And….its the weekend!  About a week until the U.S. midterm elections and the campaign trail is getting pretty heated. Ebola, Immigration, and Obama are all campaign trail message points. Below are my favorite stories, posts, and videos from the week. Enjoy!

Starting with those midterms, here’s a brief update: The battle for control of the Senate is center stage this year. Real Clear Politics has all the public polling aggregated here and gives GOP the edge on leaners, but there’s still plenty of toss ups out there. In KS and SD where Dems felt they had a ray of light, those hopes seem to have vanished, and they are playing defense in AK, AR, NC, LA, and CO where early indicators are GOP is dominating the newly minted vote by mail state.  Of those states, AK, NC are the top two to watch. There are only two pickup opportunities for Dems – KY and GA – and both are still too tight to know for certain what the outcomes will be. Right now, control over the most powerful deliberative body in the world is hanging in the balance, yet while many races still seem too close to call, most pundits believe the GOP has the momentum.

In other news, CNN has a story on the timeline around the NY Ebola case here which just broke earlier today.

And the backlash against the city of Houston continues as thousands of pastors have flooded the offices of the mayor with Bibles and sermons on the topic of homosexuality. This after a call from Gov. Mike Huckabee and others to do just that…(h/t Tracy Lear).

Looks like healthcare rates are about to go up…are you surprised? GOP making hay...

This week’s MUST READ post for Christians is on the ‘Practical Principles of Biblical Interpretation’ by R.C. Sproul. He gives a few handy principles which are helpful not only for the average Christian, but many pastors in America would do well to abide by!

John Knox’s 500 birthday is this year. Learn more about what one group is doing to raise awareness of this great reformation father’s life and work. You’ll enjoy their little 4 minute video if only for their hilarious accents.

Speaking of great men in church history, Ligonier is doing a series on men like Knox, Luther, and more. This week they did Tyndale.  These are excerpts from one of my favorite church history books by Steve Lawson called Pillars of Faith.  The book has short chapters on men who stood up for their beliefs – along with what those beliefs were specifically.

On a less enjoyable note, Politico had a story a few weeks back on the strategic nature of beheadings in the context of the ISIS uprising in the middle east. Their argument is that these gruesome executions serve as a publicity tool to increase recruitment, swell their army’s ranks, and accomplish regional dominance.

Also, I meant to send this around earlier, but there is a pretty cool book review site for Christian books that should be checked out from time to time if you’re in the market for a new book. You’ll find it here.  (h/t Lisa Wenzel)

Tim Challies posted a short, but convicting, article called ‘5 Bad Substitutions for Discipline’ pertaining to parenthood.

Speaking of Challies, he linked to an article this week that was a little, well, freaky I guess…here’s  ‘9 real technologies that will soon be inside you’ 

This week I’ve been studying up for an introduction to the book of Revelation less I’ll be giving on Sunday morning.  After almost three years teaching through the Gospel of John, I’m excited to be taking on a new challenge, and have been edified by what I’ve read thus far. If you’re interested in a great introduction to the book, check out Voddie Baucham’s sermon on the intro here. 

And if you’re like me, you need and you love your Java in the morning. But guess what? That Java isn’t to helpful for introverts – especially when they’re looking to “caff-up” before a big meeting…at least that’s what some scientists are saying…

One thing I do NOT do is drink coffee before bedtime (and yes, I’ve done that before). But I DO like to check out ways to get a good night sleep – lots of good tips in this article from The Art of Manliness. 

That’s it!  Have a great weekend!

PJW