Dear Friends,
Do you ever have moments in your life when your mind wanders far into the future, prompting feelings of anxiety about all of your responsibilities and inevitable hardships you will have to endure in the months and years ahead? I know I do. If unchecked, this kind of thought pattern can lead to a nervous churn in the pit of my stomach as I begin to feel overwhelmed with the weight of the future and what might happen.
Our Lord knows unhealthy human tendencies like these very intimately. He loves us so much, in fact, that He has given us specific spiritual direction numerous times throughout Scripture to remind us of how we are called to live in the moment and not to worry about the future. In Matthew 6:34, Jesus entreats us to “not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Let the day’s own trouble be sufficient for the day.” Even the Lord’s Prayer includes a very specific entreaty: “Give us this day our daily bread” (Matthew 6:11). Notice that Christ does not instruct us to ask for our “monthly” or “yearly” bread. In teaching us to pray for our “daily bread,” Jesus is reminding us that our primary focus should be on doing what He is asking of us in our present moment, in this one day that we have been blessed with in His Creation.
This teaching from our Lord goes to the very heart of Creation itself. In the beginning of the book of Genesis, we read that “God separated the light from the darkness. God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And there was evening and there was morning, one day.” Our Lord designed Creation so that we only have to worry about one day at a time. When the day is over, the night comes so that we can rest and recharge for the next day. In other words, God is trying to tell us something with how He has designed the earth to operate: live for today, for the present moment. Existence itself is pure gift; the present moment is all we will ever have. Let us use it for the greater glory of God.
Thank you for your prayers and for your continued support of FRC and the family.
Sincerely,
Dan Hart
Managing Editor for Publications
Family Research Council
FRC Articles
Is this cross too Christian? Only the Supreme Court can save these war monuments – Alexandra McPhee
Planned Parenthood is Not Pro-Woman – Patrina Mosley
Trump: Expected to Advance Religious Liberty at the UN – Ken Blackwell
An Answer to This Generation’s Identity Crisis: “Love Thy Body.” – Patrina Mosley
California’s Campus Abortion Legislation Has Been Vetoed – Here’s What It Had Wrong – Patrina Mosley
The Image of God and the Pursuit of Truth in the Kavanaugh Hearing – David Closson
Hundreds of College Students Travel to DC In Support of Kavanaugh – John Wesley Reid
World Congress of Families Seeks to Strengthen the Family Unit
U.S. Courts of Appeals: No Vacancy – Alexandra McPhee
Another Attack on Kenyan Christians Brings Us Back to Watu Wote – Travis Weber
Five Myths About “Gender Identity” – Peter Sprigg
Religious Liberty
Religious Liberty in the Public Square
Michigan school district pulls video of family circle after critics claimed it promoted prayer – Ryan Gaydos, Fox News
Black Pastor: I Get 'Hate and Racism' From the Left 'For Being a Bible-Believing Christian – Tyler O’Neil, PJ Media
Militant LGBT Group Wants to Run Texas Mega-Church Out of Town – ToddStarnes.com
Planned Parenthood Forces Hyatt Hotel to Cancel Screening of New Kermit “Gosnell” Movie – Micaiah Bilger, LifeNews
International Religious Freedom
Hopes Rise for Release of U.S. Pastor Being Held in Turkey – David Gauthier-Villars and Dion Nissenbaum, The Wall Street Journal
12 Churches Destroyed, Shut Down by Myanmar Rebels – Stoyan Zaimov, The Christian Post
More Chinese Pastors Sign Statement Affirming Religious Freedom as US Govt Holds Hearing on Persecution – Steve Warren, CBN News
Closure of Syrian Schools: Another Bleak Sign for Christians in Syria – Marlo Safi, National Review
Pakistani Christian Woman Thrown Off Roof for Refusing to Convert to Islam, Marry Muslim – Will Maule, FaithWire
Life
Abortion
Abortion On Trial – John Waters, First Things
Podcast: Be a voice for life: Developing a compelling pro-life message – Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission
Here’s a List of Everything a Baby Can Do in the Womb – Grace Carr, The Stream
Governor Brown vetoes abortion pill bill – Pablo Kay, Angelus
Yes, Down Syndrome Is A Life Worth Living, And A Life Worth Saving – Dan Bartkowiak, The Federalist
U.S. Expected to Fight Back Against Abortion as a Humanitarian Right – Stefano Gennarini, C-Fam
Adoption
How Foster Care Became a Christian Priority—Just in Time – Sarah Eekhoff Zylstra, The Gospel Coalition
My Long, Messy, Beautifully Complicated Path to Adopting My Son – Claire Gibson, Marie Claire
Bioethics
Aussies Block Euthanasia – John Stonestreet & David Carlson, Breakpoint
Mass Human Cloning May Soon be Upon Us – Wesley J. Smith, National Review
Making Death Easier Makes Life Harder – Richard Stith, Public Discourse
Child Euthanasia without Parent Approval Pushed for Canada – Wesley J. Smith, National Review
HHS feels pressure, ends contract with fetal tissue harvester – Live Action
Obamacare
As Obamacare Premiums Continue to Rise, Time to Look at Real Health Care Solutions – Robert Moffit, The Daily Signal
Family
Marriage
Millennials Are Causing the U.S. Divorce Rate to Plummet – Ben Steverman, Bloomberg
Humility Matters in Marriage, Too – Rebecca Spohr, HerViewFromHome
Reducing Divorce Through Community-Level Marriage Initiatives – Alan J. Hawkins, Family Studies
U.S. Fertility Rate Drops to All Time Low, Cut in Half Since 1950s – John Binder, Breitbart
Coping With Financial Crisis and Maintaining Your Marriage – Cherie Lowe, Focus on the Family
When Grandparents Divorce, Everyone Hurts – D. Scott Sibley, Family Studies
The Wages of Infidelity – Hugo Schwyzer, Family Studies
Parenting
Raising Kids With Religion Or Spirituality May Protect Their Mental Health: Study – Alice G. Walton, Forbes
Our Infertile Future – Melissa Langsam Braunstein, Family Studies
Making of a Mom: Birth as a Creative Act – Laura Khan, Verily
Modeling Grace and Courtesy – Mattias A. Caro, Ethika Politika
When Adult Children Don’t Share Your Values – Marci Seither, Focus on the Family
Why Friendships Are Important for Boys’ Health – Maryam Abdullah, Greater Good Magazine
7 Ways to Teach Children About the Conscience – Andy Naselli, The Gospel Coalition
Economics/Education
Do Schooling and City Living Equal Fewer Babies? – Lyman Stone, Family Studies
Is student debt keeping Americans away from marriage? – Science Daily
Faith/Character/Culture
God Will Sustain You a Day at a Time – Vaneetha Rendall Risner, Desiring God
Eight Reasons Why Awe Makes Your Life Better – Summer Allen, Greater Good Magazine
9 People with Down syndrome who are changing the world – Cerith Gardiner, Aleteia
How Prison Fellowship helps prepare prisoners for release – Emily Greene, Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission
We Weren’t Made for Endless Work – Gracy Olmstead, The American Conservative
Why churches matter in the fight against addiction – Ericka Andersen, Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission
How to Bring Your Whole Self to Work – Mike Robbins, Greater Good Magazine
Human Sexuality
Same sex relationships: Should we just agree to disagree? – Sam Allberry, Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission
Changing Society’s View on “Hooking Up” – Arthur Goldberg, Public Discourse
American Academy of Pediatrics’ new guidelines support gender change for kids – Lisa Bourne, LifeSiteNews
$5.7 Million in Taxpayer Funds for Study to Justify Sterilizing Children Who Are Gender Confused – Susan Berry, Breitbart
Guttmacher Reports Conflicting Findings on Trends in Teen Sexual Activity – Michael J. New, National Review
Human Trafficking
What Happens To Sex Trafficking Survivors After They’re Rescued? – Fight the New Drug
By The Numbers: Can Porn Production Be Connected To Sex Trafficking? – Fight the New Drug
Hundreds of Sex Buyers Arrested as Part of Nationwide Initiative – Ben Miller, National Center on Sexual Exploitation
Protections for Sex Traffickers Being Snuck into US-Canada Trade Negotiations – National Center on Sexual Exploitation
Pornography
What you should know about women and pornography – Mikayla Simpson, Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission
Study Links Porn Consumption To Higher Levels Of Objectification And Tricking Partners Into Sex – Fight the New Drug
