Friend,







Welcome to the Friday Five! Every Friday we share our top five articles, stories, and quotes for you to read and share with your friends and church families.  <[link removed]>



We would be very grateful if you could make a donation of $100, $50, $25, or $10 today towards our work producing these Friday Fives and fighting for your values on the public square! <[link removed]>



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1. DAILY SIGNAL: Kansas Voters Reject Removing ‘Right’ to Abortion From State Constitution





“Searle said that when she was 23, she learned she was pregnant with her third child. Her husband told her he did not want another child and took her to a Planned Parenthood in Kansas to have an abortion.



Searle remembers that workers at the abortion clinic compared the tiny baby in her womb to a feather. She experienced medical complications and had to have another procedure at Planned Parenthood a week later to remove the remains of the baby that were missed during the abortion.



Looking back on her abortion, which occurred in 1983, Searle said she experienced ‘a lot of pressure …to get it done with and get moving.’ Searle was told that ‘once you get past this, everything’s fine,’ she recalled. ‘Not in the long term.’ Searle says she voted for the Value Them Both amendment ‘for the safety of women.’ If voters had approved it, the Value Them Both amendment would have allowed for greater regulation of abortion in Kansas, something that Baumgarden says is necessary.”



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2. WNG: A college football coach takes a stand for life



"University of Michigan head football coach Jim Harbaugh sent shockwaves through the sports world last week as news of his pro-life advocacy surfaced.



'I believe in having the courage to let the unborn be born,' he told attendees at a pro-life benefit in Plymouth, Mich. 'I love life. I believe in having a loving care and respect for life and death. My faith and my science are what drive these beliefs in me. Quoting from Jeremiah, ‘Before I formed you in the womb, I knew you. Before you were born, I set you apart. I appointed you as a prophet to the nations.’”































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3. FOX NEWS: Former NCAA swimmer forced to compete with Lia Thomas details 'extreme discomfort' in the locker room



“‘That's not something we were forewarned about, which I don't think is right in any means, changing in a locker room with someone who has different parts," Gaines said. "So not only were we forced to race against a male, we were forced to change in the locker room with one… And so then we're sitting there not even knowing who to talk to, who to complain to, because this kind of all happened behind the scenes and very discreetly.’



Gaines called out the ‘huge lack of accountability’ between the NCAA and policymaking sides for not protecting the integrity of women’s sports.



‘I think people forget that women's sports were a protected group. The category was made because the playing field was not level by any means when you have them competing against men,’ Gaines said. ‘And so obviously it was created to ensure that fairness. And now that we are kind of completely flipping that, it devalues what it was created for.’”



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4. FOX NEWS: UK's rugby leagues ban transgender players from women's games



"’It was a complex and difficult decision and the policy change was not taken lightly or without thorough and full research and consultation.’ the council said in a statement on Friday. . . .



After a two-year review, the governing body voted on a complete ban on transgender women from women’s rugby in England, a change from its previous policy. In 2019, the RFU assured transgender women of their inclusion and issued guidelines to be met by all transgender players before they could play rugby.



‘The RFU Council has determined that until such time as new further peer-reviewed science is available, a precautionary approach is appropriate to ensure fair competition and safety of all competitors,’ it said.”



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5. YOU'RE INVITED: Capital Community Church presents "A City Set on a Hill: Being a Christian in a Dark World"



Capital Community Church invites you to join them in Raleigh on August 27th-28th, to hear from Darrell Harrison and Virgil Walker, the hosts of The Just Thinking podcast. They will discuss and answer your questions on the issues of Social Justice and the Christian's Relationship to Government.



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WEEKLY PRAYER: LIFE



LORD, we recognize that you are Sovereign over all creation. We recognize you made man from the dust, and in your mercy, you crowned creation with man and woman made in your image. What a wonder it is that you would bestow upon us this blessing and responsibility! LORD, may we not take this blessing for granted. We pray that this great responsibility and dignity may motivate us to love You, our neighbors, and our families more.



LORD, may we as a culture truly see and believe that children are a blessing from the LORD—born or unborn; able or disabled. All children should have an opportunity to experience the liberty of life. LORD, make us your vehicle to change our culture into one that cherishes and protects life. Keep at the forefront of our minds our responsibilities to respect, cherish, and serve the youngest and oldest in our society.



Finally, LORD, we pray even further for our children. Across our state, country, and world, an entire generation of youth have seen their lives and education ruptured by the pandemic and its closing of schools. Father, as a result so many of these children are not only wounded by the quality of their education, but by a likely onslaught of mental illness brought about by social isolation. LORD, bring them hope and healing as only You can. 



"At that time the disciples came to Jesus and asked, 'Who, then, is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?' He called a little child to him, and placed the child among them. And he said: 'Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Therefore, whoever takes the lowly position of this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. And whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me. If anyone causes one of these little ones—those who believe in me—to stumble, it would be better for them to have a large millstone hung around their neck and to be drowned in the depths of the sea.'" (Matthew 18:1-6)



Amen













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Sincerely,



North Carolina Values Coalition



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