The Pour Over Today - Wednesday, November 17, 2021

Starting point is 00:00:00 President Biden and Xi have an e-meeting, the Rittenhouse jury begins deliberations, Russia makes a lot of headlines, and other top news for Wednesday, November 17th. Stay informed while remaining focused on Christ with The Pour Over. Here's the quote of the day. Temptation is the devil looking through the keyhole. Yielding is opening the door and inviting him in. Billy Sunday. Let's get started with some espresso shots. Zoom is used for boring work meetings, awkward first dates, and now three and a half hour

Starting point is 00:00:37 hangouts between presidents. As an act of bridge building, President Biden video chatted with Chinese President Xi Jinping on Monday. Biden's goal was to make sure the U.S. and China competition did not turn into a U.S. and China conflict. Xi called Biden his, quote, old friend, unquote, but later warned the U.S. about, quote, playing with fire, unquote, regarding Taiwan. Taiwan recently approached the U.S. about being recognized as an independent nation from China. Biden reaffirmed his commitment to the One China policy, maintaining that Taiwan is officially part of China, but he also pushed Xi on many human rights issues. The meeting eased

Starting point is 00:01:16 tensions but ended like most Zoom meetings, with no clear next steps. Our hope is never contingent on a political or foreign policy outcome. It's much more secure than that. Regardless of whether things get worse or better during your lifetime, God is in control and eventually everything ends well for followers of Christ. Job 12.10 says, the life of every living thing is in his hand as well as the breath of all humanity. is in his hand, as well as the breath of all humanity. Closing arguments in the trial of 18-year-old Kyle Rittenhouse wrapped up on Monday, and the jury has begun deliberating. It all hinges on self-defense. The defense argued that the people Rittenhouse killed were trying to take his gun and possibly shoot him. If he had a

Starting point is 00:02:02 reasonable fear of imminent death or serious injury, he has a right to self-defense. The prosecution argued Rittenhouse came to Kenosha looking for trouble and showed drone footage of him pointing his gun at demonstrators. If he provoked the confrontation, there's no right to self-defense. There's no telling what the verdict will be or when it will be delivered, but the fallout will be ugly. 500 members of the National Guard are on standby. Culturally hot topics like this trial frequently make people think, speak, and act poorly, including us. We can respect others and represent God better if we are quick to listen and slow to speak. James 1, 19-20 reads, Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to anger, for human anger does not accomplish God's righteousness. Why make just one headline when you can make many? An estimated 100,000 Russian troops at

Starting point is 00:02:58 the Ukrainian border has NATO giving Russia a friendly reminder not to cause trouble. Russia said the concerns are, quote, alarmist, unquote, but wasn't thrilled with NATO's interest in the region. Providing an alternative focus of attention, Russia tested an anti-satellite missile by blowing up one of its own decommissioned satellites. Just one problem, the test created about 1,500 pieces of space debris and forced astronauts on the International Space Station to take shelter. The U.S. condemned the test, calling it reckless and dangerous. The incidents come on the heels of Russia, countering U.S. naval presence in the Black Sea, and increased tensions

Starting point is 00:03:35 at the border of Poland and Russian-backed Belarus. This episode is brought to you by Christianity Today. Get Christmas shopping done early. Confirm and reconfirm travel arrangements. Here, all I want for Christmas is you 75 times on the radio. Buy and decorate a tree and the rest of the house, etc., etc., etc. Tis the season of stress and distraction, but it doesn't have to be. Christianity Today has a resource to keep you reminded of the gospel during the Christmas season. The Gospel of Advent is a four-week devotional to help individuals, small groups, and families journey through the 2021 Advent season. We've checked it out, and it's awesome. It's also free for listeners of The

Starting point is 00:04:16 Pour Over. Advent starts next week, so claim your free Advent devotional to help you stay focused on Christ this Christmas. The link is in our show notes. to help you stay focused on Christ this Christmas. The link is in our show notes. In other brews, it's time for a rapid round of updates. Grab your hard hats. President Biden signed the $1.2 trillion bipartisan infrastructure bill into law on Monday. The law provides $550 billion in new funding for upgrading the country's transportation, utilities, and broadband. And he tasked Mitch Landrieu, a former mayor of New Orleans, to oversee the distribution of all those zeros. Radio host Alex Jones lost a defamation suit after refusing to turn over court-ordered evidence. Jones spent years claiming that the

Starting point is 00:05:05 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting, where six adults and 20 children were killed, was a hoax before recanting the claims in 2019. A jury will decide the amount of damages he'll pay the victims' families. 22-year-old Bharti Shahani and 9-year-old Ezra Blunt both passed away from injuries sustained at the Astroworld Festival, bringing the death toll up to 10. It's been over a week since the music stopped, but criminal investigations into rapper Travis Scott and festival organizers are ongoing. Steve Bannon, one-time advisor to former President Trump, was released without bail after surrendering himself and his

Starting point is 00:05:45 passport to law enforcement for defying congressional subpoenas related to an investigation into the January 6th Capitol riot. Outside the courthouse, he gave a defiant message about, quote, taking on this illegitimate Biden regime, unquote. For $300, you can own an NFL team, or at least part of it. The Green Bay Packers are selling shares of the team for the sixth time in franchise history to raise funds for upgrades to Lambeau Stadium. The shares earn you a ticket into the annual meeting, but offer no financial benefits and can't be resold.

Starting point is 00:06:22 What do you get when you combine tennis, badminton, and ping pong? The fastest growing sport in America. Pickleball has exploded in popularity, growing 21% from 2019 to 2020, and cities are beginning to replace tennis courts with pickleball courts to match demand. And that is all we have for today. Thank you so much for listening, and a special thank you to our TPO Baristas who make this podcast and our newsletter possible. TPO Baristas are those who choose to pay for what they could get for free. If you would like to become a barista and support this podcast at a deeper level, go to thepourover.org slash barista. If you've made it this far into the episode, our guess is that you've enjoyed it at least a little, and we would really appreciate it Thank you.

The Pour Over Today - Wednesday, November 17, 2021

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