Quarantine, coronavirus, and a conversation with Dr. Scott James

In this episode, Josh, Lindsay, and Brent talk about coronavirus and quarantines, the latest in the Democratic primary, and some good news to end your week. Lindsay also gives a rundown of this week’s ERLC content including a piece from Joe Carter on reading the news with discernment, Dane Hays on talking to your kids about COVID-19, and the ERLC’s reading recommendations during social distancing. Also in this episode, the hosts are joined by Dr. Scott James, an infectious disease specialist, for a conversation about coronavirus and his new children’s book.

About Dr. James

Scott James serves as an Elder at The Church at Brook Hills. He and his wife, Jaime, have four children and live in Birmingham, Ala, where he works as a pediatric physician. He is the author of two family worship books (The Expected One: Anticipating All of Jesus in the AdventMission Accomplished: A Two-Week Family Easter Devotional), as well as illustrated children's books, including The Littlest Watchman (The Good Book Company, 2017) and his latest book, Where Is Wisdom? (B&H).

ERLC Content

• Joe Carter with How to read the news with discernment
  • “Guard your mind,” “Consume less news” 
• Dane Hays with How to talk to your kids about coronavirus
  • What kind of memories are you building, even now, for your children and loved ones about the coronavirus outbreak of 2020? Thirty years from now, my prayer is they will they speak of things like more family time, serving others, and most importantly, hearing about the love and goodness of Christ.
• Melissa Affolter with What I’ve learned from working with survivors of abuse and trauma: The power of story and community in healing
• Jason Thacker with Reading recommendations during the coronavirus shutdown. 

Culture

• This week marked the first day of Spring!

Politics

• Biden vs. Bernie; Bill Weld suspends campaign texting instead of door-to-door
• Mitch McConnell uses campaign to deliver groceries and Chick-fil-A 
• Election results!
  • Joe Biden has won the Florida, Arizona and Illinois Democratic primaries, giving him what is increasingly becoming an insurmountable delegate lead over Bernie Sanders

Coronavirus

• Widespread alarm and misinformation, we recommend you follow live updates on COVID-19 from The Washington Post
• Pulling out all the stops to stem the tide, churches, schools, and major events across the nation are delayed, cancelled, or moving online.
• CoronaChaos leads to CoronaQuiet across the globe: France, Spain, Germany join Italy on lockdown; Sources expect UK to join this weekend.
• San Francisco locking down 
• Widespread testing finally here . . . with issues.
• Big companies hiring right now: 
  • Amazon
    • “We are opening 100,000 new full and part-time positions across the U.S. in our fulfillment centers and delivery network to meet the surge in demand from people relying on Amazon’s service during this stressful time, particularly those most vulnerable to being out in public. 
  • Kroger
    • “Kroger plans to hire 10,000 additional workers in the coming weeks to help stock and clean stores. 
    • “Applicants can visit jobs.kroger.com to apply. 
  • Wal-Mart
    • “Walmart (NYSE:WMT) plans to hire 500 more truck drivers for its private fleet, primarily on the East and West Coasts, to help meet the increased demand from its growing e-commerce business.
• Ford and General Motors are looking into making medical equipment including ventilators that could help combat the novel coronavirus outbreak.
• Economic projections don’t look so good; Fed moves
  • Economic forecasts look really dire.
• Bailouts likely coming for industries
  • Phase II – passed on Wednesday
  • Phase III coming – "Phase 3" deal that would pump an additional $1 trillion into the economy.
• Movies go online instead of theater
• The SEC cancelled all spring sports(!)

On the Lighter Side

•  Dinosaurs and Penguins around museums and aquariums

 Lunchroom

• Brent: A Hidden Life (Movie)
  • The film depicts the life of Franz Jägerstätter, an Austrian farmer and devout Catholic who refused to fight for the Nazis in World War II. The film's title was taken from George Eliot's book Middlemarch.
• ​Lindsay: 
  • R.C. Sproul teaching on the holiness of God
  • Old Try prints: “Be the fix, stay at six (ft),” “Home is where the health is,” “The better you cover, the quicker it’s over.” 
• Josh:
  • ​ I Illustrated National Parks In America Based On Their Worst Review And I Hope They Will Make You Laugh (16 Pics) 
    • #1 Sequoia National Park – There are bugs and they will bite you on your face.
    • #7 Saguaro National Park – Okay if you like cactus
    • #14 Death Valley National Park – Ugliest place I’ve ever seen
  • BR Connect – For only $3 a month you can get news and push notifications from our friends at the Biblical Recorder. They cover religious issues better than almost anyone.

 ERLC Inbox

• Q: How worried should I be about extra screen time for my kids while we are spending more time indoors during isolation?

 Connect with us on Twitter

• @ERLC
• @jbwester
• @LeatherwoodTN
• @LindsNicolet

Sponsors

• Why Does God Care Who I Sleep With  by Sam Allberry (The Good Book Company)
• The Weekly – ERLC’s rundown of news and culture delivered to your inbox every Friday