20 Questions with Pastor Mike (Episode 79) 

Question Time Stamps for Quick Reference: 0:00 - Intro 1. 0:34 {Are All Pastors Pro-Life?} What is your view on the many progressive "pastors" coming out against the overturning of Roe v. Wade? 2. 19:09 {About God’s Description} God's description in Scripture is often called anthropomorphic. Is it not true though that we are theomorphic instead? Why, therefore, must the imagery of God standing, etc. be metaphorical and not real? 3. 24:51 {How do the Dead in Christ Rise if they’re in Heaven?} If believers are taken directly to Heaven when they die, then why does 1 Thessalonians 4: 16 say the dead in Christ rise at His return? Doesn't that suggest they are in their graves? 4. 29:32 {About Near-Death Experiences} What do you think about near-death experiences? 5. 35:50 {Does our Evangelism Determine Salvation?} Could our failure to share the Gospel actually determine someone’s salvation? Or will God provide the same opportunity somewhere else? I can’t imagine we have control over each other’s salvation? 6. 40:18 {Why did Some Disciples Doubt?} Why does Matthew record that some disciples doubted the resurrection? Is there some sort of significance to this? How could they doubt if Jesus was right in front of them? 7. 44:56 {Should Incarcerated Parents be Involved?} My 2-year-old adopted son’s birth mom is in prison for 15 years for using/selling meth. Biblically, should we let her be involved in his life? My wife thinks they should have an active relationship. 8. 47:59 {Is “Spiritual Attack” Legitimate?} Is "spiritual attack" really a thing? Is that biblical? (i.e., during some notable season as a Christian, if we have intensified doubt, hopelessness, illness, etc. why's that not just, y'know, life?) 9. 55:46 {About OT Prophet Credibility} Why were many of the prophets who wrote books included in the Old Testament if they didn't perform miracles and their prophecies didn't come true until the New Testament? What made them stand out from false prophets? 10. 58:40 {Why is Abraham our Spiritual Father?} Why is Abraham our spiritual father (Romans 4: 16-25) if people before him also had faith in God: Abel, Enoch, Noah, etc.? Were they not "counted righteous" through faith the same way Abraham was? 11. 1:04:15 {What is a “Clear Conscience” Before God?} I'm getting baptized soon, and one of the questions my church asks is basically, “Do you promise to follow God with a clear conscience?” I deal with a condemning conscience. Would this break the promise? 12. 1:06:34 {When did the Holy Spirit Come?} My question is about the Spirit. Jesus spoke of the Spirit coming after Him in John 14, but He is there in Luke 1 before Jesus’ birth. When did the Spirit actually come? 13. 1:13:44 {Does God Need Death to Atone for Sins?} In Isaiah 6, sin is taken away by hot coals. Does God need death to forgive something or atone for sin (i.e. Jesus on the cross)? If so, how was Isaiah forgiven? If not, what’s the point of sacrifices? 14. 1:20:34 {Minimal Facts vs. Maximal Facts Arguments} Is a minimal facts argument or maximal facts argument better in presenting the truth of the Resurrection of Jesus? 15. 1:24:25 {About the Samaritans Receiving the Spirit} How were the Samaritans in Acts 8: 14-17 baptized in the name of Jesus, but only received the Holy Spirt when Peter and John came? 16. 1:30:04 {How to Decide What to Read in Scripture} Do you have any advice for reading the Bible? How do I decide what to read? 17. 1:30:40 {About the Difference between Heaven & Eden} What is the ontological difference between Heaven and pre-sin Eden? If Heaven is greater than Eden, then doesn’t it follow that Adam & Eve’s sin led to a greater eternity than they would’ve had otherwise? 18. 1:33:10 {Is Baptism Purely Symbolic?} Is baptism just a symbolic representation of our faith, or does it have a deeper value? 19. 1:35:43 {About Gene Editing Technology} Suppose that a gene editing technology like CRISPR could change the cells of a zygote to change the sex of the individual. Would there or should there be a secular question as to the eventual sex? 20. 1:38:01 {How Do We “Work Out Our Salvation?”} What does it mean to "Work out your salvation with fear and trembling" in Philippians 2: 12?

I was assisted by my local pregnancy care Center. They were beyond compassionate, generous, and assisted me out of an abusive relationship so that my child and I would have a chance. I’m grateful that there are organizations out here that truly help women so that they don’t go down the abortion route.

#1 AMEN! Thank you for making a strong stance on this issue. As an obstetrics educator and labor & delivery nurse for 16+ years i can say if everyone had to watch early ultrasounds and then what a post-abortion baby looks like i think many people would change their minds on this issue. Please support your local Crisis pregnancy centers. God bless

You gained 1000 points of respect as soon as you said, “ i’m not sure what that word is”. The fact that you were truthful and transparent that you don’t know everything, was a breath of fresh air. You’ve always been pretty clear about the fact that you don’t know everything but every time I see it it gives me another wiff of fresh air LOL

its so refreshing to hear a pastor being clear cut on this. God bless you. Here in Australia, we have nutters and politicians immediately protesting about the overturning of Rome vs Wade, as if it was our problem. Here we have the most terrible abortion laws in the world. Late term abortions right up to the point of birth is legal in a couple of states. After birth abortion (murder)is also happening, and they turn a blind eye to it.

Sideways is a good description. These are red herrings intended to divert us to the side from the pursuit of truth about the actual issue. Particularly the "care for mothers" argument. It's a way for them to avert their eyes from what abortion actually is. Whenever someone uses the term "pro-choice," I want to ask, "Choice to do what? Finish the thought." They don't want anyone bringing up the graphic details

I was watching this while hubby napped.. he was having a terrible dream about work, said there was so much laundry and people being booked (he is a corrections officer) but for some reason he was sitting talking on the phone with you! Meanwhile he's looking around at all the work that needs doing and trying desperately to find a polite way to tell you he didn't have time to talk! lol made me giggle

My favorite response to the pro-choice argument of “why fight for the babies to be born if you don’t do anything afterwards? Why are you working at this pro-life group when you could be working at a pregnancy center?” I heard from Kristan Hawkins: Are you mad at American Cancer Association for not donating and working on child diabetes? Okay why not? Because their passion and focus is on cancer, not child diabetes! Doesn’t mean they don’t care about diabetes, they just have to focus their time and resources on a topic that is narrowed down. If you try to help everyone, you barely accomplish much. But if you focus on one thing, you can go really far with it. Same for pro-life! There are many pregnancy and family crisis shelters all around the country doing amazing work. There also can be many groups focused on educating about abortion and having those hard conversations

Mike thanks for standing strong on the Roe vs Wade issue. I’ve been very surprised at all the ‘sideways’ pastors that have come out since the decision. It’s so sad :-(

Like always, Mike, you put a brilliant biblical view on horrible world view issues, I.e. abortion and the Roe v Wade story. Thank you so much. We should be weeping for what the world has done to the innocent, and celebrating their possible protection.

As a devout Catholic, I can say Mike is fantastic. And his RU-vid channel is the best.

This 'clump of cells' is a 59 year old Thalidomide survivor, thanks to the tablets of Distaval my mother took between days 23 - 26 of her pregnancy. Don't you dare tell me this former Zygote wasn't a human at that stage of development, otherwise I and all the other Thalidomide Survivors wouldn't have had to live with a lifetime of pain, humiliation and ignorance from other people as human infants, children, teenagers, and adults. I will add I did have a twin sister (Ruth), she unfortunately was still born (or God's grace) due to the deformities she'd sustained from Thalidomide.

I always get in the mood for gummy bears whenever I watch Mike Winger's videos. I don't know why.

I haven't gone to church in years, and at best I am an agnostic, but I love your channel! You are so straightforward and clear that it is refreshing!

"by the way, you're a clump of cells"...love it

Hi Mike. I just need to say this. With all of what is going on right now in this country. It is hard to even imagine a person who has so much knowledge of the bible, but volunteers their time to answering questions and helping others in the most genuine and productive manner. Thank you, Mike. God has blessed you to be a beacon of light for which so many can find Jesus and be able to become closer to God. Thank you, Mike. God Bless.

On Q8: I'd point out also that while we know that Job was being heavily attacked by Satan, that was not revealed to Job at the time of his suffering. It may well be that certain difficulties we go through in our lives are from spiritual attacks, but there's the question of whether it's even important for us to know the source. James 4:7 says, "Resist the devil and he will flee from you." This is immediately followed up by, "Draw near to God and He will draw near to you." Yet that is what we should be doing anyway, regardless of whether we are under a direct attack. When things are good, draw near to God. When things are bad, draw near to God. When we are persecuted by men, draw near to God. When we are persecuted by spirits, draw near to God. Our response is the same regardless of cause, so there's little reason to obsess over whether we are under attack from spirits.

My husband told me of his intentions to leave the marriage when I was 12 weeks pregnant with our second child. I could have aborted her, and many (most) people would have supported that decision… and that horrifies me. She’s now 10 and a beautiful, smart, and loving kid. Thank God the thought never even crossed my mind. ❤ Thank you, Mike, for your teachings.

I like what you said, “Suppose that Satan is really smart and could plant an image in peoples minds that there is no judgement,” I actually didn’t think about that part with near death experiences. Thanks for the answer!

Just remember God is in total control from beginning to end Amen 🙏🏻.

So glad I found this channel! God bless you pastor 🙏

Woohooo love this ministry

I absolutely love your statements on abortion here!! I love that you're willing to speak the truth boldly on this topic, even if going against the popular talking points and opinions.

Drive in all the lanes, Mike.....all at the same time if necessary! 😉

Thank you, Pastor Mike for all the work you do. You bring a lot of conviction, and insight, and your teaching is a salve for my soul. I and many other Christians that watch you know that God is very, very proud of you. We are blessed and pleased to call you our brother! Praise God for Mike Winger!

I know a family who’s agreement with the adopting parents is that the child call her by her first name as a close family friend. The beauty of it is that the birth donor IS a close family friend and it has worked out well for all involved.

I truly appreciate the careful consideration you take when tackling tough positions while not being pedantic. I thoroughly enjoy these and tend to come away with clearer understanding and framing of solid doctrine

460K+ subscribers is amazing, Mike. Praise God! You’re my go to source for researching biblical answers to all these confounding questions I keep running into as I sort out and dispose of the false beliefs I was raised with. Thank you and may God bless you richly.

No one thanked me for not aborting my child for 36 years. They did pay close attention to the fact that I was an unwed mother. We need to support mothers no matter the circumstances of their child’s birth.

8:00 minute marker-excellent point. It is only by acknowledging the grievous sin that it is and accepting the forgiveness of God and experiencing His grace that any of us who have been through this can know freedom.

God bless you for the loud and clear message to our country

Uh oh, I'm in the "we really need to start caring for mother's now" camp... But we've also housed a teen refugee mom, fostered teen girls, worked with teen mom's etc... I'm pro life but really am supportive of making a BIG push to move in that direction. But also, mourning is something you're right I need to do more... Maybe I will through art. Thank you!

Appreciate your input, as always, Mike. If we consider these things “outside of our lane” in pursuit of Biblical knowledge, then we have utterly failed to let the truth of scripture make it past our eyes and into our hearts. If Scripture does not pierce our hearts and affect our lives applicably, then we find ourselves reading it as though it were only a book, and not the word of God. And there would be no reason to spend hours upon hours studying a book that is merely a book.

I am 💯 pro-life. I will say though as men we need to do better. Before 99.9% of all non-medical related abortions, there was first a man who didn't have his house in order. As men we need to do better. It's easy to blame the ladies, but the my body my choice came about because of as men we have abandoned to many of those ladies pregnant. JMO

Pastor Mike, This is great. I love these heart to hearts. I am pro-life. Pure femininity to me is caring for a baby. I struggle with the politics of this. It's the politician's and the laws I don't trust. I went through a pretty tough miscarriage and if my doctor did not have the ability to take action because of a law I fear I might not have made it through. There is no question in my mind that a baby is a baby at day one. I knew instantly when I was pregnant. It reminds of Mary in the scripture when she felt the baby leap in her womb. I think pastor's should be in charge of teaching morality in the world. When I hear it from most politician's God sounds unbearable.

God bless you Mike.

I use the clip search ALL THE TIME! Thank you so much for doing that!!! 🤩👏👏👏

I love how you talk about very serious issues, with such love and biblical truth, you do not neglect the sin, nor do you utterly condemn and hurt those who are in that sin. Thank you for kindly and gently yet boldly speaking out the truth! So few are in this boat, may the lord bless you always in doing his work!

Pastors need to step up and have the intestinal fortitude required to be biblical and stand for what is right.

Thank you Mike for answering my question!

Mike, I'd love to hear you talk about how, if Jesus had returned before we were born... we wouldn't have existed. We are all eager for His return. But I can't help but be thankful that I was born before that return. And who knows who else will be born after us?

Thank you so much Pastor Mike...Such an honor to listen and learn..you are such a good example of honor and integrity...thank you for praying at the end of your video..I like this...I always look forward on Fridays....AND ...Im super looking forward to Hebrews...!!

Thank you for that comment about not becoming paranoid about our salvation.... that was me over the past few days after listening to a couple of sermons on evaluating ourselves to see if we're in the faith. It had me so freaked out!! So this was very timely!

Not for nothing Mike this IS your lane. As a Christian it is OUR lane as Christians so continue to stand strong and speak on the uncomfortable topics. I appreciate you and all you do.

I love the prayers being back. Thank you.

Thank you for speaking on question #1!! I agree 100% with your response!

Spot on today. Thank you. Your ministry is a blessing!

Thank you Mike You have helped me and answered many questions of mine. I aspire to have your humility! Keep it up brother

35:50 I've been struggling with this issue a lot lately. I've often thought about where my boundaries are in terms of people's salvation and my responsibility in sharing the gospel. I find that I fall into self-reliance and self-righteousness when I think that it's up to me to lead my friends/family to Christ, and that when I'm not proactive everytime, I'm failing to do the great commission and thus failing my love ones too. It's a dangerous slope of making it all performance based... The grace of the Lord is infinitely abundant and your answer to this question gave me such relief and clarity. I have the responsibility to share the gospel, yes, but other people's salvation is ultimately up to their decision whether they accept it or not. I just have to trust His character and His faithfulness.

Thank you for doing this!!!! May our Lord bless you and yours! Thank you for your obedience to His calling in your life. Eternally grateful 💝

Thank you. A biblical worldview is something that feels so right when I hear it but so foreign when I’ve had heavy doses of the culture. Thank you for actually telling people what you do.

You are a prophet, on so many issues you consistently bring me back to the word and to Christ.

Hallelujah for your #1. May God bless and protect you! “ The angel of the Lord encamps around them that fear him, and delivers them.”

Thank you for all your hard work and research in helping to clarify scripture… Much much appreciated

Thank you so much for your insight and thoughtful comments on this topic. You are spot on.

I appreciate these videos (and you) so much!!!

This episode is so good. I gained many insights and new perspectives on familiar issues. God bless you Mike.

Loved how you answered the last question. Love in Christ from SA 🇿🇦

Thank you SO much for speaking on this! As someone who has worked in the prolife movement for years, the “sideways people” were INCREDIBLY frustrating. Roe being reversed was a cause for celebration. I didn’t expect or deserve a lecture on how I need to do more than I already had been doing…

Happy anniversary, Pastor Mike!

LOVE your stuff Mike!

Not sure if Mr. Winger touched on this... I grew up, in the 60's shortly after Row was enacted, a lot of the reasoning back then that was common was, "Thankfully abortion is legal now, so all babies born will be wanted...." They held up that now that abortion is legal, no longer will there be child abuse or any children not wanted.... Hmm, has child abuse stopped or increased. And all children being wanted, i never heard of a woman ever taking her child and throwing it into a trash can simply to get rid of it and die... My point, those who want to murder innocent children will say whatever to be allowed to continue murdering...

Wow! I've been following you for a long time. It's interesting to be that I didn't see this video until now than three months after it was put out. I'm so grateful for it! The first word they came to my mind when you said "side ways people" was the word "deflection". They absolutely want to deflect off the issue at hand.

Thank you for #20, it encouraged me a lot today. Needed that

thank you for sharing this video. Your comments are spot on. I used to be on the pro abortion side (that's what it truly is) and after healing myself mentally I was appalled at what I was supporting. I want to believe that the majority of abortion supporters are also capable of changing their minds and seeing the truth. People like you who share the truth are key to helping bring them back. Your honesty without being mean or judgemental was beautiful.

I am a sideways person. I need to watch your response to Q1 a few more times, but I hear.

Thank you so much. LOVE your videos. Appreciate you so much. God bless you always!

Thank you brother Mike. God bless you

Q17: the difference between heaven and Eden is that we now know Grace.

Really enjoy these video

Pt Mike thank you for your well thought out and wise comments on Roe vs Wade. Appreciate your ministry.

Thank you for answering my question :D Edit : I got baptized today! (Its 12:12 am rn so not technically today but y'know) Anyway thank you again :D

. . re: Q-20 . . “fear & trembling” - our eternal destiny is in His hands . . Philippians 2:13 says in regards to working out our salvation: “. . for it is God who works in you the wanting to and the doing for the sake of His good desire.” The way He works ‘the wanting to’ in us is by giving us to really know Him, who He is; and what He’s done and will do as well; and then, what He wants us to do and to be. How He works ‘the doing’ in us is beyond me; it’s an ever deepening source of amazement and gratitude.

I know you just talked about a low key mission but if I could, I would like to bring attention to a mission called “wipe every tear”. My high school coach from many years ago (Kenny Sacht) started a mission to rescue girls from the sex trade. It is amazing to watch all the changes God has been doing in their lives! If you get a chance, check it out!

Thank you from thus 55 year old clump of cells for supporting truth and the clear biblical view on this issue.

One of my friends from Christian college keeps posting about how many women will die without abortion and how many women won't be able to afford to care for their babies because there aren't enough programs to help them. I tried to share some information with her from Live Action and other pro-life groups, but she didn't want to hear it. Her latest post completely shocked me. She said that Christians should keep their beliefs to themselves and stop trying to force them on the rest of America. I don't know if there's any point in trying to reason with her or if I should just pray for her.

Thanks for getting out of your lane if that's what giving a biblical approach to tackling current and therefore meaningful issues

It's not, for me, that I have to share the gospel, but that I get to, as the holy spirit of God leads, and that's what I pray for everyday, that I don't get in the way, it's a challenge, but a good one 🙏

“If you declare with your mouth “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved” (Romans 10:9). Now is the time to accept Jesus as your personal Lord and Savior. Obey His commands and repent of your sins because Jesus is coming back soon. Tomorrow isn’t promised.

Thank you for these!

We should be on guard for spiritual attacks. That’s why we’re instructed to put on the full armor of Christ. I find these spiritual attacks are often baiting me into getting into needless arguments.

With spiritual attacks, I think people are too quick to either dismiss them as a possibility or blame the problem completely on Satan. Here's how I think of it: Satan doesn't tempt people with things they had no inkling of desire to do themselves anyway. If you had 0 desire to ever steal something, you're not gonna suddenly see an unattended wallet and pick it up without returning it to it's owner. Satan only would tempt you to steal it if you already wanted to steal it to begin with.

My understanding is that the Supreme Court does not make laws. They only judge on the Constitution. The Constitution does not approve or deny abortions. The Roe vs. Wade case used wrong reasoning to create a right for abortion.

If you look for truth, you may find comfort in the end; if you look for comfort you will not get either comfort or truth only soft soap and wishful thinking to begin, and in the end, despair. C. S. Lewis This came to my mind when you spoke about the severity of sin in abortion, we will not find comfort going around sin we only find comfort in repentance.

Comment for the algorithm. Love your ministry! Thank you Pastor and admins!

I love this segment! Thank you pastor Mike. Are those gummy bears in your jar behind you? Makes me want some!

Mike thank you for sharing bible knowledge. I enjoy watching and learning. I recently discovered my friends husband has been having sexual relationship with her daughter, who is his step daughter. He divorced her and threw her out of the house and is living with his step daughter as husband and wife. Her other children who are also her children don't see anything wrong. They go to church and preach nd look down on my friend. They even stopped talking to her. She is trying very hard to save her kids. I truly believe Satan tore this family apart. I do know one of her children watches your RU-vid channel. Pls preach about this and may be he will listen to your message about how wrong this is. Please pray that her children will be free from Satan's clutches. Than you.

. . re: baptism - I’m convinced from Scripture that baptism brings our justification on Judgement Day (on the basis of the genuineness of our faith) to us ahead of time - thus bringing us into the new covenant . . wrote a paper - ‘Baptism: a key component of the already/not-yet character of the Christian life’

"My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth." Psalm 121:2 God loves you so much and He showed that when He sent Jesus to die in our place and for our sins. He loves you and He wants what is best for you. We cannot think of a better future for ourselves than what God wants for us, thus there is no wiser thing to do than to obey Him. He wants to help you so come to Him. And be reminded of who He is, the creator of all who can do all things. His past faithfulness demands our present trust. Hopefully this helps and blesses you today. God bless you!

Thanks for your views on Roe vs Wade. I've learned a lot from all of the questions you discussed.

I can’t wait for the head coverings talk. I’d love to have a reason to wear a head coverings!

Q:19 Sex is genetically determined but due to some very complex processes we cannot know the sex of a human embryo until 7 weeks gestation.

Happy Anniversary ❤️

Re Q7 we are adopted as sons into God’s family and we are to understand a complete severance from our former life, saved from it, after the model of Roman adoption law when the adoptee is totally integrated into his new family, even to the extent of past debts being cancelled. So a separation is also biblical. Society is now keen on a child being able to find their parent, so they can. My brother is adopted and he was told a bedtime story early on about a family where the parents chose their children at a special place called Sunshine House, (the adoption society) and the kids knew they were loved, special and wanted and chosen etc. So much so that I remember feeling sorry I wasn’t also chosen! I just happened! Not jealous, but it was so well presented that I wanted it too! My brother heard he was born elsewhere, ran indoors to ask Mum, she explained simply and he said, ok, and ran out to play. No problem, and he’s never wanted to chase after his birth parents, because he thought it would hurt them, and maybe him, and maybe our parents, all to say he’s well adjusted. Be ready with simple answers when the child is young, and later you can explain that their mother was poorly (in a sense )and couldn’t care for their child, but you wanted to help, and the court made it official so no one could ever take them away so the child is safe. Security is important. Be open always, but no need to say a lot too soon. The mother - you could keep in touch through the adoption agency, to preserve your anonymity, and see how it goes. The poor mother is going to find it hard, and is in a hard place, and a lot to swallow. You’ve no way of predicting how well she will digest what has happened. But your wife has a kind heart. Keeping things going might well be painful, may give false hope to the birth mother that your child may not want. I think 3 parents could turn into a tug of war, a bit like sharing access between divorced parents, and it’s hard hard hard. I know. Pray a long time, and follow Mikes advice. I do hope this is useful ETA. What my mum did was to send photos to reassure about progress of the child, frequent at first, then spaced them out until there was sufficient reassurance that the baby was thriving and safe and happy, that she could stop. While that’s painful to receive, I imagine, we can hope the birth mother would be reassured and know the child was getting the best care possible.

Thank you, Pastor.

The question about the ontological difference between .... brought to mind a fascinating book I'm in the middle of reading now. The Lost World of Genesis One (John H Walton). Mike Winger -> John makes an excellent case that the first chapter of Genesis is not trying to be a scientific statement, instead the ontology (what it meant for something to exist) of the audience (culture) at the time meant that for something to be "created" did NOT mean a thing was brought into material existence, instead, a thing was given a function or purpose. He handles the subject, and the traditional views very respectfully and completely. It gave me a brand new perspective and way of thinking about the bible in its proper context. His book is not very long and is highly, highly recommended.

Many very good points from Pastor Mike in his answers to question 1. I just want to add one small correction that will add to a point he made about sideways people trying to distract us from this right now. The Supreme Court deciding against Roe vs Wade was not "a law" being made, it was a court decision allowing a recent state law in Mississippi to go into effect, along with similar laws in several other states. The debate over abortion is as important as ever, perhaps more important than before, because finally, after 49 years of the Supreme Court blocking the enforcement of laws that would have protected unborn babies, we finally have a chance to pass laws to protect those human lives. Do the sideways people know this? Are they purposefully trying to talk one side of the debate into giving up? Trying to get prolife people to give up now, when we can finally advocate for laws that will actually save unborn babies from slaughter for the first time in half a century? Ask the sideways people you know why they are trying to neutralize one side, while they repeat the new gaslighting talking points of the proabortion side ("Now we need to start helping women in unwanted pregnancies."). One of the pastors at the church I've been attending recently virtually quoted that gaslighting talking point as a prayer when he was offering corporate prayer on behalf of the whole congregation in that part of the liturgical service. He claims to be pro-life, too, and it is a Lutheran - Missouri Synod church that overtly teaches that human life begins at conception and abortion is killing a human being. I'm trying to figure out exactly how to talk to him about his confusion while being respectful of an elder of the church.

Happy anniversary!

On the spiritual attack topic, my mother was viciously attacked whilst she was pregnant with me. Both her and my Father saw noticeable evil attacking her on many occasions, once the Church elders were involved and prayers around our Family were made in Jesus name the attacks then stopped.

Pastor Mike, really appreciate your channel and get lots out of it. I tried to listen to it as frequently as I can but my husband is the day driver and I am the night driver. Your voice is sometimes too friendly and soothing and consistent for encouraging wakefulness! And I got to stay awake to drive this truck, so I go listen to other things..... But always with a bit of regret! That being said, and knowing that as part of your women in ministry series you are doing a program on head coverings, you made a stray comment that most people don't know even what the practices were in the Roman world. While that does matter, it may matter and apply a bit more to this scripture about head coverings / women in the church to look at what the Hebrew thought on it was. One reason I point this out (and this may sound like a move sideways but I think you'll see the parallel and why the question) the yamaka that Jewish men now wear was actually something that God had told his people NOT to do, that was brought into use and acceptance by a helenized (Greco-Roman) leader, along about the first century AD, if I'm remembering right. So sometimes knowing what was going on in Roman thought, does not give us the whole answer. Yes I know he was talking to the church at Corinth, but a statement to the broader Church is being made here. And both men and women are commented on in the matter of head covering. So what was God's direction and teaching to HIS own people before Christianity broke across those cultural lines into the Roman world? That's a pretty valid question to consider in the midst of this. One of the reasons I have looked into this some myself is that I write & perform Biblically based character sketches, focusing on the women in Scripture. I have performed a couple of these in front of churches but mostly for ladies retreats. I dig through scripture and history, striving for as accurate a portrayal of these women as I can. My goal being to bring them off of the pages of scripture, let them walk around and visit with us for a bit, to get acquainted with them, so to speak. Come to understand why they did the things that they did, thought the way they did, made some of the choices that they made. It's way too easy to read through scripture and see the brief couple of sentences about an individual and just accept what we think it says, because it's part of the Bible story that we've always heard. It's become too common, and we don't even think about their thought process. And if we do, way too many women get upset because a man doing something in scripture might get a couple of paragraphs or a couple of pages, a woman doing the same thing is going to get a couple of sentences.... Too much woman's libber- modern day culture thinking clouding their view, whether they are women's libbers or not. Things being written this way were culturally normal, and this is still a cultural norm in most of the Middle East today. And women who live in that cultural mindset are not necessarily easy for women raised in a western culture mindset to grasp. This is why I present the sketches that I do, trying to pull back the curtain a little bit so that today's ladies can take a closer look to understand the thought process of the women in our spiritual heritage. So I am very much looking forward to what you find on head coverings and hoping you can find more back in the Hebrew mindset than what I have been able to dig out myself. I'll leave you with this humorous story, it's not on head coverings but it touches on how far removed our thinking is from thought and practice during Biblical times: my pastor's wife was leading a lady's class on the patriarchs when one lady asked (with a look of "Oh how gross!" On her face) "How could Sarah just give Abraham some other woman and tell him go have sex with her? Isn't that kind of creepy?". Now I had just moved back to the home area after many years of living out of state. The home church I ended up in, happened to be pastored by a fella I grew up with and that actually pastored the last church I was in before I moved out of the area. So I definitely knew them, and was generally known to the congregation although not as closely as I was known to the pastoring couple. My pastor's wife, trying to point out the cultural chasm in our thinking, said "I know this is kind of a weird thing to think on, because you were all raised in Christian homes, well maybe not you Laree, but the rest of you were...." Now these ladies are looking at her like she just said something blasphemous about me! Obviously I couldn't leave them looking at her like that, so I told them "Well it's true, we spent half of our life in the church but the other half in the bar. Doesn't necessarily give you a balanced outlook in life but at least you know who everyone is!" At that point they were looking at me like I had just said something nearly blasphemous, but they weren't looking at my pastor's wife that way anymore, and when she went back to teaching they were just rattled enough that she definitely had their attention! LOL Thanks again Pastor Mike for encouraging people to think Biblically!