A new milestone has been reached by Wycliffe Bible Translators as the Bible is translated into its 700th language. The acceleration that is happening in the work of Bible translation means it is impossible to state which translation was actually the 700th, as there were several launches of physical Bibles as well as several being made available online and via apps, all at about the same time. Every time the Bible is translated into another language, we know that people in that language group can fully access the complete picture of God’s story. Now 5.7 billion people who speak 700 languages have the Bible in the language that speaks to them best. That is a remarkable figure, which continues to grow.

Filipino Manny Pacquiao announced his retirement from boxing on social media, expressing gratitude to God, saying his boxing career would not have been possible without the Lord. He is the only boxer to hold twelve world titles in four different decades. In his retirement post he says, ‘God is good all the time. I give all glory to God. I always believe that in God, all things are possible. Without Him, I am nothing. He is the one who gave me the ability to train and accomplish all those things. The Lord gave me overflowing blessings.’ Meanwhile when Ukrainian boxer Oleksander Usyk became world champion this week by beating Anthony Joshua, he told the media, ‘The only thing I wanted to do with this fight is to give praise to my Lord Jesus Christ and to say that all I have comes from him.’ See

Retailers and hauliers say the government's plan to offer temporary visas to foreign lorry drivers will not solve supply chain issues. The transport secretary said there is ‘plenty of fuel’ in the refineries and 47 storage centres, but ‘the Royal Haulage Association triggered panic buying by reporting a shortage of heavy goods vehicle drivers. To limit disruption before Christmas the Government will give temporary visas to 5,000 lorry drivers, encourage HGV licence holders back into the industry, and use MOD examiners to increase testing for new drivers. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-58698998 These measures will not fix the short-term problems caused by panic buying, so the business secretary said 150 soldiers will be delivering fuel. The managing director of fuel supplier Portland Fuel said the UK was over the worst of the situation and that sending in the army would ‘generate more panic’.

The UK's economy grew 5.5% between April and June as spending surged after lockdowns. However an investment and markets analyst said, ‘Any hope that the end of the furlough scheme would solve the supply chain crisis is likely to be wishful thinking. There will be a big mismatch of skills and experience between those leaving furlough and the jobs on offer.’ Jess Pitman was furloughed from her job organising trips abroad to raise money for charities, but travellers cancelled when Covid hit. The company's payroll has reduced from 27 to 5. Furloughing has finished, and Jess will return to work part-time, topping up her income with freelance work. To counteract furlough finishing, a £500m Household Support Fund will provide a lifeline for those who might struggle to keep up with their winter bills for food and utility. Local councils will give the grants to cover essential costs.