News and Prophecy Staff

New research by Dr. BJ Fogg at Stanford University suggests that it is emotion, not repetition, that creates lasting habits (TIME, December 30, 2019). It all has to do with motivation. “There is a direct connection between what you feel when you do a behavior and the likelihood that you will repeat the behavior in the future.” According to Dr.

Evacuations continue across large swaths of Australia as raging fires continue to scorch the nation. On Monday, over 100,000 people were evacuated from the suburbs of Melbourne (Deutsche Welle, December 31, 2019). In another area of the country, four thousand people were trapped on a beach between the burning fires and the sea, awaiting water and air rescue.

With Boris Johnson’s recent landslide victory, many in Britain and in the parliament of the European Union expect Brexit to happen in January 2020. Many EU supporters have also expressed concerns that if Britain leaves, other nations will follow. Now, EU leaders fear that recent Polish court actions could lead to Poland’s exit from the EU, following Britain’s example.

Modern research supports an activity God has long encouraged and reveals benefits He no doubt designed: Singing in a group benefits those involved by helping people bond and feel part of the group and by improving physical and mental health (The Conversation, October 28, 2015).

Reuters reports that a recent poll in Italy is causing some concern: “Almost half of Italians are in favor of having a ‘strongman’ in power who does not care about parliament and elections… casting doubts on the strength of democracy in a major European nation” (December 6, 2019). Italians are fed up with the lack of economic recovery following the 2008 global recession, as well as with ongoing governmental failures.