It Turns Out that Sexual Liberation Isn’t All that Liberating

The collective message that’s been delivered is something like this — singleness is exciting, religion is oppressive, and marriage is where you “settle down” (sometimes for good, sometimes for ill).
In reality, singleness is often stressful and lonely, religion provides community and purpose, and married people enjoy the excitement of more sex and the joys of unified child-rearing.

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Privileged

But in many ways the more dangerous form of racism isn’t that loud and stupid kind. It isn’t the kind that announces itself when it walks into the arena. It’s the quiet and subtle kind. The kind that almost hides itself in plain view. It’s the person who does and says all the “right” things in public: They’re perfectly friendly when they meet a person of color. They’re very polite. But in private? Well….. they sort of wish that everyone would stop making everything “about race” all the time.

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Kyle Korver privilege post: Lessons from Jazz guard’s article on racism

I’m not trying to be rude or sound overly critical, but Kyle, as a person 14 years younger than you who has seen you interact with black people in intimate and intellectual ways the majority of white people never experience, it’s a little disheartening to see you are just now deciding to acknowledge the racist history of the United States.

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“Where Are You From?”

Therefore, I have adopted a new identity: Citizen of Heaven. As my identity is found in him, and as my eternity will be found there also, I rest in the assurance that I do have a home. That home is wherever I am in his presence, wherever I remember his all-encompassing and never-ending love.

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Why are We Losing the Next Generation?

I know I am not perfect and that like you, I slip up from time to time, but when our only consistency is our inconsistency in these and other areas do we really want the next generation to follow where our footsteps are leading? If we are talking out of both sides of our mouth, can we expect them to become anything different?

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Africa is set to be the global center of Christianity for the next 50 years

The rise of Christianity in Africa is also captured outside the continent. In a reversal from nearly five centuries ago when Christian missionaries first brought the religion to to African communities, African preachers, led by “reverse missionaries,” are increasingly taking charge of the gospel in England, as Quartz Africa has reported.
In comparison, while there were three African countries (Nigeria, Egypt, Algeria) among countries with top ten largest Muslim populations in 2015, that number will be reduced to two (Nigeria and Egypt) by 2060.

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The Biggest Wastes Of Time We Regret When We Get Older

• Not Asking for Help
• Trying to Make Bad Relationships Work
• Dwelling on Your Mistakes and Shortcomings
• Worrying Too Much About Other People

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Exercise makes you happier than money, according to Yale and Oxford research

According to the study, three to five training sessions, each lasting between 30 to 60 minutes, are ideal per week. The mental health of those participants who exercised for longer than three hours a day suffered more than that of those who weren’t particularly physically active.

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‘Shark Tank’ recap: A door-lock demonstration hilariously trips up Nashville entrepreneurs

“How much (do) you sell the deadlocks for?” Cuban asked sarcastically as five kicks came and went without producing the desired result. Bertelli backed up and charged, his body bouncing off the door.

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Delighting in Authority: How to Create a Culture of Happy Complementarians

It’s time for the church to create space in its local assemblies for strong females who happily affirm authority (e.g., male headship and eldership) while advocating for more opportunities for women to flourish according to their gifts and qualification. Imagine how the gospel could be displayed to the watching world if churches were filled with biblically-minded women who embraced God-ordained authority as a blessing rather than a burden? This counter-cultural impulse would offer continual opportunities to share the gospel with a world that’s desperate for truth.

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You Believe the Prosperity Gospel

Here are 4 ways ordinary evangelicals like you and me sometimes fall prey to a kind of prosperity gospel in our thinking:

1. We equate struggles with weak faith.
2. We equate circumstantial blessings with spiritual maturity.
3. We promise blessings in exchange for works.
4. We equate suffering with punishment.

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9 Common Trends in Church Worship Services

1. Choirs are disappearing.
2. Dress is more casual.
3. Screens are pervasive.
4. Preaching is longer.
5. “Multi” is normative.
6. Attendees are more diverse.
7. Conflict is not increasing.
8. More worship attendees are attending larger churches.
9. Sunday evening services are disappearing.

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If Everyone in Your Church Is Just Like You, You Have a Problem

Our society has made “preference” a synonym of church. Not only are we segregated racially, but in age as well. And we encourage it! First service is for those who prefer hymns while second service is for those who prefer upbeat, modern music. The older, wiser people head to first service while the younger, brasher people head to the second and everyone suffers the death of segregation. If we can’t agree on a way of doing church together, we’ll just host multiple churches inside of one.

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Because There’s No Gospel All Day

I was prepared to wrap things up when I posed one simple question to her based upon what we’d read and discussed. “Why do you think we need to come back to the truth of the gospel every day? Why do we need to read the Bible tomorrow if we already read it today?” Expecting something along the lines of “it’s the right thing to do” or “so we’ll know God better,” her actual answer floored me.
“Because there’s no gospel all day.”
I urged her to go on.
“You get up in the morning, maybe you read the Bible. Then go to school all day and there’s so many bad messages you’re getting from friends and social media and television and everything. You need to read your Bible because you’re not going to get what you need anywhere else.”

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Clay seal of King Josiah’s aide is found in the remains of an ancient office burnt down by Babylonians in 586 BC – adding weight to proof that the king really existed

A rare clay seal found in Jerusalem may help to firm up the existence existence of the Old Testament’s King Josiah.
Nathan-Melech, a high-ranking official in the court of King of Judah, is named in the inscription of one of the tiny clay seals.

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How To Repent Of Slander In A Digital Age

Much of the online slander I have seen happens because we think another person has sinned. In such contexts, we sometimes post slanderous comments because we wrongly believed a false report and then passed it on. At other times, we come to realize our own evaluation of the situation was wrong or that we were unfair in how we characterized someone’s position. In either case, our motivation was often to try and put a stop to sin. Hatred of sin is of course a good thing! But the real test of our hatred of sin is seen in whether we publicly repent of our own sin of public slander. Let us hate the sin of slander as much as any other.

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Couple married 82 years says no secret to long life together: ‘Just be nice to each other’

A North Carolina couple celebrating their 103rd and 100th birthdays may have the secret, or lack thereof, to a long-lasting relationship.
The couple, D.W. Williams, 103, and Willie Williams, 100, celebrated 82 years of marriage, as well as their milestone birthdays, on Sunday.

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Pop, Tim and Tony give their favorite Manu Moments

Believe it or not, Manu Ginobili’s jersey retirement ceremony is tomorrow (!!!) [March 28], and the Spurs have released another round of “Manu Moments,” including Gregg Popovich, Tony Parker and Tim Duncan. Pop’s might make you cry, and Tim will make you laugh: right in line with the wide range of emotions that I’m sure we will all be feeling tomorrow.

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Don’t Mistake Transfer Growth for Evangelism

This kind of growth is not evangelistic, however, and it is imperative for pastors to be honest about the nature of such growth. If pastors lack such honesty, they may take measures that are effective at growing a church but not reaching the lost. The fastest way to grow a church is usually through appeals to people who are already following Jesus. It’s intuitive: The people looking for churches are already Christians. Those who are far from Christ ignore our advertisements, our events, and our seeker-friendly sermons.

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3 Reminders When You Feel Social Media Burnout

1. God Made Us for Community.
2. God Made Us for Intimate Connection With Him.
3. God Made Us for Eternity.

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When You Can’t Escape Busyness

When we fear our busy circumstances, we believe the lie that life can only keep going because of us. We believe in our performance, well-planned schedules, and ability to hold things together. We deny God’s power at work within us when we think our circumstances are simply too much. When we set our minds on our abilities and fear our circumstances more than we fear God, sin will result. When the pressures of life take away our ability to perform, we’ll react in the weakness of our flesh.

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‘Speak English’: Houston-area elected official apologizes after speaking out against Lina Hidalgo

Tice said that if Hidalgo delivers updates in Spanish, she should also deliver updates in other widely used languages in the Houston area.
“You got 300,000 Muslims [in the Houston area], so lets go ahead and speak some Arabic,” he said.

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Iditarod musher loses lead after dogs band together and quit on him

Musher Nicolas Petit lost a huge lead in the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race on Monday when his dog team refused to keep going after he yelled at one of the animals.
A dog named Joey had been fighting with another dog on the team and jumped it during a break on the way to the Bering Sea checkpoint of Koyuk.
“I yelled at Joey, and everybody heard the yelling, and that doesn’t happen,” Petit told the Iditarod Insider website. “And then they wouldn’t go anymore. Anywhere. So we camped here.”

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Ohio Man Honors 17th-Century Monks by Consuming Only Beer During Lent

There are no strict rules about what Catholics can and can’t give up for the Lent: Observers of the holy season can choose to abstain from everything from fried foods to social media. This year, one Ohio man is making the extreme pledge to give up food entirely, consuming only beer during Lent, Cincinnati news station WKRC reports.

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BA flight lands in Edinburgh instead of Düsseldorf by mistake

A British Airways flight destined for Düsseldorf in Germany has landed in Edinburgh by mistake, after the flight paperwork was submitted incorrectly.
The passengers only realised the error when the plane landed and the “welcome to Edinburgh” announcement was made.

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Modern-day ‘sticks and stones’

You see, when we stand face to face, rather than keyboard to keyboard, we can see the humanity of the other person. We can have an actual dialogue, ask questions and come away with an understanding of each other’s position.

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Who We Are Instead

How can we be salt and light if we side with political power? How can we have a single-minded allegiance to God, while grasping on to earthly structures? Forgive me if I’m wrong, but doesn’t God demand and command allegiance to Him alone and not to a fallen human, state, flag, or political party? Does He not introduce an alternative Kingdom called the Church?

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Do 47 Percent of Christian Millennials Think Evangelism Is Wrong?

In summary, the way we phrase evangelism and the definitions we import into polls carry significant weight on how people respond. What’s more, since the Barna definition of practicing Millennial Christians included practicing Catholics, practicing mainline Protestants, and practicing Evangelical Protestants, different versions of evangelism might be acceptable to Millennials of different Christian denominations. And indeed, that is what the data showed, with practicing Catholics the least positive toward evangelism, and practicing Evangelical Protestants the most positive toward evangelism.

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The Weakness and Strength of Being an Autistic Christian

The Autistic Christian ought not to retreat from the Church and the Neurotypical Christian ought not to shun those who have trouble socializing. Sadly, I have seen both. I have seen and experienced being rejected, ostracized, and treated as if I don’t exist by Christians who seem to feel it is easier to ignore people who are different than embrace them. It’s discouraging and painful to have been treated as non-existent or rejected as a bad person even by pastors simply because I have difficulty with social skills and eye contact.

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The Equality Act Accelerates Anti-Christian Bias

The Equality Act fails to make meaningful status/conduct distinctions. It treats the Christian baker who objects to using her creative talent to design a same-sex wedding cake the same as an individual who would stupidly, and bigotedly, deny an LGBT person a booth at a restaurant. In short, the Equality Act equates Christian ethics with hatred and bigotry.

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Stop asking ‘how are you?’ Harvard researchers say this is what successful people do when making small talk

Start with a question that will build up to a conversation that meets the A.C.T. criteria:

• A – There’s authenticity
• C – There’s a connection
• T – There’s a topic that will give them taste of who you are

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Why people think their phones are listening to them

Basically, companies that thrive on our information, like Google, Facebook and, increasingly, Amazon, are able to thoroughly understand our likes and interests based on the data we give them. They’ve become so effective at doing this that we’ve created elaborate conspiracy theories to rationalize how powerful their services truly are.

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What Google knows about you

What Google collects:

• The terms you search for.
• The videos you watch.
• Voice and audio information when you use audio features.
• Purchase activity.
• People with whom you communicate or share content.
• Activity on third-party sites and apps that use Google services.
• The ads and content you view on Google’s sites, as well as interactions with that content.
• Chrome browsing history you’ve synced with your Google Account.
• Location data, which Google can either gather directly via GPS data or infer from other sensors and data, including IP addresses, nearby Wi-Fi routers and Bluetooth beacons.

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Facebook backtracks after removing Warren ads calling for Facebook breakup

Facebook removed several ads placed by Sen. Elizabeth Warren’s presidential campaign that called for the breakup of Facebook and other tech giants.
But the social network later reversed course after POLITICO reported on the takedown, with the company saying it wanted to allow for “robust debate.”
The ads, which had identical images and text, touted Warren’s recently announced plan to unwind “anti-competitive” tech mergers, including Facebook’s acquisition of WhatsApp and Instagram.

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Are People Using Mobile Devices In Public Getting More Thoughtless?

Am I being unreasonable wishing that people didn’t broadcast their phone conversations, play their videos in public without headphones or hold up traffic as they take selfie after selfie in the search for the perfect pose?
With the number of people doing one or more of the above on the rise, I’m left wondering if I have an outdated view of how people should behave in public or if it’s just that more and more people are ignorant and oblivious of the world around them.

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Passenger jet turns around after mother FORGETS her baby

One of the controllers can then be heard asking a colleague: ‘This flight is requesting to come back…a passenger forgot her baby in the waiting area, the poor thing.’
They then said: ‘OK, head back to the gate. This is totally a new one for us!’

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Family says Fort Lauderdale funeral home displayed wrong body at woman’s wake

7News spoke with another family who had the funeral of their loved one earlier this month. They said they have reason to believe the body they buried on March 2 may have been Newman’s. They believe the funeral home swapped the bodies.

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What if The Foundation of Discernment is Hope and Not Suspicion?

I’m convinced that we’ve gotten this wrong and because of it the gift of discernment has now become synonymous with the “gift” of being a jerk. True discernment will spot error. And it’ll call error out. But that’s not the intention of the search.

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Giving Up For Lent

Fasting isn’t something we have to do for God. It’s a gift God has given us, when we need to understand that our weakness isn’t something we need to fear, because of his strength on the cross.

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Small, Struggling Congregations Fill U.S. Church Landscape

In some ways, however, those numbers mask deeper evangelistic issues. When evaluating churches based on the number of conversions per 100 attendees, 67 percent had fewer than 10 per 100 people attending their church. Around a third (35 percent) had fewer than five new commitments for every 100 people attending their worship services.

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The Most Sinful States in America?

The point, though, is that this study is primarily about culture, economics, class, homogeneity, and regional histories. It deals with external crimes and vices. But it doesn’t get at what the Bible means by sin: the condition of the human heart. Our internal sinfulness can manifest itself in these external sins. But it need not.

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3 Important Life Skills Nobody Ever Taught You

1. How to Stop Taking Things Personally
2. How to Be Persuaded and Change Your Mind
3. How to Act Without Knowing the Result

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Hipster whines at tech mag for using his pic to imply hipsters look the same, discovers pic was of an entirely different hipster

The stock photo giant checked the model release and lo! The guy in the image wasn’t even the same dude who was complaining. “He’d misidentified himself,” Lichfield said. “All of which just proves the story we ran: hipsters look so much alike that they can’t even tell themselves apart from each other.”

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