"In the beginning, God created..."
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NewslettersSpring / Summer 2003Activities SummarySome of you who receive this newsletter have been wondering why you haven’t heard from us in a long while. No, your name has not been dropped from our mailing list! Several factors seemed to work against our publishing a new edition in the interim since our last newsletter was sent in February 2002. First has been a very full seminar schedule for which we are grateful. We consider it indeed a privilege to be of service in the Lord’s work. Many of our seminars were located out of our local area, so we have spent much time on the road and away from home. One of our busiest times was the month of April for a series of seminars in Oregon, Washington, South Dakota, and Minnesota. We logged about 5,000 highway miles giving 22 presentations. In Stickney, SD, Mr. Alan Teel arranged for two presentations to public school students. The first was for students K-6 and the second was for students 7-12 and we also made presentations at the First Methodist church. In Brookings, SD, Dr. Robert Kohl, a geologist on the faculty of South Dakota State University arranged for me to speak on campus there. When we do return home, there has been much catch-up work and home chores to do. Another factor has been massive amounts of computer work to keep Power Point files updated and cataloged and to answer a large volume of e-mail. Even though December is a busy month, no seminars were scheduled, leaving us some time to catch up on our backlog of projects such as this newsletter. Thank you for your patience and continued interest in us and our ministry. Creationism/Evolutionism InformationIn order to have our seminars be of maximum helpfulness and benefit to people who have Bible/science type questions, it is essential that we keep up to date on current issues. Continual study and research on our part is necessary so that we may remain current. We are also very grateful for those who help either by providing articles or references to sources of new information. When we find a particularly interesting item of information, we include it in our newsletter The Amazing ButterflyScientists have recently been studying insect aerodynamics using a wind tunnel. The goal is to learn how to make efficient tiny flying machines. It is known that insect wings produce 10 times the amount of lift achieved by aircraft wings (per unit of area). "The fluttering of butterflies is not a random, erratic wandering, but results from the mastery of a wide array of aerodynamic mechanisms," Srygley and Thomas report in the journal Nature. His study concentrated on red admirals butterflies. The researchers found the insects could, at times, fly very efficiently, producing very little turbulence. On other occasions, the red admirals’ wings deliberately created vortices to achieve extra lift. "We saw conventional aircraft-style aerodynamics, two different kinds of leading-edge vortices, rotational mechanism, wake-capture mechanisms and so-called clap and fling." In other studies, evidence shows that the monarch butterfly has a micro-computer-like navigational system that shows convincing evidence of intelligent design. With experience in designing guidance systems, Mr. Poirier, a high tech engineer, began studying the guidance system of the monarch butterfly. His conclusion is that the prior claim of a Creator dwarfs the efforts of man, and that this design could not have evolved. "The monarch butterflies are the only insects on Earth to migrate annually over continental distances, and it is estimated that over 300 million of these fantastic creatures migrate to Mexico every year. Their navigational systems are extremely complex to direct them as far as 3000 miles to a wintering site they have never seen, and then to guide them in the spring on their northeast travel to different parts of the U.S. and Canada. Evolutionism provides no believable explanation for such remarkable abilities." Creation—Basis for AbsolutesSurrounding culture seems constantly to be moving away from a Biblical worldview such as absolutes in truth or absolutes in morality. In addition, Biblical literacy seems at an all time low, at least for recent history. However, if we were created, as the Bible tells us we were, then there are absolutes! The Creator is the reference point for all absolutes: absolute truth, absolute morals etc. That is why students need to learn about biblical creation. They have a right to know the solid scientific evidence in support of creation. Without that knowledge, students tend to feel that the Bible is not important to their lives. Polls* show for example, that high school and college-age young people consider the Bible to be irrelevant to everyday living. Polls also show that in most church youth groups, the average "Christian" student thinks and believes no differently than non-churched students. 57% could not even say that an objective standard of truth exists. 85% are likely to reason "just because it’s wrong for you doesn’t mean it’s wrong for me." Many adults feel the same way. Perhaps that is one reason why we have been having fewer opportunities to present creation on high school and college campuses. Also it seems, even churches are increasingly viewing creation as an unimportant issue. Ultimately creation is the foundation for the Gospel of Jesus as Savior and Lord. When that foundation is attacked or undermined, young people lose confidence in the Bible and many even leave the Christian faith entirely. Praise for Prayers Answered, 2002
Prayer NeedsPlease pray for:
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Contact: ddchittick@earthlink.net
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