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Preston Atkinson is pastor of the Sunbury Bible Church in Northumberland, Pennsylvania.
Hear more about the Night to Shine events in New York and Pennsylvania on the Family Life “Hometown Heroes” news feature.
Kent Bell is a co-pastor pastor of the Bethel Life Church in Greenville, Pennsylvania.
Hear more about the Night to Shine events in Pennsylvania and New York on the Family Life “Hometown Heroes” news feature.
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Chad Mitchell is a member of the Auburn Alliance Church in Auburn, New York.
Hear more about the Night to Shine events in Pennsylvania and New York on the Family Life “Hometown Heroes” news feature.
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How School Choice for parents makes public schools better
College kids raising their own kids
Will New York make FAFSA forms mandatory?
Why many school districts have Winter Break
Dr. Ralph Kerr at the Teaching and Learning Institute discusses the weighty issues impacting our public schools on “Issues in Education” – airing Monday’s during the “Noon Report”
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Each Friday, the Capital Connection Crew delve into the thorny issues impacting our listeners all over New York and Pennsylvania. Here’s what’s happening this week in Albany and Harrisburg
Abortion, by the numbers in Pennsylvania
Push to Legalize Doctor Assisted Suicide in New York
What Christian Activism looks like in 2024
School Choice runs into hurdles in Harrisburg
Why Sports Betting is a bad bet for New York
Jason McGuire is the executive director of the New Yorker’s Family Research Federation [NewYorkFamilies.org]
Michael Geer is president and CEO of the Pennsylvania Family Institute [PAFamily.org]
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This is the time of year when many college-bound students are finalizing applications for which school they intend to go to in the fall.
Also at issue: how to pay for higher education, whether that is for incoming first-year students or those who are already at a college or university.
For advice on the decision-making processes, we sought the perspective of President Wayne Lewis of Houghton University in Houghton, New York. In this Family Life Interview, you will hear:
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Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 15:45 — 21.6MB)
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The Gift of Thorns
“We have to very careful to distinguish between ‘did God let me down?’ or ‘did my expectations of God let me down?’
What if not getting what we want is one of God’s great gifts?
“God knows what is good for us when we don’t,” says the Rev. Dr. A. J. Swoboda. “To ultimately assume God’s desires for us are the best desires, and believing that, is our first step in being followers of Christ.”
“I have grown the most in my spiritual journey with Jesus in places where I have not gotten everything I want. And what I’m trying to say is, I don’t grow in the great times. I grow in the times when I’m mad that I didn’t get what I want God to do,” Swoboda says.
When we find that we’re disappointed or angry with God, it’s important to figure out what God has promised us. “We have to very careful to distinguish between ‘did God let me down?’ or ‘did my expectations of God let me down?’ We’ve got to be cautious to not assume that God and our expectations about God are the same exact thing,” he says.
It is actually a gift, Swoboda says, to not get what we want.
“Jesus lived a life of willingly giving up everything He wanted. In fact, in the Garden of Gethsemane, he pleads with the Father to not die on the cross. Yet he submits Himself to what the Father wants over what His flesh and emotions wanted. And so I think life is in those places in our life. I think the thorns are a gift. I don’t think they’re a problem, I think they’re a gift.”
“At least in our world, unless you embrace the thorn, you won’t ever receive the rose. And that with every thorn there is a rose. We tend to focus on the thorn, and we forget the rose.”
Hear much more from A. J. Swoboda by listening to our 15-minute podcast.
Swoboda is Associate Professor of Biblical Studies and World Christianity at Bushnell University in Eugene, Oregon. He also leads a Doctor of Ministry program at Friends University. His new book is The Gift of Thorns: Jesus, the Flesh, and the War for our Wants. Learn more about A. J. Swoboda here.
“The Gift of Thorns” also is available as a Bible study series for individuals and groups.
