Days Shut Down: 3

The federal government officially shut down on Wednesday for the first time since 2018-2019’s record 35-day standoff. 

Democrats want to extend Affordable Care Act subsidies set to expire at year’s end and reverse earlier-in-the-year Medicaid cuts, warning that without action, millions will face higher premiums or loss of coverage. Republicans say they’ll only discuss health care after passing a short-term stopgap bill… a measure which failed (again) in the Senate on Wednesday. 

Meanwhile, VP JD Vance has accused Democrats of pushing “billions of dollars of funding to healthcare for illegal aliens,” a claim Democrats reject. House Minority Leader Jeffries (D-NY) says Republicans are “lying” about the proposal.

Roughly 750,000 federal workers have been furloughed, and the White House said “thousands” may be permanently laid off in an effort to reduce waste and “scam” agencies. 

Want government shutdowns in a nutshell? Read more here.

ETERNAL PERSPECTIVE
If our hope is based on political negotiations or economic security, then we live in fear because we could lose everything. But if our hope is rooted in the eternal security provided by Christ, then we can weather any storm—even a government shutdown.

“My hope is built on nothing less than Jesus’s blood and righteousness… On Christ the solid Rock I stand; all other ground is sinking sand.”
Edward Mote, 1863 (Scriptural basis: Ps 18:2; Matt 7:24; Heb 13:8)