US military suicide deaths reflect a national trend. The national suicide rate has increased by 33% since 1999, and suicide is the second leading cause of death among people 10 to 34 years old. 325 active-duty members died by suicide in 2018, the highest number since collecting data began in 2001. The defence department said suicide rates among the military population are ‘devastating, unacceptable and not going in the desired direction’. Every life lost has a deeply personal story that shatters the lives of families. The defence and veterans affairs departments are working to reduce suicide in the ranks and among veterans, who die at an average rate of twenty a day. Between January and March 2019, ninety active duty service members committed suicide - 30 soldiers, 20 sailors, 26 airmen, and 14 marines.

On 29 August Florida residents were being told they should ‘prepare now’, especially in areas along the east coast, for a growing storm currently moving in their direction. The media said they should have a plan of action, a hurricane kit ready, and ‘stay tuned for updates’ as this forecast comes further into focus. A strengthening Hurricane Dorian is a growing threat to Florida’s Labour Day weekend. As it barrelled through the Virgin Islands and scraped eastern Puerto Rico, Dorian intensified from a tropical storm to a hurricane, with even more strengthening being predicted. Dorian is now forecast to approach the Florida coast as at least a Category 3 hurricane, with 115 to 130 mph winds and 8 to 12 inches of rain.

Christian publishers are rejoicing because the Bible has been exempted from President Trump's looming tariffs on Chinese goods. The 10% increase on $300 billion worth of other Chinese goods will go into effect on 1 September. With China being the world's largest Bible publisher, it had been feared that the tariffs would have made some translations too costly to produce.

Florida’s supreme court historically backed abortion rights, but now has more conservative justices. In a victory for abortion opponents, an appeals court overturned a judge’s ruling from January 2018 stating there was no need to make a person wait 24 hours before having an abortion. They argued that the law violates privacy rights and places roadblocks in the way of women seeking abortions. The 24-hour time gap will now give the person time to consider more deeply the act of abortion and ensure they give ‘informed consent’. This case could become a key test for anti-abortion lobbyists.

Syrian refugees usually don’t see beyond their own needs, but Turkey’s missionaries have seen a change. When food trucks arrive at settlements, the predominantly Muslim Syrians clamour for distribution to begin. But recently women went straight to the director and said, ‘First we want prayer. This child is crippled, he’s an orphan, please pray for him. We don’t want food, just prayer.’ A great awakening has begun among camp refugees; they knew Jesus as a prophet, but now realise that he is the God of Christians and he heals and works miracles today.

Sudan's ruling military council and civilian opposition alliance have signed a landmark power-sharing deal and Khartoum civilians have celebrated in the streets, dancing and waving their national flag. Omar al-Bashir, the former president of Sudan, will now face a long jail term if his high profile corruption trial finds him guilty of possessing foreign currency, corruption, receiving gifts illegally, and systematic human rights abuses.

In 1940 Britain faced her darkest hour with troops trapped at Dunkirk. Then a call for help went out, prayers were offered and 338,000 men lived to fight another day - ten times more than Churchill and the generals expected. It was a miracle. The sea was becalmed. Hitler uncharacteristically ordered his troops to halt, even though they surrounded the British in a pincer-like movement. Cloud covered Spitfire pilots, and 800 fishing and pleasure boats mounted an extraordinary rescue. Today we’re in a Dunkirk-like dark hour: Christ’s light is dim in the chaos of our nation. But prayer changes things. Intercessors are the ‘little ships’ crossing the currents of secular culture to rescue Britain. We must remember that it is not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit’ (Zech. 4:6) that the enemies of God will be defeated. For the source of these thoughts click the ‘More’ button.

University students are attending chapel services at a higher rate than the rest of the population, challenging the notion that young people aren't interested in church. When 54 college chapels in Durham, Oxford and Cambridge universities were surveyed, the figures showed that there were twice as many students making their way to church on Sunday than there were adults in the rest of the population attending services at regular churches. Meanwhile a separate study showed that from 2017 to 2018, the total number of young people sitting the Religious Studies GCSE fell from 282,193 to 253,618, and 701 schools in England stopped entering students into the subject altogether. However, GCSE reforms now state that pupils must study at least two religions, so the subject has a more secular ethos and is not particularly relevant to Biblical Christian study. 

There have been calls for protection for churches in Northern Ireland after 445 incidences of criminal damage to religious buildings, churchyards, or cemeteries in the last three years. Belfast’s synagogue and Islamic centre have also been damaged in the last ten years. The leaders of all the political parties have been urged to make more support available to religious buildings and to commit to setting up an initiative like the ‘Place Of Worship Fund’, which helps to protect religious buildings in England and Wales. Ulster Unionist MLA Robbie Butler said, ‘Places of worship, no matter what faith or denomination, should be a cherished place of peace and sanctuary. Attacking a church is an attack against its entire congregation.’

Two teenage asylum-seekers have won their battle to escape deportation to Pakistan. Brothers Somer Bakhsh and Areeb have spent most of their lives fearing that they could be forced to leave Glasgow and sent back to the country of their birth where Christians are persecuted. They now have some certainty in their lives, but they have only been granted ‘limited leave to remain’ until February 2022. Somer, who got four As and a B in his Highers and aspires to be an astrophysicist, said, ‘Scotland is my home. I have grown up here, all my friends are here, and I feel like a Scottish boy.’ First minister Nicola Sturgeon described the brothers as a ‘credit’ to Scotland, and Jeremy Corbyn urged the Home Office to grant the family leave to remain.