Some women are tall; some are short. Some have blue eyes, and some brown. Some women excel at art and music while others make medical breakthroughs that save lives and change the world. But, none of this defines a woman. A woman isn't even defined by long hair, or pronounced hips. A woman is a life-giver and a life-sustainer. Not just anyone can be a woman, or do the things a woman can do - only a woman can.

In this episode, that covers womanhood from all angles, Ciara and Jessi explore the controversy that has erupted over what should be a fairly straightforward question, with an uncomplicated answer. But, in a world that hates God, and all He has designed, even the most obvious and plain things need explaining.

While women each have many things unique and special in common with each other, how that commonality is expressed will look different for each of us. And to this point, Ciara and Jessi get a bit personal about future plans for their homes, their lives, and this podcast.

We hope you'll join us for this episode!

Show Notes:
Ep 39: Raising Girls https://www.buzzsprout.com/1538023/9555919-ep-39-raising-girls

Ep 38: Raising Boys https://www.buzzsprout.com/1538023/9516739-ep-38-raising-boys

Elisabeth Elliot: Let Me Be A Woman https://www.ligonier.org/learn/articles/let-me-be-woman

Wield the Sword: Biblical Manhood and Womanhood https://youtu.be/fAkyogF1Vsk

Desiring God: The Science of Male and Female https://www.desiringgod.org/articles/the-science-of-male-and-female

A Christian pastor set off a firestorm last week when he suggested believing women had no good reason to post immodest photos on the internet. It's no surprise the secular world went into a tailspin over such a thought, but to see Christian women link arms with the God-reviling culture was not as expected - or appropriate.

In this episode - the season 3 finale - Ciara and Jessi explain why they planned to take on this topic even before "Dear Brian" became a trending topic on Twitter, where clothing came from, who designed it, for what purpose, how we should view it and wear it, and why Christian woman should be celebrating how precious and sacred their bodies are, so much so, that they should be kept for our husband's eyes only.

Show Notes:
Christian Modesty and the Public Undressing of America by Jeff Pollard https://www.amazon.com/Christian-Modesty-Public-Undressing-America/dp/1929241348

The Closing of the American Mind: How Higher Education Has Failed Democracy and Impoverished the Souls of Today's Students  https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003719GL8/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_hsch_vapi_tkin_p1_i0

Desiring God: Modesty Misunderstood https://www.desiringgod.org/articles/modesty-misunderstood

Brian Sauve and Eric Conn: Why Should Christians Care About Modesty? https://ericconn.com/podcast/why-should-christians-care-about-modesty/

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At the request of a young listener looking for information to refute the claims of a high school science teacher, Ciara and Jessi explore the truth behind dominate theories including evolution and the Big Bang with special guest, and creation enthusiast, Ben Bridges.

Ben answers questions from how science and the Bible aren't incompatible, but work together to inform our understanding of life, how advancing science actually disproves long-standing theories about how life and the universe began, why the idea that the Earth is billions of years old should be rejected by Christians, and so many more.

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Well, not really. That may sound like a nice thing to say, and it may even be an attempt to remain neutral or inoffensive when someone mislabels something objectively ugly as beautiful. But what ends up happening is an ushering in of the truly offensive because the world has defined the act of discriminating what is true, beautiful, and good as being hateful.

Despite what the world says, we can know what is objectively beautiful, and what isn't, because the God who made all of creation is beauty Himself and has set forth what defines it. Ciara and Jessi explore the degradation of beauty, and the uplifting of the ugly in an episode that is sure to get you reconsidering if our observations about the world -and the art, music, and literature we enjoy - are really as subjective as we think they are.

Show Notes:
Why Beauty Matters (documentary film) https://vimeo.com/128428182

Evan Sayet: How Modern Liberals Think https://youtu.be/eaE98w1KZ-c

Ligonier | The Triune God: Good, Beautiful, and True https://www.ligonier.org/learn/articles/triune-god-good-beautiful-and-true

Praguer U: Why is Modern Art So Bad? https://youtu.be/lNI07egoefc

If your dog and a perfect stranger were drowning in a lake, side by side, who would you try to save? Would it surprise you to learn that nearly 2/3 of American adults would choose their dog? This disregard for our fellow man, in favor of animals is permeating society to a degree that many married couples are choosing to have pets instead of having children, and many animal species have greater legal protections than unborn babies.

As Christians, we ought to be aware of how our attitudes about animals and their relative value to human beings can mimic that of the secular world, and this is exactly the consideration - and many more - that Ciara and Jessi look at in this episode.

Show Notes:
Chewy.com Christmas commercial: https://youtu.be/iIavnj8qGa0

PragerU: Are Humans More Valuable Than Animals? https://youtu.be/7JATJv8HlV8

Episode 15: Is God A Wo(Man)? https://www.buzzsprout.com/1538023/8151370-ep-15-god-is-a-wo-man

A Rate is a Pig is a Dog is a Boy: The Human Cost of the Animal Rights Movement https://www.amazon.com/Rat-Pig-Dog-Boy-Movement/dp/1594033463

The New England Journal of Medicine: The Groningen Protocol https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/nejmp058026

"Euthanizing Children" by Wesley J. Smith https://www.firstthings.com/web-exclusives/2016/10/euthanizing-children

CDC 2020 Birth Rates https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/vsrr/vsrr012-508.pdf

Population Trends in the Middle East and North Africa https://www.prb.org/resources/population-trends-and-challenges-in-the-middle-east-and-north-africa/

Why Muslims Are The Fastest Growing Religious Group https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2017/04/06/why-muslims-are-the-worlds-fastest-growing-religious-group/

Voddie Baucham: The Centrality of the Home in the Evangelism and Discipleship of the Next Generation https://www.sermonaudio.com/solo/gracefamilybaptist/sermons/5209234630/

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You know those times when you're really struggling and could use some solid encouragement, but then, someone tries to sum up God's provision like its a bumper sticker? Yeah. Cringe, right? The problem here is that these catchy little phrases take hold because rarely do we stop and consider what they mean, if they hold up against scripture, and what the implications are when saying this stuff?

Well, in this episode Ciara and Jessi take on all the cringe - well, not all of it, but some of it - and look at three common phrases you may have heard believers use, or maybe you have even used yourself, and discern their way through what they all really mean.

Try not to cringe too hard.

Show Notes:
The Holiness of God by RC Sproul https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B007V698MW/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_hsch_vapi_tkin_p1_i0

Chosen by God by RC Sproul https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004OEIODS/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_hsch_vapi_tkin_p1_i2

Ligonier: State of Theology https://www.ligonier.org/posts/state-theology-cosmic-treason

Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1053&context=etas

The Meaning of Holiness, RC Sproul https://youtu.be/K96e1tK7eN4

God's Love and God's Hatred https://www.ligonier.org/learn/devotionals/gods-love-and-gods-hatred

Episode 33: Sola Feelz https://www.buzzsprout.com/1538023/9077953-ep-33-sola-feelz

Todd Friel and the Tearful Woman https://youtu.be/mACbV4xweHE

They are the stuff of sci-fi horror films and mystery documentaries - extraterrestrial life, just waiting to be discovered. Some have speculated we’ve already made contact, while others theorize they could be the source of our own existence. But what should the Christian believe about life beyond our planet?

Ciara and Jessi take a trip into the cosmos to explore the possibility that life exists into the reaches of our universe, using scripture as the guide.  Is it always a battle between science and faith, or is it possible they aren’t as mutually exclusive as they seem?

Show Notes:
UFO Gallup Poll https://news.gallup.com/poll/266441/americans-skeptical-ufos-say-government-knows.aspx

Rolling Stone: Demi Lovato and aliens https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/demi-lovato-becky-g-aliens-1256457/

Rolling Stone: Tom Delonge's UFO research https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/tom-delonge-ufo-research-931845/

Wall Street Journal: Eric Metaxas article on the odds of life on other planets https://www.wsj.com/articles/eric-metaxas-science-increasingly-makes-the-case-for-god-1419544568

PragerU: Does Science Argue For or Against God? https://youtu.be/UjGPHF5A6Po

SETI: Drake Equation https://www.seti.org/drake-equation-index

It seems there are a million reasons Christians could find to boycott any number of businesses. But which reasons actually qualify as valid? Which reasons should compel us to take our business elsewhere or even encourage others to do so? And if we have valid reasons for boycotting the ungodly actions of others, doesn't that make us no better than the woke mob which has sparked the controversial "cancel culture" that has destroyed countless lives and businesses?

Ciara and Jessi kick off the new year by examining these questions, considering them against scripture, and sharing their own struggles when deciding who gets the ax from our list of approved vendors and suppliers. Spoiler alert: it turns out agreement on that list was hard to come by.

Show Notes:
1689 Chapter 21: Christians Liberty and Liberty of Conscience https://founders.org/library/1689-confession/chapter-21-christian-liberty-and-liberty-of-conscience/

Jon Harris: What was Cracker Barrel Thinking? https://youtu.be/Q-VMwj_Fn8M

The Tyranny of the Weaker Brother, RC Sproul https://youtu.be/_hX-ifma5-k

Gregory Koukl's response to The Salvation Army https://www.facebook.com/greg.koukl/posts/4475055825893602

WSJ: Wokeness Infiltrates the Salvation Army https://www.wsj.com/articles/wokeness-infiltrates-the-salvation-army-discussion-guide-racism-diversity-and-incusion-christian-11639690409

During the holiday break, Ciara and Jessi decided to revisit their most popular episode yet - a look into the false gospel promoted and taught by celebrity pastor Steven Furtick. His popularity is growing, which increases the need for discernment and biblical literacy so that well-meaning Christians can avoid the wolves in sheep's clothing. 

Enjoy this flashback episode as we head into a new year!

Ciara and Jessi get together for a quick hello before re-releasing the second episode of crosswise, where we give all the reasons Christians should take a hard pass on Santa Claus and his little helper, the Elf on the Shelf.

Enjoy this early episode, and our tales of getting ready for Christmas this year (oh, and a little surprise for one loyal listener).