It’s time to separate fact from fiction when it comes to the separation of church and state.

Parental pause point questions:

1. What comes to mind when you hear the phrase “separation of church and state”? (3:23)

2. Do you think any governments in the U.S. have ever favored Christianity over other faiths? (5:02)

3. Which of The Great 8 Questions would you use in response to Justice Black's contention? (10:03)

4. Do you think the phrase "the separation of church and state" is found in the Constitution or Declaration of Independence? (11:26)

5. Do you think Jefferson would have objected to church services being held in the U.S. Capitol building? (13:10)

6. Why did John Adams think it was so important for Americans to be a moral and religious people? (20:28)

The Great 8 Questions:

1. What happens next?

2. Has this been tried before?

3. Is there a principle involved?

4. What are the trade-offs?

5. What do you mean by that?

6. Is this an appeal to emotion or logic?

7. Am I focused on the speaker or the argument?

8. What does the Bible say?

President Donald Trump has floated a new solution to high housing prices: 50 year mortgages. Is that a good idea?

Also, Allie Beth Stuckey (unknowingly) provides a ringing endorsement Sharpening Arrows. Very flattering.

Parental pause point questions:

1. Do you think you'll ever want to buy a home someday? (2:45)

2. Why do people want to buy a home? Parents, why did you buy a home? (4:18)

3. Does it benefit society when people own homes? (7:01)

4. Do you know how a mortgage works? (9:41)

5. Which of The Great 8 Questions do you think applies here? (18:19)

6. What would bring down housing prices? (25:01)

7. Who would be upset about a rapid drop in home prices? (28:37)

The Great 8 Questions:

1. What happens next?

2. Has this been tried before?

3. Is there a principle involved?

4. What are the trade-offs?

5. What do you mean by that?

6. Is this an appeal to emotion or logic?

7. Am I focused on the speaker or the argument?

8. What does the Bible say?

Ronald Reagan once said that the 9 most terrifying words in the English language are: “I’m from the government and I’m here to help.” New York City mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani doesn’t agree. Who’s right?

Parental pause point questions:

1. What do you think about Mamdani's statement? (3:06)

2. What is a problem in your life that you'd like fixed? (4:37)

3. Is the free market responsible for these problems? (7:21)

4. Go back to that problem that you said you wanted solved. What would it take for the government to solve it? (9:34)

5. Which of The Great 8 Questions apply here? (15:41)

6. Do you think high taxes encourage millionaires to move? (23:26)

The Great 8 Questions:

1. What happens next?

2. Has this been tried before?

3. Is there a principle involved?

4. What are the trade-offs?

5. What do you mean by that?

6. Is this an appeal to emotion or logic?

7. Am I focused on the speaker or the argument?

8. What does the Bible say?

A massive hurricane devastated Jamaica last week. Is this another sign that global warming is going to kill you? Victor talks about the surprising change of heart from Bill Gates (!) on this issue.

Parental pause point questions:

1. What do you know about global warming or climate change? (2:08)

2. Are you worried about climate change? (4:48)

3. If the vast majority of scientists believe something, does that make it true? (7:13)

4. Are higher temperatures the only variable in outcomes from weather events? (9:55)

5. Do you worry about the weather? (15:56)

The Great 8 Questions:

1. What happens next?

2. Has this been tried before?

3. Is there a principle involved?

4. What are the trade-offs?

5. What do you mean by that?

6. Is this an appeal to emotion or logic?

7. Am I focused on the speaker or the argument?

8. What does the Bible say?

Socialism won't make a country rich, but what does? Victor looks at the success of capitalism. The free market has produced so much value that poor Americans today have access to better stuff than billionaires did a century ago.

Parental pause point questions:

1. Since poverty is normal, why are we rich? (4:27)

2. Do you think luck (factors outside of one's control) is a factor in success? (7:02)

3. Do you think giving people money makes them rich? (8:06)

4. How much money do you think NBA player Terry Rozier has earned in his NBA career? (21:30)

The Great 8 Questions:

1. What happens next?

2. Has this been tried before?

3. Is there a principle involved?

4. What are the trade-offs?

5. What do you mean by that?

6. Is this an appeal to emotion or logic?

7. Am I focused on the speaker or the argument?

8. What does the Bible say?

If you want to see what socialism leads to, you shouldn't listen to the promises of Zohran Mamdani or Sen. Bernie Sanders. You should see what happened in Venezuela.

Parental pause point questions:

1. Which of The Great 8 Questions would you use to make the case against socialism? (3:46)

2. Do you think food production increased or decreased after Venezuela's socialist takeover? (6:41)

3. Why did food production decrease? (7:49)

4. Do you see the parallels between those programs and what the socialists in America want to create? (12:42)

5. Have you

The Great 8 Questions:

1. What happens next?

2. Has this been tried before?

3. Is there a principle involved?

4. What are the trade-offs?

5. What do you mean by that?

6. Is this an appeal to emotion or logic?

7. Am I focused on the speaker or the argument?

8. What does the Bible say?

Sen. Bernie Sanders and other socialists constantly attack America's unequal distribution of wealth. They argue that we means we can afford more government programs and regulations.

The key to defeating those arguments isn't to respond directly to them. Victor shows that the real debate is happening beneath the surface.

Parental pause point questions:

1. Why are there vast differences in the amount of money that people have? (2:38)

2. Which of these argument do you find the most persuasive and why? (8:27)

3. How would you respond to that argument? (9:23)

4. What is normal: Poverty or wealth? (9:52)

5. If wealth isn't natural, why is the U.S. rich? (13:58)

The Great 8 questions:

1. What happens next?

2. Has this been tried before?

3. Is there a principle involved?

4. What are the trade-offs?

5. What do you mean by that?

6. Is this an appeal to emotion or logic?

7. Am I focused on the speaker or the argument?

8. What does the Bible say?

Success in one area can lead to failure in what’s most important. Victor explores this paradox in today's show.

Parental pause point questions:

1. What temptation accompanies success? (1:42)

2. Where in your life do you need to acknowledge that God is the one who enabled you to succeed? (4:56)

Sermons from Pastor Chris Walker with Westminster Presbyterian Church are on Spotify here: https://spotify.link/xYNAFrtExXb

Life can be crazy. Some weeks it’s hard for parents and teens to find 20 (or 30 minutes) to dig into a weighty political topic. But we need to have meaningful discussions become part of our weekly routine.

That’s where Victor’s “Pointed” series comes in. Every week, Victor will share a thought-provoking and brief passage. It’s a great way to ensure connection during even the busiest weeks.

A new episode of “Pointed” will be available every Friday morning.

Lots of people love to argue. But few know how to change someone's mind.

Victor takes a look at why using great arguments in the wrong situation can be counter productive. When you are arguing -- ahem, talking passionately -- with someone, what's often needed are a listening ear and pointed questions. If you want to improve your ability to persuade someone, this episode is for you.

Parental pause point questions:

1. Do you think letting your opponent know how wrong they are is a good way to win an argument? (3:43)

2. Have you tried any of these approaches? How did they work? (5:54)

3. Which of The Great 8 would you apply to those arguments? (7:06)

4. Have you ever been in a debate with an individual? How'd it turn out? (16:14)

5. Think back to your last argument. What would you have done differently? (30:36)

The Great 8 questions:

1. What happens next?

2. Has this been tried before?

3. Is there a principle involved?

4. What are the trade-offs?

5. What do you mean by that?

6. Is this an appeal to emotion or logic?

7. Am I focused on the speaker or the argument?

8. What does the Bible say?

Everyone wants to be great. Few people are willing to do what it takes to become great.

Victor shares a brief story from Charlie Kirk's life that demonstrates this and challenges teenagers to apply it to their lives.

Parental pause point questions:

1. What do you want to be great at? What are you willing to suffer to achieve it? (3:56)

Life can be crazy. Some weeks it’s hard for parents and teens to find 20 (or 30 minutes) to dig into a weighty political topic. But we need to have meaningful discussions become part of our weekly routine.

That’s where Victor’s new series “Pointed” comes in. Every week, Victor will share a thought-provoking and brief passage. It’s a great way to ensure connection during even the busiest weeks.

A new episode of “Pointed” will be available every Friday morning.