Chap Bettis

Disciple of Jesus Christ. Husband to Sharon. Father to Kara, Chapman, Rebekah, Nate. Author, "The Disciple-Making Parent." Worshipper at GHC Pvd.

[Chap Bettis @chapbettis]

Unfortunately this is typical of our state. Even though it costs the state nothing, unions are fearful of the competition. No wonder we rank in the bottom of so many economic indicators!

[Corey A. DeAngelis, school choice evangelist @DeAngelisCorey]

BREAKING: Rhode Island House passed a bill prohibiting the Governor from opting into Trump's new school choice program.

The vote was 55–14.
It already passed the Senate 34–4.

All Republicans voted against it.

31 other states have already indicated they will opt in.

[Corey A. DeAngelis, school choice evangelist @DeAngelisCorey]

BREAKING: Rhode Island House passed a bill prohibiting the Governor from opting into Trump's new school choice program.

The vote was 55–14.
It already passed the Senate 34–4.

All Republicans voted against it.

31 other states have already indicated they will opt in.

[Matt Smethurst @MattSmethurst]

“Fear is a reaction. Courage is a decision.”

— Winston Churchill

D-Day was 82 years ago today.

[Band of Brothers Behind the Scenes @BandBehind]

Tonight,
Is the night,
Of nights.

[Richard Ross @richardaross]

New research released by the Barna Group is full of insights.

“Reimagining Ministry for Gen Alpha,” $19, https://t.co/ak3boHuxL5

“Teens don’t leave the church because they stopped believing. They leave because no one asked them to contribute—use them or lose them."

[Richard Ross @richardaross]

"Teens consult many voices when figuring out who they are, but family still comes first. The youth ministries best positioned to form faith may be the ones that equip parents to disciple their teenagers at home."

“Reimagining Ministry for Gen Alpha,” https://t.co/ak3boHuxL5

[Matt Smethurst @MattSmethurst]

Goodness. What a prophetic quote from 44 years ago.

[XX-XY Athletics @xx_xyathletics]

Look at her.

[Corey A. DeAngelis, school choice evangelist @DeAngelisCorey]

BREAKING: Rhode Island Democrats introduced a bill preventing parents from homeschooling when government schools say it's "not in the best interest of the child."

Parents must prove their innocence if they want to raise their own kids at home.

They are running the bill today.

[Kristan Hawkins @KristanHawkins]

It genuinely blows my mind that we have incredible photos like this and people still argue that children in the womb aren’t living human beings.

[Steve Lawrence @SteveLawrence_]

The predicate for early literacy is a language rich environment.

A stable home environment correlates with a language rich environment.

[Lenore Skenazy @FreeRangeKids]

SO GOOD! From @stevemagness:

"Playgrounds & free play are risk calibration tools....When risk is removed from play, kids are more prone to anxiety disorders, because they never develop the ability to cope with fear-inducing situations."

Risk of comfort:
https://t.co/UZn9bF4uVz

[Nancy Pearcey @NancyRPearcey]

When Americans were being taken as slaves by Muslim pirates -- and how the US fought back:

[Keith Humphreys @KeithNHumphreys]

In doing 100% of the family chaffeuring, I learned (1) Adolescent males will disclose personal things while looking straight ahead next to you that they will not face to face (2) Shuttling kids lets you see them interact with their friends and you get to know them better too (3) Singing along with the radio with your kids in a car is a lot of fun (4) As they grow up, kids realize you are doing them a favor by chaffeuring them and that is one of the ways they know that you love them.
YMMV (literally) but if I had replaced myself with a robot chaffeur, it would have cost our family a lot more than money.
https://t.co/woZbnjZBFo

[Mark Paoletta @MarkPaoletta]

TODAY, Justice Clarence Thomas is now the second longest serving Supreme Court Justice in American history at 34 years and 195 days.

He has written more than 800 opinions, laying out a jurisprudence that has brought the Supreme Court back to the Constitution.

Justice Thomas has lived a most extraordinary American life, from being born into abject poverty in the Deep South under state-enforced segregation to becoming our nation’s greatest Justice.

Please watch this beautiful segment from the terrific documentary, Created Equal: Clarence Thomas in His Own Words.

Justice Thomas recounts his grandfather enrolling him in the segregated all-black catholic school in Savannah and the role the Irish nuns who ran the school played in his life.

His grandfather told him:

“'You are going to go to school every day.

If you are sick, you’re still going.

If you die, I will take your body for three days to make sure you are not faking.'

And he meant it.

It’s one thing if somebody says it and you think they’re exaggerating.

He wasn’t that kind of guy.”

God bless Justice Thomas.

[The Ways of A Gentleman @Gentleman_Ways]

“Since it is so likely that children will meet cruel enemies, let them at least have heard of brave knights and heroic courage. Otherwise you are making their destiny not brighter but darker.”

-C.S. Lewis

[Rich Lowry @RichLowry]

Should go without saying, but given the trend among some on the Right, this stands out because Rubio loves his country (ie doesn’t think it is fundamentally corrupt or controlled by conspiratorial forces), is optimistic, and still believes in American exceptionalism

[Jeff Blehar is *BOX OFFICE POISON* @EsotericCD]

Every thing I have seen from this guy has been utterly superb.

[Clint Teeples @TeeplesCY]

"If I told you there was one free thing you could do every Sunday that would make your kids happier, healthier, smarter, and closer to you, you'd think I was selling something."

Take your kids to church regularly. I don't care if you believe. The data is so lopsided that skipping it is the parenting equivalent of refusing vegetables because you don't like the taste.

Grades. Religious teens get As at almost twice the rate of nonreligious teens. In a class of 100, that's 24 A-students instead of 14. Church gives a kid the same academic boost as being born rich instead of poor.

College. Working-class religious kids earn bachelor's degrees at double the rate of their nonreligious peers. Middle-class kids do it at 1.5x the rate. For families without a trust fund, this is one of the most powerful forms of upward mobility social scientists have measured.

Character. Religious teens are far less likely to lie, cheat, or do things they hope their parents never find out about. They're more likely to care about racial equality, the elderly, and the poor. They reject the idea that morality is whatever works for you in the moment. That kind of kid doesn't happen by accident. It's built.

Closeness. 60% of parents of religious teens say they feel "extremely close" to their kid, compared to 50% of nonreligious parents. The kids report the same thing back. They get along better with their parents, talk about hard stuff, and actually want to spend time with their family.

Despair. Religious teens are dramatically less likely to be depressed, anxious, lonely, or feel that life is meaningless. 90% of devoted religious teens never binge drink, compared to 41% of the disengaged. Economists named the modern epidemic "deaths of despair." Regular church attendance is one of the strongest known buffers against it. Parents are spending fortunes trying to solve teen mental health. The most evidence-backed intervention is free.

Purpose. Religious young adults report higher purpose, gratitude, life satisfaction, and resilience. These are the exact traits every parent says they want their kid to have.

Here's why it works. Affluent families already surround their kids with networks of stable, accomplished adults through neighborhoods, schools, and parents' colleagues. Working and middle-class families usually don't. A congregation is often the last institution in American life that puts your kid in weekly contact with dozens of stable, employed, sober adults who know their name. It used to be called "a village." Now it barely exists outside of churches.

"But I don't believe." Your kid doesn't need your theology. They need you to show up.

"But church is boring." So is sitting through a kindergarten music recital. Parenting is the deliberate choice to be bored on purpose for someone you love.

There's a church within 15 minutes of nearly every American home. You don't need money, connections, or credentials to walk in. Nothing else in this country will surround your kid with engaged adults, teach them moral seriousness, and give them a stable weekly rhythm at zero cost.

You already drive them to practices that produce far less. The free thing on Sunday produces more, on more dimensions, than almost anything else you do as a parent.

You don't have to believe anything. You just have to take them.

[Matt Smethurst @MattSmethurst]

This is the most detailed MRI scan of an unborn baby.

At just 20 weeks, she is moving, turning her head, kicking—even standing. Her beating heart is also visible.

Human life is a miracle.