Out of four days in Moscow, I spent two in Mozhaysk, where Russians gave a decisive battle to Napoleon in 1812. Located just over 100 km from Moscow, it is also know as a “prison capital of Moscow Region.” Back in the Soviet Union times a 101 kilometer perimeter around Moscow was drawn to resettle the criminal and political opposition element. My FaithSearch Discovery presentation at the Juvenal Detention Facility lasted about two hours but felt much, much longer, due to the emotional tension I had to overcome first. A little humor and some personal stories helped to melt the protective barrier of cold rejection and opened these kids’ hearts to the truth and love of Christ.
Archives for August 2019
A 3:15 Response: Fulfilling Jesus’ Heart
Part One: “My STORY”
By Dr. Don Bierle, FaithSearch President
In the June issue of the Paraclete, I introduced the inspired instruction of the apostle Peter to first-century Christians who were facing a secular Roman culture:
Simply reverence the Lord Christ in your hearts, and always have your answer ready for people who ask you the reason for the hope that you all have. But give it with courtesy and respect and with a clear conscience…
(1 Peter 3:15, JB)
Christians in America today are confronted with a similar situation. To be effective witnesses for the Good News of Jesus we will also need to make a “3:15 Response.” There are four components of this response. In this issue, I will detail the first one.
“Shiny Faces”
By Dr. Kaia Kloster
As I go into the jail to “Proclaim the Gospel with evidence,” I never know who will choose to come to Bible study—or why. One day, a woman shared with me why she had decided to come. Although her mom had been raised in the church, they hadn’t been taken as kids because her mom didn’t want to “force her beliefs on them.” So while not raised as a Christian, she was aware of “them.” In her daily encounters with people she was quite certain she could identify them.
There was something different—it seemed there was a “glow” about them. She and her boyfriend came to call them “shiny faces.” Upon leaving a gas station, for example, she might turn to him and say, “She was a ‘shiny face,’ wasn’t she!” It was as if there was a light from within, she said. The difference was undeniable, and always desirable.
In the News: August 2019
What’s a “Scutoid”?
Consider these statements:
- Scientists know everything about cells because they have been studying them for 500 years.
- You learned every possible geometric shape in school.
Neither statement is true!
While carefully examining the epithelial (skin) cells of zebra fish, researchers from the University of Seville in Spain discovered a “scutoid,” a shape previously unknown in geometry.
Did You Know? August 2019
“Blind as a bat.” Really?
That’s a myth.
Most bats can see as well as humans—and are even adapted to low-light like cats—and in color.
Where did the myth come from? Perhaps from the observation of their navigation at break-neck speed through total darkness.
Their unique echolocation ability is literally thousands of times more efficient than any similar system built by humans.
But now ask the beasts, and let them teach you…who among all these does not know that the hand of the Lord has done this…?
— (Job 12:7-9).
Source: Answers Magazine, March-April, 2019, Vol. 14, No. 2, p. 30