Podcasts about religiously

In this episode Ronald Davis shares his powerful story of overcoming abuse and finding healing through prayer. Ronald discusses his tumultuous first marriage, the deep impact of his relationship with God, and how intense prayer and faith led him to forgiveness and restoration. Diana and Ronald also explore the challenges men face in abusive relationships and the often inadequate support from religious communities. Ronald introduces his book, 'Thy Kingdom Come,' which delves into the transformative power of prayer and its role in personal and spiritual growth. 00:00 Sponsor Message: 7 5 3 Academy 00:48 Introduction to the Podcast 01:22 Diana's New Camera and Podcast Updates 02:26 Introducing Today's Guest: Ronald Davis 06:43 Ronald Davis' Background and Journey 08:04 Ronald's Early Life and Spiritual Awakening 10:59 Understanding Prayer and Its Importance 12:40 Ronald's First Marriage and Struggles 17:02 Healing and Restoration Through Prayer 21:12 Challenges Faced by Male Abuse Survivors 25:27 The Church's Role in Addressing Abuse 27:54 Conclusion and Next Episode Teaser   Thy Kingdom Come: The Purpose and Power of Prayer thykingdomcomebook.com   Bio:  Ronald Davis has been preaching the Gospel since his teenage years, driven by a deep passion for spreading the message of the Kingdom of God. With decades of ministry experience, he is known for his dynamic teaching and unwavering commitment to advancing God's Kingdom on earth. As the founder of Kingdom Truth Global, Apostle Davis equips believers worldwide with biblical truths, empowering them to live out their faith and walk in their God-given purpose. His life's mission is to see lives transformed by the power of the Kingdom and to raise up leaders who will impact the world for Christ.  Website: https://dswministries.org Email: diana@dswministries.org Subscribe to the podcast: https://dswministries.org/subscribe-to-podcast/ Social media links: Join our Private Wounds of the Faithful FB Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1603903730020136 Twitter: https://twitter.com/DswMinistries YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCxgIpWVQCmjqog0PMK4khDw/playlists Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dswministries/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DSW-Ministries-230135337033879 Keep in touch with me! Email subscribe to get my handpicked list of the best resources for abuse survivors! https://thoughtful-composer-4268.ck.page #abuse #trauma Affiliate links: Our Sponsor: 753 Academy: https://www.753academy.com/ Can't travel to The Holy Land right now? The next best thing is Walking The Bible Lands! Get a free video sample of the Bible lands here! https://www.walkingthebiblelands.com/a/18410/hN8u6LQP An easy way to help my ministry: https://dswministries.org/product/buy-me-a-cup-of-tea/ A donation link: https://dswministries.org/donate/   Ronald Davis Part One [00:00:00] Welcome to the Wounds of the Faithful Podcast, brought to you by DSW Ministries. Your host is singer songwriter, speaker and domestic violence advocate, Diana Winkler. She is passionate about helping survivors in the church heal from domestic violence and abuse and trauma. This podcast is not a substitute for professional counseling or qualified medical help. Now here is Diana. Hi everyone. How are you today? I'm glad that you're here with me for those that are watching on YouTube. I have a new camera today. Um, My old one, kind of, bit the dust and just got a new one. So hope I'm looking good for you guys. It's definitely high definition for sure. You could see my face very [00:01:00] clearly, probably too clearly. I could see my flaws, imperfections, whatnot. But hey, I'm an authentic person. There's no filters on here. I. Yes, this is my skin. I've not done any work to it. No Botox, nothing like that. It's just me. I don't use AI for very much at all for the podcast. I I just started using it for maybe summarizing show notes, but that's pretty much it. But anyway, that's what's new here on the show. I do have a great guest for you today. Those of you that have been listening for a long time on the podcast, we've had Shayna Rattler back on episode six. Yeah, that was second season, talking about what is a God shift. Well, she contacted [00:02:00] me and said her husband has written a new book about prayer and that she asked if I would have him on the podcast. So me and Shana had such a great time that I was happy to have her husband Ronald Davis on the show. He is a survivor of abuse from, looks like his first wife. I. His journey in prayer helped him to heal and prepare him for what God had next for him. So we're gonna be talking about his upbringing and his ministry. Of course, his story of abuse and how prayer played a big part in his recovery, and that's something that we all need more of is prayer. Such a touchy topic for a survivor to talk. We're a survivor because we were going through this [00:03:00] transition of going through all this abuse and coming out of it, and. Abuse always affects our relationship with God, especially our communication with God. Many of us are on the couch or we're not really sure about where do I stand on the subject of my faith? And that's okay. That's what the podcast is for, is we talk about these topics and we wrestle together for the answers. What does the Bible say about prayer? How does God feel about us? He wants to communicate with us and fellowship with us, and yes, we are asking for things with prayer, but we're also sometimes just sitting and listening and it's hard after you've been through an abusive. Relationship or you're still in one, it's hard to hear God's voice in the midst [00:04:00] of the noise around you. So we're gonna definitely talk that out today. So, Ronald's book is called Thy Kingdom Come, the Purpose and Power of Prayer, and you can purchase that on Amazon. I am gonna include the link in the show notes, of course. So I'll read what the book's about here. In this book, Ronald Davis takes you on a transformative journey into the heart of God's kingdom and the undeniable role of prayer in unlocking its power. This book is more than just a guide. It is a called a Deeper Intimacy with God, a rediscovery of identity, and an invitation to experience the fullness of his purpose for your life. Through insightful revelation and biblical reference, you'll explore the different dimensions of prayer and how to communicate with God effectively. Learn the key stages [00:05:00] of personal and spiritual transformation that align you with God's will. Understand the foundational connection between knowing your identity in Christ and walking in kingdom power. Discover the life-changing impact of intimacy with God on every area of your life. Whether you're a new believer or a seasoned leader, thy kingdom come, will empower you to deepen your relationship with God and live out his kingdom purpose in every aspect of your life. Embrace the power of prayer. Embrace the purpose of the kingdom. Let your life be a reflection of his glory. All right, sounds pretty good. so enjoy my conversation with Ronald Davis, I'm so excited to welcome Ronald Davis on the show. Thank you for coming on [00:06:00] today. Oh, you're, you're welcome. I definitely an honor to be here. I appreciate you having me. So I was saying to the audience before you came on that. You are Shayna Rattler Davis's husband. So when she reached out, it was very exciting that you wrote a book about prayer and that you'd like to come on the show. So any friend of Shayna is a friend of mine. So you said you were only married for five months? So far? Yes. Alright. How did you guys meet? Well, believe it or not a mutual mentor of ours he reached out to me one day and he said he said he wanted to introduce me to someone. He said, he thought about her about a year or so ago before he called me. He said, when he thought of her, he thought of me, but he knew at that time that I wasn't. By the leadership of the Holy Spirit. He just knew it wasn't time yet. So after a year or so, and what's funny is during that year I was in a deep [00:07:00] consecration and fasting before the Lord and seeking God. So after the year of that is when he called me and, he felt like it was now that time to make that introduction. And once we met it, we've just been inseparable ever since. Oh, that sounds fun. Now I'd like to get into a little bit about your history, your ministry how you were raised. Were you raised in a Christian home? I was. I was raised in a Christian home. But I was also raised in a very low income area. So it was two different worlds I was exposed to. My mom kept us in church, I got home to a father that was strung out on crack cocaine. And I had older brothers and siblings that were also contributors of drugs. So I was like, I lived in a house in an environment of, drugs and fighting and, just being exposed to gangs and that lifestyle, that street lifestyle, that, the hood lifestyle where people would refer to it as but my [00:08:00] mom put us in church, so we knew all the Bible stories, we used to receive prophecies as children. I remember receiving a prophecy that I was gonna be a preacher, my mom would threw it at my face at times. But when I was acting a fool and I wanted to do my own thing, but now look, I'm now writing books and glorifying Jesus many years later. But yeah, so that's kind of short version of my my household coming up. When did you meet the Lord? So I became serious about my relationship with God when I was about 16 years old, so from the time of, I'd say about 12, my mom stopped making us go to church, and I got more involved in like, as a young person in streets, sinning , using drugs, trying to sell drugs, trying to, adapt this lifestyle that I was, that was around me. I was, I was never a good fit for it, though, I'll be honest. I'd do wrong and feel bad, it just wasn't a good fit for me. I always knew my whole life that I was different. I remember having the gun put to my face and and I was about 14, 15 years old. And if there was ever a time ever heard [00:09:00] the first time I ever heard the voice of God, it was that day I could hear as clear as day, you can't die. I got work for you to do. Mm. And I wasn't even saved at the time, but that moment stuck with me to, to this very day. So I knew the hand of God was on my life, maybe 'cause of the upbringing in church. But I always knew God's hand was on my life, but I just thought it would be later in life that I would serve the Lord. But at 16, I went to a revival. Well, just before I turned 16, I went to the revival and I seen people being healed. I seen children giving their lives to Christ, and the message was powerful, and the man of God was amazing. And I wanted to be a part of what the Lord was doing. So, I, did antar call and I gave my life to Christ. And my life changed. People in my, my neighborhood saw me change. My school seen me change, so I went to being this bad kid in school to being the kid who was preaching in the hallways, telling people about Jesus. So it was a wonderful experience. I mean, and it's been a journey like everyone else, after we get saved, even that's sometimes when the story really begins, [00:10:00] right. Yeah. I love hearing people's stories of how they came to Christ. They're all different in yours is, exception. When you came to Christ when was the first time you actually understood the concept of prayer? I mean, talking to God, was that a natural thing for you or a foreign concept? Well, we've always taught, prayer in, in, in the church, but they didn't teach prayer like I know prayer now. They taught us we should pray. Mm-hmm. But they didn't really model prayer. I didn't know the way of consistent prayer. I didn't know the way of long prayer. So I would say my little daily prayers and as a young believer, just a level of zeal and hunger that we have for God. So we spend a lot more time, praying, even not praying as much as I do now, but I, what I thought prayer was, I did it to the best of my ability, but more so for me, I was given to the word of the Lord, like my first few years of salvation. I would read the [00:11:00] Bible for hours. That was my way of communing with God. This, studying the scriptures. So, by the time I was 18 years old, I was reading Systematic Theology by Charles Hodge. I was like, I was going deep in theology and breaking down the, historical background of the text. So before I was even 20, you would think I had went to seminary and I never did. I just was so deep in the word. So that was the journey that God took me first. He, it's almost like he wanted me to get that word foundation. And then, my journey into prayer as far as the place of prayer that I'm in now is, was relatively later in life. So from that point, I have that book, that systematic theology book. It's wonderful. Had I had that through Bible college. So, definitely got a lot of meat in that book. I still have it on my shelf. I do know that you were married before to your first wife. Tell us as much as you're comfortable [00:12:00] with what happened there? How did you meet her and what was the relationship like with her? Absolutely. So, that's a long story. I would give you the short version of it, oh yeah. Whatever you wanna do. I met my wife, in the church community, so we known each other from church. We served each other, we served each other in ministry. We took a liking to each other. I was really strong in the word, strong in theology. She had a strong prophetic gift and it seemed like we were just a good fit, the things that I would be studying, she would know by intuition. Like she just know by prophetically. And I said very gifted. And then, I was very rich in the word, but I wouldn't consider myself like as prophetic as I am now, and so, make a long story short, when we kind of took a liking to each other and we decided to get married, that's when the journey really began where I realized that you can have extremely gifted [00:13:00] people. But hurt people, hurt people. That's not just a cliche. It is actually true when the people have deeply rooted issues. It's hard for them to be loved, and it's hard for them to love. So, we had went through a season, when I first, I remember the first encounter where we got into an argument, a disagreement. And before you know it, somebody's throwing a blow. I mean, got punched in my face and I was in shock because this, this woman of God, this person I've just married, who I was so excited about, I think so highly of, lost control. So, and when the things ,first stuff like this start happening, obviously you're in shock, but then because we're Christians, we try to be forgiving as much as possible. Now we're in this marriage, we don't believe in divorce. So you figure, okay, I'm gonna love her through her pain, and many people think this, I'm gonna love them through it, but in all actuality, it's like, if two people get some serious help. You can't love them through it. It just sets the stage for [00:14:00] continuous abuse later. ' you know what? You may not want it, but if you tolerate it over time, what happens is now you'll begin to see yourself unconsciously as one that's worthy of such behavior. You know what I'm saying? Because what tells me that you feel like it's okay is because you stay. And I'll come back to that point later. But anyway, make a long story short, there was physical abuse, there was emotional abuse, there was psychological spiritual abuse. There was a lot of different things going on. And I'm not by any means trying to paint the picture that I was perfect in this marriage. 'cause I wasn't. Right. Right. I was developing, I wasn't as secure. In my prayer life as I am now. So I was doing a lot mm-hmm. Religiously, I was doing a lot trying to figure it out. I was doing a lot in the name of trying to love a person through it. I went through seven years of a marriage and I can't remember nine months of, 90 [00:15:00] days of consecutive peace. Yeah. I understand that. It was hard. Every, me too, it was just so hard. And as much as you prayed, as much as you tried to get through it, it's like it was always something, something just was never, it was never good enough. So after that, after everything we went through and the different financial hardship, that was the only source of income. There's a lot. I don't gimme the short version of the story, but there was a lot that I suffered. There was a lot that she suffered. There was a lot that we went through together trying to make it work and it got to the point which eventually we separated due to financial hardship. And in that separation. She blocked. I was blocked. I couldn't see my daughter. Blocked me on that, all the emails. And one thing I noticed about certain people with abusive personalities is they like to cut off all ties of communication. It's one of the ways that they inflict harm, whether they're doing it intentionally or not. It's that narcissistic personality is one of the ways that inflicts arm, they now feel like you're gonna suffer. [00:16:00] I'm gonna withdraw my presence from you. And it makes you feel less valued because not you feel like you were the one done wrong, and then they're treating you as if you were the one that treated them the way you felt like you've been treated. You know what I'm saying? Right, exactly. So in that, during that time of separation with no communication, I was able to find myself, I was able to see like, what is it about me that made it okay? Because even if it was, if this was gonna ever work, it wasn't gonna work like this. It wasn't gonna work. Yeah. So after all of that. Not having access to my daughter coming out of that relationship, coming out of that marriage. I was broken. I didn't really want to do ministry anymore 'cause we was doing ministry together. I didn't wanna do ministry more, I still wanted, God, I just didn't want ministry. So I was like, God, I needed to go through this process of healing. So I stopped, going live on Facebook. I stopped ministering, and I just began to shut down and just start working. And I went away for away from my, where I was [00:17:00] staying, went back home, felt like I needed to restore relationships, strengthened relationships back home that would, that would have been strained because of my relationship in this other marriage. So during that time, somebody invited me to preach one of my friends, and they didn't realize that's where my healing process started. Because it's like once I, wow. Once I started preaching and I saw God use me even in my brokenness. It's like I realized that, okay, like I still, this is what I'm here for. And I began to seek God in worship, began to see God in prayer, but still not at the level that I needed to. And there was many times on this period of time, I really felt like I hated her. I felt like, and then it was times where I couldn't see my daughter, so I felt that was really making me feel like a hater. And after all of that, when I went on a deep consecration, after some time had passed, we ain't talking a while, but artist society, you know what, I'm [00:18:00] not gonna date. I filed for divorce. We ended up separated with divorce. She signed, and I still, it was a gap in time when I actually first started seeing my daughter, but I really began to seek God and has left that whole situation in his hands. I began to cry to the Lord. I mean, I would fast and I would pray. I would pray from 10 to 3:00 AM in the morning. I sometimes I would pray 5, 6, 7 hours straight, just praying and seeking God, laying before him. And it was during that period of time that God really began to deal with me. He began to heal me. Like I would spend hours cry. I didn't know you could cry. That many got tears. And it wasn't all tears of sadness. It was tears of restoration. It was tears. It was tears of joy. It was like a cleansing, it was deep, and God was reminding me that I am his child. He is reminding me of who I am in spite of what I've been through. And I think the biggest challenge sometimes is to not identify yourself with your pain. Not identify yourself with a disappointment. [00:19:00] Because how another person treats you doesn't mean that's who you are. That just means how they treated you. So, but in that process of seeking God, God begins to restore me. And in that process of restoration, I was able to truly, to forgive from my heart. Because what God did is he took me back to the time that she was a child and begin to show me what it felt like to be an abandoned child. What it felt like to be an abused child, what it felt like to go through different foster care systems and nobody coming to your rescue. So he began to show me, he says, don't take it personal. She's hurting. And at that given moment, I cried with a deep cry and I began to like really just forgive. And it was that journey of forgiveness in complete, in, in wholeness that God was taking me through. That was preparing me for what was coming. So I won't let you jump in 'cause I don't want to talk too much. If you have any questions. Anything like that. No, I think you're saying your story very [00:20:00] eloquently hitting a lot of points that I can relate to. And I think, I mentioned to you that we have male listeners on the podcast that are survivors, that are listening is as well as the women. And they're just starting to get exposure that men do suffer from abuse also. Mm-hmm. How did you feel as a man going through abuse? You touched a little bit in general, but as a man did you get any kind of pushback from your community, your friends, your church about, oh, well, men don't get abused. You're the man of the house. You're supposed to be in charge, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. What was that like? Well, the, the thing about most abusive relationships is you're in isolation. Yes, you're in isolation to protect your own image and also because you also want to protect the image of the person you trying to keep. Especially when you're in [00:21:00] ministry, you don't want people to see her in the light of her flaws. You try to keep people seeing her in the light of her, her gifts and her, her calling, right? So in a lot of times what happens when you're a part of an abusive relationship of any kind, there's an isolation. There's a pulling away from those who love you. You're not telling everybody your situation, even if they seen some of it from a distance. They don't know if it's continuing or not, because you're not sharing that information. And most men, we don't like to talk, we don't like to tell people what we're going through. We kind of go through it ourselves. Meanwhile, we're feeling broken. We're feeling devalued. We're feeling disrespected. We're feeling unworthy, and no matter how anointed we are, no matter how handsome we are, when you go through something like that, it makes you feel like less. And the man you feel, you feel like your manhood has been taken from you, and you, what happens is when you're dealing with a certain personality, if you're not careful, you will lose your voice. And one of the [00:22:00] last things that you can ever do and still re expect respect from a woman, for a man, is to lose your voice. Because if you lose your voice, you no longer lead . So, and to keep the peace sometime, we'll keep silent. So I did get a whole lot, I mean, some family members who knew what I got went through. I mean, my best friend, he was like, bro, I don't even know why he went back type thing. Like he was like, he was on this, I should have ended it a long time ago. Like he was, he had a different perspective on it all together, but other than that, but there wasn't much from that perspective as far as a lot of pushback from the community or, or, negative talk because a lot of people didn't know the extent of what I was going through to after, even to this day, a lot of people still don't know the extent. They just know my marriage didn't work, yeah. I was in full-time ministry with my ex who was my main abuser. And the same thing, I put on the mask. I'm in [00:23:00] ministry, I have to have it all together. I need to protect my reputation. Even, the church's reputation and. I didn't like the way I was treated. The church denomination I was in, devalued women and their their contributions and it was, submit. And that's the only role you have is to do what you're told. And when I wanted to get out, the church told me I couldn't. That is why I stayed and put up with it because the church said, well, you're gonna get excommunicated, you're gonna lose your ministry. You're gonna lose your friends and you're gonna have to start all over again. And that's exactly what happened. But I left because I couldn't take it anymore. I'm like, I don't care anymore. I'm, I'm getting out. Yeah. There's only so much you can stomach and then you wake up one day, it's like, I, can't live like this anymore. And God. I know [00:24:00] you're up there. I haven't been praying for a few years now because I don't think you're listening and but I'm getting out and taking the consequences of whatever happens if they shun me or kick me out for being divorced, so be it. I'll find another ministry. Well, I was like you, I didn't wanna go back into ministry either. My ministry now is very different than church planting that I was doing before. But yeah. So I can relate to a lot of the things that you were saying. Some some parallel there. I think the church has done a disservice. For the most part, the religious community has done a disservice when it comes to matters like this. And believe it or not, we protect the abuser more than we protect the person that's being abused. And this whole idea of, just work it out, work it out, work it out, and they're not understanding the full weight of what's going on. Like when [00:25:00] people have that, and I believe in deliverance, but I truly believe one of the hardest spirits to get rid of is that narcissistic, abusive personality that grows out a orphan spirit. Because that spirit oftentimes is the people are so far gone that even though they're conscious of what they're doing to you, they don't actually see themselves as being a bad person. Right. You're making me lose control. You're pushing me to this point. Mm-hmm. And, and a of times they're very intellectual, they're very gifted. They're, and people, they're likable, to the average person. So people are like, yeah, you just gotta work it out. I mean, every marriage have tough problems. No, I am being abused. I am being manipulated. I am being controlled. God did not create us to be controlled. This is why we always end up feeling some level of depression or a level of unsettling in our belly. Anytime you're under control, because it's not, you're not wired to function that [00:26:00] way, and it's just a matter of time that our, that dominion in us just ride and say, I can't take no more. I gotta get, because I know that, oh, God did not design me to be in control. Unfortunately, we have the enemy sometimes arranged marriages. Mm-hmm. I destinies and then he used religion to keep you in it. You can't get your divorce. You can't. So he'll use scriptures to kind of keep you in something that he's the author of. Because God is not the author of abuse. God is not the author of confusion. God is not the author of disrespect. If my husband is not good and perfect for me, he didn't come from God. I gotta have that. I have to know the word and be confident enough in the word to know that every good and perfect gift comes from above. I don't care how gifted, I don't care how anointed they appear. I don't care how intellectual they may be. If they're abusing me, they're manipulating me, controlling me. That was not from God. Yes, exactly. [00:27:00] Something I give myself, I'm not gonna say God gave me this person. well folks, this is a great place to stop our conversation. I know you want to hear more on prayer and how actually to commune better with God. So be sure to be with us next time on The Wounds of the Faithful Podcast. I wish you a great week. God bless you, and we'll see you next time. Bye for now. Thank you for listening to the Wounds of the Faithful Podcast. If this episode has been helpful to you, please hit the subscribe button and tell a friend. You could connect with us at DSW Ministries dot org where you'll find our blog, along with our Facebook, Twitter, and our YouTube channel links. Hope to see you next week.  

It's Thursday, May 1st, A.D. 2025. This is The Worldview in 5 Minutes heard on 125 radio stations and at www.TheWorldview.com. I'm Adam McManus. (Adam@TheWorldview.com) By Jonathan Clark Police attacked Christians in India The All India Christian Council called out officials in Odisha State, India last week for violence against Christians. The council found that police assaulted tribal Christians, attacking women, children, and priests back in March.  International Christian Concern reported a particularly disturbing event. “A 62-year-old woman who had buried her husband just hours earlier was also allegedly beaten up, along with her 17-year-old daughter, while they were in mourning.” The council noted that officials did not take any formal action against the violent police personnel. Proverbs 11:20-21 says, “Those of crooked heart are an abomination to the LORD, but those of blameless ways are His delight. Be assured, an evil person will not go unpunished, but the offspring of the righteous will be delivered.” 47 percent of Germans are religiously unaffiliated A new study found that people who identify with no religion outnumbered Protestants and Catholics in Germany for the first time last year. These religiously unaffiliated make up a shocking 47 percent of the country's population. Catholics represent 24 percent of the population, and Protestants represent 21 percent. Together, Catholics and Protestants lost over one million members last year in Germany. Meanwhile, the number of Muslims in the country increased by 80,000 last year. Supreme Court could allow publicly-funded religious charter school In the United States, the U.S. Supreme Court heard arguments yesterday in a case that could lead to the nation's first publicly-funded religious charter school. Oklahoma's charter school board approved funding for St. Isidore of Seville Catholic Virtual School. However, the state's attorney general is challenging the decision. Conservative justices on the high court appeared supportive of the religious charter school. Oklahoma State Superintendent Ryan Walters told CBN News what the case is all about. WALTERS: “It's about the freedom to express your religious beliefs without being penalized by the government. And it's about school choice and making sure that parents actually have that power over their kids' education. Avinger, Texas is 74th Sanctuary City for the Unborn Avinger, Texas is the 74th city in the country to become a Sanctuary City for the Unborn. The city council passed the measure in a 3-1 vote on Monday. Avinger resident and former State Representative David Simpson said, “Avinger is blessed to join cities and counties across Texas who are going as far as they can to address the tragedy of abortion, specifically abortion trafficking and the mailing of abortion-inducing drugs.” U.S. economy shrank in first quarter The U.S. economy shrank during the first quarter of this year. The Gross Domestic Product fell 0.3 percent compared to last year. This was the biggest decline since 2022. Economic growth slowed as businesses tried to stock up on imports ahead of President Donald Trump's tariffs. And federal government spending was down 5.1 percent this year. Membership drops again among Southern Baptists Membership declined in the Southern Baptist Convention for the 18th consecutive year in 2024. The U.S. denomination grew from about seven million members in the 1950s to a peak of over 16 million in the mid-2000s. Since then, it has declined to 12.7 million members last year. However, the Southern Baptist Convention baptized 250,000 people last year, a 10 percent jump from 2023.  Kevin Ezell, the president of the North American Mission Board said, “We celebrate every baptism and every new life in Christ. It's encouraging to see these numbers continue to move upward.” Capitol Hill's Bible Reading Marathon And finally, Christians gathered on Capitol Hill to read the entire Bible aloud. The Bible Reading Marathon started Saturday and finished yesterday.  For 90 continuous hours, Christians read from Genesis to Revelation in Washington, D.C. Keith Davidson led the event. He told The Christian Post, “Our goal is to bring attention back to our legislators, of course, and to get the attention back on the word of God. And then for [legislators] to remember that's where our nation's foundation is at, and also, for people who are reading, to let them publicly express their faith.” In an interview on Washington Watch with Tony Perkins, Mike Herbster, Director of Southland Christian Ministries, talked about the power of reading the Bible aloud in the capital of Louisiana, like they did on Capitol Hill. HERBSTER: “We know that the word of God is quick and powerful and sharper than any two-edged sword. [Hebrews 4:12] We know that obviously, as the word of God goes forth, the Bible says it will not return void. [Isaiah 55:11] So, even in the public declaration of it out loud to our state, even though not everybody will hear all of it, we know that some will hear some of it.” Deuteronomy 31:10-11 says, “And Moses commanded them, saying: ‘At the end of every seven years … when all Israel comes to appear before the LORD your God … you shall read this law before all Israel in their hearing. Gather the people together, men and women and little ones, and the stranger who is within your gates, that they may hear and that they may learn to fear the LORD your God and carefully observe all the words of this law.” Close And that's The Worldview on this Thursday, May 1st, in the year of our Lord 2025. Subscribe for free by Amazon Music or by iTunes or email to our unique Christian newscast at www.TheWorldview.com. Or get the Generations app through Google Play or The App Store. I'm Adam McManus (Adam@TheWorldview.com). Seize the day for Jesus Christ.

It's Wednesday, April 30th, A.D. 2025. This is The Worldview in 5 Minutes heard on 125 radio stations and at www.TheWorldview.com.  I'm Adam McManus. (Adam@TheWorldview.com) By Jonathan Clark Nigerian Muslims killed 7 Christians Boko Haram terrorists attacked a Christian community in northeast Nigeria on Monday. The Muslim militants killed seven Christians, injured many more, and destroyed homes and church buildings.  One local believer told Morning Star News, “Kwaple village in Chibok Local Government Area is under attack from Boko Haram terrorists. Please pray for God's intervention.” Indeed, pray for our brothers and sisters in Christ in Nigeria. The African country is ranked seventh on the Open Doors' World Watch List of nations where it is most dangerous to be a Christian.  In John 15:20, Jesus said, “Remember the word that I said to you, ‘A servant is not greater than his master.' If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you. If they kept My word, they will keep yours also.” Only 62% of Americans support free speech Pew Research released a new survey on free expression around the world. Across 35 countries, a majority of adults in most of those countries believe that freedom of the press, freedom of speech, and freedom on the internet are very important.  However, adults are much less likely to say they actually observe complete freedom of expression in their country.  Sadly, in the United States, support for free speech has declined from 71% in 2019 to 62% today.  European power outage crippled Spain, Portugal, and France A massive power outage hit Europe on Monday, affecting Spain, Portugal, and parts of France. The unprecedented failure grounded flights, froze trains, and disrupted cell service. Thankfully, much of the grid was restored yesterday. Experts ruled out sabotage and cyberattacks as the cause. However, Spain's electric operator Red Eléctrica  did identify two incidents of power generation loss that were likely from solar power plants, reports Reuters.  California's economy grew by 6% California's gross domestic product reached $4.1 trillion last year. That put the Golden State ahead of Japan, making it the world's fourth-largest economy behind Germany, China, and the U.S. as a whole. In addition, California's economy grew by 6% last year, faster than the other top four economies. Tennessee doctors and nurses not forced to do abortions Last Thursday, Tennessee Republican Governor Bill Lee signed the Medical Ethics Defense Act into law. The law protects medical professionals from participating in practices that violate their conscience like abortion. Erica Perdomo, an attorney with Alliance Defending Freedom, testified before the Tennessee legislature. PERDOMO: “There are doctors who practice medicine, consistent with a pro-life worldview, in which an abortion is never medically necessary.” Her colleague, Greg Chafuen, praised the legislation. He said, “Patients are best served by health care professionals who are free to act consistent with their oath to ‘do no harm.' … Tennessee's Medical Ethics Defense Act ensures that health care professionals are not forced to participate in procedures that violate their ethical, moral, or religious beliefs.” IBM defends free speech IBM recently changed its advertising policies to back down from censorship in favor of free speech.  Alliance Defending Freedom is leading a coalition that brought about the changes at IBM and other major companies like PepsiCo, Mastercard, and Johnson & Johnson.  Jeremy Tedesco with Alliance Defending Freedom said, “We hope every company follows IBM's example and recommits to doing its part to protect freedom of speech and thought in our nation and throughout the world.” IBM investing $150 billion in America Speaking of IBM, the tech company announced Monday that it plans to invest $150 billion in the U.S. over the next five years. This includes $30 billion for research and development of mainframe quantum computers.  IBM's CEO Arvind Krishna spoke to Fox Business about the investment.  KRISHNA: “We are extremely focused on leveraging American ingenuity and American innovation. “When I think about artificial intelligence, quantum computing, mainframe computers, this Research and Development investment, coupled with all of the associated manufacturing, is going to allow the United States to be at the front of all those three technologies.” Religiously unaffiliated in U.S. at 22% now And finally, Gallup released a new survey on religious preferences in the United States. Protestant identification was 45% last year, down from 57% in 2000. Catholic identification is 21%, down from 25%. And identification with no religion at all is 22%, up from 8% over the same time period.  Although the number of religiously unaffiliated Americans surged from 2000 to 2017, their growth has plateaued in recent years. Hebrews 10:23-24 says, “Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful. And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works.” Close And that's The Worldview on this Wednesday, April 30th, in the year of our Lord 2025. Subscribe for free by Amazon Music or by iTunes or email to our unique Christian newscast at www.TheWorldview.com. Or get the Generations app through Google Play or The App Store. I'm Adam McManus (Adam@TheWorldview.com). Seize the day for Jesus Christ.

Hassan Khan joins Natalie on the show to talk about growing up as a queer person in a Muslim household. Natalie and Hassan will share experiences of growing up in a time where homophobia was more insidious in schools and homes, even when it was subtle. They will speak on how their families shaped their experiences and viewpoints on things like queer culture and how they still found ways to learn about the queer community. Other topics will include emeigrating to the United States, how religion plays a role in how you identify yourself, how religion and family structure play a role in how you view yourself as an artist, and more.Support the ShowMake sure you have subscribed to us on Patreon! Every tier has a 7-day free trial and it is the only place to find our free blog posts, Tolerator Check-In episodes, and The Misogyny Meltdown. Follow us at @menivetoleratedpod on Instagram! All ways to support the show can be found at https://linktr.ee/menivetoleratedpod. Join the newsletter so you never miss any update we have on Team Tolerator!Find HassanInstagram

I sat down with the brilliant, wildly observant Emily Sundberg — writer, internet culture critic, and honestly one of the most tapped-in people I know. She currently has the most popular Substacks in business and culture - and the only one I read RELIGIOUSLY. We talk about everything from her start in journalism, to writing daily, navigating work, creating a network and much more. She's sharp, she's thoughtful, she's funny and honestly, I'm very proud of her. Whether you're a 20-something trying to figure it out, or a 30-something trying to un-figure it all out — this one's for you. Produced by Dear MediaSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

(We had an issue with the audio from 08:00-11:00)The 9 Reasons: 00:00 - Intro08:13 - Philosophically16:11 - Scientifically22:32 - Ethically28:35 - Existentially30:59 - Historically40:24 - Culturally43:06 - Religiously 46:42 - Experientially 48:00 - Pragmatically

(We had an issue with the audio from 08:00-11:00)The 9 Reasons: 00:00 - Intro08:13 - Philosophically16:11 - Scientifically22:32 - Ethically28:35 - Existentially30:59 - Historically40:24 - Culturally43:06 - Religiously 46:42 - Experientially 48:00 - Pragmatically

Terry Mattingly of Rational Sheep Rational Sheep Pop Goes Religion: Faith in Popular Culture GetReligion.org The post Media Coverage of Religiously Exclusive Communities – Terry Mattingly, 4/2/25 (0913) first appeared on Issues, Etc..

Episode Notes It's time yet again for one of those ever popular "Preacher Features"! This week, you'll be introduced to the confident and capable Randall Rearden, who serves as senior pastor of Finchville Baptist Church in Shelby County (just outside of Louisville). Randall has an abundance of ministry experience to his credit, which includes service as a youth pastor, and various forms of mission work. Grab a seat as he sheds light on each of the aforementioned aspects of his resume, and explains his inspiration for seminary enrollment upon completion of a Broadcasting degree from Western Kentucky University. He also extends words of wisdom for all of our future ministers. Listening to and learning from this man of many ventures and talents is beyond worth while! And, simply hit the following link to learn even more about Finchville Baptist Church: https://finchvillebaptist.com/. Find out more at https://blabbin-in-the-bluegrassblabbi.pinecast.co

Connecting the Holocaust and Our Nightmare Phantom Nation 26FEB2025 - PODCAST

What's the opposite of morally grey? Religiously rainbow? That's what Finn is. Oh and another thing, men like him don't exist. We couldn't get enough of this book. TW: Gaslighting

Title: 13 Men Stuck Between Two Faiths Text: Acts 19:1-7 FCF: We all struggle to with the tension of the diversity and uniformity that exists in the church. Prop: Because all kind of people will receive the Holy Spirit, we must call all to repent, believe on Christ, and be baptized in His name. Scripture Intro: [Slide 1] Turn in your bible to Acts 19. In a moment we will read starting in verse 1 from the New English Translation. You can follow along in the pew bible or whatever version you prefer. Last week Luke closed out the record of the second missionary journey of Paul. As he did this, he gave record of the work as it continued in Paul's absence. Part of this work was to record an episode concerning another major figure in the work of the kingdom. Apollos the evangelist and apologist steps on the scene and heads off to Achaia to continue the work there refuting the Jews. Today, in what is obviously connected thematically to the previous episode of Apollos, Luke will record another interaction with 12 men who were also converts of John the Baptist. But this time we will see Paul address and correct their deficiencies in doctrine. In this narrative episode, we will learn a great deal about how the gospel call will be answered by a broad and diverse group of people, but the gospel effect is quite narrow and uniform. Let's look at chapter 19 verse 1. Please stand with me to give honor to and to focus on the reading of the Word of God. Invocation: Most High God, Father of the Nations, King of Kings and Lord of Lords, we come to You today as citizens of Your Kingdom. You have called and gathered us from the ends of the earth and granted us sight to see the wonderous truths of Your holy order. You have shone through our blind eyes to awake us to the hope of life in Your son Jesus Christ. You have plunged us into baptism, immersed us into the total work of the Godhead to save us from sin and death and free us to life eternal. You have given us your Holy Spirit to live in us and guide us in all things. Father these truths are so precious to us. Help us to see in Your word today how these truths affect how we engage our culture and even our enemies. Help our faith to be moved to action today by what You have revealed. Help us to love You more. We pray this in Jesus' name, Amen. Transition: [Slide 2] It's amazing how catastrophic the smallest piece of information withheld at the worst time can be. Whether it is a navigation system failing to give an audible direction on time, or a text not coming through to inform you of the change of a meeting time or location, or the failure of a coach to give the signal to steal. In these moments, had the information been given, certain catastrophe could have been avoided and all would have gone according to plan. Today we will meet 12 men who missed, by a good 20 years, a rather pivotal piece of information regarding the most important subject that exists… the future of their eternal souls. They had 90% of the message, but unfortunately for them the last 10% was so significant, they were now caught between two faiths, seen as a heretic by one and as lacking by the other. So, are they without hope? Are they too late? Are they just victims of bad timing? Let's find out. I.) All who are genuinely part of Christ's church have received the Holy Spirit, so we must call all to repent, believe on Christ, and be baptized in His name. a. [Slide 3] 1 - While Apollos was in Corinth, Paul went through the inland regions and came to Ephesus. i. Although Luke only said that Apollos was going to Achaia, as he continues, it is clear that the capital of Achaia was Apollos' true destination. ii. We know from various other passages of scripture that Apollos made an impression on the city of Corinth. iii. While he was there, Paul comes to Ephesus by the inland regions. iv. We don't quite know when this missionary journey began. v. The best estimates are somewhere between late AD 52 and AD 53. vi. [Slide 4] Paul travels through the inland regions meaning he comes by a direct route to Ephesus. He is visiting some of the churches he planted in the first missionary journey along the way. vii. But it is clear that Paul intends to come to Ephesus and spend a good deal of time there. viii. This verse provides a clear connection between Apollos' story and what will follow. Apollos is referenced along with the beginning of the trip Luke already mentioned in chapter 18 verse 23. ix. It is obvious that the first 7 verses of chapter 19 are intended to be taken together with the previous account of Apollos. x. It is an unfortunate chapter division. b. [Slide 5] He found some disciples there 2 - and said to them, “Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?” They replied, “No, we have not even heard that there is a Holy Spirit.” i. When Paul arrives, he discovers a group of disciples, followers, learners who appear to be believers. ii. Nevertheless, something seems off about them. So, Paul asks them if they had received the Holy Spirit when they believed. iii. The Holy Spirit's indwelling is THE sign of a person being a citizen of the kingdom of God. iv. Paul does not ask first if they believed on Jesus. He doesn't ask first if they have been baptized. He doesn't ask first if they are involved in a local church somewhere. v. The book of Acts makes it clear that the only way we really know that someone is of the Kingdom of God – is if they have received the Holy Spirit. vi. That is the sign given to us that we are redeemed. vii. Furthermore, Paul links the coming of the Holy Spirit with belief. Receiving faith in Jesus Christ for a genuine member of the church is, at least in Paul's mind, linked with the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. viii. This is NOT the Spirit's work of regeneration, which happens prior to belief as we have seen in several of our book studies over the last few years. ix. That work is like a wind and happens unpredictably and without warning, like Jesus says to Nicodemus. x. But the Indwelling of the Spirit is a predictable outcome upon genuine belief. At least this is what Paul is assuming. xi. Now because these men answer in the way they do it is very obvious that they are not truly disciples of Christ. 1. There is an untranslated word in the Greek that indicates something that is in addition to in an amplifying manner. 2. In English we often use the expression “not only, blah blah blah, but also blah blah blah” in these instances. 3. The NET translators have done an excellent job expressing this efficiently by simply supplying the word “even” in the text. 4. Not only have they not received the Holy Spirit… but also we have not even heard that there IS a Holy Spirit. 5. This could mean that they have never heard of the third person of the Godhead, but because they are Jews, it is far more likely that they had not heard that the third person of the Godhead was present in this way and was available to be received by anyone or by any means. xii. Since their response obviously indicated that they were not indwelled by the Holy Spirit Paul has another question. c. [Slide 6] 3 - So, Paul said, “Into what then were you baptized?” “Into John's baptism,” they replied. i. Had their statement been either that they had received the Spirit, or that they THOUGHT they had received the Holy Spirit, we might expect Paul's question to be different. 1. In other words, the test of whether or not someone has the Holy Spirit is not what that they have been baptized into the triune God. 2. From other texts of the New Testament, we find that the true test of whether or not someone has been indwelled with the Spirit is knowledge of God on an intimate level. 3. Although assurance can be lost for a time, the New Testament makes it seem that most Christians should live in a constant awareness of the Spirit's indwelling presence. 4. Indeed, so much of the New Testament is given as a means to see, experience, recognize, or assure ourselves of the Spirit's indwelling presence in us. 5. And not only for us but also for assurance of the Holy Spirit's presence in others. 6. And His presence is greatly tied to His changing and grace giving power in us to be and do what God has remade us to be and do. ii. So, notice here Paul's immediate question following their confession that they did not realize that the Spirit was available to be received. iii. Paul immediately associates the indwelling of the Holy Spirit with baptism. iv. In Acts, while sometimes the Spirit comes before water baptism, sometimes after, and sometimes at the same time, there is a close association of the indwelling of the Spirit and baptism. v. Just as there is a close association with the indwelling of the Spirit and belief on Christ. vi. In this, Peter's message at Pentecost remains the definitive test for the normal indicative experience of every person entering the family of God. vii. As Peter puts it “Repent, and each one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.” viii. Repentance and belief on Christ lead to the indwelling of the Spirit of God and baptism in Jesus' name proves the commitment of one who is indwelled with the Spirit of God. To Paul – all three should be present because all three are necessary, even if they are not necessary in the same way. ix. Paul has taken these men as disciples of Christ and even assumed that they were baptized members of the church. But if they haven't been indwelled with the Spirit of God… then he needs to find out more about their baptism. x. If their baptism wasn't in submission to the indwelled Spirit of God… what was it for? xi. And in this we find that they were baptized into John's Baptism. xii. Since, as we said, Luke has put the stories of Apollos and these men back-to-back, it is clear Luke wants us to see that both Apollos and these disciples were faithful Jews who had been taught from John's school. xiii. Jews baptized to prepare them with repentance for the coming forgiveness of sins through the immanent Messiah. xiv. What is also clear is that the baptism of John, including all John taught, was not enough to fully transition a Jewish persons' faith into a Messianic, New Covenant faith. It was not enough to push them to take the next step of Judaism and become a Christian. xv. The way the book of Acts crafts this whole discussion is that there are not two different faiths, Judaism and Christianity. Instead, there is True Judaism which was for the Jews to receive Jesus as their Messiah and join the church to become Christians… and there were those Jews who had rejected their own Messiah and become dead branches and cut off from their covenant promises. xvi. But in regard to these men, they are somewhere in-between. They are stuck in the Old Covenant still. They haven't rejected Christ; in fact, they are prepared to receive Him… but they have not yet understood what to receive and how. xvii. So, the real question is – are they allowed at this late hour to be admitted into the Kingdom of Christ? Is it too late for these Jews who have not yet rejected their Messiah, to receive their Messiah? xviii. We'll have to see what Paul does with them in a moment. d. [Slide 7] Summary of the Point: Luke begins this third missionary journey with the record of Paul testing the profession of a group of 12 men. In this we see Luke's point, that the Kingdom of God produces certain uniform and verifiable results to all who enter it. The very first of these is the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit, which is inextricably linked to receiving faith in Christ and baptism in His name. In this we can draw the teaching that the Holy Spirit's indwelling presence is the standard by which we test if someone is part of Christ's church or not. It is not mere profession alone, nor mere baptism alone. Evidence of the Spirit's indwelling is absolutely essential. And the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit is only given to those who have repented and believed the correct doctrine concerning Jesus. And The Spirit's indwelling presence is first evidenced by obedience in submitting to baptism in Jesus' name as a picture of their faith in Christ. Since all this is true, just as Paul did, we must be sure that all who would be part of the church have received the Spirit through repentance and faith in Christ and have evidenced the Holy Spirit's indwelling through obedience first by baptism in Jesus' name. Transition: [Slide 8(blank)] So now that Paul knows the problem, what will be his tactic to deal with these men who are stuck between two faiths? Are they disqualified? If not, how will he prove to them that they lack understanding concerning the Messiah? Let's look. II.) The gospel call will be answered by all kinds of people, so we must call all to repent, believe on Christ, and be baptized in His name. a. [Slide 9] 4 - Paul said, “John baptized with a baptism of repentance, telling the people to believe in the one who was to come after him, that is, in Jesus.” i. How does Paul engage these Jews who are on the edge of taking the next step in Judaism? ii. He engages them in what he knows John taught. He started from what they believed and knew. iii. A wonderful tactic we should emulate when we take the gospel to others. iv. John taught them to be baptized in repentance and to believe in the one who was going to come after him. v. Well John's been dead for about 25 years, and apparently, they had not heard, or had forgotten that Jesus had actually came to John to be baptized, at which point John identified Him as the one who came after. vi. Either they had not heard or had forgotten that John prophesied that the Messiah would baptize with the Holy Spirit. vii. Paul's message is – my friends, have you not heard? The One who was to come after John has come. The One who baptizes with the Spirit has come. viii. He is Jesus. b. [Slide 10] 5 - When they heard this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus, i. Again, we see baptism, belief, and repentance rolled into one event. ii. Baptism is again affiliated strongly with the conversion of a person and not their preparation for conversion. We as Baptists really like to point that out. iii. They were baptized into a new and better baptism. iv. Where John's baptism was anticipatory (like many baptisms in Christendom today seem to be), Jesus' baptism is a declaration of affiliation. v. Where John's baptism was never meant to be the final baptism, baptism into the triune God is final. vi. Where John's baptism was in preparation for a hope of something to come (again like many baptisms in Christendom today), Jesus' baptism is a physical sign of that hope being fulfilled. vii. John's baptism required repentance and admission of sinfulness and desire for forgiveness, but it was not enough. You must believe on Jesus and be baptized into Him in order to be part of the church. viii. Luke recording this immediately following Apollos' experience sheds more light on what is going on here. ix. It is probably safe to conclude that even though Apollos taught rightly about Jesus in what he knew, he too was only acquainted with the teachings of John. Meaning that he too needed to receive faith in Christ and be baptized into Him. x. And even though Luke did not record such an event, because of what we see happening only a few verses later, we can reasonably assume that he too was baptized into the triune God. c. [Slide 11] 6 - and when Paul placed his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came upon them, and they began to speak in tongues and to prophesy. 7 - (Now there were about twelve men in all.) i. As we've seen in each of the cases where a new group of people have come to faith in Christ, the Holy Spirit's indwelling is accompanied with the sign gifts of tongues and prophesy. ii. The same sign indicates that all these different kinds of people are joining the same church. iii. There is not a Samaritan church, a God-Fearer church, a gentile church, a Jewish church, and now a Baptistic Jewish Church. iv. All the different factions of humanity homogenize into one church who are saved by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone and are indwelled with the Holy Spirit. v. Some may ask, “Why did the Holy Spirit come after belief and baptism and only when Paul placed his hands on them? 1. To the Jews in Acts 2, the apostles were filled with the Spirit and spoke in tongues yet we have no passage in the entire New Testament where they were baptized in Jesus' name. 2. Then they preached to other Jews who accepted the message and were baptized, but the timing of the Holy Spirit's indwelling is not mentioned there nor that they displayed sign gifts. 3. To the Samaritans in Acts 8 they accepted the message and were baptized but did not receive the Spirit until Peter and John came down and prayed that they would receive the Holy Spirit. After this, it is said they did receive the Spirit but not how that was known. We assumed it was due to sign gifts. 4. To the God-Fearers and Gentiles in Acts 10, they heard the message and in their receiving of faith, the Holy Spirit fell on them evidenced by sign gifts such as speaking in tongues. With this evidence, Peter concludes that baptism should be offered immediately since they have the Spirit. 5. Finally, here in chapter 19 we see the apostle Paul (much like Peter and John toward the Samaritans) laid hands on these twelve Baptistic Jewish after they had believed and were baptized and they received the Holy Spirit as evidenced with sign gifts. 6. So, our question is… is the lack of a pattern teaching us a lesson? 7. The lesson is that the Holy Spirit came when He wanted upon those whom He wanted and when He arrived that was a sign not only meant for the person who had just believed, but primarily for those who were already a part of the Kingdom to recognize that this new group of people could join and were now part of the church. 8. People who aren't pure Jews could be part of the church. People who weren't Jews at all but were somewhat Jewish in their faith could be part of the church. People that were neither Jewish in faith or nationality could be part of the church and finally those who were not quite Jewish but not quite Christian… could be part of the church. 9. With this, the last demarcation of human existence is toppled. God so loved the world… All kinds of different people… that He gave His only Son that ALL the believing ones in Him will not perish but have everlasting life. d. [Slide 12] Summary of the Point: Although Luke's first point was the rigidness and uniformity of the path to become part of Christ's church, his second point shows the diversity and breadth of those who will answer the gospel call. As Baptistic Jews these men were borderline Jewish heretics while at the same time being borderline Christian heretics. They were truly a group of people caught in the middle with no belonging. But just as we have seen the gospel go to the nation of the Jews who rejected their own Messiah, just as we've seen the gospel go to the Samaritans who were Jewish cultists and heretics, just as we've seen the gospel go to those who could never be Jewish like the Ethiopian Eunuch, Just as we've seen the gospel go to God-Fearers who were gentile Yahweh worshippers, just as we've seen the gospel go to gentile pagans who were polytheists, just as we've seen the gospel go to the wealthy, the powerful, the poor, the weak, so now we see the gospel go to this group who don't belong to any faith at all. Religiously ousted by the Jews and not quite Christian either. Yet they respond and come to Christ. Luke's point – is that the gospel is for all kinds of men. The gospel call goes out to all people. And it will be heard by all kinds of people. So we must be sure to call all to receive the Spirit through repentance and faith in Christ and evidence the Holy Spirit's indwelling through obedience first in baptism in Jesus' name. Conclusion: So, what have we learned today CBC, and how shall we live? Doctrinal takeaway: [Slide 13] Two points of doctrine coalesce into the funnel of the Kingdom of God. The gospel call will be answered very broadly. Men and women from all kinds of backgrounds will hear the call of God and receive faith in Christ and be baptized in His name. People coming from various religious backgrounds, socioeconomic statuses, political perspectives, ethnicities, skin colors, the powerful, the famous, the weak, the deplorables and every one in between, the Lord is gathering, in the broadest possible way, His Kingdom together. But this is a funnel because as He gathers them from a diverse and broad background, He funnels them into the same narrow gate. They must receive the Holy Spirit through repentance and faith in Christ alone and that reception of the Spirit must be evidenced by obedient and submissive hearts to publicly declare with their words and actions that Christ is their Lord and Savior, first in baptism in His name and every day following by living upright and holy lives. Though we may have been very different people before we came to Christ – after coming to Christ we are all more alike than we are different. Why? Because the things that made us different before are insignificant when compared to the thing that makes us the same. Since this is true… we must call all kinds of people from various backgrounds to the exact same gospel. Repent, believe the gospel of Christ and be baptized in His name. You will receive the Spirit of God and then all the world will know you are His. Sealed until the day of redemption. But let me apply this more specifically to us today. 1.) [Slide 14] Mind Transformation: “What truth must we believe from this text?” or “What might we not naturally believe that we must believe because of what this text has said?” We must believe that the gospel call will be answered by people from a wide variety of backgrounds. a. Why must we love our enemies? b. Why must we love those who persecute us? c. Why must we pray for those who spitefully use us? d. Why are we not free to treat others as they treat us? e. In the political realm, in the social realm, at work, in our families – why can't we fight fire with fire? Trade insult for insult? Scream louder? Fight harder? f. My friends, in a moment, according to the will of God, His Spirit can regenerate a heart and prepare it to receive faith in Christ and with faith the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. g. Such a miracle can happen to literally any person we know who still draws breath on this earth. h. Died in the wool democrats with the most liberal agenda, wealthy autocrats, corporate stooges, porn stars, drag queens, transgender people and pundits, Mormons, Modalists, Managers, Swiss people, German people, black, white, red and yellow, bumpkins and geniuses, southerners and northerners… and yes, apparently even Ohioans – My friends the gospel call goes to all and the gospel call is received by all kinds. i. The vision of the New Kingdom is global and the Lord is gathering His church from all the nations of the earth. j. Even these 13 men, forgotten in the middle of these two religious systems., but friends they were NOT FORGOTTEN by GOD! k. He had elected them before the foundation of the world and although they were late to the party… they were given the truth and welcomed to the fold. l. You and I cannot afford to be at war with anyone on this earth. Why? m. Because even if they aren't now… they may one day be our brother or sister in Christ. n. So what does that mean for us? 2.) [Slide 15] Exhortation: “What actions should we take?” or “What is this passage specifically commanding us to do that we don't naturally do or aren't currently doing?” We must take the gospel to all people. a. I'm not saying we should not fight to keep morality and godly principles as the law of the land. b. But when we are talking about actual people. Not organizations or groups… but people… we must assume that even they, if the Lord so allows, will be brought to Christ through His Word. c. Faith comes by hearing and hearing by what? The Word of God. d. And what does the Lord say about His word in Isaiah 55? It will not return to him void. It will accomplish the purpose for which it was sent. e. The Word of God always accomplishes the purpose that God sends it to do. f. We preach the word of God, the gospel of Jesus Christ and we call all men everywhere to repent and believe the gospel and be baptized in Jesus' name. g. God's purpose for His Word is different for different people. For Pharoah, it hardened Him. But for you and I… it broke us. h. If the gospel call goes out to all men, then all kinds of men are being drawn with that gospel Word. i. We must faithfully give it to all. Even those who persecute us. Even those who spitefully use us. j. Don't get sucked in to fighting battles over policies and earthly issues. k. Preach the Word of God and share His gospel. l. They may hate you for it… but at least then you are doing what your Lord has required of you. 3.) [Slide 16] Refutation: “What lies must we cast down” or “What do we naturally believe, or have been taught to believe, that this passage shows is false?” We must deny that people can enter the narrow way by various gates. a. But we would also do well to remember that although the ones whom the Lord has called to His Kingdom are from a diverse background… all who come, come by a narrow way. b. In some very unimportant things, we have great diversity in the church. Music preferences, certain doctrinal convictions on dress standards, movie preferences and more. c. But listen, where it counts, in what matters… we are exactly the same. d. We believe in God the Father almighty maker of heaven and earth. e. And in Jesus Christ His only Son our Lord. f. Who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified died and was buried and descended into hell. g. The third day he rose again from the dead, he ascended in heaven and is seated at the right hand of God the Father Almighty. h. From there He will come to judge the living and the dead. i. We believe in the Holy Spirit and His indwelling in all who truly believe. j. We believe in the Holy Universal Church which was predestined, called, justified, is being sanctified and will one day be glorified. k. We believe in the communion of this church known in the scriptures as the saints. l. We believe in the forgiveness of sins by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone. m. We believe in the resurrection of the body in whom Christ was firstborn of many siblings. n. We believe in eternal life which is given to all the believing ones in Christ. o. This set of beliefs and all the ramifications it has on us are the core of what we are. p. So much so, that to deny any of these points sets one's profession immediately into question. q. There is no room for diversity in these things for those who have entered the narrow gate. r. And for us, CBC, we also believe in being baptized in the name of the Triune God as a picture of belief in Christ and that we will one day be raised to life eternal which begins the moment we are baptized in the Spirit. s. That those who are truly Christ's followers must follow in baptism. There is no such person in the New Testament who after receiving Christ by true faith, was not baptized shortly after if it were possible. t. My friends… doctrine matters. Paul did not tell these men… well… close enough guys. u. Instead, he preached the gospel to them. And baptized them again in the triune God. v. And they are so very glad that he did. w. What does this mean for us? 4.) [Slide 17] Exhortation: “What actions should we take?” or “What is this passage specifically commanding us to do that we don't naturally do or aren't currently doing?” We must test professions of faith for evidence of the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit. a. Although we preach the gospel to all because all may come… b. Once a person comes, we must expect them to be more the same than they are different. c. In our hyper individualized world, we sometimes forget the communal aspect of the church. d. You cannot join us and be who you wish to be. e. The church is one body. We must function together. We must be more alike than we are different. f. This is why the Scriptures exist. This is why church discipline exists. This is why Elders exist. To ensure that we are all of one body and mind. Unified in doctrine and practice. g. We can have room for diversity in matters that the scriptures do not make plain. h. But there can be no unity when we disagree over issues to which the scriptures clearly speak. i. In this passage Paul expects the Holy Spirit to be present, and a profession in Christ and baptism in His name to be necessary. j. To this list we can add all that the scriptures plainly declare to us concerning all things most important of which being the way of redemption. k. When we find those who lack this by doctrine or practice – we must investigate and reprove, rebuke, correct, and instruct in righteousness so that they will be furnished for every good work. 5.) [Slide 18] Comfort: “What comfort can we find here?” or “What peace does the Lord promise us in light of this passage of scripture?” God won't deny any who faithfully seek Him. a. These 13 men faithfully sought the Messiah. b. They believed John and were baptized into his teaching. c. They were simply ignorant of the Messiah's identity and mission. d. God does not forget them. He doesn't leave them behind. He doesn't say – so close… but too late. e. Our friends, relatives, those we love, and those who hate us – if they faithfully seek the Lord… He will reveal Himself to them. f. For our God is a good and gracious God. [Slide 19 (end)] Let me close with a prayer by the English Puritan John Bunyan. Lord, we profess the faith, and yet care not for the dying. We profess, and yet long not for the coming of the day of God. We profess, and yet by our whole life show to them that can see how little a measure of it we have in our hearts. Lord, lead us more into the power of things. Then the virtues of Him who has saved us, and called us out of darkness into His marvelous light, will be made known to others. It is in His name we ask this. Amen. Benediction: May He who builds His lofty palace in the heavens And sets its foundation on the earth, Who calls for the waters of the sea And pours them out over the face of the land Grant you an awareness of His love that you may be always joyful, praying continually and giving thanks in all circumstances and bearing witness of this to all For this is the will of God for you. Until we meet again, go in peace.

Henry Ogbuchi - January 12th, 2025 - Messiah's Miracles. - The Power of Having Faith in Jesus Christ. “Believe me that I am in the Father, and the Father in me; or else believe me for the very works' sake.” (John 14:11). What Miracles were performed by Jesus as recorded in the “gospel of Matthew” 8 : 1-34? Leper Cleansed, Mathew 8: 1-4 Servant Healed - Centurion, Mathew 8: 5-13 Fever Cured – Peter's Mother-in-law, Mathew 8:14-15 Demons Cast - Many, Mathew 8:16-17 Storm Calmed, Mathew 8:23-27 Restored Two Demons-Possessed Men. Mathew 8: 28-32 What were the notable similarities in most of the Miracles? –Matthew 8:1-34 Faith required, Divine authority, Compassion shown, Instant results and Jesus's power demonstrated. What were the notable differences in some of the Miracles? –Matthew 8:1-34 Physical touch Distance healing Natural forces addressed Jesus Christ - Cleansing the Leper. Matthew 8:1-4; Luke 5:12-14; Mark 1:40-45; Significance. The leper was “full of leprosy”, not just partially leprous. Leprosy is a picture of sin. We were once fully leprous, being dead in our sins. But Jesus drew us to Himself, and we were cleansed when we believed in Him as our Lord and Savior. Lepers were untouchables, physical contact with them might expose one to infection and under Law ceremonially unclean (Leviticus 13:44-46). For the Jews, they become unfit to worship with congregation of Isreal. Jesus completely healed the leper. Our Savor has power to cleanse (WHOEVER Believe and Accept) and from sin and qualify us to worship – Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Mathew 11:28 Jesus Proved HIS Willingness To touch a leper was dangerous medically, Religiously defiling and Socially degrading, Jesus contracted no defilement. Jesus could have just spoken a word and healed the leper without touching him By touching him, Jesus proved that He was willing to cleanse him, and yet Jesus never became uncleaned. Other kings may have chosen to heal leper from a distance if they could. Jesus Could but choose to touch. Jesus Breaking Barriers Jesus' finished work at the cross is greater than Adam's sin (Romans 5:15-19). Jesus is greater than the Levitical priesthood — He became our great High Priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek (Hebrews 7:21-28). Jesus Christ - Healing the Centurion's Servant. Matthew 8:5-13, Luke 7:1-10 You Have Authority from God Notice that the centurion said he was a man under authority who had been given authority over soldiers. He used what he could relate with to process his faith in Jesus. Absolute Trust and Faith in Jesus. The centurion believed that Jesus was empowered to heal by a higher authority, “God”, (Jesus' spoken words were like soldiers sent forth to prosper in the command they received). Once Spoken by God – It is “Settled” Jesus declared that it would happen as the centurion believed. We must get to this place in our heart where we believe what God says. Without the Law condemning him and making him feel unworthy, he just had great faith in Jesus, without any doubt that all things were possible to Jesus — even healing by just speaking a word. Our Part The multitudes came to hear Jesus first, before getting healed — Faith comes by hearing the word of Christ (Romans 10:17). If we still have unbelief, keep hearing about Jesus and how God's love is manifested through Him— Immediately the father of the child cried out and said with tears, “Lord, I believe; help my unbelief!” Mark 9:24

For this solo episode of the Let´s Talk Dog Business Podcast, Jo & Vicky discuss the importance of focusing on one business strategy at a time. Using examples from their own experience and that of their mentees, they demonstrate why splitting your time and energy and trying to achieve too much at once is counterproductive. They then explain how a business that currently offers numerous courses can distil and hone things so that they can offer one product and focus on that. Sharing how to do that in a way that enables you to make higher profits. They also explain how to identify which business tasks you need to focus on first. KEY TAKEAWAYS Focusing on one thing. Getting really good at it will take your business further faster. Not focusing usually means you end up only half doing things and not maximising opportunities. Once you are good at something you know for sure whether it is profitable or not. Offering one programme makes marketing far easier and more effective. How to distil everything down into one product or course is explained during the podcast. Learning one new skill at a time is by far the fastest way to learn and hone that skill. Religiously using the right calendar is a simple way to ensure that you always focus on the right thing at the right time. Plan out your time and stick to that schedule. Initially, it will feel restrictive but taking that focused action will quickly end up providing you with more freedom. Stop trying to cover too much in your classes. Instead, focus on getting your client to the stage where they can do the thing that will solve their problem, and do it well. Trying to cover too much in one lesson just overwhelms and frustrates clients. Ask the right questions to get your clients to think. When you do that, lightbulb moments happen, and your clients progress faster. BEST MOMENTS “Focus on understanding why your business exists and that outcome for your client.” “The biggest thing we did was to streamline all of our services into one.” “It's pointless dipping into loads of different areas. You've just got to do one thing.” “We should just be focusing on one thing per class. Just by doing that we hugely elevate that class.” “Set the expectation and dare to be different.” “Doing everything at once is not the answer.” SOCIALS AND IMPORTANT LINKS https://www.tiktok.com/@letstalkdogbusiness https://www.youtube.com/@LetsTalkDogBusiness Website www.caninebusinessacademy.com Community Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/caninebusinessacademycommunity/ ABOUT THE HOSTS Meet Jo and Vicky! They bring a combined 25 years of expertise in the canine industry. Jo, with a background in corporate business, and Vicky, a dedicated advocate for rescue organisations, form an unstoppable team. Beyond the mic, their lives are a whirlwind – managing two successful businesses, pursuing a full-time university degree, and parenting two little ones under four. Each of their homes combined is a lively menagerie, housing five dogs and an abundance of chickens.

Sponsors: The Clergy Confessions Podcast (www.clergyconfessions.com); Gardner-Webb University School of Divinity (www.gardner-webb.edu); Baptist Seminary of Kentucky (www.bsk.edu); Baylor's Garland School of Social Work; The Community Transformation Center at Palm Beach Atlantic University (www.pbactc.org); The Center for Congregational Health (https://healthychurch.org); and The Baptist House of Studies at Union Presbyterian Seminary (https://www.upsem.edu/). Join the listener community at https://www.classy.org/campaign/podcast-listener-support/c251116. Music from HookSounds.com.

Iran's Religious and Ethnic Diversity, Part I: Introduction This episode delves into the rich tapestry of Iran's religious, linguistic, and ethnic diversity, tracing its ‎roots from the ancient Persian empires to the transformative events of the Islamic Revolution of 1979. ‎Iran's historical role as a crossroads of civilizations has shaped a multi-ethnic society, with Persian as the ‎national language alongside numerous minority languages and dialects. Religiously, while Shiism ‎dominates, smaller communities of Sunni Muslims, Christians, Jews, Zoroastrians, and Bahā'īs ‎contribute to the nation's pluralistic identity.‎ We explore how efforts at centralization during the Pahlavi era—through language policies, land ‎reforms, and modernization—sought to homogenize this diversity, often with limited success. The ‎Islamic Revolution then ushered in a Shiite theocracy, profoundly impacting Iran's sociopolitical fabric. ‎Recognized religious minorities, such as Zoroastrians, Christians, and Jews, face varying degrees of ‎inclusion and restrictions, influenced by constitutional provisions and state strategies.‎ From Reza Shah's modernization policies to Khomeini's establishment of a dual governance system, ‎the episode examines the tension between Iran's vibrant diversity and the state's attempts to impose ‎ideological unity.‎ Keywords ‎#IranDiversity #ReligiousPluralism #IslamicRevolution #PersianHeritage #EthnicMinorities #Jews ‎‎#Iranianjews #Rezashah #Khomeini #Iran‎

Co-hosts Beth Stovell and Jon Stovell speak with Pete Enns about his research and writing, including his new book, Curveball: When Your Faith Takes Turns You Never Saw Coming (or How I Stumbled and Tripped My Way to Finding a Bigger God) (HarperOne, 2023). Dr. Peter Enns (PhD, Harvard University) is Abram S. Clemens professor of Biblical Studies at Eastern University, St. Davids, PA. He has taught courses at several other institutions including Harvard University, Fuller Theological Seminary, and Princeton Theological Seminary. Enns is a frequent contributor to journals and encyclopedias, and is the author of several books, including, The Bible Tells Me So: Why Defending Scripture Has Made Us Unable to Read It (HarperOne), The Bible and the Believer: How to Read the Bible Critically and Religiously (with Marc Brettler and Daniel Harrington, Oxford University Press), Inspiration and Incarnation: Evangelicals and The Problem of the Old Testament (Baker), and The Evolution of Adam: What the Bible Does and Doesn't Say about Human Origins (Baker).  

Series: N/AService: Radio Program / PodcastType: Radio Program / PodcastSpeaker: E.R. Hall, Jr.

Bio: Rhonda Moret is the Founder and CEO of Elevated Diversity, recognized for her leadership in diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) and health equity. She has spent over a decade helping organizations develop equitable practices to benefit both workplaces and communities. A first-generation college graduate, Rhonda started her career at a multicultural ad agency, later becoming a communications strategist for major brands like Universal and Nike Golf. Often the only woman and person of color in her roles, she faced significant challenges. These experiences led her to establish Elevated Diversity in 2017, aiming to help organizations implement sustainable DEI strategies. The company's innovative approach has attracted clients such as Berkeley Symphony, Boston Beer, and Homeland Security.Links:Website: www.elevateddiversity.comLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rhondamoret/Quote: “So much of who we are today and how we present ourselves to the world is based on all of these situations and occurrences that we have lived through.”Episode Highlights:In this episode, Rhonda discusses the impact of racial makeup and background on one's perspective, drawing from her personal experiences and insightful reflections on childhood experiences. She delves into the significance of diversity in personal and professional contexts, shedding light on formative incidents from her own childhood and the value of reinforcing respect in various settings.Childhood Experiences: Rhonda grew up in a tight community of Creole families. As an adolescent, Rhonda and her family moved to a different state, which brought it to her attention that she was different from other children. Not only was she different visually, but her perspective and point of view were different from the other children.Influential Groups:Rhonda's family did not have a lot of money growing up, and Rhonda realized that if she wanted to move beyond that social class, she needed to develop a strong work ethic. She was never satisfied and was always looking for the next thing to work on. Religiously, Rhonda grew up Catholic, which gave her some sense of identity.Cultural Influences: Over the years, Rhonda has gravitated towards helping and supporting women find opportunities, especially where there are pay disparities. Helping women has opened Rhonda to new experiences, and she has learned things about herself that she didn't know before.Temperaments and Personality: Curiosity has always been a part of Rhonda's life. She remembers growing up and, together with her brother, spending hours reading encyclopaedias that their parents had bought for them. All the effort was in pursuit of curing their curiosity. Rhonda was born in the '60s, and she was brought up in a traditional way; they were not allowed to speak out of turn. Today, Rhonda has become outspoken, and sometimes she has to rein herself in when responding in certain situations and conversations.Cultural Epiphanies: Growing up, Rhonda attended Catholic schools where respect for those in authority was mandatory. For instance, if a nun walked into their class, they would all stand up and greet her. When she moved to a public school, she realized that kind of respect wasn't there, which was disheartening for her.Soapbox Moment: Rhonda's organization helps other organizations create a workplace where people feel they belong. If you are looking to create a workplace culture where respect is valued or want to solve issues around it, Rhonda invites you to check out their website.Support the show

There are roughly 5.4 billion people represented in nations today that support traditional marriage.  There are 1.4 billion people represented in nations today that oppose traditional marriage.  If there was a world war between west and east, who would win?  Whose side is God on? One thing is for sure. Nations cannot destroy marriage and the family and hope to have a civilization a hundred years from now. This program includes: 1. The World View in 5 Minutes with Adam McManus (Supreme Court rejected a religious liberty/COVID case, Religiously unaffiliated Americans on the rise, 69% of adults have little trust in mass media) 2. Generations with Kevin Swanson

It's Wednesday, October 16th, A.D. 2024. This is The Worldview in 5 Minutes heard on 125 radio stations and at www.TheWorldview.com.  I'm Adam McManus. (Adam@TheWorldview.com) By Jonathan Clark Britain burdens parents with tax on private school tuition The U.K. Labor government will require private schools to charge a value-added tax on school fees starting next year. Christian schools are challenging the measure with the help of the Christian Legal Centre. The group warned “the policy will force Christian schools to close and deny Christian parents the right to give their children a Christian rather than a secular education.” Nearly 400,000 students attend independent faith schools in England, most of which are Christian. Andrea Williams with the Christian Legal Centre said, “It is unfair, and we argue, it is a breach of their human right to impose a value-added tax on such schools. [The] Labour [Party] must row back on this policy urgently. If they don't, we will have no choice but to pursue every legal avenue in the pursuit of justice and protection of independent Christian schools in this country.” United Kingdom getting its first Chick-fil-A Speaking of the United Kingdom, the nation will be getting its first Chick-fil-A locations according to an announcement from the restaurant last month. Known for its chicken sandwiches, Chick-fil-A is the third-largest fast-food restaurant chain in the U.S. It has over 3,000 locations across the U.S., Puerto Rico, and Canada. The U.K. locations will be the first outside North America. Chick-fil-A plans on investing $100 million in the U.K. over the next 10 years, continuing its model of locally-owned and operated restaurants. Supreme Court rejected a religious liberty/COVID case Yesterday, the U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear a religious liberty case brought by a church. Grace Bible Fellowship had successfully challenged Colorado's COVID-19 restrictions on churches in 2020. The church continued its case though, saying that state health laws could be used against churches in the future. Despite the case coming to an end, a U.S. District judge noted, “That these statutes have been used in the recent past to adopt public-health orders that likely discriminated against religious activity is troubling.” Poll says Trump has lead over Harris in battleground states A new Harvard Center for American Political Studies/Harris poll found former President Donald Trump has a slight lead over Vice President Kamala Harris in battleground states. Trump leads Harris 48% to 46% overall in swing states. Trump also leads among early voters in those states. However, Kamala holds a slight lead nationally. Both candidates are focusing on the swing states ahead of the presidential election next month.   69% of adults have little trust in mass media Gallup released a survey on how much Americans trust political and civic institutions. Sixty-nine percent of U.S. adults have little to no confidence in the mass media, up from 49% in 2000. That makes it the least trusted institution. The second least trusted institution is the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives. However, Americans were much more likely to have confidence in local and state leaders. Psalm 146:3, 5, says, “Do not put your trust in princes, nor in a son of man, in whom there is no help. … Happy is he who has the God of Jacob for his help, whose hope is in the LORD his God.” Religiously unaffiliated Americans on the rise The American Bible Society released the latest chapter of the State of the Bible USA 2024 report, entitled “Nones – N-O-N-E-S -- and Nominals”.  The study found 26% of U.S. adults are religiously unaffiliated -- up from 22% in 2020. The irreligious scored lower on the Human Flourishing Index than the average American, especially in the Meaning and Purpose category. Not surprisingly, practicing Christians scored higher than any other group on the Human Flourishing Index. Anniversary of martyrdoms of two English reformers And finally, today is the anniversary of the martyrdom of two English Reformers. Their names were Hugh Latimer and Nicholas Ridley. Both were bishops in the Church of England. Ridley was born in 1502, becoming a great scholar and renouncing Roman Catholic doctrine. Latimer was born earlier in 1485. He became a great Reformation preacher, also rejecting Catholic traditions. His preaching brought Protestant teachings effectively to the middle and lower classes. However, a Catholic queen came to power in England in 1553. She was known as “Bloody Mary” for her deadly persecution of Protestants. After her ascension to power, Latimer and Ridley were tried for their beliefs and burned at the stake on October 16, 1555. As they faced death together, Latimer told his friend, “Be of good comfort, Master Ridley, and play the man; we shall this day light such a candle, by God's grace, in England, as I trust shall never be put out.” In Romans 8:36-37, the Apostle Paul wrote, “As it is written: ‘For Your sake we are killed all day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter.' Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.” Close And that's The Worldview on this Wednesday, October 16th, in the year of our Lord 2024. Subscribe by Amazon Music or by iTunes or email to our unique Christian newscast at www.TheWorldview.com. Or get the Generations app through Google Play or The App Store. I'm Adam McManus (Adam@TheWorldview.com). Seize the day for Jesus Christ.

There are roughly 5.4 billion people represented in nations today that support traditional marriage.  There are 1.4 billion people represented in nations today that oppose traditional marriage.  If there was a world war between west and east, who would win?  Whose side is God on? One thing is for sure. Nations cannot destroy marriage and the family and hope to have a civilization a hundred years from now.This program includes:1. The World View in 5 Minutes with Adam McManus (Supreme Court rejected a religious liberty/COVID case, Religiously unaffiliated Americans on the rise, 69% of adults have little trust in mass media)2. Generations with Kevin Swanson

A Christian man is called to be Devout. This doesn't mean becoming a pastor or priest, but it does mean specific things for your daily behavior and habits. In this equipping episode, Jim Ramos teaches you about becoming Devout like Jesus, and what the Bible says about the devotion displayed by the godly man, pulling from Titus and 1 Timothy. The Dialed In man of God is Devout. He does certain things RELIGIOUSLY. If that's not you yet, this episode will help. In this series, recorded in South Africa on a safari, Jim Ramos introduces you to the 20 qualities of a man of God pulled from Titus and 1 Timothy, as laid out in his new book, ‘Dialed In: Reaching Your Full Capacity as a Man of God' releasing September 3, 2024 with David C Cook publishing. Each episode will walk you through one quality. You can order your copy of the book on Amazon at  or learn more at .  [Honor God through your fitness. Use code 'ARENA30' for 6 weeks free access to the MTNTOUGH fitness app.]  

I meditate every day. I write letters to Jim every night. I do something outside every day. Religiously. Plus taking care of my back. But I haven't been taking the best care of myself this year. Even with all of my routines! On today's episode of The Be Ruthless Show, I discuss really listening to yourself and your body. Tuning out the noise. And being true to you! And remember that you can reach out anytime - with questions, feedback, to work with me, for referrals and resources, and just for support and connection: sam@samantharuth.com Join the Griefhab Community:https://www.facebook.com/groups/griefhab7/ Join Team Ruthless for multiple support groups EVERY week, PLUS EVERY holiday: https://samantharuth.com/team-ruthless Pre Order Faces of Grief - a collection of stories about ALL kinds of loss:https://buy.stripe.com/9AQ9BL1d882G5Mc3d0 Apply to be an author in one of the next Faces of Grief books:https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSffR1tthu2O23kKPxWdrffd1dl9mWFIXfBo8fv_2KAqlnTP4A/viewform?usp=send_form Learn more about Healing Together Through the Holidays, this December 2nd - 8th (National Grief Awareness Week)https://samantharuth.com/healing-together-through-holidays Learn more about becoming a certified Coach!: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSe_PeMqSOd7FwOqpS2b6jO_zbqw1ksVNiMU0p69sFlvY9jIhQ/viewform?vc=0&c=0&w=1&flr=0&usp=mail_form_link

Dr. Peter Enns (PhD, Harvard University)  is a frequent contributor to journals and encyclopedias, and is the author of several books, including, The Bible Tells Me So: Why Defending Scripture Has Made Us Unable to Read It (HarperOne), The Bible and the Believer: How to Read the Bible Critically and Religiously (with Marc Brettler and Daniel Harrington, Oxford University Press), Inspiration and Incarnation: Evangelicals and The Problem of the Old Testament (Baker), and The Evolution of Adam: What the Bible Does and Doesn't Say about Human Origins (Baker).   Purchase Pete's books here: Amazon Help sustain the work of RLC: www.redletterchristians.org/donate/ To check out what RLC is up to, please visit us www.redletterchristians.org  Follow us on Twitter: @RedLetterXians Instagram: @RedLetterXians Follow Shane on Instagram: @shane.claiborne Twitter: @ShaneClaiborne Intro song by Common Hymnal: https://commonhymnal.com/ 

Franklin shares his journey in real estate, starting with his first deal in 2008 and evolving into a strategy that relies heavily on consistent and persistent marketing. He emphasizes the importance of "marketing religiously," which means sending out marketing continuously, even when results aren't immediate. Franklin discusses his preference for direct mail over other methods like cold calling, and he explains why consistency and patience are key to his long-term success in real estate. KEY TALKING POINTS:0:00 - Introduction1:33 - Franklin's First Property He Bought2:09 - What Made Him Decide to Start In Real Estate3:17 - Why He Transitioned to Off-Market Deals4:35 - His Main Marketing Method5:24 - Why Franklin Says Marketing Is Like A Religion8:29 - Why He Chose Direct Mail For Marketing9:27 - A Home Run Deal He Did Last Year11:41 - Closing Thoughts & How To Get In Touch With Franklin LINKS:Instagram: Franklin Rominehttps://www.instagram.com/franklinromine/ Website: Romine Grouphttps://www.rominegroupre.com/ Instagram: David Leckohttps://www.instagram.com/dlecko Website: DealMachinehttps://www.dealmachine.com/pod Instagram: Ryan Haywoodhttps://www.instagram.com/heritage_home_investments Website: Heritage Home Investmentshttps://www.heritagehomeinvestments.com/

Text us your thoughts on this episode!In this thought-provoking episode of the Call Her Daring Podcast with host Kelley Daring, we delve into the controversial world of Tradwives. We examine the tradwife lifestyle through three critical lenses: the performance aspect of tradwives running social media as businesses, the influence of fundamentalist Christianity—particularly Mormonism—on their narratives, and the constraints on women's choice and agency within this lifestyle.Explore how the tradwife phenomenon is often marketed as a performative act for profit, with social media accounts doubling as business ventures. Discover the impact of conservative Christian values on the tradwife movement, and the implications of these values on the portrayal and reality of tradwife life. This episode also challenges listeners to consider the broader systems of oppression that shape these choices and the responsibility of tradwives in representing their lifestyles accurately.Tune in for an eye-opening discussion on the intersection of performance, religion, and autonomy in the tradwife movement.For more information, show notes and behind the scenes, check out callherdaring.com.

On this weeks episode The Gas Boys talk about the Mr. Beast drama, try to figure out how that Australian breakdancer made it so far, and relearn some US history.YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC_O0Lqwxpxk6m9N3QDLcS2QInstagram: @gasboyspodcast

There's been a surge of religiously unaffiliated (or "nones") returning to religion. Why did they leave in the first place and what's bringing them back? Dr. Jacobs explores in today's episode. Check out Becoming Truly Human here: https://t.ly/DJX12Find Dr. Jacobs social media, writing, & website here: ⁠https://linktr.ee/thenathanjacobspodcast

Dr. Jacobs dives into the religiously unaffiliated (or "nones"). Who are they and what do they believe? Find Dr. Jacobs social media, writing, & website here: https://linktr.ee/thenathanjacobspodcast

Stéphanie Rousselle, founder of Gospel Spice Ministries, grew up staunchly atheist. "Religiously atheist", she jokes. In her native France, the general attitude toward religion is one of condescending contempt. Much of Europe is post-modern, therefore much of society is "post-God". As a teenager, Stéphanie spent time as a foreign exchange student with a family in the United States. This family just so happened to be Christian. Over the course of her year with them, Stéphanie experienced a peaceful, intentional love. She saw faith in practice, not just in philosophical theory. As the seed of faith was watered and planted in her, she describes the discomfort of coming into agreement with the Gospel. Stéphanie believes God confronted her with the reality of Christ's resurrection to appeal to her intellectual integrity. Unable to deny the facts, she took a bold step of faith to believe! Even though she adopted a this belief system, she struggled to actually put her faith in the claim that God is a perfect and trustworthy Master. Adopting an ideological belief is one thing, but to lean the full weight of your life on a God you cannot see, touch or feel is another. The Holy Spirit invited Stéphanie to embark on a soul-journey to truly experience His presence, transcribing head-knowledge to heart-knowledge.  Today, she is a wife, mom, podcaster, Bible teacher, and lover of Jesus. Our Father woos all of us to His heart is such creative, unique ways. Connect with Stéphanie's ministry here. SUPPORT His Heartbeat through Crown of Beauty Internationalhttps://www.crownofbeautyinternational.com/donateCONNECT with His Heartbeat and Crown of Beauty InternationalWebsite// Facebook//InstagramEmail: crownofbeautyinternational@gmail.comConnect with Sue Corl's Instagram//Facebook// WebsitePurchase Sue's Transformational Bible Studies and Devotionals on Amazon!Sue Corl's best-selling books: Crown of Beauty Bible Study, Broken But UndefeatedCrown of Beauty International: EMPOWERING WOMEN AROUND THE WORLD WITH GOD'S TRUTH!Crown of Beauty International: EMPOWERING WOMEN AROUND THE WORLD WITH GOD'S TRUTH!

Today Im breaking down the big mistakes we make in thinking that stretching and mobility are the same.Here's your next steps:click here to book your movement analysisClick here to book your single 1:1 sessionWork With Me 1:1:https://mailchi.mp/chloepufftraining/privatecoachingGet strong:https://mailchi.mp/chloepufftraining/offers Connect with me on social media: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/chloepuff Instagram: @chloepufftraining & @musclesmotherhoodmotivation Tik Tok: @chloepuff_training WWW.CHLOEPUFFTRAINING.COM

Darius Droc Jackson, Ellen Forbes, Minister Cannady

Sunday morning message, May 26, 2024.

“But religious diversity on its own is not religious pluralism; that requires a bit more: Individuals have the legal rights and de facto freedoms to worship, believe, practice, and join in community with others according to their conscience. Individuals are also able to abstain from these activities. In the U.S., these rights and freedoms are guaranteed by the Establishment and Free Exercise Clauses of the First Amendment; Individuals and communities protect their own and others' rights and freedoms to worship, believe, practice, and join in community with others, or not, according to their conscience; Individuals and communities protect each others' safety to worship; and Communities engage with each other, acknowledging areas of deep and irreconcilable difference, but focused on areas of common ground. And finally, since religious pluralism does not happen without sustained and diverse religious communities: Diverse religious communities themselves thrive, meaning leadership is good, community institutions are sustainable, community ties remain strong, and congregants know the basic theological content of their own traditions. What is religious pluralism NOT? Religious pluralism is not: The simple fact of religious diversity in a society A synchronistic mix of religious beliefs that pares down theological ideas to the lowest common denominator Religious belief being prioritized over non-belief.” -Aspen Institute. “Who Are Secular Voters? Religiously unaffiliated (“nonreligious”) Americans are the largest and fastest growing religious demographic in the country. While the nonreligious are a diverse group who span the political spectrum, these Americans are united on key political issues. According to the 2015 Pew Religious Landscape Survey, the nonreligious overwhelmingly support legal access to abortion (73%) and same-sex marriage (78%) compared to evangelicals who oppose those same policies by smaller margins (63% and 64%, respectively). Similarly, a 2016 Public Religion Research Institute poll found that 71% of the nonreligious oppose religiously-based service refusals compared to only 56% of evangelicals who support that same policy. Despite recent trends, secular voters continue to be severely underrepresented in government. According to an analysis by the Pew Research Center, while the nonreligious comprise nearly one-quarter of all Americans, they comprise only just 0.2% of the 115th Congress. That means there are 100 times as many religiously unaffiliated Americans as there are religiously unaffiliated Members of Congress. We are determined to change that by mobilizing a voting bloc united by shared secular values and investing in strategic programs that empower secular values voters to be active, influential players in the electoral process.” -Secular Coalition of America. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/antonio-myers4/support

The Dads change things up this week and preview the 2024 ACM Awards with our picks and predictions. We cover lots of ground from Jelly Roll to Megan Moroney, weigh in on the Stagecoach livestream, and share some of our hot takes and/or rants on some of the biggest names in mainstream country music. Mentioned in This Episode:  Chris Stapleton's Traveller Whiskey Home Dad Chat The National At-Home Dad Network  Morgan Wallen's set missing from the Stagecoach live stream: https://www.whiskeyriff.com/2024/04/29/rep-for-morgan-wallen-reveals-the-reason-his-stagecoach-performance-wasnt-livestreamed/⁠ ACM Award Criteria Luke Combs and Tracy Chapman at the Grammy's Morgan Wallen throws chair from bar rooftop Our "near-viral" Hay Bale Reel Show Notes: 7:06 Dad Life Sound Check - Mick and his daughter enjoyed watching Stagecoach's live stream together and enjoyed Chris Barnes and Bailey Zimmerman. Dave talks about "Father's Son" by Stephen Wilson Jr. and the crush his boys have on Megan Moroney. 13:43 The Farm Boy Update - Mick planted his garden and is updating his landscaping in preparation for the high school graduation party. 15:50 The HARDY Report - HARDY was all over the place at the recent Stagecoach music festival and Dave shares the highlights or to Dave's disappointment the lowlights.  20:08 - The Dads give their takes on the upcoming ACM Awards by breaking down the nominees for Best Female Artist, Song of the Year, Best Male Artist, and Single of the Year. Dave and Mick provide some commentary on who they think will and SHOULD win.    Sources: Intro Music: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠“Dark Country Rock” by Moodmode⁠⁠⁠⁠ HARDY Report Theme Music: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠“Frantic” by Lemon Music Studio⁠⁠⁠⁠ Farm Boy Update Theme Music: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠“The Wheels on the Bus Rockabilly Style (instrumental)” by Mike Cole⁠ "God Took His Time on You" by Casey Barnes "Religiously" by Bailey Zimmerman "Father's Son" by Stephen Wilson Jr. "God's Country" by Blake Shelton "Gin & Juice" by HARDY "Gin & Juice" by Snoop Dogg "The Devil I Know" by Ashley McBryde "I'm Not Pretty" by Megan Moroney "Heart Like a Truck" by Lainey Wilson "I Remember Everything (feat. Kacey Musgraves)" by Zach Bryan feat. Kacey Musgraves "Fast Car" by Luke Combs "The Painter" by Cody Johnson "Next Thing You Know" by Jordan Davis "Joe" by Luke Combs "White Horse" by Chris Stapleton "Last Night" by Morgan Wallen "Save Me (with Lainey Wilson)" by Jelly Roll "Fast Car" by Tracy Chapman "Need a Favor" by Jelly Roll "You Proof" by Morgan Wallen There is a lot of music mentioned in this episode. You can find a sampling of it on our Spotify playlist. Previous episodes can be found at https://countrymusicdads.com/. Our social media accounts are @countrymusicdads on Instagram and Facebook. Send us feedback via countrymusicdads@gmail.com and last but not least, thank you for listening and please share with your fellow country music fans and give us a 5 star review on your favorite podcast platform. 

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Today's part 2 of our premiere weekend for Samantha Hanna's new documentary A Will And A Way! On this episode we sit down at the K Diamond K Guest Ranch and rant about religion, film festivals and how wonderful Sam's new doc truly is! It's quite remarkable where our conversations lead but for some reason, they all make sense... at least for us! Producer and friend Steve Eaton joins us on this rambunctious chat and we hope you enjoy it as much as we did! And remember, Think Hard Cuz You're Thinking Anyway!

Immunizations are a marvel of modern medicine. One little shot and you suddenly leave the world's most dangerous diseases weak and ineffective! Diseases that used to take countless lives are now virtually unheard of. But what if you could be immunized against a good thing, like faith?

Vayikra - Sacrifices and Relationships Most common question is: How do we bridge the gap between ourselves and others? Religiously oriented people might even ask: How do we draw closer to the Creator? How do we become more holy and less materialistic? Men and women ask: How do we rise above our differences and achieve unity? Even parents and children wonder how to leave behind conflicts and arguments and come together. The answer to all these questions is one: “Bring a sacrifice”. Sacrifice is the way to closeness. Sacrifice is the way to transcend ourselves, to create a common united for both of us. Sacrifice is not about ignoring oneself, but about diminishing the individual ego, the bossy and primitive and revealing the greater "I" that leaves room for two. In practical terms: Sacrifice means seeing the other. Being less self-centered and putting them in the center of our lives and giving them what they need. This is the most significant method for empowering divine and human relationships. --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/mendy-goldberg/message Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/mendy-goldberg/support

In our new series called, Can't Believe, we're looking at some of the most common barriers that hold people back from saving faith. And the first one might surprise you: religion. Most of us think of religion as a good thing.

World Awakenings episode #153 features a guest who after growing up in a religiously abusive home, was then able to rebuild her self-confidence and go on to be a successful entrepreneur. This is the story of Cassandra DeAnn, who then experienced a spontaneous awakening and a journey of transformation and self-discovery, and now follows her heart's desires to inspire and uplift others. She is a certified Human Design reader, certified Galactic Astrologer, Akashic Records Soul Reader, and Gene Keys Guide. Cassandra helps guide others to break away from societal programming and reconnect with their true essence. She shares her story in hopes of empowering others to live unapologetically as who they are designed to be. Make to to get your copy of Karl Gruber's book, "True Spirituality & the Law of Attraction: A Beautiful symbiotic Relationship" by clicking this link! To find out more about Cassandra DeAnn, and about her podcast called, "Things I Talk About", and her soon-to-be-published book, "Unavoidable & Totally Basic Shadows" go to her website - https://www.cassandradeann.com/

To help us better understand our Christian brethren, and how to build alliances between people of faith and those who are perfectly good without a god, we invited into the studio someone whose name is mentioned frequently on the podcast, usually preceded by the phrase “devout Christian”: David's wife Kaitlyn Waterson.Where do this couple, an atheist and “devout Christian” find common ground? Religiously polar opposites, where do their politics intersect? What do those kitchen table conversations sound like and are there lessons to be learned there?In the final Unreasonable Coffee before the launch of Season Two on March 15, Christina pivots from election guru to marriage counselor, in this fascinating conversation with David and Kaitlyn.Thanks for listening! Now follow us on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and Threads. And please consider becoming a Patreon supporter at www.patreon.com/podcastunreasonable. It's a small price to pay to help keep America from becoming a theocracy, dontchya think?

You MAY not want to have that coffee in the morning

It's Thursday, February 1st, A.D. 2024. This is The Worldview in 5 Minutes heard at www.TheWorldview.com. I'm Adam McManus. (Adam@TheWorldview.com) By Jonathan Clark Muslims killed 10 Christians, burned 200 homes in Mozambique The Islamic State took responsibility for multiple attacks on Christians last month in Mozambique. The attacks occurred over the course of two weeks, killing 10 Christians and burning 200 homes. People have faced Islamic insurgency in the southern African country for years. Conflict has displaced over one million residents and killed around 2,000 civilians. While Islamic State attacks are decreasing in frequency, Christians still face targeted violence. Mozambique is ranked 39th on the Open Doors' World Watch List of nations where it is most difficult to be a Christian. Germany cracks down on pro-lifers Germany's Federal Family Minister announced a new draft bill to crack down on pro-life expression near abortion mills. The bill would create censorship zones around mills. The U.K. adopted a similar measure last year. Dr. Felix Böllmann with Alliance Defending Freedom International said, “Peaceful gatherings, prayer and offers of help should never be banned. The plans of the German government are alarming—not only do they put blanket restrictions on fundamental freedoms, but also they weaken civil society's engagement for the protection of the right to life.” French House greenlights abortion Meanwhile, in France, the country's lower house of parliament voted in favor of making abortion a constitutional right on Tuesday. The bill now moves to the country's Senate. Psalm 94:20-21 speaks to the leaders of France and Germany alike. It asks, “Shall the throne of iniquity, which devises evil by law, have fellowship with [the Lord]? They gather together against the life of the righteous, and condemn innocent blood.” California's $200,000 settlement with church In the United States, the state of California reached a $200,000 settlement with a church and preschool in a religious liberty case last month. Church of Compassion and Dayspring Christian Learning Center were serving low-income families. State officials suspended them from a food care program over their biblical beliefs about human sexuality.  Jeremiah Galus with Alliance Defending Freedom said, “In the name of combatting discrimination, government officials excluded the church and preschool from serving the El Cajon community based solely on their religious beliefs and exercise. . . . now Church of Compassion can continue its vital outreach to needy children and families.”  Utah bans transgender bathrooms Utah became the latest state to ban transgender bathrooms. Republican Governor Spencer Cox signed the bill on Tuesday. The measure requires people to use bathrooms and locker rooms in public schools and government buildings in accordance with their biological sex. At least 10 other states have passed similar bills, including Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Idaho, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, North Dakota, Oklahoma, and Tennessee. 760,000 new businesses in 2023 The review site Yelp reports a record number of new business openings last year. Over 760,000 new businesses started in 2023, up 20% from 2022. Business openings for home services were up 32%, and openings for hotels and travel were up 28%.  Yelp noted, “For the first time ever, every U.S. state, including Washington, D.C., experienced an increase in new business openings, when compared to both 2022's record numbers and pre-pandemic levels (2019).” Religiously unaffiliated in America A new report from Pew Research evaluated religiously unaffiliated U.S. adults.  About 28% of Americans are “nones,” calling themselves atheists, agnostics, or “nothing in particular.” That's up from 16% in 2007.  Most “nones” believe in a higher power but do not attend religious services. They also believe religion does some harm but may also do some good.  Only 17% of religious “nones” are atheists; 20% are agnostic; and the vast majority are “nothing in particular” at 63%.  Speaker Johnson: We desire to walk in God's ways And finally, leaders from around the world met in Washington, D.C. yesterday for the National Gathering for Prayer and Repentance. The event took place at the Museum of the Bible.  Tony Perkins with the Family Research Council co-founded the prayer event, which aims to “pray prayers of serious repentance for (1) personal sins, (2) sin in the church and (3) America's sins, followed by praying for the Nations.” Republican House speaker Mike Johnson spoke at the event.  JOHNSON: “I pray, and you'll hear my colleagues come up here in turn will be praying, to the Lord. And that's what is on our hearts, that that the Lord would give us all discerning hearts, to govern, to distinguish between right and wrong, to walk in His ways and to obey His statutes and commands.” 2 Chronicles 7:14 says, “If My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from Heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land.” Close And that's The Worldview in 5 Minutes on this Thursday, February 1st in the year of our Lord 2024. Subscribe by iTunes or email to our unique Christian newscast at www.TheWorldview.com. Or get the Generations app through Google Play or The App Store. I'm Adam McManus (Adam@TheWorldview.com). Seize the day for Jesus Christ.

New research from the Pew Research Center on religion in America is out. Michael offers this Daily Poll Question at Smerconish.com today: Is the growth of the religiously unaffiliated good or bad for society? Listen to his thoughts and then vote!

Romans 14 and 15