Paul Random

Good for Volvo for Marketing to People Who Love Children

Volvo, the Swedish car manufacturer best known for its safety and dependability, is receiving high praise from pro-life and pro-family outlets over a recent ad that champions the value of children and by extension, the importance of marriage.

The nearly four-minute ad is promoting the Volvo EX90, an electric vehicle that the manufacturer claims is the “safest Volvo car ever made.”

We see Kate sharing the results of a pregnancy test with Andy. His stunned expression suggests joy but also nervousness. Andy then shares the exciting news with his mother over the phone, confiding to her that he’s scared. She asks why.

“About it all!” he replies. “You know, the nights, the responsibility. We’re going to need a bigger place.”

Assured by his mother the extended family will be there to help, we then see a series of events – some current, others a few years into the future. Still other moments depicted are decades off, and they all revolve around Kate and Andy’s yet-to-be born daughter named Lea.

Some of the events are sweet – others are difficult. There’s giggling and laughing and yelling – an arc of emotion designed to capture the journey and adventure of parenthood.

The crux of the advertisement, of course, is Volvo’s attempt to show how safe and family-friendly the EX90 is. They attempt to convince viewers by showing Kate walking across a crosswalk and almost being run over by a woman driving – you guessed it – a Volvo EX90.

Thanks to the safety features of the car, the driver is able to stop just in time. Nobody is killed. Nobody is even hurt. A message comes on the screen:

“Sometimes the moments that never happen matter the most.”

It’s a simple but true and profound statement. As Christians, we recognize that God’s grace, mercy and favor save us from countless bad things – matters related to our physical safety, especially.

The ad is resonating with those of us who champion the preborn because it also applies to the critical decisions made every day by abortion minded women.

When a woman chooses life, she’s thwarting a litany of tragedy. Abortion erases a future and introduces a lifetime of pain and regret for those who commit it. When a woman says “no” to abortion she’s saying “yes” to all the emotions and adventures Volvo captures so well in the ad.

We also resonate with the ad because it celebrates the joy of the journey of life. There’s a wonderful romance to marriage and parenthood. The happiest people aren’t free from struggle and strife. Great satisfaction and fulfillment come from working our way through challenges with a spouse and children.

The warmth of Volvo’s ad contrasts with the wokeness of Jaguar, the luxury car manufacturer who released a 30-second spot featuring weird, androgynous individuals, plus a man wearing a dress. They don’t even picture a car. It includes such phrases as “Create Exuberant,” “Break Moulds,” and “Delete Ordinary.”

After marketing stupidity like that, it’s likely buyers will delete Jaguar from their list of possible cars to purchase.

Volvo is clearly targeting a different audience, which is why they also featured a less than laudatory storyline in their ad. While Andy is sharing the joy of their forthcoming child, he says to his mother, “She might be the reason we tie the knot.”

Come on, Andy. You should know better than that.

But given that 76% of marriages that took place between 2015 and 2019 were preceded by cohabitation, it’s no wonder the agency scripting the spot folded that detail in. But it’s nevertheless unfortunate. The social science is clear that cohabitation weakens future marriages, and weak marriages harm the welfare of children.

But that detail aside, Volvo deserves high marks for framing and lifting up the joys of parenthood. But watch your wallet – the new 7-seater E90X SUV starts at $79,995.

Michael Richards, Cosmo Kramer and the Horrible Secret that Haunted Him

In the history of television, there has been a handful of characters instantly recognized by a single name: Gilligan, Fonzie and Columbo, to highlight three.

And one more in recent years: Kramer.

As in Cosmo Kramer, Jerry Seinfeld’s eccentric, mooch, hipster-dufus neighbor in the award-winning sitcom, Seinfeld.

Michael Richards, who played the character, first tried his hand at improv comedy. He was a medic in the Army, and after being discharged, bounced around in various acting roles in the decade leading up to his career-defining character. In the nine years Seinfeld roared up the charts, “Kramer” became a household name, his antics and physical comedy genius water cooler fodder on Friday mornings.

Yet nobody watching could have possibly fathomed that the fun-loving comedian, admired and revered for his zest and zaniness, had been harboring a deep, awful, and difficult secret for most of his life.

Born in Southern California, Michael’s mother, Phyllis Nardozzi, first told him his father died in World War II. As Michael grew older, realizing he was born in 1949 and that the war ended in 1945, he began pushing for the real story. His mother changed the narrative, but fibbed again, telling him his dad died in a car accident.

Still not satisfied, Richards started looking for his biological father. Pressing his mother, she finally relented and shared with him the difficult truth: Michael had been conceived as the result of a sexual assault.

The Seinfeld star eventually learned his mother had first sought an abortion, but discovered it was illegal at the time. She then decided to make an adoption plan for him. But she couldn’t go through with it and chose to raise him.

Writing in his memoir, Michael Richards revealed:

“I had to come to terms with knowing I was unwanted or that my mother wanted to get rid of me,” he reflected. “It is definitely something that I have had to look into over the years to discover how my anger arises out of a feeling of inferiority. I have a temper, and it stems from that unwantedness, not being acceptable, not being understood, not being good enough to be liked or even loved.”

Michael Richards’ story and feelings are his own, and Phyllis Nardozzi is no longer alive to share her perspective. But as a rule, birth mothers who choose to make adoption plans don’t do so because they don’t “want” their child. Instead, they pursue adoption because they either feel ill-equipped to raise them or want them to have what they know they cannot give them. Often both emotions are simultaneously true.

Conversations with abortion-minded women also reveal that these mothers are scared and reeling, overwhelmed and under supported. They’re also fed lies and given very bad advice. At a time when they need help, groups like Planned Parenthood only hurt.

Phyllis Nardozzi chose life, and the world was blessed with the life and comic genius of Michael Richards. Could she have done a better job of communicating with her son, explaining things to him in age-appropriate ways that would not have triggered such trauma and pain? Yes. But she was struggling and likely not being guided by wise and informed people.

Pro-life advocates are often criticized for not supporting abortion for victims of rape. It would be impossible to overstate the emotional trauma of such a crime. Our hearts break for women who have been violated and attacked.

We also believe that adding another evil on top of evil doesn’t improve a difficult situation. Children conceived in rape, like Michael Richards, are entitled to live. As a Christian community, we’re in a unique position to provide support for these women and their children – and for years to come.

Speaking of the rape revelation, which Richards only came to learn about in the late 1980s, the Seinfeld star says, “This is close to my heart and soul. This is very deep stuff.”

Michael Richards says he “found faith” during an extended self-imposed exile following an awful outburst at a comedy club in 2006. It’s not clear from his interviews or writings what that faith entails, but it would be good to pray for Richards and others who are struggling with similar emotions of abandonment and self-worth.

Focus on the Family has a world class counseling team eager to provide help and perspective. To request a consult with Focus on the Family’s Counseling Department, call 1-855-771-HELP (4357) weekdays from 6:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. (Mountain Time), or complete our Counseling Consultation Request Form. 

Image from Shutterstock.

Don’t Believe the Trump Thanksgiving Boycott Headlines

Hold the turkey and dressing – it seems Thanksgiving tables won’t be as full this year as liberals boycott conservative family gatherings.

Or will they?

After a four-year break from stories detailing how outraged relatives won’t be celebrating the holidays together over political differences, the boycotting talk is back – and in full force.

So much for an attitude of gratitude.

“Nearly a quarter of Americans are considering skipping Thanksgiving to avoid talking about politics,” = CBS News headlines.

Yale University chief psychiatry resident Amanda Calhoun was on The View recently and endorsed the unhinged calls to steer clear of family due to political differences.

“There is a push, I think just a societal norm that if somebody is your family, that they are entitled to your time, and I think the answer is absolutely not,” Calhoun said. “So if you are going to a situation where you have family members, where you have close friends who you know have voted in ways that are against you … against your livelihood, it’s completely fine to not be around those people.”

With psychiatrists dispensing information like that, it’s no wonder students on our college campuses are navigating a mental health crisis. Rather than leaning into even considerable ideological differences, there are increasing calls for social distancing and outright boycotting.

If this theme sounds familiar, it’s because we read the same types of stories around the holidays in 2016, 2017, 2018 and 2019. They began to fade after President Joe Biden took up residence at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.

It seems conservatives can peacefully navigate their liberal relatives – but liberal relatives find it more difficult to get along with their right-leaning loved ones.

Navigating political divides is nothing new, of course. For as long as we’ve had a country, families have had differences of opinion when it comes to the president and his policies. Even before we were independent from Great Britain, a third of the colonists favored the separation, a third opposed it and a third were waiting to see how it all turned out. And there were families that had people representing all three sides.

It’s only been in recent memory when the divisions have seemed to threaten the very fabric and unity of the family itself.

The legendary actor Clint Eastwood, who is 94 years old and considers himself a libertarian, has observed:

“Maybe I’m getting to the age when I’m starting to be senile or nostalgic or both, but people are so angry now. You used to be able to disagree with people and still be friends. Now you hear these talk shows, and everyone who believes differently from you is a moron and an idiot.”

To be sure, the tension is real, and the divide is wide, but the skeptic in me wonders if 90 million people in America are seriously considering boycotting Thanksgiving and Christmas with their families. I doubt it.

Such claims make for shocking headlines, feed into the narrative of the supposed divisiveness of a Trump presidency and elicit lots of clicks from the curious. But it’s likely far from reality.

Writing to believers in Rome about navigating relationships with nonbelievers, the apostle Paul asked and stated:

“Why do you pass judgment on your brother? Or you, why do you despise your brother? For we will all stand before the judgment seat of God” (Romans 14:10).  

Paul’s not saying differences are inconsequential or unimportant, nor is he suggesting we can’t engage with one another and challenge opinions. But he’s getting at our attitude and our treatment of those who might see things very differently.

In the end, the so-called Thanksgiving boycott is likely largely overblown – but President-elect Trump’s election win will undoubtedly be a sore point for some and a celebratory occasion for others.

But go ahead and give thanks to God, and even with relatives who voted differently. Pass the gravy – and the grace.

Image from Getty.

Biden’s Leaving and Trump’s Returning, But the Battle is Still Raging

It’s been a week since Donald Trump was officially elected for a second, non-consecutive term — an historic campaign that promises to reshape and redefine our nation’s priorities.

With the calling of the Arizona presidential race over the weekend, the margin of President-elect Trump’s electoral win is now final (312-226), and his popular vote advantage is currently approaching 3.6 million.

The GOP will control the United States Senate with a likely 53 seats. The House of Representatives is still to be decided, but the Republicans currently have the edge.

It was Abraham Lincoln who said, “The ballot is stronger than the bullet.” Theodore Roosevelt invoked similar weaponry imagery when he observed, “A vote is like a rifle; its usefulness depends upon the character of the user.”

Elections are often turning points in a country’s history – sometimes it’s a revolution, other times a restoration, rejuvenation, and even a redemption of ideals.

Evidence suggests last Tuesday was a repudiation of the inane and an embrace of common sense – but it remains to be seen how new majorities will respond and what they’ll be able to accomplish.

Of course, elections don’t last forever, and the country is beginning its pivot from campaign to governing mode. The next few months will be filled with news of political appointments, legislative priorities, and even ideological soul-searching.

Some Christians might be exhaling, relieved the “fight” is over – but the reality is the battle remains ongoing.

Writing to Christians at Ephesus, the apostle Paul urged believers:

Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm (Ephesians 6:11-13).

In this context, Paul is reminding us that all of life is a battle. It shouldn’t surprise us when difficult days and challenging circumstances occur. The election may be over, but the work is only beginning.

It’s a reminder that the “enemy” is not an opposing political party. It’s a not a person on Capitol Hill. It’s Satan – and he is determined to try to rattle and steal your peace of mind and sow misery at every turn.

Paul provides us with a blueprint on how to confront the wickedness:

Stand therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and, as shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace. In all circumstances take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one; and take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God, praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end, keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints, and also for me, that words may be given to me in opening my mouth boldly to proclaim the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains, that I may declare it boldly, as I ought to speak (Ephesians 6:14-20).

It was the late Dr. Timothy Keller who once suggested, “To put on the armor of God means to take the things that are objectively true of you as a Christian, the privileges and positions of being a Christian, to take what’s externally and objectively true and so drill it into your heart.”

In other words, when you put on the “armor of God” you’re not rattled by culture’s lies. You’re persuaded by neither political attacks nor political hacks. You stand firm, stand tall – and stand up to the bullies who work overtime to tear you down.

“A pilot without his chart, a scholar without his book, and a soldier without his sword, are alike ridiculous,” wrote the 17th century Anglican clergyman William Gurnall. “Above all these, it is absurd for one to think of being a Christian, without knowledge of the word of God and some skill to use this weapon.”

His contemporary Thomas Brooks left us with a similarly strong charge – and one that believers should embrace as we head into this next political season:

“Remember this, that your life is short, your duties many, your assistance great, and your reward sure; therefore faint not, hold on and hold up, in ways of well-doing, and heaven shall make amends for all.”

Amen.

Image from Getty.

NFL’s Jake Bates: ‘I Hope People Can See Jesus Through My Story’

It was just about a year ago when the Detroit Lion’s kicker Jake Bates was selling bricks in Houston, Texas for the Acme Brick company.

“I thought the dream was dead,” he recently said of his fledgling career. “I thought football was done, so I had to move on and do something else with my life. Luckily, the Lord had something else in store.”

That “something else” included booting a game-winning 52-yard field goal last night against the Houston Texans, an improbable culmination of a contest that also featured him nailing a 58-yarder to tie the game in the fourth quarter.

“I think it almost feels too scripted, it’s too good to be true,” Bates told the Houston Chronicle.

Only it is true – and Bates is using his platform to proclaim the Good News of Jesus Christ.

“I think it just shows how good the Lord is,” Bates told Melissa Stark following the NBC Sunday Night Football matchup.  

“He’s so faithful. My story is, if anything, I hope people can see Jesus through my story. That’s what I think I’m here to do is – not make or miss or be a good kicker or bad kicker, but spread the love of Jesus. I hope I’m able to do that on the stage I’m given.”

The hometown Bates grew up playing soccer, joined his high school football team as a senior and handled kick-offs at Texas State in college. Short stints with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Houston Texans proved unsuccessful, propelling him to find a job selling bricks.

Like many young athletes, though, Jake still had the itch to play. He was signed by the Michigan Panthers of the UFL, demonstrated his mettle by nailing a 64-yard field goal – and eventually signed by the Lions last spring.

The Detroit Lions are 8-1 atop the NFC North. As a kicker, Bates is perfect with 14 attempts making him number one in the league.

Would the Lord still be good if Jake Bates was 0 for 14? Of course. It’s unlikely Bates would still be kicking for the Lions – but a person’s performance certainly doesn’t reflect God’s love or concern for them.

Yet it’s especially gratifying and encouraging to see a good man like Jake Bates point people to the Lord and not to himself.

NFL players, especially, have been increasingly bold in sharing their faith both on and off the field. The Daily Citizen has been following the career of Kansas City Chiefs’ kicker Harrison Butker, a strong believer who has taken considerable heat for espousing pro-life and pro-family views.

Bates is embracing his NFL career with humility and gratefulness.

“I just don’t deserve this,” the rookie kicker said last night. “I was a soccer player growing up. I idolized football players in the NFL. Just to be here is surreal. I’m still finding myself kind of pinching myself.”

Image credit: YouTube