Abortion pill appeal upheld, police chaplain offers support after school shooting, Bible study on counseling.

A federal appeals court has blocked a nationwide injunction suspending the two-decade-old approval of the abortion pill but restored protective requirements weakened in recent years by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

In an opinion issued late Wednesday (April 12), a three-judge panel of the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans halted a federal judge’s April 7 stay of the FDA’s 2000 approval of mifepristone, the first drug in a two-step process commonly referred to as medical or chemical abortion. The panel, however, upheld for now the lower court’s prohibition of a series of FDA actions beginning in 2016 that pro-life advocates said reduced safeguards for women’s health.

U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland announced Thursday morning (April 13) the Department of Justice (DOJ) would appeal the ruling to the Supreme Court.

Pro-life leaders expressed gratitude for the appeals court’s decision to restore previous protections.

Many first responders sprang into action in the aftermath of the tragic shooting at the Covenant School in Nashville on March 27. Among them was Sgt. Andrew Ivey, chaplain coordinator for the Metro Nashville Police Department (MNPD) and a North American Mission Board (NAMB)-endorsed Chaplain.

“There was a lot of grief, a lot of uncertainty from parents not knowing if their kids were OK or not,” Ivey said.

The morning’s devastating events caused Ivey and a team of chaplains to respond to provide counseling and support in the wake of the shooting which left three children and three adults dead.

In addition to the MNPD’s three team chaplains, a record number of the department’s volunteer chaplains responded to the scene, Ivey said.

Out of the 27 volunteer chaplains Ivey helps coordinate, 13 responded on the day of the shooting. Many even left work after receiving correspondence about the tragedy from Ivey.

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Good News for Today is made possible through our friends at The Voice of the Martyrs, a nonprofit organization that serves persecuted Christians around the world. Founded in 1967 by Richard and Sabina Wurmbrand, VOM is dedicated to inspiring believers to deepen their commitment to Christ and to fulfill His Great Commission — no matter the cost. Find out more and sign up for their free monthly magazine at vom.org/goodnews.

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A Lifeway Bible study teaches about the Holy Spirit.

In Mark 15, Jesus was preparing His disciples for what was to come. He had just warned the disciples in the previous chapter of the coming hostility they could expect to face. Just as many rejected Jesus, they would also reject His disciples. But they were not without hope. The solution to this bleak outlook would be the Holy Spirit, or Counselor. “When the Counselor comes, the one I will send to you from the Father – the Spirit of truth Who proceeds from the Father – He will testify about Me” (John 15:26).

The Holy Spirit points people to the truth. The Spirit begins working in us when we come to know Christ as Savior, and He is still working in hearts and lives today.