You're Entitled to Our Opinion

If you're a video game player where life and death are on the line, you know that you have a limited number of regenerations in case of death. Even if you run out of lives, a simple "restart" will get you back in. Life, in the real world, is a one time deal. The tombstones have two dates and a dash in between: Birth Date - Death Date. That little dash between them is very important. Scientists hav...

Poly can mean "many." Ticks are blood sucking parasites. Put those two words together and it sure sounds like "politics." We think you can figure out where we see the parallel. It's been since 1835 that our nation, the Good Ol' U.S. of A, has not carried national debt. President Andrew Jackson was in the White House when we, as a nation, was debt free. Since then, the income to outgo as been stagg...

As we enter 2026, we take a look back at some of the notable events of the past year. Some good...some not. Political, financial, personal, and spiritual pinnacles and pits punctuate our look back. And we look forward to just how much of a rollercoaster this next year just might be. From horrific deaths to widespread youth revival, we're seeing events that are shaping the nation. We've also seen e...

What's your favorite Christmas song? Both Jay and Tom agree that "Joy to the World" is each of their absolute favorite. However, research tells us it was not intended to be a Christmas song. Written in 1719 by Isaac Watts, it was meant to be a celebration of the Messiah's Second Coming. Read the lyrics with that in mind and you'll see what we mean. However, in 1833, Lowell Mason created a melody f...

Eternity. A long time, right? Not exactly. We, being finite and linear, meaning we have a limited time here on earth and that time passes day by day, hour by hour, have a very difficult time understanding the God who created time, space, and matter. Eternity past is way over our heads and, try as we might, we can't help to think of eternity future in any terms other than linear time. "When we've b...

Who told you that only certain people are hand-picked to go to heaven? Well, they're wrong, to put it bluntly. In this follow up from last week's podcast, "Who Can Be Saved?", we discuss the reason so many are reverting to the Calvinistic theology that only an elect few will enter the Pearly Gates. One of the biggest problems that exists because of this teaching is that those who are spiritually l...

Does God send people to hell? This is one of the ongoing questions many non-Believers have and the accusation they bring against a so-called "loving God." How can a loving God sentence people to burn for eternity? For five centuries, probably longer, people have been taught that God has chosen only certain people to go to heaven. It's bundled up in the T.U.L.I.P doctrine based on John Calvin's tea...

Grateful Thursday to Black Friday. Grateful to Greedy in less than 24 hours. Tom likes to call the time from Thanksgiving to Christmas as "The Thirty Days of Gluttony." With people celebrating the holidays, it invariably involves food: Great good and great amounts of it. Then add the pies, Grandma's famous peanut butter fudge, and the ever-famous fruit cake and the calories skyrocket. But just how...

Just how much of everything there is to know do you think you know? Jay and Tom have bounced this question around quite a few times, often with the self-deprecating response, "Probably a thimbleful." Then there are the things that are just plain unexplainable. And too, history is full of myths, legends, and speculations of what the spiritual world is like. We know that Jesus said, "God is spirit a...

19.5 million people have served our great country through military service. We appreciate and thank our military veterans for all they've done. That's what it has taken to preserve the wonderful freedoms we enjoy today. But has this freedom, sustained by such great sacrifice, become a burden of sorts? It's important for us as citizens of the U.S. of A. to remember exactly what we have. As we stand...

En gardé - one of the few French phrases we know. Basically means, "defend yourself" or "be on the ready." And that's exactly what today's topic is all about. Del Tackett from "The Truth Project" posed this question: "Do you really believe what you say you believe is really real?" If that's true, then the next step is to know as much as you can know about your faith, beginning with you. When did y...

When you look around at what's happening in the world, does it look to you like things are all falling apart or are they all falling together? Your view depends upon what you know about what's often called "the End Times." A few weeks ago, a ceasefire and hostage exchange was declared in the Middle East. This past year, the number of devastating earthquakes, famines, fires, volcanoes, and floods h...

When it comes to sports, coaches are always preaching "fundamentals." When it comes to faith, there are some things that are "raw fundamentals." And what makes these three aspects of faith "raw?" It's the fact that we can't experience them with our senses. It takes belief established on the foundation of the Word. Raw faith. Hebrews 11:6 says, "And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for...

Ever get messed up in your "thinker, feeler, chooser?" We all do. But the Word says "there's a better way!" People think we're made up of body, soul, and spirit when Paul, one of the most brilliant people ever to walk the earth told us we are spirit, soul, and body. Our "earth suit," as Jay eloquently puts it, isn't the primary part of our being. In fact, it's the only part of us that is temporary...

Unity. When Jesus was praying in the Garden just hours before He was crucified, He prayed for His disciples - and for those who would believe because of their testimony - that we would be one. It hasn't worked out that way, has it? There are approximately 46 distinct demonimations - oops, denominations - in America with thousands of off-shoots within the different demonimations, oops again, denomi...

The Bible. Just a book? One of the characteristics of Progressive Christianity is they keep the language of Christianity but trade the authority God's Word for the approval of the current culture. If you struggle with whether you can rely on the Word of God, then it's not the Bible you need more of but first a true revelation of the God of time, space, and matter. He is very adamant that His Word...

There's a huge difference between being alone and being lonely but what is it? Gilbert O'Sullivan's song, "Alone Again (Naturally)" might well be titled "Lonely Again (Naturally) as he sings about the emotional pain he goes through as life deals him more and more loss. Some people are turning to AI to the detriment of meaningful connections, like the lady who reportedly said, "I spend five hours a...

If someone would have thought of operating a cart with rocks to sell in Jerusalem around Jesus' time, they would have made a killing! Between apostates like Stephen and prostitutes, they would have had a big business. But check out the account of the prostitute they brought to Jesus. It didn't end well for the Pharisees. So many churches are in decline because of the perversion of the gift of disc...

Nearly a generation has gone by since the horrific events of September 11, 2001. Even most who have been born since then are aware of what happened as thousands of Americans lost their lives as a result of evil in the world. When the towers fell and the jets fell from the sky, many had a wakeup call. And it would have been nice if that wakeup call lasted, but something happened just this past week...

God's kingdom isn't a competition. There are many who call themselves "believers" that have quite a skewed perception of the role of men and women when it comes to kingdom ministry. When the Apostle Paul wrote to his son in the faith, Timothy, he made some statements that some denominations have used to subjugate women to subservient positions So, how do we deal with Paul's "women should learn qui...

We all have an "expiration date" It's not printed on us like a jug of milk, but God has it written in His Book of Life. He knows that date but doesn't let us in on it. When we think of mortality, it brings up two very important concepts: 1. What happens after we do pass over into eternity? 2. How should we live now in preparation for that day? Too many people cling to this life with a death grip....

The birth rate of South Korea is presently at about 0.73 births per woman. The birth rate of the U.S. is presently at about 1.6 births per woman. Population replace rate worldwide, considering birth/death ratios, is 2.1 births per woman. This means that both countries are experiencing negative population growth. The effects of this is catastrophic in many ways, not the least of which there will be...

When King David sinned against God via adultery and murder, he had a friend in Nathan to whom he was accountable. It took courage for Nathan to approach the king, who could end his life right there, and help him account for his actions and repent. David and Nathan had a relationship of trust too many people lack in their life. Sin percolates in darkness. Each one of us has areas of weakness that m...

Can we lose our salvation or are we guaranteed a seat at Heaven's feast if we walk an aisle, repeat a prayer, and get "dunked" but then live any way we like? If we sin and immediately die, are we bound for hell or is it that it doesn't matter what we do as long as we can tell Saint Peter at the pearly gates that we did more good than bad in our lifetime? There's opinion and there's the Biblical tr...

Proclaiming themselves wise, they become fools. Ouch! When we reject God, eventually He gives us over to our sin. In Romans, chapter 1, Paul tells us three areas where we are given over; lust of the heart to impurity, dishonorable passions, and, finally, a reprobate or depraved mind. Sound like anything that is happening today? What does the Word say about the path to the reprobate mind? Is there...