![]() Proverbs 8:32-33 Are you hungry to learn more about God's magnificent creation and teach your family what they need to know to defend the faith from the pseudoscience of evolution? Of course, the Creation Moments website is a great place to start. But there are other ways to learn about biblical creation – including outstanding books and DVDs on the six days of creation, the worldwide flood and so much more. Another great way is to visit the big Creation Museum near Cincinnati. But what if a trip there can't be worked into your family's vacation plans? You can visit one of the many other creation museums scattered all across the United States and in other countries around the globe. So how do you find out where these museums are located and what each one has to offer? The Creation Science Alliance – of which Creation Moments is a member – is a network of creation ministries and museums around the world, and they have put together the "Big Map of Creation" that makes it easy to find creation tours and museums near you. Simply point your web browser to VisitCreation.org to get started. On this map, you are sure to find sound doctrine and dependable science at any location your family chooses to visit, and you'll see fossils and dinosaur bones up close. These smaller museums are also great because your family will receive personal attention from trained creation tour guides. We highly recommend a creation museum tour for your next vacation. Notes: www.VisitCreation.org. Creation Moments, Inc., P.O. Box 839, Foley, MN 56329 www.creationmoments.com ![]() An Indian company has announced a new smartphone priced at $7. Ringing Bells’ Freedom 251 phone has 8GB storage and rear and front facing cameras. The smartphone age has brought every good and evil thing to people’s fingertips, including the fingertips of children. In Israel, 83% of children aged 8-15 are in possession of a smartphone; 93% use their mobile devices for at least four hours every day; half say they are online within 15 minutes after waking, connecting with friends via social networks like Facebook, Whatsapp, Instagram, and Snapchat. A typical teen exchanges 3,400 texts per month (116 texts per day). The smartphone and the Internet are simply tools, yet the moral and spiritual danger is great. In our new youth discipleship course, we show how that the home, the church, and young people can work together to protect God’s people from the pitfalls of the smartphone age.The Mobile Phone and the Christian Home and Church is available in print and a free eBook edition from www.wayoflife.org. (Friday Church News Notes, February 26, 2016, www.wayoflife.org, fbns@wayoflife.org, 866-295-4143) ![]() “A growing number of young girls are being forced to marry in Iran, UN rights experts warned Thursday, decrying laws permitting sexual intercourse with girls as young as nine. ... A growing number of ‘girls at the age of 10 years or younger … are subjected to forced marriages to much older men,’ the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC) said. Compounding the problem were laws allowing sex with girls as young as nine, and a lack of criminalization for sexual abuse of even younger children, it said. ... The committee also raised a range of other disturbing issues, including the fact that boys in the country are considered criminally responsible at the age of 15, and girls at nine. This means children down to those ages can be subjected to ‘sentences involving torture or cruel, degrading treatment of punishment,’ it said.” “Rising number of Iranian girls,” Times of Israel, Feb. 5, 2016 ![]() “British Police have promised not to tolerate any speech that could cause offence on social media regarding Syrian migrants, after arresting a man for Facebook comments made about recent arrivals on his small Scottish Island. The tiny Isle of Bute in the Firth of Clyde, which had a total population of just 6,498 in 2011, is expected to take in around 1,000 Syrian migrants, with 12 families already arriving since December last year. However, commenting on the comparatively huge and sudden influx of Muslim immigrants online just became a very risky business for local residents. Police have confirmed they have arrested a 41-year-old local man under the Communications Act, after receiving a report of a supposedly ‘offensive’ comment made on Facebook regarding the migrants. A police spokesman was unequivocal, that any harsh criticism of the Muslim influx would not be ‘tolerated.’ Inspector Ewan Wilson from Dunoon police office told the Guardian following the arrest: ‘I hope that the arrest of this individual sends a clear message that Police Scotland will not tolerate any form of activity which could incite hatred and provoke offensive comments on social media.’ Some have taken the sudden arrest and draconian threat from the local Police as a sign that the European approach to policing discussion and critique of mass migration of social media may be coming to the UK.” “British Police Arrest Man for Syrian Migrants Facebook Post,” Breitbart, Feb. 16, 2016 ![]() Elias Boudinot (1740-1821), President of the Continental Congress and framer of the U.S. Bill of Rights, wrote to his daughter as follows: “For nearly half a century have I anxiously and critically studied that invaluable treasure [the Bible]; and I still scarcely ever take it up that I do not find something new--that I do not receive some valuable addition to my stock of knowledge or perceive some instructive fact never observed before. In short, were you to ask me to recommend the most valuable book in the world, I should fix on the Bible as the most instructive both to the wise and ignorant. Were you to ask me for one affording the most rational and pleasing entertainment to the inquiring mind, I should repeat, it is the Bible; and should you renew the inquiry for the best philosophy or the most interesting history, I should still urge you to look into your Bible. I would make it, in short, the Alpha and Omega of knowledge” (The Age of Revelation, or the Age of Reason Shown to Be an Age of Infidelity, 1801, p. xv, from the “Dedication: Letter to his daughter Susan Bradford”). (Friday Church News Notes, February 19, 2016, www.wayoflife.org, fbns@wayoflife.org, 866-295-4143) ![]() In a 2015 poll, only 9% of Israelis surveyed believed that the Obama administration is “pro Israel” (Shmeul Rosner, “How bad do Israelis think Obama is?” Jewish Journal, April 28, 2015). That was down from 21% in 2012. The survey by Menachem Lazar of Panels Politics found that 81% of religious Jewish Israelis call the Obama administration “pro-Palestinian.” When asked what American president of the last thirty years was “worst for Israel,” Obama won hands down (with 63%). Jimmy Carter was a very distant second with 16%, with other presidents (George H. W. and George W. Bush, Ronald Reagan, and Bill Clinton) were barely mentioned in the worst for Israel category. (Friday Church News Notes, February 19, 2016, www.wayoflife.org, fbns@wayoflife.org, 866-295-4143) ![]() 2 Corinthians 2:15 As one perfume expert puts it, "It's beyond comprehension how beautiful it is. It's transformative. Its like an olfactory gemstone." The perfumer was describing ambergris, a waxy excretion found in the intestines of sperm whales. Since most countries have made it illegal to slaughter sperm whales, ambergris is very hard to come by. In fact, it is almost worth its weight in gold. As one beachcomber observed, "There aren’t too many professions where you could go to work and stumble upon $30,000 one morning." Bloomberg Business writes, "To outsiders, it may seem like easy money – ambergris can wash ashore anywhere there are sperm whales." Ironically, many ambergris hunters don’t even know which whale orifice it comes from. As neuroscientist Chris Kemp said, "Despite what most people think, it is not vomit. That's one of the biggest misnomers about ambergris. Unfortunately, it comes out the other end." Sure enough, ambergris smells like perfumed cow dung. What makes ambergris so special is that it amplifies the other fragrances found in perfumes. As one perfumer noted, "It alters the quality of the existing notes and makes them bigger, deeper and more expansive than they can ever be on their own." Unlike fragrant perfumes, sinful man has nothing within himself that smells good before a holy God. And if you amplify our natural scent, we only smell worse. But when Christ enters our lives, we give off the sweet-smelling aroma of Christ to others. Best of all, we smell good to God, too! Notes: Eric Spitznagel, "Ambergris, Treasure of the Deep," Bloomberg Business, 1/12/12. Photo: photographed by Peter Kaminski. (CC BY 2.0). Creation Moments, Inc., P.O. Box 839, Foley, MN 56329 www.creationmoments.com ![]() Vintage Church of New Orleans is fighting an injunction by Jefferson Parish that requires that it not exceed 60 decibels of noise. The church is meeting in a tent while constructing a permanent building, and after neighbors complained of the noise of their rock music, the local government issued the injunction. After a district court judge refused to lift the injunction, the legal battle has now moved to the Louisiana Fifth Circuit Court of Appeal. One neighbor told the local newspaper, “My daughter’s a nurse, works a 13-hour shift, and she couldn’t get to sleep. This has been going on for four months. It’s frustrating. I’m not the only one complaining. We all can hear it. [Other neighbors] are complaining, too” (Time-Picayunes, Dec. 15, 2015). If the church would forego its imitation of the world’s music and sing hymns accompanied by non-electric instruments, it probably wouldn’t be having this problem and wouldn’t be offending its neighbors and having to spend money on legal fees. (Friday Church News Notes, February 19, 2016, www.wayoflife.org, fbns@wayoflife.org, 866-295-4143) ![]() John 4:14 While visiting Niagara Falls in 1840, Charles Lyell was told that the falls were receding at about three feet per year. This was based on what eyewitnesses who lived in that region had reported. But for reasons Lyell did not disclose, this lawyer-turned-geologist concluded that a "much more likely conjecture" – his words, not mine – is that the rate of erosion was only one foot per year. At this rate, it showed that Niagara Falls had been flowing for 35,000 years. Now, why would Lyell make such a conjecture? Dr. Henry Morris answers that question in his book The Long War Against God. "Lyell's work at Niagara," wrote Morris, "accomplished its main goal – that of calling Scripture into question. For biblical chronology cannot allow 35,000 years since Noah's Flood. And if Genesis is wrong, how can we trust any other portion?" So how fast is Niagara Falls really receding? Though there is some dispute over this, I believe that the most accurate measurements show the rate of recession to be over six feet per year. This means that the age of Niagara Falls turns out to be less than 6,000 years, a near confirmation of the date proposed by Bishop Ussher for the age of the Earth. Since Darwin's theory of evolution requires a very ancient Earth – and he used Lyell's writings to support that view – where does that leave evolution? Truly, the more one knows about evolution and its anti-God agenda, the less scientific it appears. Notes: Henry Morris, The Long War Against God, p. 189 (Master Books, 1989). See also Ian Taylor," The Age of the Earth," http://www.creationmoments.com/content/age-earth. Photo: Uploaded to Wikimedia Commons by Heditor6. (CC BY-SA 4.0). Creation Moments, Inc., P.O. Box 839, Foley, MN 56329 www.creationmoments.com ![]() “President Obama has continually asserted that Islam was ‘woven into the fabric’ of the United States since its founding. Obama claims that Muslims have made significant contributions to the building of this nation. The claim is laughable to anyone who has studied US history. Historian David Barton ... found the first real contribution any Muslim made was in 1856 (80 years after the founding) when then Secretary of War Jefferson Davis hired one Muslim to help train camels in Arizona. ... But Muslims did have an influence on early America, and that influence was one of a foe. ... American vessels [were] raided and plundered by Muslim pirates from the Barbary Coast. After agreeing to pay 10% of the new nation’s dismal GDP in exchange for passage, attacks continued. Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, and Benjamin Franklin were sent as representatives to mediate the problem. It was there that they discovered that the Islamic law the pirates followed made it their duty to attack non-Muslims. ... Ben Franklin wrote of his experience: ‘Nor can the Plundering of Infidels be in that sacred Book (the Qur’an) forbidden, since it is well known from it, that God has given the World, and all that it contains, to his faithful Mussulmen, who are to enjoy it of Right as fast as they conquer it.’ John Adams, in his report to John Jay, wrote of the Muslim prophet Muhammad, and called him a ‘military fanatic’ who ‘denies that laws were made for him; he arrogates everything to himself by force of arms.’ By the time Jefferson became president the Barbary Coast was extorting 25% of US GDP and attacks were still occurring. Jefferson wasted no time in signing a war powers request which launched the US’s entire naval fleet to wage war on the Barbary pirates.” “What the Founders Thought,” Keith Farrell, The Federalist Papers Project: ![]() Ecclesiastes 2:1 While visiting Chicago's Museum of Science and Industry about 20 years ago, a Creation Moments staff member stood in a long line, waiting to take his first look at what we now know as "virtual reality". Today you can experience virtual reality – or VR for short – on your smartphone with a headset that can cost as little as ten dollars. When you strap the glasses onto your head, your eyes are presented with two slightly different images, which your brain fuses into a single three-dimensional image. This is far beyond anything you experienced as a child, looking at 3D photos with that plastic toy. While wearing VR glasses, you can look up and down and all around you. You can skydive, go deep-sea diving and walk on the moon, all without leaving your home. As exciting as virtual reality may sound, it is not without its risks. As futurist Ray Kurzweil predicts, "By the 2030s, virtual reality will be totally realistic and compelling, and we will spend most of our time in virtual environments…. We will all become virtual humans." This is truly escapism brought to a new level. With all of life's pain and problems, we can certainly understand why people like Kurzweil are eager to escape from reality. However, virtual reality – just like alcohol, drugs and over-indulging in sports or entertainment – ultimately fails to provide relief that lasts. Only Jesus can fulfill our deepest needs, both now and in eternity. Notes: Monica Kim, "The Good and the Bad of Escaping to Virtual Reality," The Atlantic, 2/18/15. Photo: Uploaded to Wikimedia Commons by Hakken. (CC BY 2.0). Creation Moments, Inc., P.O. Box 839, Foley, MN 56329 www.creationmoments.com ![]() “When President Obama was born (1961), President Herbert Hoover was still alive (1874-1964). When Hoover was born, President Andrew Johnson (1808-1875) was still alive. When President Johnson was born, President John Adams (1735-1826) was still alive. And just like that, we’ve connected the present day to the Founding Fathers” (Washington Post, Mar. 12, 2016). ![]() 1 Corinthians 1:20 Evolutionary biologists like to give people the impression that they are unbiased individuals who follow the evidence wherever it leads. If only this were true! As I pointed out in my book In the Minds of Men, ever since the publication of Darwin's Origin of the Species in 1859, scientists have consistently interpreted natural phenomena in a way that appears to provide evidence to support the theory of evolution. Some of these interpretations have turned out to be based on faulty observation, some on faulty reasoning, and some on blatant fraud. When you look at the so-called evidence up close, you'll see that evolution is just an illusion. Darwin's theory of evolution has, in many minds, displaced the biblical creation account of our origins. For those who hold to evolution, it is vitally important to cling to any evidence for evolution, no matter how flawed that evidence might be. For the same reason, there is an extreme reluctance in the scientific community to even consider new evidence that does not support evolution. The idea that scientists think rationally and fairly is a simplistic myth. Looking inside the ivory towers of science, we find the familiar power establishments, personality conflicts and intellectual blind spots that are present in any other profession. In other words, they are fallen human beings who are unwilling to be illuminated by the light that emanates from every page of God's Word. Notes: Ian Taylor, In the Minds of Men: Darwin and the New World Order, pp. 278-280 (TFE Publishing/Creation Moments, Sixth Edition, 2008). Call 1-800-422-4253 to purchase the book from Creation Moments. Creation Moments, Inc., P.O. Box 839, Foley, MN 56329 www.creationmoments.com ![]() “The name of Jesus is not welcome in the Johnson Space Center newsletter, according to a complaint filed on behalf of a group of Christians who work for NASA. The JSC Praise & Worship Club was directed by NASA attorneys to refrain from using the name ‘Jesus’ in club announcements that appeared in a Space Center newsletter. ... Liberty Institute, one of the nation’s largest religious liberty law firms, threatened to file a federal lawsuit unless NASA apologizes and stops censoring the name ‘Jesus.’ The JSC Today newsletter is distributed electronically and includes a number of Space Center events--from salsa dancing lessons to soccer camp. ... Since 2001, employees had gathered during their lunch hour to pray and sing and read the Bible. There had been no censorship issues until last year. ... The club’s leadership was told that ‘NASA would be censoring all future club announcements that featured the name Jesus.’ ... On Christmas Eve, 1968, the crew of Apollo 8 read the Creation story as they orbited the moon. Astronauts Jim Lovell, Frank Borman and Bill Anders took turns reading from the Book of Genesis. ... And astronaut Buzz Aldrin received communion on the lunar surface during the 1969 Apollo 11 mission.” Todd Starnes, “NASA bans the word ‘Jesus,’” Fox News, Feb. 8, 2016 ![]() Genesis 1:12 I'm not much of a coffee drinker, but after hearing about its many health benefits, I just might make coffee my drink of choice. According to a cover story in Science News, "Scientific findings in support of coffee's nutritional attributes have been arriving at a steady drip since the 1980s, when Norwegian researchers reported that coffee seemed to fend off liver disease." Since then, coffee has shown value against liver cancer, type-2 diabetes, heart disease and stroke. It also appears to protect against depression, Parkinson's and Alzheimer's diseases. In fact, I don't even have time on today's program to list all of coffee's health benefits. The latest studies show that people who drink two or more cups of coffee a day live longer than those who don't. In a recent Japanese study of more than 90,000 people, those who drank three to four cups a day were 24 percent less likely to die during the next 19 years than people who didn't drink coffee at all. Think about it – God created the coffee bean on day three of Creation Week, before Adam and Eve sinned and brought disease and death into the world. Is it possible that God, knowing that Adam would sin, provided a remedy for many of the diseases that would come about because of that sin? I believe He did. He also knew long before He created the world that you and I would need a Savior. Is Jesus Christ your Savior? If not, put your trust in Him today! Notes: Nathan Seppa, "The Beneficial Bean," Science News, 10/3/15, pp. 16-19. Creation Moments, Inc., P.O. Box 839, Foley, MN 56329 www.creationmoments.com |
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