Baltimore police officer.

Continue reading Denison Forum – Trump administration to propose funding cuts for abortion providers →

Brooke Fiske was seventeen weeks pregnant. Her then-boyfriend and the father of their child, Dr. Sikander Imran, was pressuring her to get an abortion, but she refused.

She told reporters what happened next: “When I was drinking my tea in the evening, I got to the bottom of the cup. There was a gritty substance in there, and when I looked at it, I could tell that it was a pill that had been ground up.”

Imran had placed the abortion-inducing drug in her tea. She began having contractions and was taken to the hospital, where she went into labor and aborted their child.

Imran was arrested and pled guilty to fetal homicide. He was sentenced to prison last Friday and has lost his medical license. He could also be deported to his native Pakistan.

The illogic of abortion

Their story is making headlines because Fiske asked the judge to give Imran a lighter sentence during his trial. “When something tragic happens, it’s really important to try to find a way to move forward and to use it for good,” she explained.

I believe their story should make news for a different reason as well.

Continue reading Denison Forum – Woman seeks leniency for man who laced her tea with abortion pills →

History was made Saturday in Great Britain. The day after another horrific shooting, this time in Santa Fe, Texas, it was good to watch good news. When Prince Harry and Meghan Markle were married before a watching world, we witnessed a fascinating mix of tradition and innovation.

There was much in the wedding to celebrate. But I would have added a vital element to the ceremony.

Celebrating inclusiveness

Seated directly opposite Queen Elizabeth II was Meghan Markle’s mother, Doria Ragland, a descendant of slaves on plantations in the American South. A black choir sang; a black cellist performed; a black minister preached. African-American women flew from America to join the procession in the streets and participate in history.

Denise Crawford, a court stenographer from Brooklyn, made my favorite observation of the day: “One of the children of slaves is marrying a royal whose forerunners sanctioned slavery; the lion is lying down with the lamb.” She added, “Today is a day that history will never forget.”

“There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female” in God’s eyes (Galatians 3:28). Nor should there be in ours.

Observing tradition

The couple’s decision to wed on a Saturday was unusual, as royal weddings usual occur on weekdays. The Queen was married on a Thursday; William and Kate were married on a Friday.

Continue reading Denison Forum – What I would have added to the royal wedding →

Today is Meghan Markle’s last day before she becomes royalty.

It was announced this morning that she has asked Prince Charles to walk her down the aisle in tomorrow’s wedding. She has already had her final dress fitting. (It is rumored to cost $135,000 and will be paid for by Prince Harry and his family.)

She booked her manicurist to come to Kensington Palace, ensuring her nails are ready for the moment when she and Harry exchange rings. And she has reportedly been doing regular workouts at home and jogging around the park to relieve stress.

In addition to preparing to marry Prince Harry, she’s also been preparing to join his family.

According to reports, Meghan has been required to master the silver service and learn how to handle seafood, drink soup, and so on. She has been taught to curtsy, something required when she meets Duchess Kate Middleton and every royal who ranks above her.

(The perfect curtsy, in case you were wondering, is “back straight, head up, with a bent front knee and your back leg behind you.”)

Continue reading Denison Forum – Who will walk Meghan Markle down the aisle? →

“I could not be more proud of the police officer and the way he responded to the situation. With shots ringing out through the hallways of the school, he charged toward the suspect and confronted him head on. Because of his heroic action, countless lives were saved.”

This is how Steve Howell Jr., police chief of Dixon, Illinois, described the actions of Mark Dallas, a school resource officer who stopped a shooting yesterday. The suspect, a nineteen-year-old former student named Matthew Milby, opened fire inside Dixon High School. The officer then confronted him near the school gym, where seniors were gathering for a graduation rehearsal.

The gunman ran out of the building after Dallas approached him. When the officer gave chase, the suspect fired several rounds at him. The officer returned fire at the gunman, who suffered non-life-threatening injuries and is now in custody.

Mark Dallas is truly a hero. However, real heroes don’t generally see themselves that way. They say they were just doing their job or doing what anyone would do. The fact that they believe they’re not heroes is one of the reasons they are.

Continue reading Denison Forum – “Heroic” officer thwarts mass shooting at Illinois school →

This week, the Supreme Court struck down a federal law that prohibits sports gambling. The landmark decision gives states the right to legalize betting on sports.

New Jersey plans to be the first state to offer legal wagering on the results of a game. Delaware, Mississippi, New York, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia are expected to follow suit.

My purpose today is not to debate the legalities of sports gambling. Rather, it is to focus on gambling in the context of biblical truth and God’s best for us.

The promise and power of gambling

According to the American Gaming Association, gambling in the US is a $240 billion industry employing 1.7 million people in forty states. Why is gambling so popular?

The former Director of Gaming Enforcement for the state of New Jersey told a conference that the success of Atlantic City was tied to how well it sold its “only products.” He explained:

“That product is not entertainment or recreation or leisure. It’s really adrenaline: a biological substance capable of producing excitement—highs generated usually by anticipation or expectation of a future event, especially when the outcome of that event is in doubt.”

Continue reading Denison Forum – Why gambling is so popular and so addictive →

History was made yesterday when Israel observed its seventieth anniversary as a nation and the United States officially moved its embassy to Jerusalem. However, the day was historic from a very different perspective as well.

Palestinians mark May 15 each year as “Nakba Day” (“Nakba” means “catastrophe”). This designation refers to the fact that hundreds of thousands of Palestinians fled their homes or were displaced in the 1948 War of Independence.

In the weeks leading to yesterday’s anniversary, Hamas called for massive demonstrations against Israel and the US. According to Israeli officials, some forty thousand Palestinians took part in “violent riots” yesterday at thirteen locations along the Gaza Strip security fence.

As protesters approached the border fence hurling stones and incendiary devices, Israeli soldiers responded with live ammunition and tear gas dispersed from drones.

The resulting death toll has risen this morning to sixty-one. More than 2,700 were injured in the deadliest violence since the 2014 Gaza war. A senior Hamas official said last night that protests would continue: “This blood will keep boiling until the occupation leaves forever.”

What my Palestinian tour guide experienced

Since I wrote yesterday from Israel’s point of view, today I will overview the conflict from a Palestinian perspective. (For a larger introduction to the region, its history, and its significance, I invite you to read my Israel and the Two-State Solution on our website.)

Continue reading Denison Forum – Explaining the conflict in Gaza as death toll rises to 61 →

On May 14, 1948, David Ben-Gurion gathered with 250 guests in the Tel Aviv Museum (known today as Independence Hall). Ben-Gurion was head of the World Zionist Organization, a movement dedicated to creating a homeland for the Jewish people in their historic Promised Land.

Behind him hung a portrait of Theodor Herzl, the founder of modern Zionism. At 4:00 p.m., Ben-Gurion banged his gavel. He then read a proclamation declaring the existence of the modern State of Israel.

I have stood several times in Independence Hall. Each time, I am moved again by the courage of the men and women who risked their lives and families to birth their nation.

In a move timed to coincide with this dramatic anniversary, the United States is relocating its embassy to Jerusalem at 4:00 p.m. (8:00 a.m. in Dallas) today. Palestinian marches against the move have already begun.

Four biblical themes that explain modern-day Israel

In Israel: A Concise History of a Nation Reborn, historian Daniel Gordis describes Israel as “a story of a homeless people that kept a dream alive for millennia, of a people’s redemption from the edge of the abyss, of a nation forging a future where none seemed possible.”

Continue reading Denison Forum – The 70th anniversary of Israel: “If you will it, it is no dream” →

President Trump announced yesterday that he will meet North Korea’s Kim Jong Un on June 12 in Singapore. His statement came after three Americans were released from more than a year in captivity and returned to the US.

The three were greeted early Thursday morning by President Trump, First Lady Melania Trump, Vice President Pence, and his wife, Karen Pence. What do we know about the men? How is their story relevant to us today?

What we know about the men

Kim Hak Song was apparently arrested as he was preparing to leave North Korea on May 6, 2017. He had been working at the Pyongyang University of Science and Technology (PUST) for several weeks. The Korean Central News Agency reported his arrest for “hostile acts” but offered no further details.

Tony Kim was also a teacher at PUST. The university’s chancellor stated that Kim was involved in extracurricular activities such as volunteering at an orphanage.

PUST is North Korea’s first private university. It is operated mostly by evangelical Christian schools and chiefly employs Christian staff. However, PUST representatives have said that the arrests of Tony Kim and Kim Hak Song were “not connected in any way” with the university’s work.

Continue reading Denison Forum – One man’s shocking experience inside North Korea →

I remember fondly my years with the Boy Scouts. Overnight campouts with my father. Lessons in outdoor survival and the care of nature. Building camaraderie in an environment uniquely suited to develop boys into men.

As a teenager, I became too involved in academics and other activities to continue in the Boy Scouts, but I have always admired the Eagle Scouts I met and consider their achievement to be enormously significant. The list of notable Eagle Scouts includes President Gerald Ford, astronaut Neil Armstrong (the first man on the moon), Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer, and businessman Sam Walton.

The Boy Scouts have been one of America’s great cultural institutions. Five years ago, things began to change.

What the BSA has done

From their inception in 1910, the Boy Scouts of America (BSA) excluded openly gay people from membership or leadership. The Supreme Court ruled in 2000 that they had a legal right to continue this position.

Then companies such as UPS, drug manufacturer Merck, and the United Way began opposing the organization’s policy, choosing to stop or postpone their financial support. A gay advocacy group gathered more than 1.2 million online signatures to protest the BSA’s position.

Continue reading Denison Forum – The Boy Scouts are dropping “Boy” from their name →

This headline caught my eye: “I was born with no arms and thought I was a hopeless mistake–and then this happened . . .”

Daniel Ritchie is a husband, a father of two, and a Christian speaker and writer. He is also a bit unusual in that he eats with his feet, drives with his feet, and brushes his teeth with his feet. As he explains, “I do everything with my feet because I was born without arms.”

People have not always been sympathetic. He has been called names. He remembers a rude kid at Disney World. And the time he and his parents were asked to leave a restaurant because of the way he has to eat.

Daniel writes that, as a teenager, “The words of others began to warp my perception of the value of my life. I felt like damaged goods, broken and unlovable. Isolation and darkness were beginning to sweep over me. I started to hate myself and other people.”

A shift in perspective changed everything

Then he found a verse in Scripture where David prayed to God, “I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works; my soul knows it very well” (Psalm 139:14).

Continue reading Denison Forum – Advice from a man without arms →

Today is VE Day, short for “Victory in Europe.” On this day in 1945, Great Britain and the United States celebrated their victory over Nazi Germany and its allies.

German troops throughout Europe laid down their arms. Surrender documents were signed in Berlin and eastern Germany.

But there was much more fighting still to come.

Six hundred Soviet soldiers died the next day in Silesia, a region now in southwest Poland, before the Germans fighting there finally surrendered. The war would continue in the Pacific until Imperial Japan surrendered on August 15 (now known as VJ Day).

Hundreds of battles preceded VE Day as well. We owe the men and women who fought this horrendous war an undying debt of gratitude. They won the victory, not in a single day or in a single battle, but in stages.

It is the same with our war against “the spiritual forces of evil” today (Ephesians 6:12).

No war is won in a day

For people who try to live by Scripture, these are frustrating days.

Continue reading Denison Forum – Celebrating VE Day and winning the spiritual war →

Hawaii’s Kilauea volcano is spewing lava more than three hundred feet into the air—higher than the Statue of Liberty. As the eruption proceeds, lava fountains could shoot even higher, reaching up to a thousand feet.

There is no indication how far the lava will spread or when it will stop. At least twenty-six homes were destroyed yesterday, forcing more than 1,700 residents to evacuate.

Those who left their homes are resolute, however.

One resident grew up in the area and has lived in her house for nine years. “The volcano and the lava—it’s always been a part of my life,” she said. “It’s devastating . . . but I’ve come to terms with it.”

Another woman told a reporter, “We’ll be fine. We’ll just rebuild. We’ll just start again.” Her daughter added, “This island is so crazy. You have death around every corner. You have flash floods, tsunamis. Now we have lava. But I love it. I wouldn’t change it for the world.”

A call to courage

Most of us cannot imagine choosing to live near the world’s most active volcano. We can shake our heads at the foolishness of such people.

Continue reading Denison Forum – What Hawaii volcano survivors can teach the world →

Frank and Sherri Pomeroy helped lead yesterday’s National Day of Prayer service in Washington, DC. The service came just two days before the six-month anniversary of the shooting that took the lives of twenty-six members of Pastor Pomeroy’s church, the First Baptist Church of Sutherland Springs, Texas.

Among the members killed was Pomeroy’s fourteen-year-old daughter, Annabelle.

The church plans to hold a memorial tomorrow to honor the victims and survivors. The congregation will then transition into a groundbreaking ceremony for its new sanctuary. It will be built next to the old church, which currently and forever will serve as a memorial for their lost loved ones.

The new church will be built of stone, symbolizing the strength of the congregation and community.

Their church’s remarkable ministry to their grieving people is just one example of Christians acting as salt and light (Matthew 5:13–16). There were many others yesterday. Those who organized the National Day of Prayer expected some forty thousand events to mark the day across the country.

How much does religion contribute to our economy?

President Trump signed an executive order yesterday creating the White House Faith and Opportunity Initiative. The order was signed in the Rose Garden, attended by his cabinet members and some two hundred religious representatives.

Previous administrations created similarly named offices to foster partnerships between religious organizations and the government. The Faith and Opportunity Initiative will provide policy recommendations on “more effective solutions to poverty” and inform the administration of “any failures of the executive branch to comply with religious liberty protections under law.”

Are you wondering whether religion offers tangible benefits worthy of such recognition?

A recent study by Georgetown University found that the faith sector contributes $1.2 trillion to the US economy. That’s more than the combined revenue of the top ten technology companies in the country, including Apple, Amazon, and Google.

Is religion a product of evolution?

Nonetheless, critics of religion abound.

For instance, an evolutionary biologist named Bret Weinstein is convinced that there is no such place as heaven. He asserts, however, that believing in heaven keeps our descendants in good standing in our religious community, setting our lineage up to continue. Thus, belief systems are “literally false and metaphorically true.”

In response, I would note that his argument offers no evidential basis as a truth claim. He is asserting a secular faith proposition as he denies the truthfulness of religious faith propositions.

A University of Connecticut anthropology professor named Dimitris Xygalatas offers a different skeptical view. He claims that early societies were so small, their members could rely on each other’s reputations to decide whom to trust. In this era, the ancient Greek gods could be worshiped even though they had no interest in people’s personal conduct.

As human societies grew larger, they needed faith in all-knowing, all-powerful gods who would punish moral transgressions. Thus, the evolution of the gods of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, among others.

However, his argument suffers a fatal historical flaw. Judaism began centuries before Greek mythology and has always centered on objective morality. Islam began among tribal cultures rather than large cities and cultures.

The professor also cites studies claiming that religious activity does not promote moral behavior. However, he makes no distinction between the various world religions and a personal, transformational relationship with Jesus Christ.

Who is on trial?

Despite yesterday’s White House initiative, I am seeing greater skepticism and opposition to religion in general and Christianity in particular than at any time in my life.

How should we respond? By remembering who is on trial.

When Paul stood before Festus and King Agrippa, he turned his personal peril into an opportunity for the gospel. After sharing his salvation story, he defended the gospel so effectively that the king cried, “In a short time would you persuade me to be a Christian?” (Acts 26:28).

The apostle responded, “Whether short or long, I would to God that not only you but also all who hear me this day might become such as I am—except for these chains” (v. 29). He knew that the person in danger was not himself but those before whom he was being tried.

The worst that could happen to him would send him eternally to paradise. The worst that could happen to them would send them eternally to hell.

It is the same with critics of our faith. Rather than becoming defensive, we should remember whose immortal soul is in peril. We can then explain and defend our faith with the confidence that the Holy Spirit is using us in ways we may not be able to measure on this side of heaven (Luke 12:12).

If you were a physician and your patient rejected your lifesaving diagnosis and treatment, you could let your critic die to prove you were right. Or you could respond to rejection with mercy, doing all you could to save your dying patient.

Which would you choose?

Denison Forum

A student at Plano West Senior High School is suspected of plotting to commit a mass shooting at Frisco’s Stonebriar Centre mall. Both cities are northern suburbs of Dallas. Like many who live in my area, I have been to Stonebriar many times.

Matin Azizi-Yarand, age seventeen, was taken into custody Tuesday and is being held in lieu of $3 million bail. If convicted, he faces up to life in prison.

Authorities say his ISIS-inspired attack was planned for Ramadan (which begins this year on May 15) to minimize the danger to Muslims. He was working to purchase weapons and tactical gear and had written a “Message to America” explaining his reasons for the attack.

He intended to kill a police officer at the mall, set stores on fire, and perhaps take hostages as well. His plot was discovered by FBI confidential sources and an undercover employee.

Terrorism is not just a story we read about from Syria or Afghanistan. It is a very real possibility anywhere in the world, including my neighborhood and yours. This is another reason America needs the National Day of Prayer we observe today.

Praying for “the next great move of God in America” Continue reading Denison Forum – Teen arrested for plotting mass shooting at Dallas area mall →