Worthy News
The FBI has released its comprehensive “Reported Crimes in the Nation” statistics for 2024, revealing a significant decline in violent crime across the United States. According to the report, violent crime dropped an estimated 4.5% nationwide compared to 2023, with murder and non-negligent manslaughter down nearly 15%.
In a historic visit to the biblical heartland of Israel, U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson declared his intention to remove the term “West Bank” from U.S. federal government language and replace it with the biblical names “Judea and Samaria,” reinforcing America’s growing alignment with Israel’s ancestral claims to the disputed region.
Hezbollah issued a scathing rebuke on Wednesday against the Lebanese government’s decision to move forward with a plan to disarm all resistance groups, including the Iranian-backed Shiite terrorist organization, calling the move a “grave sin” and a capitulation to American and Israeli pressure.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will convene his security cabinet Thursday evening to finalize decisions on the next phase of Israel’s military campaign in Gaza, with expectations mounting that the government will approve a full-scale occupation of the Strip–despite urgent warnings from top defense officials.
President Donald Trump has doubled tariffs on Indian imports to 50%, accusing New Delhi of propping up Russia’s war effort by continuing to import and resell Russian crude oil.
In a sweeping move that marks a major shift in U.S. vaccine policy, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced Tuesday it has canceled 22 contracts worth nearly $500 million related to mRNA vaccine development. The decision follows a weeks-long internal review by HHS’s Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA).
Italy’s government has officially approved a €13.5 billion ($15.6 billion) plan to construct the world’s longest suspension bridge, connecting the island of Sicily to the mainland over the Strait of Messina. Long debated, often canceled, and frequently politicized, the project is now being fast-tracked with a new justification: national security.
Moscow was pondering options in its war against Ukraine on Wednesday, including a pause on air strikes, ahead of the arrival of U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff.
One of Pakistan’s main courts has suspended an independent commission that would investigate the misuse of the country’s blasphemy laws after pressure from Islamic hardliners, sources told Worthy News.
Predominantly Muslim Fulani herdsmen have reportedly killed a Christian woman in a village in Nigeria’s Plateau State—the latest of 17 Christians slain in the area since July 15, local sources said Tuesday.
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Shabbat can help us to understand our stewardship of earthly goods as we enter a day of rest. Since everything in and on Earth belongs to the LORD, all we own and all we are responsible for belongs to Him and is under His primary care. “The earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it.” [Psalm 24:1]
Driving throughout the United States we're noticing more construction sites than ever. In part, it's because we normally travel during the winter when many construction areas are not active, but now during the summer, they seem to be EVERYWHERE! Construction sites are normally messy, as wood, concrete, supplies, and equipment are strewn all over the place. Yet, it's well understood that the architect and his foreman know exactly what's going on toward accomplishing the finished product.
The word "Amen" (אָמֵן) properly pronounced in Hebrew "ah-mehn", means "so be it" or "may it be so", and also, "Yes, it is true!" Some scholars suggest a connection with the Hebrew word for truth, "emet" (אֶמֶת), because of the two similar root letters, "aleph"(א) and "mem" (מ). Truth ought to be confirmed. At the end of a prayer, saying "Amen" expresses the desire to affirm and confirm what was requested or proclaimed. Leha'ameen, (להאמין) means "to believe, trust or confide in", and all variations of this root (אמן) relate to "emunah" (אמונה): faith, belief, or faithfulness!
Phil. 3:13-14 Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of ...
Toward the end of 1941, as the second world war was raging in Europe, the Japanese ambassador was sent to Washington D.C. apparently seeking peace; however back in Japan, the emperor was planning the attack on Pearl Harbor. The Japanese empire sent their ambassador to D.C. as a distraction, so the sudden attack on Pearl Harbor took the United States completely by surprise.
The setting in 1 Samuel 14 is a war between the Israelites and the Philistines; and while King Saul relaxed under a pomegranate tree [1 Samuel 14:2], his son Jonathan along with his armor-bearer left the camp quietly to see if the Lord would fight the battle on their behalf. Jonathan had no idea what he would face out there, how many Philistines he would encounter, their battle skills or strategies. He only knew that if God delivered the enemy into his hands he would be victorious. And he was.
Between the years 1861-1865 the United States found itself in the midst of a bitter civil war over the issue of slavery, and several other serious disagreements. By the time the North won the war nearly 620,000 soldiers had perished. There were many in the North who were so embittered that the South had dragged them into such a deadly conflict that they wanted the South to pay dearly.
When I was growing up in the 1980's we had a rotary dial phone. You put your finger in a numbered spot on a circular dialer which clicked as it returned to its place and registered the 7 or 10 numbers you selected. It took a full 10 to 20 seconds to complete a call and was really annoying if the number had a lot of 8s or 9s! Then came touch-tone phones...
When Elianna was two years old, we wrote this devotional fifteen years ago that I believe is relevant especially as we celebrated Father's day around the world.
We have a cord-free, battery-free alarm clock -- we call her Elianna. Like clockwork, at 6:45 each morning our 2-year old daughter, Elianna wakes up and begins calling for us to come and greet her good morning. At this point, my wife and I have come to the conclusion that those 8-hour sleep nights we used to enjoy just aren't going to happen again --at least for a long, long time.
Just a few weeks prior to this incident, the disciples were trembling for their lives as their Lord was arrested and then crucified. They had all fled in the Garden of Gethsemane and then Peter, whose boldness was legendary, had denied him three times. The fact that they had been serving with Yeshua (Jesus) for three years, witnessing many miracles, including Peter’s amazing walk on the water…
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