When Calvinists say "But predestination!" (tiny, bare-bones version)

[This is from my other blogs, but I figured I'd put it here too.  Just to heavy things up a bit.  It's my tiniest version of my "But predestination!" post.  The short version with more memes and quotes and information can be found here, and the longest version (a series of posts full of many more Calvinist comments, my Calvinist ex-pastor's sermons, and my replies to them, written for my own amusement and for my ex-church) can be found by starting here.  But this tiny version includes only the most basic parts you need to know, with a few memes and quotes thrown in to spice it up.]

At the heart of Calvinism is predestination and God's sovereignty (among other things, like "total depravity"), which according to Calvinism essentially amounts to: "God preplans and controls everything, even sin and evil and all our decisions, and so He pre-picks who goes to heaven and who goes to hell.  He causes the 'elect' to believe in Him and be saved, but He made sure the 'non-elect' have no chance or ability to believe and be saved because He predetermined they'd go to hell (and so Jesus never died for them anyway), all for His glory."

And if we push back against this - if we say Jesus died for all people and God offers salvation to all people and that He lets us decide to accept or reject it - Calvinists go "But God is sovereign, and predestination is in the Bible, and so you have to believe it!"  

But the problem is not that we misunderstand the Bible or can't accept biblical truth.  It's that Calvinists mis-define both sovereignty and predestination (among other things).  

Not such an old fuddy-duddy now, am I!

Videos on Baking Sourdough Bread

One of the most relaxing things for me lately has been watching videos of people making and baking sourdough bread.  And as a bonus, it's not only relaxing, but informative, productive, and rewarding, too.  A great "waste of time."  Especially if you actually bake the sourdough bread instead of just watching the videos😁. 

Anyway, here are some of the videos I enjoyed the most and found the most helpful.  Some use scales to measure, and some don't.  Some use Dutch ovens to bake the bread, and some use bread pans.  Some do more prep, and some do less.  But they're all informative and enjoyable.  

In no particular order:

Farmhouse on Boone - Sourdough Bread for Beginners | NO KNEAD - YouTube

Alexandra's Kitchen - Simple Sourdough Bread: Step by Step 75% Hydration - YouTube

Grant Bakes - A Sourdough Masterclass for Home Bakers - YouTube

Lovely Bell Bakes - Daily Sourdough Bread with Fresh Milled Flour | Without a mixer

Preppy Kitchen - Amazing Sourdough Bread Recipe - YouTube

Healthy Elizabeth - My Easy GUIDE To Making Foolproof SOURDOUGH BREADS | BAKE WITH ME - YouTube

The Perfect Loaf - The Secret to Make the BEST Sourdough Bread 

Mary's Nest (a playlist): No Knead Sourdough Bread Recipe - FAST and FOOLPROOF

Homesteading with the Zimmerman's: Kate's SOFT SOURDOUGH SANDWICH BREAD - YouTube

Little Spoon Farm: Soft Sourdough Sandwich Bread from Little Spoon Farm

LoveMeg 2.0: HOW TO MAKE THE BEST SOURDOUGH SANDWICH BREAD | EASY STEP BY STEP BEGINNERS GUIDE | LOVEMEG 2.0

Our Gabled Home: Bake A Delicious Sourdough Bread with Me - Even Beginners Can Do It!

Melissa K. Norris: Best Beginner Sourdough Sandwich Bread Recipe | HOMEMADE YEAST

Rustic Honey - Sourdough For A Year | What I've learned + favorite recipes for beginners - YouTube

Alexandra's Kitchen - Simple Sourdough Pizza + Pizza Margherita  - YouTube

And here's a blog post, on baking in a bread pan: Can You Bake Sourdough In A Loaf Pan? - The Pantry Mama

And here's a blog post with the sourdough recipe I use: Sourdough Bread Recipe - Sugar Spun Run.  But I usually bake it in a Dutch oven instead of a loaf pan.  

   

[And see here for the videos I like on starting a sourdough starter.]