Texas Church Blasted For Worshiping God As Female
At Austin New Church in Austin, Texas, several parts of last Sunday’s Mother’s Day service featured feminine pronouns and imagery for God. In her message, Creative Pastor Samantha Beach Kiley says, “We profess that we all bear the image of God, but how can we see God in ourselves if we don’t see ourselves in God? If God is only male, if God is only white, what possibilities does that limit for those of us whose identity markers are different?” She quotes from Christena Cleveland’s book “God Is a Black Woman,” about how a “narrow” view of God restricts our imagination. The worship team also changed the lyrics in the song “Wonderful Maker” by singing that God has “the heart of a mother.” Read more about the message here.
First Pastor To Defy Covid Orders Wins Case In Court Two Years Later
Tony Spell, the first pastor to publicly defy COVID-19 lockdown orders, has won his legal battle against the state of Louisiana two years later. The state Supreme Court decided 5 to 2 on Friday that the governor did not have a good reason to block Spell’s Oneness Pentecostal church from meeting for worship while other venues received exemptions from public health restrictions. The pastor, who leads Life Tabernacle Church in Baton Rouge, said, “I’m guilty of having church. I’m guilty of preaching. I’m guilty of praying. But I’m not guilty of breaking any law. I’m not guilty. The only thing I’m guilty of is doing what the Bible told me to do: ‘Do not forsake the assembly of ourselves together.’” Read more about the case here.
Woman Responds In A Christlike Way After Being Robbed
The neighborhood the Collier family lives in has been targeted for theft in several occasions, but this time around the thief came for the family’s leaf blowers. But despite the theft, they are taking a more spiritual approach. “The greatest commandment in the Bible is to love the lord your God with all your heart, your mind, your soul. Second commandment directly following that is to love your neighbor as yourself,” says home owner Jennifer Collier. about the robber she added, “I left a Bible for you on my front porch. If you want to return what you took, it’s there for you because the things that you took that’s not going to make you happy,” says Collier. The family says the Bible will remain on the porch until the man comes back and says if he does come back, they will not even try to have him arrested. Read more about the theft here.
Australia Island Thriving After Being Rid Of 300,000 Rates and Mice
The rats were relentless, said Hank Bower, who has lived on Lord Howe Island for 15 years. At night, they would run up and down the trees, eat food, destroy gardens, destroy the native environment and push animals to extinction. As if to taunt those on the island, they would also leave paw prints in the sand in the morning. But three years ago, an eradication program was put in place. Now the island’s ecosystem is thriving, with native animals and fruit making a quick return. To do the business, poison was placed inside 22,000 lockable traps around the island, while in inaccessible areas, pellets were distributed via helicopter. Just to be sure, rat-catching dogs scour the island every few weeks—but one hasn’t been seen since last August. Read more about the eradication here.
