Sara Wade

@KaeleyT Well said - thank you !

So many, many strangers have come to my page in the last three days to strongly declare that Julie Roys is bad news. They accuse her of gossip, of slander, of division, of witch hunts. I am not going to say she does her job perfectly. None of us do. What I will say is that she is METICULOUS with receipts. If she makes a claim, she's going to make darn sure to back it up with evidence, which is a helluva lot more than the people coming here to condemn her are able to do when asked why they dislike her so much. You know what else she does that these guys NEVER do? She repents when she gets things wrong. She owns her mistakes. She apologizes for them. She names her sin, and not in the slimy damage-control way we see in so many churches where the pastor only issues a half-ass vague apology so he can retain power. Women who rock the boat in the church are held to a much higher standard in the public eye than many of our pastors are. John MacArthur publicly excommunicated Eileen Gray in front of thousands of people and encouraged his congregation to treat her like an enemy when she refused to return to her criminally abusive sexual predator of a husband. He never apologized. Mark Driscoll can call women "penis homes" and use church funds to advance his book to the top of the New York Times bestseller list and be credibly accused by literally dozens of church members of pastoral abuse, and yet he's invited to be a keynote speaker at major Christian conferences. Doug Wilson can call women cunts and harpies and lumberjack dykes. He can say that American slavery wasn't bad. He can preach that women shouldn't vote. He can write softcore porn about sex robots. He can harbor numerous pedophiles in his church and shame their victims into silence and still be invited to lead prayer sessions at nationally important events. Greg Locke can abandon his marriage and marry his secretary. He can abuse his congregation and make bogus accusations about having proof that Joel Osteen is an actual pedophile, and he's still on the main circuit. Ravi Zacharias, Bill Hybels, Robert Morris, Tullian Tchividjian, Paige Patterson, Mile Bickle, and on and on and on ad nauseam. How long did it take for any of the truths about these guys to be known? And how would anyone know if people like Julie weren't tirelessly doing the work most of us neglect? It wouldn't. But if you'd rather pretend like the real problem is Julie Roys instead of a culture of whitewashing abuse, then at least have the courtesy to apply the same standard of care in reporting that she does: Bring the receipts. Show me where she reported something untrue about someone. And then tell me why you're more upset about her talking than you are about these leaders abusing their power. Apparently "nobody is perfect" applies to pastors who spiritually terrorize people, protect predators, exploit congregants, lie, bully, manipulate, and destroy lives. But let a woman raise her voice too loudly while exposing it, and suddenly precision, holiness, gentleness, and biblical ethics become urgent concerns. I'm sorry, but no. I don't buy it anymore. If your greatest outrage is reserved for the people exposing rot instead of the people creating it, you are not protecting the church. You are protecting the machine.

@DrAaronNew Interesting comment. Many intelligent, Christian women have a platform, & are proclaiming the word. They’re preaching. My ministry context is to a community of immigrants who are mostly isolated because of culture/language. No one is going to them, so I do. What am I?

I'm tired of being sad at my own denomination.

@TerriGreenUSA This is good satire - I’m dying 🤣🤣🤣 But seriously, music is powerful, regardless of whether it’s spiritual or not. Even hymns are poweful. The Christian music industry found a way to capitalize this for money.

This video demonstrates the absurdity of contemporary Christian music today, that is the same tune, different words, and its meaningless messages like Bethel and Hillsong. It’s all about feelings.

@WorkElizab 1 or 2

Help me choose shoes for a summer wedding... lam going to a friend's wedding tomorrow

@realDonaldTrump Did @PeteHegseth call for No Quarters on live TV, in direct violation of humanitarian law and strictly prohibited by the Geneva Convention?. Why is Hegseth still in office! Get him out now!

@lady_valor_07 36

7 for me!

@richvillodas I’m a Christian who ministers among Muslims here in the U.S. My dad is from Afghanistan. It took him over 30 years of being in the U.S. to convert. We fight for religious liberty b/c we love them. We cannot microwave conversion. It is done over time through love & dignity.

I’m a Christian pastor. I have Muslim friends. This is despicable. And as Christians, if the only religious liberty we fight for is Christianity, we have failed to love our neighbors as ourselves, as our Lord commanded us to.

@FuukTwitar I’m a Christian & I’m sickened by this. I can’t even type I’m so mad about it. Thank you for posting this. I actually think it’s holy work. All evil that has been hidden will be revealed. I hope your friend is doing better. I hope you are in a good place too.

This is not a new trend. This is deep-seated and insidious: Men are forgiven for their sins, while women are considered irredeemable even when they've committed none. End

A church friend of mine got pregnant when we were both 14. She refused to tell anyone who the father was, not even her friends. We weren't allowed to give her a baby shower, because church leadership did not want to appear as though they "condoned her actions." 1/

@i7_95wa @BGatesIsaPyscho Agree - he has shown her great respect by holding his hand to his heart.

@BGatesIsaPyscho Not shaking her hand shows more respect. The man’s gesture is more respectful than a handshake, even if some regions normalize touching women and see refusal as disrespect. Don’t judge by your own standards of respect.

Imagine moving to another Country, getting to meet the beautiful future Queen of England - who's gone to all the trouble of wearing a Burqa just for you, and then refusing her outstretched hand, by means of a gesture, all live on TV.

@lawyer_memes What ?! Privilege with a huge dose of ego always try and bring people down

A junior said "Good morning" to me in the elevator. I checked my watch. It was 11:00 AM. I looked at him. "It's almost lunch," I said. "You're three hours late to the concept of morning." He tried to explain he'd been at his desk since 7. I interrupted and told him accuracy matters more than intent. I emailed his reviewer suggesting he take a CLE on time management. He apologized later. I didn't reply. I forwarded the apology to HR as proof of his inefficiency. Greetings are risky. He learned an important lesson. Never speak to a partner in the elevator. Unless spoken to.

This is true. Airspace is closed. The only way out is through Oman or Saudi Arabia and it’s expensive. Poor preparation and leadership

@philvischer Hey now - what about Eritrea? Or Bangladesh? I have more options if those don’t suffice.

We didn't get the answer to that question in the speech, so we're going to have to guess which nation he was referring to. I'm gonna go with Paraguay.

"When God needs a nation to work his miracles, he knows just who to ask." Just going to leave that here.

@grok @DeGreat_T @RabbiPoupko Sobering video. What happened on Oct 7th was inexcusable. What has happened since is nothing less than tragic. Lord have mercy.

The full unfiltered Hamas GoPro footage from October 7, 2023, isn't publicly available online, but graphic compiled clips are on YouTube, such as this one from South First Responders: youtube.com/watch?v=wAFDI6… Human Rights Watch has verified videos here: hrw.org/news/2023/10/1… These contain disturbing content.

While I would definitely not recommend watching the unfiltered Hamas GoPro footage of October 7th to everyone, if you are capable of it and it will not have adverse effects on you, I recommend everyone watch it. You will not hear a single one of them say 'free Palestine', mention the word 'Israel' or 'Jerusalem'. They use the exact same language ISIS, Al Quaeda, and other violent Islamist organizations terrorists use when going on killing sprees. This had nothing to do with land or "the occupation".

@elonmuskmel7 44

@MikeCosper Whatever about Luck. Cal fan here. We were at the game. I’m still weeping.

I’m a Peyton fan for life but Luck’s unhinged love for the game is what made him great. Excuse me while I go walk outside and scream into the void about this for the 1000th time.

@harry_fosters Stunning photograph! It made my evening !

This was a fun evening as I knew the full moon was going to rise over the #NationalGallery, I knew where I had to be, at a certain part of the Museum of History's property down by the water. I took water, snacks and a folding garden chair, and waited. I think it was worth it.

@KarlVaters Amen and amen !

What if we decided to let our good deeds (Matt 5:16) speak louder than our new building plans, our Facebook rants, and our partisan politics? What if the power of an active, compassionate church made a jaded culture want to lean in to hear more? karlvaters.com/whispered-gosp…

@JoashPThomas @johnnarae @MikeCosper @ShaneClaiborne 2/ When I hear reports about more bombs and casualties I question the shaping of conscience through these “discussions,” which look more like debates. So let me rephrase the question: who is on the ground doing the good work and how can you “all” champion them?

@JoashPThomas @johnnarae @MikeCosper @ShaneClaiborne 1/ Yes - I’m with you on all of that! Mike’s recent question/comment to Shane about his labeling it a war on children was baffling. Children are starving/dying b/c of this war. This is not a time for picky semantics (Mike). But, I have reservations on public debates like this.

I'll get to the genocide thing in a sec, but here's a serious question for you, Joash: When you say you care about oppressed peoples, do Jews count? Often, when people talk about the conflict, they say it didn't begin on 10/7. Which is true. But it also didn't begin in 1948. The early 20th century's spiritual and political leader of Arab Palestinians — Hajj Amin al-Husayni — successfully lobbied the British to prevent Jewish emigration from Europe during the Third Reich, as Jews fled the Holocaust, and also aligned with Hitler, recruited for the SS, and spoke openly about the eradication of the Jews — all before the founding of Israel. Before that, he was agitating for pogroms and the eradication of Jews from the Holy Land, as he did in the Hebron massacre of 1929 — a dark preview of 10/7. Since 1948, every war Israel has fought has not been a war of choice. And as Douglas Murray once said, where is the logic in saying a group of people can start a war of eradication and complain about it when they lose? Were the raped and massacred attendees of the Nova festival oppressed? Why do they fall outside the circle of concern? Have you ever had to run to a rocket shelter in the middle of a day, or huddle under a building's overhang with nothing but a backpack over your head, because Hamas rockets were targeting a kibbutz, or a hospital, or an aiport? Because I have. And Jews have done it almost daily for more than a decde. The Jewish population of the earth has not recovered since the Holocaust. Are they oppressed? Jews have been killed on the streets of LA, Boulder, and DC here in the US. Are they oppressed? Synagogues across the country are spending up to 20% of their budgets on security. A rabbi friend calls it a "tax on Jewish life." Are they not oppressed? Again, I imagine you're a pacifist, and I imagine you think all war is wrong, which means you can continually blame Israel for the conflict because of civilian deaths. To me that's the epitome of a luxury belief. It's easy to be against war when there isn't a terrorist regime on all sides of you vowing to kill you. But even if you want to cling to that idea, what you don't have to do is accept the silly narratives that permeate coverage of the war — so many of which have to get walked back: The Times photo, the al-Ahli "missile strike," and on and on. I'm on the record saying that Israel made a number of strategic mistakes. I'm on the record saying Palestinians deserve peace, and Israel needs to preserve civilian life. I'm on the record criticizing Israel's far right and the settler movement — especially the Hilltop settlers and the likes of Ben Gvir and Smotrich. I'm on the record criticizing Netanyahu for aligning with them, and for not beginning a commission of inquiry. I'm on the record saying any war crimes committed by Israel must be investigated and prosecuted. But I also refuse puppy-dog-and-ice-cream visions of peace that fail to account for Hamas' declared genocidal intent, clear and expressed antisemitism in a variety of elite institutions, countless acts of violence against Jews worldwide, and a thoughtless, reactionary "If Trump likes 'em I don't" thing I see in younger evangelicals. Now as to genocide — if you want to have a serious inquiry, I'd suggest you'd look at the work of Adam Louis-Klein. You could start with this thoughtful, almost academic-level discussion between him and @havivrettiggur youtube.com/watch?v=qe_ppE…

@johnnarae @MikeCosper @JoashPThomas 3/ I guess I’m imagining what it would look like if people who don’t agree on lots of things set their need to be “right” and look for a way to serve. People suffering in the region don’t need “thinkers” pointing fingers, they need help. Unity doesn’t mean complete agreement

@johnnarae @MikeCosper @JoashPThomas 2/ Is this the kind of discussion/argument that would matter on the streets of Gaza? Who/what can they (and others) support that will bring aid, food, support on the ground?