The Daily Briefing highlights the news of the day and research that reveals the spirit of the day.
The Daily Briefing is a newsletter sent straight to your inbox every morning that provides biblical insight on today's news.
Top News
6. Netanyahu defiant despite no clear winner in Israel election (WaPo)
“Israeli voters on Tuesday turned out in the highest numbers in decades, delivering results that remained uncertain hours after polls closed. Election authorities have begun a count that could last for days, leaving Israel to face a stretch of uncertainty over who will lead the next government, which could remain unclear even after the final vote is tallied.
“Exit polls by Israeli television networks initially suggested that voters had denied Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s right-wing and religious coalition a return to majority control. Later polls indicated that his bloc and the one led by challenger Gadi Eisenkot are neck-and-neck, or gave Netanyahu’s a slight edge.
“In the past, such polls have not always matched the official results. Netanyahu stopped short of claiming a win early Wednesday, saying he was waiting for the final count. But he called for “a strong, right-wing national government.”
Why do we vote the way we do? One study found that it could be as simple as counting likes and dislikes. Voters count up how many things they like about each candidate and how many things they dislike about each candidate, subtract dislikes from likes regarding each candidate, and then subtract the net score for one candidate from the net score for another candidate to yield a preference. However, this doesn’t take into account how some folks may place a greater emphasis on some issues over others…
Another study found that, at its core, voting is prosocial behavior. Altruism and duty account for 60 percent of the allocation for why we vote, with selfish motives accounting for roughly 15 percent of the motivation.
Stay sober out there… I’ve been thinking a lot about 1 Pet. 1:13, specifically the call to “prepare your minds for action” and be “sober-minded.” The verse paints a picture of a man running in long robes. Instead of allowing your long robes to flow in the wind, you have bound up your clothing for what lies ahead. In addition, you aren’t cognitively drunk, unreasonable, and easily captivated by the moment. Rather, you have set your mind “fully on his grace.” The hope isn’t in a party or a candidate but rather in a person named Jesus. In these final days of campaign season, drink less spirits and drink deeply of the Spirit.
5. 175 Democrats demand Trump admin stop Ilhan Omar investigation, warn it could hurt her re-election bid (Fox News)
“Nearly 200 House Democrats are moving to shield Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., from further investigation after federal investigators raided her Washington, D.C., home earlier this month. Rep. Pramila Jayapal, D-Wash., led 175 members of the House Democratic Caucus in a letter to Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Markwayne Mullin and Attorney General Todd Blanche, criticizing the probe into Omar's immigration history as a partisan attack and accusing them of trying to sway her bid for another term in Congress.
“Omar, D-Minn., is under federal investigation over allegations she or her father lied about her birth year on immigration paperwork to obtain her citizenship when her family fled Somalia in the late 1990s. If she was 17 when her father obtained citizenship, as previously thought, she would have automatically qualified along with him. If she was 18 or older, which federal officials now suspect, she would have had to make her own application.”
The Supremes and the Democrats aren’t the only ones saying Stop… Samuel Sey, conservative Christian blogger and speaker, was taken last week by ICE agents and is currently being held in an Ohio jail. He is being detained and set to be deported because he allegedly overstayed his visa. Last year, Sey shared how it’s not “un-Christian to deport illegal immigrants.” He wrote: “The majority of people who are complaining about the deportations are not principled people defending Christian virtue. They are insincere people using Jesus' name in vain to attack Trump."
Illegal immigration is a problem, but legal immigration has a host of problems as well, according to a new study out of Cato. Click here to see a chart that depicts the complexity of our immigration process. The whole process for a single immigrant worker took almost 1,200 days to complete in 2022—an increase of almost 500 days since just 2016. The cumbersome and increasingly complex nature of our legal immigration process has indirectly encouraged illegal immigration. “No use waiting in a line that never moves.”
Can I borrow your fleece? When God called Gideon to rescue Israel from the Midianites, Gideon was deeply doubtful of his calling. Even after God promised to be with him, Gideon asked for a miraculous sign to prove it. He placed a fleece of wool on the threshing floor, asking for only the fleece to be wet with dew while the ground stayed dry. The next morning, Gideon wrung a bowlful of water out of the fleece. Still battling insecurity, Gideon asked for one more favor: to reverse the sign (fleece dry, ground wet). God didn’t rebuke him but showed grace to him, giving him the benefit of the doubt and a dry fleece. In this instance, I have questions about Mr. Sey and Rep. Omar, but maybe they need a fleece instead of flak at this moment. We have to abide by the law, but also understand the complexity of it. (Judges 6)
4. Grand jury declines to indict Cassidy Hutchinson over Jan. 6 testimony (WaPo)
“A federal grand jury in D.C. rejected an attempt by the Justice Department to indict former White House aide Cassidy Hutchinson for the account she gave lawmakers of President Donald Trump’s actions during the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol, according to two people familiar with the matter who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss a grand jury matter.
“In a brief court appearance Tuesday afternoon, Neville S. Hedley, who introduced himself as the acting senior litigation counsel at the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division, told U.S. Magistrate Judge Zia M. Faruqui that the grand jury had not concurred on the proposed indictment. Hedley did not specify the defendant, but the people familiar said he was referring to Hutchinson. The failure of the Justice Department to secure the indictment marks the latest rebuke of its efforts to prosecute one of the president’s political enemies. Attorneys for Hutchinson could not immediately be reached for comment.”
Anyone want a ham sandwich? In 1985, Sol Wachtler, then the chief justice of New York’s Supreme Court said, “Any good prosecutor can get a grand jury to indict a ham sandwich.” To a large degree, he had a point. In 2010, government statistics showed that federal grand juries brought charges more than 99 percent of the time.
The times are a changing, Bob…Federal grand juries practically always indict—rejecting just 6 cases out of over 155,000 in 2016. Yet since Trump returned to office, ProPublica found over 40 instances where federal judges flatly refused, questioning the “presumption of regularity” — the longstanding principle that courts generally assume government officials have followed the rules and acted in good faith.
Persistent widows and unjust judges… In Luke 18, Jesus shared about a judge who neither feared God nor cared about other people. When a widow approached him about an injustice committed against her by an adversary, the judge simply brushed her aside. However, she persisted. After repeated attempts, he finally relented and gave her justice, not because she deserved it but rather because he was tired of it. His personal preference trumped her judicial pleas. After finishing the story, Jesus made a larger point: this side of eternity, preferences can impact the delivery of justice, but there will come a day when his omniscience will render complete justice.
Cultural News
3. The top impulse buys Americans regret most – study reveals (NY Post)
“Topping the list of wasted spending: unworn clothing. A staggering 9 out of 10 respondents confessed to owning closets packed with garments still having their original store tags.
“Impulse buying is behind most of these purchases, and it’s more widespread than we think,” said a packaging expert from Arka, who revealed the average American spends around $150 a month on unplanned purchases, which adds up to nearly $1.8K a year.
“Slow juicers snagged the runner-up spot, with 86% of buyers revealing they abandoned the appliance within days. Across multiple Reddit threads, tedious cleanup was blamed for its nonuse – dismantling components and scrubbing sticky pulp quickly is a hassle not worth the beverage. Most slow juicers end up in a closet or second hand market within the first month.”
I Want It All – Queen and impulsive American shoppers. Funny enough, an estimated 70 percent of online shopping carts are abandoned without a sale, which suggests that potential purchasers are relatively easy to derail. To a certain degree, this could be a good thing for businesses, with an e-commerce return for a $50 product costing retailers an average of $33.
If you struggle with impulsive buying, consider query theory. In essence, our brains generate arguments, and the first arguments usually matter most. Earlier arguments influence later ones, giving the former an advantage over the latter. So flip the script: have arguments about why you shouldn’t purchase before you step foot in a store.
The Bible is replete with examples of individuals who exercised great self-control. Joseph fled from Potiphar’s wife, Daniel refused to eat the king’s food, David spared Saul’s life, and Jesus in the wilderness. While you can’t always control how you will feel about a purchase afterward, you can control how you think about spending before you enter the store. (Gen. 39, Dan. 1, 1 Sam. 24, Mt. 4, Pro. 25)
News You Can Use
2. Some walk with you for a while… Others stay in your sky forever…
Watch it here. “As for the days of our life, they contain seventy years, or if due to strength, eighty years, yet their pride is but labor and sorrow; for soon it is gone and we fly away.” (Psalm 90:10)
1. Horror movie characters when they have to unlock a door..
Watch it here. “Husbands, in the same way, live with your wives in an understanding way…” (1 Pet. 3:7)
