Former Atheist Makes the Case for Christmas: Bible Gateway Hosts Free Online Bible Study with Lee Strobel Starting Nov. 30!

 

Hello World,

The lights, the decorations, the gifts, the cards, the parties, the food, the family all make Christmas the proverbial “most wonderful time of the year.” But there is no Christmas without Christ. Periodt.

And to know about Christ, you have to read His Word. That’s why I must tell you about a free online Bible Study about Christmas! Below is more information.

Award-winning former legal editor of The Chicago Tribune and former atheist, Lee Strobel, uses his legal and journalism training to investigate whether the account of the birth and divinity of Jesus is logically and historically credible, in the free Case for Christmas Online Bible Study November 30, 2020–January 1, 2021, sponsored by Bible Gateway, the most visited Christian website in the world. Free registration for the event is at BibleGateway.com/cfc.

In this series of videos, released one per week for four weeks, Strobel will help participants understand that the Bible’s four Gospels are historically reliable in their telling of Jesus’ biography. He will separate the traditional myths from the real facts of the Christmas story by uncovering scholarly evidence gleaned from research and interviews regarding the true nature of Christmas.

“When I was an atheist, I loved the Christmas season, because I managed to focus on all the superficial trappings of the holiday instead of the spiritual dimension,” says Strobel. “But after my wife, Leslie, became a Christian and I started to investigate the identity of Jesus, I wanted to separate the holy day from the holiday, the facts from the fantasy, the truth from the tradition, and get down to the historic bedrock of what Christmas is all about. I expected to discover that Christmas is built on flimsy legends that developed in the many decades after Jesus lived. I didn’t anticipate that a thorough investigation of the ancient history actually validates the Christmas narrative, because it’s based on reliable sources that are too immediate to be written off as being mere legend or make believe.”

Watch the video of Lee Strobel introducing the online study.

“In this 4-week experience, we set aside Santa Claus and Christmas trees and delve instead into the question of what we can really know with confidence about the birth of Jesus of Nazareth,” says Strobel. “It is, after all, the greatest story of history. And, the greatest stories of history are the ones that turn out to be true.”

Students of this series will gain automatic free access to Lee Strobel’s online video presentation and exclusive free bonus content, including downloads of an Advent toolkit containing a Scripture reading plan and conversation cards for the season, and two printable Christmas script art prints.

The teaching videos will be available online for free November 30, 2020–January 1, 2021.

Any thoughts?

Why I Agree With Erica Campbell’s Theory About ‘Sowing Hoe Seeds’ & Not Reaping ‘Marriage Benefits’

Hello World,

First of all, Erica Campbell’s post about “sowing hoe seeds” did it what it was intended to do: get folk talking about her upcoming podcast. See her IG post below:

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by Erica Campbell (@imericacampbell)

To me, what she is said is a no brainer. Look at this like this: You can’t be eating ice cream, cake, cookies, brownies, pie, etc. for years and then expect to be satisfied by meat, vegetables and water all of a sudden! (Sexual appetite is a phrase for a reason!) In order for any habit to stick, you have to ease your way into new behavior. Pardon me for being blunt but “hoeing” (obviously from the word “whore”) is a bad habit, and it takes a while for any habit – good or bad – to be created.

According to healthline.com, it takes “anywhere from 18 to 254 days for a person to form a new habit and an average of 66 days for a new behavior to become automatic.” So if you want to turn a hoe into a housewife or a househusband, you need to allocate at least 254 to days to practice this new behavior. And even then, I believe after a new habit has been formed, there may be a relapse into old habits every now and then!

In sum, if you want a faithful wife or a faithful husband, it’s probably best to marry someone who is by nature a faithful person; however, if that hasn’t been that person’s history, that person needs to have been in a faithful relationship for at least 254 days. For me, it would have to be longer…

But folk don’t see this issue the same way that I do. Veronica Wells of Madame Noire says Erica Campbell’s theory is “baseless.” Below are a few of her points with my rebuttals afterward:

It’s a shame that in 2020, with everything else going wrong in the world, we are still falling into this trap of comparison, exalting one woman at the expense of another—with the validation of a man being the ultimate prize.

Me: Erica Campbell made no mention of a gender in her post. “Hoe” is a slang word for a “whore.” The definition of a “whore” is “a person who engages in sexual intercourse for pay.” While a “whore” is typically associated with a woman, that does not have to be the case according to the definition of the word. Additionally, I assume Erica is not talking a person who engages in sexual intercourse for pay. Rather she is talking about a person who is sexually promiscuous. Furthermore, Erica Campbell has talked about her husband Warryn Campbell’s sexual infidelity in their marriage which even resulted in a pregnancy so it is very possible that she didn’t mention for a gender for that reason. And it’s likely that she has intimate knowledge of what she said in her post…

Rarely, do we hear people still deeply entrenched in the church say it is hard to go from virginal and pure to being sexually expressive—even in the context of a marriage ordained by God. If there’s anything about this post, I agree with it, it’s that flipping the switch can be difficult. But I’d argue that your sexual behavior and having the capacity to maintain a marriage don’t always go hand in hand. Maintaining a marriage, being honest, committed, loyal to someone is more about mindset than sexual promiscuity.

Me: I don’t have as much of a problem with this paragraph. However, I don’t how Veronica Wells got all of that from the few sentences that Erica Campbell posted. I think she needs to listen to her podcast before making the assumption that she said being sexually pure before marriage is ALL that it takes to have a happy marriage. I don’t think anyone who is happily married would say that…

I’ve never sat in a church when someone spoke honestly enough to say that there’s not a formula to life and there certainly isn’t one to love and marriage.

Me: This statement makes me sad. I have mostly gone to one church my whole life (my father is pastor emeritus of that church), and it has not been preached that there is a set formula to life and love and marriage. I’ve been taught that there are precepts that typically lead to living a fulfilling life and having fulfilling love and marriage in your life, but I’ve also been taught that it’s your personal relationship with God which ultimately dictates how you live your life and if love and marriage is in God’s plan for your life. How one Christian leads his or her life may look very different how another Christian leads his or her life according to God’s will for that life. And though I believe that all Christians will experience love in his or her life, that love may not be romantic love, which is also dictated by God’s will. If Veronica Wells is open to it, I hope she explores more churches where these principles are explained…

Anyway, that’s all I have. Sex is an appetite just like other appetites. Going from feast to famine is problematic whether it’s food, sex, etc.

Any thoughts

 

The Oprah Winfrey Network Gives First Look at New Show “Behind Every Man” Featuring Kirk Franklin, His Wife Tammy Franklin & More…

Hello World,

The relationship of gospel superstar Kirk Franklin and his wife Tammy will be front and center on a new OWN series Behind Every Man

According to Billboard magazine, The Oprah Winfrey Network is taking the phrase “behind every great man is a great woman” to the small screen.

The network unveiled a first look at its heartfelt new series Behind Every Man, which spotlights the strong Black women behind famous men and the passions, struggles and sacrifices the’ve made to support the men they love.

The Carlos King, Jonathan Fountain and Courtney Parker-produced series will kick off on Nov. 7, with Usher‘s mom Jonnetta Patton, his first manager. On Nov. 14, Tammy Franklin will discuss her life-story and her support for husband Kirk Franklin on his road to stardom. The following week, Crystal Smith will talk about her life with husband Ne-Yo, and on Nov. 28, Claudinette Jean will show how she supported husband Wyclef Jean. The series wraps up on Dec. 5, DJ Envy’s wife Gia Casey navigates the adversaries during their nearly 20 years together.

See the trailer below:

Will you watch? I will…

Any thoughts?