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How Should I Respond to Combative People on Social Media?

In this video, recorded at a Fearless Faith Seminar, J. Warner Wallace helps answer an audience question: How should I respond to the growing hostility and polarization I see on social media? Specifically, how should I interact when people are hostile to my Christian identity online?

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There is power in prayer. We see it every day. Let us join with you in tapping into the Power of God. Click here to make a request.

Check out our upcoming ministry programs for young adults and families. Please click here.

Our programs are like an immersion into a new language – the language of living in Jesus. The goal is fluency in the language of relationships. Programs share a sequential vision, building an understanding of relationships and family culture. The foundation is an encounter with Jesus. This encounter is the means for both insight and vision. Encountering Jesus leads a radical change in living and relationships.

Heroes Semester is a 10-week residential, “family style” living experience like no other! | Participants ages 18-26 come with one purpose – to go deeper with the Lord. Learn more about our programs here.

Strengthening & Restoring Family Relationships — Train to Reign Program | Family is the most vital relationship and the one under the most pressure and attack. Come strengthen your family in a strong relationship with God. Learn more here.

If you would like to donate to the Christian Training Center, please click here.

Michael WilsonNovember 15, 2019CTCI Life, Culture Issues, VideoJ. Warner Wallace, Jesus, Social MediaLeave a comment

Where Does Kanye West Reference the Bible in “Jesus Is King”?

Bethany Pyle is the editor for BibleStudyTools.com and the design editor for Crosscards.com. She has a bachelor’s degree in writing from Christopher Newport University, a background in journalism and a passion for telling good stories.

The literal definition of repentance is to change direction, to do a 180. From the first words of Kanye West’s newest album “Jesus is King,” listeners can tell that the rapper has taken a definite 180 from his old work. He’s traded cursing and foul imagery for praises to God and Biblical references.

The message of his songs and albums is, as with all works of art, up to the listener. But where exactly does West reference the Bible, and what do those references mean? This article will dive in to some of the verses, hymns and Scriptural ideas of “Jesus is King,” without analyzing the message of the songs too much. The following links will give you more information about West’s faith or how his album is being received by Christians. But for now, let’s take a look at the verses and beliefs that inspired these songs.

Read the article here: Where Does Kanye West Reference the Bible in “Jesus Is King”? – Topical Studies

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Our Mission & Vision

There is power in prayer. We see it every day. Let us join with you in tapping into the Power of God. Click here to make a request.

Our Vision is to see generations of leaders victoriously modeling Jesus in their families and communities.

Our Mission is training believers to live a victorious life through biblical Truth, experiential discipleship, and family relationships.

Values

Life is:

1) Relationships

2) Personal Holiness

3) Biblical

4) Authentic

5) Relevant

Learn more here.

Michael WilsonNovember 10, 2019Bible Theology, CTCI Life, Culture IssuesJesus, Kanye West, Teachings1 Comment

Kanye West Releases Album ‘Jesus Is King’ Packed With Bible Verses and Praises to God

On Friday, to the delight of his fans and followers, Kanye West finally released his much-anticipated gospel album ‘Jesus Is King,’ after weeks of back and forth with the release date.‘That’s the Devil’s Music’: Kanye West Almost Quit Rapping After Coming to Christ

“To my fans. Thank you for being loyal & patient. We are specifically fixing mixes on ‘Everything We Need’ ‘Follow God’ & ‘Water.’

We not going to sleep until this album is out,” he wrote on Twitter early Friday morning.

Read the article here: Kanye West Releases Album ‘Jesus Is King’ Packed With Bible Verses and Praises to God – Faithwire

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Heroes Semester

There is power in prayer. We see it every day. Let us join with you in tapping into the Power of God. Click here to make a request.

CTCI’s Heroes Semester is a 10-week semester program focused on personal and spiritual development for young adults. While immersed in a way of life that emphasizes the Word of God, prayer, relationships, family, servanthood and personal discipline, you will be renewed, trained, and challenged to walk with God in a deeper way. Learn more here.

CTCI’s Heroes Semester is a residential, “family style” living experience like no other! Emphasizing the biblical truths of relationships, family, servanthood, and personal discipline, young men and women are challenged to live a faith that reaches beyond the four walls of the church and affects everyday life.

“The Heroes Semester is taking place, and all that I can say is that the Lord is showing me Himself! Christ is mesmerizing me; He’s opening my heart to fall more in love with Him!”

CB -Tennessee (Participant)

Participants ages 18-26 come from all walks of life with one purpose – to go deeper with the Lord and seek Him for their lives and future. Each semester is filled with teaching, activities, and experiences designed to take you on the mountaintops with the Lord as well as train you to live a disciplined life in Christ in the plains and valleys.

Participants spend their days in study sessions, work duties, or on the unpredictable outdoor adventure. The evenings have a natural rhythm of group Bible studies, prayer & intercession, and recreational activities. Everyone pitches in with the usual chores that come with living life together. Electronics take a back seat in daily life, unplugging from usual habits helps to make space for new ones. Each day ends with a note of gratitude and lessons learned.

If you are ready to go deeper in relationships, devotion, and surrender to the Lord, then CTCI’s Heroes Semester could be the most purposeful 10 weeks of your life!

Learn more here.

Michael WilsonOctober 28, 2019CTCI Life, Culture IssuesJesus, Kanye West3 Comments

In Jesus, Alone: Most Believers Say They Don’t Need Other ……

Over the past decade, more believers are heeding the scriptural call to “grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior”—but they’re often doing discipleship on their own.

A wide-ranging survey by LifeWay Research found that while US Christians had made improvements in areas like reading their Bibles daily, prioritizing obedience to Jesus, and avoiding temptation, their connections with fellow disciples have weakened.

Hispanic and African American churchgoers may represent an exception to the overall trend, showing even greater progress in discipleship while deepening community ties.

The results came from this year’s 2019 Discipleship Pathway Assessment, which tracks eight measures of belief and practice, and can be compared to a similar study LifeWay conducted in 2011.

Among Protestants who attend church at least once each month:

Most believe that an essential part of following Christ is saying “no” to the self and living to glorify God. This year, 66 percent of believers agreed with the statement, “A Christian must learn to deny himself or herself to serve Christ.” Slightly fewer (64%) churchgoers prioritized obedience when LifeWay studied Christian discipleship in 2011.
They are spending more time in the Word. In 2019, 59 percent of churchgoers read the Bible every day or a few times each week, compared with 45 percent in 2011.
Over three-quarters of respondents agreed with the statement, “I try to avoid situations in which I might be tempted to think or do immoral things,” up from 73 percent who agreed in 2011.

Read the article here: In Christ, Alone: Most Believers Say They Don’t Need Other…… | News & Reporting | Christianity Today

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Train to Reign

There is power in prayer. We see it every day. Let us join with you in tapping into the Power of God. Click here to make a request.

Family is the most vital relationship and the one under the most pressure and attack.

Throughout the year, we welcome individuals, couples, and families from around the world who are seeking to strengthen their relationships – with God, within their own families, and with their fellow believers. Every session, individuals, couples, and families from around the world are transformed, healed, and renewed. Barriers to forgiveness, personal growth, and hope are overcome in a supportive and intimate environment. Join us in this safe and holy place where painful and complex situations can be worked through – a place of hope and healing.

Learn more here.

Teaching topics include:

The Plan of God for Family
Duty vs Intimacy
Fatherhood
Communication
Covering
Resolving Conflict
Defeating Parenting Fears
Discipline
…and more!

Michael WilsonOctober 22, 2019Bible Theology, CTCI Life, Culture Issuesdiscipleship, Jesus, TeachingsLeave a comment

According to a recent survey, In U.S., Decline of Christianity Continues at Rapid Pace

We need to pray, preach the good news of Jesus and make disciples. We need to pick up the pace.

The religious landscape of the United States continues to change at a rapid clip. In Pew Research Center telephone surveys conducted in 2018 and 2019, 65% of American adults describe themselves as Christians when asked about their religion, down 12 percentage points over the past decade. Meanwhile, the religiously unaffiliated share of the population, consisting of people who describe their religious identity as atheist, agnostic or “nothing in particular,” now stands at 26%, up from 17% in 2009.

Michael WilsonOctober 20, 2019CTCI Life, Culture IssuesChristianLeave a comment

What does it mean to be “Battling the Culture”?

Here is some insight from Michael Coughlin. Michael lives near Columbus, OH, is a member of Oikos Community Church and leads local outreaches to glorify our Lord and reach the lost with the gospel.

Christians are in a constant battle with the culture because Christianity is opposed to the culture. A better way of saying it would be that the culture, or world, is opposed to Christ…and thus, Christianity. Many Christians seem to be particularly gifted or motivated toward ending or at least fighting certain evils we face living in a world cursed by sin. I do not question the righteous motivation in someone’s heart who believes that we ought to affect the world around us for good. Even if I disagree with the feasibility of their desired outcome, I commend a brother or sister who desires to fight injustice and help those who have been truly victimized by evildoers.

With those commendations in mind, here are a few warnings I offer in Christian charity to those who feel called to be on these important battlefronts. I have noticed common symptoms that a Christian who is singularly focused on a particular evil in the world sometimes exhibits. I am speaking of things where there isn’t a clear call in scripture for every Christian to enter this battle (unlike evangelism which is a clear command to all). These are pitfalls or behaviors one should be careful to avoid in order to remain faithful and effective.

Read the rest of the article: When Battling the Culture » Things Above Us

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Cal’s Creative Corner

We are honored that Cal Huge is selling his photos to exclusively benefit the Christian Training Center International.

Take a visit to his Etsy store. A portion of the proceeds of each sale goes to the Christian Training Center International. The listings are only a small portion of the photos available and more will be added each week. If you have a specific request for scripture on any print or a particular subject that isn’t shown, email Cal through Etsy.

Learn more here.

Michael WilsonOctober 10, 2019Bible Theology, CTCI Life, Culture IssuesCulture, Teachings1 Comment

Slave trade is a worldwide problem and children are the worst victims.

This is horrible. Please pray for Asia.

A leading organization that spreads the gospel throughout Asia doesn’t have to look far to rescue children from a dismal life.

Slavery did not end when President Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation, says Daniel Yohannan of Gospel for Asia. It is happening all over the world, he says, even to children.

“Especially in places like Asia and Africa it’s more prevalent,” he advises, “and it’s almost kind of a normal thing to have especially children who are working in factories and who basically are slaves.”

There are an estimated 218 million slaves worldwide, many of them children, that would represent the population of a large country.

Source: Slave trade worldwide and children are worst victims

Michael WilsonOctober 5, 2019CTCI Life, Culture IssuesAsia, Jesus, Slavery1 Comment

Should Christians Abandon Social Media?

This is thought provoking.

With all of the recent news of various social media platforms purposefully hiding and censoring Christian and politically conservative content in the name of “diversity” and “tolerance,” many people have abandoned Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and other popular social media outlets in protest.

While I have been tempted to do the same, because of their relative popularity (compared to more traditional communication media), I do believe that if we abandon these platforms, we will not only limit our audience but encourage the behavior of limiting reasonable content to and stifling intellectual discussion among the users of these platforms. The new generation of consumers prefers social media for their news, media consumption and discussion of various issues, so it cannot be abandoned by those who hold and can defend the truth with gentleness and respect.

Michael WilsonOctober 4, 2019CTCI Life, Culture IssuesJesus, Social Media3 Comments

Christians Should Be More Like Jesus, Who Was Loved By Everybody And Never Divisive | Satire from The Babylon Bee

Christians these days are just the worst. They are always taking stances on divisive issues like abortion and marriage and constantly have a lot of people angry at them. This is so unlike the person they’re supposed to be emulating — Jesus, a cool dude whom everyone loved.

Now, I’ve never read the Bible (I think Jesus would agree not to waste time on really old books when there are much lighter, more uplifting alternatives available on Audible), but my impression is that he was this really nice guy who went around giving everybody great self-esteem, telling people, “Hey, keep doing whatever you’re doing. You’re great and are going to Heaven.” That’s why everyone loves Jesus: because he told people they’re all great the way they are and don’t need to change. I don’t know where Christians got this idea that people need to sacrifice their old way of living and follow some exclusive Savior to get to Heaven, but it doesn’t sound very Jesus-like to me.

In fact, if Jesus were around today, I’ll bet he’d tell Christians to “chill out” on all their narrow morality that upsets people and accept whatever people feel like doing because it’s all good. The only thing he might challenge people to change is to try more socialism. The main thing to keep in mind is that if you’re making people upset, you’re not being like Jesus, who only made everyone happy.

Whatever happened to him? I assume he got a book deal and ended up on whatever was the ancient equivalent of Oprah.

Source: Christians Should Be More Like Jesus, Who Was Loved By Everybody And Never Divisive | The Babylon Bee

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Train to Reign

Family is the most vital relationship and the one under the most pressure and attack.

Learn more here.

Teaching topics include:

The Plan of God for Family
Duty vs Intimacy
Fatherhood
Communication
Covering
Resolving Conflict
Defeating Parenting Fears
Discipline
…and more!

Michael WilsonAugust 29, 2019CTCI Life, Culture IssuesJesus1 Comment

What are the biblical principles of covering? How can we sing the Lord’s song in a strange land?

Susan Pons teaches on the biblical principles of covering.

Michael WilsonAugust 29, 2019Bible Theology, CTCI Life, Culture IssuesJesus, Spiritual Covering, Susan Pons, Teachings2 Comments

Is a Fetal Human Being a Person?

Amy Hall of Stand to Reason explains why all humans are also persons. For more information, visit str.org.

Why we believe in life?

We believe that LIFE is sacred, both in the womb and outside the womb. There are numerous teachings in Scripture that make it abundantly clear what God’s view of life is. Jeremiah 1:5 tells us that God knows us before He forms us in the womb.

Michael WilsonAugust 27, 2019CTCI Life, Culture IssuesCulture, lifeLeave a comment

Why religious liberty is the most pressing issue facing our world today.

Here is some great insight from Joseph D’Souza.

Hundreds of foreign officials, human rights activists and NGO leaders recently gathered in Washington to discuss what many of us believe is the most pressing issue in the world today: religious liberty.

It’s the second annual Ministerial to Advance Religious Freedom, an initiative the State Department launched last year to address the growing threat against religious liberty across the world. The ministerial is a timely effort: more than seven in 10 people in the world live in countries with high restrictions or hostilities against religion.

Having been an advocate for religious liberty for decades, I am encouraged the State Department is prioritizing defending this most basic human right. The ministerial is an opportunity to recalibrate bilateral relations between nations, which for too long have been driven by economic interests at the expense of human rights.

For example, despite its long and well-documented history of human rights abuses and curtailment of religious freedom, Saudi Arabia still remains in America’s good graces. I have written before about how the Saudi Kingdom has provided millions of dollars to fund mosques overseas – including in the West – while at the same time denying religious liberty to Christians, Hindus, Buddhists and other faith groups who live in the country.

Sexuality and Gender: Findings from the Biological, Psychological, and Social Sciences

This study, conducted by world renowned Johns Hopkins University scientists Dr. Lawrence S. Mayer and Dr. Paul R. McHugh, is a meta-analysis of data from over 200 peer-reviewed studies regarding “sexual orientation” and “gender identity.” It was published in the fall 2016 edition of The New Atlantis journal and is, far and away, the most objective, exhaustive and comprehensive study on the topic to date.

The research established, among other things:

- “The understanding of sexual orientation as an innate, biologically fixed property of human beings — the idea that people are ‘born that way’ — is not supported by scientific evidence.”
- “Sexual orientation” in adolescents is “fluid over the life course for some people, with one study estimating that as many as 80 percent of male adolescents who report same-sex attractions no longer do so as adults.”
- “Compared to heterosexuals, non-heterosexuals are about two to three times as likely to have experienced childhood sexual abuse.”
- “Gay”-identified people are “at an elevated risk for a variety of adverse health and mental health outcomes.”
- “Gay”-identified people experience “nearly 2.5 times the risk of suicide.”
- “The hypothesis that gender identity is an innate, fixed property of human beings that is independent of biological sex — that a person might be ‘a man trapped in a woman’s body’ or ‘a woman trapped in a man’s body’ — is not supported by scientific evidence.”
- “Studies comparing the brain structures of transgender and non-transgender individuals … do not provide any evidence for a neurobiological basis for cross-gender identification.”
- “[S]ex-reassigned individuals [are] about five times more likely to attempt suicide and about 19 times more likely to die by suicide.”
- “[T]he rate of lifetime suicide attempts across all ages of transgender individuals is estimated at 41 percent, compared to under 5 percent in the overall U.S. population.”
- “Only a minority of children who experience cross-gender identification will continue to do so into adolescence or adulthood.”

Lest you buy the left wing talking point that so-called “homophobia” leads to high rates of suicide and other devastating consequences of the “LGBT” lifestyle, a recent study from “gay”-affirming Sweden dispels this myth. The research, published in the May issue of the European Journal of Epidemiology, found that people entering into a “gay marriage” were, as mirrored above, nearly three times as likely to commit suicide than their heterosexual counterparts.

“Even in a country with a comparatively tolerant climate regarding homosexuality such as Sweden,” observed the researchers, “same-sex married individuals evidence a higher risk for suicide than other married individuals.”

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)

Meanwhile, the CDC, no bastion of conservatism, just released this month a report establishing and detailing the devastating effects of “LGBT” identity and behaviors on teens “grades 9-12.”

Writing at WND, child advocate Linda Harvey expressed frustration that, despite its solid conclusions, the CDC yet insists upon using such propagandist terms as “sexual minorities” to describe same-sex-attracted teens. She notes that “these adolescents no more qualify as ‘minorities’ than kids who eat junk food,” and cuts through the smokescreen to summarize the report’s findings:

“Self-labeled homosexual and bisexual teens were twice as likely as heterosexual teens to have been victims of sexual or physical dating violence, to be regular cigarette smokers, to have tried marijuana before age 13, to ever have used cocaine, hallucinogenic drugs, ecstasy, taken prescription drugs without a doctor’s prescription, or to have felt sad or hopeless.

“They were more likely to be current marijuana users than heterosexual students, more likely to drink alcohol, and over four times as likely to have used methamphetamines or heroin.

“They were four times as likely to actually attempt suicide.

“Homosexual and bisexual students were about 25 percent more likely to have had sexual intercourse, and more likely to be currently sexually active and to have had four or more partners.

“They are more than twice as likely to have had sexual intercourse before age 13.” Can we just have a heart and ask: with whom? Were these adult ‘partners’ (aka molesters)?

It’s notable here that, in past studies, researchers with the CDC have indeed discovered that “gay” men are “at least three times more likely to report CSA (childhood sexual abuse),” while the left-leaning Archives of Sexual Behavior similarly determined in a 2001 study that nearly half of all “gay”-identified men were, as children, molested by a homosexual predator: “46 percent of homosexual men and 22 percent of homosexual women reported having been molested by a person of the same gender. This contrasts to only 7 percent of heterosexual men and 1 percent of heterosexual women reporting having been molested by a person of the same gender.”

Considering the above non-biased, replicated scientific facts, it’s little wonder that an earlier study in the International Journal of Epidemiology (IJE) determined the “life expectancy at age 20 years for gay and bisexual men is 8 to 20 years less than for all men.”

You think me callous. You think I hate. I’m not and I do not. Truth is hate to those who hate truth. I love self-identified “LGBT” individuals with a love beyond my own power to summon. I love them because Christ first loved me. I love them because, like them, I am a sinner in need of a Savior. They are under deception. The enemy of man is the father of lies, and he prowls like a lion seeking to both deceive and devour us all.

I know what it’s like to have someone close to me struggle with same-sex attraction and adopt an aberrant sexual identity. I have a dear family member wasting away with AIDS at this very moment. While I love him, I also understand that if I were to affirm his lifestyle and offer well-intentioned yet dangerously misguided “compassion,” I would be hurting him, not helping him.

I offer true compassion. I offer truth, in love.

If you truly love someone, you should never, ever encourage that person in a demonstrably destructive and subjective “gay,” “lesbian,” “bisexual” or “transgender” identity. Love them unconditionally, but encourage them to find freedom from it.

Because, whether spiritual, physical, or both, it may be the difference between life and death.

Source: The Entire ‘LGBT’ Narrative Just Crumbled | The Stream

If you would like to donate to the Christian Training Center, please click here.

Check out our upcoming ministry programs for young adults and families. Please click here.

Michael WilsonJuly 15, 2019CTCI Life, Culture Issues, MarriageCulture, Family, gender1 Comment

Posts in Culture Issues

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Sexuality and Gender: Findings from the Biological, Psychological, and Social Sciences

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)

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