The forth CEL interview highlights an insider’s view-- the story of former Orchard EFC member Trevor Myers. Specifically, Trevor shares how he--a previously committed Orchard EFC member with no intention of he and his family leaving the church eventually did leave. Trevor was well known and well loved by many at The Orchard and here he describes how he went about prayerfully and respectfully addressing these grave matter while an Orchard EFC member.

Why is there so much enthusiasm by so many people to celebrate non-heterosexual sexuality? For a whole month? It was June 11, 1999 that President Clinton proclaimed June as “Gay and Lesbian Pride Month.” President Obama changed it to “Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Pride Month” on May 31, 2011. Why do we even have it? Why are certain groups selected to have a day or a month dedicated to their recognition, celebration, honor, or just acknowledgment?

Thank goodness it’s over. June. Formerly known as the start of summer, it’s been the time for vacations, picnics, baseball, and beaches. Often, the beginning of air conditioning season. Then came “Pride Month.”

After many months of prayerful, private correspondences with leaders of The Orchard Evangelical Free Church (see the first article and video for more details here), a group of concerned Chicagoland pastors (who wished to keep this matter private) shared with The Orchard Evangelical Free Church (EFC) that due to the Orchard EFC leader’s unwillingness to meet and address these grievous concerns privately a more public approach would be pursued.

While the world wants to celebrate and extol “pride” this month, God's Word calls us to humility. In fact, we are warned against self-righteous and conceited pride.

The federal government’s Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) recently released its report on the behavioral health of “lesbian, gay, and bisexual” adults. In it they admit that those who identify as LGBTQ “are more likely than straight adults to use substances, experience mental health conditions including major depressive episodes, and experience serious thoughts of suicide.” Unfortunately, the authors of this report blame stress "caused by stigma, discrimination and harassment..." and ignore how engaging in unnatural, sinful sexual activities play a significant part in this mental health problem.

In a world where bad news in reporting is the norm, a single piece of good news can feel like a rainstorm in the desert. I recently came across an encouraging piece of news in the form of a YouTube channel called Dude Perfect, and it’s good timing for parents with the disappointing news about Mr. Beast.

If a woman decides to abort her child, but chooses to put the child up for adoption using an artificial womb, does that make it a pro-life decision? A challenging question to be sure. The very kind of issue that...

Politicians and government officials have debated about LGBT issues for quite some time now. Decades in fact. Bathroom and locker-room laws, "don't-ask-don't-tell" in the armed services, and whether or not to apply anti-discrimination laws to sexual orientation have all flashed across the national stage at various points in time. The decisions politicians and judges have made in situations like these have had far-reaching consequences for our nation.

Our culture deals with the pervasive sin of sexual immorality to the point where many people just view sex outside of marriage (in every way possible) as “normal.” It’s a serious problem, and the root of a lot of the current cultural chaos. At Illinois Family Institute’s 2023 Worldview Conference, Dr. John Diggs spoke on “The Consequences of Sexual Immorality.”

Ask a man how he is doing and frequently the answer will come back, “Stressed!” Our lives are filled with all kinds of pressures that can easily produce anxiety. Fathers are especially vulnerable to anxiety and worry. Amy and I have been blessed with seven children, and one grandchild. The eldest two are married, and the next two are in college. I find the pre-college time, the high school “launch years” to be especially stressful.

The city of St. Louis takes great delight in its "Pride" events. Every year, the midwestern metropolis hosts a "PrideFest," which has been dubbed one of the city's "signature events." As it attempts to draw awareness and support to the "historically marginalized" LGBTQQIA+ community, the fest is set to feature locally, nationally and internationally recognized performers, dancing and music, and a sizable collection of vendors, etc. ExploreStLouis.com explains, "it's a time when we can celebrate, support and uplift each other."

As was mentioned in a previous article, in 2021 perversion activists were successful in pressuring several local governments to either fly the perverted pride flag in June or pressure city councils to pass a Pride Resolution for the month of June. For three years the Arlington Heights city council has passed a resolution declaring June to be Pride Month. These resolutions have been signed by Mayor Tom Hayes who is a member in good standing of The Orchard Evangelical Free Church.

Propaganda has rather negative connotations. Because it is generally used in pursuit of an agenda, truth may be irrelevant or even an obstacle. Whether you agree with the terminology, it is considered propaganda when a country prepares its citizens and military for war. Because it is not generally acceptable to want to kill another person, the military mostly trains its soldiers to hate the enemy.

Sometimes our pro-life arguments can become overcomplicated by statistics, rabbit-trails, and long rebuttals to straw-man arguments from the other side. We want to defend the pro-life position with everything we can muster, but sometimes it seems like we must have an answer to every argument from a pro-abortionist to properly defend life.