The World and Everything in It - February 1, 2022

MARY REICHARD, HOST: Good morning!

U.S. missionaries in Ukraine are facing some tough decisions amid growing talk of a Russian invasion.

NICK EICHER, HOST: Also today: European correspondent Jenny Lind Schmitt joins us to talk about the leverage Russia has over Europe and how that complicates the situation in Ukraine.

Plus WORLD’s Classic Book of the Month.

REICHARD: It’s Tuesday, February 1st. This is The World and Everything in It from listener-supported WORLD Radio. I’m Mary Reichard.

EICHER: And I’m Nick Eicher. Good morning!

REICHARD: Now the news. Here’s Kent Covington.

KENT COVINGTON, NEWS ANCHOR: Russia, US exchange harsh words over Ukraine at UN » U.S. and Russian officials clashed in a war of words in a meeting of the UN Security Council on Monday.

U.S. Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield urged world leaders to speak out against Russia’s troop buildup along Ukraine’s border.

GREENFIELD: It threatens the international order this body is charged with upholding, an order that, if it stands for anything, stands for the principle that one country cannot simply redraw another country’s borders by force…

Russian diplomats, meanwhile, accused the West of “whipping up tensions” over Ukraine and said the United States had brought—quoting here—“pure Nazis” to power in Ukraine.

But Ukrainian diplomat Sergiy Kyslytsya said what’s whipping up tensions is Russia’s massive six-figure troop buildup along its border.

KYSLYTSYA: About 112,000 Russian troops have been amassed around Ukraine’s borders and in Crimea. And together with their maritime and aviation components, their number reaches about 130,000.

Linda Thomas-Greenfield said Moscow is “attempting, without any factual basis, to paint Ukraine and Western countries as the aggressors to fabricate a pretext for attack.”

Russia lost an attempt to block the meeting. A vote on holding an open meeting passed 10-2, with Russia and China opposed. But the United State never expected a statement or resolution by the Security Council, given Russia’s veto power.

Biden meets Qatar leader as Europe energy crisis looms » The West has vowed tough sanctions against Russia if it invades. But an economic clash with Moscow could be a problem for Europe, which leans heavily on natural gas from Russia.

With that in mind, President Biden hosted the ruling leader of the gas-rich nation of Qatar at the White House on Monday.

BIDEN: Qatar is a good friend and reliable and capable partner. And I am notifying Congress that I will designate Qatar as a major non-NATO ally to reflect the importance of our relationship.

Qatar is home to the biggest American air base in the Middle East. The country also served as go-between in U.S. talks with the Taliban. And the country has taken in thousands of Afghan refugees that the United States evacuated from Kabul last year.

Qatar could play a key role, at least temporarily, in stabilizing Europe’s energy supply if necessary.

It is the world's second-biggest exporter of liquified natural gas, and Qatari officials say they’re very happy to help. But they also cautioned—quote—“It is going to be very hard to do because there isn’t excess supply.”

Qatar is already producing at full capacity with much of its supply under contract to Asia.

U.S. gives full approval to Moderna’s COVID-19 vaccine » The FDA on Monday granted full approval to Moderna’s COVID-19 vaccine as the omicron wave continues to slow. WORLD’s Kristen Flavin has more.

KRISTEN FLAVIN, REPORTER: Tens of millions of Americans have already received the Moderna vaccine under an emergency authorization. But it now joins Pfizer as the only two COVID-19 vaccines granted full approval.

The FDA reviewed months of additional follow-up data to confirm the shot’s effectiveness and safety. The vaccine includes a warning about a very rare type of heart inflammation that mostly occurs in young men following the second dose. Most cases are mild and resolve quickly.

The approval comes as the omicron wave appears to be losing steam in the United States.

New cases have dropped below 500,000 per day after peaking last month at nearly 900,000. Hospitalizations are also down, and COVID-related deaths are expected to follow suit in the days ahead.

Reporting for WORLD, I’m Kristen Flavin.

Spotify taking steps to “combat misinformation” about COVID-19 after protests » Spotify says it’s taking new steps to—quote—“combat misinformation” about COVID-19.

The move follows protests over interviews on its popular “Joe Rogan Experience” podcast, which has an estimated 11 million listeners.

Rogan recently interviewed doctors and scientists who are critical of vaccines and some of the government’s advice regarding the pandemic.

He defended the interviews, saying the guests in question, while controversial, are highly accomplished and credible. And he pushed back against labeling the interviews as “dangerous misinformation.” He argued some assertions that were widely dismissed as “disinformation” months ago are now accepted as credible.

ROGAN: If you said, I think it’s possible that COVID-19 came from a lab, you’d be banned from many social media platforms. Now, that’s on the cover of Newsweek.

Rogan noted that he has also interviewed mainstream experts, but he said he’ll work to achieve more balance.

He also voiced support for Spotify’s plan to begin labeling COVID-19 content with advisories, encouraging people to visit mainstream sources for information.

Spotify CEO Daniel Ek also pledged more transparent platform rules. He said it’s important to not “take on the position of being content censor while also making sure that there are rules in place and consequences for those who violate them.”

British prime minister apologizes in wake of ‘partygate’ report » U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Monday apologized for the so-called “partygate” scandal.

That after an inquiry found that Downing Street parties while Britain was in lockdown represented a “serious failure” of leadership.

The prime minister addressed the report on the floor of the House of Commons…

JOHNSON: I will address its findings in this statement, but firstly I want to say sorry. And I’m sorry for the things we simply didn't get right, and also sorry for the way that this matter has been handled.

The report found “failures of leadership and judgment” allowed events to occur that “should not have been allowed to take place.”

The events under police investigation include a June 2020 birthday party for Johnson at the prime minister’s Downing Street residence.

Police requested the inquiry  and have launched a criminal investigation into the biggest alleged breaches of coronavirus rules.

But while Johnson expressed regret, he brushed off calls to quit.

JOHNSON: I know what the issue is. Yes, Mr. Speaker, yes, yes. It’s whether this government can be trusted to deliver, and I say, Mr. Speaker, yes we can be trusted.

The prime minister vowed to reform the way his office is run, telling lawmakers, “I get it, and I will fix it.”

I’m Kent Covington. Straight ahead: missionaries debate whether to leave Ukraine.

Plus, embracing our destitution.

This is The World and Everything in It.

MARY REICHARD, HOST: It’s Tuesday the 1st day of February, 2022.

You’re listening to WORLD Radio and we’re really glad you’ve joined us today! Good morning, I’m Mary Reichard.

NICK EICHER, HOST: And I’m Nick Eicher. First up on The World and Everything in It: tension in Ukraine.

World leaders continue to urge Moscow to back down, and foreigners in Ukraine are trying to decide if they should stay or pack their bags. Many in the West fear an invasion is imminent. But Ukraine is downplaying the urgency.

REICHARD: WORLD correspondent Jill Nelson reports on how missionaries are dealing with the mixed signals.

JILL NELSON, REPORTER: It’s 12:30 in the morning and Bob Burnham is just winding down after a long day of conversations about the Russian troop buildup. He’s a missionary with Mission to the World, or MTW, and has lived in the southern Ukrainian city of Odessa for 25 years.

Burnham says many foreigners are leaving the country, and the Ukrainians he knows are worried about all the evacuations.

BURNHAM: So it's been kind of an emotional day just dealing with people and assuring them we're not taking this lightly. We haven't left. We're still here. We don't think there's a reason to go yet. But people are, everyone's on edge. Everyone's just a little bit on edge. We are, too.

Most of the foreigners he talked to last week are either evacuating to the western city of Lviv or returning to their home countries. But Burnham, his wife, and their three daughters are staying put for now.

BURNHAM: I haven't seen a soldier in a long time. It doesn't look like a city that's about to go to war at all. It's peaceful, it's quiet. Everyone's in the park sledding with their kids and that kind of thing. It doesn't feel like we're in any kind of danger.

There are a few things that would change his mind besides a direct Russian invasion. If Russian troops stationed near Ukraine increase from 100,000 to 150,000, or the U.S. embassy evacuates essential personnel.

The U.S. State Department last week issued a travel advisory for Ukraine. It also authorized the voluntary evacuation of nonessential embassy personnel and the mandatory departures of diplomats’ families.

Burnham attended a U.S. Embassy town hall meeting on Tuesday and did not come away with a sense of urgency.

BURNMAM: It wasn't like, guys, this is serious, this is bad. You need to get out.

But many Americans in Ukraine are leaving the country, some at the request of their sending mission agencies. One missionary received word last week that his organization was evacuating all 50 people affiliated with the group. He trusts his leadership but mourns the decision.

We are identifying him only as Michael to protect his safety.

MICHAEL: One of the things about missionary life is through thick and thin, you get to earn credibility when you stay. I mean, we were here through the 2014 conflict and didn't leave, and people remembered that, and we were able to share the gospel and do great things. And so it's hard to leave now when we don't feel we need to.

It was a long day for Michael as well. He had spent part of it navigating through the snow to find an ATM machine with cash. Many Ukrainians are withdrawing money to have on hand in case Russia invades and they need to flee.

It was 11 p.m. in Ukraine when we spoke, and he was struggling with what to pack. The agency wanted him and his family to leave the following day.

MICHAEL: What do I take that I love, knowing that it's also possible we may not get back here or something might happen to our stuff? I'm leaving pictures on the wall of my kids when they're just born and stuff. You know, there's a lot of emotional things that we just can't take because we don't have it. We have a car, one car, one car with five people and five suitcases. If we can fit them, I don't even know we can fit them yet.

But the hardest part for this family was leaving their dogs behind.

MICHAEL: We have two dogs that, you can call them animals, but they're part of our family. One of them has been with us for seven years, the other one for almost two years. That's the hard thing, leaving them behind, trying to find someone that will care for them like we care for our dogs.

Michael and his family were planning to drive to Poland, but Warsaw closed the land border to Americans. They ended up in Hungary instead.

Evacuation orders aren’t just affecting churches. Kyiv Christian Academy is a K-12 international school primarily for missionary kids. Director Nick Sweeney says about 20 percent of his staff is planning to leave, some at the direction of their sending agency. Close to 30 percent of his students are also evacuating, and he expects that number to rise.

While some Christian ministries are trying to decide if they should evacuate their people, others are preparing for the possibility of war and how they might minister to those fleeing their homes.

SWEENEY: The churches will be absolutely overwhelmed in feeding the people and meeting their more direct living needs.

Eric Mock is vice president of ministry operations for Slavic Gospel Association. It partners with local churches in Ukraine to provide gospel and material resources. That included medical supplies, warm clothing, mattresses, and groceries in 2014. That’s when Russian separatists took over Ukraine’s eastern Donbas region. More than 14,000 Ukrainians, including 3,000 civilians, have died in the ongoing conflict there.

Mock points out that Ukrainians are used to hardship, and it’s shaped the church there into a strong vessel prepared for gospel opportunities.

SWEENEY: As I send emails out and talk to them, I almost get a smile back saying, Eric, your world is different than ours. We've always had to struggle. So this is just one more struggle, and we're going to keep doing what God has raised us up to do.

And for those who have to leave Ukraine, ministry doesn’t stop, according to Michael.

MICHAEL: But for those that have to leave, even my nationals, when they leave, they take the gospel with them. They continue the ministry. I mean, that's biblical. That's what happened throughout Acts.

Reporting for WORLD, I’m Jill Nelson.

NICK EICHER, HOST: Coming up next on The World and Everything in It: power plays.

While the United States has taken a strong stand against Russia’s aggression toward Ukraine, our traditional allies in Europe are less enthusiastic about standing up to Vladimir Putin.

MARY REICHARD, HOST: Here now to help explain why is WORLD’s European Correspondent, Jenny Lind Schmitt. Good morning!

JENNY LIND SCHMITT, REPORTER: Good morning, Mary.

REICHARD: Jenny, the European Union, and particularly Germany seems to show some reluctance to take a stand here. Why is that?

SCHMITT: That’s right, Mary. Earlier this month, flights carrying defensive weapons from the UK to Ukraine took a long detour around German airspace, which brought this issue to the fore. Late last year, Germany declined to send weapons to Ukraine. Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s new coalition government has a restrictive arms export policy that does not allow delivery of weapons to crisis regions.

And when questioned about that, Germany’s foreign minister Annalena Baerbock cited Germany’s complicated history in World War II as part of the reason behind this policy.

REICHARD: So a restrictive policy on exporting weapons is one reason. Anything else?

SCHMITT: Well, yes. It’s useful to remember that Germany is the European Union’s biggest economy. It imports 60 percent of its energy. Other nations in the EU vary in how much energy they import. But as a bloc, the percentage is about the same. And of that, the majority comes from Russia in the form of oil and gas.

REICHARD: …and that brings us to the Nord Stream controversy.

SCHMITT: Correct. Russian natural gas travels west to Europe over land in pipelines that cross Ukraine and Belarus. In 2012, a Russian-led energy consortium built the Nord Stream pipeline under the Baltic Sea to bring gas directly to Germany.

Nord Stream 2 is a new undersea pipeline that would double the capacity to transport Russian gas to Germany. It was finished last fall but has been waiting on an official go-ahead from the EU. That permission has stalled. And now, Western leaders want to use the pipeline as leverage against Russia.

REICHARD: Just to understand: once the pipeline was finished, and then stalled in its use, why is it still not in use?

SCHMITT: In 2019, then U.S. President Donald Trump approved a law that imposed sanctions on any company helping to build Nord Stream 2. He said the project posed a security risk to Europe because it could turn Germany into a “hostage of Russia.” The German government took offense and maintained the position that the Nord Stream 2 project was purely economic. Last May, the Biden administration reversed course and waived those sanctions. Now it seems as though Trump's concerns were on the mark.

REICHARD: Has Russia threatened to cut off its oil and gas supplies to countries that oppose what is doing in Ukraine?

SCHMITT: Russia’s downplayed those concerns from the West. But Russia has already cut off the supply of gas in other instances in the past. For example, to Ukraine in 2009. Last November Russia played hardball and threatened to cut off gas to Moldova over a debt dispute. That just shows that Russia is very willing to use its control over the gas supply to threaten other countries.

REICHARD: How would Germany use Nord Stream 2 as a bargaining chip?

SCHMITT: For a while it seemed that Germans were reluctant to bring Nord Stream 2 into the equation, but last Thursday U.S. State Department officials met with German counterparts in Berlin. Afterward both sides agreed to put the brakes on Nord Stream 2 if Russia invaded Ukraine.

REICHARD: Well, even without putting Nord Stream 2 into the mix, it seems that Europe’s dependence on Russian gas puts it in quite a precarious position.

SCHMITT: Well, it does. U.S. and European leaders have been very busy trying to ensure Europe would have enough natural gas stores to weather shortages if Russia cuts flow to Europe. Washington has asked Qatar and other major gas producers to provide extra supply or to divert shipments already en route to Asia.

Even so, it would certainly put the whole of Europe in a very difficult situation. We need to remember that this is happening in January and February, and that there’s already an ongoing energy crisis and a global shortage of oil and gas. Some observers say that that’s exactly why Putin is creating this crisis now.

It’s also important to note that Putin has pushed Europe into a crisis at a time when its three big political powers—France, Germany, and the U.K.—are undergoing a shift or crisis in leadership: Germany’s new government is just getting going after 14 years of Angela Merkel. France’s attention is turned to its upcoming presidential elections. And U.K. prime minister Boris Johnson is currently under fire for flouting Covid lockdown rules.

And then on Friday, the United States and the EU issued a joint statement on energy security. That at least shows that they’re working to present a united front.

REICHARD: Jenny, I thought Germany had made great strides towards renewable energy? No?

SCHMITT: Germany has made great promises towards renewable energy. Since 20-10 the country’s energy policy has been Energiewende which means “Energy Turnaround.” Phasing out coal and nuclear power, and moving toward renewable sources like wind, solar, hydroelectric, and biomass. And production in those sectors has risen dramatically over the past 15 years.

Natural gas, because it's supposed to be cleaner and safer, is meant to be just a step on the way.

I think this whole situation underlines that past political decisions are now affecting security decisions. In a crisis like this one, we’re reminded to think about where our power comes from and who has control over it.

REICHARD: You say this is a problem for all of Europe. But some countries are less dependent on Russian energy, I take it?

SCHMITT: Yes, France gets over 70 percent of its electricity from nuclear power plants. President Emmanuel Macron wants to increase its nuclear power production. Last November, he said the country needs more reactors in order to guarantee the nation’s energy independence.

REICHARD: Jenny, let’s talk about where you live, there in Switzerland. What about its energy source?

SCHMITT: The majority of Swiss electricity is hydroelectric, with another third nuclear, but when there’s a shortage, Switzerland buys power from neighboring countries, including France and Germany. So even though we’re in a somewhat better position, if there were a disruption we would definitely feel the consequences.

REICHARD: And what are you hearing people talking about all this on the street, in cafes?

SCHMITT: Ukraine feels very distant to the people where I live here in Switzerland. What people pay attention to is the price of gas. What hits their wallet. It’s currently around $7 per gallon in France, and $7.50 in Germany. You may remember that the big social protests in France started in 2019 when gas prices hit $5.00 a gallon.

REICHARD: A 40% increase. Wow. Well, we’ll continue to monitor this.

Jenny Lind Schmitt is WORLD’s European Correspondent based in Porrentruy, Switzerland. Thank you, Jenny.

SCHMITT: You are very welcome, Mary.

NICK EICHER, HOST: You’ve heard about the winter weather gripping the country—it is February, after all.

Well, a classroom of kindergartners in Tampa got to meet a snowman for the very first time.

Yes, Tampa, Florida.

No, the noreaster didn’t swoop that far south

But a UPS delivery driver did.

Kindergarten teacher Robin Hughes found out that only two of her students had ever gotten their hands on real snow. So she called her sister in Kentucky and said, would you head out in the backyard and build a snowman and then ship him down here.

Well, Amber Estes went along with the plan. Here she is talking with TV station WLEX:

ESTES: We put him inside the packaging. We wrapped him up in that foil. We put ice packs in. We sealed him up. There was styrofoam around the box.

The kindergartners got to open the box and meet “Lucky” the snowman. The teacher said the reaction was just pure joy.

Now, today’s high in Tampa is going to be 75—so Lucky in his current form, he’s not going to last.

Not as a snowman, so the next class project is to use the melted snow to water a plant.

It’s The World and Everything in It.

MARY REICHARD, HOST: Today is Tuesday, February 1st. Thank you for turning to WORLD Radio to begin your day.

Good morning. I’m Mary Reichard.

NICK EICHER, HOST: And I’m Nick Eicher. Next up on The World and Everything in It: our Classic Book of the Month.

Perhaps you’ve not heard of author and Christian poet Phillis Wheatley. WORLD reviewer Emily Whitten says Wheatley’s work is well worth savoring during this Black History Month.

CLIP: Twas not long since I left my native shores, Land of errors and Egyptian gloom, Father of mercy, twas thy gracious hand brought be safely from those dark abodes…

EMILY WHITTEN, REPORTER: That’s an actress reciting Phillis Wheatley’s poetry in a 2019 film by Peter Galison. Wheatley speaks there of being captured by African slave traders and sold as a house slave in Boston, Massachusetts before the Revolutionary War. Here’s Harvard professor, Henry Louis Gates, Jr.

CLIP: John and Susannah Wheatley—he’s a tailor. So, they need a house servant. They go down, there’s a slave ship that arrives. There’s one little child, probably about 7 or 8 judging from the loss of her teeth. And Susannah Wheatley buys her. And names her Phillis after the name of the slave ship that brought her to Boston…

Thankfully, Wheatley’s Christian owners broke with tradition, teaching her to read and write. She soon began to write her own poetry. Many readers first heard her name around 1770, after the death of George Whitefield. She wrote a eulogy for him printed in her hometown of Boston and other cities.

ELLIS: She presented a major challenge to the popular thinking of the day that Africans were ontologically and intellectually inferior to Europeans. 

That’s Karen Ellis of the Edmiston Center for the Study of the Bible and Ethnicity. She says readers of the day struggled to believe a black woman could write such beautiful poetry.

ELLIS: She was translating the Bible and the Greek classics into English as well. The concept of  'genius in bondage' which Vince Carretta talks about it and it's an apt title for his biography on her life...

At just 20 years old, Wheatley traveled to England where she gained patrons to publish her poems in book form. Soon after, Wheatley’s owners emancipated her, and in 1774, she published our Classic Book of the Month, Poems on Various Subjects, Religious and Moral.

CLIP: Students, to you tis given to scan the heights above. To traverse the ethereal space and mark the systems of revolving worlds. Improve your privileges while they stay, ye pupils. And each hour redeem that bears or good or bad report of you to heaven. Let sin, that baneful evil to the soul, by you be shunned, nor once remit your guard.

It was the first book of poetry by an African American, and she became arguably the first significant American writer of African origin.

Wheatley often modeled her poetry on the neoclassical style of Alexander Pope, so modern readers may find her work hard to get into. But Christian readers will appreciate her gospel-centered content.

ELLIS: The way that she uses the language and the way that she appeals to our common humanity in her letters, and even her eulogies. She just understands the weight and the importance of the story of the Bible. That it's a reality. It's not a story.

Here’s Ellis reading an excerpt of Wheatley’s poem on Isaiah 63.

ELLIS: “Mine was the act," th' Almighty Saviour said,
And shook the dazzling glories of his head,
"When all forsook I trod the press alone,
"And conquer'd by omnipotence my own;
"For man's release sustain'd the pond'rous load
"For man the wrath of an immortal God:
"To execute th' Eternal's dread command
"My soul I sacrific'd with willing hand;
"Sinless I stood before the avenging frown,
"Atoning thus for vices not my own."

In Wheatley’s day, many abolitionists pointed to her work to argue for the full humanity of black people. But some like Thomas Jefferson downplayed her work and her faith. He wrote, “Religion, indeed, has produced a Phillis Wheatley, but it could not produce a poet.” In other words, he dismissed her poetry as merely religious, not matching the real genius of white poets. Such criticism made it harder for Phillis to publish more poems, adding to her financial struggles. Sadly, many academics today dismiss Wheatley as being “too white.”

Ellis points out that throughout history, many Christians have experienced marginalization. But Wheatley displays a different kind of power.

ELLIS: There's no rejection that we can experience as Christians that we can't look at the Lord and say, You don't understand what I'm going through. Because He knows. He endured every rejection. That means that if there is a cross for you, there is also a resurrection. And there is also Pentecost. And with Pentecost, there's power, and with power, there's glory ahead.

Wheatley died in poverty at the age of 31, abandoned by many friends and possibly her husband. But her book of poems continues to enrich readers today, especially those who treasure Christ as she did.

I recommend Christian homeschoolers and teachers include Wheatley in their poetry or American history studies. The rest of us might take a little time to memorize one of her poems this month, to honor her work and draw closer to her “omnipotent,” “atoning” God.

I’m Emily Whitten.

MARY REICHARD, HOST: Today is Tuesday, February 1st. Good morning! This is The World and Everything in It from listener-supported WORLD Radio. I’m Mary Reichard.

NICK EICHER, HOST: And I’m Nick Eicher. Let’s join WORLD commentator Steve West for a time of quiet reflection.

STEVE WEST, COMMENTATOR: This morning I opened the window in my office just an inch or so to better hear the rain tapping on the shingles, dribbling down the tree. Its steady percussion a soothing music that seeps into my room.

In my personal worship time, I’m reading a Bible passage and writing facts, lessons, and applications in a journal my daughter bought for me in South Africa. Round, full letters spill across the page. “See what large letters I write to you as I use my own hand,” the Apostle Paul wrote in Galatians. So I too make my mark, blue the page with tilting print that marches across the lines.

The rain has stopped. But it left a sheen on the bark of the maple outside my window. Beads of water cling to its branches. The wind lifts what leaves hang on. Periodically one lets go, and sashays on air currents to the littered ground below to await what’s next.

To help prompt worship, I’ve been using the classic devotional by the early 20th century Bible teacher Oswald Chambers, My Utmost for His Highest. In a recent entry he wrote, “We have to enter into His Kingdom through the door of destitution.” His words stretch across time and space. I imagine him writing them in a wooden Army barracks shack in a dusty desert camp near Cairo, Egypt. He served as a YMCA chaplain for men guarding the Suez Canal during WWI. The entry goes on: “The greatest blessing spiritually is the knowledge that we are destitute. We have to enter into His Kingdom through the door of destitution.”

Outside my windows it’s raining again. I lay down my pen and turn the pages of the journal back to August where I sense the heat of summer sizzle from the entries. August 22nd: “I need to pray God into all that I do.” August 7: “Pray about everything—never fear, but love.” And in the heat of July, there’s the fire of resolve: “Push back against the antichrist, against the spirit of the world, saying ‘Christ has overcome, Christ rules, Jesus is coming soon.’”

Destitute. These applications written in earnest in my journal mock me. So much is left undone.

I go back to Chambers, imagine entering the door to his room, closing the desert behind. The latch clicks, and he looks up at me. Our eyes meet. “We have to realize that we cannot earn or win anything from God; we have to receive it as a gift or do without it,” he offers softly. I hang my head.

A song is rising from the forest floor. Destitute leaves, decaying ever so slowly, quietly obey, do their work, with promise of the day they will rise again, be made new. I look down at the last two words in my journal, just written, the ink barely dry: “Christ alone.” There’s a very faint period after the words. It’s tentative, as if that phrase is pushing forward, awaiting more.

I’m Steve West.

NICK EICHER, HOST: Tomorrow: filling a high court vacancy. We’ll find out who President Biden might choose as replacement for retiring Justice Stephen Breyer.

And, reviving hymns. We’ll introduce you to two musical artists. They are working to renew traditional worship songs for the French-speaking church.

That and more tomorrow.

I’m Nick Eicher.

MARY REICHARD, HOST: And I’m Mary Reichard.

The World and Everything in It comes to you from WORLD Radio.

WORLD’s mission is biblically objective journalism that informs, educates, and inspires.

The Bible says: Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. (2 Cor 9:7 ESV)

Go now in grace and peace.

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