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“Long-term studies have measured the substantial impact of marriage on financial stability, as well as relationship longevity and health outcomes.” Read more in 5 Facts About Cohabitation You May Not Know.

“Since the beginning of the war on poverty, marriage has declined sharply. In 1964, 7 percent of U.S. children were born outside marriage. Today, the number is 41 percent. Society is dividing into two castes. In the top half, children are raised by married couples with college education; in the bottom half, children are raised by single mothers with a high-school degree or less. When compared to children in intact married homes, children raised by single parents are more likely to have emotional and behavioral problems; be physically abused; smoke, drink, and use drugs; be aggressive; engage in violent, delinquent, and criminal behavior; have poor school performance; be expelled from school; and drop out of high school.” Read more in How The Welfare State Penalizes Parents Who Marry.

Parents, check this out: A Letter To My Children About Fifty Shades Of Grey.

“Do you desire God and His way and His promises more than anything, and do you believe that He can and will honor your faith and obedience by being unashamed to call Himself your God, and to use all His wisdom and power and love to turn the path of obedience into the path of life and joy? That is the crisis you face now: Do you desire Him? Will you trust Him? The Word of God to you is: God is worthy and God is able.” —John Piper

“But this is the badge of a true child of God: that a man endures to the end.” —Charles Spurgeon

Kids with Down Syndrome aren’t likely to be singers, as the strain on vocal chords and fine motor skills to move their mouth isn’t usually possible. But Madison defies the odds. And the song she picked to memorize and sing is perfect. Click this link to read more behind-the-scenes information, and then watch this―

Links & Quotes

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“How much owest thou unto my Lord? Has He ever done anything for thee? Has He forgiven thy sins? Has He covered thee with a robe of righteousness? Has He set thy feet upon a rock? Has He established thy goings? Has He prepared heaven for thee? Has He prepared thee for heaven? Has He written thy name in His book of life? Has He given thee countless blessings? Has He a store of mercies which eye hath not seen nor ear heard? Then do something for Christ worthy of His love. Wake up from natural sleepiness, and this very day, before the sun goes down, do something in some way by which you shall prove that you feel the power of that divine motive, ‘for Christ’s sake.’” —Charles Spurgeon

“Now the whole offer which Christianity makes is this: that we can, if we let God have His way, come to share in the life of Christ. If we do, we shall then be sharing a life which was begotten, not made, which always has existed and always will exist. Christ is the Son of God. If we share in this kind of life we also shall be sons of God. We shall love the Father as He does and the Holy Ghost will arise in us.” —C.S. Lewis

Jesus showed us the most loving thing we can do for our friends. Check out David Wilkerson’s post I Have Prayed For You.

“Not all sexual desire is lust. God made sexual desire. It has its good place and it can, in fact, become an act of worship in the temple of marriage. But lust is sexual desire gone wrong.” Read more from John Piper in You Can Say No To Porn.

Speaking of pornography, here’s another powerful reason to NOT SEE Fifty Shades Of Grey. “Amy Bonomi, professor and chairperson of Michigan State University’s Department of Human Development and Family studies, has made some disturbing findings. A thorough 2013 study of the book concludes that ‘emotional and sexual abuse is pervasive in the novel,’ appearing in almost every interaction between the protagonists…. Far from ‘empowering,’ Fifty Shades seeks to remove agency. Even though it’s supposed to seem ‘sexy,’ the book even includes several instances of rape, where Ana is coerced into or outright forced to have sex.” Read more in The Real Abuse At The Heart Of Fifty Shades Of Grey.

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“Everything the world has to offer, God is better and more abiding. There is no comparison. God wins—every time. The question is: will we have Him? Will we wake up from the trance of this stupefying world and see and believe and rejoice and love?” —John Piper

A nice mini-biography on Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas.

Max Lucado says, “You cannot be anything you want to be. But you can be everything God wants you to be!” Read more in his post All Things New.

“No prayer is at all likely to bring down an immediate answer if it be not a fervent prayer. ‘The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much’ [James 5:16]; but if it be not fervent we cannot expect to find it effectual or prevalent. We must get rid of the icicles that hang about our lips.” —Charles Spurgeon

“The Christian is in a different position from other people who are trying to be good. They hope, by being good, to please God if there is one; or—if they think there is not—at least they hope to deserve approval from good men. But the Christian thinks any good he does comes from the Christ-life inside him. He does not think God will love us because we are good, but that God will make us good because He loves us.” —C.S. Lewis

A great overview on what really happened in the Crusades.

[VIDEO] John Maxwell says what is on the inside is always more attractive than what is on the outside―

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“We find the deepest meaning in life when our hearts freely go out to admire God’s power, rather than turning inward to boast in our own—or even think about our own. We discover something overwhelming: It is profoundly satisfying not to be God, but to give up all thoughts or desires to be God.” —John Piper

“Of course, what these people mean when they say that God is love is often something quite different: they really mean ‘Love is God.’ They really mean that our feelings of love, however and wherever they arise, and whatever results they produce, are to be treated with great respect. Perhaps they are: but that is something quite different from what Christians mean by the statement ‘God is love.’ They believe that the living, dynamic activity of love has been going on in God forever and has created everything else.” —C.S. Lewis

“Holiness is the architectural plan upon which God builds up His living temple. … I pray you who profess to be followers of Christ, set a high value upon purity of life and godliness of conversation.” —Charles Spurgeon

This is a great inside-the-huddle conversation with Tom Brady and Josh McDaniels on the final two touchdown drives of Super Bowl XLIX.

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“Because Jesus died in our place, He guaranteed that every good deed prospers in the end. ‘Blessed are you when others revile you. . . . Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven’ (Matthew 5:11-12). Reviled here. Rewarded there.” —John Piper

“‘For he shall be as a tree planted by the waters, and that spreadeth out her roots by the river’ (Jeremiah 17:8). An amazing Hebrew word is used here for ‘planted’—it actually means ‘transplanted.’ Faith uproots the dry, fruitless desert-shrub that is scorched, lonely and ugly and transplants it by the living stream of the waters flowing from Lebanon.” —David Wilkerson

“So long as you are content with the world, and with the prince who governs it, you will go on, on, on, to your own destruction. satan does with men as the sirens are fabled to have done with mariners.” —Charles Spurgeon

Pornographers are so deceived and deceptive. Check out the most common word found in comments on porn websites.

Dave Barringer has some good counsel for couples about “brownie points.”

Daughter of a homosexual parent writes a letter promoting traditional marriage.

Seth Godin has some fabulous insight about getting and giving constructive feedback.

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The folks from The Overview Bible Project have a huge infographic about the 12 tribes of Israel. Check it out!

“The God who in the old creation did all this, can He not work today? He made the world out of nothing, can He not make new creatures without the aid of human will? His Word fashioned the creation of old, and His Word can work marvels still.” —Charles Spurgeon

“This verse [Psalm 119:67] shows that God sends affliction to help us learn His Word. We should ask how affliction helps us understand God’s Word and keep it. There are innumerable answers, as there are innumerable experiences. But here are five: (1) Affliction takes the glibness of life away and makes us more serious so that our mindset is more in tune with the seriousness of God’s Word. (2) Affliction knocks worldly props from under us and forces us to rely more on God, which brings us more in tune with the aim of the Word. (3) Affliction makes us search the Scriptures with greater desperation for help, rather than treating it as marginal to life. (4) Affliction brings us into the fellowship of Christ’s sufferings so that we fellowship more closely with Him and see the world more readily through His eyes. (5) Affliction mortifies deceitful and distracting fleshly desires, and so brings us into a more spiritual frame which fits God’s Word more.” —John Piper

[VIDEO] Duane from DW Video has a new project for any organizations operating in Michigan called “Buy Local.” I did a promotional video for the En Gedi Youth Center which turned out pretty nice. (By the way, if you’re in Michigan and you would like to have a free promo done by Duane for your organization, please click here.)

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“How can you know when you are trusting in man rather than in God? If you fall apart when someone else lets you down, or if the actions of others affect your walk with God, then you know you are leaning on the arm of flesh!” —David Wilkerson

“Hypocrisy turns people against God, so He has a no-tolerance policy. Let’s take hypocrisy as seriously as God does. For starters, expect no credit for good deeds. None! If no one notices, you aren’t disappointed. If someone does, you give the credit to God. If no one knew of the good you do, would you still do it? If not, you’re doing it to be seen by people.” —Max Lucado

Intersting ongoing studies about the brain development of children born before full-term pregnancy.

“Let not the fact that the answer seems farther off than ever be any discouragement to you. Remember that to trust God in the light is nothing, but to trust Him in the dark—that is faith. To rest upon God when everything witnesses with God—that is nothing; but to believe God when everything gives Him the lie—that is faith. To believe that all shall go well when outward providences blow softly is any fool’s play, but to believe that it must and shall be well when storms and tempests are round about you, and you are blown farther and farther from the harbor of your desire—this is a work of grace.” —Charles Spurgeon, commenting on Romans 4:19-20

For my pastor friends: “As a minister of the gospel, have you ever considered why you have a salary and a place to live, and so are freed from the need of holding a regular job? The reason is so that you can continue in prayer and the ministry of the Word. These will give you the necessary wisdom and anointing for your work. And that is the secret of a fruitful ministry. No wonder there are often complaints about the ineffective spiritual life of a minister and his congregation. That which is of prime importance—perseverance in prayer—does not occupy its rightful place.” —Andrew Murray

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“Who among you today is doing the most for your Master’s kingdom? I will tell you. Lend me a spiritual thermometer by which I may try the heat of your heart, and I will tell you the amount of your success.” —Charles Spurgeon

Max Lucado shares A Prayer For America.

A couple of free ebooks for you―

“Someday there will be a community where everyone behaves and no one complains. But it won’t be this side of heaven. So what do we do? We reason. We confront. We teach. But most of all, we love.” —Max Lucado

“It turns out that the most productive thing we can do is to stop working on someone else’s task list and figure out a more useful contribution instead. This is what separates great organizations from good ones, and extraordinary careers from frustrated ones. The challenge is that the final step requires a short-term hit to your productivity. But, if you fail to invest the time and effort to find a better path, it’s unlikely you’ll find one.” Read more of Seth Godin’s post The Productivity Pyramid.

[PHOTOS] Some really cool pictures from the scientific world.

And for some pseudo-science: Was 2014 “the hottest year on record”? Better read this for the facts.

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Do you suffer from any of these? Things that hold us back from serving others.

Dave Barringer shares 10 subtle actions that you should pay attention to in your marriage.

“Let me warn you of second-hand spirituality; it is a rotten soul-deceiving deception. Beware of all esteeming yourself according to the thoughts of others, or you will be ruined. … O I do pray you, do not be satisfied with being persuaded into something like an assurance that you are in Christ, but do know Him—know Him for yourself.” —Charles Spurgeon

“Sinning is believing a false promise from the world above a true promise from God.” Read more in Jared Mulvihill’s post We Should Be Weeping.

Eurasia Northwest has a really cool infographic on the use of healing words in the Bible.

Seth Godin says, “The chances that everyone is going to applaud you, never mind even become aware you exist, are virtually nil. Most brands and organizations and individuals that fail fall into the chasm of trying to be all things in order to please everyone, and end up reaching no one. That’s the wrong thing to focus on. Better to focus on and delight almost no one.” Check out the rest of his post Almost No One.

[VIDEO] This year’s NFL MVP Aaron Rodgers is doing some cool stuff for kids―

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John Stonestreet shares some scientific evidence for the value of traditional families.

“This very obvious fact—that each generation is taught by an earlier generation—must be kept very firmly in mind…. None can give to another what he does not possess himself. No generation can bequeath to its successor what it has not got. You may frame the syllabus as you please. But when you have planned and reported ad nauseam, if we are skeptical we shall teach only skepticism to our pupils, if fools only folly, if vulgar only vulgarity, if saints sanctity, if heroes heroism. Education is only the most fully conscious of the channels whereby each generation influences the next. It is not a closed system. Nothing which was not in the teachers can flow from them into the pupils. We shall all admit that a man who knows no Greek himself cannot teach Greek to his form; but it is equally certain that a man whose mind was formed in a period of cynicism and disillusion, cannot teach hope or fortitude. A society which is predominantly Christian will propagate Christianity through its schools: one which is not, will not. All the ministries of education in the world cannot alter this law. … [E]ven if we were permitted to force a Christian curriculum on the existing schools with the existing teachers we should only be making masters hypocrites and hardening thereby the pupil’s hearts.” ―C.S. Lewis

Did you know that only three nations in the world allow the atrocity of late-term abortions―the dismembering of innocent children? China, North Korea, and … the United States of America! Read more from the ACLJ and sign their petition to Congress to outlaw this brutal practice.

“This world is not so lovely as to tempt us away from Heaven. Here we are strangers and foreigners; here we have no abiding city; but we seek one to come. There is one wilderness, but we bless God there are not two. There is one Jordan to be crossed, but there is not another. There is one season when we must walk by faith and not by sight, and be fed with manna from Heaven; but blessed be God there is not another, for after that comes the Canaan—the rest which remaineth for the people of God.” —Charles Spurgeon