The Daily Briefing highlights the news of the day and research that reveals the spirit of the day.
The Daily Briefing is a newsletter sent straight to your inbox every morning that provides biblical insight on today's news.
Top News
6. Seahawks suffocate Patriots to win Super Bowl LX (WaPo)
“The Seattle Seahawks stand as a modern exemplar of an ancient football truth. They squeezed the life out of Super Bowl LX, a defensive grind that left most all the entertainment for Bad Bunny at halftime. But the highest level of football does not need to be compatible with aesthetic delight. The Seahawks authored one of the most dominant defensive performances in Super Bowl history, bullied quarterback Drake Maye into infamy and throttled the New England Patriots, 29-13, at Levi’s Stadium.
“The victory provided a capstone to Seattle quarterback Sam Darnold’s redemption, making him a Super Bowl-winning quarterback in his first season with his fifth team, eight years into a career that has seen him anointed, demoted, cast aside, resurrected and now flourishing at the highest level. He passed for 202 yards with one touchdown and, crucially, no interceptions.”
They are incredible recievers, but don’t underestimate how much these Seahawks give… glory to God. After being named NFL Offensive Player of the Year, Jaxon Smith-Njigba gave “all the glory to God” in a video response. “My faith comes first,” he declared at a press conference earlier this season. “That’s what I stand on. That’s who I am. Everything else is everything else. I’m a follower of Christ, I’m a son, I’m a brother, and then I’m a football player… Jesus, for me, is everything. This is Who I do it for. I’m here to serve Him and to serve others.”
Then there is Cooper Kupp, who said that the “end is written already, and I just need to go out there and glorify God.” Kupp went on: “For me, the faith that I have, the belief that I have — I have this belief that the things I was doing were for a greater purpose than myself, and that there was a point behind it. The joy that I felt playing this game — just because it felt like I was just made to do it, and being able to glorify God through that — that is gonna make it all worth it. It sustained me through all the highs and all the lows. Truly wouldn’t be here today without it.”
It’s better to give than to receive, and these 2 receivers have taken that to heart. They are incredible receivers on the field, potentially leading them to the Hall of Fame one day, but selfless givers off the field, compelling them to glory at the end of their days. Their victory puts them in the history books; His victory puts them in the book of life. Congrats, Seahawks. (Rom. 13:7)
5. Savannah Guthrie tells mother's possible kidnapper 'we will pay' in new video (NBC News)
“TODAY co-anchor Savannah Guthrie addressed her mother’s possible kidnapper in a new Instagram video Saturday, saying the family would “pay” for the 84-year-old woman’s safe return. “We received your message and we understand,” Savannah Guthrie said, seated alongside her brother, Camron, and sister, Annie. “We beg you now to return our mother to us so that we can celebrate with her. This is the only way we will have peace.”
“This is very valuable to us, and we will pay,” Savannah Guthrie said in closing, holding her siblings’ hands. The FBI and the Pima County Sheriff’s Department said Friday they were aware of a new message regarding Guthrie, which investigators were inspecting for authenticity. It is not known whether the possible ransom note and that new message are connected, or whether they came from the same sender.
“She said neither note provided proof of life, but the first note said Guthrie was fine. The second note “was certainly not a ransom demand,” Bobula said, noting it did not ask for money, and it differed “in almost every way” from the first. One of the notes did not provide an image of Guthrie but “a description,” she said.”
How do you keep hope alive in such a situation? One of the first and most well-known theories of hope was introduced in 1991 by American psychologist Charles Snyder. In his research, Snyder defined hope as a cognitive trait that compels you toward the pursuit of goals coupled with strategies to reach that desired future.
Essentially, hope encompasses 3 components: goals, pathways, and agency. Relative to goals, this refers to the targets (short-term or long-term) that provide direction and purpose. With pathway thinking, this is the ability to generate workable routes toward those goals. Finally, there is agency thinking, which consists of the willpower or drive to achieve the goal, even when challenges arise.
How do you enhance hope? Snyder identified 4 techniques: reflect on successes, visualize, social support, and positive affirmations. Remembering past achievements has a tendency to strengthen hope in the present. Visualizing your steps toward achieving the goal can enhance motivation and belief. Social support both functions to create a sense of community while you are on the way and encourage you when you face setbacks. Finally there is positive affirmations, which is less speaking things into existence and more continuing to remind yourself of the powers and resources you have at your disposal.
In the Bible, hope is less a trait and more a person (1 Tim. 1:1, Titus 2:13, 1 Pet. 1:3). Our hope is less about what we can do and more about what God can do in us and through us as we pursue after goals. This doesn’t remove agency from us but rather redirects the emphasis on power – less our weakness, more his strength. I’m heartbroken for our sister in Christ, Savannah, and her family, but I have this hope: the same God who sent his son to save and rescue those held captive in this world is the same God on the throne today.
4. White House takes down racist video shared by Trump about Obamas after backlash (ABC News)
“President Donald Trump shared on his social media platform late Thursday night a video that included a racist animation of former President Barack Obama and former first lady Michelle Obama depicted with the bodies of apes. After backlash, the White House at about noon Friday said the post had been taken down from the president's page. Trump said he won't apologize: "No, I didn't make a mistake. ... Nobody knew that that was at the end."
“The roughly minutelong video, shared by Trump at 11:44 p.m. ET on Thursday, largely focused on debunked claims about the 2020 election. At the end of the video, the Obamas' faces appear abruptly and without explanation for seconds with the song "The Lion Sleeps Tonight" playing over it.
“White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt, when first asked for comment early Friday, had said, "This is from an internet meme video depicting President Trump as the King of the Jungle and Democrats as characters from the Lion King. Please stop the fake outrage and report on something today that actually matters to the American public." Though later Friday afternoon, a White House official told ABC News that a "staffer erroneously made the post."
Apparently It's Hard To Say I’m Sorry… Research indicates there are 3 processes that go into a sorry: cognitive control (making a choice to do something difficult); perspective taking (considering how your actions hurt another person); and social valuation (calculating how your apology will help all parties involved).
There are at least 2 reasons why, as Elton John noted, Sorry Seems To Be The Hardest Word: lack of care and lack of perceived effectiveness. Saying sorry involves admitting error, which creates discomfort and is too psychologically threatening for some people. So, as a result, some will sacrifice their standing with the other person or the relationship. And then there is the idea that we don’t think the apology will matter. Some think the other party won’t receive it well or that the apology won’t mend the temporary brokenness.
While he may not have intended to post the video, his account shared it, and he should apologize for it. As NT Wright rightly asserts: "First, it is utterly inappropriate for one who knows the joy and release of being forgiven to refuse to share that blessing with another. Second, it is highly presumptuous to refuse to forgive one whom Christ Himself has already forgiven.” (Eph. 4:28-32)
Cultural News
3. What is the 'Super Bowl flu'? Why the NFL keeps its biggest game on Sunday (Yahoo)
“There's a widespread "illness" that affects millions of Americans every year. Dubbed the "Super Bowl flu," it refers to the wave of workers who call in sick the Monday after the Super Bowl. And it’s expected to hit hard again this year.
“According to a survey from the Workforce Institute, an estimated 26.6 million U.S. workers say they plan to miss work on the Monday following the Super Bowl. About 13.1 million expect to use paid time off, while 4.9 million say they will call in sick or skip work without notice. Another 6.5 million plan to trade shifts with co-workers.”
Take It Easy – Eagles sing it, and many Americans are doing it today. But don’t project what happens today onto what happens throughout the year. A 2024 Pew survey found that nearly half of American workers don't take all the vacation days they've been allotted. Americans average 8.4 hours of work each weekday. This is about 1,796 hours annually, more than workers in Germany (1,331 hours), Norway (1,407 hours), or the OECD average (1,736 hours).
Some get the flu, others continue to fly… In his classic Democracy in America, Alexis de Tocqueville highlighted the equality of conditions here in the US, remaking the old world of titles, nobility, and hierarchy. In the US, the equality of conditions provides an atmosphere for both climbing (and falling) on the social ladder. “The noble has gone down on the social ladder, and the commoner has gone up; the one descends as the other rises. Every half-century brings them nearer to each other, and they will soon meet.”
Some take off but don’t stay off... Ben Sasse, in his book The Vanishing American Adult, points to the Puritans relative to the need to make the most of every moment. According to Sasse, they understood recreation as “an exercise or escape used to restore people—to refresh and “re-create” them—so that they can get back to being productive for the glory of God and the good of their neighbor.” Whether it is the best of times (because your team won) or the worst of times (because your team, like mine, has no hope of making it to the Super Bowl anytime soon), we should see every moment for the gift it is. (Ps. 118)
News You Can Use
2. Two journalists in Greenland tracked down their missing $700 camera and found a sled dog had stolen it, hit record and taken off.
Watch it here. “Beware of the dogs…” (Phil. 3:1)
1. Say “Bye, Bye, Bye” to any bad vibes because this priest will start your day off right!
Watch it here. “To the weak I became weak, to win the weak. I have become all things to all people so that by all possible means I might save some.” (1 Cor. 9:22)
