Christmas in July #1

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This is one of the most beautiful Christmas songs out there.  And it deserves to be played all year.  It's so beautiful, it brings me to tears.  And I imagine that this is how heaven will sound ...

Christmas Canon by Trans-Siberian Orchestra. 

 (And for the equally-great, more rockin' version - Christmas Canon Rock. Oh my goodness, it makes my heart want to burst! Too much beauty!) 

Most Popular Posts of the Week:

List of Calvinist Preachers, Authors, Theologians, Websites, etc.

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I  found a lot more names to add to my list of known Calvinists (found in my various  "How to Tell if a Church, Pastor, or Website is Calvinist"  posts).  But instead of adding this huge list to all those posts, I am going to put it here, and I'll just provide a link on those posts to this one.  [FYI: I added a note at the bottom of this post on May 5, 2021.] So here it is, a "master list" of known Calvinists to help you be careful and discerning about who you listen to and where you get your theology from.  There are plenty more Calvinists out there, but these are just the names that I ran across the most.   These are either definite, self-professed Calvinists or "most likely Calvinist," in my estimation.  (I haven't heard of most of them, but it's good to know their theology before I do.)   After finding these names in various places online, I looked up each person to see if they are Calvinist.  If they did not self-identify ...
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TULIP's Totally-Depraved Doctrine (a snippet)

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[This is a snippet from  another post (but slightly updated here) that will be coming up later.]  Calvinism's TULIP petals are all built on each other, one after the next.  And it all starts with "total depravity" (their bad definition of it) : R.C. Sproul  ( Total Depravity part 1 ) :   "... if a person really embraces the doctrine of total depravity, the other four points in this five-point system more or less fall in line. They become corollaries of this first point." And so if they can get you to buy into their view of total depravity (as "total inability"), they can easily get you to buy into their whole TULIP, ensuring that you will become a Calvinist. Because if we are "totally unable" to believe on our own, then God has to decide who believes (unconditional election)...  which necessarily implies a "limited atonement" because Calvi-Jesus wouldn't die for those predestined to reject him...   which then requires "irre...
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Help for Anxiety, Depression, and Suicidal Thoughts

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It's so sad to hear about all the celebrities who have recently committed suicide (or about anyone who has committed suicide, for that matter).  My heart breaks for them, for the pain they went through, and for the ones who love them, for the pain they are now going through.  It is truly a tragedy. To anyone who is hurting really badly, who is struggling with overwhelming anxiety or depression, who is considering taking their own lives ... I dedicate this post.  Please, take some time to look through some of the links here.  This is a round-up of some on-line resources or posts about dealing with anxiety or depression, particularly as a Christian. But first: Quick tips for help: If you are desperate for some immediate help and don't want to look through the links I have below, try some of these (or if it's really bad and you think you might hurt yourself, call 911 or go to the emergency room): 1.   Put on a worship song right now.  Or sin...
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Sermons by Tony Evans (repost)

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(I recently fixed the broken links as well as I could, had to switch some out for others) Tony Evans is my all-time favorite pastor.  He always gives messages that convict, challenge, and comfort.  Here are some sermons that I have listened to or am going to listen to.  For more, simply go to his website by clicking here .  There are so many great ones to choose from. You can't go wrong with any video of his.  I found him to be the most biblically-accurate preacher (especially as I researched Calvinism and found out how wrong it is), who is also great at helping us practically apply God's truths to life. Reversing Anxiety Consequences Keeping the faith when life gets hard Trusting God in a storm How to have strength in your struggles How to overcome your worry How to Get Your Prayers Answered Trusting The God You Believe In God knows what He is doing How the enemy tries to distract you from God's plan Grab your sword The Secret to Powerful Prayer Spiritual W...
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Anti-Calvinism Links

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This is the last half of the post "What's The Best Way To Make People Agree With Your Calvinist Views."   But I put it here in its own post so that it's easier to find. These are some links to posts which are against Calvinism, the belief that the Bible teaches God has predetermined from the beginning of time who goes to heaven and who goes to hell.  It's no secret from my writing that I strongly disagree with this view.  I believe the Bible clearly teaches that God offers us all salvation, that Jesus's death paid for everyone's sins, and that we have to decide if we will accept Him or reject Him.  And here is some of what others have to say about Calvinism: (FYI, I haven't read everything in all of these yet and I don't necessarily agree with every point they make, but I needed to link to them before I lost them online.  And for the record, I came to my belief about what the Bible says by reading the Bible, not extra-biblical books or articles...
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We Left Our Church Because of Calvinism (Things My Calvinist Pastor Said)

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[Yes, I know this is sarcastic, a little spicy and snarky, but I'm okay with that.  Someone's gotta say it.  For the text-only version, no memes,  click here .   For the memes only,  click here .  For the links only,  click here .  Also,  I broke this long post down into smaller posts, so click here for all the links to the individual posts in the  "Things My Calvinist Pastor Said" series .  All memes were created with  imgflip .  (This was updated in July 2020 , and it's being updated again in late 2025, early 2026.)] The inevitable has finally happened, the day we hoped would never come: The day we officially resigned from our church because of our pastor's dogmatic Calvinist preaching (May 20, 2019).   (From now on, I will try to call him our "ex-pastor."  And for the record, it was an Evangelical Free Church, which are being  taken over by Calvinism  all over the place.  So be wary an...
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And Yet Again - 21 More Anti-Calvinism Memes

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I giggle making these.  Helps me blow off steam. Only if you're elected ... So you're a Calvinist? Except for you ... "I love being a Calvinist" First I'll tell them ... Said Jesus Never! We Calvinists say ... The bookcase Researching John Calvin Snap Out Of It The Pro-Calvinism Meme Absolutely Sure ... Calvinist Lunatic If you want people ... Another Predestination Sermon It's called "Calvinism" Lucky Dude "All" Means "Some" God "In Control" "Total depravity" (AKA "Total Inability" - a concept NOT found in the Bible anywhere!) It's be...
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Some Great Anti-Calvinism Videos

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I don't necessarily agree with everything in the things I link to, but they are definitely worth watching ... Hitler and Calvinism  - Love it!  Love it!  Love it! Greg Boyd - Calvinism Refuted in 10 Minutes  -  Excellent!  MUST WATCH!!!  And he makes a great point about how Calvi-god is basically worse than the devil because at least the devil is honest about who he is, and so you know what you're getting with him!  But not so with Calvi-god! Man Saved Out Of Calvinism Gives Testimony Questions That Calvinists Cannot Answer (Calvinism Is Not Biblical!) Why I'm Not A Calvinist A Lead Pastor Leaves Calvinism and Apologizes to the Congregation for Misleading Them   (And you can google many more great videos on YouTube from Leighton Flowers at  Soteriology 101 ) Are Calvinists Saved?   (More great videos at  Beyond the Fundamentals ) Dave Hunt: "What Love is This?" Also, a fun 6-minute "satire" video  we just found:  "The...
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Calvinist Bad Logic #8: Two Different Types Of ...

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Bad Logic #8 :  To make their "theology" fit the Bible, Calvinists break many biblical concepts into two types.  Something NOT supported by the Bible.  Because, once again, this comes from their own philosophical reasoning. Two Loves: Calvinism believes Calvi-god only really loves the "elect," which is why he saves them and only them.  But the Bible says God loves all people, right?  So how do they mesh this?  By saying God has two kinds of love - a "save your soul" love for the elect and a "give you food and water" love for the non-elect (before sending them to hell for eternity!). Two Wills :  The Bible says that God wills that no one perishes, that He wants all people to be saved.  But Calvinists believe that God predestines most people for hell.  So how do they mesh these two?  By claiming that God has two wills: a "revealed" one, where He says He wants one thing to happen, and a "hidden" one, where He really want...
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