When Ethiopia into Dublin does not compute. The post The U2 song Brian Eno hated so much he tried to delete it from history first appeared on Far Out Magazine.

by JD Rucker, Discern Report: The merger between chip titan Nvidia and data-mining powerhouse Palantir represents far more than a business partnership. It’s the next great leap forward for the global surveillance architecture—a digital nervous system capable of tracking, predicting, and influencing nearly every aspect of modern life. And their latest endeavor is a harbinger. On paper, […]

She’s not a football girlie. He’s all in. Reddit stepped in after their game-day divide left feelings hurt. Continue reading…

How Has Space Exploration Changed History? JamesHoare Thu, 10/30/2025 - 08:51

While you sleep, Jesus prays for you. Though we must rest, though we must take breaks to recharge, though we must stop our work, the Scriptures affirm that Jesus continually prays for his people. We often think about what Christ accomplished in the past or what he’ll do in the future; we rarely consider what he’s doing in the present. Scripture tells us he “always lives to make intercession for [us]” (Heb. 7:25), that he’s “at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us” (Rom. 8:34), and that “we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous” (1 John 2:1). But what exactly does Jesus pray for you? While it’s a great comfort to hear that Jesus prays for us, it’s even a greater comfort to hear what he prays for us. By examining the Scriptures, we discover three specific petitions Jesus brings before the Father on our behalf. Protection from the Evil One We know what Christ prays for us in heaven by seeing what he prays for us on earth. And in Jesus’s high priestly prayer in John, he prays, “Holy Father, keep them in your name” (John 17:11, emphasis added). A few verses later, Jesus pleads, “I do not ask that you take them out of the world, but that you keep them from the evil one” (v. 15). While you sleep, Jesus prays for your protection from the Evil One. Jesus knows Satan’s tactics. The Devil is the father of lies (8:44) who tempts us to abandon the faith. He whispers accusations such as: “You’re not good enough. God is disappointed in you. He wishes he’d made you differently.” But while the Devil accuses, Christ advocates. When Satan brings charges, Jesus presents his defense. None of the Enemy’s accusations will stand, because your Advocate has already answered them all. When Satan brings charges, Jesus presents his defense. Remember what Jesus told Peter: “Satan demanded to have you, that he might sift you like wheat, but I have prayed that your faith may not fail” (Luke 22:31–32). Peter stumbled, but his faith didn’t utterly fail. This was because Jesus prayed for him. Christ’s prayers are always answered. As Robert Murray M’Cheyne says, “If I could hear Christ praying for me in the next room, I would not fear a million enemies. Yet distance makes no difference. He is praying for me.” Preservation in Suffering Paul explains in Romans 8:34–37 that tribulation, distress, persecution, and danger won’t separate us from Christ’s love because he is “at the right hand of God . . . interceding for us.” We are “more than conquerors through him who loved us.” Paul doesn’t say we won’t have suffering in this world. We’ll have tribulation, distress, persecution, famine, and danger. But he says this suffering will not separate us from Christ because we have One who intercedes for us. Paul promises you’ll be preserved amid your suffering not because you’re so strong but because Jesus died, rose, and is at the right hand of God interceding for you even now. He knows you’re suffering, and he prays for you. He isn’t unable to sympathize with your weaknesses but has been tempted in every respect just like you—yet without sin (Heb. 4:15). Jesus knows your suffering intimately, even if you’ve never told anyone else. He’s your compassionate intercessor. When the high priest of old entered God’s presence, he had 12 jewels on his chest, representing all the people of God (Ex. 28:1–43). These jewels are now you and me. And each one is different. He brings your specific needs before the Father. While five minutes is too long for us, he pleads forever. Not only is Jesus compassionate, but he’s your continual, faithful intercessor. For 2,000 years, he has been making intercession. While five minutes may feel too long for us, he pleads forever. He never tires of it. He never takes a vacation from it. He never has to take a break to sleep. Endless compassion breathes out endless prayers. His heart is continually stirred on your behalf. Jesus prays that we would be preserved amid suffering. Pardon for Our Sins Too often, when we think of Christ’s atoning work on our behalf, we only think of what Christ has done on the cross. But in Leviticus, the work of atonement included multiple realities. Atonement was a process, not just a moment. In Leviticus 16, we read that Jews would slaughter the animal. The killing would take place in the outer courtyard. But then comes an important step. The blood of the bull or goat would be sprinkled on and in front of the mercy seat. The blood was brought into the Holy of Holies. It was this entire process that Leviticus says would make atonement (v. 16). There was a killing, and there was a sprinkling of blood. You might think, Hold on. When Jesus is on the cross, he says “It is finished” (John 19:30). And, yes, the sacrifice is complete on the cross. But he also brings his blood before God’s throne room. What he finished on the earth, he presented in the heavens. So we shouldn’t divorce Christ’s work of intercession from the atonement, for Jesus’s intercession is the application of the atonement. Christ has accomplished perfect atonement; now he applies the benefits. The cross is the payment; the intercession is the plea. One was made on earth; the other is managed in heaven. Blood must be spilt, and blood must be carried. Jesus went into heaven to present his blood before the Father. What this means for you and me is that Jesus stands before the Father to pray—yes, for your protection and preservation, but oh, for so much more. He presented his righteous blood before the Father for your pardon. When you sin, you have the Righteous One standing as your legal representation in heaven. Charles Wesley captured this beautifully in a hymn: Arise, my soul, arise, Shake off thy guilty fears; The bleeding sacrifice In my behalf appears; Before the throne my surety stands; My name is written on his hands. . . . Five bleeding wounds he bears, Received on Calvary; They pour effectual prayers, They strongly speak for me; Forgive him, oh forgive, they cry, Nor let that ransomed sinner die. Jesus Prays for You Christ’s death might sometimes feel distant, but his intercession brings his compassion into your present moment. You have an Advocate in heaven who pleads on your behalf—for your protection from evil, preservation through suffering, and pardon for sin. His voice is stronger than Satan’s whispers. His prayers never fail. And his blood speaks a better word than any accusation against you. Right now, and even as you lie down to rest from the day’s work, Jesus prays for you.

It’s hard to believe it has only been three years since OpenAI introduced ChatGPT to the public. The speed of AI’s growth makes the adoption of social media and smartphones seem like a slow-moving glacier. Few areas of life remain untouched by AI’s explosive expansion, and few areas feel the effects of AI’s disruption as strongly as ministers working in the local church. As more people begin to treat AI like an internet search engine, the wildly different answers that AI gives about the basics of Christianity will create new discipleship challenges for pastors and parishioners alike. Faced with the opportunity to use AI to do things unthinkable just a few years ago, Christians have to wrestle with the difference between working smarter and cutting corners. Using AI to help schedule your calendar, coordinate volunteers, and manage church finances is different from using AI for lesson research and sermon preparation. There’s a line between using AI to lessen the burden of ministry and using AI to escape the responsibilities God has called you to do. But as I consider the potential role of AI in my ministry and where that line may be, what I need most isn’t a list of dos and don’ts. I need wisdom. If I want to use AI well, I need to think well about AI first. In AI Goes to Church: Pastoral Wisdom for Artificial Intelligence, Todd Korpi, assistant professor of Christian leadership at Fuller Theological Seminary, considers the uses of AI for the church in a rapidly shifting technological regime. Though it sometimes fails to live up to its own goals, AI Goes to Church is a good starting point for thinking well about AI. Proactive Thinking Instead of simply telling readers what to think about AI, Korpi explores how to think about this emerging technology. This is an important skill because AI’s rapidly evolving capability makes rules and absolutes outdated nearly as soon as they’re spoken. Christians have to wrestle with the difference between working smarter and cutting corners. Though AI is obviously not explicitly depicted in Scripture, the Bible offers paradigms to help us think better about it. For example, Korpi argues that AI springs out of the human impulse to innovate, which is still present in God’s image bearers after the fall. From the wheel to the printing press, most technology reflects an innate desire to resist the curse of sin and its effects on our work. Yet the impulse to adopt technologies like AI is only partially a desire to uproot the thorns and thistles of work. There’s also an underlying quest to usher in the kind of paradise that only Christ can give us. According to its proponents, AI has the potential to eliminate most human work altogether, which is why some people have also proposed a Universal Basic Income to support the displaced workers. Though not having to work to eat may sound good to some, AI isn’t going to undo sin’s effects in this world. “We recognize that the reversal of the curse comes not through human ingenuity, but through the finished work of Christ at the cross and the empty tomb,” Korpi argues. “We can’t innovate our way out of the curse” (29). As a result, we need to constantly check our real motivations for adopting technology, which is no mean task because of the constant pressure to stay technologically up to date for fear of missing out. Inevitability of Progress Despite his rejection of the messianic predictions for AI among its devotees, Korpi still argues that AI is inevitable. “It is critical to understand that if your vocation deals primarily with the dissemination of knowledge,” he predicts, “you will be faced with a choice to learn to integrate AI into your workflow well or face extinction” (185). While this is true in a sense—the digital highways built by OpenAI, Google, and other AI economic empires aren’t going away anytime soon—it’s hard to reconcile resignation about AI’s ubiquity with Korpi’s cautions about restrained use or outright avoidance of AI for certain applications. And yet, the tide may be shifting on technologies that became universal and seemed permanent in the last two decades. We’re starting to see resistance to smartphones and social media as people reject digital technology’s overgrown presence in their lives. These growing grassroots cultural movements will make it more appealing to “touch grass” and pursue human connection and creativity over relying on machines and algorithms to do it for us. In the face of these imminent and, in his mind, inevitable challenges, Korpi sometimes shifts from outlining principles to prescribing hard-and-fast rules and questionable dichotomies about how to incorporate AI into pastoral ministry. Yet these lapses offer us a helpful reminder that even if we pursue questions about AI with wisdom, we won’t always get everything right. Therefore, we need to cultivate grace in disagreement and the freedom to experiment. Sometimes we’ll fail, which will yield its own fruit of wisdom that can benefit the body of Christ. Worthwhile Exhortation AI Goes to Church is helpful for church-specific applications and, by extension, the challenges many church members who are knowledge workers will face. Yet it does much less to equip pastors to minister to congregants who work in fields like law enforcement, medicine, and the trades. Because the book’s focus is limited to church-specific application, there’s little that will help readers examine the ethical questions about AI data centers through a distinctly biblical perspective. For some of these issues, readers would be better served by Sean O’Callaghan and Paul Hoffman’s AI Shepherds and Electric Sheep. Though not having to work to eat may sound good to some, AI isn’t going to undo sin’s effects in this world. Many lessons Korpi gleans from the past 20 years of technological development apply to AI. The principles he explains will remain relevant even amid the rapid technological changes because he prioritizes evergreen wisdom over short-term technical proficiency. Yet pastors need up-to-date guidance on which AIs will provide theological reliability they can trust. The Gospel Coalition’s AI Benchmark is an excellent resource for pastors to consider in deciding whether AI will help or hinder their ministry, with rigorous testing from pastors and seminarians on the quality of answers major AI platforms give about the basics of the Christian faith. Ultimately, Korpi’s recognition of the opportunity to theologize about AI has the potential to help Christians respond well to emerging technologies. We can prepare and adapt, rather than simply reacting as our culture largely did with smartphones and social media. AI Goes to Church will help equip pastors and church leaders to think theologically about emerging technological trends.

Melissa and Courtney talk with Becky Pippert about how to develop godly confidence to engage in evangelistic conversations with love. Becky tells stories about sharing her faith with her own parents and talks about how to go from a natural conversation to a spiritual one. She emphasizes the need to pray for opportunities, to rely on the Holy Spirit, and to be a good listener. Recommended Resources: Behold and Believe by Courtney Doctor and Joanna Kimbrel Stay Salt by Becky Pippert Seeker Bible studies: Uncovering the Life of Jesus and Discovering the Real Jesus Related Content: Inadequacy Is Compulsory in Evangelism Let’s Talk: Sharing Your Faith Talking About Jesus Without Sounding Religious Discussion Questions: 1. How comfortable do you feel talking about your faith with others? How has your comfort (or discomfort) changed over time? 2. What fears, hesitations,  or uncertainties hold you back from sharing your faith with others? 3. What examples of blessing others, participating in sustainable outreach, or engaging in evangelism can you think of? Which of these comes most naturally to you? 4. What opportunities do you have to connect with people outside Christian circles? What would it look like to engage with people on “their turf” instead of making them come to yours? 5. What common ground have you found with people who don’t yet know Jesus? How might your shared interests or experiences become a bridge to spiritual conversations? 6. What role does prayer play in our evangelism? How could prayer become a more intentional part of sharing your faith? 7. What next step would you like to take in sharing your faith with others? How can your discussion partners pray for you?

Vice President JD Vance and Erika Kirk headlined a Turning Point USA event at Ole Miss tonight. And, the turnout was absolutely incredible! Over 14,000 students attended the event, which is around half…