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WORLD NEWS

Exploding Pagers

Hundreds of handheld pagers, including many used by Hezbollah militants, exploded (almost) simultaneously across Lebanon and Syria yesterday.

Detonating the pagers—Hezbollah’s preferred communication method to avoid Israeli tracking—threw the country into chaos and overloaded emergency services. At least nine people died, and over 2,780 others, including Hezbollah fighters and Iran’s ambassador to Lebanon, were injured.

American officials say Israel planted explosives beside the pagers' batteries in the Taiwan-sent shipment, detonating through a message sent to the pagers. Israel has not commented.

In other regional conflict, a Houthi missile reached central Israel for the first time ever earlier this week, landing in an uninhabited area after Israeli air defenses failed to intercept it. The Yemen-based Houthis said they used a new type of hypersonic missile; Israeli PM Netanyahu said the Houthis would pay a “heavy price.” 
 
(We’re also covering this story Thursday in Decaf, The Pour Over for Families. Sign up—for free—here.)
 
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CHRISTIAN PERSPECTIVE
War is heavy and ugly and reminds us of the need for redemption through Christ. Jesus came to lighten our burdens and bring us unexplainable peace. Pray that the Middle East would experience the peace that comes through Christ alone.

“Don’t worry about anything, but in everything, through prayer and petition with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.”
Philippians 4:6-7 (CSB) (read full passage)

POLITICS

Sunday’s Apparent Assassination Attempt

Details continue to emerge about former President Trump’s second would-be assassin.

Ryan Wesley Routh faces two firearms charges, including possession by a convicted felon, with more expected. His expansive online presence paints a picture of a supporter-turned-critic of Trump—once self-publishing a book that encouraged Iran to assassinate him—and a staunch pro-Ukraine advocate. 

Court documents say Routh camped out along the golf course’s tree line for 12 hours with food and a semi-automatic rifle. Seeing the rifle in the shrubbery, a Secret Service agent fired in Routh’s direction before he could have Trump in his “line of sight” or use his weapon. 

The Secret Service praised its agents but faced criticism for not conducting a pre-tee time perimeter check of the unscheduled event. In response, the agency requested more funding from Congress, which President Biden quickly endorsed. 
 
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CHRISTIAN PERSPECTIVE
Christians can be at the forefront of the effort to de-escalate political tension in the U.S. We know our time as citizens of Earth is just a blip on the timeline of eternity, which gives us hope and motivates holiness.

“For the grace of God has appeared… instructing us to deny godlessness and worldly lusts and to live in a sensible, righteous, and godly way in the present age, while we wait for the blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ.” 
Titus 2:11-13 (CSB) (read full passage)

FROM OUR PARTNERS

Lacking Daily Food

Somalia is caught in the crosshairs of natural disasters, global conflicts, widespread poverty, and disease outbreaks.   

East Africa is coming off its worst drought in 40 years, which has left tens of millions of people without access to clean water, killed millions of livestock, and decimated crops. They became very reliant on imported food, and 90% of Somalia’s wheat came from Russia and Ukraine… which stopped coming.

Now, two in five children in Somalia suffer from acute malnutrition, and a cholera outbreak is spreading in some areas. The food shortage, coupled with humanitarian aid being focused on Europe and the Middle East, has been the perfect storm and led to an alarming increase in child malnutrition. 

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BE DOERS
We’re asking the TPO Community to join us in partnering with World Concern to help get emergency nutrition packs (a peanut paste fortified with nutrients), water, and hygiene products to those with the most need. 

Every $12 feeds a child for a month. We’re matching the first $2,000; just give through this link.

“If a brother or sister is without clothes and lacks daily food and one of you says to them, ‘Go in peace, stay warm, and be well fed,’ but you don’t give them what the body needs, what good is it?” 
James 2:15-16

U.S. NEWS

BanTok

TikTok danced into federal court Monday, challenging the U.S.’s divest-or-ban law as unconstitutional. 

Prompted by national security concerns over TikTok’s China-based parent company, ByteDance, the legislation was fast-tracked through Congress with bipartisan support and signed by President Biden earlier this year. 

The law would give TikTok the boot nationwide unless ByteDance sells to a non-Chinese buyer by January 19, 2025, and would allow the president to limit other apps with ties to foreign adversaries.

The big question: Do the security risks outweigh free speech? TikTok says no, arguing that the ban would violate First Amendment rights for its whopping 170M U.S. users and that transparency-focused remedies should come first. The DOJ insists the app contains data from millions of Americans that is “extremely valuable to a foreign adversary trying to compromise” the U.S.
 
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Verse to consider when you’re reevaluating your use of social media…“Blessed is the one who does not condemn himself by what he approves. But whoever doubts stands condemned if he eats, because his eating is not from faith, and everything that is not from faith is sin.”
Romans 14:22-23 (CSB) (read full passage)

Sean “Diddy” Combs was arrested in New York on Monday night. Prosecutors accuse the music mogul of turning his business empire into a “criminal enterprise” that threatened, abused, and coerced women “to fulfill his sexual desires.” The indictment follows a wave of separate lawsuits and a raid on the 54-year-old’s L.A. and Miami homes. Yesterday, he pleaded not guilty. 
 

Boeing’s bad year continues. Roughly 33,000 Boeing machinists have been on strike since Friday, halting production of the company's most requested aircraft, the 737 Max. It’s the company’s first labor strike since 2008. Boeing has paused all pay raises and promotions, threatened layoffs, and grounded all non-essential business travel during negotiations. 
 

An Amazon order has arrived for employees: come back to the office. CEO Andy Jassy announced corporate Amazonians must be in the office 5 days a week beginning January 2, 2025, saying the company’s culture is “strengthened” when the team is together. The it’s-no-longer-2020 announcement also ends Amazon’s program that allowed some employees to work from anywhere four months/year.
 

Confirmed: an Apple accessory a day keeps the doc away. The FDA officially approved the new Apple Watch’s sleep apnea detection technology and the AirPods Pro’s hearing aid capabilities. In other iNews, iOS 18, the biggest software update of the year, released Monday sans Apple Intelligence. The spotlighted AI system will be released in a separate update later this fall. 
 

Not sure even Toby could sort through this workplace squabble… Rock band Jane’s Addiction, best known for the 1990’s hit “Been Caught Stealing,” canceled their tour after band members got into a fight onstage. Their reunion tour had 15 dates remaining when lead singer Perry Farrell, who later apologized for “inexcusable behavior,” lunged at guitarist Dave Navarro.

WHIPPED CREAM ON TOP

Japan’s (really big) aquarium tank…

How We’re Searching the Internet
Freespoke*

If you could make three changes to searching the internet… what would they be?

We would:
1. Make it safer for families (block adult content)
2. Protect users’ privacy (no tracking by default)
3. Label media biases (so users can quickly find all perspectives)

No joke, that’s exactly what Freespoke has done. Every search is safe, private, and balanced. So the next time you need to Google something, try Freespoking it instead. 

Go make your first search (try “election 2024”).

What We’re Earning
Cash back with CCCU’s Harvest Bundle*

When you sow into that big-name bank, what do they sow into? Christian Community Credit Union (CCCU) sows into the Kingdom, fueling the expansion of churches and ministries. 

And banking with them yields a major harvest for you, too—CCCU’s Harvest Checking account offers a whopping 4% APY, and the Harvest Savings account earns 5% APY. That’s some serious reapin’ from America’s #1 biblical banking solution. 

From now until October 15, TPO subscribers earn up to $400* for opening new accounts with code TPO. Partner with CCCU to live and give more abundantly.

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