116 Lent 3: Stop Coasting
"Let me hear what God the Lord will speak, for He will speak peace to His people, to His saints; but let them not turn back to folly." ~ Psalm 85
Stop Coasting
You cannot talk about defending the free world when your own government is occupied by globalist usurpers.
The harsh reality is that revolutionary economic collapse, the furtherance of enforced pariah status of your ideals, and the looming demographic catastrophe brought on by experimental "therapeutic" genetic engineering are all something considerably more than "conspiracy theories."
Abuse of power wants to 1) claim superiority, 2) then compel assimilation, 3) and, in the end, take all. Why are you surprised?
You cannot expect them to help you when they are bought off. They know the news cycle moves too fast for the masses to catch them. Stop being surprised by it. People are not going to get better. They will go from bad to worse. Weakness will be exploited. Shame will replace honor. Charlatans and criminals will scuttle their snake oil in every trade, and especially those markets that you are not allowed to question or that you are compelled by law to trust. Expect liars who have no fear of God to look you in the eye across that screen and tell you what they want you to believe no matter how crazy or unreasonable it might be compared to last week.
This isn't about our country. This is about our religion. This is about being people of integrity and men of good conscience. This is about standing with your head held high. This is about not letting them stomp out your right to believe the truth.
The uniforms might change, but the goal posts never really move.
Desperation is no excuse for being ignorant. Resisting tyranny begins with mental non-compliance. So get back in the game.
Till angel cry and trumpet sound,
The Mad Christian
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Take courage
Pastor John Koopman appeared on Issues, Etc. last week discussing the dangers of cynicism. Pastor Koopman says that a cynical outlook is a fatalistic one, assuming nothing can be changed for the better. He warned listeners that it is very easy to drift along with the culture, citing how many in the church no longer stand with biblical marriage and sexuality. It was a great reminder for Mad Christians not to be overtaken by despondency but rather to engage this battle with faith and courage. As we anticipate the celebration of our Savior's death and resurrection, it is a stark reminder that with God, all things are possible. Even the cruel and humiliating death on the cross brought the greatest good to mankind.
What is is good for?
We can't say much that is useful about the war in Ukraine, but we have found a few headlines that seem important. The United Nations ordered Russia to stop its invasion and there was more talk of a ceasefire. Ukrainian president Zelenskyy addressed American Congress, appealing again to enforce a no-fly zone over the warring regions or supply him with armaments to do so. The US has sent Switchblade drones but Poland is proposing deployment of a peacekeeping force. It seems American troops are being sentto Europe. President Zalenksyy used emergency powers to combine all television stations into one.
President Putin has been making demands of his own, sanctioning Western officials and demanding Alaska be returned to Russia. At a rally, Putin quoted Scripture and commended his troops for "liberating people from this suffering, from the genocide" which was a reference to Russian annexation of Crimea. Russia has confirmed it is using hypersonic missiles.
Writers at The Federalist believe that Washington and the media are warmongering.
So Mad Christian, be steady in your prayers. Pray for peace and wisdom, for an end to the loss of lives. Pray that God would curb the madness in the hearts of men.
So which is it?
It would seem that the zeitgeist can't keep its story straight. On any given day, it is hard to know whether individuality is the most important thing or whether conforming to the norms of the tribe is where it's at. Contrasting two pieces of news on any given week could melt your brain. Here's an example:
Exhibit A: You do you. A UK hospital recently denied a woman's claim that she had been raped while she was a patient there. The hospital said it was impossible since the ward was only for females. But can our culture even say what a woman is? A company which makes sanitary products recently referred to women as "bleeders." However, that definition might not include champion collegiate swimmer, Lia Thomas. In addition, a former head coach for Division 1 swimming had a message of consolation for women who are losing to male competitors: "Victories come in more forms than standing on the podium." Wait, maybe she is referring to the satisfaction that women have in being wives and mothers? So "woman" is whatever you want it to be.
Exhibit B: Join the collective. CityJournal is reporting on the worrying trajectory of the medical accreditation body called the Liaison Committee on Medical Education (LCME). The LCME is pushing to make sure that medical schools include "social justice" as part of med school curriculum. So, we can rest assured that our next generation of doctors will be diverse and inclusive. Hopefully they will also know something about medicine!
Martin Gurri points out that in trying to embrace both "radical individualism" as well as uncompromising tribalism, the whole "cult of identity" is inherently unstable. Not only does this new religion want to deny the existence of reality in the world as God created it, but as one writer put it they also "deny the reality of existence." Put plainly we do not want to be creatures - we want to be our own gods.
When men will not glorify God and are ungrateful, St Paul wrote to the Romans, they become futile in their thoughts, and their foolish hearts are darkened. This seems to describe our age. But we know where to find the light, and we can share the truth with the lost and confused, the fearful and the rebel. Pray for our nation, for our educational institutions, our leaders and those in places of authority. The task is great but our Savior is greater!
In some brighter news, social media was filled with stories of people who have de-transitioned from their confusion and embraced the body God gave them.
Check your privilege
Hundreds of privileged Yale law students disrupted an event recently. A panel discussion attempted to show that liberals, conservatives, atheists, and Christians actually have some common ground. But the mob took offense that the conservative representative had participated in the legal defense of religious liberty. A Senior Circuit Judge took notice and suggested that students who do this are not fit to be considered for clerkships.
Speaking of activist judges...
President Biden's nominee for the Supreme Court vacancy, Ketanji Jackson, has come under more criticism from lawmakers as her record is scrutinized. It has been revealed that Judge Jackson has a long record of lenient sentencing for child porn offenders.
Recently, over 100 people were arrested in connection to a sting operation in Florida. The undercover investigation was aimed at catching child traffickers and predators.
The Department of Justice has agreed to pay $127M to settle 40 civil cases arising from the 2018 school shooting in Parkland, FL. Parents of victims said their warnings to the DOJ were not taken seriously.
A shooting range, Machine Gun Nest, claims that backdoor gun control laws are being included in the Democrats omnibus spending bill.
There are signs that parents are being heard in their determination to push back government interference with their families. Colorado lawmakers recently passed a billthat ensures kids will be allowed to play outside or stay home without parental supervision. Parents have been reported for child abuse for letting kids walk home from school or running errands on their own. While these types of laws have passed in other states, this is the first "blue" state to do so.
Nothing to see here
Having spent almost two years denigrating the story of Hunter Biden and his problematic laptop as "Russian disinformation", mainstream media are starting to admit the story is true. But the chattering classes and our leaders seem to have moved on to more important things. ABC News has reported that the House has passed a bill to stop discrimination based on hair styles.
The Senate has also made a move to lock Daylight Saving time in forever. That could be a good thing, as it seems that it's changing clocks back and forth that creates problems.
Smelly-vision
Mad readers will probably be aware of the desire of Big Tech titans to see their virtual reality dreams comes true. We have written about the nascent "metaverse" and its attendant issues, but a Vermont start-up thinks what the digital world really needs is scent. The writer says "for virtual reality to feel like reality, it needs smell." Smell seems to still be a mystery to a lot of scientists and the way memories connect to a particular fragrance is a little subjective. So good luck to them— we'll be outdoors, smelling the [real] roses!
All about the jab
Pfizer has asked for approval for a fourth dose of their vaccine. Moderna must be satisfied that their mRNA vaccines are the bomb - they are planning to develop vaccines for fifteen other diseases. Perhaps they should slow their roll and wait till the dust settles on the last drug they released into the world. A few folks are noticing that there is an unusually high rate of deaths among young people in the last year. Orange County in Florida will start screening student athletes for heart conditions.
Now Offering
A Summer at Hebron
Hey young men! Got plans for the school year, but wish you could spend some time at the Collgeium? Come spend a month or three of your summer up in Rockford and center on Christ before heading out. Reach out to Rev. Fisk via the contact page or the Mad Px Discord you are interested.
Headlines from far away
El Salvador's crypto gamble has been plagued with bugs and administrative problems. Could be a cautionary tale...
The mystery of Kenya's rising lakes
The Netherlands and Australia are suing Russia over the downing of Flight MH-17 in 2014
Puerto Rico has moved out of bankruptcy
Quick Hits for the Eyebuds
🚢 Another car-carrying ship has sunk
🦥 Kid on zip-line met an unexpected traveler
💓 A fabric that can monitor your heartbeat
🇹🇷 Record-breaking bridge joins Turkey to Europe
💡 House in the Arctic Circle has its own geodesic dome
✨ A QR code made from drones over Texas to promote Halo TV series
🧬 Scientists think they could bring back the dodo
🎓 These colleges have produced the most CEOs
🖌️ Modern logos in medieval style
🇯🇵 Huge earthquake in Fukushima
🇳🇿 For those playing along at home : world record potato was not a potato
A Good Word: Links from the Show Notes
Jonathan and Meridith brave the technology to spend hours on YouTube for Mad Christian Q&A & a lot of other nonsense (that's just what they say— the show is really full of engaging conversation). Here's what came up this week:
Matthew Harrison's letter regarding COVID-19 vaccines
Reading Proverbs, often
Sons of Solomon- the discipline, the newsletter, and the musters (see below)
Promo of Friends
Men, we've got events for building up the brotherhood:
Sons of Solomon Memorial Day Spring Muster in Rockford, IL (sign up for the SoS newsletter to stay in the loop).
Men's Gathering in Seymour, IN
Sweetness You May Have Missed
How to Read the Bible: Jeremiah
Justification by Opinion Alone
Let us pray: O God, whose glory it is always to have mercy, be gracious to all who have gone astray from Your ways and bring them again with penitent hearts and steadfast faith to embrace and hold fast the unchangeable truth of Your Word; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and
forever. Amen.