The BreakPoint Podcast

It's not too late to get your children off their smartphones. __________ For more resources to live like a Christian in this cultural moment, go to breakpoint.org.

At this educational crossroads of our country, Christians can help loosen the stranglehold of the state over education. __________ For more resources to live like a Christian in this cultural moment, go to breakpoint.org.  

If the government thinks it can grant rights, then they can also take them away.  __________ For more resources to live like a Christian in this cultural moment, go to breakpoint.org.

John and Maria discuss the President deploying the National Guard to American cities, and what the arrest of a comedian in the U.K. for social media posts signifies. Also, Sen. Tim Kaine misunderstands human rights. John has a conversation with Jack Phillips and answers listener questions about “Shiny, Happy, People.” Recommendations  Truth Rising (streaming now)  Sarah Groves  Segment 1 - News Headlines  Associated Press: As Trump threatens more Guard troops in US cities, here's what the law allows  Comedian Arrested in U.K. for tweets   National Review: Malcolm Gladwell Reaches His Tipping Point on Trans Athletes  Segment 2 - Our Rights Come From God  Ted Cruz Confronts Tim Kaine   MSN: Kaine sparks backlash after calling Declaration of Independence's God-given rights ‘extremely troubling'  Segment 3 - Jack Phillips: Life Lived Forward   Comments from Listeners  US Weekly: Shiny, Happy People  ______________________  Support Breakpoint by becoming a Cornerstone Monthly Partner between now and October 31 at colsoncenter.org/september.  Watch Truth Rising, now available at truthrising.com/colson.   

The worldviews that we currently embrace in the West just aren't working out, and it's causing people to look again at the Christian story.  __________ Watch the Truth Rising documentary at truthrising.com. 

When people believe that bad ideas make people unworthy of their humanity, then what begins with hashtags and de-platforming can end with bullets and bombs. __________ Get the latest on the Truth Rising documentary at truthrising.com. 

Secularism as a worldview is simply not big enough for the God-shaped hole in the human heart. As more young people realize this, the Church has an incredible opportunity to help them find the One who can. __________ Get the latest on the Truth Rising documentary at truthrising.com/colson. 

Amid rising headlines about a “quiet revival,” Justin Brierley joins Breakpoint to discuss why young people and even secular thinkers are rediscovering Christianity. Together, he and John Stonestreet unpack the cultural hunger for meaning and the surprising rebirth of belief in God. __________ Get the latest on the Truth Rising documentary at truthrising.com/colson.  Learn more about Justin's work, books, and podcast at JustinBrierley.com.

Because Chloe had the courage to admit she was wrong and to embrace the truth, she is now an incredible example of how to live in this civilizational moment. _____________ Get the latest on the Truth Rising documentary at truthrising.com/colson. 

When it's worse to be a racist than a rapist.  ______________ Sign up for the free Worldview Formation course at colsoneducators.org. 

The horrific school shooting in Minnesota is raising the veil on mental health and transgenderism. The largest Planned Parenthood clinic in Texas closed this week due to budget shortages.  And Friday is the global premiere of the Truth Rising documentary. Recommendations Truth Rising Segment 1 - The Tragedy of the Minnesota School Shooting Christian Post: ‘Pure evil': Christian leaders react to Minneapolis Catholic school shooting The World and Everything in It: August 29, 2025 Breakpoint: Worldviews and Tragedy Segment 2 - Planned Parenthood Clinics Closing Dozens of Planned Parenthood Clinics Closed in 2025 Christianity Today: The Biggest Planned Parenthood in the Country Is Closing Family of teenager who died by suicide alleges OpenAI's ChatGPT is to blame PEOPLE: College Student Speaks Out After AI Chatbot Allegedly Told Him to ‘Please Die': ‘I Freaked Out' Bill Maher Returned From Summer Break With AI On His Mind FORTUNE: ‘Godfather of AI' says tech companies should imbue AI models with ‘maternal instincts' to counter the technology's goal to ‘get more control' Civilization: The West and the Rest by Niall Ferguson Segment 3 - Truth Rising Documentary Release Truth Rising documentary updates The Truth Project WORLD: Truth rising and a call to renewal Breakpoint: Broadening Death and Cheapening Life: The Organ “Shortage” Submit a question to Breakpoint here! __________ Get digital access to the 2025 Colson Center National Conference at colsoncenter.org/august. Stay up to date on Truth Rising, premiering September 5, at truthrising.com/colson.

The legendary Columba and the call to redeem paganism.  _______________ Get digital access to the National Conference with a gift of any amount at colsoncenter.org/august. 

The very low bar of deciding your own death.  ________________ Get updates on the Truth Rising documentary at truthrising.org/colson.

As the western world detaches from its Christian foundations, we should expect that more children will be devalued and harmed in more ways. _____________ Get digital access to the 2025 Colson Center National Conference with your gift to the Colson Center at colsoncenter.org/august. 

How should we now live in this time and in this place?  Related Resource Get updates on the Truth Rising documentary at truthrising.com/colson.  _____________ Get digital access to the 2025 Colson Center National Conference with your gift at colsoncenter.org/august. 

What would Jesus do?  ___________________ Get updates on the Truth Rising documentary at truthrising.com/colson. 

John and Maria discuss the news of the week including the death of Dr. James Dobson and President Trump's remarks on getting to heaven. Also, many parents are beginning to question public education. And are we on the brink of revival in Europe? Recommendations Bahnsen: Serrated Edge for Me but not for Thee Alistair Begg: The Secret of Contentment Segment 1 - Passing of Dr. Dobson and Headline News Dr. James C. Dobson, Visionary, Family Advocate and Founder of the Dr. James Dobson Family Institute, Dies at 89 Summit Ministries Brio Magazine Adventures in Odyssey  Breakpoint: President Trump and the Hope of Heaven Newsweek: 7,000 Christians Have Been Killed in Nigeria This Year, Group Says Segment 2 - Golden Opportunity for Christian Education NYT: Why So Many Parents Are Opting Out of Public Schools NYP: Virginia teens suspended for questioning transgender student about being in boys locker room Colson Educators LifeWise Academy Segment 3 - Is There a Quiet Revival? Bible Society: The Quiet Revival: Gen Z leads rise in church attendance The Times: Full-fat faith: the young Christian converts filling our churches Breakpoint: Is Penal Substitutionary Atonement “Knocked Out”? Submit a question to Breakpoint here! __________ Stay up to date on Truth Rising, premiering September 5, at truthrising.com/colson. Join the Colson Center as a Cornerstone Monthly Partner at colsoncenter.org/cornerstone.

How do you get to Heaven? ______________ Get digital access to the 2025 Colson Center National Conference with your gift this month at colsoncenter.org/august. 

The Bible may not talk about organ donation, but it does have a lot to say about life. _____________ Get updates for the Truth Rising documentary at truthrising.com/colson. 

Maria Baer discusses freeing kids from smartphones with Clare Morell, researcher and advocate for children's rights with the Ethics and Public Policy Center. Clare's new book, The Tech Exit, is available now.     The Tech Exit: A Practical Guide to Freeing Kids and Teens from Smartphones by Clare Morell

How some get the work on the Cross wrong.  _______________ Join the Colson Center as a Cornerstone Partner at colsoncenter.org/cornerstone. 

Take heart, this civilizational moment has some warriors.  _____________ Get updates for the Truth Rising documentary at truthrising.com/colson. 

Can your worldview hold up?  _____________ Get digital access to the 2025 Colson Center National Conference with a gift of any amount at colsoncenter.org/august. 

John and Maria tackle a heavy news week full of worldview concerns… including the Little Sisters of the Poor, school-funded abortions in VA, mandated mental health exams in Illinois, the UK Women's March, and Kim Davis. Also, will the future of making babies be in a lab? Recommendations The Tech Exit by Clare Morell Christianity Today: Gaza's Hunger Crisis Is Worsening. WORLD: Israel's Gaza strategy Segment 1 - Worldview Concerns in the News National Review: Leave the Little Sisters of the Poor Alone FOX: Youngkin orders investigation into claims staff at Virginia school arranged abortions without parental consent NY Post: Illinois parents, policy experts concerned over new school mental health screening law AP: Supreme Court allows Mississippi to require age verification on social media FOX: Supreme Court has 'good chance' of hearing Kim Davis' case urging same-sex marriage be overturned UK Women's March now "Intersectional Uprising" WORLD: 7,000 Nigerian Christians killed in 2025, watchdog reports Segment 2 - Truth Rising Preview with Jim Daly Get updates on Truth Rising Focus on the Family The Truth Project Segment 3 - The Future of Reproduction NYT: The Next Parenting Trend Starts Before Conception Submit a question to Breakpoint here! __________ Stay up to date on Truth Rising, premiering September 5, at truthrising.com/colson. Sign up for Hope Always at colsoneducators.org. 

The most underrated Founding Father.  _____________ Sign up for updates on the Truth Rising documentary at truthrising.com/colson. 

Because only humans bear the image of God, AI will never be human. ___________ Get updates on the Truth Rising documentary at truthrising.com/colson. 

Good doctrine supports Christians in their calling to be truth-tellers. _____________ Get updates on the Truth Rising documentary at truthrising.com/colson. 

Humans were made to worship with song.  ____________ Get updates for the Truth Rising documentary by signing up at truthrising.com/colson. 

A British parliamentarian spoke about the dangers of abandoning western and Christian values, but no one showed up to listen. ______________ Find more information about the Truth Rising documentary at truthrising.com/colson. 

An American Eagle jeans ad is called a rise of Nazism. A CNN reporter uses AI to talk to a long-dead teenager. And John and Katy Faust talk about Katy challenging an assertion made by AI's Grok. Recommendations Katy Faust and Grok Bioethics: A Primer for Christians 2nd edition by Gilbert Meilaender Rediscovering My 1800 Heritage by Katy Faust Leisure: The Basis of Culture by Josef Pieper Segment 1 - Jeans Ad Causes Uproar  Babylon Bee: Can You Spot All The Nazi Dog Whistles In This Sydney Sweeney Ad? Nike's ad for Scottie Scheffler's Open was tear-jerkingly perfect Them Before Us Segment 2 - Changing Definition of Death Variety: Jim Acosta Interviews AI Version of Teenager Killed in Parkland Shooting KLOVE: ChatGPT's AI Can Offer Dangerous Information & Guidance To Kids Pro-Child Politics by Katy Faust NYT: Donor Organs Are Too Rare. We Need a New Definition of Death. Washington Post: White House Has No Plan to Mandate IVF Care World's ‘oldest baby' born from embryo frozen in 1994 Segment 3 - Talking to Grok Katy Faust and Grok Segment 4 - Questions and Recommendations Submit a question to Breakpoint here! __________ Stay up to date on Truth Rising, premiering September 5, at truthrising.com/colson. Join the Colson Center as a Cornerstone Monthly Partner at colsoncenter.org/cornerstone. 

Are Christians called to love, or called to being nice?  _______________ Sign up for the latest updates on the Truth Rising documentary at truthrising.com/colson.

In this bonus episode of Breakpoint, John Stonestreet has a conversation with Gabe Lyons, Andrew Walker, and Ryan Anderson. They discuss what can we learn by looking back over the last several decades of the Church's involvement in culture and what it means to embrace and lose our public morality.

Rejecting Christianity will mean losing those cultural goods that depend on Christian values, such as freedom of speech and religion.  ____________ Give any gift to the Colson Center this month and recieve digital access to the 2025 Colson Center National Conference at colsoncenter.org/august. 

A worldview that insists on absolute autonomy and that “the customer is always right” will corrupt medicine. Related Resource What Would You Say?: What is IVF, and is it ethical? ________________ Join the Colson Center as a Cornerstone partner at colsoncenter.org/cornerstone. 

Why it's important to read bad books about bad ideas.  _____________ Sign up to receive updates on the Truth Rising documentary at truthrising.com/colson. 

When a civilization loses touch with what made it great.   Related Resource The Truth Rising Documentary _______________ Give any amount to the Colson Center this month and receive digital access to the Colson Center National Conference at colsoncenter.org/august.

William Wilberforce is remembered for his two great aims: the abolition of slavery and advancing public morality. Another horrific attack on Christians in the Congo, and the stories surrounding IVF and surrogacy keep getting stranger. Recommendations Amazing Grace (2006) Segment 1 - Wilberforce Day and an Attack in the Congo Breakpoint: The Long, Faithful Obedience of William Wilberforce Associated Press: An attack on a Congolese church killed nearly 40 worshippers. Here's what to know The True Believer: Thoughts on the Nature of Mass Movements by Eric Hoffer Segment 2 - IVF & Surrogacy The Free Press: One Embryo. Three Parents. The Future Is Already Here. The Daily Citizen: Baby Should Be Immediately Removed from Convicted Child Predator The Free Press: What I Went Through to Meet My Daughter Ethics and Public Policy Center: First-of-its-Kind Resource Recommends a New Response to the Nation's Infertility Crisis Ethics and Public Policy Center: Introduction to Restorative Reproductive Medicine Breakpoint: IVF and Infertility: Good Ends Do Not Justify All Means Segment 3 - Is Snark Biblical? 2025 Great Lakes Symposium: Truth, Love, and Humor: Faith Without Fear with Seth Dillon & Jim Daly The Babylon Bee Truth Rising The Babylon Bee: The Babylon Bee's Man Of The Year Is Rachel Levine The Babylon Bee: Police Calm Millennial Protesters By Handing Out Participation Trophies Segment 4 - Questions and Recommendations The World and Everything in It: Tracing the truth __________ Stay up to date on Truth Rising, premiering September 5, at truthrising.com/colson. Get access to the Why Life? video series at colsoncenter.org/whylife.

Technological godhood won't save us. Related Resource What Would You Say?: Will AI Replace Humans? ______________ Join the Colson Center as a Cornerstone Partner at colsoncenter.org/monthly.

No technology will provide a shortcut to moral reasoning. ______________ Truth Rising premieres on September 5. Sign up for updates at truthrising.com.

It's time to retire the myth that humans are 99% the same as chimps.   ____________ Get FREE access to the Colson Educators Worldview Formation course at colsoneducators.org. 

. . . and other ways how not to read the Bible.  Related Resource What Would You Say?: Am I on the Wrong Side of History? ____________ Register for the Colson Fellows program at colsonfellows.org. 

Find yourself an Omega Buckner and be an Omega Buckner.  Related Resource Get updates on the Truth Rising documentary at truthrising.com/colson.  _____________ Join the Colson Center as a Cornerstone Partner at colsoncenter.org/monthly. 

John and Maria discuss the news of the week including the end of the highly political Stephen Colbert late night show and Scottie Sheffler's inspirational comments after winning the British Open. Also, this week, why so many people don't want to enter a public library anymore. Recommendations Same-Sex Marriage by John Stonestreet and Sean McDowell The Identity Project Segment 1 - Colbert Cancelled and A Golf Champion Prioritizes Faith Latigo Ranch NYT: CBS Canceling ‘Late Show With Stephen Colbert' After Next Season Scottie Scheffler on Winning The Open Breakpoint: The Liberty to Live Not by Lies Born Again Used Books Alliance Defending Freedom Segment 2 - Death of the Public Library The Free Press: The Death of the Public Library Breakpoint: The Scopes Trial and the Power of Story Segment 3 - Why Are Wealthy Nations Unhappy WORLD: Why are the wealthy so unhappy? Breakpoint: Why the HENRYs Aren't Happy Breakpoint: A Decade of Obergefell: Corrupted Laws and Misled Courts Submit a question to Breakpoint here!  __________ Register for the Colson Fellows Program by July 31 at colsonfellows.org. Get access to the Why Life? video series at colsoncenter.org/whylife. 

Chuck Colson's legacy of defending truth in the marketplace of ideas.  _____________ Apply for the Colson Fellows program before July 31 at colsonfellows.org. 

Colorado is doubling down on transgender ideology while support everywhere else is waning.   Related Resource What Would You Say?: Are Christians Legally Required to Bake Gay Wedding Cakes? _________________ Give any amount to the Colson Center this month and receive digital access to the Colson Center National Conference at colsoncenter.org/july. 

More reasons to fight for good government but to believe in God as the Source.   ______________ Register for the Truth, Love, and Humor: Faith Without Fear livestream or in-person event on Thursday, July 24 at colsoncenter.org/truth.   

When a civilization loses touch with what made it great.   Related Resource The Truth Rising Documentary _________________ Register for the in-person or livestream event: Truth, Love, and Humor: Faith Without Fear at colsoncenter.org/truth. 

Can you mobilize your kid's community to hold off on screens?  _____________ Join the Colson Center as a Cornerstone Partner at colsoncenter.org/monthly.

John Stonestreet and Katie McCoy discuss the inclusion of a same-sex couple with children in the new TV show from Chip and Joanna Gaines. Os Guinness discusses what it's like to live in a civilization moment. A new study vindicates previous research that children turned out better with intact biological parents than with LGBT parents. Recommendations Shark Whisperer on Netflix Public Discourse: New Vindication for the Regnerus Same-Sex Parenting Study  Great Lakes Symposium: Truth, Love, and Humor Segment 1 - Chip and Joanna Gaines Promote Same-Sex Couple FOX: Chip and Joanna Gaines' Magnolia Network backlash puts home renovation star in hot seat AP: How US adults' views on same-sex marriage have changed since the Supreme Court's 2015 ruling Breakpoint: A Decade of Obergefell: Corrupted Laws and Misled Courts The passing of John MacArthur  Segment 2 - Os Guinness on a Civilizational Moment  Truth Rising Segment 3 - Family Research and Biblical Law on Immigration Parental Same-Sex Relationships, Family Instability, and Subsequent Life Outcomes for Adult Children: Answering Critics of the New Family Structures Study with Additional Analyses by Mark Regnerus Public Discourse: New Vindication for the Regnerus Same-Sex Parenting Study  The Identity Project  Katy Faust and Them Before Us Submit a question to Breakpoint here!  __________ Register for the Colson Fellows Program by July 31 at colsonfellows.org. Register to attend Truth, Love, and Humor: Faith Without Fear online or in person at colsoncenter.org/truth.

The growing trend to put pets on meds and what it says about worldview.   _______________ Register for the FREE livestream event Truth, Love, and Humor: Faith Without Fear at colsoncenter.org/truth. 

After 1,500 years of continuous Christian service, the world's oldest monastery is being forced to close its doors.  Related Resource Get digital access to the 2025 Colson Center National Conference at colsoncenter.org/july.  _____________ Apply for the Colson Fellows Program at colsonfellows.org.