On 12/15/2025,
in ethics, faith, global / globalization, hearts -- matters of the heart, relationships, religion, society, youth,
by Daniel Christian
Psalm 16:1
A miktam[a] of David.
Keep me safe, my God, for in you I take refuge.
The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among you, from your fellow Israelites. You must listen to him.
But the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary; you have found favor with God. You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you are to call him Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over Jacob’s descendants forever; his kingdom will never end.”
On 11/12/2025,
in Emotion, faith, global / globalization, hearts -- matters of the heart, relationships, religion,
by Daniel Christian
34 Then Peter began to speak: “I now realize how true it is that God does not show favoritism 35 but accepts from every nation the one who fears him and does what is right.
“Come now, let us settle the matter,”
says the Lord.
“Though your sins are like scarlet,
they shall be as white as snow;
though they are red as crimson,
they shall be like wool.
For the director of music. Of David. A psalm.
1 I waited patiently for the Lord;
he turned to me and heard my cry.
2 He lifted me out of the slimy pit,
out of the mud and mire;
he set my feet on a rock
and gave me a firm place to stand.
3 He put a new song in my mouth,
a hymn of praise to our God.
Many will see and fear the Lord
and put their trust in him.
4 Blessed is the one
who trusts in the Lord,
who does not look to the proud,
to those who turn aside to false gods.
5 Many, Lord my God,
are the wonders you have done,
the things you planned for us.
None can compare with you;
were I to speak and tell of your deeds,
they would be too many to declare.
On 11/05/2025,
in faith, global / globalization, hearts -- matters of the heart, relationships, religion, society,
by Daniel Christian
When I am afraid, I put my trust in you.
Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.
24For,
“All people are like grass,
and all their glory is like the flowers of the field;
the grass withers and the flowers fall,
but the word of the Lord endures forever.”
And this is the word that was preached to you.
…if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land.
9 I will praise you, Lord, among the nations;
I will sing of you among the peoples.
10 For great is your love, reaching to the heavens;
your faithfulness reaches to the skies.
11 Be exalted, O God, above the heavens;
let your glory be over all the earth.
24 How many are your works, Lord!
In wisdom you made them all;
the earth is full of your creatures.
25 There is the sea, vast and spacious,
teeming with creatures beyond number—
living things both large and small.
26 There the ships go to and fro,
and Leviathan, which you formed to frolic there.
27 All creatures look to you
to give them their food at the proper time.
28 When you give it to them,
they gather it up;
when you open your hand,
they are satisfied with good things.
29 When you hide your face,
they are terrified;
when you take away their breath,
they die and return to the dust.
30 When you send your Spirit,
they are created,
and you renew the face of the ground.
31 May the glory of the Lord endure forever;
may the Lord rejoice in his works—
On 10/27/2025,
in communications, culture, Emotion, ethics, faith, health, ideas, leadership, morals/values, relationships, religion, society, story, storytelling,
by Daniel Christian
Hatred stirs up conflict, but love covers over all wrongs.
The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.
For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.
The LORD detests dishonest scales, but accurate weights find favor with him.
From DSC:
As a relevant aside, the following article made me think about some of the reasons why the LORD used parables/stories to speak to the people:
The 2-Minute Story That Saved My Career: How Storytelling Can Be The Most Effective Form of Feedback — from techlearning.com by Michael Gaskell
By harnessing the power of story, school leaders can create a culture in which feedback is embraced as an essential ingredient for growth
The Storytelling Approach
Sharing stories is effective because it seems to get around our defensiveness. When information is presented in a story form, people reason about it differently than if it were presented as a list of facts or a direct critique.
Here’s more of why and then how to implement it with success in your school leadership work.
1. Transportation and Distancing: Listening to a story pulls us out of a defensive mode (the “do I agree or do I disagree?” mindset) and into a thoughtful, observant framework. Being transported allows the individual to identify with others in a way that is different from experiencing the situation for themselves. It’s a third-person, objective mindset, a safe zone for people to evaluate a situation from.
2. Shifting Perspective: When individuals consider challenges from the perspective of someone who is not them, it dramatically alters their thinking. They gain the latitude and freedom to consider the available options without feeling personally attacked. That wise sage did this when he shared his story of struggling. Making it safe and helping me to see him as having an objective, difficult experience is why when I was able to take the perspective of a distanced other. It became easier to think about the situation in a wiser way and come up with a better solution.
3. Engaging Different Brain Systems: Fundamentally different pathways are triggered when processing stories compared to facts. Storytelling engages social relevance brain systems–those that help us understand what other people think and feel, such as empathy, another higher order processing mechanism.
On 10/23/2025,
in Daniel S. Christian, Emotion, engagement / engaging students, faith, hearts -- matters of the heart, history, media/film, relationships, religion, society, sociology, story, storytelling, television,
by Daniel Christian
From DSC:
I posted an excerpt of this in another posting, but I wanted to highlight these two powerful, extremely well-done video series for those who might be interested in them.
The House of David is very well done! I enjoyed watching Season 1. Like The Chosen, it brings the Bible to life in excellent, impactful ways! Both series convey the context and cultural tensions at the time. Both series are an answer to prayer for me and many others — as they are professionally-done. Both series match anything that comes out of Hollywood in terms of the acting, script writing, music, the sets, etc. Again, both of these series are very well done.
.
.
A sampling of others who cover The Chosen includes:
- Cornerstone’s Guides to The Chosen — from cornerstonefamily.com
- Experience The Chosen — from thechosen.tv
- Northstar Church’s Guide to the Chosen — from northstarfamily.org
On 10/06/2025,
in Access to Justice (A2J), communications, ethics, faith, global / globalization, hearts -- matters of the heart, morals/values, relationships, religion, youth,
by Daniel Christian
So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.
Fear of man will prove to be a snare, but whoever trusts in the Lord is kept safe.
The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.
It is not good to be partial to the wicked and so deprive the innocent of justice.
May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.
After they prayed, the place where they were meeting was shaken. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God boldly.
Eloquent lips are unsuited to a godless fool — how much worse lying lips to a ruler!
5 Your love, Lord, reaches to the heavens,
your faithfulness to the skies.
6 Your righteousness is like the highest mountains,
your justice like the great deep.
You, Lord, preserve both people and animals.
7 How priceless is your unfailing love, O God!
People take refuge in the shadow of your wings.
Matthew 7:7-8
Ask, Seek, Knock
7 “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. 8 For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.
On 09/17/2025,
in faith, global / globalization, hearts -- matters of the heart, relationships, religion, youth,
by Daniel Christian
From the rising of the sun to the place where it sets,
the name of the Lord is to be praised.
He has shown you, O mortal, what is good.
And what does the Lord require of you?
To act justly and to love mercy
and to walk humbly[a] with your God.
8 Speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves,
for the rights of all who are destitute.
9 Speak up and judge fairly;
defend the rights of the poor and needy.
Fear of man will prove to be a snare,
but whoever trusts in the Lord is kept safe.
On 09/03/2025,
in Daniel S. Christian, Emotion, ethics, faith, global / globalization, hearts -- matters of the heart, morals/values, relationships, religion, society, youth,
by Daniel Christian
Jesus answered, “The work of God is this: to believe in the one he has sent.”
Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.
Jesus Calms the Storm
35 That day when evening came, he said to his disciples, “Let us go over to the other side.” 36 Leaving the crowd behind, they took him along, just as he was, in the boat. There were also other boats with him. 37 A furious squall came up, and the waves broke over the boat, so that it was nearly swamped. 38 Jesus was in the stern, sleeping on a cushion. The disciples woke him and said to him, “Teacher, don’t you care if we drown?”
39 He got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, “Quiet! Be still!” Then the wind died down and it was completely calm.
40 He said to his disciples, “Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?”
41 They were terrified and asked each other, “Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey him!”
This is what the Lord says— your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel: “I am the Lord your God, who teaches you what is best for you, who directs you in the way you should go.
3 When I kept silent, my bones wasted away through my groaning all day long. 4 For day and night your hand was heavy on me; my strength was sapped as in the heat of summer. 5 Then I acknowledged my sin to you and did not cover up my iniquity. I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the Lord.” And you forgave the guilt of my sin. 6 Therefore let all the faithful pray to you while you may be found; surely the rising of the mighty waters will not reach them. 7 You are my hiding place; you will protect me from trouble and surround me with songs of deliverance. 8 I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you with my loving eye on you.
On 08/24/2025,
in faith, global / globalization, hearts -- matters of the heart, relationships, religion, society, youth,
by Daniel Christian
18 When I said, “My foot is slipping,”
your unfailing love, Lord, supported me.
19 When anxiety was great within me,
your consolation brought me joy.
He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things?
Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.
1 Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High
will rest in the shadow of the Almighty.
2 I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress,
my God, in whom I trust.”
He will call on me, and I will answer him;
I will be with him in trouble,
I will deliver him and honor him.
On 08/21/2025,
in ethics, faith, global / globalization, hearts -- matters of the heart, morals/values, relationships, religion, society, youth,
by Daniel Christian
Not to us, Lord, not to us
but to your name be the glory,
because of your love and faithfulness.
Apply your heart to instruction
and your ears to words of knowledge.
my inmost being will rejoice
when your lips speak what is right.
Since ancient times no one has heard,
no ear has perceived,
no eye has seen any God besides you,
who acts on behalf of those who wait for him.
On 08/05/2025,
in faith, global / globalization, hearts -- matters of the heart, history, relationships, religion, youth,
by Daniel Christian
You are my refuge and my shield;
I have put my hope in your word.
But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.”
2 “This is what the Lord says, he who made the earth, the Lord who formed it and established it—the Lord is his name: 3 ‘Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know.’
On 07/27/2025,
in Access to Justice (A2J), change, culture, Daniel S. Christian, ethics, faith, global / globalization, leadership, legislatures / government / legal, morals/values, political science, United States,
by Daniel Christian
From DSC:
Forgive us world for our current President, who stoops to a new low almost every day. Below is yet another example of that. He’s an embarrassment to me and to many others in our nation. He twists truths into lies, and lies into “truths” (such as he does on “Truth” Social). Lies are his native tongue. (To those who know scripture, this is an enlightening and descriptive statement.)
And speaking of matters of faith, I think God is watching us closely, as numerous moral/ethical tests are presented to our society and to our culture. How will we and our leadership respond to these tests?
For examples:
- Are we joining the mockery of justice in our country, or are we fighting against these developments?
- Do we support it when Trump makes a fake video of a former President, or do we find it reprehensible? Especially when we realize it’s yet another attempt at deflecting our attention away from where Trump does NOT want our attention to be –> i.e., away from Trump’s place within the Epstein files.
Trump Posts Fake Video Showing Obama Arrest — from nytimes.com by Matthew Mpoke Bigg; this is a gifted article
President Trump shared what appeared to be an A.I.-generated video of former President Barack Obama being detained in the Oval Office.
President Trump reposted a fake video showing former President Barack Obama being arrested in the Oval Office, as Trump administration officials continue to accuse Mr. Obama of trying to harm Mr. Trump’s campaign during the 2016 election, and the president seeks to redirect conversation from the Epstein files.
The short video, which appears to have been generated by artificial intelligence and posted on TikTok before being reposted on Mr. Trump’s Truth Social account on Sunday…
The fake video purports to show F.B.I. agents bursting into the meeting, pushing Mr. Obama into a kneeling position and putting him in handcuffs as Mr. Trump looks on smiling, while the song “Y.M.C.A.” by the Village People plays. Later, the fake video shows Mr. Obama in an orange jumpsuit pacing in a cell.
Also relevant/see:
Trump Talks About Anything but Epstein on His Social Media Account — from nytimes.com by Luke Broadwater; this is a gifted article
On Truth Social, the president railed against Democrats and shared a wacky video.
Dogged for weeks over his administration’s refusal to release the Epstein files, President Trump spent the weekend posting on social media about, well, anything else.
On Sunday, the president railed against Senator Adam Schiff, Democrat of California, long a prime target. He attacked Samantha Power, the former administrator of U.S.A.I.D. He posted a fake video of former President Barack Obama being arrested and a fake photo of Mr. Obama and members of his administration in prison garb. He threatened to derail a deal for a new football stadium for the Washington Commanders if the team did not take back its old name, the Redskins.