Our Worthy Brief is a daily Christian newsletter designed to encourage, inform, and edify believers in their daily walk with God. Our online Christian magazine incorporates our daily devotional (Worthy Devotions) along news from around the world provided by our Christian News service, Worthy News.

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Worthy Brief - 8/21/2024

Friend, does anyone need a shoe shine!

Matthew 6:4 So that your giving may be in secret: and thy Father which sees what is done in secret will Himself reward you openly.

Zechariah 4:10  For who hath despised the day of small things? for they shall rejoice, and shall see the plummet in the hand of Zerubbabel with those seven; they are the eyes of the LORD, which run to and fro through the whole earth.

I came across this very powerful story about one of the most influential men of God in my life, D.L.Moody, in a book named A Call to Excellence by Gary Inrig.

A large group of European pastors came to one of D. L. Moody's Northfield Bible Conferences in Massachusetts in the late 1800s. Following the European custom of the time, each guest put his shoes outside his room to be cleaned by the hall servants overnight. But of course this was America and there were no hall servants.

Walking the dormitory halls that night, Moody saw the shoes and determined not to embarrass his brothers. He mentioned the need to some ministerial students who were there, but met with only silence or pious excuses. Moody returned to the dorm, gathered up the shoes, and, alone in his room, the world's only famous evangelist began to clean and polish the shoes. Only the unexpected arrival of a friend in the midst of the work revealed the secret.

When the foreign visitors opened their doors the next morning, their shoes were shined. They never knew by whom. Moody told no one, but his friend told a few people, and during the rest of the conference, different men volunteered to shine the shoes in secret.

Wow. I'm humbled, how about you? Many of us want to be great ministers for the Lord. We want our names and our works to be remembered. But let's never forget the true ministry of the Lord. Not only would have Jesus shined those shoes in secret, He would have returned to wash their feet too!

Friend, have you been asking the Lord to use you? Here you have it! Shine some one's dingy shoes, give a gift to someone in need, love on someone hard to love -- but don't tell the world -- do it in secret! You can be sure that the Lord sees these things! And He will open up more opportunities for you to do even greater things for Him!

Your family in the Lord with much agape love,

George, Baht Rivka, Obadiah and Elianna (Missouri)
(Baltimore, MD)

Editor's Note: During this war, we have been live blogging throughout the day -- sometimes minute by minute on our Telegram channel. Be sure to check it out!

Editor's Note: Dear friends — we are now booking in the following states. Ohio, Kentucky, Michigan, Indiana, West Virginia, Tennessee! If you know Rabbis, Pastors or Leaders who might be interested in powerful Israeli style Hebrew/English worship and a refreshing word from Worthy News about what’s going on in the land, please let us know how to connect with them and we will do our best to get you on our schedule! You can send an email to george [ @ ] worthyministries.com for more information.

Around the World
Anxiety After Taiwan Fires Missiles, Awaits Trump’s Arrival
Anxiety remained Wednesday after Taiwan conducted live-fire missile drills in response to growing military pressure from Communist-ruled China.
Ukraine Seeks Peace Talks With Russia, Without Putin
Ukraine says it wants peace talks to end Russia’s incursion, but not directly with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Kyiv seeks an agreement similar to the Black Sea grain deal between the two nations, which allowed Ukraine, a key bread basket, to transport grain to the rest of the world again.

Israel-Palestinian Conflict
Deal Increasingly Unlikely as Hamas Accuses U.S. of Bias Toward Israel
Hamas rejected the bridge proposal by the Biden Administration called on the U.S. to reverse its "partnership" with Israel and "work seriously" toward stopping the war in Gaza as it accused the U.S. of "complete bias" toward Israel.
Israel Prepares Expanded Conflict with Hezbollah As It Destroys Hezbollah Weapons Depots, Hezbollah Fires Over 100 Rockets
Israeli Defense Minister Gallant stated that Israel is shifting its "center of gravity" following the destruction of several Hezbollah arms depots in Lebanon by the Israel Defense Forces on Monday night. In retaliation, Hezbollah launched 115 rockets and drones at northern Israel throughout Tuesday.
Israeli Military Recovers Bodies Of 6 Hostages
Israel’s military confirmed Tuesday that it recovered the bodies of six hostages taken in the Hamas’ October 7 attack that started the Gaza war, but many others kidnapped remained unaccounted for.

Inside the United States
Biden Explains Why He Dropped Out of Presidential Race
President Joe Biden explained to reporters Tuesday in more detail his rationale for suddenly ending his reelection bid earlier this year.
RFK Jr’s Campaign Considers “Joining Forces With Trump” to Avoid Risk of a Harris/Walz Presidency
Nicole Shanahan, running mate of RFK Jr, made a significant revelation on a podcast just days after they denied reports of RFK Jr approaching Harris for a cabinet role which could change the dynamics of the U.S. Presidential race considerably.
Tearful Biden Admits Mistakes In DNC Speech Amid Pro-Palestine Protests
U.S. President Joe Biden said Monday he had “made a lot of mistakes” in his career but added, “I gave my best to you,” as he addressed the Democratic National Convention in an emotional farewell speech for which he received a minutes-long standing ovation.

Christian News
Turkmenistan Pastor Facing Threats, Arrest
Pressure is mounting on Rahymjan Borjakov, a 44-year-old pastor who faces imminent arrest for leading an unregistered church in Turkmenistan, Christians tell Worthy News.

Worthy Insights
DNC features ‘gender-neutral prayer room,’ repurposed ‘all-gender’ women’s rooms
The Democratic National Convention in Chicago, Illinois, offered a "gender-neutral prayer room" with Islamic prayer mats and also appears to have repurposed several women's rooms at the venue as "all-gender."
Texas gets 90-ft-tall Hanuman sculpture, 3rd tallest statue in US
Agrand Pran Pratishtha ceremony was held in Houston, Texas, on Sunday, August 18, where a 90-foot-tall Hanuman statue was inaugurated. This is the third tallest statue in the United States, according to Latestly.
Democrats Demand ID To Get Into Their Convention But Not To Vote For President
The Biden-Harris administration has called voter photo identification laws “burdensome” and “unnecessary.” The administration has let hundreds of thousands of unvetted illegal immigrants pour across the border with no questions asked about who they are. But the administration’s political party has implemented identification requirements for anyone who wants to attend the Democratic National Convention (DNC).