Happy 2022!
We’re kicking the year off by giving away copies of Recapturing the Wonder, an incredible book by Mike Cosper (who you may know as the host of The Rise and Fall of Mars Hill).
So, if your New Year's resolution is to read more… share The Pour Over for a chance at a free copy!
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QUOTE OF THE DAY
“Faith… involves trusting in the future promises of God and waiting for their fulfillment.”
R.C. Sproul
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COVID-19
New Year, Same Pandemic
Welcome to day 733 of the year 2020.
The U.S. hit a new record high of 580,000 COVID cases on Thursday, breaking its record for the second consecutive day and nearly doubling last winter’s all-time high. Over the holiday week, COVID-related hospitalizations for children increased by 66%.
Before you start doomscrolling, a UK report revealed that Omicron is half as likely to require hospitalization as previous variants and one-third as likely to require emergency care. This is playing out in real life; hospitalizations are growing much slower than cases, and COVID-related deaths actually declined last week.
In other COVID news, the Marine Corps announced Thursday it kicked out more troops for declining to get vaccinated—bringing the total number of discharges to 206.
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U.S. NEWS
Winter Weather
With all the focus on Omicron we almost forgot about how holiday plans are usually disrupted…
The center of the U.S. was hit with heavy snow, forcing 1,000 flight cancellations out of Chicago airports alone, and putting an end to the Windy City’s snow drought: nine months without measurable snow.
Colorado has had an especially bad time. Their largely snowless winter allowed for an unseasonable wildfire on Thursday, which tore through the suburbs between Boulder and Denver destroying at least 991 buildings, mostly homes. Two people are still missing.
The fire was extinguished by single-digit temps and 10 inches of snow on Saturday, but the winter storm is hampering rescue efforts and presenting a new battle for thousands without power.
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BE DOERS
Thousands of people have lost homes. If you’re looking to help, consider donating to the Boulder County Community Foundation, which is coordinating emergency relief efforts, or signing up to host emergency stays through Airbnb.
“Let us not get tired of doing good, for we will reap at the proper time if we don’t give up. Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us work for the good of all, especially for those who belong to the household of faith.”
Galatians 6:9-10 (CSB)
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SPONSORED
Remembering 2021
For many, 2021 was just re-2020. While TPO covered a lot of the same topics both years (COVID-19, coronavirus, the pandemic, coronavirus, and Elon Musk’s Twitter account), 2021 was still quite unique.
Last year we:
- Sent 10 million emails
- …which had 4.7 million unique opens
- Grew from 35,000 to 115,000 subscribers
Translation: We were super blessed and continue to be amazed at what God is doing to calm nerves and point people to Him through something as simple (yet often anxiety and anger-inducing) as the news.
If you’ve enjoyed or appreciated TPO, support our staff and mission in 2022 by choosing to pay! Options range from $1/month to a lifetime membership. (Annual members get our just-released TPO Crewneck included.)
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U.S. NEWS
Ghislaine Maxwell, Guilty
Last week, the jury finally reached a verdict in the trial of Ghislaine Maxwell, a British socialite and close confidante to Jeffrey Epstein. After Epstein’s arrest and death, attention turned to Maxwell’s role in grooming girls for assault.
The federal jury deliberated for six days after her 3-week trial ended before finding Maxwell guilty on 5 of the 6 charges; she now faces the potential of life in prison. Her defense argued that she was a scapegoat for Epstein’s crimes, while the prosecution argued she was just as involved.
Maxwell’s attorneys promised to appeal the verdict but commentators speculate that Maxwell may now be more open to a plea deal in exchange for information, including opening her infamous “little black book” which contains the names of high-profile Epstein associates.
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ABOVE ALL, LOVE
One of the hardest pills to swallow is that our sins are no less damning than anyone else’s. We’re called to love everyone (yes, even Jeff Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell) because apart from God’s grace, we’re no better.
“For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God; they are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus.”
Romans 3:23-24 (CSB)
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Truck driver Rogel Aguilera-Mederos was sentenced to 110 years in prison for a deadly Colorado interstate pileup in 2019 caused by his brakes failing. Following widespread outrage, (from both regular schmos and Kim Kardashian West), Colorado Governor Jared Polis commuted the sentence down to 10 years, calling 110-years “highly atypical and unjust.”
Twitter permanently banned Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene’s (R-GA) personal account after five violations of its COVID-19 misinformation policies; her official account remains unblocked. She took to the messaging app Telegram to call Twitter “an enemy to America.”
Low and middle-income households reportedly spent ~7% more on products in 2021. High inflation and supply-chain shortages are sticking around entering 2022 and are hitting millennials where it hurts most… Ikea raised prices 9%. An economic bright spot is that jobless claims dropped to 198,000, the lowest since 1969.
Beloved comedian Betty White passed away on New Year’s Eve, just 17 days shy of her 100th birthday. Tributes to the Golden Girl, who enjoyed a 7-decade Hollywood career, flooded in, including from the U.S. Army, for whom she was a volunteer during WWII.
The College Football Championship game is set (spoiler alert: it’s a rematch) and the NFL playoff picture is forming, but the biggest sports news is that Tampa Bay wide receiver Antonio Brown took off his uniform and skipped off the field… mid-game. Brown, who recently returned from suspension for using a fake vaccination card “is no longer a Buc” according to Tampa’s coach. |
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What We’re Using
The Dwell App*
I listened to 11 chapters of the Bible on Saturday… almost by accident.
While leaving the house to walk the dog, I opened up Dwell and turned on the Book of Mark, read by Austin, at 1.25x speed, with soft piano and cello in the background. I turned it off after making coffee and breakfast 11 chapters later.
Listening to the Bible can’t completely replace time with a pen and physical pages, but Dwell has been the simplest way for me to spend prolonged time with the Word. For those of you with Bible-related New Year’s Resolutions… I highly recommend Dwell.
Jason Woodruff | Writer & Editor
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*This is a sponsored post
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