Upright I: “A lot of Christians in the country have forgotten the battles they fight are not really political, but spiritual. Paul writes in Ephesians 6:12, ‘(W)e are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places.’ Christians in America have been looking, in many cases, for political saviors to help them withstand the forces of the world. But those political saviors cannot protect us.” —Erick Erickson

Upright II: “Psalm 73 paints a picture of the world against the believer. Those of the world will get rich, fat and happy. They will enjoy the comforts of the world, and the believer will wonder how it can be so. The believer will be tempted to be more worldly to enjoy the comforts of the world. But Asaph, the writer of Psalm 73, realizes that the unbeliever prospers now as an act of God’s mercy. This is the best they will ever have it, and for the believer, this world is the worst they will ever have it. The things of the world hate the things of God. Worldly politicians cannot save the believer from the world. But we do not need to be angry. We do not need to be afraid. God’s got this. He has us. He holds the universe in His hands, and He conquered death and will return. Do not be afraid. Instead, love your neighbor as yourself, and fear God, not the future.” —Erick Erickson

Observations: “The very rhetorical and intellectual currency of our firearm policy discourse has become woefully debased over the decades. At the time of the American founding, gun ownership was not merely viewed as a check on government tyranny and a logical outflow of the natural, common-law right to self-defense. It was also viewed as virtuous: something that was, can and ought to be deployed to protect one’s family, one’s home and one’s community. In this sense, a well-armed citizenry was not simply an outgrowth of any particular natural or legal right; rather, it was viewed as fundamentally just and redounding to the common good of a well-functioning, internally harmonious society. … When is the last time anyone, even a conservative, has made an affirmative argument in favor of gun ownership based not on constitutional meaning or contextual prudence but on the inherent virtue of gun ownership? The long, steady decline of this once-prevalent school of thought is certainly due, in part, to the hollowing out of America’s religiosity and temperance. But it is also due to the fact that manliness itself is increasingly viewed not as a virtue to be nourished and cherished but as a ‘toxic’ vestige of a bygone barbarism that must be tamed and ultimately excised. A society that loses its belief in the importance of manliness qua manliness will necessarily fail to appreciate the virtue of a home- and hearth-protecting paterfamilias. There is a direct, unmistakable connection between the decline of the former and a lessened respect for the latter.” —Josh Hammer

For the record: “Overall, Biden gave no indication that he understands how he has stoked the current crisis or that he knows how to address it. His emphasis was on improved processing of the migrants that are coming, rather than persuading them to stay home. That will inevitably mean more families in Central America deciding to send their children on the harrowing journey north, whether Biden wants to acknowledge it or not.” —National Review

Grand delusions: “There’s not a single thing a man can do that a woman can’t do as well or better. Not a single thing.” —Joe Biden

A trip down memory lane: “If the majority chooses to end the filibuster, if they choose to change the rules and put an end to democratic debate, then the fighting and the bitterness and the gridlock will only get worse.” —Barack Obama in 2005

And last… “He may not be the fastest president on his feet we’ve ever had. He may bore you to death compared to the last president. But I will tell you, if anyone in the NFL is looking for a punter, Joe Biden is your man.” —Michael Reagan