WEEKLY NEWS SUMMARY - OCTOBER 7, 2026
In this week's Intersect, read about:
Supreme Court Lets Third-Country Deportations Resume
"The U.S. Supreme Court on September 29 cleared the way for the Trump administration to keep deporting illegal immigrants to countries other than their own. The one-page, unsigned order pauses a lower court ruling that had blocked the policy while the legal fight continues." Read more at Million Voices...
THINK.
- The heart of this fight is not the deportees. It is countries like Cuba and Vietnam that refuse to take back their own citizens. Without a third-country option, a foreign government's stubbornness could force America to release criminals who already have final removal orders. No nation should get a veto over our laws.
- Three trips to the Supreme Court over one district judge's rulings shows how broken the system has become. The December arguments could finally settle whether a single judge can freeze a nationwide policy. That answer will shape the courts' power over every future president, from either party.
- The dispute is narrower than the headlines suggest. Both sides agree third-country removals can happen; they disagree on whether a foreign nation's promise not to harm deportees is enough. Fair process and firm enforcement are not enemies, and a strong ruling can protect both.
PRAY.
Lord, thank You for the gift of law and order. Grant our justices wisdom as they weigh this case and give our leaders courage to protect our communities. Keep the officers who enforce our laws safe and help us show mercy and truth to every person we meet. Amen.
ACT.
Pray for the Supreme Court and for the men and women who enforce our immigration laws. Contact your congressional representatives and urge them to support secure borders and limits on nationwide injunctions issued by a single judge.
Your Gun Rights Don’t Stop at the State Line, Court Rules
"For nearly 60 years, a law-abiding American could walk into a gun store in another state, pass a federal background check, and still walk out without a handgun. A federal appeals court has now ruled that rule unconstitutional." Read more at Million Voices...
THINK.
- This law was written in 1968, long before instant background checks existed. Today, the check already happens at the counter, so the ban adds nothing but a shipping delay and a fee. When a law's purpose is already being met another way, keeping it only burdens honest citizens.
- The government tried to defend the ban with colonial-era rules on moving guns across borders. The court said those rules were nothing like a flat ban on buying a handgun. That is how the Bruen test is supposed to work: the government, not the citizen, must prove a limit on a right is justified.
- "The prudent see danger and take cover" (Proverbs 22:3). Owning a firearm to protect your family is wise preparation, not fear. Prudence also means knowing the law before you act, since many dealers may keep following the old rules until the courts settle this fight.
PRAY.
Father, thank You for judges who honor the Constitution and the rights You have given us. Guard the Second Amendment from those who would chip it away. Give every gun owner wisdom, self-control, and a heart to protect life. Amen.
ACT.
Contact your congressional representatives and urge them to repeal outdated federal rules that burden law-abiding gun owners. Support groups that defend Second Amendment rights in court. Stay informed on how this ruling applies in your state before buying a handgun across state lines.
Dad Sues After School Refuses Faith-Based Opt-Out
"Konstantin Averkiev says he did everything a parent is supposed to do. He met with his son’s teacher, explained his family’s Christian beliefs, and asked to be told before any lessons on sex and gender." Read more at Million Voices...
THINK.
- One detail stands out: the gender-surgery talk was not even on the slides. Even a school that shares every lesson ahead of time cannot promise what a teacher will say. That is why Averkiev's request covers assemblies, counseling, and pronoun rules, not just a single book or handout.
- The district calls the lesson a tool for empathy and preventing bullying. Christians can fully support protecting every child from bullying. But when contested beliefs about sex and gender are packaged as kindness, parents who object are made to look unkind, which is exactly why a clear right to opt out matters.
- In Mahmoud v. Taylor, the Court protected parents from LGBTQ-themed storybooks. This case asks whether that protection reaches further. God told parents to teach His ways "when you sit at home and when you walk along the road" (Deuteronomy 6:7). Faith is formed all day long, and a right that only covers one storybook would mean very little.
PRAY.
Lord, we lift up Konstantin Averkiev and his young son. Give this father strength and peace as he stands for his family's faith. Grant the judges in this case wisdom and a love for justice. Raise up parents across our nation to be bold, loving, and faithful guides for their children. Amen.
ACT.
Put any concerns about curriculum in writing to your child's teacher and principal, and ask for copies of lessons that may conflict with your family's faith. Attend school board meetings and ask how your district handles religious opt-out requests.
Gender Rule Wiped From the Title IX Books
"For many families, the fight over Title IX has come down to questions that hit close to home. Who belongs in the girls’ locker room? Can a teacher be punished for how they address a student?" Read more at Million Voices...
THINK.
- Day to day, nothing changes for students, so why does this step matter? It puts the burden on any future administration. To bring back the Biden rule, it would have to propose a new rule, take public comments, and defend it in court, which makes this win much harder to undo.
- There is still a gap. The restored regulation does not define "sex" as biological sex; that definition comes from an executive order. An executive order can be erased by the next president with the stroke of a pen. The lasting fix is for Congress to write that definition into Title IX itself.
- Some students truly struggle with who they are, and they deserve compassion, not mockery. The answer is not to rewrite the rules for every girl in the locker room. It is to love each child as someone who is "fearfully and wonderfully made" (Psalm 139:14), exactly as God designed them.
PRAY.
Heavenly Father, thank You for creating us male and female in Your image. Protect the girls in our schools and on our playing fields. Give Education Secretary Linda McMahon and school leaders wisdom and courage. Pour out Your compassion on students who feel confused and draw them to Your truth and love. Amen.
ACT.
Ask your local school leaders how they protect girls' locker rooms, restrooms, and sports teams under Title IX. Thank the lawmakers who stand for biological truth and urge them to write clear protections into law.
My Faith Votes— is a ministry that motivates, equips, and activates Christians in America to vote in every election, transforming our communities and influencing our nation with biblical truth. An estimated 25 million Christians who are registered to vote, fail to vote in presidential elections. My Faith Votes is on a mission to change this statistic by helping Christians act on their faith and vote in every election. When we pray unceasingly for our nation, think biblically about the issues, and vote consistently in every election the impact of Christians taking action from the local to the state and federal level will be unprecedented.
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