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The midterm elections are behind us. Some Americans are encouraged by the results, while others are disappointed, frustrated, or uncertain about what the next few years may bring.

For Christians, however, the most important truth has not changed. Our hope does not come from a politician, a political party, a candidate, or the outcome of an election. Our hope is in Jesus Christ.

Elections can change who holds power. They can affect laws, policies, and the direction of the country. Christians have good reason to pay attention and remain engaged. But no election has the authority to change God’s Word, alter His promises, or remove the assignment He has given His people.

Truth Is Still Truth

Political movements come and go. Public opinion shifts. Cultural values can change dramatically within a generation. God’s Word remains the same.

That is why Christians need biblical truth deeply rooted within them. When our beliefs depend on the cultural environment around us, an election result can leave us feeling as though everything has changed. When our foundation is Scripture, we can recognize that the most important things have not.

Jesus is still Lord. The Gospel is still true. God is still sovereign. Christians are still called to speak truth, love their neighbors, make disciples, serve others, and live faithfully.

Whatever happened at the ballot box, none of that has changed.

If You Feel Discouraged, Get Back Up

Political disappointment can be real. People invest time, energy, prayer, and concern in issues they believe will affect their families, churches, communities, and country. When the outcome is not what they hoped for, discouragement can follow. But Christians are not called to stay discouraged.

Isaiah 6:8 records the prophet’s response when God asks whom He will send: “Here am I! Send me” (NKJV). That is a useful posture after an election too. Instead of asking only what the government will do next, Christians can ask what God has given us to do next.

That assignment may be large or small. It may involve serving in a church, raising children who know biblical truth, helping a neighbor, speaking up when something is wrong, sharing the Gospel, strengthening a marriage, serving a community, or simply being faithful where God has already placed you.

There is still work to do.

Don’t Put Your Hope in Political Power

Christians can care about politics without expecting politics to save the country, the culture, or the human heart.

Political leaders can make wise decisions or foolish ones. Governments can protect freedom or restrict it. Policies can have enormous consequences. Those realities are reasons to stay informed and engaged, but they are not reasons to place our ultimate confidence in government.

Psalm 146:3 says, “Do not put your trust in princes, nor in a son of man, in whom there is no help” (NKJV). That warning applies whether your preferred candidates win or lose. A political victory should not produce misplaced confidence, and a political defeat should not produce despair. Our hope was never supposed to rest there.

Strengthen Your Walk with Jesus

One of the best responses to an uncertain political future is also one of the simplest: nurture your own walk with Christ.

Spend time in Scripture. Pray. Listen to the Lord. Know what you believe and why you believe it. The more confusing the culture becomes, the more important it is for Christians to be grounded in truth rather than carried along by every new headline or political argument.

That personal relationship with Christ also shapes the way believers engage the world around them. Christians should be known not simply for what they oppose but for the way they represent Jesus through truth, courage, compassion, integrity, and faithfulness.

Philippians 3:20 reminds believers that “our citizenship is in heaven” (NKJV). That does not remove our responsibilities here. It puts them in perspective.

Pray for the People Who Will Govern

Once an election ends, Christians have another responsibility: pray for the people who have been elected. First Timothy 2:1–2 calls believers to pray for those in authority. Scripture does not limit that command to leaders we supported, leaders from our preferred political party, or leaders who share our faith.

Pray that they will govern wisely. Pray that they will pursue what is right and resist what is wrong. Pray for their decisions, their advisers, their families, and the people affected by their leadership.

And pray for something even greater: that leaders who do not know Christ would come to know Him. A political opponent is not beyond the reach of the Gospel. A leader whose beliefs are far from biblical truth is not beyond God’s ability to change a heart. Christians believe in a God who does what human beings cannot. That should change the way we pray after an election.

The Church’s Mission Has Not Changed

No election can give the Church its mission, and no election can take that mission away. Pastors still need to teach the Bible faithfully. Parents still need to disciple their children. Christians still need to share the Gospel, defend truth, care for people in need, support their churches, strengthen their communities, and represent Christ wherever God has placed them.

There is no permission to quit because the political environment becomes difficult. If anything, challenging times make faithful biblical leadership and strong churches even more important.

Real Life Network exists to help believers stay grounded through Bible teaching, trusted news, Christian worldview programming, apologetics, documentaries, and other resources that point people back to truth. The goal is not simply to understand what is happening in the world, but to be equipped to live faithfully within it.

Keep Moving Forward

The midterms may have changed the political landscape, but they did not change who sits on the throne.

God was not surprised by the results. Christians therefore do not need to live as though the future has suddenly slipped beyond His control. We can pray for our leaders, stay engaged, stand for truth, and continue doing the work He has placed before us.

Most importantly, we can keep our eyes on Jesus. Political leaders will come and go. Parties will gain and lose power. Another election will arrive before long. But Jesus Christ remains “the same yesterday, today, and forever” (Hebrews 13:8, NKJV).

Whatever the political future holds, Christians still have reason to move forward with hope. Our confidence was never supposed to rest in an election result. It rests in the risen Christ, our King and our ultimate hope.

Stay grounded in biblical truth with free Bible teaching, trusted news, current events, and Christian programming on Real Life Network.

The religious decline in America is over for now. After years of decreasing church attendance, a recent report shows steady turnout rates since 2020.

Thirty-four percent of adults in the U.S. said they attended religious services in person over the last month, according to a June 2026 Pew Research Center survey. Forty-five percent said they either attended religious services in person or watched them online or on TV during the last month. The data shows both statistics at their highest levels since 2020.

“The latest Pew Research Center findings are encouraging in so far as they suggest that the decades-long decline in religious identification and practice may be leveling off,” David Closson, director of the Center for Biblical Worldview at Family Research Council, told The Washington Stand.

“For years, Americans have been told that secularization is inevitable and the Christian influence in public life will continue to diminish. These findings complicate that narrative. However, we should still be careful not to confuse religious identification with genuine Christian discipleship. From a biblical perspective, the most important question is not simply how many Americans identify with a religion, but whether people are repenting of sin, trusting in Christ, and ordering their lives according to God’s word.”

The study also points to a resurgence of faith among young people. Pew reports that 41% of young adults between the ages of 18-22 say they go to services at a church, synagogue, mosque, or other house of worship at least once or twice a month. Data also shows reasonable levels of stability in the religiosity of the age group since 2014.

“The relatively high rates of religious attendance among the youngest adults are encouraging, even as the broader data reveals a more complicated picture. My hope is that we are witnessing the beginnings of a renewed openness to Christianity among Gen Z, which has grown up amid significant moral and cultural confusion,” Closson continued.

“But increased church attendance must be accompanied by sound biblical teaching and a willingness to embrace the authority of Scripture, especially when the Bible’s teachings conflict with prevailing cultural assumptions. A renewed commitment to biblical Christianity would have implications far beyond Sunday morning worship, including how Americans approach the moral questions confronting our nation.”

For the cohort of young adults born between 2000-2003, Pew reports a slightly higher religious attendance rate than in 2022. “The 2022 reading may reflect a pandemic-era low point in religious attendance among members of this group. All the other indicators show no notable change in either direction. Estimates vary from year to year, but the percentages of people who say they pray daily, that religion is very important to them and that they identify with a religion are all about the same today as in 2022,” the report explains.

Those born in the 1990s show similar statistics. People aged 27-36 are somewhat more likely to say religion is very important in their lives in 2026 than in 2020.

Closson underscored that these numbers don’t necessarily point toward growth or regression in faith, which should serve as a reminder to pastors who have accepted the role of shepherding God’s flock.

“Pastors and ministry leaders should be heartened that the decline of church attendance has evidently leveled off, but we cannot mistake a higher church attendance among young adults as an overall leveling off of the decline in church attendance as necessarily evidence that the church’s mission is being accomplished,” he shared. “Ultimately, fidelity to God’s word and theological conviction is what’s most important. Pastors should take renewed confidence in aspects of this report and recommit to ensuring that their teaching points people to God’s inerrant, infallible, and unchanging word.”

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This article was written by Quinn Delamater and origianlly published on The Washington Stand. For more content like this, visit Real Life Network.

Teenagers today are growing up in a world filled with competing messages about truth, identity, morality, and purpose. Social media, entertainment, online influencers, and cultural trends all shape the way young people think—often long before they have the tools to evaluate those ideas carefully.

That reality has led many parents and church leaders to ask an important question: Are there biblical worldview shows specifically designed to help teens navigate today’s culture?

The answer is yes. Christian streaming platforms increasingly offer programs that help younger audiences think biblically about the world around them without sounding overly academic or disconnected from real life.

What Is a Biblical Worldview?

A biblical worldview is simply a way of understanding life through the lens of Scripture. It shapes how a person thinks about:

• Truth 
• Identity 
• Relationships 
• Purpose 
• Morality 
• Culture 

For teenagers, developing a biblical worldview means learning how to process difficult questions and cultural pressures through God’s Word rather than through constantly changing trends.

This kind of foundation becomes increasingly important during the teen years, when questions become deeper and outside influences become stronger.

Why Teens Need More Than Surface-Level Content

Today’s teens are exposed to serious questions earlier than previous generations. They are hearing conversations about:

• Faith and skepticism 
• Science and religion 
• Identity and belonging 
• Anxiety and purpose 
• Social pressure and morality 

Because of this, many young people are looking for honest, thoughtful answers—not simplistic responses or shallow clichés.

Christian streaming platforms are responding by creating content that respects teens’ intelligence while still remaining grounded in Scripture.

Biblical Worldview Programs on Real Life Network

Real Life Network offers several programs that help teens engage faith, culture, and truth thoughtfully.

The Creation Today Show

Hosted by Eric Hovind, The Creation Today Show explores science, creation, worldview, and biblical truth in a way that is accessible for students and families. The program encourages teens to think critically about what they hear in culture and education while remaining rooted in Scripture.

Why teens connect with it:
It addresses real questions about science and faith without talking down to viewers.

Bridge Bible Talk

This discussion-based program answers real-life questions about theology, Scripture, culture, and Christian living. Because the format is conversational, teens often find it easier to engage than traditional lectures or sermons.

Topics range from practical everyday struggles to deeper theological issues.

Why it works for teens:
It models thoughtful, biblical conversations rather than one-sided preaching.

I Don’t Have Enough Faith to Be an Atheist

Based on the apologetics ministry of Frank Turek, this program tackles difficult questions about Christianity, truth, morality, and evidence for faith.

For teens navigating skepticism or cultural pressure, apologetics-based content can help strengthen confidence and understanding.

Why teens appreciate it:
It helps answer the “why” behind Christian belief, not just the “what.”

Lamps Lit Youth Prophecy Conference

Designed specifically for junior high and high school students, the Lamps Lit Youth Prophecy Conference explores Bible prophecy and end-times topics in a way that is engaging and understandable for younger audiences.

Featuring speakers like Jeff Kinley, Todd Hampson, and Pastor Jack Hibbs, the conference connects biblical prophecy with hope, discernment, and Christian living.

Why teens respond to it:
It treats young people seriously while helping them see how Scripture relates to the future and the world around them.

Why Worldview Content Matters for Teens

Teenagers are not just learning facts; they are forming foundations. What they believe during these years often shapes how they approach adulthood, relationships, faith, and decision-making later in life. Biblical worldview content helps teens:

• Learn how to think critically 
• Understand Scripture more deeply 
• Build confidence in their faith 
• Navigate cultural confusion with wisdom 
• Ask honest questions in a healthy environment 

This kind of content becomes even more valuable when paired with conversations at home or church.

Streaming Reaches Teens Where They Already Are

One reason Christian streaming is effective for younger generations is because it meets them in the environments they already use.

Today’s teens naturally consume media through:

• Phones and tablets 
• Streaming apps 
• Podcasts and short-form video 
• Smart TVs and laptops 

Christian streaming platforms make biblical teaching and worldview discussions accessible within those same habits and rhythms.

Parents Still Play the Most Important Role

Even the best Christian content is not a substitute for relationships. Streaming works best when parents, pastors, and mentors stay involved. Simple conversations after watching a program can make a major impact:

• What stood out to you? 
• Did anything challenge the way you think? 
• What does Scripture say about that idea? 

These moments help teens move from passive viewing to active reflection.

How Real Life Network Supports the Next Generation

Real Life Network provides a curated environment where teens can explore difficult questions, hear biblical teaching, and engage cultural topics without being overwhelmed by conflicting messages or distractions.

By combining apologetics, discussions, documentaries, conferences, and Bible teaching in one place, RLN helps younger viewers develop a worldview shaped by Scripture rather than trends.

Teenagers today need more than entertainment. They need wisdom, discernment, and a strong biblical foundation for navigating an increasingly complicated world.

Christian streaming platforms are helping meet that need by offering worldview-focused content that speaks honestly, thoughtfully, and biblically to the next generation.

Explore biblical worldview content for teens anytime on Real Life Network.

Election Day 2026 is here.

Across the country, Americans are making decisions that will help determine the direction of Congress, state governments, local communities, and public policy for the years ahead. Tonight, attention will turn from campaigns and predictions to 2026 election results as vote totals begin coming in from races nationwide.

But Election Night is about more than watching numbers change on a screen.

The results will reflect months of debate over the economy, immigration, healthcare, education, public safety, abortion, foreign policy, religious liberty, government spending, and other issues that matter deeply to American families and communities.

That makes tonight an important time not only to follow who wins, but to understand what the results mean.

Real Life Network will be covering the evening live with America Speaks ’26: Election Night Live, bringing viewers election results, updates, conversation, and biblical perspective as the national picture develops.

Election Day 2026 Is Here

The November 3 election marks the culmination of the 2026 midterm campaign.

There is no presidential election this year, but the results will shape the U.S. House and Senate while also determining governors, state lawmakers, local officials, and ballot measures around the country.

Some of the most closely followed races will have national consequences. Others may never become national headlines but will significantly affect the states and communities where they are being decided.

Throughout the day, campaigns will make their final appeals and news organizations will continue covering developments from around the country. Once results begin arriving tonight, the focus will shift quickly toward which races can be called, which remain uncertain, and what the emerging results may mean for the political landscape.

Follow More Than the Numbers

Election results tell us who received the votes.

Understanding an election requires going further.

As returns come in tonight, pay attention to the issues that shaped individual races. A congressional contest may turn heavily on economic concerns. A governor’s race may center on education, taxes, public safety, or state policy. Ballot measures may reveal how voters in a particular state or community view questions that have also been debated nationally. Those differences are important.

A national map can show which party gained or lost seats, but it cannot fully explain why voters in different parts of the country made the choices they did.

That is why useful live election coverage should provide context alongside results.

Why Some 2026 Election Results May Take Time

Election Night moves quickly, but not every race will produce an immediate answer.

Early vote totals can change considerably as additional results are reported. Different jurisdictions report at different speeds, and the first results available may come from areas that vote differently from those reporting later.

Reputable news organizations therefore do not simply declare whoever is ahead at a particular moment the winner.

The Associated Press, for example, says it calls a race only when its analysts determine that the trailing candidate no longer has a path to victory. Many winners can be identified on Election Night, while particularly close contests may take longer.

That means phrases such as “too early to call” are an important part of responsible election reporting.

Tonight, some races may be decided quickly. Others may remain unresolved long after the evening’s coverage ends.

What Are the Key Issues Behind Election Day 2026?

The campaigns may be ending, but the policy debates will continue long after November 3.

Throughout the 2026 election season, Americans have heard competing arguments about affordability and the economy, immigration and border security, healthcare, education, abortion, public safety, foreign affairs, government spending, technology, and other issues.

Election results can help reveal how those debates played out in particular races and communities.

But a winning candidate does not necessarily mean every voter agreed with every position that candidate held. Elections involve candidates, parties, personalities, local conditions, economic concerns, and many other factors.

For that reason, be cautious about sweeping conclusions drawn from a single race or even one Election Night.

Understanding what voters decided is one question. Understanding why is often much more complicated.

News Matters Most When It Provides Context

Election nights generate an enormous amount of information.

Results flash across screens. Maps change. Analysts discuss trends. Candidates speak. Social media fills with reactions before many races have even been settled.

Having a reliable place to follow those developments matters.

Real Life Network approaches news and current events through a biblical worldview, helping viewers consider not simply what happened but why the issues behind the headlines matter.

Throughout the year, programs such as RLN News, The Daniel Cohen Show, Rose Unplugged, Cure America, and other RLN programming examine events affecting faith, culture, public life, and the nation.

Tonight, America Speaks ’26 brings that approach directly to Election Night.

A Christian Perspective on Election Night

Christians have good reason to care about elections.

Government decisions affect families, churches, businesses, schools, communities, religious freedom, public safety, and the lives of our neighbors. But Election Night can also tempt people to treat political victory or defeat as something larger than it is.

No election determines the truth of the Gospel. No political party replaces the Church. No candidate can carry the hope Christians place in Jesus Christ.

That does not make politics unimportant. It puts politics in perspective. Romans 13:1 reminds believers that governing authority ultimately exists under God’s sovereignty. First Timothy 2:1–2 also calls Christians to pray for those in authority. Those responsibilities continue regardless of tonight’s results.

Christians can follow Election Night closely, care deeply about its consequences, celebrate outcomes they support, feel disappointed by others, and still remember that their ultimate allegiance and hope rest somewhere higher than politics.

Follow 2026 Election Results Live on Real Life Network

Tonight, Real Life Network presents America Speaks ’26: Election Night Live, beginning at 8 PM ET / 5 PM PT.

Pastor Jack Hibbs, Daniel Cohen, and other Real Life Network voices will follow major races across the country with live election results, updates, commentary, conversation, and biblical perspective as the evening unfolds.

The coverage is free to watch with a Real Life Network account and is available online or through the RLN app on supported devices.

Election Day is here. The campaigning is ending, the results are beginning, and the country will soon have a clearer picture of what comes next.

Sign up for America Speaks ’26 updates and join Real Life Network tonight for live Election Night coverage—news you can trust from a biblical worldview.

A good movie can do more than entertain for a couple of hours. Stories can introduce important questions, demonstrate courage, challenge assumptions, and give families something worth talking about after the credits roll.

That is one reason faith-based films can be such a valuable addition to family movie night. Instead of constantly searching through mainstream streaming libraries for something appropriate, families can choose stories that reinforce themes such as faith, forgiveness, perseverance, purpose, and trust in God.

Real Life Network offers Christian movies and documentaries free to stream, with options ranging from biblical stories and historical dramas to biographies and modern stories of redemption.

Here are five worth adding to your watchlist.

1. China Cry

Based on a true story, China Cry follows Nora Lam as she grows up in China during a period of enormous political upheaval and ultimately discovers faith in Christ.

Her Christian beliefs bring serious consequences, forcing her to confront persecution, fear, and questions of obedience when following Jesus becomes costly.

The film gives families with older children an opportunity to discuss religious freedom and the difference between believing something when it is easy and standing by that belief when there is something to lose.

It also introduces viewers to the experiences of Christians in parts of the world where faith cannot always be practiced openly.

Good conversation starter: What gives someone the courage to remain faithful when doing so comes at a personal cost?

2. Seven Days in Utopia

Families who enjoy sports movies may appreciate Seven Days in Utopia, which begins with a young professional golfer watching his career fall apart.

An unexpected detour brings him to the small town of Utopia, Texas, where he meets an older man who helps him reconsider what success really means. Golf remains part of the story, but the deeper questions concern identity, purpose, priorities, and what happens when accomplishment becomes the measure of a person’s worth.

Those themes make the movie especially relevant for teens growing up in a culture that often equates success with performance.

Good conversation starter: How can someone’s identity change when winning or achievement becomes more important than everything else?

3. C.S. Lewis: The Most Reluctant Convert

Before C.S. Lewis became one of Christianity’s most influential writers and apologists, he was an atheist.

C.S. Lewis: The Most Reluctant Convert dramatizes the intellectual and personal path that eventually led the author of Mere Christianity and The Chronicles of Narnia to belief in God and then Christianity.

The film is particularly useful for older teens and adults because Lewis does not arrive at faith through a simplistic emotional experience. His questions about reason, suffering, desire, and truth matter deeply to the story.

That makes the film a natural introduction to apologetics and an encouraging reminder that Christianity does not require believers to be afraid of serious questions.

Good conversation starter: Why do you think questions and doubts sometimes become part of a person’s path toward faith?

4. The Jesus Film

Sometimes the most valuable Christian movie is also the most foundational.

The Jesus Film presents the life, ministry, death, and resurrection of Jesus based largely on the Gospel of Luke. Rather than creating a fictional story inspired by Christianity, it brings the Gospel narrative itself to the screen.

That makes it especially useful for family viewing, outreach, or introducing someone to the life of Christ.

Parents can also use the film as a companion to Scripture. A family might read one of the Gospel accounts and then watch how particular scenes are portrayed, discussing what Jesus said, how people responded to Him, and why His death and resurrection are central to Christianity.

Good conversation starter: What do Jesus’ words and actions reveal about who He claimed to be?

5. The Pilgrim’s Progress

John Bunyan’s The Pilgrim’s Progress has been encouraging Christians for centuries, and its animated adaptation makes the famous allegory accessible to a new generation.

The story follows Christian as he leaves the City of Destruction and begins his difficult journey toward the Celestial City. Along the way he encounters temptation, fear, discouragement, friendship, deception, and spiritual opposition.

Children can enjoy the adventure while older viewers recognize the deeper symbolism behind characters and events.

That makes The Pilgrim’s Progress particularly well suited to family movie night. Parents and children can watch the same story at different levels and then discuss what Christian’s experiences represent.

Good conversation starter: Which obstacle on Christian’s journey seemed most like something people struggle with in real life?

Christian Movies Can Give Families More to Talk About

Not every faith-based movie needs to become a formal Bible lesson. Families need opportunities simply to enjoy stories together.

But movies also create natural openings for conversations that can otherwise be difficult to start.

A sports drama can lead to a discussion about identity. A historical film can raise questions about courage and persecution. A biography can show how intellectual doubts are confronted. A biblical movie can bring families back to Scripture.

Those conversations are part of what makes Christian media valuable.

Choosing the Right Christian Movie for Your Family

“Christian” and “family values” do not necessarily mean every title is appropriate for every age.

Movies dealing with persecution, suffering, or complex theological questions may be better suited to teens and adults. Parents should still consider the maturity and sensitivity of their own children when choosing what to watch.

What faith-based streaming provides is a stronger starting point: stories intentionally chosen for their connection to biblical truth rather than a library in which families must continually sift through conflicting messages.

Real Life Network makes that choice even easier by offering its Christian programming free. There is no premium movie tier or additional subscription required to explore the library.

A family movie night can certainly be entertaining. But with the right story, it can also inspire courage, deepen understanding, reinforce biblical values, and lead to conversations that last far longer than the movie itself.

Explore free Christian movies, documentaries, and family programming anytime on Real Life Network.

A Virginia pastor is challenging the lawfulness of a proposed state constitutional amendment to codify same-sex marriage and spread gender ideology. The Founding Freedoms Law Center (FFLC) filed a lawsuit last week in Prince William County Circuit Court on behalf of Pastor Ben Purves of Occoquan Bible Church in Woodbridge, Va.

The Amendment 2 initiative on the ballot in the Cavalier State this November would “(i) remove the ban on same-sex marriage; (ii) affirm that two adults may marry regardless of sex, gender, or race; and (iii) require all legally valid marriages to be treated equally under the law” should the Supreme Court ever overturn Obergefell v. Hodges, according to the Virginia Department of Elections.

The amendment would repeal the provision of Article I, Section 15-A of the Virginia constitution defining marriage as a “union between one man and one woman,” and would instead say marriage is “one of the vital personal rights essential to the orderly pursuit of happiness,” explains the FFLC press release.

The legal group explained its reasoning for the lawsuit, stating, “This Complaint does not concern the wisdom or policy merits of the Proposed Amendment. It concerns whether the Proposed Amendment was brought forward to the November 2026 ballot through the process that the Constitution of Virginia requires. It was not. The Proposed Amendment reached the ballot through a process that departed from the mandatory requirements of Article XII, § 1 of the Constitution of Virginia through Virginia Code § 30-13.”

It continues, “Virginia Code § 30-13 requires the Clerk of the House of Delegates to have published and distributed copies of a proposed amendment to the clerks of Virginia’s circuit courts, and requires each circuit court clerk to post a copy ‘at the front door of the courthouse’ and make a second copy ‘available for public inspection,’ no later than three months before the intervening general election of members of the House of Delegates. These steps exist to inform the voters before the pivotal House of Delegates election. They were not performed before the November 4, 2025 general election by the Clerk of the House of Delegates or the Circuit Court Clerk or any other Virginia circuit court.”

The complaint asserts that even if the amendment is favored by most voters, it should be considered invalid.

Purves, the plaintiff on the Complaint, told The Washington Stand that it is the responsibility of a pastor to proclaim biblical truth when it comes to every issue, even the polarizing ones.

“It’s my hope that pastors will become more bold in proclaiming the gospel and the truth of God’s word, and not letting it be restricted to the church building or to church members’ homes. We really need to amplify truth in the public square, and if we do not, we will find it increasingly anti-Christian,” Purves asserted.

“Pastors — the shepherds — are called to care for their sheep,” he added. “That means giving their sheep the food of God’s word, and not just some of it, but all of it. And so, when churches are setting aside parts of Scripture and not teaching those parts, and not willing to proclaim those parts of Scripture to the world, they are failing in their duty as shepherds. And when pastors do not stand to protect their flock from wolves that will prey on their church and on the vulnerable in their community, they are failing in their pastoral duty.”

Over 400 pastors have signed a letter Purves helped orchestrate asking Virginians to vote no on Amendment 2, as well as an additional amendment to codify abortion in the Constitution of Virginia. The Pastors of Virginia group is also asking Virginia voters to participate in a day or prayer and fasting for the state on November 3.

“We call upon every voter to oppose these amendments to protect pre-born children, to defend the institution of marriage, and to stand against the destruction of transgender ideology. God created mankind as male and female as a part of God’s good and perfect creation (Gen 1:27). God creates life in the womb, and every child is a blessing (Ps 127, 139). God created the institution of marriage as a lifelong covenant between a man and a woman which is to be a portrait of Christ’s love for the church (Eph 5:32). Instead of defacing marriage, we must honor it (Heb 13:4),” the group stated.

Any pastor in the state who affirms the Apostles’ Creed, the Nicene Creed, and the Five Solas of the Protestant Reformation is eligible to sign the Open Letter from Virginia Pastors to the Commonwealth until voting closes after Election Day.

“To voters who are discouraged and maybe thinking of not voting — you should not lose heart,” Purves implored. “We’re called to be faithful, and we need to stand for truth, even when and if we are a minority. If we only stand for truth and we’re a majority, what does this say about us? So, it’s important for us to do the right thing and vote for the sake of truth.”

This article was written by Quinn Delamater and originally published on The Washington Stand. For more content like this, visit Real Life Network.

Over the last two decades, we’ve seen increasing rhetoric from the Left, media sources, and the up-and-coming generation claiming that Islam is a religion of peace. My challenge to that assumption is how and where do you find grounds to believe that Islam is a peaceful religion? Is it the history of the Ottoman conquest? The vicious attacks against Israel over the last 50 years? The 9/11 attacks?

When I look at all these examples, I see a religion that has paved the streets with blood, tears, sexual violence, and pain. I’ve heard too many stories that show the brutality of a religion that is being described as peaceful. Jesus said, “Blessed are the peacemakers for theirs is the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 5:10). He told His disciples to go low and to be servant-hearted. Yes, He came with a sword in His mouth, and He flipped tables and offended the Pharisees. But everything He did, He did for the love of His people, to establish the Kingdom of God, to free the captive, and to fulfill Isaiah 61.

Islam, however, does not espouse this love of God, but rather a thirst for conquest. And the religion is spreading. The Pew Research Center states that Islam is the fastest-growing religion worldwide. This should cause great concern among Christians. This change is primarily because Christians are simply not getting married and having enough children to repopulate. But perhaps the biggest problem is that many Christians don’t understand why this is concerning.

Since its inception, Islam has not been as welcomed or embraced as it is now. Why should Islam’s quick ascent to popularity concern Christians? Islam’s tenets are in direct opposition to Christianity, and its eschatological doctrine (their beliefs on the end times) seeks the destruction of Israel and its people.

Islam prides itself on being a religion that provides you the biggest upgrade to heaven if you commit suicide and bring others with you, also known as mujahid. Granted, not all Muslims practice to this extent, but this is concerning at best and is in complete opposition to Christianity at worst. Were people killed during the Christian Crusades? Yes, but did Christians go around killing people hoping to gain a better afterlife with more virgins and more spoils of the flesh? Absolutely not.

A few passages in the Quran that demonstrate this lust for martyrdom are listed below:

• “Indeed, Allah has purchased from the believers their lives and their properties [exchanging them] for that they will have Paradise. They fight in the cause of Allah, so they kill and are killed. [It is] a true promise [binding] upon Him in the Torah and the Gospel and the Qur’an...” (Surah Al-Tawbah 9:111).
• “Allah guarantees that He will admit the person who goes out to fight in His cause (and nothing compels him to go out except jihad in His cause and belief in His words) into Paradise, or He will return him as a winner to his home with rewards or booty” (Tasfir 4:84-4:87).

Perhaps one of the biggest concerns Christians should have with Islam is its eschatological view on Israel and Jesus. First, Muslims don’t believe Jesus is the Son of God, or that He died on the cross. They say he will come back as Isa and descend to liberate the Islamic people from their oppression.[i] The Bible refutes that, warning against these false religions:

“Dear children, this is the last hour; and as you have heard that the antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have come. This is how we know it is the last hour. ... Who is the liar? It is whoever denies that Jesus is the Christ. Such a person is the antichrist — denying the Father and the Son. No one who denies the Son has the Father; whoever acknowledges the Son has the Father also” (1 John 18-19, 22-23).

What this scripture tells us is that any religion that challenges the deity of Christ is of the anti-Christ spirit. This anti-Christ spirit continues to fill and deceive this generation. Wrapped up in this doctrine is also the belief that a false messiah will arise out of Israel while their messiah arrives. This false messiah will be the sign that they are to wipe out the entire Jewish population. Their literature states:

“Abu Hurairah (May Allah be pleased with him) said: The Messenger of Allah said, “The Last Hour will not come until the Muslims fight against the Jews, until a Jew will hide himself behind a stone or a tree, and the stone or the tree will say: ‘O Muslim, there is a Jew behind me. Come and kill him,’ but Al-Gharqad tree will not say so, for it is the tree of the Jews” Riyad as-Salihin 1820 (Book 18, Hadith 13).

Israel’s existence is preeminent in the Christian perspective of the end times and in Scripture. It’s not just a minor detail — it’s a necessary part of the fulfillment of thousands of years of prophecy. Our very own messiah arose out of Israel, so for Islamic literature to say that their anti-Christ will arise out of Israel is a direct contradiction of two very different religions. In fact, many pastors, writers, and scholars even argue that our anti-Christ is their messiah, and our messiah is their anti-Christ.

The great battle for earth started when Adam and Eve were in the garden, but it continues today and until Jesus returns. As we look at the cultural moment, we are in, we must pause and ask the Lord what His will would be for the church as we watch a false doctrine that seeks to destroy our homeland, our history, and our faith rise across the world. Islam is a religion that directly contradicts Christian values and seeks the destruction of Israel, a historically, politically, and spiritually vital nation. As Christians, we must take a stand, refusing to compromise or sit quietly while a religion that does not please the heart of God seeks to overrun our nation and the nations of the earth.

What can you do? First, educate yourself and share the gospel! Remember, they do not have a savior or helper to get them to the finish line. So, remind them that Jesus came to help and save them through His sacrifice! Second, go to your local city halls and meetings. Push back when legislation to build communities ruled by Sharia law is presented, as what recently occurred in Texas. Stand against the influence they have in our nation. This is a Western country — don’t be ashamed of that. Lastly, pray that the Holy Spirit would open their eyes to see the deception of Islam and that they would come to know the true Messiah.

“Therefore, do not grow weary in doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up” (Galatians 6:9).

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This article was written by Rebekah Harper and originally published on The Washington Stand. For more content like this, visit Real Life Network.

Election Day 2026 is less than two weeks away.

By now, campaigns are entering their final stretch, political advertising is intensifying, and attention is beginning to shift from what might happen on November 3 to what Americans will actually see when 2026 election results begin coming in.

There is still time to prepare.

Before Election Day arrives, finish researching the candidates and measures on your ballot, make sure you understand the issues at stake, and know where to find authoritative election information for your jurisdiction.

Then think ahead to Election Night itself.

Results will begin arriving from across the country at different times, major races may develop quickly, and some contests may remain unresolved well after Election Night ends. Knowing what to expect can help you follow the results without getting lost in the constant stream of numbers, projections, reactions, and commentary.

Finish Researching What’s on Your Ballot

If there are still names or measures on your ballot that you know little about, now is the time to research them.

National headlines may be dominated by control of Congress and prominent statewide races, but your ballot may also include state legislators, judges, county or city officials, school boards, and ballot initiatives.

Return to the questions that matter:

• What authority does this office have?
• What has each candidate actually said or done?
• What policies are being proposed?
• What would a ballot measure change?
• Which claims come from campaigns or advocacy organizations, and which can be independently verified?

By this point in the election cycle, voters are surrounded by persuasive messaging. Going back to original sources, public records, full interviews, policy proposals, and reliable reporting can help separate useful information from the final rush of campaign rhetoric.

Review the Issues That Matter in Your Races

The national political conversation includes the economy, immigration, healthcare, education, abortion, public safety, foreign policy, government spending, technology, and many other concerns.

But not every office has authority over every issue.

Before November 3, connect the issues you care about with the candidates and offices that can actually influence them.

A congressional candidate and a school board candidate may both talk about education, but their responsibilities are very different. A governor, state legislator, mayor, and U.S. senator can each affect public policy in different ways.

That context can make the difference between simply following political debate and understanding the choices in front of you.

Use Reliable Sources as Election Day Approaches

The final days before an election can generate a remarkable amount of information, and not all of it deserves equal trust.

Old videos may resurface without context. Unverified claims can spread quickly on social media. Campaigns may make last-minute accusations against opponents. Commentary can sometimes be mistaken for reporting.

Slow down before accepting or sharing something simply because it confirms what you already believe.

Look for original statements. Read beyond headlines. Compare reporting from credible sources. Pay attention to when information was published and whether new facts have emerged since then.

Christians in particular should value truth more than partisan advantage. Proverbs 12:22 says, “Lying lips are an abomination to the LORD, but those who deal truthfully are His delight” (NKJV). Election season does not make accuracy less important.

What Happens When Election Night Results Begin Coming In?

Once voting concludes around the country, election reporting shifts rapidly from campaigns to results.

You will begin seeing vote totals, percentage reporting figures, maps, and race calls. But those numbers require context.

An early lead does not necessarily determine who will ultimately win a race. Different jurisdictions report results at different speeds, and the portions of the vote reported first may not resemble those reported later.

That is one reason reputable election-news organizations do not simply call a race because one candidate happens to be ahead.

The Associated Press, for example, says it declares a winner only when its analysts determine that the trailing candidate no longer has a path to victory. Some races can be called relatively quickly; closely contested races may take days or, occasionally, longer.

So on Election Night 2026, pay attention to more than the percentage of votes counted. Listen for explanations of where reported votes are coming from, how much remains outstanding, and why a race has or has not been called.

Not Every 2026 Election Result Will Be Known That Night

Election Night creates an expectation of instant answers, but elections do not always cooperate with television schedules.

Some races will become clear early in the evening. Others may remain uncertain as additional results are reported. Particularly close contests can require more time before a reliable winner can be identified.

That does not necessarily mean anything unusual has happened.

The United States does not have one centralized national vote-counting system. Elections are administered at the state and local level, and reporting practices differ across jurisdictions.

That means patience is sometimes part of following election results responsibly.

A responsible news source should be willing to say “too early to call” rather than turn uncertainty into speculation.

Watch the Larger Election Night Picture

Individual races matter, but Election Night 2026 will also tell a broader story.

• Which issues appeared to motivate voters?
• How are congressional races changing the makeup of Washington?
• What happened in major governor’s contests?
• Which state and local results could affect policy in the years ahead?
• Did ballot measures reveal important differences between states or regions?

As results accumulate, the evening gradually moves from individual contests toward a national picture.

That broader context is one reason thoughtful election coverage matters. Numbers tell you who is ahead. Good reporting also helps explain what those results mean.

Christians Can Follow Election Night Without Losing Perspective

Political outcomes matter because government decisions affect real people, families, churches, communities, and institutions.

But Christians can care deeply about elections without treating politics as the source of their hope.

Whatever happens on November 3, God remains sovereign. The Gospel remains true. The responsibility to love your neighbor, speak truth, pray for leaders, serve your community, and faithfully follow Christ does not change when political control changes.

That perspective can be especially valuable on Election Night, when political coverage often encourages viewers to treat every development as an emergency or every victory and defeat as permanent.

Stay informed. Pay attention. Care about what happens. But keep politics in its proper place.

Follow Election Night 2026 With Real Life Network

When the results begin coming in on Tuesday, November 3, Real Life Network will bring viewers America Speaks ’26: Election Night Live.

Coverage begins at 8 PM ET / 5 PM PT and will include live election results, updates, commentary, conversation, and biblical perspective as major races unfold across the country.

Pastor Jack Hibbs, Daniel Cohen, and other Real Life Network voices will help viewers follow the evening’s developments and consider the larger issues behind the results.

RLN is free to watch, and creating an account ahead of Election Night means you can simply sign in and follow the coverage when November 3 arrives.

The campaigns will soon end. Then America will begin hearing from the voters.

Sign up for America Speaks ’26 updates and join Real Life Network live on November 3 for Election Night coverage beginning at 8 PM ET / 5 PM PT.

The artificial intelligence community just waved goodbye to yet another top safety and regulation official — and he offers a unique angle in his warning to the world.

David Robinson had been leading safety reports for OpenAI, the maker of ChatGPT. Robinson resigned in the first week of October, stating that the industry’s approach to safety has been stemming from a broken culture. He penned the following words in a piece for The Atlantic, which contain more truth than perhaps he even knows: “The future depends on wisdom that Silicon Valley lacks.”

We’ll come back to that.

His departure comes on the heels of several other prominent AI safety researchers abandoning the industry. Their exits have paired with dreadful public warnings about the future of this technology, leaving the American people to grapple with the headlines and the unknown.

Take Jacob Coxon, for example. After leaving Claude developer Anthropic in September, he wrote on X that top tech labs are “gambling with our lives” by racing toward self-improving superintelligence. He went on to reveal that the people building AI “earnestly believe that it could kill us all by the end of the decade.”

Comforting.

For clarity, the industry term “superintelligence” refers to a hypothetical AI system that developers believe could surpass humans in overall knowledge and capability. This could happen through recursive self-improvement (RSI) in which AI models design and continually improve their own successors.

While the Trump administration has taken to using the term as a reference to AI more broadly, Coxon used it as the industry intends: the potential nightmare of AI evolving beyond our ability to contain.

Let’s go back to David Robinson for a second. Beyond diagnosing the issue of a “lack of wisdom,” he went on in his article to describe the kind of wisdom that is desperately needed — the kind that shows us “how to handle dangerous technology and, more fundamentally … what it means to care for people.”

This kind of wisdom has only one source.

Proverbs 4:7 states, “The beginning of wisdom is: Acquire wisdom; And with all your acquiring, acquire understanding.” The natural question is, how can true wisdom be acquired? Well, it is not gained by happenstance or by any means of passivity.

The word of God teaches that wisdom is found only, “if you look for it as for silver and search for it as for hidden treasure” (Proverbs 2:4).

That same proverb states that when wisdom enters the human heart, it bears fruits of knowledge, discretion, and understanding. Knowledge is pleasant, discretion brings protection, and understanding guards the one who finds it.

If those spearheading AI labs begin searching for wisdom with the same fervency as they do innovation, capital gain, and victory in the arms race, perhaps we might reap the benefits of honing a brilliant technology for human flourishing, rather than threatening it entirely.

In the absence of wisdom, we ought not to expect flourishing. Thus, the need for appropriate guardrails toward that end is becoming increasingly dire.

Whistleblowers coming forward to expose carelessness in the industry is a good thing. Speaking up when danger is on the horizon is profitable. What is not profitable, however, is responding in fear.

The wisest man in history, King Solomon, tells us, “There is nothing new under the sun” (Ecclesiastes 1:9).

The pride of man has reared its head through the latest technology and means of production before. As soon as human beings had the chance, they took brick and mortar and built the tower of Babel, aiming to reach as high as heaven to make a name for themselves — not for the God who gave them clay, water, and sun in the first place.

Today, we are seeing the latest expression of that sinful pride: men thinking they can hold infinite knowledge without it destroying them. Casting wisdom aside, they trust in their own minds and technical ability rather than in God.

In the Garden of Eden, Adam and Eve fell to the temptation of wanting to be all-knowing, like God. He judged that decision then, and He will not be mocked now (Galatians 6:7).

There is nothing more urgent for the unbeliever than to humble themselves, fall on their knees, and cry out to the Creator for salvation. There is, likewise, nothing more urgent for the believer than to refuse every temptation to fear in these times — to live the joyful, abundant life offered to them in Christ.

It is not a suggestion to be unafraid. It is a commandment given us by God, time and time again throughout the Scriptures.

Do not stifle your witness to the watching world.

The book of Ecclesiastes warns us that there are many dark days in this life under the sun, and that we will encounter circumstances which are difficult, perplexing, and often don’t make sense. Yet, there are a few things that author King Solomon found to be good: “Behold, what I have seen to be good and fitting is to eat and drink and find enjoyment in all the toil with which one toils under the sun the few days of his life that God has given him, for this is his lot” (Ecclesiastes 5:18).

New threats to our livelihood may come at alarming rates, but our responsibility as Christians remains the same: Do not dread the future or fear the potential of “superintelligence.” Rather, “fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man” (Ecclesiastes 12:13).

So, keep breaking bread with those you love. Keep enjoying the toil and the lot that God has given you with a grateful heart. Regardless of the news cycle, and whatever may come out of Washington and Silicon Valley — rejoice in what you have been given.

Our lives are but a vapor, a mist, Solomon says. The years go by quickly, and soon, we will return to dust.

That need not be depressing — in fact, let it be motivating as you live the most upright, joyous, and noble life possible along the way. Be encouraged, for we have all the instruction we need to please God in every circumstance, including the ones out of our control.

God says, “I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end” in Revelation 22:13. If God is the Omega just as much as He is the Alpha, what is there to fear?

At the end of all things, just as much as at the beginning — He is there. And He rules and reigns at every point in between.

Human history was born from and ends in perfect wisdom, and God will tie the final bow on our story.

Not Sam Altman, or Dario and Daniela Amodei, or Donald Trump, or Xi Jinping — but Jesus Christ will do it, who is the same “yesterday, today, and forever” (Hebrews 13:8).

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This article was written by Erica Mendel and originally published on The Washington Stand. For more content like this, visit Real Life Network.

Entertainment has never been more accessible. A television, phone, or tablet can provide an endless stream of movies, shows, short videos, news, games, and social media without ever reaching the bottom of the screen.

But having more to watch doesn’t necessarily mean families are better served by what they’re watching.

For many households, entertainment has become noisy in more ways than one. Programs compete for attention with faster pacing, stronger language, darker storylines, sexualized content, graphic imagery, and increasingly provocative themes. Algorithms encourage one more episode or video, while families can end an evening having consumed hours of media without feeling particularly rested, encouraged, or connected.

That raises a worthwhile question: Is it time to replace some of that noise with faith-based family media?

For Christian families, the answer may have less to do with watching less and more to do with choosing better.

What Does “Noisy Entertainment” Really Mean?

Noise isn’t necessarily about volume.

Media can be noisy when it constantly demands attention without giving anything meaningful in return. It can be entertainment built around shock, conflict, outrage, anxiety, or relentless stimulation. It can also be content filled with ideas and assumptions that compete with what parents are trying to teach their children.

Even material that isn’t overtly inappropriate can leave viewers feeling distracted or spiritually empty.

Philippians 4:8 gives Christians a useful standard for what deserves sustained attention, directing believers toward things that are true, noble, just, pure, lovely, and praiseworthy. That doesn’t mean every program needs to quote Scripture. But it does challenge families to think about what repeatedly occupies their minds.

Your Family’s Media Diet Matters

The phrase “media diet” is useful because entertainment has something in common with food: what is consumed occasionally matters less than what becomes normal.

One movie is unlikely to define a child’s worldview. Hundreds of hours of stories, characters, values, jokes, and messages over many years can have a much greater influence.

Children learn from stories. They notice which behaviors are rewarded, which relationships are celebrated, which beliefs are mocked, and what characters consider normal.

Adults aren’t immune either. Constant exposure to cynicism, fear, anger, or sexualized entertainment can gradually make those things feel ordinary.

Choosing faith-based media gives families an opportunity to put more spiritually nourishing material into that mix.

Replacing Is Often Easier Than Restricting

Parents can spend enormous energy saying no.

No, you can’t watch that show. No, that movie isn’t appropriate. No, we’re skipping this episode.

Boundaries are sometimes necessary, but they become much easier when there is also a good answer to, “What can we watch instead?” Faith-based streaming provides that replacement.

A family movie night could feature C.S. Lewis: The Most Reluctant Convert, opening conversations about doubt, reason, and conversion. A documentary such as The Listening Road can introduce thoughtful conversations about how people from different backgrounds think about faith. 7 Days in the Holy Land can help families visually connect places in Israel with biblical events.

The goal isn’t simply to remove entertainment. It is to replace some of it with stories and ideas worth carrying into the next day.

Faith-Based Media Can Start Conversations

One of the greatest advantages of watching Christian content together is what happens afterward. A program can naturally lead to questions that might otherwise feel forced:

• What would you have done?
• Why do you think that person responded that way?
• What does Scripture say about this?
• Do you agree with what was said?

Those conversations help turn viewing into family discipleship.

A documentary such as The Call, for example, can lead to discussion about the Great Commission and what evangelism looks like in ordinary Christian life. Way of the Master can prompt older children and adults to think about how they would talk about Jesus with someone who doesn’t share their beliefs.

The screen becomes the beginning of the conversation rather than the end of it.

Not Everything Has to Feel Like Bible Study

Replacing noisy entertainment with Christian media doesn’t mean turning every evening into a classroom. Families still need stories, laughter, discovery, music, and relaxation.

Faith-based media can include movies, animation, travel programs, interviews, biographies, documentaries, podcasts, and conversations. Some content teaches Scripture directly. Other programs simply tell compelling stories shaped by faith, courage, forgiveness, or hope.

That variety matters because healthy family media should still be enjoyable.

The distinction is that entertainment doesn’t need to undermine a family’s beliefs in order to hold its attention.

A Quieter Media Environment Can Help Families Slow Down

Another benefit of intentional viewing is simply reducing the constant demand for stimulation. Mainstream digital media often encourages viewers to keep going. Finish one episode and another begins automatically. Watch one short video and dozens more appear. Attention itself has become valuable currency.

Faith-based streaming can help families establish a different rhythm.

Choose one documentary. Watch a devotional together. Listen to a meaningful conversation. Then turn the television off and talk.

Programs such as Groundworks with Steve Wiggins are particularly suited to this approach because brief, Scripture-centered episodes can provide meaningful input without consuming an entire evening. Living Fearless with Andy and Hedieh can similarly encourage thoughtful conversation about faith and everyday challenges.

The objective isn’t to fill every available minute with Christian programming. It’s to make more intentional choices about which voices receive the family’s attention.

Parents Set the Tone

Children eventually make their own media choices. Before that happens, parents have an opportunity to model discernment. That includes more than policing what children watch. Kids also notice what their parents consume.

If adults spend hours immersed in angry commentary, dark entertainment, or endless scrolling while telling children to make healthier choices, the message can become confusing.

Christ-centered leadership in the home means asking the same questions of adult entertainment that parents ask about children’s programming.

• Is this helping or hurting?
• What is this normalizing?
• Is it worth the time being given to it?
• What could take its place?

Those questions can gradually reshape a family’s media habits without requiring an overnight purge of every mainstream platform.

Real Life Network Offers an Alternative

Real Life Network was created to provide a different kind of streaming environment.

Rather than placing biblical programming beside an enormous catalog of conflicting content, RLN carefully curates its library around Christian faith and biblical truth. Viewers can move between films, documentaries, podcasts, Bible teaching, cultural discussions, devotional programs, kids’ content, and live events without leaving that foundation.

That gives families something increasingly difficult to find in modern entertainment: a place where they can discover rather than constantly defend.

Parents still decide what fits the age and needs of their particular family. But the starting point is very different.

Replacing noisy entertainment doesn’t require rejecting technology, storytelling, or even every mainstream show. It means becoming more intentional about what receives a family’s limited time and attention.

Some entertainment merely fills a room. Better media can fill conversations, reinforce truth, encourage faith, and give families something meaningful to carry with them after the screen goes dark.

For Christian households, that makes faith-based family media more than an alternative. It can become one practical way to cultivate a home in which entertainment supports, rather than competes with, what matters most.

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Explore biblically curated movies, documentaries, family programs, devotionals, and more anytime on Real Life Network.

A newly enacted law in California that requires virtually all employers to give employees “anti-hate speech” training is raising red flags, as experts say that the mandate could force churches to provide training that conflicts with sincerely held biblical beliefs regarding sexuality, gender, and marriage.

Late last month, California Governor Gavin Newsom (D) signed into law AB 1803, a measure that requires all employers with five or more workers, including all churches and other nonprofit religious organizations, to provide employees with “anti-hate speech” instruction. But as observers like the California Family Council (CFC) are pointing out, the legislation does not define “hate speech,” instead handing the job to the state’s Civil Rights Department. The bill mandates that the training must confront workplace speech that “vilifies, humiliates, or incites hatred” against individuals based on what the state has already deemed a protected characteristic, which includes sex, gender identity, gender expression, and sexual orientation.

The CFC goes on to observe that the statute, which will go into effect on January 1, 2028, never mentions churches or religious nonprofits and their First Amendment rights to hold sincerely held religious beliefs about sexuality and gender. It also “fails to separate protected expression from unlawful conduct,” noting that the Supreme Court held in 2017 that “the First Amendment has no hate speech exception.”

Greg Burt, who serves as vice president of CFC, further pointed out the problems with AB 1803’s vague language regarding key terms that it says constitute “hate.”

“What does it mean to vilify? What speech actually humiliates?” he wondered during “Washington Watch with Tony Perkins” Tuesday. “[M]any times legislators consider many Christian beliefs when they’re expressed — especially regarding sexuality or gender — they accuse us of hating people. That’s [the] farthest thing from my mind. But we are simply advocating for our view that sex is determined by biology, and God created us both male and female. Well, to many people that is humiliating and that incites hatred. And so that’s the problem with this legislation.”

Burt went on to clarify that AB 1803 is being folded into a previously enacted statute that mandates sexual harassment training, which already specifies that using accurate biological pronouns constitutes “harassment.” “[Businesses are] already required to go through sexual harassment training, and we found out several years ago they redefined what sexual harassment means to include gender identity,” he explained. “… [The] California Civil Rights Department says misgendering is harassment, and so this training is on top of that already egregious training.”

As for how employers can fulfill the required training, Burt noted that hiring outside trainers is allowed, but the state-provided training that includes pro-LGBT messaging is free. “Right now, the state puts together a free curriculum — that’s how they do it with sexual harassment training, but you’re not required to use that training. You can come up with your own. But we don’t know exactly what ‘anti-hate’ is going to include, right? [Their] definition of speech that ‘humiliates’ — what does that mean? It really depends on the person who’s receiving the language.”

Burt further urged churches and other religious organizations in the Golden State to push back vigorously against the mandate. “What I think the state is doing is it’s trying to intimidate churches into following through with this,” he lamented. “They should not be receiving any kind of ideological training from the state on any moral issue. That’s why what churches need to be doing is asking for religious accommodations. The federal law and the state law already require businesses to accommodate people’s faith if they’re being required to do something that violates their faith. … [T]his is one of those points in history here in California where civil disobedience is going to be necessary.”

Burt concluded by emphasizing that state officials in California are counting on churches to kowtow to their demands instead of standing up for the constitutional freedoms, which has already proven to be a winning strategy.

“I’m sure they’re already thrilled that they get to retrain the entire population to believe what they believe regarding gender identity,” he reflected. “And so once we get accustomed to this and say, ‘Well, this is just what California requires, I guess we have to do it.’ No, you don’t. Folks, you’ve got to resist, and that includes individual employees. That’s what we are encouraging people to do. And we are having success. We have some attorneys we’re working with, and when people have been asking for religious accommodations, they have been accommodated.”

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This article was written by Dan Hart and originally published on The Washington Stand. For more content like this, visit Real Life Network.

Some disasters arrive without warning. Others are preceded by signs that, in hindsight, seem impossible to miss.

The attempted attack aboard a FlyDubai flight bound for Tel Aviv belongs in the second category. A co-pilot attacked the captain with a cockpit crash axe as the aircraft descended rapidly toward the region. The wounded captain managed to unlock the cockpit door, passengers and crew subdued the attacker, and off-duty pilots ultimately helped bring the aircraft safely to the ground.

It was an extraordinary rescue. It was also an extraordinary security failure.

The investigation has revealed concerns about the alleged attacker that existed before he entered that cockpit. Those revelations should prompt serious questions about aviation security, information sharing, radicalization, and what happens when institutions fail to act on warnings already in front of them. The transcript places that failure within a broader theme: the responsibility of a watchman is not merely to recognize danger after it arrives, but to pay attention while something can still be done.  

For more biblical perspective on the news shaping Israel, America, and the world, Real Life Network brings together current events and the good news of the gospel.

A warning is only valuable when someone is willing to act on it.

The Warning Signs Before FlyDubai Flight 1073

The attack aboard FlyDubai Flight 1073 on September 30 immediately raised questions about how the alleged attacker was allowed into the cockpit.

Authorities identified the co-pilot as Hamam al-Hammami, an Omani national. According to reporting from the Wall Street Journal and Associated Press, Oman Air had previously removed him from flying duties because of concerns about extremist views. FlyDubai later hired him after conducting standard background checks, but apparently did not receive or uncover that history.

That was not the only breakdown.

Oman does not have diplomatic relations with Israel, and questions have emerged over how an Omani pilot was cleared to operate a Tel Aviv-bound flight. Israel has acknowledged gaps in its vetting procedures and is reviewing the screening of foreign flight crews. Investigators have also examined al-Hammami’s employment and educational history as authorities in several countries try to determine what was known about him before the attack.

The most remarkable part of the story is what happened after the attack began.

Captain Smit Machchhar described being struck repeatedly from behind. Despite severe injuries and impaired vision, he managed to reach and unlock the cockpit door. That action allowed others to intervene before the aircraft could be destroyed. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu later praised Machchhar as a hero and invited him and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to participate in Israel’s Independence Day celebrations.

The precise motive and whether anyone else assisted al-Hammami remain subjects of investigation. Early reporting indicates investigators have not established ties to a terrorist organization and are examining the possibility that he acted alone.

Those distinctions matter. Serious journalism cannot transform suspicion into fact simply because it makes a compelling story.

But uncertainty about every detail does not erase the security failures already apparent.

The lesson is not that every possible threat can be prevented. It is that institutions cannot afford to ignore credible warning signs and then act surprised when those warnings become a crisis.

Europe Was Warned About Radicalization

The concern extends beyond one airline.

In 2017, United Arab Emirates Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed delivered a warning to Western leaders about radicalization in Europe. Speaking in English, he predicted that Europe would eventually produce more extremists and terrorists because of indecision, political correctness, and a mistaken belief that Western governments understood extremism in the Middle East better than governments confronting it directly.

Nearly a decade later, the warning is worth revisiting, but it also requires an important distinction.

Islamist extremism cannot be treated as synonymous with Islam or with Muslims generally. Millions of Muslims reject terrorism and radical ideology. Governments have a responsibility to distinguish between peaceful religious practice and individuals or organizations advocating violence.

But refusing to make sweeping judgments does not require refusing to make judgments at all.

The challenge for free societies is to protect religious liberty while confronting genuine extremism. Those commitments are not contradictory. A government can defend the right of Muslims to worship peacefully while aggressively investigating terrorist networks. It can protect immigrants from unjust discrimination while enforcing immigration and criminal laws. It can welcome peaceful citizens while recognizing that ideological radicalization is real.

Pretending those distinctions cannot be made leaves societies vulnerable from both directions.

The FlyDubai investigation illustrates the stakes. An individual reportedly flagged for extremist views eventually obtained access to the controls of a commercial aircraft headed toward Israel. Whatever additional facts investigators uncover, that sequence deserves scrutiny.

It should also remind Christians that discernment is not fear.

Fear assumes the worst about everyone. Discernment examines evidence, distinguishes truth from speculation, and responds appropriately when genuine danger appears.

A Watchman Has to See Clearly

Ezekiel 33 gives the image of a watchman standing guard. When the watchman sees danger approaching, his responsibility is to sound the alarm.

That image is powerful precisely because the watchman must do two things correctly.

He must remain awake, and he must see clearly.

A watchman who sleeps through an approaching threat has failed. But so has a watchman who constantly sounds false alarms until nobody believes him anymore. Christian vigilance therefore requires both courage and truth.

That principle reaches beyond terrorism.

Researchers are currently conducting new tests on the Durupınar formation in eastern Turkey, a boat-shaped geological formation that some believe could contain remains associated with Noah’s Ark. Recent work has included ground-penetrating radar, soil sampling, digital modeling, and core drilling. Researchers involved with the project have reported subsurface anomalies, including linear and angular features.

The location is intriguing because it lies in the broader Mount Ararat region associated with the Genesis account. The formation’s dimensions and reported subsurface features have fueled decades of interest.

But the evidence has not established that the formation is Noah’s Ark.

The research team itself has acknowledged that radar anomalies do not prove an archaeological origin, and laboratory analysis of recent samples remains underway. Some researchers believe the formation is artificial; other geologists have long argued that it is natural. More testing is necessary.

Christians should be comfortable saying that.

Biblical faith does not depend upon exaggerating archaeological discoveries before the evidence arrives. If compelling evidence eventually emerges, examine it. If the formation turns out to be geological, Genesis does not suddenly disappear.

The Dead Sea Scrolls offer a helpful contrast. Their discovery provided actual ancient manuscripts that scholars could compare with later biblical texts. The Great Isaiah Scroll, dating roughly a millennium earlier than previously available complete Hebrew manuscripts of Isaiah, demonstrated remarkable continuity while also containing textual variants.

The Christian does not need sensationalism when truth is already compelling.

Biblical discernment means refusing to ignore evidence that is uncomfortable and refusing to exaggerate evidence that is convenient.

That may be one of the most important habits Christians can develop in an age of breaking news, viral videos, political advertising, polling, social media, and constant claims of unprecedented discoveries.

The FlyDubai attack deserves investigation without conspiracy theories. Radicalization deserves attention without treating an entire religion or population as guilty. Archaeological discoveries deserve excitement without announcing conclusions before the evidence supports them. Political claims deserve examination regardless of which party benefits from them.

The watchman does not determine what is true.

The watchman pays attention to what is actually there.

Captain Machchhar reportedly had only moments to act. Severely wounded, he reached the cockpit door and opened it, giving everyone else aboard the aircraft a chance to survive.

Most people will never encounter anything remotely comparable. But everyone faces smaller moments when recognizing reality matters: deciding what information to trust, what warnings deserve attention, what claims require more evidence, and what principles should remain firm when cultural pressure makes them inconvenient.

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Stay informed with The Daniel Cohen Show on Real Life Network, where faith, current events, Israel, and the stories shaping the world come together.

Christian families have more streaming choices than ever. Alongside mainstream services, a growing number of platforms now offer Christian movies, Bible teaching, children’s programming, documentaries, inspirational series, apologetics, and family-friendly entertainment.

But the best Christian streaming platforms serve very different purposes. Some are built around biblical teaching. Others focus on movies, children’s programming, Bible studies, or simply giving families cleaner entertainment options.

Here are 10 Christian and faith-oriented streaming platforms worth considering.

1. Real Life Network: Best for Christian Teaching and Faith-Based Programming

Cost: Free

Real Life Network offers one of the broadest combinations of biblical programming available without a subscription fee. The donor-supported platform includes Bible teaching, Christian news, apologetics, documentaries, podcasts, kids’ programs, movies, cultural commentary, and live events.

Viewers can find programs such Real Life with Jack Hibbs, RLN News, The Daniel Cohen Show, Cross Examined, The Creation Today Show, Superbook, and many other offerings within one biblically curated environment.

Unlike services centered primarily on movies, RLN is particularly strong for viewers who want entertainment combined with biblical teaching and programs addressing faith, culture, current events, and worldview.

Best for: Christians looking for a broad, free streaming platform built around biblical truth.

2. Pure Flix: Best for Christian Movies and Family Entertainment

Cost: Paid subscription; plans begin at $9.99 per month

Great American Pure Flix is one of the best-known Christian streaming services for faith-forward movies and scripted entertainment.

Its catalog combines original series, Christian films, family dramas, Christmas programming, kids’ shows, and uplifting entertainment centered on faith, family, and traditional values. Multiple membership levels are available, with higher tiers adding features such as special screenings and early access.

For viewers who want a faith-oriented alternative to browsing mainstream movie libraries, Pure Flix remains one of the strongest options.

Best for: Christian movies, original series, family dramas, and faith-centered entertainment.

3. UP Faith & Family: Best for Wholesome Family Entertainment

Cost: $5.99 per month or $59.99 annually

UP Faith & Family offers thousands of hours of commercial-free family movies, dramas, series, and inspirational entertainment.

Its catalog is broader than explicitly Christian programming. Viewers will find faith-friendly movies alongside wholesome family dramas and popular series such as Heartland.

That distinction makes UP Faith & Family particularly useful for households looking for cleaner entertainment without requiring every program to function as Christian teaching.

Best for: Wholesome dramas, family movies, romantic stories, and uplifting entertainment.

4. Faith Channel: Best for Faith-Based Shows and Inspirational Content

Cost: Free

FaithChannel is a free Christian streaming service offering movies, television shows, documentaries, preaching, teaching, music, podcasts, children’s programming, and other inspirational content.

Its growing library includes programming from a variety of independent Christian ministries and content producers. Titles range from Heroic Faith and The Torchlighters to apologetics, Bible prophecy, family films, podcasts, and children’s shows.

Because much of its catalog comes from different creators and ministries, viewers can encounter a particularly wide variety of formats and perspectives.

Best for: Exploring free Christian films, independent programs, teaching, podcasts, and inspirational content.

5. Go Minno: Best for Christian Kids’ Shows and Bible-Based Content

Cost: $10.99 per month or $69.99 annually after a free trial

Minno is designed specifically for Christian families with younger children.

Its library includes more than 175 shows, including the classic VeggieTales collection, Bible stories, music, educational programs, and Christian children’s entertainment. Families can stream across multiple devices and download programming for offline viewing.

Because the service is built specifically for children rather than including kids’ programming as one category within a larger library, it gives parents a focused alternative to mainstream children’s streaming.

Best for: Preschool and elementary-age children, Christian cartoons, Bible stories, and faith-based learning.

6. Yippee: Best for Safe, Faith-Focused Kids’ Entertainment

Cost: $7.99 per month or an annual subscription after a free trial

Yippee combines Christian children’s television with the energetic creator-driven format kids often encounter online.

Its library includes thousands of episodes from hundreds of series and movies, including Superbook, Christian programming, music, educational shows, and parent-approved creators. Yippee emphasizes that its environment contains no ads and no recommendation algorithms.

That makes it especially attractive to parents whose children enjoy online video but who want more control over what appears next.

Best for: Families seeking a Christian alternative to children’s YouTube viewing.

7. RightNow Media: Best for Bible Studies and Church Groups

Cost: Access is generally provided through subscribing churches and Christian organizations

RightNow Media is less like Netflix and more like an enormous digital discipleship library.

It offers more than 25,000 video Bible studies covering Scripture, marriage, parenting, leadership, finances, recovery, Christian living, and other topics. The service also includes more than 2,000 children’s episodes and downloadable materials for many studies.

Rather than purchasing individual subscriptions, users generally receive access through a participating church, ministry, or organization.

Its combination of teaching videos and discussion materials makes RightNow Media particularly useful for small groups and church ministries.

Best for: Bible studies, small groups, church discipleship, leadership development, and Christian education.

8. RedeemTV: Best Free Christian Film Streaming Platform

Cost: Free

RedeemTV offers more than 2,000 faith-filled titles without subscription fees or advertising.

Its donor-supported library includes Christian movies, documentaries, animated programs, television series, and family entertainment. Titles include The Pilgrim’s Progress, Vindication, Fragments of Truth, Ryan Defrates, and many others.

RedeemTV is especially strong for viewers whose primary interest is films and entertainment. Real Life Network offers a broader mix of teaching, news, cultural programming, and entertainment, while RedeemTV concentrates more heavily on movies and series.

Best for: Free Christian movies and shows without commercials.

9. VidAngel: Best for Filtering Movies and TV Shows

Cost: $9.99 per month when billed directly; supported streaming subscriptions may also be required

VidAngel takes a completely different approach to family entertainment.

Rather than providing only a traditional catalog of Christian programming, VidAngel lets viewers apply customizable filters to supported movies and shows from other streaming services. Families can choose categories of language, sexual content, violence, and other material they would prefer to mute or skip.

That means parents do not necessarily have to reject an entire movie because of a handful of objectionable scenes.

VidAngel requires users to have their own subscriptions to compatible streaming services for much of its filtered content.

Best for: Families who want more control over mainstream movies and television shows.

10. Christian Cinema: Best for Renting and Buying Christian Movies

Cost: Individual rentals and purchases; optional subscription plans are also available

Christian Cinema is useful for viewers who do not necessarily want another monthly streaming subscription.

Movies can be rented individually and streamed for a limited viewing period or purchased and stored in a digital library for on-demand viewing. The service specializes in Christian and faith-based films rather than trying to compete as a broad general-entertainment platform.

Christian Cinema also offers optional subscription plans for additional movies and television programming, but its rent-or-buy model remains a major distinction.

Best for: Viewers who want specific Christian movies without committing to another full streaming subscription.

What Should You Look for in a Christian Streaming Service?

The best platform depends on what you want from it.

Start by considering biblical alignment. A platform described as “family-friendly,” “inspirational,” or even “faith-based” is not necessarily the same as a service intentionally grounded in Scripture. Families should consider who selects the programming and what worldview shapes the library.

Next, consider the type of content your household actually watches. Parents with young children may get more value from Minno or Yippee, while a small-group leader may find RightNow Media far more useful. Movie lovers may prefer Pure Flix or RedeemTV, while viewers interested in Bible teaching, apologetics, news, and culture may find Real Life Network a better fit.

Finally, consider cost, commercials, device compatibility, offline viewing, parental controls, and whether a service requires other subscriptions to function.

Are There Any Free Christian Streaming Platforms?

Yes.

Real Life Network is completely free and donor-supported, offering Christian teaching, news, movies, kids’ programs, apologetics, podcasts, and more without a paid tier. RedeemTV is also donor-supported and offers more than 2,000 titles free without ads. FaithChannel provides free faith-and-family programming as well.

Angel has selected titles available without a Guild membership, although most of its full catalog now requires paid access.

For families trying to reduce monthly subscription costs, the amount of Christian programming available free is substantial.

Which Christian Streaming Platform Is Best for Families?

There is no single answer for every household. For families seeking a platform the whole household can use, Real Life Network has an advantage because its free library extends beyond children’s entertainment to Bible teaching, movies, documentaries, current events, apologetics, podcasts, and family programming.

Families primarily concerned with younger children may prefer Minno or Yippee. Those wanting a traditional movie-and-series experience may choose Pure Flix, UP Faith & Family, or RedeemTV.

The best choice is the one that not only avoids objectionable material but also supports the values parents are working to build at home.

Frequently Asked Questions About Christian Streaming Platforms

What Is the Best Christian Streaming Platform?

The best platform depends on your priorities. Real Life Network is a strong all-around choice for viewers seeking free biblical teaching, Christian news, apologetics, kids’ programming, movies, documentaries, and cultural content. Pure Flix is particularly strong for Christian movies and scripted entertainment, while Minno and Yippee specialize in children’s programming.

What Is the Best Free Christian Streaming Service?

Real Life Network and RedeemTV are two of the strongest completely free options. RLN provides a broad mix of programming, while RedeemTV has a particularly large free library of Christian films and series. FaithChannel is another free option worth exploring.

Is There a Christian Alternative to Netflix?

Several services can function as Christian or family-oriented alternatives to Netflix. Pure Flix most closely resembles a traditional subscription movie-and-series platform, while Real Life Network combines entertainment with teaching, news, apologetics, and family programming at no cost.

What Is the Best Christian Streaming Platform for Kids?

Minno and Yippee are specifically built around Christian children’s entertainment. Real Life Network also offers free children’s programming within a larger platform designed for the whole family.

Do I Need to Pay for Christian Streaming?

No. While many Christian streaming services charge monthly or annual subscription fees, Real Life Network, RedeemTV, and FaithChannel offer free options.

Finding the Best Christian Streaming Platform for Your Home

Christian streaming is no longer a single category. Families can now choose platforms specializing in movies, Bible studies, kids’ shows, documentaries, teaching, news, apologetics, and wholesome general entertainment.

The right choice depends on what you want entering your home and what role you want media to play in your family.

For viewers who want to begin with a service built around biblical truth without adding another monthly expense, Real Life Network provides free access to Christian teaching, news, family programming, movies, documentaries, podcasts, apologetics, kids’ shows, and more.

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Explore free Christian streaming today on Real Life Network.

More than 50,000 Americans from across the country signed a new “Declaration for Life” within hours of its public release that calls on them and their fellow citizens “to stand for life” and for Congress “to ban the chemical abortion drug mifepristone,” Senator Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) told reporters during an impromptu news conference in a Senate office building Wednesday.

“We think this declaration, written by pastors, is calling on spiritual leaders and everyday Christians across America to stand for life and to confront the scourge of chemical abortion. It is so critical on this the 250th anniversary of America,” Hawley said, referring to the four-page declaration he and a committee of pastors and other spiritual leaders from multiple denominations drafted.

The Declaration for Life was officially unveiled Wednesday during the first annual Missouri Prayer Breakfast hosted by the Show-Me State’s senior senator. The document is being circulated nationwide by multiple pro-life groups, including Family Research Council, and millions of Americans are expected to sign the document in the coming days.

“The Declaration of Independence gives us three examples of ‘inalienable rights:’ life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Life is the first of those rights because it is the condition of the others. It is thus the most foundational of rights,” the document proclaims at its outset.

“We believe we have an obligation as Christians and spiritual leaders to remind our countrymen of what Scripture and conscience together proclaim: That every human being from the moment of our knitting together in our mothers’ wombs, was fearfully and wonderfully made. The divine image each human being bears was not earned. It cannot be forfeited. And it is the first duty of the Church to defend human dignity where it is denied,” the document states.

The declaration continues, noting that “what is at stake on this anniversary is nothing less than the conviction on which every flourishing society finally rests: That each and every member of the human family, as a creature fashioned in the image of the divine Creator and Ruler, is the bearer of profound dignity. Where that conviction is honored, civilizations flourish. Where it is forgotten, cultures decline and fall.”

The declaration explains that while in the four years since the Supreme Court’s Dobbs decision “returned the abortion question from courts to legislatures,” that decision “did not end abortion in America. Far from it. More abortions are performed in this country today than when [Roe v. Wade] was still the law of the land — over one million abortions in 2025 alone.”

Three-fourths of those abortions are carried out using the chemical drug mifepristone, and, the declaration points out, “thanks to recent changes in government regulations, mifepristone can now be mailed into every state and city in America, regardless of local rules. The abortion drug is nearly always fatal to the unborn child and frequently injurious to the mother. Recent studies indicate the drug puts more than one in 10 women who take it at risk of serious, life-threatening complications, including hemorrhaging, infections and sepsis.”

Hawley told reporters he believes “the time has come to ban mifepristone abortions, and I want to emphasize this is something only Congress can do. … Only Congress can act to take mifepristone off of the Food and Drug Administration’s [approved drug] schedule, only Congress can say it will not be available for abortions. That’s something that Congress should do. Congress should stop passing the buck to other people. Congress should stand up and act.”

As long as Congress fails to act, Hawley emphasized, state actions such as those in Louisiana, Missouri, and others that have banned chemical abortions carried out by medical professionals in those jurisdictions will continue to be rendered meaningless so long as the drug can be mailed across state lines and administered in private by the mother with a cup of water.

Hawley added that “when it comes to elected officials in Congress, there hasn’t been much of anything [done] to protect the innocent unborn, and I think we’ve got to change that. One of the things we want to do with this Declaration for Life is call on candidates for public office in both parties to sign this declaration, to say ‘We support it, we support protecting human life.’”

Earlier this year, Hawley introduced S. 4066, the Safeguarding Women from Chemical Abortion Act that would outlaw chemical abortions. On the House side of the Capitol, the same legislation was introduced as H.R. 7902 by Rep. Diana Harshbarger (R-Tenn.). The Senate bill has seven co-sponsors, all Republicans, while the House bill has 11 co-sponsors, also all GOPers. Neither proposal has been advanced to committee hearings, as Republican leaders focus on other issues.

Another major obstacle for such reforms includes the lack of action from President Donald Trump, whose administration approved in October 2025 a second generic version of mifepristone for abortion use and has delayed a promised FDA study of the drug.

In addition, as Family Research Council President Tony Perkins told reporters during the Hawley news conference, the Republican Party at its 2024 convention abandoned its long-standing defense of the right to life, and its congressional leadership has since failed to act vigorously on the issue.

“Unfortunately, the Republican Party has lost its voice on the right to life issue, and in that vacuum, there are leaders who are stepping forward like Senator Hawley calling upon the church, communities, and the country to step up on behalf of the unborn,” Perkins said.

“We have made great progress,” FRC’s president continued, “but there has been a tremendous setback, and we’ve reached a point where I think we have to call upon the faith community, Christian pastors, to step into this vacuum and speak unequivocally about the sanctity of human life and hold elected officials accountable to the standard. This declaration is a starting point for establishing a standard for what we should be aspiring to as a nation.”

When asked by The Washington Stand if he would initiate legislative action in response to a Government Accounting Office (GAO) study released earlier this week that found thousands of abortions are being paid for annually with federal tax dollars through the Obamacare health insurance program, Hawley replied, “100 percent, and the other thing that is happening is that Planned Parenthood is getting funded right now. The ban on Planned Parenthood funding has expired, [and] it’s being funded with taxpayer dollars.”

The Hyde Amendment — named after former Rep. Henry Hyde (R-Ill.) who authored the measure — was approved by a Democrat-controlled Congress and signed into law by Democratic President Jimmy Carter in 1977. That law bars the use of federal tax dollars to pay for abortions except in a tiny class of exceptions.

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This article was written by Mark Tapscott and originally published on The Washington Stand. For more content like this, visit Real Life Network.

News can be useful. It helps us understand what is happening in our communities, our country, and around the world. It can alert us to events that deserve prayer, action, generosity, or thoughtful attention.

But news can also consume attention surprisingly quickly.

Breaking alerts lead to updates. Updates lead to commentary. Commentary leads to another video, article, or social media post. Before long, a few minutes of staying informed can become hours of absorbing conflict, outrage, fear, and speculation.

Christians don’t need to withdraw from what is happening in the world. But neither should the news determine the condition of our hearts.

Here are seven practical ways believers can remain informed without allowing the news cycle to become spiritually overwhelming.

1. Start with Scripture Before Starting with Headlines

One of the simplest ways to keep news in perspective is to decide which voice gets your attention first.

Opening a news app before getting out of bed can immediately fill your mind with elections, wars, economic concerns, crime, cultural conflict, and international crises. Scripture begins somewhere very different: with God, His character, His promises, and His purposes.

Psalm 119:105 says, “Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.”

Starting with God’s Word doesn’t make difficult events disappear. It helps place them within a larger biblical framework.

Before asking, What happened overnight? it can be helpful to remember what has not changed. God is still sovereign. His Word is still true. The Gospel is still good news. Christ is still building His Church.

Headlines change by the hour. Those truths do not.

2. Know the Difference Between Being Informed and Being Consumed

There is no biblical command requiring Christians to know every development immediately. Yet modern media can create a sense that we must continually monitor events or risk falling behind.

That urgency deserves examination.

Being informed means understanding significant events well enough to think, pray, and respond wisely. Being consumed means repeatedly checking for updates even when little has changed and continuing long after the information is useful.

One helpful question is: Am I learning something I need to know, or am I simply feeding my anxiety?

Setting specific times for checking news can help establish boundaries. So can turning off unnecessary alerts or stepping away when a developing story has become repetitive.

You can care deeply about the world without following every headline in real time.

3. Test What You Hear Instead of Reacting Immediately

Fast-moving news rewards quick reactions. Christian discernment often requires something slower. Proverbs 18:17 says, “The first one to plead his cause seems right, until his neighbor comes and examines him.”

That principle is especially useful in an age of social media clips, partial quotations, dramatic headlines, and rapidly developing stories.

Before sharing or reacting, ask:

• Is the information confirmed?
• Am I hearing the full context?
• Is this reporting, commentary, or speculation?
• Does another trustworthy source corroborate the claim?

Christians should have a particular concern for truth. Passing along something inaccurate simply because it supports our assumptions does not honor that responsibility.

Sometimes wisdom means waiting.

4. Evaluate the World Through Scripture, Not a Political Tribe

Politics matters because government, law, freedom, justice, family, human dignity, and public policy affect real people. But Christianity cannot be reduced to a political party or ideology.

Believers should evaluate political and cultural questions through Scripture rather than modifying Scripture to fit a preferred political position.

That means Christians may sometimes agree strongly with a political leader, movement, or commentator and at other times need to challenge what that same person says or does.

Biblical conviction should remain the standard.

Programs that approach culture from an explicitly Christian worldview can be useful here. Cure America with Star Parker, The Daniel Cohen Show, Rose Unplugged, Small Talk Big Issues, and The City of God are among the programs available through Real Life Network that engage cultural and public issues from faith-informed perspectives.

The objective isn’t to replace independent thinking. It is to consider events alongside voices that recognize biblical truth as relevant to public life.

5. Let the News Become a Prompt for Prayer

News can easily produce frustration. It can also become a prayer list.

• A report about war can remind us to pray for civilians, soldiers, government leaders, missionaries, and churches in affected regions.
• A story about persecution can lead us to pray for believers who face consequences for their faith.
• A report involving children, schools, marriage, or culture can prompt prayer for parents, teachers, churches, and the next generation.

First Timothy 2:1–2 instructs believers to offer prayers and intercessions “for kings and all who are in authority.” That command gives Christians something constructive to do with difficult information.

Instead of merely asking, Can you believe this? we can also ask, How should I pray about this?

6. Make Room for Good News Too

News naturally emphasizes problems. That is partly because crises, disagreements, disasters, and unexpected developments are newsworthy. But consuming an uninterrupted stream of what is going wrong can distort our perception of what God is doing.

Churches are serving communities. Missionaries are sharing the Gospel. People are coming to Christ. Christians are caring for the poor, helping disaster victims, defending the vulnerable, strengthening families, and serving in places most viewers will never see on the evening news.

Programs such as On the Ground with Samaritan’s Purse can provide glimpses of Christians responding to suffering with practical help. Fred Jordan Missions TV highlights faith expressed through compassion and community involvement. Evangelism Explosion International focuses on equipping believers to share Christ with others.

These stories don’t erase bad news.

They remind us that bad news isn’t the whole story.

7. Remember Which Kingdom Comes First

Perhaps the most important way to remain grounded is to remember where Christian hope ultimately rests.

Governments change. Political movements rise and fall. Economies strengthen and weaken. International alliances shift. Cultural attitudes change.

Jesus Christ does not.

Philippians 3:20 reminds believers, “For our citizenship is in heaven, from which we also eagerly wait for the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ.” That doesn’t make Christians indifferent to earthly events. In fact, biblical faith should encourage believers to care about their neighbors, communities, country, and world.

But it prevents temporary events from carrying eternal weight.

Christians can vote, serve, advocate, give, pray, speak truth, and remain engaged while remembering that no election, institution, economic system, or human leader can carry the hope that belongs to Christ alone.

Stay Informed Without Losing Your Peace

There is nothing wrong with wanting to understand what is happening in the world.

The challenge is keeping the news in its proper place.

Read Scripture before allowing headlines to establish the tone of your day. Set reasonable limits. Check facts carefully. Evaluate cultural and political questions through a biblical worldview. Pray about what you learn. Look for evidence of God’s work as well as evidence of human brokenness.

Above all, remember that Christians already know the most important news.

Jesus Christ has come. He died for sinners. He rose again. He offers forgiveness and eternal life to those who trust in Him, and He will return.

No breaking-news alert can change that.

Real Life Network offers RLN News along with programs such as The Daniel Cohen Show, Cure America, Rose Unplugged, The City of God, Small Talk Big Issues, and other biblically informed programming to help Christians consider current events without separating the headlines from their faith.

Explore Christian news, cultural commentary, Bible teaching, and more for free on Real Life Network.

Choosing what your family watches used to be relatively simple. Today, children can encounter movies, shows, videos, games, social media, podcasts, and other digital content across multiple devices throughout the day.

That makes media decisions about more than whether a particular movie contains bad language or an inappropriate scene. Stories communicate ideas. Characters model attitudes. Entertainment can reinforce beliefs about relationships, identity, success, morality, authority, and what makes life meaningful.

Christian parents don’t need to approach every screen with suspicion. But thoughtful questions can help families move beyond simply asking, “Is this allowed?” toward developing genuine biblical discernment.

Here are seven questions worth asking.

1. What Is This Teaching My Child to Admire?

Every story has heroes. Sometimes they’re obvious. Other times the audience is simply encouraged to sympathize with certain characters, choices, or lifestyles.

Ask what qualities the program presents as admirable. Is courage celebrated? Loyalty? Honesty? Sacrifice? Compassion? Or does the story consistently reward selfishness, dishonesty, disrespect, cruelty, or behavior that conflicts with what your family is teaching?

This doesn’t mean every protagonist must behave perfectly. Some of the best stories involve flawed people learning from mistakes.

The more important question is whether the story ultimately recognizes the difference between wisdom and foolishness, good and evil, truth and deception.

2. What Does This Program Treat as Normal?

Media doesn’t always persuade through direct arguments. Often, it influences simply by repetition.

When children repeatedly see particular attitudes, relationships, behaviors, or beliefs presented as normal, those ideas can gradually begin to feel ordinary. That is why parents should pay attention not only to dramatic objectionable moments but also to the assumptions underneath a story.

What does the program communicate about marriage? Parents? Faith? Sexuality? Authority? Success? Human worth?

Children may not consciously identify those ideas, but that doesn’t mean they aren’t noticing them.

Parents can help by occasionally asking, “What do you think that show is saying about this?” That simple question teaches children to watch actively rather than absorb everything passively.

3. Is This Appropriate for My Particular Child?

An age rating can be helpful, but parents know their children better than a rating system does.

Two children of the same age may react very differently to the same movie. One might handle a tense historical story well, while another has nightmares after mild suspense. One teenager may be ready to engage thoughtfully with difficult cultural questions while another isn’t.

Christian parenting requires more than finding the boundary of what is technically permitted.

Romans 14:19 encourages believers to “pursue the things which make for peace and the things by which one may edify another.”

A useful question, then, is not only, Can my child watch this? but Will this be beneficial for my child right now?

4. How Does My Child Feel After Watching It?

Sometimes the effect of media becomes clearer after the screen turns off. Does a child seem encouraged, curious, imaginative, or eager to talk? Or irritable, anxious, fearful, disrespectful, restless, or obsessed with watching more?

One viewing won’t necessarily reveal a pattern. But repeated reactions can tell parents something important.

The same is true for adults. Some entertainment leaves viewers refreshed. Other content leaves them angry, agitated, discouraged, or mentally exhausted.

Philippians 4:8 directs believers toward what is true, noble, just, pure, lovely, commendable, virtuous, and praiseworthy. That provides a useful biblical framework for considering not just what enters the mind, but what it produces there.

5. Is Screen Time Crowding Out Something Better?

A perfectly acceptable program can still become a problem if it consumes too much time.

The issue may not be what a child is watching. It may be what he or she is no longer doing. Is screen time replacing sleep? Outdoor play? Reading? Family conversation? Church involvement? Homework? Prayer and Scripture? Time with friends?

Sometimes the wisest media decision is not finding a better show but leaving the television off.

Healthy media habits recognize entertainment as one part of life rather than the center of it.

6. Can This Become a Conversation Instead of Just Consumption?

Parents don’t have to eliminate every story containing an idea they disagree with. Sometimes those moments provide valuable opportunities to teach.

Watching together allows parents to ask questions.

• Why do you think that character made that choice?
• Was it wise?
• What consequences followed?
• What does the Bible teach about that issue?
• How would following Jesus change the way someone responds?

Those conversations help children build discernment that will eventually matter far more than parental controls.

Christian media can provide especially natural opportunities for these discussions. A program such as LifeWise Academy can lead into conversations about bringing biblical truth into everyday life. Genesis Science Minute can introduce questions about creation and science in just 60 seconds. The Pilgrim’s Progress can start conversations about temptation, perseverance, and following Christ.

The goal isn’t to interrogate children after every episode. It’s to make talking about ideas a normal part of family life.

7. Does Our Entertainment Support the Kind of Home We’re Trying to Build?

This may be the most important question of all.

Parents spend years teaching children what is true, who they are, what relationships should look like, why Scripture matters, and what it means to follow Christ.

It makes sense to ask whether the family’s entertainment choices generally support those priorities or continually work against them. That doesn’t require every show to be overtly Christian. But intentionally including faith-based programming can help create a healthier balance.

Younger children might enjoy biblical programming such as Superbook, iBible, or Learn, Grow and Go! Older children and teens can explore apologetics through  In Depth Apologetics for Kids or creation-focused content. Families can also choose movies, documentaries, Bible teaching, and programs built around Christian service, history, and worldview.

Real Life Network provides these kinds of options in one biblically curated streaming environment, giving parents a place to begin without having to sort through an enormous mainstream catalog first.

Teach Discernment, Not Just Rules

Parents cannot screen every piece of media their children will encounter forever.

Eventually, children become teenagers. Teenagers become adults. They choose their own movies, follow their own accounts, download their own apps, and decide which voices deserve their attention.

That’s why the long-term goal is bigger than creating a list of approved and prohibited programs. It is helping children learn to ask good questions themselves.

• What is this teaching me?
• Does it agree with what I know to be true?
• How is it affecting my thoughts and attitudes?
• Is this worth my time?
• Would I make this same choice if Jesus were sitting beside me?

Those questions turn media discernment from a parental restriction into a lifelong Christian practice.

The goal isn’t a home without screens. It’s a home where screens know their place, parents remain engaged, and entertainment doesn’t get the final word on what children learn to value.

Explore free, biblically curated kids’ shows, family programs, movies, Bible teaching, and more on Real Life Network.

Christian streaming has grown far beyond Sunday sermons on demand. Today, viewers can find Christian news, Bible teaching, apologetics, podcasts, documentaries, movies, children’s programs, cultural discussions, devotional content, and live events without paying for another monthly subscription.

For families accustomed to searching across YouTube, television networks, podcast apps, and multiple streaming services, having those options together in one place can make Christian media much easier to discover.

Real Life Network offers all of it for free. Whether you’re looking for something to watch with your children, a Bible teacher to follow throughout the week, a podcast for the commute, or news viewed through a Christian worldview, there are thousands of episodes and many different types of programming to explore.

Here’s a guide to what you can find.

Christian News and Cultural Commentary

For viewers who want to stay informed without leaving their biblical worldview at the door, Christian streaming offers an alternative to relying exclusively on mainstream news.

RLN News covers national and international developments from a Christian perspective, while The Daniel Cohen Show brings a particular focus to Israel, global affairs, culture, and the intersection between current events and faith.

Other programs approach culture from different angles. Rose Unplugged features interviews and conversations about issues shaping society. Cure America with Star Parker examines public policy, faith, freedom, and the cultural questions facing the nation.

Viewers interested in deeper examinations of particular issues can also turn to documentaries such as Truth Rising, The Great Global Reset, and The Eye of the Storm.

Together, these programs give viewers more than headlines. They encourage Christians to consider what is happening in the world in light of Scripture.

Bible Teaching and Sermons

Bible teaching remains at the heart of Christian streaming, but there is no single style.

Real Life with Jack Hibbs offers Bible teaching with application to Christian living and the issues believers face today. A Daily Walk with John Randall provides steady verse-by-verse teaching, while So True with Philip De Courcy brings biblical truth into practical areas of everyday life.

Bridge Bible Talk takes a different approach, allowing listeners to hear actual questions about Scripture, doctrine, and Christian living discussed in a conversational format.

Viewers can also explore the Legacy: Pioneers of the Faith collection for teaching from influential Christian voices of previous generations, including Billy Graham, Chuck Smith, Martyn Lloyd-Jones, and others.

For someone who wants to move beyond occasional sermon viewing and develop a regular habit of biblical learning, there is plenty to explore.

Apologetics, Creation, and Biblical Worldview

Some of the most useful Christian streaming content begins with difficult questions.

Does God exist? Can the Bible be trusted? How should Christians think about science and creation? What evidence supports the resurrection? How can believers respond when friends challenge Christianity?

Cross Examined with Frank Turek tackles many of those questions through Christian apologetics. I Don’t Have Enough Faith to Be an Atheist also examines the evidence and reasoning behind central Christian truth claims.

For questions involving creation and science, viewers can explore The Creation Today Show and ICR’s Creation Podcast. In Depth Apologetics for Kids makes some of these same kinds of questions approachable for younger audiences.

There is also Lamps Lit Youth Prophecy Conference, which gives teens and adults an opportunity to explore Bible prophecy through sessions with Jeff Kinley, Todd Hampson, and Jack Hibbs.

These programs can be useful for personal viewing, family discussions, youth groups, and small-group studies.

Christian Podcasts and Conversations

Sometimes watching a full teaching program isn’t practical. Podcasts make Christian content easy to fit into driving, exercise, chores, or other parts of the day.

The Jack Hibbs Podcast discusses Scripture, culture, current issues, and Christian living in a conversational format. Ignite with Barry Meguiar focuses on helping believers become more comfortable sharing their faith.

The Prophecy Pros Podcast with Jeff Kinley and Todd Hampson explores biblical prophecy, while Victor Marx brings conversations shaped by ministry, hardship, faith, and real-world experiences.

For something much shorter, Groundworks with Steve Wiggins offers brief, Scripture-based devotional teaching that can fit into just a few minutes.

There are also programs such as Living Fearless with Andy and Hedieh, which offers conversations about faith, courage, and living faithfully through difficult circumstances.

Christian Documentaries and Movies

Christian streaming also gives viewers access to stories that can educate, challenge, and entertain.

For apologetics and prophecy, Before the Wrath explores the connection between ancient Galilean wedding customs and biblical teaching concerning Christ’s return.

Those interested in Christian history and biography can watch titles such as C.S. Lewis: The Most Reluctant Convert, Billy Graham: A Life Remembered, Billy Sunday, and Louis Zamperini: Captured by Grace.

Other documentaries offer very different experiences. The Listening Road follows conversations about faith across America. The Call examines what can happen when the Great Commission becomes part of a church’s culture. 7 Days in the Holy Land takes viewers to biblical locations, while Scarred Earth considers the Grand Canyon from a creationist perspective.

Families looking for a movie night can explore titles including Seven Days in Utopia, The Jesus Film, and the animated The Pilgrim’s Progress.

The variety is an important point. “Christian entertainment” no longer describes just one kind of program.

Christian Shows for Kids and Families

Parents looking for alternatives to mainstream children’s programming have their own selection of options.

Superbook brings children into the events of Scripture through animated adventures. iBible presents the biblical narrative visually, while Ryan Defrates: Secret Agent combines humor and adventure with lessons about Christian character.

Star-Spangled Adventures gives children an animated introduction to American history and faith, and The Pilgrim’s Progress provides a full-length family movie based on John Bunyan’s classic Christian allegory.

These programs can do more than occupy children’s screen time. They give parents opportunities to ask questions, discuss Scripture, and connect entertainment with family discipleship.

Evangelism, Ministry, and Christian Leadership

Christian streaming can also help believers put their faith into practice.

Way of the Master focuses on evangelism and real Gospel conversations. Ignite with Barry Meguiar encourages Christians to share their faith naturally in everyday situations. Content from Samaritan’s Purse provides glimpses of Christian service and humanitarian ministry around the world.

For those serving in churches, ministries, workplaces, or other leadership roles, RLN also offers leadership-focused teaching designed to connect biblical principles with the responsibilities of Christian leadership.

These programs help move Christian streaming beyond simply learning more. They encourage viewers to consider what faithful action looks like.

One Free Platform, Many Ways to Watch

A Christian streaming library can serve very different purposes from one day to the next. Monday might mean catching up on the news. Tuesday could include a Bible teaching during lunch. A podcast might accompany Wednesday’s commute, followed by a documentary with a small group on Thursday and a family movie on Friday night.

That breadth is one of the advantages of Real Life Network.

Instead of searching separately for Christian news, sermons, apologetics, podcasts, movies, children’s programming, and documentaries, viewers can explore them in one biblically curated environment without adding another subscription bill.

For anyone wondering whether free Christian streaming offers enough variety to become a regular part of their viewing, the answer is worth discovering firsthand.

Explore free Christian news, teaching, podcasts, documentaries, movies, family shows, and more anytime on Real Life Network.

There are moments that should transcend politics.

A memorial honoring nearly 3,000 Americans murdered on September 11 should be one of them. It should be a place for grief, remembrance, gratitude, and reverence. Families who have carried that loss for 25 years deserve something increasingly rare in American public life: a moment in which their pain is not reduced to another political opportunity.

That is why images of Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani smiling and laughing together during the 25th anniversary commemoration drew criticism. A photograph cannot reveal the context of every conversation or establish what prompted a smile. But juxtaposed with grieving families at Ground Zero, the moment raised a larger question worth asking: Does American culture still recognize that some things should be treated as sacred?

These are exactly the kinds of cultural questions worth examining on Real Life Network and The Daniel Cohen Show, where the headlines are considered alongside the biblical truths that should shape how Christians understand them.

Leadership Requires More Than the Right Policies

Public leadership is not merely about legislation, budgets, speeches, or elections. Leadership also requires understanding the human consequences behind public events.

That principle extends far beyond a single 9/11 ceremony.

When thirteen American service members were killed during the 2021 withdrawal from Afghanistan, controversy followed images of President Joe Biden appearing to check his watch during the dignified transfer ceremony at Dover Air Force Base. Biden later disputed some characterizations of the moment, but Gold Star families publicly described feeling disrespected.

Politics can make people remarkably selective about empathy. When someone on the other side suffers, compassion becomes conditional. When an uncomfortable tragedy threatens a preferred narrative, attention shifts somewhere else.

Christians cannot adopt that standard.

Human dignity does not change according to political usefulness. A child killed in an act of violence matters. A soldier returned home in a flag-draped casket matters. A family still grieving someone murdered on September 11 matters. An immigrant victim matters. An American citizen victim matters. Political affiliation does not determine the value of a human life.

A healthy society should be capable of looking at suffering and seeing a human being before seeing a political opportunity.

Jesus warned that a time would come when “the love of many will grow cold” (Matthew 24:12). That description should make Christians examine more than the behavior of politicians. It should make believers examine their own hearts.

Have politics made compassion selective? Has outrage become entertainment? Have human tragedies become useful primarily when they help defeat the other side?

If so, something far more important than an election is being lost.

Biblical Language Cannot Become Political Branding

The same problem appears when Christianity itself becomes a political instrument.

Texas politician James Talarico has increasingly incorporated Christian language into his political message. In one recent appearance, he invoked Matthew 25 while arguing that Jesus would condemn senators over food assistance, Medicaid, and deportations.

Christians should welcome politicians talking seriously about Scripture. But biblical vocabulary does not automatically make an argument biblical.

Matthew 25 unquestionably demonstrates Christ's concern for the vulnerable. Christians should care about hungry people, strangers, the sick, prisoners, and those suffering around them. But translating those commands directly into support for a particular government program requires an additional political argument. Christians can share the same biblical concern while disagreeing about which policies best address it.

The same principle applies to immigration.

Scripture repeatedly commands God's people to care for foreigners and strangers. Scripture also recognizes nations, governing authorities, boundaries, and civil order. Romans 13 gives government genuine authority, while Acts 17:26 speaks of God determining nations and their dwelling places.

Neither side gets to erase the passages that complicate its politics.

Scripture should judge political convictions. Political convictions should never be allowed to rewrite Scripture.

That requires biblical literacy.

A politician who can quote a verse fluently may still misuse it. A conservative can misuse Scripture just as easily as a progressive. Christians who know only fragments of the Bible become vulnerable to anyone capable of wrapping a political agenda in Christian vocabulary.

Read the Word. Know the context. Test the argument.

Courage Means Refusing to Follow the Crowd

There is another quality disappearing from American life: the courage to stand alone.

The Lindsay Clancy case offers a difficult example. Clancy admitted killing her three young children but mounted an insanity defense. Her 2026 trial ended in a mistrial after eleven jurors favored acquittal and one juror held out.

According to another juror who later discussed the deliberations publicly, the lone holdout was a Black man.

Whatever conclusions people reach about the complicated legal questions surrounding mental illness and criminal responsibility, there is something worth recognizing in anyone willing to maintain a sincerely held conviction while an entire room pressures him to surrender it.

Standing with the crowd is easy. Standing alone costs something.

That lesson reaches far beyond a courtroom.

Christians will increasingly encounter moments when biblical convictions are unpopular, unfashionable, or professionally inconvenient. There will be pressure to remain silent because speaking could cost friendships, opportunities, influence, or reputation.

Conviction means deciding beforehand that truth matters more.

That does not grant permission to be reckless or cruel. Courage without humility quickly becomes arrogance. But humility without courage can become cowardice disguised as kindness.

Christian conviction requires both: the humility to recognize when we are wrong and the courage to stand when God's truth is clear.

America does not merely need better political messaging. It needs adults capable of recognizing sacred things, leaders who understand the human cost of their decisions, Christians who know Scripture well enough to recognize when it is being manipulated, and ordinary people willing to stand for truth when standing becomes uncomfortable.

Politics will continue changing. Candidates will come and go. Headlines that seem enormous today will eventually disappear.

The deeper question is what kind of people Americans are becoming in the process.

When nothing is sacred, everything becomes political. Christians should resist that transformation by recovering reverence, compassion, biblical discernment, and courage.

Continue examining the cultural and political stories shaping America through a biblical worldview on The Daniel Cohen Show, streaming free on Real Life Network.

Screens are part of modern family life. Children use them for school, entertainment, communication, creativity, and even Bible study. The question for Christian parents is no longer simply whether children should have screen time.

A more important question is: What is that screen time forming in them?

Every day, children are absorbing stories about what matters, what makes someone valuable, what relationships should look like, how problems should be solved, and what is ultimately worth pursuing. Some of those messages are obvious. Others are woven so naturally into entertainment that children may absorb them without recognizing them as messages at all.

For Christian parents, managing screen time therefore involves more than counting minutes. It means considering how media fits into the much larger work of spiritual formation.

Children Are Always Being Formed

Soul formation doesn’t happen only during family devotions or Sunday school.

Children are constantly developing beliefs, habits, desires, and assumptions about life. Parents, teachers, friends, churches, books, music, social media, and entertainment all contribute to that process.

Jesus said, “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” (Matthew 6:21 NKJV). What consistently receives a person’s attention often begins to shape that person’s affections.

That makes attention an important part of parenting.

If a child spends a few minutes reading Scripture but several hours each day immersed in entertainment, games, videos, and social media, parents should at least consider which voices are receiving the greatest opportunity to influence that child.

Screen Time Is About More Than Minutes

Much of the conversation surrounding children and technology focuses on quantity: How many hours are too many?

That can certainly be useful. Families need boundaries, and unlimited access to screens can crowd out sleep, physical activity, responsibilities, relationships, church participation, and time outside.

But two children can spend the same amount of time watching screens and have very different experiences.

An hour spent watching random short-form videos isn’t the same as an hour spent watching a meaningful story with the family. A Bible program isn’t equivalent to a violent video game. A documentary that leads to an hour-long family conversation isn’t necessarily comparable to mindless scrolling.

Christian parents can therefore ask two questions:

How much is my child watching?

And just as importantly:

What is my child watching?

Entertainment Teaches Even When It Isn’t Trying To

Stories carry values.

They teach viewers which characters should be admired and which should be ridiculed. They show what produces happiness, what makes someone successful, what families look like, how authority should be treated, and how people respond when something goes wrong.

Sometimes those values align with Scripture. Sometimes they don’t.

That doesn’t mean Christians can only watch explicitly Christian programs. It does mean parents should recognize that entertainment is rarely worldview-neutral.

An animated show can communicate ideas about identity. A sitcom can normalize particular attitudes toward marriage or parents. A superhero movie can raise questions about justice, sacrifice, and power. Even comedy reveals something about what a culture considers worthy of celebration or ridicule.

Helping children identify those messages is an important part of discipleship.

Christian Media Can Reinforce What Parents Are Teaching

One way parents can become more intentional about screen time is by adding content that supports the beliefs and values being taught at home.

For younger children, Superbook brings biblical stories to life through animation, while iBible presents the biblical narrative in an accessible visual format. In Depth Apologetics for Kids can help children begin thinking about why Christians believe what they believe.

Older children and teens may benefit from programs that tackle larger worldview questions. The Creation Today Show explores creation, science, and apologetics, while LifeWise Academy content can encourage conversations about Bible education and living out Christian faith in the broader culture.

Sometimes even very short content can be useful. Genesis Science Minute with David Rives delivers a creation and science insight in just 60 seconds, giving parents an easy way to introduce a topic that can continue around the dinner table or in the car.

The point isn’t to replace every form of entertainment with a sermon. It’s to make sure some of the voices entering the home are intentionally reinforcing biblical truth.

Watching Together Changes the Experience

One of the simplest ways parents can make screen time more formative is to participate.

Watching together gives parents opportunities to notice what their children are seeing and ask questions afterward.

• Why did that character make that decision?
• Was it right?
• What could the person have done differently?
• Does that idea agree with Scripture?
• What would following Jesus look like in that situation?

These conversations do something parental controls cannot. They teach children discernment.

Eventually, parents won’t choose every movie, video, or social media post their children encounter. Children need more than a list of prohibited titles. They need the ability to recognize truth and error for themselves.

Shared viewing provides a low-pressure place to practice.

Don’t Let Screens Crowd Out the Things That Form Faith

Even excellent Christian media has limits.

Watching a Bible program isn’t the same as reading Scripture. Streaming a church service isn’t the same as belonging to a local church. Listening to Christian conversations isn’t a substitute for talking with parents, mentors, pastors, and other believers.

Christian media should support those relationships and practices, not replace them.

Children need time to pray. They need unhurried conversations with parents. They need friendships. They need church. They need service, play, reading, outdoor activity, boredom, imagination, and face-to-face interaction.

Sometimes the most spiritually healthy decision regarding a screen is simply to turn it off.

Parents’ Screen Habits Matter Too

Children notice what adults do.

A parent can establish strict limits for children while spending every spare moment checking a phone. That contradiction can communicate more than the rule itself.

Parents can model healthier habits by putting devices away during meals, choosing programming intentionally, avoiding endless scrolling, talking about why certain shows are or aren’t appropriate, and occasionally choosing something the whole family can watch together.

It also helps children understand that media discernment isn’t punishment.

It’s something Christians practice because what occupies the heart and mind matters.

Choose Media That Serves Your Family

The goal of Christian parenting isn’t to create children who have never encountered a questionable idea. Eventually, they will.

The deeper goal is to raise young people who know Scripture, love Christ, recognize truth, understand the beliefs shaping the culture around them, and have learned how to make wise choices.

Media can either make that job harder or help support it.

Real Life Network gives Christian families another option by offering free, biblically curated programming across children’s shows, Bible teaching, apologetics, documentaries, family content, and more.

Parents still have the responsibility to decide what fits their children and their household. But instead of spending every evening filtering an enormous mainstream library, they can begin with content created or selected to support a biblical worldview.

Screen time is ultimately only one part of childhood. Yet because screens occupy so much attention in modern life, they deserve thoughtful consideration.

The question isn’t simply, How long have they been watching?

For Christian parents, an even better question may be: Who are they becoming while they watch?

Explore free Christian kids’ programs, family shows, Bible teaching, apologetics, and more on Real Life Network.

Twenty-five years after September 11, 2001, two words remain inseparable from that day: Never forget. As a new generation inherits the story of 9/11, Real Life Network and The Daniel Cohen Show are committed to examining the history, ideas, and cultural questions that Americans cannot afford to forget.

But remembering September 11 requires more than remembering its pain.

An entire generation of Americans has now grown up without any personal memory of the attacks. Roughly 100 million Americans have been born since 9/11. They did not watch the second plane strike the South Tower. They did not see smoke pouring across Manhattan or experience the uncertainty that gripped the country. For them, September 11 is history.

That raises an increasingly important question: What exactly are Americans promising never to forget?

Remembering the Victims Means Remembering the Truth

Calling September 11 a tragedy is true, but incomplete.

September 11 was an intentional terrorist attack carried out by 19 al-Qaeda hijackers. Osama bin Laden and al-Qaeda were not secretive about their worldview, grievances, or objectives. Their own statements repeatedly framed their conflict with America in explicitly religious as well as political terms.

America must be capable of acknowledging that history.

That does not mean treating every Muslim as a terrorist or holding peaceful Muslim neighbors responsible for crimes they did not commit. Americans should defend religious liberty, reject harassment, and protect the freedom of peaceful people to worship according to their beliefs.

But religious liberty cannot require historical amnesia.

There is a profound difference between refusing to hate Muslims and refusing to acknowledge Islamist extremism. America must be capable of doing the first without falling into the second.

For too long, political leaders, academics, and media figures have sometimes preferred vague descriptions of terrorism because specificity can be uncomfortable. Yet future generations cannot understand September 11 if the ideology of its perpetrators is removed from the history they inherit.

“Never forget” cannot mean remembering only the victims while becoming increasingly reluctant to explain why they became victims.

The Next Generation Will Remember What We Teach

This matters because the people who remember September 11 firsthand will not always be here to tell the story.

Already, debates over the meaning of 9/11 reveal dramatically different interpretations of what happened. Some emphasize American foreign policy, imperialism, economics, or Western actions as the primary explanation for terrorism. Others have gone considerably further, portraying America itself as deserving the violence directed against it.

Those ideas should not be allowed to replace historical clarity.

The terrorists who attacked America were responsible for their actions. The men aboard those airplanes chose innocent civilians as their targets. No disagreement with American foreign policy makes hijacking commercial airplanes and deliberately murdering civilians morally defensible.

The responsibility to preserve that truth belongs especially to parents.

Children should know about the people who boarded airplanes expecting to arrive home later that day. They should hear about the firefighters carrying equipment up stairwells as thousands rushed downward. They should know about Flight 93 and the passengers who fought back. They should understand what happened at the Pentagon and what unfolded at Ground Zero.

And they should know who carried out the attacks and what motivated them.

If parents do not teach their children what happened on September 11, someone else will eventually tell them what September 11 is supposed to mean.

History never remains an empty space. When one explanation disappears, another takes its place.

That is why remembrance is about more than nostalgia. It is a responsibility to those who died and to those who were not yet born.

Remembering Without Living in Fear

There is another part of September 11 worth remembering: what America looked like afterward.

For a brief period, the country rediscovered a sense of national unity that now seems almost unimaginable. Political labels became less important. American flags appeared on homes and businesses. Tens of thousands stood together at Yankee Stadium and sang “God Bless the USA.” President George W. Bush stood among firefighters and rescue workers at Ground Zero and promised that America would respond.

That unity did not last.

But the courage behind it should not disappear.

Charlie Kirk understood the importance of courage in the public square. He repeatedly warned younger Americans about ideological movements he believed threatened faith, family, and the American way of life. His words were often pointed because he believed dangerous ideas had to be identified rather than accommodated. His Christian convictions also became increasingly central to the way he understood the cultural battles around him.

That willingness to speak should challenge Christians today.

Courage does not require hatred. Conviction does not require cruelty. Christians can identify dangerous ideologies while remembering that human beings are not the ultimate enemy. Scripture reminds believers that the struggle is ultimately “not against flesh and blood,” but against spiritual forces of evil (Ephesians 6:12).

Christian courage tells the truth about evil without allowing hatred of people to take root in the heart.

Twenty-five years after September 11, America does not need to live in the fear of that morning. Neither should it erase the lessons purchased at such an enormous cost.

Remember the victims. Remember their families. Remember the first responders. Remember the passengers who fought back. Remember the courage that emerged from the rubble. Remember the enemy that attacked America and the ideology that animated its extremists.

Then make sure the children who were not there understand why it matters.

One day, September 11 will exist entirely outside living memory. When that day arrives, never forget will mean only as much as the truth one generation was willing to pass to the next. Continue examining the stories shaping America through a biblical worldview on The Daniel Cohen Show, streaming free on Real Life Network.

Some truths become easier to understand when you hear them through another person’s experience. A sermon may explain forgiveness, while an interview with someone who has forgiven an enemy can show what forgiveness looks like when it costs something. A Bible study may teach about trusting God through hardship, while a conversation with someone who has survived persecution, addiction, grief, or war can bring that truth into everyday life.

That is part of what makes personal interviews so valuable in Christian media. They allow viewers to hear ideas explored through stories, questions, experiences, and honest reflection. When those conversations are grounded in biblical truth, they can strengthen faith while also helping Christians think more carefully about the world around them.

1. Personal Stories Make Biblical Truth Concrete

Christians often know important biblical principles long before they understand how those principles play out in difficult circumstances. It is one thing to read that believers should trust God. It is another to hear someone explain how he or she continued trusting God after losing a career, facing persecution, walking through serious illness, or experiencing personal tragedy.

Programs such as The Resilient Show, hosted by Chad Robichaux, can open conversations about trauma, recovery, purpose, and resilience through the experiences of people who have endured significant challenges. Stories like these help viewers see that biblical faith is not reserved for ideal circumstances. It is meant to shape how believers live when life becomes difficult.

2. Interviews Allow Important Questions to Be Asked

Strong interviews do more than provide inspiring stories. They ask questions: Why did you believe that? What changed your mind? How did your faith affect your decision? What would you say to someone who disagrees?

Those questions create space for ideas to be examined rather than merely stated. This can be especially valuable when discussing theology, culture, politics, science, or apologetics because viewers get to hear not only a conclusion but also some of the reasoning behind it.

Programs such as Small Talk Big Issues bring together conversations with faith leaders, journalists, entrepreneurs, political figures, and other guests to explore significant issues from a Christian perspective. The interview format makes room for nuance that is often missing from headlines or short social-media clips.

3. Testimony Can Strengthen Faith

Personal testimony has always had an important place in Christianity. The New Testament repeatedly records people describing what Christ had done in their lives. The man healed by Jesus in John 9 offered one of the simplest examples: “One thing I know: that though I was blind, now I see” (John 9:25 NKJV).

A testimony does not replace Scripture, but it can illustrate Scripture. Hearing how someone came to faith, overcame fear, remained faithful under pressure, or experienced God’s provision can encourage believers facing their own struggles.

Living Fearless with Hedieh, for example, draws in part from Hedieh Mirahmadi’s experience of leaving Islam and becoming a follower of Christ. Conversations shaped by experiences like hers can introduce viewers to questions involving religious belief, freedom, culture, fear, and the work of the Gospel.

4. Conversations Help Christians Understand Different Perspectives

It is easy to form opinions about people we have never heard speak for themselves. Interviews slow that process down by allowing viewers to hear how another person understands an issue, why someone holds a particular belief, or how circumstances shaped his or her perspective.

That does not require Christians to agree with everything a guest says. In fact, disagreement can be useful when viewers are learning to compare ideas with Scripture. A strong biblical worldview is developed as believers learn to identify assumptions, examine arguments, recognize truth, and test what they hear against God’s Word.

That kind of discernment is especially important in a culture where complicated issues are often reduced to slogans.

5. Interviews Can Connect Faith with Current Events

Christians do not live their faith in isolation from the world. Questions about government, education, technology, religious freedom, economics, international conflict, family, and culture all affect daily life.

Interview-based programs can help connect those developments with biblical principles. The Daniel Cohen Show, Rose Unplugged, Cure America, and The City of God each use conversations and interviews to engage cultural or public issues from faith-informed perspectives.

Rather than treating Christianity as something confined to church services, these discussions encourage viewers to consider how biblical truth relates to public life.

6. Real People Can Challenge Easy Assumptions

Some of the most valuable interviews are uncomfortable. A person who has experienced persecution may challenge a casual approach to religious freedom. A missionary may challenge assumptions about evangelism. A veteran may speak differently about courage or sacrifice than someone who has never faced danger. A Christian serving the poor may cause viewers to reconsider how they think about generosity.

Programs connected with ministries such as Samaritan’s Purse, Fred Jordan Missions TV, and Evangelism Explosion International can introduce viewers to Christians putting faith into action through service, outreach, disaster response, and evangelism. Those stories can move the question from “What do Christians believe?” to “What should Christians do because they believe it?”

7. Interviews Can Support Apologetics Without Becoming a Debate

Not every interview is an apologetics program, but interviews can still help Christians understand why they believe what they believe. A scientist can discuss evidence for creation. A former skeptic can explain objections that once kept him from Christianity. A historian can discuss the reliability of biblical accounts. A pastor or theologian can respond to difficult questions about suffering, morality, or the resurrection.

Programs such as Cross Examined and The Creation Today Show give viewers opportunities to hear Christian truth claims examined through questions and conversation. Sometimes a thoughtful interview can accomplish something a formal debate cannot because it lets viewers follow the reasoning at a more natural pace.

Hearing Truth Through Someone Else’s Story

Christian faith ultimately rests on the truth of God’s Word, not the personality or experiences of an interview guest. But personal conversations can help illuminate those truths in memorable and practical ways.

A good interview lets viewers encounter people they might never meet, hear perspectives they might never otherwise consider, and see biblical principles applied to real circumstances. It can encourage faith, expose assumptions, deepen understanding, and prompt better questions.

That is why interviews occupy an important place in Christian media. They remind us that faith is not merely a collection of ideas. It is lived out by real people facing real choices in a complicated world.

Explore personal interviews, Christian conversations, cultural discussions, testimonies, and more for free on Real Life Network.

One year after the death of Charlie Kirk, there is much worth remembering about a life that ended far too soon. He was known across the country as a conservative activist, speaker, and founder of Turning Point USA. But the convictions that increasingly defined his public life went deeper than politics. Kirk spoke openly about his faith in Jesus Christ, his love for his wife and children, and his belief that strong families were essential to the future of America.

When asked how he wanted to be remembered, Kirk pointed to courage and his Christian faith. Those who worked closely with him likewise described his relationship with Christ as the most important part of his life. He used an enormous platform not simply to discuss elections and public policy, but to encourage people to follow Jesus and take their faith seriously.

That priority deserves to be remembered.

Kirk also understood something increasingly countercultural: the future of a nation is inseparable from the health of its families.

He married Erika in 2021, and they had two children. Fatherhood became an important part of the message he shared with young Americans. He encouraged young adults to pursue marriage, welcome children, leave behind empty pursuits, and build something that could endure beyond themselves. His wife later recalled that marriage and family were among the greatest joys of his life.

That message mattered because Kirk spent much of his career speaking directly to young people. He founded Turning Point USA at only 18 and built an organization centered on engaging the next generation in the future of the country.

Yet preserving America was about more than winning elections. A country ultimately depends upon the character of its people, the strength of its homes, and the convictions parents pass to their children.

If we want to honor Kirk's life, admiration is not enough. We should imitate what was worthy of imitation.

Go to Real Life Network to watch great moments from the life of Charlie Kirk.

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That means having the courage to profess Christ when doing so carries a cost. It means building strong marriages and treating parenthood as a calling rather than an inconvenience. It means investing in young people instead of surrendering the next generation to whatever ideas happen to dominate the culture. And it means being willing to enter conversations with people who disagree rather than retreating from difficult questions.

Kirk became famous in part because he was willing to walk onto college campuses, take questions, defend his convictions, and invite disagreement. His example should encourage Christians to develop convictions strong enough to withstand opposition without becoming afraid of the people on the other side.

Most importantly, his legacy should point beyond politics.

Political victories pass. Organizations change. Elections are won and lost. But faithfulness to Christ, love within the home, children raised with conviction, and lives invested in others carry significance far beyond an election cycle.

Charlie Kirk cared deeply about America's future. His life offered a reminder that the work of building that future begins with faithfulness to God, courage in the public square, and commitment to the family at home.

Go to Real Life Network to watch great moments from the life of Charlie Kirk.

For decades, television newsrooms held enormous power over what Americans saw and what they never heard about. Producers chose the lead story, decided which events deserved follow-up coverage, and determined which stories would disappear after a few seconds or never make air at all.

That power has weakened, but it has not disappeared.

Today, independent media provides an opportunity to ask a question that traditional news organizations too often avoid: Why do some stories receive national attention while others with serious implications are barely acknowledged?

On Real Life Network, The Daniel Cohen Show goes where the news leads, especially when those stories intersect with faith, culture, politics, and a biblical worldview. Several recent stories provide an important reminder that media bias isn't limited to how a story is reported. Sometimes the more consequential decision is whether to report it at all.

When Attacks on Christians Barely Make the News

Pastor Martin Sedra and his wife, Millicent, recently experienced something no family should have to endure.

Sedra pastors Echo Church in Sydney, Australia, and has publicly spoken about Christianity, Islam, abortion, marriage, and other controversial cultural issues. According to video and the Sedras' account discussed on the show, masked protesters arrived outside their home shortly after the couple welcomed their first child. The group allegedly cut power to the house, threatened the family, and said they would return.

Whatever someone's political or religious disagreements with Sedra, threatening a family at its home crosses a line that should be obvious.

Yet the incident received little attention from major news organizations at the time it was discussed on the show.

That story comes alongside another troubling development: a series of fires involving churches.

The former St. Agnes Church in Toledo, Ohio, burned over the weekend. Another Toledo church, St. Anthony's, had suffered a fire only weeks earlier. Other recent church fires discussed on the program included Friendship Baptist Church in Cleveland, St. Simon Church in New Brunswick, Canada, and Buckingham Presbyterian Church in the United Kingdom. Importantly, the causes of these individual fires should not be assumed before investigators determine them.

But the broader problem of hostility toward churches is documented. The Family Research Council reported hundreds of hostile incidents against churches in 2024, including dozens categorized as arson or attempted arson.

That deserves attention.

Christians should resist the temptation to declare every church fire an act of religious persecution without evidence. At the same time, repeated attacks against Christian institutions should not become background noise simply because they do not fit the cultural narrative preferred by a newsroom.

Media bias isn't only found in misleading words. It can also be found in the stories that never receive enough attention for Americans to ask questions about them.

The same standard should apply regardless of the victims. An attack on a church should matter. An attack on a synagogue should matter. An attack on a mosque should matter. Threatening a Christian family should matter just as an attack against people because of their sexuality should matter.

Consistency is the test.

Who Decides What Counts as News?

A shooting outside a gay bar in Tucson raises precisely that question.

According to the account discussed on the program, two men were killed outside Venture-N by a gunman who later killed himself. Police reportedly found a note identifying additional LGBTQ businesses, raising concerns that the victims had been deliberately targeted. The show also highlighted reporting that the shooter was born in Gambia and was described by a relative as a practicing Muslim.

There is no justification for murdering innocent people because of their sexuality. None.

But there is also no justification for minimizing relevant facts about an attack because those facts complicate a preferred political narrative.

This is where consistency becomes essential. If the religious beliefs of a professing Christian attacker would become part of national coverage, the same journalistic curiosity should exist when an attacker comes from another religious background.

The point isn't to blame millions of peaceful Muslims for one man's actions. It is to report relevant facts without deciding beforehand which ones the audience is allowed to consider.

That principle also applies inside conservative media.

The departure of longtime Fox Business anchor Maria Bartiromo has generated questions after reports that she disagreed with a programming decision concerning coverage of a presidential address. According to the reports discussed on the show, Bartiromo wanted to cover President Trump's remarks and planned additional discussion afterward. Weeks later, she departed the network, which characterized the move as a business decision. The precise internal circumstances remain disputed and should be described accordingly.

But the episode illustrates a larger point.

A journalist's responsibility is not to protect viewers from stories executives consider inconvenient. It is to pursue information, establish facts, provide context, and allow audiences to evaluate what happened.

A news organization loses something fundamental when protecting a narrative becomes more important than pursuing a story.

That standard shouldn't change depending on whether the network is CNN, MSNBC, Fox News, or anyone else.

It is also why independent outlets matter. They cannot guarantee perfect journalism, and they should be held accountable like everyone else. But a decentralized media environment makes it considerably harder for a handful of executives to determine the boundaries of public discussion.

Parents Cannot Outsource Discernment

Media institutions aren't the only institutions Americans should scrutinize.

Parents should be asking similar questions about schools.

A video discussed on the program featured a kindergarten teacher describing an exercise in which young children were asked whether they wished they had been born another gender. Students who raised their hands were then invited to choose different names. The teacher subsequently posted that she had been fired and lost her teaching license.

Whatever debates adults want to have about gender, five-year-olds should not become instruments for an adult's ideological project.

Parents possess a responsibility that cannot simply be transferred to teachers, administrators, politicians, or government agencies.

That becomes particularly important as politicians increasingly speak about children collectively. Michigan Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed, for example, has argued for policies based on imagining that “all of our kids were all of our kids,” connecting that idea to public education, health care, and child care. The program contrasted that philosophy with the conviction that parents retain the primary responsibility for raising and forming their children.

Schools certainly have an important role. Good teachers deserve gratitude and respect. But education never happens in a worldview vacuum. Someone is always teaching children what is true, what is good, what a human being is, and where authority ultimately resides.

For Christians, those questions cannot be surrendered to the state.

Parents can delegate instruction, but they cannot delegate their God-given responsibility to know what their children are being taught and who is shaping their worldview.

That principle connects these seemingly unrelated headlines.

News organizations shape what adults believe is important. Schools help shape what children believe is true. Politicians attempt to shape what citizens believe government should provide. Corporations increasingly communicate their own moral and cultural priorities.

In each case, Christians need discernment.

The answer is not paranoia, and it isn't assuming every institution is corrupt. It is paying attention. Ask what is being taught. Examine what is being omitted. Compare claims against the evidence. And above all, measure cultural messages against Scripture rather than allowing the culture to determine how Scripture should be understood.

That is increasingly necessary in an age when the most revealing part of a story may be the part someone decided wasn't worth telling.

Watch The Daniel Cohen Show on Real Life Network for news and commentary connecting the headlines to the good news through a biblical worldview.

One morning, I was riding my bicycle along Washington, D.C.’s Anacostia River when an egret glided over the trail. The pure-white wading birds have always fascinated me with their elegant stillness and regal grace. They look even more impressive on the rare occasions when they spread their wings and take flight, making them look even larger. Yet this impromptu bird-watching experience came to an abrupt and discordant end. The moment before the egret swooped into the brush and out of sight, he made like a bomber and dropped a load of ordnance worthy of an animal twice his size.

A graceful bird, caught in its least graceful position.

The minor incident nearly passed out of my mind until I realized that this un-constipated egret provided an apt example for man’s complex condition. From beginning to end, mankind’s creation is the gift of God. We are created in God’s image and likeness, given dominion over every living thing, and blessed with the good command to fill the earth with God’s image-bearers through procreation (Genesis 1:26-28). Yet our first parents squandered these divine blessings through disobedience and rebellion, for which they were cast out of God’s presence (Genesis 3:22-23) and condemned to die (Genesis 2:17).

Man is a graceful bird, caught in his least graceful position.

Christianity’s nuanced view of human nature becomes incomprehensible without the first three chapters of Genesis. This is why so many human philosophies veer into error on either one side or the other. Most human philosophies boil down to the opinion that man is basically good, or that he is basically bad. Only the Bible (and those influenced by the Bible) can explain how man is created good, but corrupted.

Mankind’s complex condition affects every aspect of our lives, even the way we work. Before anything had tarnished God’s “very good” creation (Genesis 1:31), we read that “The Lord God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to work it and keep it” (Genesis 2:15). Work is not a consequence of the fall, but a basic function of man, which God created for good. Adam’s task was merely to imitate God’s own example in creative effort (Genesis 2:9), and it carries religious undertones, as the same verbs are used to describe service at the tabernacle in Numbers 3.

However, mankind’s work did not escape the Fall unscathed. Not only was Adam cast out of the lush garden into uncultivated land, but God also declared, “cursed is the ground because of you; in pain you shall eat of it all the days of your life; thorns and thistles it shall bring forth for you; and you shall eat the plants of the field. By the sweat of your face you shall eat bread, till you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken; for you are dust, and to dust you shall return” (Genesis 3:17-19).

The ground was Adam’s domain of work. By extension, this curse extends to all arenas of work. All work is toilsome, demanding, and sometimes fleeting, as the whole creation is “subjected to futility” (Romans 8:20).

Man is a graceful bird, caught in his least graceful position.

Again, the Bible’s complex theology of work has better power to explain the different attitudes people have towards their work than the fractured, individualistic worldviews dominant in America today. Some people love their jobs, while some people hate them. Why? Can individualism or critical theory offer a satisfying answer to this question? (Critical theory would blame group oppression, but that is not satisfying.)

The Bible has an answer. Some people love their jobs because work is a gift from God — a good gift that God created as part of his blessing on mankind. Even in a fallen world, the wise preacher concludes, “There is nothing better for a person than that he should eat and drink and find enjoyment in his toil. This also, I saw, is from the hand of God” (Ecclesiastes 2:24, see also Ecclesiastes 5:18-19 and 9:9). Yet some people also hate their jobs because work is cursed after the Fall.

Man is a graceful bird, but he is still caught in his least graceful position.

The very unseemliness of the aforementioned egret’s evacuation is what makes it an appropriate metaphor for fallen man under sin. “We have all become like one who is unclean,” Isaiah confesses, “and all our righteous deeds are like a polluted garment” (Isaiah 64:6). We need one who can wash our filth away, to achieve for us what we could never achieve by our own works.

Even though work is good, it is not ultimate. The Lord God engaged in his creative work for six days, “and he rested on the seventh day from all his work that he had done” (Genesis 2:2). Just as man was made to imitate God’s work, so man was also supposed to imitate God’s rest (Exodus 20:8-11). But, under the curse of sin, that rest became fleeting and far off.

From the earliest generations, Adam’s descendants sought one who would restore them to God’s rest. Thus, Noah’s father Lamech said in hope, “Out of the ground that the Lord has cursed, this one shall bring us relief from our work and from the painful toil of our hands” (Genesis 5:29). Yet Noah did not bring an end to toil, hard labor, or the futility of human industry. Nor did Moses, Joshua, David, or any human leader called by God throughout history. All were sinners, after all.

Yet painful toil under the curse is not man’s final condition, for “there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God” (Hebrews 4:9). Those who are forgiven of their sins by the blood of Christ receive true grace. They are not only restored to right fellowship with God, but they also receive eternal life and enter into God’s rest.

For now, we recognize that all honest work is good. “In all toil there is profit, but mere talk tends only to poverty” (Proverbs 14:23). “Let the thief no longer steal, but rather let him labor, doing honest work with his own hands, so that he may have something to share with anyone in need” (Ephesians 4:28). “It is the hard-working farmer who ought to have the first share of the crops” (2 Timothy 2:6). But work is not ultimate, and one day our painful toil will come to an end.

Man is a graceful bird, and one day his graceless condition will be remedied in full. One day, those who are in Christ will enter into the glory and rest of their Redeemer.

This article was originally written by Joshua Arnold and published on The Washington Stand. For more content like this, visit Real Life Network.