Point of View August 4, 2026 – Hour 2 : Reclaiming Boldness

[00:00:04] Across America Live, this is Point of View and now Liberty McCartney. You know it can be so easy sometimes in our Christian walk to feel stuck or to feel timid but we want to live boldly for Christ and so Megan Feverier is joining us right now to talk just about that.

[00:00:33] She's the author of several books and has experience in digital marketing and event management. She's the founder of This Day Ministry and she is joining us today to talk about her latest book, Reclaiming Boldness. It is a faith-centered devotional designed to help readers discover confident, grounded and active relationship with God. Megan, thank you so much for joining us on Point of View today. Thank you so much for having me. I'm so happy to be here. Well, I'm really excited to talk to you and first I would just love to hear more of your story.

[00:01:02] What inspired this book and brought you to this place in your life where you wanted to talk about Reclaiming Boldness? Yeah, well I think so often we just take so many steps back in our journeys whether it's, you know, we get comfortable in life or we just stop wanting to live and do the things that scare us.

[00:01:30] And I know I got to a point in my life where I was like, well, I'm comfortable where I'm at. So I don't need to take too many steps forward. You know, I have a good community. I have a good family. Everything is just, is good. And it struck me one day, I was like, well, why am I just going to settle for good when it can be great? Or why do I not want to just continue to step out of the boat more? And when that thought hit me, I was like, I'm not alone in this.

[00:01:57] There's other people out there that also feel this way, but they just don't know the steps to take to really execute that. And it's not that it's even that hard. So often we just don't realize that it can be as short and simple as doing something one each day that scares us. So that's what inspired it.

[00:02:23] I think that's so wise because, I mean, especially, you know, we're privileged to live in the United States of America. It can be easy to just get comfortable instead of pressing into what else God might be calling us to do. In your book, though, I saw a theme here where a lot of it has to do with connecting with other people and how they inspire us and can spur us on. And so one of the things that we know is affecting a lot of people today is loneliness and isolation.

[00:02:53] And one of the things you talk about that I think is so timely and can be so helpful for us today is connecting with people who might be different than us. So talk a little bit about why that matters. Community is such an important aspect of life. And like you just said, loneliness is a big part of culture today where and it really kind of started with the smartphone trend and doom scrolling.

[00:03:21] People think that they found their people through Instagram when truthfully, I always say to people that I mentor, people that I'm around, like, are they really your friend? Are they your friend on Instagram? Are they your friend on Instagram? Because there's a total difference in that in-person connection and then the digital connection. But when you get with people, when you're surrounded by people, your mental health is better.

[00:03:51] You can share or discover that you're probably dealing with the same problem. Everybody is probably dealing with an issue at work that they can't figure out exactly how to resolve. But usually by the end of the week or by the end of the month, it'll come to an end in some way, shape, or form. But when you're around those other people, you build those connections, you build those lasting friendships and that support system.

[00:04:19] We were made to be together. I always take it back to Genesis. You know, God didn't create man to be alone. He created Eve to go with Adam. So we were created and built to be in community. Noah wasn't alone on the ark. He had his family with him. So we were always built for people. Yeah. Yeah, that's so good.

[00:04:43] And something you said, I think is so insightful, is that when we are on these online platforms, we think that we find our people or our community. Like you can find a lot of people who are like minded online. But you remind us, here's a quote from your devotional. Life in community isn't always easy. But so much of that natural friction and pushback and just dealing with the messiness of life is kind of lost when it's all online.

[00:05:11] So I'd love for you to expound on that a little bit and why that might actually be good for us to lean into like some of those uncomfortable moments in community. Yeah. Yeah. Well, when you are with people, one of my close friends and mentors said this to me one time, and she said, she's like, man, your people will be with you in the best moments. And then they'll also see the worst moments. Mm hmm. Mm hmm. And that can be hard.

[00:05:39] Like you have to get to a vulnerable place to have people want to walk with you in times when you know you're not agree with people that you're in the room with. But it's important to share those messy moments in life with people. When you're not able to share those moments, then you kind of all bottle it up inside you.

[00:06:05] And that gets harder if we weren't meant to, again, handle it alone. And I know that there's been times in my personal journey when, thankfully, my community has come alongside me and they've been able to say the hard things like, hey, Megan, you have to snap out of it. You like we're going we're going to go share a meal. And by the end of this meal, we're going to be good. And usually we are. A lot of problems can be solved around the table.

[00:06:36] So it's all in how you get in the dirt with your people. Hmm. Yeah. Getting in the dirt. I like that. And so one of the things that I appreciate in your devotional is that you have these reflection questions, but also an application, which you call an adventure. So we've been talking about loneliness and we're going to go to a break in about a minute and a half. But just quickly, like some steps for people to take if they want to work on building that in person community.

[00:07:03] Yeah. My number one step is if you are a believer and if you attend a church, get in a community group at that church. Because most people are in those. These are in the exact same spot that we're all in. We want friends. Nobody joins them because they have an overabundance of friends. Everybody's in them because they want friends.

[00:07:23] And if you aren't a church going individual, there is a ton of local community groups that you can get involved in in your local community to just search them, Google them. They're out there. Yeah, absolutely. Well, we're talking with Megan Fever Year. We're going to go to a break here in just a moment. But when we come back, we'll continue talking with her because I want to keep talking about the themes in her book, Reclaiming Boldness.

[00:07:48] And even reaching out like she just recommended to join a community group or join a local group in your area to meet people in real life. That can be kind of scary. I actually went to a devotional today with some ladies in my church and it meets at a local coffee shop. And they were going around the table talking about how they came to that Bible study. And one of the ladies said that she walked into the coffee shop, saw some people talking and said, hey, do you have a Bible study here?

[00:08:17] And they said, yeah, we do. Do you want to join? And now she has a group of friends that she meets with every single week. And so sometimes it can be that simple of just asking a question or on the other end, extending an invite. And I think people are hungry to connect. And so I so appreciate you bringing that up, Megan. But we're about to go to a break. Don't go anywhere because we have more to discuss with Megan and on Point of View today. We'll be right back.

[00:09:00] This is Viewpoints with Kirby Anderson. Most people know that the Strait of Hormuz is a strategic choke point, but many others that we forget about need protection. Jim Garrity documents the danger in his article, Straight Talk, the Threat to the World's Waterways. There's also the Bab-Al-Mamdeeb Strait, which is the Red Sea Maritime choke point. It has become the biggest export route for Saudi Arabian oil since the closure of the Strait of Hormuz.

[00:09:30] Four other key waterways are the Straits of Malacca between Malaysia and Indonesia, the Suez Canal in Egypt, the Strait of Gibraltar between Spain and Morocco, and the Panama Canal. In the past, the U.S. Navy has been controlling the world to guarantee the freedom of the seas and freedom of navigation for all nations. Jim Garrity says under America First, we negotiate a deal to ensure our ships travel through these choke points, but leave the rest of the world to figure out how to protect their own ships.

[00:09:57] As I've mentioned in previous commentaries, the crisis at the Strait of Hormuz has precipitated an oil crisis, a fertilizer crisis, which will ultimately be a food crisis. Pirates and terrorists are seeing how one country can hold the world hostage and are looking to use other choke points to advance their economic or political agenda. They're also seeing how such disruptions can be facilitated by using relatively inexpensive drones.

[00:10:22] Purchase several drones, fire them at cargo ships, watch prices soar, then list your demands. This is why defense contractors are feverishly working to develop anti-drone technologies and signal jammers. Threatening choke points on the world's waterways has become a new phase of warfare. I'm Kirby Anderson, and that's my point of view.

[00:10:49] Go deeper on topics like you just heard by visiting pointofview.net. That's pointofview.net. You're listening to Point of View, your listener-supported source for truth. All right, still talking with Megan Feverier about her latest devotional, Reclaiming Boldness. Megan, a minute ago you said something that I actually had wanted to ask you about, and you were talking about how many problems can be solved around the table.

[00:11:18] And so this is a quote from your book, which I just loved. If Jesus chose to meet people through meals and shared moments, perhaps the table is not an interruption but the ministry itself. And that made me think about how busy our modern lives are. Like, I don't even know how many families sit around the dinner table once a day anymore. And yet, I think you make a really important point about that act of sharing a meal. So I'd love to hear you talk about that.

[00:11:46] Yeah, well, growing up, we always had dinner around the table, me and my family. So to me, I just thought that it was common knowledge that everybody had dinner around the table. And it wasn't until I went to college that I quickly realized, oh my goodness, not everybody grew up the way I did.

[00:12:06] So I was so thankful for that upbringing that my parents, even if my dad had to work late or however their schedules, it like you set aside 30 or 40 minutes and you had a meal around the table.

[00:12:22] And during that time, I would see it brought before my very eyes that, hey, like there may be this issue or, and I may not have understood it because I was a child, but I could see how, you know, we're going to just lay it aside. We're going to be grateful for what's in front of us, which was at that moment our food, right, like our physical food. We were going to be grateful for that provision.

[00:12:51] And it's all going to get worked out. And truthfully, now looking back here almost 30 years later, I have a lifetime of a good round of meals around the table.

[00:13:06] And now, you know, when in my adult life, I've been able to gather my friends around the table and share Friendsgivings and different just daily meals, living independently. And I've seen where no matter what it is, whether somebody calls me and says, hey, like we're having just a tough day.

[00:13:34] As soon as you say, can I bring dinner to your house or let's go out to eat tonight and let's just talk, the atmosphere changes, the environment changes of their mind. There's a reset of a focus. And you level the playing field, so to speak. And something happens around the table.

[00:13:58] I think that's kind of why Jesus did so much of his ministry around tables and around meals because he knew everybody felt equal. Hmm. Hmm. That's really beautiful. And just the impact that had on you as a kid being raised that way. And man, what would happen if we just incorporated that more often? And, you know, my parents were good, too, about like having people over after church.

[00:14:27] You know, they would try to do that. And like we had a small church, but they would kind of go through everyone and like take turns inviting people over and just opening their home and sharing a meal. But this is one of the reflection questions you asked that's kind of related to that. And that is how has advancement hindered you from cultivating friendships? Because if we're going to invite someone to a meal or invite somebody over, then that takes time.

[00:14:53] And I just that really was kind of convicting for me, too, because like these these relationships and stepping out there like it requires boldness, but it also requires a sacrifice of time, doesn't it? Yeah, absolutely. And honestly, you know, time is the one thing that people can't seem to get any more, any any any time these days. You can't seem to find the time or everybody wishes for more than 24 hours in a day.

[00:15:23] Hmm. But truthfully, to say, hey, I'm I would love to have lunch with you. That's probably going to take one time to either get there or time to if you're having them over at your house, you know, you got to prepare the food or go get the food. They have to come. There's all these different logistical things. So there's a slight inconvenience. Right.

[00:15:49] And it's trying to get around the inconveniences and remember, hey, you know, like God gave me this amount of time today. And what I get done in this moment is what is supposed to be done.

[00:16:05] And it's giving yourself enough grace, but knowing that the person that you're supposed to be with or you're supposed to share that time with is supposed to be there and equally important to be to be held in that in that situation. Yeah, that's so true. Yeah, that's so true. I mean, how many times I know for myself, like and I imagine for others to maybe like we're busy and it's because it's something good.

[00:16:33] It's like it's related to your job or maybe even a ministry thing, like a church thing. And it's like, I'm sorry, I don't have time to talk to you right now. And it's like, wait, God probably put that person in front of me for a reason. And I'm thinking I'm off doing something important. But, you know, I could have engaged with that person and just slowed down time to get around the inconvenience. That's a great quote. That's so good. But I also wanted to talk to you about maybe some of the hard seasons.

[00:17:00] And so you mentioned like stepping out of our comfort zone and living in boldness and stepping forward into what God has for us. And even if we're inconvenienced along the way. But I know we all have seasons that are difficult or we have disappointment or tragedy or doubt. And so it can be really hard to try to discern what God has for us when we're walking through those kinds of seasons. So I would love to hear any encouragement you have to offer on that as well.

[00:17:29] Well, a hard season come to everybody. And if you're not walking through a hard season right now, one, be thankful. And two, brace yourself because you're probably getting up to one. Yeah. But when you're kind of walking through those hard seasons, just it's always good to find time to be still.

[00:17:56] And if you are a person of faith, listen for God's voice. And if you are, I know like there's a heavy influx coming into Christian culture and people are experiencing revival in their hearts, which is so incredible.

[00:18:15] But if you still have not, you know, figured out really what faith is and you are walking through a hard season, just take time to be quiet because God very well could be nudging on your heart. But it's taking that time, being still and listening because so often our phones are going off.

[00:18:40] We're probably getting three or four calls at one time or text messages are lighting up. We're getting emails so much. So take time to just get quiet. And that can maybe just mean you just sit outside in nature or you sit and journal, whatever that looks like. But those hard seasons will come.

[00:19:09] And then coming out of those hard seasons are always so beautiful when we discern what God has been saying to us. Yeah, I love that. And that is sometimes a bold move or an uncomfortable move for a lot of people when we haven't allowed ourselves to just be still. And maybe something inside of us knows that we haven't allowed ourselves to sit there and be still. But that is where we encounter the Holy Spirit, I think.

[00:19:37] I were winding down here, but I would love to just hear again your heart. When people read your book, Reclaiming Boldness or encounter the other aspects of your ministry, what's what's your heart for them? What do you want them to take away? Yeah, well, when people read the book, I just hope that one, they're encouraged to take that one bold step every day.

[00:19:58] I think definitely as a culture, we have seen the shift of, well, if it's scary, I'm not going to do it because what if this, this and this happens? And I totally get it. I know, you know, life is not the best to us when we take risks, but sometimes that's where the most rewarding part is. So I would just encourage people, make one bold step every day because you're going to see the fruit.

[00:20:27] And we want to live a life of good fruit. So just take that one bold step every day. Maybe it's sending the text message to somebody that you didn't, you haven't talked to in a while. Or maybe it's trying a new food because you want to be more adventurous with your eating.

[00:20:45] Whatever it may be, try that new thing every single day and take back the lie that the enemy has spoken over you that you can't live a life that is full. Yeah, so beautiful. Well, Megan Fever, thank you for joining us on Point of View today. It's been wonderful talking with you.

[00:21:06] If you would like to get a copy of Megan's book, Reclaiming Boldness, or check out any other aspect of her ministry, she has podcasts and blogs and articles that you can look at, then go to pointofview.net. We have the link to her website and you can see everything that she has to offer. Don't go anywhere because we're going to a break. But when we come back, I'm going to give you a little bit of a preview of what's coming up next on the Know Why podcast. Stay tuned.

[00:21:28] In 19th century London, two towering historical figures did battle, not with guns and bombs, but words and ideas. London was home to Karl Marx, the father of communism, and legendary Baptist preacher Charles Spurgeon. London was in many ways the center of the world, economically, militarily, and intellectually.

[00:21:57] Marx sought to destroy religion, the family, and everything the Bible supports. Spurgeon stood against him, warning of socialism's dangers. Spurgeon understood Christianity is not just religious truth. It is truth for all of life. Where do you find men with that kind of wisdom to stand against darkness today?

[00:22:17] Get the light you need on today's most pressing issues delivered to your inbox when you sign up for the Viewpoints Commentary at pointofview.net. Every weekday in less than two minutes, you'll learn how to be a person of light to stand against darkness in our time. It's free, so visit pointofview.net slash sign up right now. Pointofview.net slash sign up.

[00:22:49] Point of View will continue after this. You are listening to Point of View. The opinions expressed on Point of View do not necessarily reflect the views of the management or staff of this station. And now, here again, is Liberty McCarter.

[00:23:16] All right, so I promise this applies to what I'm going to talk about that's coming up on the Know Why podcast when the new episode comes out tomorrow. But I did promise that I would talk a little bit more about this whole issue of a digital twin or online replica. Because at the end of the last hour, I talked about this product, this trend of using artificial intelligence to create a grief bot or basically an image of somebody that has passed on.

[00:23:46] And how all it takes is a couple of seconds of a video of them, of their voice, some uploading of some things that they wrote for a chat bot to be able to generate a convincing video and image and writing that mimics that dead person. And we talked about the problems with that. But there are other areas where the so-called digital twin is being used as well. Case in point, this is an article from the New York Times.

[00:24:12] When his church goes dark, they talk to his digital twin. Yeah, this is a pastor. And so you can read the article at pointofview.net. This is a pastor, Justin Lester in California. And again, this is one New York Times profile. I don't know this man. I don't know his heart. It seems like he's trying to do a lot of good things and wants to use technology as a tool to accomplish that. But this is where we have to tell the truth.

[00:24:41] And I think we're missing the point in a big way. And I don't think it's just this pastor. I don't think it's just people who are using the grief bots, so to speak. I think this reveals a root sin in all of us. And I want to talk about that. But just for an example of some of the other ways that the so-called digital twin is being used.

[00:25:05] Now, again, this is where you upload your video of yourself or a recording of yourself and as much of your own writings or in the case of a pastor, sermons, et cetera, that you've written. And you try to customize a chatbot to be able to replicate you and your voice and your, you know, supposedly what you would say or think or do or suggest in a situation. Here's how much people are using those. This says,

[00:26:29] There's another man. Why not? That was this pastor's argument. He is reported here. The reporter was there when he introduced this to his congregation. And he said, It's a digital version of my mind. If I'm asleep or traveling, you don't have to wait. You can have 24 hour access, 24 seven access to this other version of me. Well, first of all, no, it's not his mind. It's not a digital version of his mind.

[00:26:55] Just because it has he's uploaded things that he's written or or said or spoken in the past. It's still not his mind. It's fundamentally different. It is a completely different kind of thing. And, you know, maybe the chatbot can generate answers to somebody's questions based on something that he has talked about before.

[00:27:43] But think about this. I've said in the past, here's all my data. Now upload that. And this is going to generate a response that's consistent with that. Now, maybe in some instances that might seem helpful, but it's not the same as actually talking to somebody's mind. So calling it a digital version of anybody's mind is is not even true. And so the way that he kind of couched this was actually inspiration from Paul, who said he called this cutting edge technology.

[00:28:10] I don't know if it was cutting edge, but it was just letter writing and how when he was imprisoned or unable to visit churches, he would write letters to, quote, extend his presence so his ideas could travel beyond his body. Again, that's completely different. That's fundamentally different because even in a letter, even in delayed communication, you are still the one that is actually coming up with the words, coming up with the language or in the case of Paul, inspired by the Holy Spirit.

[00:28:36] So it's not the same as extending your ministry digitally by creating a chatbot to do ministry for you. But what happened is, you know, why is this? And again, I don't know the motivations here. And so I don't want to come across as judgmental. But one of the things that he found is somebody who really advocates for technology and churches to implement the latest technology.

[00:28:58] His congregation was growing really fast and he began to travel every week to preach elsewhere or advise other church leaders on how to adapt AI into their church situations. And so here's what the article says. It was impossible to pastor hundreds of people with the same intimacy that he had before.

[00:29:19] And so this is why he wanted to create this so that he could continue to be available to answer questions to his congregants, even when he wasn't actually available for a conversation. Now, here is where I humbly suggest that I think this is a pride issue because and maybe we don't want to see it like that. But if you are growing as a church, I mean, good. There's a lot of churches that are dwindling.

[00:29:49] And yeah, congregants are needy. People are going through grief. They're experiencing these hard seasons. They have theological questions. You know, there's all kinds of reasons why somebody wants to talk to a pastor. And if you've ever served on a church staff or as a pastor, been in ministry, then you understand that. But if you're growing at that rate and you have a congregation that is hungry for connection and questions and they have those needs that pastors are supposed to be there to meet,

[00:30:15] then doesn't it make more sense to raise up more pastors to train other people in ministry to be able to extend the ministry to actually be the hands and feet of Jesus? That is what we are called to be as the church. Pastors aren't called to just be the one, you know, expert or oracle that everybody in their congregation can go to.

[00:30:39] Now, this is an interesting anecdote that after he released this, he actually had a young woman come up and shake his hand after the service. And then he saw her walk away and actually start chatting with his digital version on her phone as she was walking away from just having shook his hand. And he actually says, you know, I wonder why she didn't just come up and ask me the question that and here's the thing.

[00:31:07] He can actually see the questions that people ask, like he gets a report from the AI every morning of what what questions people are asking so he can see. Well, I think it's obvious. Like if you we've been talking about this, we just talked about it with Megan, too. If in this digital age that we're in, where people are really getting used to interacting with people online or interacting with chatbots, there's not a whole lot of the personal friction.

[00:31:31] So it can be a lot less intimidating to just talk with the digital version and feel like you're speaking with your pastor, even if you are intimidated to step out in boldness and actually ask your real life pastor a real question. But he kind of he kind of set that up. So here are some of the questions that people are asking. He would get these reports. He would see that engagement with the, quote, digital twin peaked at 11 p.m.

[00:31:59] And it's, you know, late night distress. People are having these questions late at night. There are, you know, questions about I think that I'm confused about my gender identity or my marriage is falling apart or how, you know, a married couple. How are we supposed to relate to each other? What are the biblical roles for husbands and wives or somebody needing encouragement because they're about to have heart surgery the next day? And so they're talking to the digital version of their pastor for care.

[00:32:28] And he goes through and says, you know, in these conversations with the digital twin, it responded how I would have. But it's just not the same. And so this is going to kind of take me into what I talk about on the Know Why podcast this week. Because I think so much of the root of all of our issues today, whether we're talking about AI or we're just talking about our personal lives, is that we don't want to acknowledge our own limitations.

[00:32:58] If we acknowledge our own limitations, then that means we can't actually do everything on our own. And we need God and we might need other people, too. And so people are talking about agentic AI where you can have AI agents, whether in the context of ministry or like, you know, in companies, in work where, oh, it can do so much stuff for me.

[00:33:21] And we're not really pausing to think, why are we wanting a tool that can make us feel like we're doing more than we could ever be capable of actually doing as an individual? Is it because of pride? Is it because we don't want to trust God? We don't want to build those relationships to train up other people or delegate responsibility? I think a lot of it does come down to pride and refusing to acknowledge our limits. Continue talking about that for a few more minutes when we get back from the short break.

[00:33:58] You're listening to Point of View, your listener-supported source for truth. Okay, how fun would it be to have a Point of View book club? I think we kind of already have one because Kirby has the opportunity to interview a lot of great authors, as do I when I get the chance to fill in for him. And so we already talk about so many great books at Point of View. And so those are always great recommendations for you if you're looking for another book to read.

[00:34:23] But most of the ones we talk about are nonfiction or devotional or, you know, something that's really going to make you think, I think we need a fiction book club, too. And I'm going to give you the first recommendation. So this is not a new book. And I took the liberty of talking about it on the Know Why podcast, which is going to come out tomorrow. So here's a little preview of what that episode will entail. But I read another C.S. Lewis book. You know, I grew up reading The Chronicles of Narnia. I was such a fan of C.S. Lewis.

[00:34:50] I've read some of his other great works as I've gotten older, like Mere Christianity and The Abolition of Man. But I had never read his space trilogy. And I had a lot of people, including Doug Smith, who has been on Point of View, tell me that I needed to read it. And they were saying, you know, C.S. Lewis wrote this book in or this trilogy in the 1940s. But the last book is really about artificial intelligence. It's like so crazy.

[00:35:20] And when you read The Abolition of Man, which is a nonfiction book by C.S. Lewis, it's actually adapted from a collection of speeches or essays, I think, that he did. He was he was very wise. He foresaw a lot of what was happening, not because he predicted the future. But I think he just had a really good tap on human nature and really understood it. And he understood our impulses and he understood where they would lead. And lo and behold, they have.

[00:35:44] So what I didn't realize was that the third book in C.S. Lewis's space trilogy, the title of the book is That Hideous Strength, is actually the fictional counterpart to his book The Abolition of Man. So if you've read The Abolition of Man and you haven't read That Hideous Strength, it's going to come together so well. But even if you haven't read The Abolition of Man, even if you haven't read the first two books in the space trilogy, you can read this one. Now, why am I talking about a C.S. Lewis sci-fi novel published in 1945?

[00:36:15] Well, I think it connects with what I was talking about just a minute ago. So I read this book. I was told that it was, you know, kind of very like very fast paced and, you know, sci-fi and fantasy and a little bit creepy because it's really, you know, kind of predicting a lot of things that we're seeing unfolding now. And I opened the book and I start reading it and it's about marriage. And I did not expect that.

[00:36:41] And I was like, OK, this is just kind of setting it up like, you know, we're going to learn about, you know, this grow on this great adventure, this sci-fi adventure through the POV of Jane and Mark, who are the married couple at the center of the story. And the theme of marriage kept reemerging throughout because, yes, there is a married couple at the center of the plot.

[00:37:03] They both go on their separate journeys, but it keeps coming back to their marriage, which is not great in the story. And I was kind of annoyed. I was like, why is Lewis harping on this? Why is he harping on like their attitudes toward each other? This is sci-fi. Like, I want to get to the interesting stuff. But what I realized is that there was a reason that he was focusing on that. And it all gets back to pride.

[00:37:29] So not any spoilers, just kind of understanding the basic characters here. You have Jane, the wife, that is the main character. She eventually realizes, and it's pretty evident, you see it pretty early on, that she has been too attached to her freedom or her perceived freedom in her mind to be able to fully give herself. She has been too attached to her marriage. And that is the problem that we see today. So much so.

[00:37:57] In fact, on a break just a minute ago, I was looking at X. And there is now another viral post going around that is encouraging young men not to get married in their 20s because they will lose their freedom. And if you do that, you'll be miserable. Never mind that there's so much data talking about how much married men are actually happier and healthier and things like that and married people in general. But specifically, and we've seen this messaging toward young women, too, like don't get married. Don't commit. Don't settle down. It'll make you unhappy. It'll make you miserable. You'll lose your freedom.

[00:38:25] Well, that's not a new message. We also see in the counterpart, we see the husband here in Lewis's novel who is very much using people. He's using people, even his wife, as a means to his own end as a version of self-promotion.

[00:38:42] At the point, the core of both of those problems, though, is a kind of self-worship where you're not willing to actually love sacrificially or really love somebody else for their own sake outside of what you might gain in the process. And that's a form of pride. And so let's expand a little bit and talk about kind of what else happens in the story. You have something that really happened at the Tower of Babel, and I think we're seeing it in Silicon Valley today.

[00:39:12] But in That Hideous Strength, in the novel that Lewis wrote, it's called Bellberry. And it's that kind of the central location where this new institution is trying to rebuild the world essentially on their own terms. And what I realized as I was reading this book is that at pride, which historically Christians have called it the queen of vices, like this is the root sin. It's a rebellion against the order that God created. It's a rebellion saying we know better.

[00:39:42] We don't want to live within the authority of creation that God has ordained. We want to create our own version of life in the world and do things in such a manner that we can control them. Everything from how we view intelligence and how we want to solve the problem of aging to how we even procreate.

[00:40:05] So it's interesting that a lot of the things that the bad guys in That Hideous Strength propose in terms of living, this is a quote, with make our brains live with less and less body. Learn how to reproduce ourselves without copulation. Sounds kind of weird. Probably sounded weird in 1945.

[00:40:27] But today you have Sam Altman, the OpenAI CEO and many others in Silicon Valley who have paid $10,000 worth of down payment to Netcom, which is a company that is researching how to upload your mind to the cloud. And Sam Altman has said, I assume my brain will be uploaded to the cloud. Now, that's a very extreme version of transhumanism, which is the merging of biology with technology.

[00:40:49] But there are many people who are advocating for that as some sort of solution to the problem of aging and death in the natural world. We also see eugenics emerging again with people intentionally using IVF, not as a fertility treatment, but so that they can screen their embryos and only implant the best ones. And we actually have people who are leading these companies saying this is the way that children will be brought into the world in the future. So once again, we see this.

[00:41:18] And why? It all sounds very sci-fi, you know, very fantastical and very strange. But I think it goes back to that root of we want to remake the world and creation and life on our own terms. We don't want to accept the world that God has created, because if we do that, we're going to have to accept God. And we're going to have to accept that he does demand something of us. He demands our loyalty in our heart. This is a great quote from Paul King's North.

[00:41:47] He wrote a book that came out last fall called Against the Machine, and it really has stuck with me. He says, because of all the technology that we have, we seek openly now to become the gods we always wanted to be using technology as the force which will get us there.

[00:42:01] So to bring this back to marriage, which is kind of where the book ends, and I won't give any more details so as to avoid spoilers, is that whether we are wanting to create an alternate reality where we can somehow escape biology or whether we are wanting to just escape familial commitments and our responsibility to other individuals who are made in the image of God, at the root of it is pride.

[00:42:27] And I think that that's why Lewis couched this really fascinating sci-fi kind of science fantasy novel and tied this bow at the beginning and end, talking about marriage and sacrificial love. If we submit to God and the order that he has created, we will flourish and be so happy. The more we rebel against that because of our pride, which is what's been going on since the Garden of Eden, we're actually not happy and we won't ultimately succeed. But we're out of time for today.

[00:42:56] Thank you so much for listening to Point of View today. Thanks, Megan, for engineering the show and Derek for producing the show. Kirby will be with you tomorrow. Dr. Matthews on Thursday, and I'll be back on Friday for the weekend edition. So thanks for listening to Point of View. The Bible tells us not to worry. And yet there is a lot of worrying stuff in our world today. Thankfully, the Bible doesn't stop at telling us not to worry.

[00:43:26] God gives us a next step. He says we need to pray. But sometimes even knowing what to pray can be difficult. And that is why Point of View has relaunched our Pray for America movement, a series of weekly emails to guide you in prayer for our nation. Each week, you'll receive a brief update about a current issue affecting Americans, along with a written prayer that you can easily share with others.

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[00:44:23] Let's pray together for God to make a difference in America. Point of View is produced by Point of View Ministries.