Happy weekend! Here’s our weekly roundup of bright stories and funny memes.

A group of high school football players driving to school came to the aid of a 50-year-old woman who was trapped in her wrecked car and screaming for help, according to an educator at Rome City Schools in Rome, Georgia.

“We used all our muscles,” Treyvon Adams, 16, told CNN. “We’re pretty big people, we’re strong. We play football, so we lift weights a lot, but (the door) was just extremely bent and broke.”

A post on the team’s Twitter account read, “PROUD of our MEN!”

PROUD of our MEN! 🐺 https://t.co/E3XJaMzRs9

— 𝙍𝙤𝙢𝙚 𝙒𝙤𝙡𝙫𝙚𝙨 𝙁𝙤𝙤𝙩𝙗𝙖𝙡𝙡 (@FootballRome) August 12, 2022

“China’s Taylor Swift” Singer G.E.M. Releases “Gloria” Song About Her Christian Faith

Christianity Today called Deng Ziqi’s song “courageous” in an op-ed on Thursday. The music video and lyrics feature Christian themes. CT’s Sean Cheng explains:

One day, overwhelmed by sadness, she was crying and praying in the bathroom. When she began humming a melody unconsciously in the shower, she began to feel it bringing her peace, transcending her circumstances. The inspiration for an album emerged: She wanted to use her new song to speak of her struggles, heartbreaks, and prayers, and to remember how God answered prayers to redeem and bless her.

Kris Wang, elder at Lansing Chinese Church in Michigan, told CT, “It is very rare to see in the Chinese pop music industry that a singer would disclose her faith in songs and to generate ideas from the Bible for the entire album. There are examples in the United States that songwriters integrate their faith into pop music, like Kanye West, Justin Bieber, and DMX have done. But in atheism-dominated China, doing so is innovative and creative.”

What does it mean to discuss one’s faith publicly in China? When connected to politically incorrect statements, the government will not be happy. CT reports, “Chinese censorship officials placed her on a list of ‘strictly controlled’ persons because she prayed for Hong Kong ‘in bitter tears’ during the Occupy Central movement in 2014.”

May God bless Deng Ziqi, whose English name is Gloria, just like her song.

A Pro-Life Win in Entertainment

Seth Dillon, CEO of the Babylon Bee, defended the pro-life position excellently on Joe Rogan’s show, leaving Rogan saying “I see what you’re saying” and “life is valuable” near the end of the clip.

This is incredible conviction, clarity, and courage by @SethDillon. He defends the profile position on one the largest media platforms in the world as Joe keeps pressing him.

“Calling abortion ‘healthcare’ is like calling rape ‘love-making.’”pic.twitter.com/yaV8eT3rLe

— Erik Reed (@ErikReed) August 17, 2022

Time for the Funny Stuff

This dog is overflowing with enthusiasm and energy.

https://twitter.com/theworldofdog/status/1559969902400008192

Here’s another dog that loves her owner.

https://twitter.com/theworldofdog/status/1559544181617565696

This seal is exemplifying some healthy weekend behavior: resting and getting vitamin D.

This Mediterranean Monk Seal relaxing in the early morning on Samos Island in Greece. pic.twitter.com/J89ST65qSt

— Gabriele Corno (@Gabriele_Corno) August 17, 2022

Not the cleverest bear, but very cute:

https://twitter.com/buitengebieden/status/1559660685860249601

Cute children and cute animals together … just so much cuteness.

This little girl loves to play with baby goats on her grandma’s dairy farm — and the footage is so adorable ❤️🐐 pic.twitter.com/0vZmiwQnHR

— NowThis (@nowthisnews) August 16, 2022

Hope this article gave you a few smiles and that you enjoy peace and rest in God this weekend!

 

Aliya Kuykendall is a staff writer and proofreader for The Stream. You can follow Aliya on Twitter @AliyaKuykendall and follow The Stream @Streamdotorg.