- [Announcer] This is CBN Newswatch.
- And thank you so much for joining us
for this special edition ofCBN Newswatch as we continue
with our theme healing the divide.
I'm Efrem Graham.
Political divisions aregrowing wider across America.
One author says it's givingbirth to a new age of outrage.
In a book, Ed Stetzerencourages Christians
to bring their best whenthe world is at its worst.
Charlene Aaron has this story.
- [Charlene] Signs ofincivility and outrage abound.
- [Crowd] Be survivors.
- [Charlene] From our nation'scapital where protestors,
angry over the Kavanaughconfirmation process,
jam Senate hallways andinterrupted CBN News' coverage
of the demonstrations.
- Well today has beenone of the rowdiest days
during the hearing both insidethe hearing room and outside.
The hearing began with the first hour.
It was just very intensebetween the senators.
- [Charlene] Too collegecampuses where last year,
rioters virtually took over Berkeley
because they wanted to stop a commentator
from the conservative right barred website
from speaking on campus.- Seems that we're in a time
when people are increasinglyat odds with one another
and it's an outrageoustime with a lot of anger.
- In his new book, Christiansin the Age of Outrage,
speaker and author Ed Stetzer points out
our country's deepdivisions hoping the church
can bring about healingbut before that can happen,
he says the church most focus on itself.
- I think one of the thingsthat has been important
to note in the last few years is that
that sometimes the political divisions
has actually gotten into the church
in a way that maybe it hasn't in the past.
- Stetzer says Christians cancounter the growing outrage
we see in our culture today simply
by exercising greaterspiritual discipline.
- My desire is we mightact in love and listen
and speak more like Jesuswould in these situations.
- [Charlene] Stetzer whois also the Billy Graham
distinguished chair of church, mission,
and evangelism at Wheaton College,
an executive director ofthe Billy Graham Center,
says social media is abig part of the problem.
He says Christians can hurt their witness
by not properly engagingdebates on hot topic issues
such as gay marriage or politics.
He offers a road map tonavigating online conversations.
- We can be in an evangelical echo chamber
where everyone sort of thinks like we do
and then we're shocked to find out
people have a differentworldview and they do
and we actually found in our research
that evangelicals arevery likely to mute people
or block people who disagree with them
and so you're neverhearing different views.
So we have almost an undiscipled approach
to social media that'salienating our neighbors
and building sometimes even divisions
between Christians andwhat we're calling for
in Christians of the Age ofOutrage is a change to that,
a more thoughtful, biblical,spirit filled approach
that ultimately engagesculture more effectively.
- [Charlene] He goes on toencourage evangelicals Christians
to model the message of the gospel.
- And so the question iswe have to make choices.
How do we speak up for what's right,
but also how do we showand share the love of Jesus
in the midst of the brokenness?
And I think our research shows
that people are sayingwe've gotta see a shift
in the way we ultimately engage culture.
The division is not helping anybody
and the long term harmingthe witness of the gospel.
- [Charlene] He saysthe best way to do that
is through proper discipleship.
- I actually used tolisten to a political show,
but I found that I couldn't pray
for the president at the timeand listen to that person
because I got so riled upand so what I had to do is
in my own discipleship,through spiritual discipline,
I had to say that's shapingme in a way that leads me away
from what actually thebible calls me to do.
So I quit listening to that program,
kept praying for that president,
kept speaking up aboutthings that mattered to me,
but I was more discipled by my bible
and in the promptings ofthe holy spirit than I was
by the radio program or today it might be
the cable news program that I'm watching.
- [Charlene] Meanwhilein this current culture,
Stetzer challenges Christiansto intentionally live in a way
that makes the gospel more appealing.
- I don't know that Christians can solve
all the outrage issues.
I think the culture has just gone.
Its turned up the volume to 11,
and it's just going all in on the outrage.
So what I would say is we need
to show a counterculture message.
The gospel's always beencounter cultural, right.
Its always shown a different way.
When the world's running this way,
the scriptures teach you a different way.
Jesus calls us to a better way.
So I think the betterway is not to join in
and turn up the outrage volume,
but instead to enter in all on mission.
- [Charlene] Charlene Aaron,CBN News, Wheaton, Illinois.
- [Man] There's not only apolitical divide in our country,
there's a racial divide as well.
Coming up how two churches,one largely black,
one largely white come together.
(bright music)
- The author in our last segment said
that Christians need to lead the way
if we're ever going to seehealing in this age of outrage.
That is certainly true ofthe racial divide as well.
Now we first broughtyou this story in 2016,
not long after violentprotest rocked the city
of Charlotte, North Carolina.
Here again is Charlene Aaron.
- [Charlene] NorthCarolina's Refuge Church
and House of Refuge came up with a plan
to help change Charlotte's reputation
from one of racial unrestto one of brotherly love.
Pastors Jay Stewart and DerrickHawkins felt the best way
to bring blacks and whitestogether started with worship.
The result.
This first service of thenewly blended Refuge Church.
Pastor Stewart leads the main campus
of the multi site church.
- And the cry of our hearthas always been for revival
and the Lord cannot bring the outpouring
of his holy spirit unlessthere's real unity.
- [Charlene] Hawkinspastors the 200 member
House of Refuge in Greensboro,
which recently joined the larger group.
Two years ago when Hawkins became pastor,
he reached out to Stewart for advice.
After a series of meetings,
the two men explored thepossibility of becoming one church.
- Nobody was looking for a merger.
I just wanted to help this church
in Greensboro to transition well
and so we were meeting on a regular basis
and a year ago which was November of 2015
while we were meeting Ifelt strongly prompted
by the holy spirit to ask them a question.
Have you ever had conversations
about becoming a campus of The Refuge.
- We would have meetingsand talk about racism
and what we both had to endure coming up.
He would share his stories.
I would share my stories.
- The pastors here at The Refuge say
that the announcementabout their merger came
just two days beforeviolent protests erupted
in the city of Charlotte, North Carolina
after an African American man was killed
at the hands of police.
- When I was sitting in myhome watching the news coverage
of what was happening in Charlotte,
that God wanted to write a better story.
That God set the timing of this merger.
- I know that African Americancommunity are hurting.
They're crying out.
We just wanted to be avoice, a vehicle of change
in our own city, in ourcommunity to say hey,
it doesn't have to be this way.
- [Charlene] BishopWilliam and Darlene Allen
are the founding membersof the House of Refuge.
During the process of appointingHawkins as new pastor,
the talks of a merger began.
- What this says to me is Godhas given us an opportunity
to let the baggage go and Ibelieve this merger is going
to present that opportunity for many of us
to heal from past hurt, all races.
- [Charlene] The plan to holdregular combined services
will help members get to know one another
and work toward racial healing.
- I just believe that whatwe're doing is so needed
to replicate what the Lord wants to do
in the kingdom of God.
- That's good.
There's a generationthat wants to be valued
and I just saw it as an opportunity
to say you matter toGod, you matter to us,
and God has a plan for your life.
- [Charlene] Members areexcited about working together.
- I think it just declares truth
in the midst of a lot of lies
that there is a church andshe is taking her place
and is committed to unity and love.
- With what we're goingthrough as a nation
and especially here in Charlotte,
I think that it just speaks of the unity
of the kingdom of God andjust gives us a real picture
of what heaven's gonna be like.
- [Charlene] Anthony White says seeing
blacks and whites worshipingtogether here is long overdue.
- Integration should never be forced.
It should be by lead bythe spirit of the Lord
and the church has anexample to model that today.
- [Charlene] Meanwhile PastorsStewart and Hawkins admit
that while comingtogether hasn't been easy,
the result is well worth it.
- We knew that the staffwas facing challenges.
Our church was facing challenges,
but we knew what God told us,
and we just stuck to what the Lord say,
what we felt like the holyspirit was leading us.
- There were people sitting in the wings
we know that our stillhoping that this fails.
- Yeah.
- That this doesn't work,for whatever reason,
but we know it's gonna work
because listen, we don'tsee black and white.
Under the blood ofJesus, everything's red.
- [Charlene] Charlene Aaron, CBN News,
Kannapolis, North Carolina.
- [Man] Still ahead, a USSenator who says our smartphones
and iPads are to blame for the toxic soup
of anger and isolation in our country.
- There's something wrong withAmerica and we all know it,
but what is causing our unhappiness,
anger, and toxic divisions?
Senator Ben Sasse believes our crisis
isn't really about politics,
it's about the isolationand loneliness caused
by all of our technology.
He writes about it ina new book called Them,
Why We Hate Each Other and How to Heal.
Take a look.
- Well joining me now isSenator Ben Sasse of Nebraska.
Senator, thank you somuch for being with us.
- Good to be here, John.
- We're here to talk about your book,
Them Why We Hate EachOther and How to Heal,
so I think we should probablystart off with the title.
Why do we hate each other?
- I think we're meantto be relational beings.
God created us to love our neighbor
and to be involved inprojects with other people
and unfortunately most of the good tribes,
the local tribes, the placesthat make people happy.
Do you have a family?
Do you have a few deep friendships?
Do you have meaningful work?
Do you have a church?
Do you have a local worshiping community?
All of those places arekind of being undermined
by the digital revolution.
So place is tied to whereyou're raising your kids.
Your deep friendships are about a place.
Your church is in a community.
Your work is usually toa specific geography.
As all those things getundermined, people are lonely.
I think there's aloneliness epidemic among us
and right now we're filling in,
a lot of Americans arefilling in political tribalism
as the sort of backupplan for failed tribes
that are going to these bad tribes,
which are political addictions,
and they tend to be anti-tribes.
What are you against ratherthan what you're for.
- How does social media factor in?
I think social media wasmeant to connect people,
but in many different ways it seems like
it's maybe having a reverse effect.
- I think so, too.
I think when social media is used
to augment relationships you already have,
it can be really great.
I'm relatively active on Twitter,
but I think of it as an audience
of a bunch of buddies I had from college
that we live in different geographies now
but we pray for each other's families.
We're raising our kids.
Separate from our other friends,
but we sometimes travel with them,
and we use social media asa way to stay connected.
When you're adding to relationships
that are already embodied,people that you know,
social media can be great.
If you're using socialmedia as a substitute
for knowing the person two doors down
from you in your neighborhood,it's a really bad thing,
'cause social media doesn't ultimately
give you lasting relationships.
- You just mentioned tribalism,
which factors into thefact that many people like
to associate with peoplewho think like they do
or look like them but that exposes
and sets us up for other problems
with building animosity and anger
and not just that butmisunderstanding of those
who don't share similar valuesor who don't look like us.
- I think that's true.
When you live in a community with people
you know them to be a whole person, right.
I have a lot of identities.
I'm a Christian, I'm a dad, I'm a husband,
I'm a Nebraska footballaddict, I'm a conservative.
- [Interviewer] We'll forgiveyou for that last one.
- Missouri's good at a lot of things,
but we can talk some football.
So, you got a whole bunchof different identities.
I serve in the senate for a time.
I'm a republican.
But you don't wanna get thoseidentities out of order.
You don't wanna warp it.
I love Husker football but if I use
my Cornhusker football addiction
as an excuse to neglect my kids,
there's something wrong with me.
I'm the dad before I'ma Husker football fan.
I'm a Christian before I'm a republican.
And one of the things thathappens on social media
is you tend to reduce peopleto the one conversation
you're having at thatmoment and a lot of people,
a lot of Christians arespending way too much time
doing sort of rage on social media
because you disagreewith somebody's politics.
Well that person you're yelling at
because you disagreeon legislative strategy
or legislative or policy priorities,
they're somebody createdin the image of God
and you're meant to lovethem as a whole person.
- How does that bode for you?
You continually talk about howyou identify as a Christian,
but when you see howpeople treat each other,
whether it's in person orwhether it's at rallies
or over social media andthey identify as Christians,
I mean how does thatcomport with your faith
and how you view living out your faith?
- Yeah, so I differ with democrats
on really important policy matters,
but my disagreement with a democrat
about whether or not the minimum wage
will actually help poorpeople, I don't think it will.
I think it'll cause a wholebunch of jobs to be lost
to automation if you raisethe minimum wage too high.
That's a debate thatpeople can reasonably have,
but that's not a coreidentity issue for me
and it shouldn't be for any Christian,
and so I wanna work really hard
to treat my neighborin a debate as somebody
who has an eternal souland that God created,
and that if I debate thisperson on a policy issue,
I wanna make sure it doesn'tcompromise my witness
to still love them asa person well outside
and well beyond thisparticular policy debate.
- I don't think you could'vesaid that any better.
What about the cable news networks?
We live in a 24 hour news cycle
and you see people on the right
and the left just kindof watching the networks
that kind of identifywith how they believe,
but how does that factorinto the atmosphere
in the environment we have today?
- Yeah, right now there are benefits
to modern technology to be clear.
There are a whole bunchof things that are great
about having access to 500 channels.
93% of American households now have access
to 500 or more channels.
In the 1950s, you had three channels
and you better hope you liked I Love Lucy
'cause 68% of households weregonna watch it every week.
So there are wonderful things about it.
Networks like yours get to exist.
There are a whole bunchof college football games
I can watch this Saturday with my kids.
I'm glad about that but thereis a danger that we end up
with these little tinysiloed fragmented audiences
where we only talk to other people
who already agree with us and we cease
to treat people like whole people.
We cease to try to persuade people
and we start to justthink let's use our time
in this one half of a 1% audience
to yell about the otherpeople that we're angry at
and not try to do justiceto their argument.
I think the ninth commandment,
thou shall not bear falsewitness against their neighbor,
is a pretty important commandment
for the way we consume our news.
- I think it's so easy to,perhaps the argument is,
it's so easy to stay in thosesegmented cloister society,
so what's the incentivefor people to reach out
and go beyond to doexactly what you're saying?
- Yeah I think we livein an interesting moment
because those incentivesdon't really yet exist,
and we're gonna need to buildthe new kinds of habits.
Habit and addiction arereally the same word.
It's just when we likeit, we call it a habit.
When we don't like it,we call it an addiction.
Right now we have a whole bunch of people
and it's bad for Americabut it's particularly bad
for Christians to be addicted
to a kind of angercentric news consumption,
which doesn't do anygood for your neighbor.
There's probably a little old lady
three or four doors downfrom you on your street
that has some unmet need today.
My wife and I are blessed.
We have a 17 year old daughter,
14 year old daughter, seven year old son.
Obviously our seven year old doesn't have
any kind of smartphone technologybut our teenage daughters,
in Nebraska you can drive at 14.
So our girls drive.
So they have a smartphone tohelp do their GPS navigation
but we realized thesmartphone can tempt them away
from human relationshipsto a digital online life.
Well, they need to lovetheir grandparents.
They need to love that widow
that lives four doors down from us.
There's an old guy on our blockwhose wife has Alzheimer's
and he's trying to care for her
and he's lonely and he has needs.
We should serve those real people,
not be down in our phones all the time.
- [Man] Still ahead, achurch in Dearborn, Michigan
reaching out to its Muslim neighbors.
Stay with us.
(bright music)
- Dearborn, Michigan is largely Muslim
and that's resulted in a religious divide
between Muslim andnon-Muslims who live there.
A Christian pastor has put his church
at the heart of thecity and is reaching out
to his community street bystreet, family by family.
Mark Martin has the story.
- Dearborn is known for being home
of the Ford Motor Company.
It's also home to one of the largest
Muslim populations in the country.
Drive around town andit's like your transported
to the Middle East.
Nearly half of Dearborn'spopulation is Muslim.
Out of the 90,000 residents,
approximately 40,000 practice Islam.
80% are Shia Muslims mainlyfrom Lebanon and Iraq.
20% are Sunnis mainly from Yemen.
- That makes this areathe largest concentration
of Arab Shia Muslims in the United States
and that mosque behind usis actually a Shia Mosque.
It's definitely the largest Shia Mosque
in the United States.
- [Mark] It's known as theIslamic Center of America.
John Koski views himself as
a Christian missionary to Muslims here.
He's also the associatepastor at Springwells Church,
an Assembly of God congregation led
by Pastor Trey Hancockand his wife, Becky.
The church sits less than 10 minutes away
from the Islamic Center of America
in the heart of a neighborhoodthat's 97% Muslim.
- Jesus says I want you here so we're here
and I mean what better placein the whole wide world
to find people that don'tknow Jesus that need him
and need what Jesus has to offer.
Right here we're not making it harder
for them to come to the Lord.
- [Mark] The church began meeting
in the Hancock's home in 2000.
More than a decade afterthe pastor and his family
first arrived in Dearbornto minister to Muslims.
Hancock says he heard the call of God
while in Dearborn receivingcultural training.
- And just walking and just praying.
Got down to about right here.
Right here at this very spotand the Lord spoke to me
and said if you're learnabout those people,
you got to live with them.
I thought whoa, that didn't come from me.
I knew who that was.
It was really clear.
It was really distinctand it was a prompting
from the holy spirit and I said okay Lord.
That step of faith has ledto a thriving ministry.
In addition to Sunday services,
church outreach includesdrama presentations,
a wrestling club, and Englishas a second language classes
which include learning bibleverses in Arabic and English.
- I think it's very effective
because we're reallybuilding relationships.
We're ministering to their felt needs
and one of the biggest needs is
to learn English as a second language.
- [Mark] Koski and otherslike Paul Shindlebeck
also take their ministry door to door.
- You say this is basedoff the truth of Jesus?
- [Man] Yeah, it's based on who Jesus was.
- Who Jesus was?
- [Man] Yeah, yeah.
- [Mark] Diane Berry serves through
a Christian Taekwondo ministry.
The former Muslim says Springwellsis making a difference.
- It's God.
It's all God.
It has to be.
And the supernatural protection as well.
You know you think about it.
And we're welcomed here by most
because it's a serving church.
- [Mark] Hancock is overjoyedwhen Muslims accept Jesus.
- It lights my fire, man.
When they say yes to Jesus,it's an amazing thing.
It's amazing thing, especiallyafter they get baptized
because that's when they're saying
to the world I belong to Jesus.
- Although rewarding,ministering in Dearborn
takes a lot of work.
Koski says it takes 30gospel presentations
for the average Muslim to accept Christ
and that's not the only tough part.
In ministering in this area,
spiritual warfare is definitely involved.
For example, Hancocksays in the last decade
more than a dozen churchesin the Dearborn area
have been sold to Muslimsand turned to Mosques.
Churches like this one.
You can see it's now theAmerican Muslim Center
and the cross has beenremoved from the steeple.
On this other former church,an Islamic House of Wisdom sign
has actually been placed overthe cross on the steeple.
Still, Hancock knows the Muslims
who purchased the churchesare not the enemy.
- I'm not fighting quote them,
'cause I want them to come to Jesus.
- [Mark] The pastor looks forward
to the day he learns manyMuslims have responded
to the gospel messagethrough his ministry.
- I hope when I'm standingin front of the Lord
that there's thousands standing behind me
that I had no idea that were listening.
- [Mark] He believes thereare more former Muslims
in Dearborn who believein Jesus than can say so
because they're afraid of each other,
and to the secretbeliever he has a message.
- Find somebody who knows Jesus.
Let them know what you're dealing with,
that you've said yes to the Lord,
even if you have questions.
Ask them to pray for you andallow Jesus to minister to you.
- [Mark] Mark Martin, CBNNews, Dearborn, Michigan.
- And thank you so much for watching
this edition of CBN News.
Goodbye everybody and God bless.
(bright music)
