The Natasha Crain Podcast (Natasha Crain)
Explore every episode of The Natasha Crain Podcast
| Pub. Date | Title | Duration | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 Mar 2022 | Evaluating Popular Progressive Christian Ideas with Alisa Childers | 01:30:19 | |
Author, speaker, and podcaster Alisa Childers joins me to discuss a series of popular ideas found in progressive Christian writings, using the recent bestselling book If God is Love, Don't Be a Jerk by John Pavlovitz as a case study. We explain why each idea is in conflict with a biblical worldview for those who accept the inspiration and authority of the Bible as God's Word. | |||
| 02 May 2022 | 16. How Your Favorite Movies Reveal God with Frank Turek | 00:45:06 | |
My guest today is the best-selling author and nationally known speaker Dr. Frank Turek. Frank has a fascinating new book out called Hollywood Heroes: How Your Favorite Movies Reveal God. Hollywood Heroes shows how our culture's favorite movie heroes are patterned after the ultimate hero—Jesus of Nazareth— and how the stories we see played out on the big screen parallel the real-world fight between good and evil. This is a unique and powerful book for starting faith conversations with people you may otherwise have trouble engaging with...especially teens! In this episode, we walk through examples from the book, show how they can be used to initiate conversations, and discuss the importance of Christians engaging with culture.
| |||
| 15 Jun 2022 | 17. Why Christians Must Care About Politics | 00:38:12 | |
There are few things more controversial than whether Christians should be involved with politics, and if so, to what degree and how that involvement should happen. In this episode, I break down two basic premises for thinking well about this subject: | |||
| 03 Aug 2022 | 18. How Mainstream Media Gaslights Christians | 00:16:37 | |
Not only is mainstream media no longer trying to be objective, but they’re also openly advocating for specific viewpoints. And not only are they openly advocating for specific viewpoints, but they’re also strategically manipulating public thought. In this episode, I break down five implicit messages that mainstream media trumpets to push culture toward a uniformity of thought that's nearly always at odds with a Christian worldview. | |||
| 02 Sep 2022 | 19. The Homelessness Crisis from a Biblical Perspective with Bryan Crain | 01:47:12 | |
There is a crisis of homelessness happening across the country, and many Christians wonder what can and should be done. This is an important question because not all attempts at helping the homeless are equally beneficial nor are they equally consistent with a biblical worldview. Bryan Crain, Chief Operating Officer of the Orange County Rescue Mission, joins me to discuss what helping the homeless looks like from a biblical worldview perspective, how that compares to secular homeless program models (such as "housing first"), and takes a variety of questions about homelessness submitted by my podcast listeners online. (Bryan also happens to be my husband!) If you've ever wondered how to help the homeless you pass by on the streets, this is an episode not to miss.
Recommended books:
| |||
| 12 Sep 2022 | 20. What Is a Biblical Worldview? with Dr. George Barna | 01:07:19 | |
If you have followed my content for any amount of time in the last year, you have heard me talk repeatedly about the jarring statistics related to the shrinking percent of Americans who have a biblical worldview. I’ve written and talked about a lot of different studies and numbers, but two of the most pertinent data points are these: 65% of Americans self identify as Christians, but research on people’s actual beliefs and behavior shows that only about 6% have a biblical worldview. This huge gap has numerous implications for the church today. But how exactly do researchers define a biblical worldview? How do they get to that 6% estimate? In this episode, I get into all the details with Dr. George Barna, who is the Director of Research for Arizona Christian University’s Cultural Research Center. | |||
| 18 Oct 2022 | 21. How Secular Wisdom Fails with Alisa Childers | 01:11:38 | |
In today’s secular culture, there is a lot of popular-level wisdom that passes as self-evident truth we should all just accept--statements like live your truth; you are enough; authenticity is everything; God just wants you to be happy; you shouldn’t judge. These are claims about reality that sound good…but are they really good when we define good by the standard of God’s Word? In today’s show, I’m welcoming back my friend Alisa Childers to talk about the lies we hear in culture and how secular wisdom so often fails. That’s the subject of her brand new book, Live Your Truth and Other Lies: Exposing Popular Deceptions That Make Us Anxious, Exhausted, and Self-Obsessed.
| |||
| 03 Nov 2022 | 22. What's Wrong with Bethel Church and the NAR Movement? with Holly Pivec | 01:07:58 | |
The New Apostolic Reformation (NAR) is a popular and fast-growing new movement of Christians who emphasize signs and wonders and teach that God is giving new revelation through new apostles and prophets today. Some churches associated with those teachings have even become household names—you’ve probably heard of the widely influential Bethel Church, for example. But are NAR teachings consistent with the historic Christian faith? That's the question my guest today, Holly Pivec, seeks to answer in her new book, Counterfeit Kingdom: The Dangers of New Revelation, New Prophets, and New Age Practices in the Church, which she co-authored with Biola professor Douglas Geivett.
| |||
| 13 Feb 2023 | 23. Who Are You to Judge?...and Other Claims That Christians Are Arrogant | 00:23:10 | |
Jesus wants us to be humble, but we can misunderstand the nature of that humility and start to believe the world’s claims that we’re being arrogant about things that we’re not being arrogant about. In this episode, I walk you through how to respond to charges of moral arrogance ("Who are you to judge?"), epistemic arrogance ("Who are you to be so confident that you know what’s true better than others?"), and biblical arrogance (“Who are you to think your biblical interpretation is better than mine…or anyone else's?”). | |||
| 14 Mar 2023 | 24. The Toxic Roots Behind America's Spiritual Freefall, with Dr. Erwin Lutzer | 00:46:11 | |
Cultural Marxism. Equity. Socialism. DEI. CRT. Anti-Racism. Collective Guilt. Christians can no longer stay silent about the divide between the Bible's truth and the world's lies. In today's episode, I talk with Dr. Erwin Lutzer, pastor emeritus of The Moody Church, where he served as senior pastor for 36 years. Dr. Lutzer clearly explains the most prevalent lies today and walks through the reasons we should have the courage to proclaim truth. | |||
| 28 Mar 2023 | 25. Navigating Culture with Grace and Truth, with Sean McDowell | 00:56:54 | |
Today I have the honor of talking with someone who I think is one of the best, if not the best, Christian models of navigating this tough culture with grace AND truth. Dr. Sean McDowell is a gifted communicator with a passion for equipping the church, and especially young people, to make the case for the Christian faith. In this episode, we go deep into the question of how we can better balance grace and truth in our interactions with a hostile culture--and also in our interactions with fellow believers.
| |||
| 13 Jun 2023 | 26. Public, Private, or Homeschool? Thinking Through Your Child’s Education (Part 1) | 00:40:34 | |
How you educate your child should be a very intentional choice--certainly not something you default into just because you haven't considered the various options available. But how is that decision best made from a Christian worldview perspective? In Part 1 of this episode, I walk through 6 key principles to keep in mind, followed by my thoughts on and experiences with homeschool in particular. In the next episode (Part 2), I'll go on to talk about Christian private school and then public school. | |||
| 11 Jul 2023 | 27. Why Does Culture Think Men Are Toxic? with Nancy Pearcey | 00:55:07 | |
In her newest book, The Toxic War on Masculinity: How Christianity Reconciles the Sexes, bestselling author and speaker Nancy Pearcey explains how secularism has villainized the concept of masculinity. For example, one media researcher analyzed more than 2,000 mass media portrayals of men and found that more than 75 percent of all media representations of men portrayed them as “villains, aggressors, perverts, and philanderers.” How did we get here? How did we get to the point where men are seen so negatively that they’re literally considered by many to be “toxic”? And what does the Bible say about what it means to be a man? Nancy and I dig into these critically important questions in today's episode.
| |||
| 25 Jul 2023 | 28. Understanding and Responding to Transgender Ideology, with Frank Turek | 01:40:42 | |
You’ve probably noticed that it seems everything is about transgender issues today. Why, exactly, is that? Why is everyone talking about transgenderism in particular? Why are we seeing an explosion of people identifying as trans? What’s even involved in the transition process, in particular for the growing number of teens who are pursuing a gender change? What about the popular claim that if we don’t support transitions, people will commit suicide? How, as Christians, do we respond to all of this in truth and love? Author, speaker, and radio show host Dr. Frank Turek is joining me today to talk about all of these questions and many more—including a bunch of personal questions about transgender issues that were submitted by people who follow my Facebook author page (https://www.facebook.com/natashacrainauthor). Frank’s latest book: Correct, Not Politically Correct: About Same-Sex Marriage and Transgenderism (Expanded Third Edition) https://www.amazon.com/Correct-Not-Politically-Same-Sex-Transgenderism/dp/1607087073 OR order from Impact Apologetics (Amazon has been out of stock): https://impactapologetics.com/correct-not-politically-correct-about-same-sex-marriage-and-transgenderism-2023-edition/ Frank’s ministry, Cross Examined: https://crossexamined.org/ Cross Examined Instructor Academy: https://crossexamined.org/what-is-cia/ Abigail Shrier’s book, Irreversible Damage: https://www.amazon.com/Irreversible-Damage-Transgender-Seducing-Daughters/dp/168451228X/ Jordan Peterson’s YouTube interview with detransitioner Chloe Cole: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6O3MzPeomqs Article on research censorship: “My Research on Gender Dysphoria Was Censored. But I Won’t Be.” https://www.thefp.com/p/trans-activists-killed-my-scientific-paper Frank’s book, Legislating Morality: Is It Wise? Is It Legal? Is It Possible?: https://www.amazon.com/Legislating-Morality-Wise-Legal-Possible/dp/1592441521/ Frank’s article, “Sex at Work”: https://crossexamined.org/sex-at-work/ | |||
| 10 Aug 2023 | 29. Christian Private Schools: What Parents Should Know | 00:40:23 | |
This is part 2 of my episode, "Public, Private, or Homeschool: Thinking Through Your Child's Education (Part 1)." In this part, I talk about the widely varied types of Christian private school options available to parents, breaking them into four general categories: progressive Christian schools, nominally Christian schools, committed Christian schools with a mainstream educational philosophy, and committed Christian schools with an alternative educational philosophy. Additionally, I answer questions listeners submitted online, such as: | |||
| 31 Aug 2023 | 30. A Christian Response to a Viral Deconversion Post | 00:29:07 | |
Social media has been a popular place to share deconversion stories over the last few years, and sometimes so many people resonate with those posts that they go viral to some extent (being liked and shared by thousands of people). There’s one that’s being shared all over Facebook right now, written this week by a lady named Myndee Mack. At the time of this writing, it has 8,000+ likes/loves, 7,000+ comments, and over 3,000+ shares. Clearly, Myndee’s post is compelling to many. Here is my response to the reasoning and theological clarity/accuracy of what she wrote. | |||
| 12 Sep 2023 | 31. When You Have Trouble Believing the Bible, with J. Warner Wallace | 01:02:50 | |
Even Christians struggle with believing what the Bible says sometimes. We want to believe it's God's Word, but there can be doubts that nag at us. Can miracles really happen? If they can, why should we believe some of the stranger miracles in the Bible like a talking donkey? Why would God leave enough uncertainty around what the Bible says that people can come to such different conclusions about it? Even if we believe that the Gospels report some true things about Jesus, how can we be confident that we should believe everything the Gospels say? Today, cold-case homicide detective, national speaker, and bestselling author J. Warner Wallace joins me to discuss these questions and more, in honor of the release of the updated and expanded version of his modern classic, Cold-Case Christianity. | |||
| 27 Sep 2023 | 32. Living Counter Culturally Can Make Your Kids Resent Christianity | 00:10:46 | |
We're raising kids in an increasingly challenging world--which means we have to be intentional in raising them in a counter cultural way. But if we’re not careful in how we do it, it can lead to our kids’ resentment of Christianity over time. In today's short episode, I talk about four ways that can happen and how to avoid it. | |||
| 12 Oct 2023 | 33. How to Have Better Conversations with Nonbelievers, with Greg Koukl | 01:08:51 | |
Many Christians are finding that it's getting harder and harder to engage in faith conversations with nonbelievers. With culture becoming increasingly hostile to Christian beliefs (particularly on morality), it's natural to want to just slink away...but that's not what we're called to do. The good news is, it can be easier than you think to have fruitful conversations. Today I talk with Greg Koukl, president of Stand to Reason, about how Christians can learn to engage more effectively simply by asking good questions. We'll show you how. | |||
| 16 Nov 2023 | 34. Public Schools: What Christian Parents Need to Know, with Andy White | 01:34:58 | |
This is the third part of my series on educational choices for Christian families. In today's episode, I interview Andy White, a Christian who has been a public high school principal for the last 19 years. Our purpose is NOT to tell every Christian parent to leave public schools; we know that every family has different considerations and opportunities. Rather, our purpose is to educate Christian parents who do continue to have their kids in public schools on what concerns they should watch out for. A subsequent episode will address what parents can do in response. | |||
| 05 Dec 2023 | 35. Public Schools (Part 2): How to Know What's Going On in the Classroom (Plus Q&A), with Andy White | 02:05:52 | |
In this part 2 on public schools (see episode 34 for part 1), my guest Andy White explains seven things Christian parents can and should be doing to know what's going on in their child's school and classroom. In the second hour, Andy answers a dozen questions from listeners. | |||
| 18 Jan 2024 | 36. The Pro-Life Movement, Culture Wars, and How the Church Got Soft, with Seth Gruber | 01:12:36 | |
Seth Gruber is a bold and passionate pro-life speaker and the founder of The White Rose Resistance. His mission is to be a voice for unborn children and to educate and expose culture to the evil of abortion until every person has the right to be born. In today's episode, Seth and I talk about the state of the pro-life movement post-Roe, the history of evil that led to where we are today with the killing of babies, the softness of today’s church on cultural issues, and much more. Seth’s ministry: The White Rose Resistance (Get Involved!) Seth’s talk that I called the “Most Powerful Talk I’ve Ever Heard” Seth with Jack Hibbs on “Happening Now” at Calvary Chapel Chino Hills | |||
| 07 Feb 2024 | 37. The He Gets Us Campaign: Why Its Portrayal of Jesus is Still a Problem | 00:26:38 | |
Super Bowl Sunday is in a few days, and He Gets Us will once again be running ads as part of their $100 million advertising campaign intended to "rescue Jesus's reputation." Last year, I wrote a viral article on 7 key problems with it. Since people will be talking about it all over again this week, I've done an updated evaluation of the campaign, including reviewing all 43 days of their Bible reading plans. Today I walk through my case that the campaign continues to be very problematic. | |||
| 29 Feb 2024 | 38. The State of Parental Rights, with Ryan Bangert of Alliance Defending Freedom | 00:59:23 | |
Today I'm featuring the work of a very important organization that every Christian should know about: Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF). ADF is one of the leading Christian law firms committed to protecting religious freedom, free speech, marriage and family, parental rights, and the sanctity of life. Ryan Bangert, Senior VP at ADF, joins me to talk specifically about parental rights in this episode. He offers a wealth of information on this subject that is vital for parents to understand. ADF's website: https://adflegal.org/ Sign up for ADF email updates here: https://adflegal.org/email-sign-up ADF Ministry Alliance (affordable religious freedom legal help for ministries): https://www.adfministryalliance.org/ Financially support ADF here: https://adflegal.org/support/grants-funding | |||
| 27 Mar 2024 | 39. The Biggest Faith Challenges Facing the Next Generation, with Dr. Jeff Myers | 01:05:05 | |
Parenting Gen Z by Jason Jimenez https://www.amazon.com/Parenting-Gen-Guiding-through-Hostile/dp/1646070070 Legacy Coalition https://legacycoalition.com/ | |||
| 26 Apr 2024 | 40. How to Discern Truth from Culture’s Lies, with Pastor Jack Hibbs | 01:01:37 | |
Deception of many different kinds is a pervasive problem in the church today. The problem with deception, of course, is that people rarely know when they're being deceived. In this episode, I talk about some of the most pressing examples of deception in the church with pastor Jack Hibbs based on his new book, Living in the Daze of Deception: How to Discern Truth from Culture's Lies.
| |||
| 07 Aug 2024 | 41. Is There a Leftist Agenda Infiltrating the Church?, with Megan Basham | 00:54:56 | |
Megan Basham's new book, Shepherds for Sale: How Evangelical Leaders Traded the Truth for a Leftist Agenda, has become the source of much discussion and controversy in the few days it's been out. In this episode, Megan and I talk about the central thesis of her book, the evidence for it, and why Christians should be concerned. She also responds to many of the objections people have had to it over the last few days. | |||
| 31 Aug 2024 | 42. How The After Party Curriculum Is Sowing Political Confusion in the Church | 00:36:47 | |
The After Party is a small group curriculum and corresponding book that's being heavily promoted this election year to individuals, churches, and Christian institutions. The marketing is designed to attract churches who would like to simply encourage charitable communication around politics, but the execution is designed to convince Christians that they shouldn’t be so conservative. In this episode, I do a deep dive on the book to make the case that it's not what it's marketed to be and that it should absolutely be avoided by the church. | |||
| 10 Sep 2024 | 43. America's Disastrous Search for a More Inclusive Deity, with Erwin Lutzer | 00:52:41 | |
My guest today is Dr. Erwin Lutzer. Dr. Lutzer is pastor emeritus of The Moody Church, where he served as the senior pastor for 36 years. He is an award-winning author of many books, including We Will Not Be Silenced, and the featured speaker on two radio programs heard on more than 750 outlets worldwide. In this episode, we talk about Dr. Lutzer's brand new book (just released today!), called The Eclipse of God: Our Nation's Disastrous Search for a More Inclusive Deity (and What We Must Do About It). I had the honor of reading an early copy and endorsing it, and I highly recommend it. As I said in my endorsement, “I can't think of a better book to quickly bring Christians up to speed on the key forces that have led to our culture's disastrous attempt to redefine and abandon God.” We had a fantastic conversation in this episode about how America's gotten to the point of worshipping a self-made deity rather than the one true God. Don't miss this! Dr. Lutzer will give you insights into our current cultural moment that you won't forget. | |||
| 17 Sep 2024 | 44. What Investigating Death Teaches Us About the Meaning of Life, with Detective J. Warner Wallace | 01:03:35 | |
Cold-case homicide detective, popular national speaker, and best-selling author J. Warner Wallace joins me to talk about his new book, The Truth in True Crime: What Investigating Death Teaches Us About the Meaning of Life. Jim has incredibly unique and valuable insights about life from his many years working homicide cases. In this episode, he shares some of his greatest learnings from "investigating death." | |||
| 10 Oct 2024 | 45. The State of Christian Colleges, with Dr. Everett Piper | 01:04:33 | |
What is the state of Christian colleges today? Is a Christian college education worth the money? How should parents evaluate a given Christian college to determine if it’s biblically sound? What are some signs that a school is going progressive? These are just a few of the questions I discuss with my guest today, Dr. Everett Piper. | |||
| 28 Oct 2024 | 46. Exposing the History of the Sexual Revolution, with Seth Gruber | 00:52:40 | |
Today I talk with Seth Gruber about his new documentary that exposes the "hidden history of the secular moral revolution and the architects of our current culture of death." Seth's documentary and corresponding book are called The 1916 Project and reveal the long, devastating trajectory of how we got to where we are today as a culture that celebrates the choice to kill preborn babies. The film and book are both amazing, and I highly recommend them. Seth and I also discuss the importance of Christians voting in this election and why, even with Trump's weakened stance on abortion, there's no moral equivalence between his and Harris's platforms. You can watch The 1916 Project documentary for FREE now until the election on X! Go here: https://x.com/1916projectfilm Learn more about The 1916 Project and how you can screen it at your church: https://the1916project.com/ Get The 1916 Project book: https://www.amazon.com/1916-Project-Lyin-Witch-Were/dp/B0D79VN7VM Connect with Seth:
| |||
| 21 Nov 2024 | 47. What the Church Is Getting Wrong about Race and Racism, with Monique Duson and Krista Bontrager | 01:12:51 | |
Today I’m talking with my good friends from the Center for Biblical Unity, Monique Duson and Krista Bontrager, about their new book, Walking in Unity: Biblical Answers to Questions on Race and Racism. Ever since 2020, there have been all kinds of discussions about race in the church, and unfortunately a lot of those discussions have included some very unbiblical ways of thinking. I’m so grateful that Krista and Monique have written this excellent and accessible book that counteracts culture's problematic ideas. In this conversation, we cover all kinds of topics, like:
| |||
| 22 Nov 2024 | Quick Response 1: If Christianity is really about saving souls, we wouldn't legislate values | 00:04:37 | |
Welcome to my first quick response episode, in which I respond briefly to popular claims I see online that sound good and draw in a lot of Christians, but fail from a biblical and/or logical perspective. Today, I respond to a Tweet from Rev. Benjamin Cremer, a progressive Christian on X who has quickly been gaining influence with a lot of people. Here’s the post: “Dear Christian, If your religion is really about 'saving souls' then you wouldn’t demand for it to be legislated. Because making someone follow your religion by force of law against their will is an extremely effective way to ensure they reject your God in their hearts." | |||
| 05 Dec 2024 | Quick Response 2: If Trans People Aren't Harming Anyone, Why Should You Care What They Do to Themselves? | 00:05:13 | |
Today I’m addressing the following tweet from someone who is troubled by Christians and others who are concerned about public policy related to transgender issues: “For all those who are terrified of trans people and believe this is more important than any other issue, can you please let me know just once when a trans person harmed you? One personal, specific story please.” | |||
| 04 Feb 2025 | 48. Does the Culture Hate Christians? | 00:10:59 | |
My new book, When Culture Hates You: Persevering for the Common Good as Christians in a Hostile Public Square, is out TODAY! In this brief episode, I tell you a bit about the book and answer the question some are asking: Does the culture actually hate Christians? GET YOUR COPY TODAY! Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/When-Culture-Hates-You-Persevering/dp/0736984313 ChristianBook.com: https://www.christianbook.com/culture-persevering-christians-hostile-public-square/9780736984317/pd/984311?event=BRSRCG|PSEN | |||
| 24 Feb 2025 | 49. How the New Thought Movement Is Shaping Today's Culture, with Melissa Dougherty | 01:05:53 | |
In today’s episode, I talk with Melissa Dougherty about her groundbreaking new book, Happy Lies: How a Movement You (Probably) Never Heard Of Shaped Our Self-Obsessed World. As I said in my endorsement of the book, "Happy Lies is the most important book that Christians don't know they need. Melissa connects dots that give readers a wealth of aha moments and provides invaluable insights that bring clarity to some of the most pervasive errors in the church. As a bonus, she does it all in a writing style that makes it fun and engaging to read." Get the book: https://www.amazon.com/Happy-Lies-Movement-Probably-Self-Obsessed/dp/0310368863 Subscribe to Melissa's YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@MelissaDougherty | |||
| 06 Mar 2025 | 50. How to Share Truth with an Ever-Changing Culture, with Sean McDowell | 01:07:14 | |
Sean and I discuss some fascinating subjects from a new book he edited called Apologetics for an Ever-Changing Culture: A Biblical and Culturally Relevant Approach to Talking about God. Sean is a professor of Apologetics at Talbot School of Theology, Biola University. He is the author, editor, or co-author of more than 20 books and has one of the top apologetics YouTube channels. Check out the book here: https://www.amazon.com/dp/0736989277/ Sean's website: https://seanmcdowell.org/ Get Unshaken Conference Tickets: https://unshakenconference.com/ | |||
| 12 Mar 2025 | Quick Response 3: Is It Problematic for Christians to Align with One Political Party More Than Another? | 00:05:40 | |
Today I’m responding to an X post from author and speaker Preston Sprinkle: “My political theology has allowed me to be so hopeful in this political season. I reject the empire, yet submit to it, because Jesus is king. I embrace and celebrate Christ’s multiethnic kingdom and the many ways we are spreading good in the world. Christians should not be captivated by the binary political playing field that’s been handed to us by Babylon.” I evaluate his frequent political claim that Christians are like exiles in Babylon (an analogy that fails greatly) and address why this quote represents an unbiblical view of politics.
| |||
| 28 Mar 2025 | 51. Andy Stanley's Church is Coaching Middle School Leaders to Affirm Trans Identities | 00:34:27 | |
The website and X account protestia.com got ahold of a training video from Andy Stanley's hugely influential North Point Church on how middle school leaders should respond to trans-identifying kids and their families. The video features Britt Kitchen, the middle school ministry director at North Point, effectively encouraging leaders to affirm trans identities (I say effectively because he doesn't explicitly say that, but it's the implication of all he's presenting). In this episode, I play and respond to 6 brief clips from the video. It's a tragic case study of how unbiblical ideas are being pushed from within the church. Watch the original 6-minute video the clips are pulled from here: https://x.com/Protestia/status/1905574394732118425 | |||
| 22 Jan 2021 | America's Downward Spiral: What Should You Say to Your Kids? | 00:36:31 | |
America is in a moral, spiritual, and political decline. How do you share what's going on so your kids are informed and understand what's happening from a biblical perspective, but in a way that won't overwhelm them? In this episode, I share key tips for talking about issues in each area--moral, spiritual, and political. | |||
| 29 Jan 2021 | How to Teach Your Kids about Non-Christian Worldviews | 00:33:04 | |
Teaching kids about non-Christian worldviews is mission critical for giving them a deeper and richer understanding of their own faith. In this episode, I explain three key things kids should know about the nature of studying world religions before you even start discussing, and three “best practices” from my own experience for how to discuss the particulars of other religions. | |||
| 05 Feb 2021 | Biblical Miracles: Why Should We Believe All This Stuff Really Happened? | 00:19:33 | |
Skeptics often claim that the miracles in the Bible defy common sense--that any reasonable person should see that such claims are unreasonable in nature. Christians must understand how to think critically about the nature of and evidence for miracles, but this is rarely something addressed in church. In this episode, I walk through a 10-point framework for both adults and kids to better understand how to approach this important subject. | |||
| 17 Feb 2021 | Christian Private School vs. Homeschool: Making the Choice | 01:01:06 | |
More parents than ever are considering alternatives to public school. In particular, many are weighing the relative benefits of Christian private school and homeschool. In this episode, I share about our family's six years of experience in Christian private school and what it's like to transition from a traditional school setting to homeschool (which we did this fall). If you're considering one or both options, this show will help you think through key questions before making a decision. | |||
| 25 Feb 2021 | 10 Signs Christian Influencers Are Teaching Unbiblical Ideas | 00:14:42 | |
Most people would spot a problem immediately if a Christian influencer said they didn’t believe in the Trinity. But it’s just as important to be able to identify when less obvious warning signs are present. In this episode, I share 10 subtler things to watch for. Articles mentioned in the show: | |||
| 05 Mar 2021 | Christians Must Care Less about Our Cultural Reputation | 00:11:42 | |
The idea that Christians need to fix a growing reputation problem in our society is becoming increasingly common in conversations on social media and even in articles by well known Christian leaders. The assumption is that we’ve collectively gone wrong in recent months (or years), and now we’ve got to quickly do something about it…before the world thinks even worse of us. In this episode, I explain why I think this is wrong-headed and dangerous. | |||
| 17 Mar 2021 | Critical Thinking in a Secular Culture | 00:38:52 | |
There are a lot of competing ideas in today's culture, and it's important that Christians understand how to think critically about the nature of these ideas from a worldview perspective. In this episode, I explain THE most important thing that separates a biblical worldview from a secular worldview and give several examples of how to respond to common secular sentiments accordingly (for example, "Don't you want to be on the right side of history?"). | |||
| 23 Mar 2021 | No, Progressive Christian Politicians Aren't Good for America | 00:18:43 | |
In an opinion piece for The New York Times titled, “Progressive Christians Arise! Hallelujah!” Nicholas Kristof made the case this week that “with a churchgoing Democrat in the White House, faith becomes more complicated in America”…and that that’s a good thing. In this episode, I explain why that's NOT the case, and break down Kristof's article point by point. This is an audio version of my blog post, "No, The Growth of Progressive Christian Politicians is Not a Good Thing for America [A Response to the New York Times Opinion Piece by Nicholas Kristof]." | |||
| 01 Apr 2021 | Give Your Kids a Sense of Hopelessness This Easter | 00:12:38 | |
If you spend any time around Christians, you’ll hear about the “hope we have in Jesus.” But we’re often trying to offer people (including our kids) something they’re not even hungry for. In this episode, I share why kids need to more fully understand the true hopelessness of the world in order to hunger for the hope we have in Jesus. | |||
| 20 Apr 2021 | Logical Thinking in an Illogical Culture | 00:24:24 | |
There’s something that often goes unsaid in discussions about the importance of critical thinking: Not everyone we interact with will actually VALUE good logic and critical thinking. Many people think emotionally rather than critically and that has a lot of implications for Christians engaging with culture. It’s not enough to learn to think well...we have to learn how to think well AND how to deal with the fact that a lot of people don’t CARE about thinking well. In this episode, I highlight eight points to consider when thinking logically in an illogical culture. | |||
| 28 Jul 2021 | Are Christians the New Extremists? Yes, and That's Okay. | 00:14:53 | |
Have you noticed how any view that doesn't track with the mainstream secular consensus today is considered "extreme"? Even Facebook is now encouraging people to report when they've been exposed to so-called "extremist" content. While it used to be that extremists were those who committed ideological acts of violence, today extremism is increasingly being defined with respect to how far a view lies from popular consensus. And guess what? Christians with a biblical worldview fall squarely in the newly defined extremist camp. (Welcome!) It's really important to understand--and, in many ways, embrace--your position here. I explain why in this episode. | |||
| 24 Aug 2021 | Practical Tips for Teaching Kids Apologetics at Home | 01:15:32 | |
When parents start to see the importance of teaching their kids apologetics (how to make a case for and defend the truth of Christianity), they often start reading books but then feel stuck as to HOW to pass the knowledge on to their kids. At what age do you start? What if your kids aren't interested? What subjects should you cover? What subjects should you start with? What if you can't answer the questions that come up? In this episode, I cover all kinds of ideas for how to make apologetics part of your discipleship--for kids of all ages.
| |||
| 20 Oct 2021 | The Fast But Quiet Creeping of Everyday Cancel Culture | 00:19:41 | |
There are plenty of high profile cancel culture examples that grab sustained public attention, but it’s the everyday cancel culture that picks off person after person without national attention that’s far more insidious...because the cumulative seriousness of what’s happening isn’t obvious to many people. In this episode, I discuss a recent example and walk through three things every Christian should understand about the fast but quiet creeping of everyday cancel culture. | |||
| 11 Nov 2021 | Yes, Saturday Night Live is Promoting Abortion in a Clown Outfit | 00:15:25 | |
This weekend, Saturday Night Live cast member Cecily Strong played a character called Goober the Clown who had an abortion when she was 23 and now talks to people about how normal abortion is in between clown jokes.
| |||