Philippians 4:6 Was the Most Popular Bible Verse of 2019, YouVersion Says

The most popular Bible verse this year on the YouVersion app was a passage about trusting God instead of worrying.

Philippians 4:6 was the most popular Bible verse of 2019 on YouVersion, the free Bible app that launched in 2008 and grew by 50 million unique installs this year. The verse reads,

“Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything.

Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done.”

Read the article here: Philippians 4:6 Was the Most Popular Bible Verse of 2019, YouVersion Says – Michael Foust

Merry Christmas from the Christian Training Center. Jesus is the reason for the season.

Thank you, everyone, for partnering with the Christian Training Center this year through your thoughts, prayers, and generous financial support.

We hope you have a very Merry Christmas. We’re looking forward to what God has in store for all of us in this New Year! Don’t forget to check us out at www.ctcilife.org for info on event and program dates.

12 Best Christian Films of 2019

Michael Foust is a freelance writer. Visit his blog, MichaelFoust.com. Here is his summary.

For fans of Christian movies, 2019 began with a Top 5 hit (Breakthrough) that demonstrated the power of prayer, and ended with a movie (A Hidden Life) that spotlighted an unsung hero of history.

In between, fans of faith-centric stories enjoyed a movie about Mister Rogers, multiple documentaries, another project from the Kendrick Brothers, and a film about Harriet Tubman. There even were two movies inspired by The Pilgrim’s Progress.

Here are my 12 favorite Christian films of 2019:

Read the article: 12 Best Christian Films of 2019 

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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.

The lessons taught at CTCI are not designed to be learned just in the classroom. They are not simply taught in a week or a month program. Rather, they come through the furnace of daily living and are hammered into useful form on the anvil of unrelenting daily life and common struggles. The hammer must fall repetitively over and over before the shape takes form. This type of experiential learning is formative.

Learning is driven by an insatiable curiosity in God’s ways. The value of hard work and the merits of creative problem-solving are by-products of “fleshing out” Biblical principles and watching them come to life through God’s creative power. Families are transformed and young people are reformed.

When given the right conditions of sunlight and good soil, an acorn grows into a mighty oak. When the same acorn is crowded out by larger trees and the elements for health are lacking, the tree grows crooked and deformed.

When a family arrives tattered and worn, we provide the sunshine and nourishment of God’s word in daily life experiences – and the transformation is nothing short of remarkable.

When a young person arrives soiled in the mud and mire of worldly ways, we provide the nutrients which build character and integrity for future leaders – and the reformation is nothing short of miraculous.

This is what we do: Transformation and Reformation. Learn more here.

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

10 Verses to Include in Your Christmas Cards This Year

Here is a great idea. I love this one: “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth” (John 1:14).

Christmas is such a wonderful time of year when so many take time to gather with family and friends, share gifts and meals, make memories, have fun, and worship together. It’s also a great time to reconnect with those you may not see through the year, or just send a heartfelt sentiment to those you care about with a Christmas card or simple greeting. Maybe you’ve sent family photos and Christmas cards for many years; it’s your annual tradition. Maybe you include a note of a few of your family’s highlights from the year. Or maybe, like many in today’s world, you choose to send a greeting through email or social media so that you’re able to reach more of those you love.

Family Fun night during our Train to Reign program.

Family Fun night during our Train to Reign program (Summer 2019).

Families have fun together. This is a part of our experiential discipleship approach. We model it. We live it. We teach it.

Gay pressure group demands 1 of 5 prime-time TV characters be LGBT by 2025

From an article in LifeSite: Gay pressure group demands 1 of 5 prime-time TV characters be LGBT by 2025

The pro-LGBT pressure group GLAAD released its annual report on the state of LGBT “representation” in television last week, and while it found a rise in prime-time depictions of homosexual and transgender characters, it’s demanding that Hollywood double its efforts so that a fifth of regular primetime characters are LGBT five years from now.

“Of the 879 series regular characters expected to appear on broadcast primetime scripted programming in the coming year, 90 (10.2 percent) were counted as LGBTQ,” the group reports, meeting an expectation set by the group last year and marking the “highest percentage of LGBTQ regular characters GLAAD has counted on primetime scripted broadcast programming.”

That means that prime-time “representation” is more than double Gallup’s 2017 estimate that 4.5% of the U.S. population identifies as LGBT. (GLAAD cites a survey it did with Harris that supposedly found that 20% of Americans aged 18–34 are LGBT.) But the group wants that over-representation to double yet again, “calling on the industry to ensure that 20 percent of series regular characters on primetime scripted broadcast series are LGBTQ by 2025.”

Read the article here: Gay pressure group demands 1 of 5 prime-time TV characters be LGBT by 2025 | News | LifeSite

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.

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

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 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

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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!

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.

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.

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

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. 

Read More Here: Faithful Thinkers- Defending God’s Existence and Compatibility of Science with God and the Bible: Should Christians Abandon Social Media?

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.

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.

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!

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.

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.

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.

Read More Here:

Joseph D’Souza: Why religious liberty is the most pressing issue facing our world today | Fox News

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! | — Sept 2 – Nov 9, 2019 | Participants ages 18-26 come with one purpose – to go deeper with the Lord. ow.ly/Nhag30oRYRK

Strengthening & Restoring Family Relationships — Train to Reign Program — Oct 20 – Nov 2 | 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. http://ow.ly/l5SU30oS5pQ

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

John Irving’s Pro-Abortion Nonsense 

Here is some great insight from RAMESH PONNURU. He is a senior editor for National Review, a columnist for Bloomberg Opinion, a visiting fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, and a senior fellow at the National Review Institute.

Abortion ‘Blueprint’ Would Strip Fundamental Rights

This is horrible. We must continue to pray. We must continue to elect men and women who will protect life.

Abortion for anyone, anytime, anywhere — and you’ll pay for it.

In 114 pages, over 70 groups recently laid out a legislative agenda in their “Blueprint for Sexual and Reproductive Health, Rights and Justice” that is, in a few words, focused on one goal: abortion anywhere, anytime, for anyone — at any cost.

These groups — Planned Parenthood, NARAL Pro-Choice America, National Abortion Federation, Population Council, Catholics for Choice, People for the American Way, et al. — are not content with the U.S. Supreme Court decisions in Roe v. Wade and Doe v. Bolton.

They want more: more access, more acceptance, more money, and greater control. In truth, they want your tax dollars to pay for abortion; they want local doctors, hospitals, physician assistants, midwives, and nurses to perform or refer for abortions; they want your children to have easy access to one without your knowledge or approval; they want your children exposed to information promoting abortion — early and often; and they want to see the U.S. promulgate and push abortion and its availability around the globe.

Read More Here:

Abortion ‘Blueprint’ Would Strip Fundamental Rights | National Review

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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! | — Sept 2 – Nov 9, 2019 | Participants ages 18-26 come with one purpose – to go deeper with the Lord. ow.ly/Nhag30oRYRK

Strengthening & Restoring Family Relationships — Train to Reign Program — Oct 20 – Nov 2 | 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. http://ow.ly/l5SU30oS5pQ

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

Three Babies in Minnesota Were Born Alive After Failed Abortions and Left to Die

Here is some sad news as reported by LifeNews.com.

Three babies survived botched abortions but later died in 2018 in Minnesota, according to a new state Department of Health report.

The news comes as Democrats in Congress block a federal bill to require that basic medical care be provided to newborns who survive abortions. Democrats have argued that legislation to protect abortion survivors is a waste of time and not necessary.

But data from Minnesota, the Centers for Disease Control and other sources indicate that babies do survive abortions, and laws are needed to protect them.

Minnesota has been keeping track of abortion survivors since 2015 when pro-lifers passed the state Born Alive Infants Protection Act. The law recognizes infants who survive abortions as human persons and requires that they be provided with reasonable medical care.

Since the law went into effect, state reports indicate that 11 babies have survived abortions: five in 2016, three in 2017 and three in 2018, according to Minnesota Citizens Concerned for Life.

According to the most recent report:

• • • For the calendar year of January 1, 2018 through December 31, 2018, three (3) abortion procedures resulting in a born-alive infant were reported.
    • In one instance, APGAR score was 1 at 1 and 5 minutes. There were anomalies incompatible with life. No measures taken to preserve life were reported and the infant did not survive.
    • In one instance, comfort care measures were provided as planned and the infant did not survive.
    • In one instance, the infant was previable. No measures taken to preserve life were reported and the infant did not survive.

Read more here:

Three Babies in Minnesota Were Born Alive After Failed Abortions in 2018 and Left to Die | LifeNews.com

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.

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! | — Sept 2 – Nov 9, 2019 | Participants ages 18-26 come with one purpose – to go deeper with the Lord. ow.ly/Nhag30oRYRK

Strengthening & Restoring Family Relationships — Train to Reign Program — Oct 20 – Nov 2 | 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. http://ow.ly/l5SU30oS5pQ

How to be an Atheist (Funny) – Ultra Spiritual Life – with JP Sears

Now this is just plain funny!

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.

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! | — Sept 2 – Nov 9, 2019 | Participants ages 18-26 come with one purpose – to go deeper with the Lord. ow.ly/Nhag30oRYRK

Strengthening & Restoring Family Relationships — Train to Reign Program — Oct 20 – Nov 2 | 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. http://ow.ly/l5SU30oS5pQ

Of course it could be better. What are you going to do about it?

Question

Here is a good take on asking the right question from Seth Godin. Seth Godin is an Author, Entrepreneur and Most of All, A teacherSeth is an entrepreneur, best-selling author, and speaker. In addition to launching one of the most popular blogs in the world, he has written 18 best-selling books, including The Dip, Linchpin, Purple Cow, Tribes, and What To Do When It’s Your Turn (And It’s Always Your Turn). Though renowned for his writing and speaking, Seth also founded two companies, Squidoo and Yoyodyne (acquired by Yahoo!).

Of course it could be better. That’s not the question, not really.

The question is, “what are you going to do about it?”

And, to follow up, “what effort are you willing to put in to make it better?”

If you’re not willing to make it better, it’s probably going to stay the way it is.

The first day of summer is right around the corner (or winter, if you live in the other hemisphere).

The changing of seasons is as good a time as any to say, “now, I’m going to make it better.”

The key word isn’t ‘better’. The key words are now and I.

Source: Of course it could be better | Seth’s Blog

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.

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! | — Sept 2 – Nov 9, 2019 | Participants ages 18-26 come with one purpose – to go deeper with the Lord. ow.ly/Nhag30oRYRK

Strengthening & Restoring Family Relationships — Train to Reign Program — Oct 20 – Nov 2 | 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. http://ow.ly/l5SU30oS5pQ

The Entire Anti-Family Narrative Just Crumbled 

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

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