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.

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1. NC VALUES: Merry Christmas Season and a Happy New Year

We wanted to wish all of you a very merry Christmas season, and a happy New Year.

Our Coalition had a fantastic year, and among the many things to be grateful for, we are especially thankful for your support. We look forward to what we can do together in 2025.

Give an end-of-year gift: https://ncvalues.org/eoy

2. AP NEWS: Pro-Abortion Gov. Cooper Prepares to Leave Office

“’There’s simply no governor who’s ever fought as hard or as publicly as Gov. Cooper has to protect access to abortion,’ said Paige Johnson with Planned Parenthood South Atlantic. Plenty of North Carolinians see that differently. Cooper’s opposition to the abortion bill reflects an administration that ‘has been consistently hostile to policies that serve the best interests of North Carolina families,’ said Tami Fitzgerald, executive director of the NC Values Coalition.”

Read more: https://apnews.com/article/north-carolina-governor-roy-cooper-departs-senate-fc9b51f3c19bbd5a4fa10d13067c7142

3. Judge Orders NC Elections Board to Explain Why Griffin Protest Belongs in Federal Court

“A federal judge is ordering the North Carolina State Board of Elections to explain why he should keep a case involving a dispute over the recent state Supreme Court election. The board must comply with the order by Jan. 1.

Republican state Supreme Court candidate Jefferson Griffin filed a complaint on Dec. 18 asking North Carolina’s high court to block certification of the election pitting Griffin against appointed incumbent Democrat Allison Riggs. The elections board removed the case to federal court the following day.”

Read more: https://www.carolinajournal.com/judge-orders-nc-elections-board-to-explain-why-griffin-protest-belongs-in-federal-court/

4. FOX NEWS: Many Women ‘Unprepared’ for Intensity of Pain from Chemical Abortion, Study Finds

“A new study finds many women may be surprised by the intensity of the pain they experience from a chemical abortion.

The study, published this week in the journal BMJ Sexual & Reproductive Health, surveyed women in the United Kingdom who had taken abortion pills to end a pregnancy and asked them about the pain they experienced.

About half of respondents said that the pain they experienced was more than they expected. The majority of respondents (92%) rated their pain at least a 4 out of 10 on the pain scale while over 40% of respondents rated their pain as severe (8-10).”

Read more: https://www.foxnews.com/media/many-women-unprepared-intensity-pain-from-chemical-abortion-study-finds

5. N&O: Big Changes are Coming to NC Election Law Next Year. Here’s What to Expect

“Following a contentious vote by North Carolina’s Republican supermajority to override Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper’s veto of Senate Bill 382, major changes are coming to the way the state runs its elections — and who is in charge of them.

State and local election boards, which have held a 3-2 Democratic majority for eight years, will flip to Republican control this spring after lawmakers stripped the authority to make appointments from incoming Gov. Josh Stein.”

Read more: https://www.newsobserver.com/news/politics-government/article297252504.html

Weekly Prayer: Officials

LORD, you also have instructed us to pray for our governing officials, and we come to you in the spirit of this petition. We pray for our state government and its executive, legislative, and judicial servants. May they indeed be servants unto the people, and govern in a manner that protects liberty and virtue. In the same spirit, we pray for public servants across our local governments. May they all heed your mandate in Romans 13:4 to be in positions of authority as “God’s servant” and for the “good” of the public. They govern in what we confess are difficult times. May they plead with you to give them wisdom, and may your grace to govern wisely be poured out on them.

Protect us from the oppression and loss of freedoms that other countries have experienced, and help us to value and preserve freedom, which we know comes only from You.

“I have indeed seen the oppression of my people in Egypt.  I have heard their groaning and have come down to set them free.” Acts 7:34

Amen

Sincerely,

Tami & Team

NC Values