Abortion, Christian Living, Culture, Politics
John Beeson
Protecting the Voice of the Voiceless

The tide of public opinion on abortion has ebbed dramatically over the past two years. On Friday, June 22, the Supreme Court handed down one of the most critical decisions in our lifetime: Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization. Forty-nine years of nationally enshrined abortion rights were pushed down to the states. The battle was not over, but had just begun. Pro-lifers who thought this was the beginning of a new pro-life era were in for a disappointment. The reaction from the pro-choice community was strong and their response led to a wave of support for their cause leaving many pro-lifers flat-footed.

Protecting the Voice of the Voiceless
Christian Living, Culture, Death, Fear
John Beeson
What Spooks You?

Across the street from our home is the holiday house. You probably have one in your neighborhood. They go all out for every holiday. On Saturday, cars stacked up on the main road leading into the neighborhood as families drove by slowly, taking in the massive display that must have cost the owners thousands of dollars.

 

Last week I drove by a home whose Halloween decorations weren’t as massive or ostentatious, but the lawn display was undoubtedly the eeriest I’ve ever seen. A life-like severed head hung from a tree limb. A decapitated corpse with a visible spinal cord jutting out between slumped shoulders sat underneath.

What Spooks You?
Christian Living, Culture, Fear, Wisdom
John Beeson
The Temptation of Temptation

In 2023, 46 horror movies were released. 75 million tickets were sold, and the industry made $798 million in domestic revenue alone. It’s been argued that horror movies remain a draw for many in the contemporary West because there is so little actual danger in most of our lives.

 

Atheist Steven Pinker in The Better Angels of Our Nature argues that we live in the most peaceful era of human existence: wars have decreased, human rights have expanded, and rates of starvation and lifespans have improved. Drawn to conflict, we now have access to global news coverage, which gives us the dopamine hit of feeling like we are in conflict.

The Temptation of Temptation
Christian Living, Fear, Spiritual Growth, Wisdom
John Beeson
Night

What attracts us so much to the dark?

In the story of Swan Lake, a ballet by Russian composer Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, Prince Siegfried falls in love with Odette (who has been cursed by the evil magician, Von Rothbart), after happening upon her at the lake one night during a hunting trip.  As a result of Von Rothbart's curse, Odette is human only at nightfall, for at daybreak she transforms into a swan.  True and faithful love is the only thing that can break the curse, and Siegfried aims to marry Odette, proclaiming such love, at a ball his mother is throwing for his birthday. 

Night
Christian Living, Death, Heaven, Religion, Spiritual Growth, Worship
John Beeson
How Changing Your View of Heaven Transforms the ...

In 2003, Bart Millard still mourning his father’s recent death, penned the lyrics for “I Can Only Imagine,” a song that would go on to be the most-played song in the history of Christian radio.

Can you imagine what heaven is going to be like?

There are lots of different views of heaven out there. A couple of decades ago a cottage industry developed, selling stories of those who said they had been to heaven while on death’s doorstep. We’re told of bright lights, lives re-played, and a warm glow. Others might daydream of harps and clouds, when asked to imagine heaven.

How Changing Your View of Heaven Transforms the Way You Live Today

Movie Reviews

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This Week's Recommendations

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This Week's Recommendations

  1. Gentleness is a Christian Virtue: Craig Thompson reflects, “My greatest concern is not that our culture is angry. My greatest concern is that this sense of meanness has even invaded many corners of the church.”

  2. Deteriorating Mental Health and Elijah: Eric Geiger begins, “I asked our church recently how many have struggled with anxiety or depression in the last year and hands shot up throughout our gathering space. No one was surprised, of course, because we have seen reports and news stories about mental health deteriorating in our society…Poets, presidents, preachers, and prophets too. In the Scripture, in I Kings 19, we find Elijah under a broom tree, believing that his ministry is over and his life is not worth living.”

  3. Do You Ever Feel Rushed in Forgiveness: Brad Hambrick’s article is excellent. He asks, “[W]hat part of forgiveness is beautiful? The answer is, the last part. The early and middle parts of forgiveness are heinous.”

  4. Reign With Christ, Hold the Suffering: There is good news and bad news, “There is no reigning with Christ without suffering marking the life of a believer. It is not possible to order off the Christians menu, requesting to “hold the suffering”.”

  5. Reviewing Kids’ Movies: This made me smile.

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This Week's Recommendations

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This Week's Recommendations

1. Dune is a Majestic Defense of Going to the Movies: Samuel James shares not only what makes Dune a great movie (I can attest it’s certainly that), but one that makes an argument for why the big screen can be better than the small screen. He says, “You only get films like Dune—ambitious, ponderous, beautiful films—when you have filmmakers who believe their audience can experience such a vision. And there is no such vision possible on a smartphone or laptop screen. Dune is an argument that cinemas are worth saving.”

2. Porn is Bad for You: Katherine Dee explains, “It’ll impact your taste; your openness to certain behaviors; the language you use to talk about sex; the lens you use to think about it. And for some people, like the kid who eats chocolate cake every day or the person who attends too many lavish parties, it might just start to bore you. You might desensitize yourself to sex all together.”

3. When the Beauty Never Leaves: A gorgeous piece of writing by AW Workman. It concludes by pointing us to God’s glory, “Steady on, my soul. One day the beauty will come – and it will never leave.”

4. How to Unite a Divided People: Carey Niewhof says, “The future doesn’t show any signs of uniting people automatically. In fact, left unattended, the divisions will likely only grow deeper and wider. One of the key tasks of leadership is to unite people around a common cause. That’s what leaders do.”

5. Best of the Beatles Cover in 6 Minutes: Another fun one from Walk off the Earth.

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We are Poor, Wayfaring Strangers

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We are Poor, Wayfaring Strangers

Two weeks ago, we watched the poignant movie 1917. The film follows two soldiers' one day mission to try to save 1,600 of their comrades from a trap the German army had sprung on the British forces in WWI. Filmed intimately through a single camera that follows the harrowing trek of the two young men, 1917 immerses you in the brutality and despair of war.

During one scene, having escaped death narrowly by jumping into a river, Corporal Schofield looks up to see cherry blossoms gently falling overhead. They swirl in the river's current and surround him. Schofield's eyes widen as he takes in the moment. But the heavenly reprieve comes to an abrupt end as Schofield floats into a mass of corpses.

As Schofield stumbles out of the water, he hears a single voice singing in the distance,

I'm just a poor wayfaring stranger
Traveling through this world below
There is no sickness, no toil, nor danger
In that bright land to which I go

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My Favorite Movie of 2019: The Peanut Butter Falcon

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My Favorite Movie of 2019: The Peanut Butter Falcon

Welcome to my choice for the best movie of 2019. After hearing rave reviews from friends[i] and The World and Everything In It, we decided we wouldn’t wait for The Peanut Butter Falcon to leave the theaters and hit RedBox. Our decision was rewarded with one of our favorite movies we’ve seen in a long time.

The Peanut Butter Falcon is a story about two broken young men. Zak (played by Zack Gottsagen) is a young man with Down syndrome, whose family has abandoned him. A ward of the state, he now lives in a nursing home and longs for family and becoming the professional wrestler he believes he was made to be (“The Peanut Butter Falcon” will eventually be his wrestling alter-ego).

Tyler (played by Shia LaBeouf) is a young man who at first blush seems to as different a human being from Zak as one could imagine. He’s a sullen fisherman who is thieving crab cages to make ends meet. Beneath the surface, though, is a young man struggling with grief and guilt over the death of his brother.

The world of the two young men collide as they both are on the lam and headed toward a murky future they only can hope is better than what lies behind them. The story riffs on Mark Twain’s The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn without being derivative. Chasing Zak down is his kindhearted caretaker Eleanor (played by the charming Dakota Johnson) from the nursing home. Chasing Tyler down are two thuggish fisherman who are after a pound of his flesh for his theft.

Along the way Tyler’s hard, self-loathing heart will be softened by Zak and Zak’s crushed spirit will be brought to life by Tyler.

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The Cost of Dreams: La La Land Review

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The Cost of Dreams: La La Land Review

I confess, I enjoy musicals, and not just because they make my wife happy. From “Singing in the Rain” to “Moulin Rouge” musicals that are done well are often able to punch a unique emotional punch. La La Land is no exception. But beyond being a movie that is profoundly successful in landing an emotional punch, La La Land also manages to deftly challenge the contemporary uncontested truth that following one’s dreams leads to happiness.

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