Weekly Update by Michael Armstrong – November 6, 2026

Hello again,

Some prayer requests to begin this week. Dene and Rose Beswick are longtime members of the church in Tasmania. Dene has been suffering from a degenerative spinal condition. Rose is now also suffering some kidney issues, making it difficult for her to assist him in the way she has been. Please remember both of them.

Also Mrs. Linda Cartwright. Many of you might be familiar with her husband, Dixon Cartwright, who recently passed away. Dixon used to work at Ambassador College and was the editor of the Worldwide News. In later years he published The Journal, which carried Church of God news as well as articles from and about many of the different branches. His memorial service will be held on Sunday, November 15th at 2pm at the Church of God Big Sandy (1106 W Broadway St. Big Sandy, TX 75755).

The US elections delivered a brutal result for the Republican party. There have been no publicly overt allegations of fraud, at least from anyone in a position to do anything about it, though some claim they are coming. We shall see. It is beyond a doubt going to be a litigious couple of years however. Democrats, bolstered by their new majorities in the House and the Senate, have made that abundantly clear. Many have gleefully advised the President to “lawyer up.”

We do not have to wade into the political hows and whys to appreciate the potential impact this election could have. It is a tense and volatile time on the world scene, and without diving too far into speculation, it seems we are about to enter a couple of years of political recriminations and infighting. Even inside of the major parties themselves. As to how the results were received, the NASDAQ shed over 5% of its value over the perceived impact on AI development.

Tehran was ecstatic, though perhaps Khameini should get to enjoy gloating while he still can. Slightly farther behind the scenes, Pakistan’s Parliament ratified the Mecca agreement. This was a final hurdle before troops could be formally sent to Saudi Arabia. It is known that Egypt wants to join, and Syria expressed interest while also signing a bilateral pact with the Saudis this week. Some insiders claim this is preparation for the fall of Iran.

An alarming announcement came from President Trump just prior to the election. He mentioned during an interview that the US was going to stop $4 billion of aid to Israel at the end of this year. Currently funding has been approved through the end of 2028. There has been no denial from Netanyahu, who stated the need for aid had largely passed and the relationship should become more of a partnership. The news caught many in Israel off guard.

Europe also had an interesting week. Protests continue to roil many major cities across the continent. Supermarkets found their refrigeration systems had been hacked and temperatures turned way up. Enormous amounts of food had to be thrown away. Worse still, blood banks were also targeted. Great idea it was, to put all of those controls online.

Airlines received numerous bomb threats. Many flights were diverted and searched but thankfully no explosives were found. Still, the episodes caused many disruptions and delays. NATO has also been on edge over shipping incidents in the Black Sea. With so many pressure points, you have to wonder when the whole thing might finally break loose.

-Michael

P.S. We often get prayer requests through the ICG website. You can view them, indicate that you have prayed for them, or even make your own here.