All Four Episodes Available Now

Words at the Well

Phil Wickham Preaches to His Own Soul on “This Is Our God”

Music Blog - "This Is Our God" Phil Wickham Masthead (Feb. 1)

The Pentagon said at midday Friday that a Chinese spy balloon had moved eastward and was over the central United States, and that the U.S. rejected China's claims that it was not being used for surveillance.Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder, Pentagon press secretary, refused to provide details on exactly where the balloon was or whether there was any new consideration of shooting it down. The military had ruled that option out, officials had said, due to potential risks to people on the ground.Ryder said it was at an altitude of about 60,000 feet, was maneuverable and had changed course. He said it currently was posing no threat. He said there was only one balloon being tracked.<figure class="media"><oembed url="https://twitter.com/rawsalerts/status/1621365996169609217"></oembed></figure>Earlier, the U.S. announced that Secretary of State Antony Blinken had postponed a planned high-stakes weekend diplomatic trip to China as the Biden administration weighed a broader response to the discovery of a high-altitude Chinese balloon flying over sensitive sites in the western United States.That abrupt decision came despite China’s claim that the balloon was a weather research “airship” that had blown off course. The U.S. has described it as a surveillance vehicle.The development came just before Blinken had been due to depart Washington for Beijing and marked a new blow to already strained U.S.-Chinese relations.President Joe Biden declined to comment when questioned at an economic event. Two 2024 reelection challengers, former President Donald Trump, and Nikki Haley, the former South Carolina governor and U.N. ambassador, said the U.S. should immediately shoot down the balloon.Discovery of the balloon was announced by Pentagon officials who said one of the places it was spotted was over the state of Montana, which is home to one of America’s three nuclear missile silo fields at Malmstrom Air Force Base.A senior defense official said the U.S. prepared fighter jets, including F-22s, to shoot down the balloon if ordered. The Pentagon ultimately recommended against it, noting that even as the balloon was over a sparsely populated area of Montana, its size would create a debris field large enough that it could have put people at risk.The official said the balloon was headed over the Montana missile fields, but the U.S. has assessed that it had only “limited” value in terms of providing intelligence China couldn’t obtain by other technologies, such as spy satellites.The discovery alarmed many in Washington across the country and, besides the U.S. protests lodged with Chinese officials, it attracted strong criticism of the administration from Republican members of Congress who have advocated taking a tougher stance with China.China, which angrily denounces surveillance attempts by the U.S. and others over areas it considers to be its territory and once forced down an American spy plane, offered a generally muted reaction to the Pentagon announcement.In a relatively conciliatory statement, the Chinese foreign ministry said late Friday that the balloon was a civilian airship used mainly for meteorological research. The ministry said the airship has limited “self-steering” capabilities and “deviated far from its planned course” because of winds.“The Chinese side regrets the unintended entry of the airship into U.S. airspace due to force majeure,” the statement said, citing a legal term used to refer to events beyond one’s control.Blinken had been prepared as late as Thursday to travel to Beijing this weekend but the administration had begun to reconsider the trip following the discovery of the balloon on Wednesday, even before its presence was made public, an official said.The official, who spoke to reporters on condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the matter, said the administration had “ noted” China's expression of regret.Blinken’s long-anticipated meetings with senior Chinese officials had been seen in both countries as a way to find some areas of common ground at a time of major disagreements over Taiwan, human rights, China’s claims in the South China Sea, North Korea, Russia’s war in Ukraine, trade policy and climate change.Although the trip, which was agreed to in November by President Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping at a summit in Indonesia, had not been formally announced, officials in both Beijing and Washington had been talking in recent days about Blinken’s imminent arrival.The meetings were to begin on Sunday and go through Monday.Internet humor - these folks on Twitter are throwing things at the spy balloon:<figure class="media"><oembed url="https://twitter.com/DavidShares/status/1621376786905931776"></oembed></figure>&nbsp;

see-tracking-map-chinese-spy-balloon-will-pass-over-nashville-charlotte

small

medium

large

China says balloon used for research that blew off course, expresses regret.

See Tracking Map: Chinese Spy Balloon Will Pass Over Nashville, Charlotte 

When it comes to telling others about the offer of eternal life through Jesus Christ, there are evangelists, pastors, and missionaries to far away countries. But how do you reach a people group that has what might be considered an unusual affinity? Geeks(podcast &amp; videos further below)First off, let’s define the word: “A geek is merely a person who is very much – I won’t say obsessed – but very much in tune with what we call ‘Geek Culture’ – things involving comic books, video games, anime, and movies and fantasy books,” explains Dallas Mora, who along with his wife, Celeste, lead the Christian outreach <a href="https://geekdevotions.com/">Geek Devotions.&nbsp;</a>An insult?These days the term geek is not necessarily viewed as a put-down says Celeste. “Geeks are beginning to own the word geek and they’re going, ‘Yeah. I’m a geek. I like this, this, and this.”If you don’t ‘speak geek’ – and don’t understand what is so important in their lives and socializing, trying to tell them about Jesus can be like speaking a foreign language. Celeste explains there are “multiple geek sub-languages” depending on personal areas of interest. And “we speak many forms of geek,” adding “we’re called to love people, so that’s what we do.” Besides conventions, the Moras are also active on <a href="https://www.youtube.com/c/GeekDevotions">YouTube</a>.&nbsp;Over-the-top Christian tacticsDallas shares an event that helped shape their outreach ministry. Years back, they were in line at a con (convention), just talking to people, when a street preacher approached with his verbal guns blazing. He “was just there yelling and screaming at them, shouting at them, saying, ‘You’re going to hell.’” Dallas says the response from geeks was like “Yeah, we know.” But then those in line looked at Dallas and Celeste. “They knew that I was a pastor on-staff at a church. They knew that we’re believers. And they’re like ‘Are you going to yell at us, too?’ I was like, ‘no…(chuckling) would it help?’”&nbsp;Once inside the show, “it was a great time” checking out the exhibits, “but what we saw were people who were hurting – and nobody who knew Christ, who was out there, was willing to come in and just love people where they’re at the way Jesus loved people where they were at.”Where are they at?Dallas and Celeste want you to know that people in the geek world - not unlike many people - often have issues with isolation and depression, but in different circumstances. It's sometimes almost like social persecution.&nbsp;Put-downsPeople critically ask a geek culture person, “‘Why are you into these cartoons? Why into this?’ And it’s something that they’ve grown attached to. It’s almost, I don’t want to say escapism, but there’s been some coping mechanisms developed by being part of these different geek realms to help in dealing with trauma and deal with stress and anxiety. But because society looks down upon these things, because they’re ‘childish’ or whatnot, they feel even more isolated.” And Dallas says many he meets believe “people in the church don’t care” because of pre-conceived notions about them.<figure class="image"><img src="https://emfservices.azureedge.net/news/41720.jpg" alt="Celeste Mora getting involved"><figcaption>[Photo Credit: Geek Devotions] Celeste Mora getting involved</figcaption></figure>Share Jesus where God has placed you&nbsp;For anyone who believes in Christ, Dallas believes there’s always a local mission field: your circle of associates and friends. “Speak to the culture that you’re in. People everywhere need to know about Christ. There are people everywhere who are hurting, who feel abandoned,” and Dallas reminds us, “You have this precious thing called Christ, salvation…and they just need somebody to speak their own (cultural) language – presented in a way that they understand – and allow the Holy Spirit to draw them to salvation.” And Celeste added a very soft, but heartfelt “yes” after that comment.&nbsp;There are many challenges - and there are hopes and dreams Dallas and Celeste have for their unique ministry based in Shreveport, Louisiana. Hear about that in our complete interview podcast just below:<figure class="media"><oembed url="https://soundcloud.com/emf-public-affairs-audio/geek-devotions-we-speak-geek-and-share-jesus-with-isolated-people?si=19414a75ec244e919eb3ddaa530d544f&amp;utm_source=clipboard&amp;utm_medium=text&amp;utm_campaign=social_sharing"></oembed></figure><figure class="media"><oembed url="https://youtu.be/CqT172VkCAs"></oembed></figure><figure class="media"><oembed url="https://youtu.be/cUNUymwBoWw"></oembed></figure><figure class="image"><img src="https://emfservices.azureedge.net/news/41719.jpg" alt="Pastor Dallas Mora at show"><figcaption>[Photo Credit: Geek Devotions] Pastor Dallas Mora at show</figcaption></figure>

geek-devotions-we-speak-geek-and-share-jesus-with-isolated-people-podcast

Dallas & Celeste: “We’re called to love people, so that’s what we do.”  

Many comic, anime, and game enthusiasts believe “people in the church don’t care” because of pre-conceived notions about them.

Geek Devotions: We Speak ‘Geek’ And Share Jesus With Isolated People (+podcast) 

WASHINGTON (AP) — The American economy has an unusual problem: The job market looks too strong — at least to the inflation fighters at the Federal Reserve.Companies are still seeking more workers and are hanging tightly onto the ones they have. Putting aside some high-profile layoffs at big tech companies like Microsoft, Google, Amazon and others, most workers are enjoying an unusual level of job security even at a time when many economists foresee a recession approaching.For nearly a year, the Federal Reserve has been on a mission to cool down the job market to help curb the nation's worst inflation bout in four decades.The job market hasn't been cooperating.Consider what happened in January: The government said Friday that employers added a sizzling 517,000 jobs last month and that the unemployment rate dipped to 3.4%, the lowest level since 1969.The job gain was so large it left economists scratching their heads and wondering why the Fed's aggressive interest rate hikes haven't slowed hiring at a time when many foresee a recession nearing.Friday’s report added instead to the picture of a resilient U.S. labor market, with low unemployment, relatively few layoffs and many job openings. Though good for workers, employers’ steady demand for labor has also helped accelerate wage growth and contributed to high inflation.Still, the Fed's inflation watchers might be reassured somewhat by January's wage data: Average hourly pay rose 4.4% last month from a year earlier, slower than the 4.8% year-over-year increase in December. And from December to January, wages rose 0.3%, below the 0.4% increase the previous month.<figure class="image"><img src="https://emfservices.azureedge.net/news/41133.jpg" alt="Drivers work their way out of Dallas during rush hour"><figcaption>[Photo Credit: AP Photo/LM Otero] Drivers work their way out of Dallas during rush hour</figcaption></figure>January’s hiring gain, which far exceeded December’s 260,000, was broad-based across industries. A category that includes restaurants and bars added 99,000 workers. Professional and business services jobs, including bookkeepers and consultants, rose by 82,000.Governments added 74,000, boosted by the end of a worker strike against California’s state university system. Health care added 58,000 jobs, retailers 30,000. Construction gained 25,000 jobs. Manufacturing added 19,000.Economists had collectively estimated that the economy added just 185,000 jobs last month.“This is a labor market on heat,’’ said Seema Shah, chief global strategist at Principal Asset Management. It would be difficult, she suggested, “to see the Fed stop raising rates and entertain ideas of rate cuts when there is such explosive economic news coming in.”The Fed has raised its key rate eight times since March to try to slow the job market and contain inflation, which hit a 40-year high last year but has slowed since then.Yet companies are still seeking more workers and are hanging tightly onto the ones they have. Putting aside some high-profile layoffs at big tech companies like Microsoft, Google, Amazon and others, most workers are enjoying an unusual level of job security even at a time when many economists foresee a recession approaching.Employers have added at least 200,000 jobs every month for 24 straight months — the longest such streak in government records dating to 1939. Economists think the streak ended last month, if just barely: They have forecast that the government will report Friday that the economy added 185,000 jobs in January, according to the data firm FactSet, and that the unemployment rate ticked up to 3.6% from a half-century low of 3.5%.That would still represent a solid job gain, though decisively below the red-hot pace of the past year. For all of 2022, the economy added a sizzling average of 375,000 jobs a month. That was a pace vigorous enough to have contributed to the painful inflation Americans have endured, the worst such bout in 40 years. A tight job market tends to put upward pressure on wages, which, in turn, feed into inflation.Hence, uneasiness at the Fed. The central bank, hoping to cool the job market and the economy — and, as a consequence, inflation — has raised its benchmark interest rate eight times since March, most recently on Wednesday. Since July, monthly hiring has steadily decelerated even while remaining at historically healthy levels.<figure class="image"><img src="https://emfservices.azureedge.net/news/40339.jpg" alt="Seal of the Board of Governors of the United States Federal Reserve System "><figcaption>[Photo Credit: AP Photo/Andrew Harnik] Seal of the Board of Governors of the United States Federal Reserve System&nbsp;</figcaption></figure>Year-over-year measures of consumer inflation have steadily eased since peaking at 9.1% in June. But at 6.5% in December, inflation remains far above the Fed's 2% target, which is why the central bank's policymakers have reiterated their intent to keep raising borrowing rates for at least a few more months.The Fed is aiming to achieve a “soft landing” — a pullback in the economy that is just enough to tame high inflation without triggering a recession. The policymakers hope that employers can slow wage increases and inflationary pressures by reducing job openings but not necessarily by laying off many employees.But the job market’s resilience isn’t making that hoped-for outcome any easier. On Wednesday, the Labor Department reported that employers posted 11 million job openings in December, an unexpected jump from 10.4 million in November and the largest number since July. There are now about two job vacancies, on average, for every unemployed American.The Labor Department's monthly count of layoffs has amounted to fewer than 1.5 million for 21 straight months. Until 2021, that figure had never dropped so low in records dating back two decades.Yet another sign that workers are benefiting from unusual job security is the weekly number of people who apply for unemployment benefits. That figure is a proxy for layoffs, one that economists monitor for clues about where the job market might be headed. The government said Thursday that the number of jobless claims fell last week to its lowest level since April.The pace of applications for unemployment aid has remained rock-bottom despite a steady stream of headline-making layoff announcements. Facebook parent Meta is cutting 11,000 jobs, Amazon 18,000, Microsoft 10,000, Google 12,000. Some economists suspect that many laid-off workers might not be showing up at the unemployment line because they can still find new jobs easily.Economic forecasters will be closely watching Friday's figure for hourly wage growth in January. According to the FactSet survey, they foresee a 0.3% average pay increase from December to January. Nancy Vanden Houten, lead economist at Oxford Economics, said that figure would translate into annual pay growth of 4.3%, down from a 4.6% year-over-year increase in December.It would be an improvement, she said, but “still too strong for the Fed to be confident that the moderation is enough to take the heat off inflation.’’“Layoffs remain low, and demand for workers is still strong, evident in elevated job openings, strong job growth and an unemployment rate that is at a half-decade low,’’ said Rubeela Farooqi, chief U.S. economist at High Frequency Economics. “The labor market has yet to respond meaningfully to a rapid increase in interest rates.’’<figure class="image"><img src="https://emfservices.azureedge.net/news/33677.jpg" alt="A hiring sign is displayed at a restaurant in Schaumburg, Ill."><figcaption>[Photo Credit: AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh] A hiring sign is displayed at a restaurant in Schaumburg, Ill.</figcaption></figure>

january-report-is-out-a-surprising-517-000-jobs-filled-this-may-upset-the-fed

 America’s employers added a robust 517,000 jobs in January, a surprisingly strong gain in the face of the Federal Reserve’s aggressive drive to slow growth and tame inflation with higher interest rates.

“Layoffs remain low, and demand for workers is still strong, evident in elevated job openings, strong job growth and an unemployment rate that is at a half-decade low,’

 January Report Is Out: A Surprising 517,000 Jobs Filled - This May Upset The Fed

closer-look-teens-fooled-by-fentanyl-rx-fakes

Health officials and parents like Ternan continue to sound the alarm, calling the recent spike in drug overdoses a national crisis 

(K-LOVE Closer Look) – Charlie was a college senior. One regular Thursday while anxiously awaiting a job interview he popped a street pill that looked like medicine. It was his last.

CLOSER LOOK: Teens Fooled By Fentanyl, Rx Fakes 

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — As rising temperatures offered some hope for frustrated Texans shivering in their homes days after losing power in a deadly winter storm, another wave of frigid weather was taking aim Friday at the northern U.S.An Arctic cold front was expected to move from Canada into the northern Plains and Upper Midwest and sweep into the Northeast. Wind chills in some areas could dive below minus 50 Fahrenheit.In Austin, city officials compared the damage from fallen trees and iced-over power lines to tornadoes as they came under mounting criticism for slow repairs and shifting timelines to restore power.“We had hoped to make more progress today,“ said Jackie Sargent, general manager of Austin Energy. ”And that simply has not happened.”Across Texas, more than 250,000 customers lacked power early Friday, which was down from 430,000 on Thursday, according to PowerOutage.us.The failures were most widespread in Austin. Impatience was rising there among about 126,000 customers two days after the electricity first went out, which for many also meant no heat. Power failures affected about 30% of customers in the city of nearly a million at any given time since Wednesday.By Thursday night, Austin officials backtracked on early estimates that power would be fully restored by Friday evening, saying the extent of the damage was worse than originally calculated and they could no longer predict when all the lights would be back on.For many Texans, it was the second time in three years that a February freeze caused prolonged outages and uncertainty over when the lights would come back on. Temperatures were in the 30s Fahrenheit Thursday with wind chills below freezing.Unlike the 2021 blackouts in Texas, when hundreds of people died after the state’s grid was pushed to the brink of total failure because of a lack of generation, the outages in Austin this time were largely the result of frozen equipment and ice-burdened trees and limbs falling on power lines. But the differences were little comfort to Austin residents and businesses that also lost power for days two years ago.The freeze has been blamed for at least 10 traffic deaths on slick roads this week in Texas, Arkansas and Oklahoma.In a briefing Thursday with the federal Weather Prediction Center, New Englanders were warned that wind chill — the combined effect of wind and cold air on exposed skin — in the minus 50s Fahrenheit &nbsp;“could be the coldest felt in decades.”The strong winds and cold air will create wind chill “rarely seen in northern and eastern Maine,” according to an advisory from the National Weather Service office in Caribou, Maine.Jay Broccolo, director of weather operations at New Hampshire’s Mount Washington observatory, which for decades held the world record for the fastest wind gust, said Thursday that wind speeds could top 100 mph.“We take safety really seriously in the higher summits," Broccolo said, “and this weekend’s forecast is looking pretty gnarly, even for our standards.”

texas-power-concerns-remain-after-ice-storm-arctic-air-heads-for-new-england

Wind chills in some areas of New England could dive below minus 50 Fahrenheit.

Texas Power Concerns Remain After Ice Storm, Arctic Air Heads For New England 

watch-man-tells-his-story-of-survival-after-being-crushed-by-pickup-truck

The truck's rear end crushed him. It broke his sternum and at least one vertebra and shattered his hip and pelvis.

"God was there, kind of guiding every hand that was involved."

 Watch: Man Tells His Story Of Survival After Being Crushed By Pickup Truck

unhomed-neighbors-makes-116-year-old-business-close-over-encampment-concerns

Thea Sand is the fifth-generation owner of Emmanuel's Rug and Upholstery Cleaners 

A business in Seattle's SODO neighborhood has survived everything from world wars to the great depression and even multiple pandemics - but it's closing.

'Unhomed Neighbors' Makes 116-Year-Old Business Close Over Encampment Concerns

gmail-creator-chatgpt-like-ai-will-destroy-googles-business-plan

Although ChatGPT is a revolutionary product, Google is also aware of threats from A.I. to its own business and could be working to protect its revenues.

New This Week

Explore giveaways, Christian music, faith devotionals, Verse of the Day and more!

Words at the Well

All Four Episodes Available Now

Verse of the Day

We love each other because He loved us first.

1 John 4:19 (NLT)

News

Trending News

U.S. & World

See Tracking Map: Chinese Spy Balloon Will Pass Over Nashville, Charlotte

Positive People

Geek Devotions: We Speak ‘Geek’ And Share Jesus With Isolated People (+podcast)

U.S. & World

January Report Is Out: A Surprising 517,000 Jobs Filled - This May Upset The Fed

More to Discover

K-LOVE is more than a radio station. You hear it in the music, you feel it in the prayers of our staff and pastors and you experience it in the stories you read and hear every day.

Prayer

Request prayer & pray for others

Life & Devotion

Dive into these devotionals to go deeper in your relationship with Jesus

Music All-Access

Get the latest music

Your Story

Share your story, inspire others