By Lindsey Bell

Minister Returns to Pulpit After Alcohol Addiction

Last summer Perry Noble was removed from his position as pastor of NewSpring Church in South Carolina because of his addiction to alcohol and soon thereafter he began receiving treatment. Though some claimed he should have taken more time off from the ministry, Noble didn’t agree and pointed to biblical heroes who didn’t take a lot of time off after their failures. “Peter denied Christ, and 50 days later he preached the gospel to Jerusalem . . . Paul, who was murdering Christians in Acts chapters 7 and 8, comes to Christ in Acts 9 and immediately starts preaching the gospel.”

In February, Noble preached at Elevation Church in Charlotte with the support of friend and pastor, Steven Furtick. Afterward he shared on Facebook, “In July of 2016, I thought I would never preach again! I allowed myself to be deceived by the enemy and depended on alcohol more than Jesus.” But then he added, “Jesus brings dead things back to life—if you are doubting or disbelieving I understand—I’ve been there; however, if you are not dead then God is not done—his plans for you are still greater than you could have ever imagined!”

News Anchor Causes Accidental Amazon Orders

Earlier this year, Brooke Neitzel, a 6-year-old girl from Dallas, accidentally ordered a $170 dollhouse and four pounds of cookies through her parents’ Amazon Echo device while talking to the computerized voice, Alexa.

The story might have ended there, except a San Diego news anchor did a story on it. Jim Patton, while recalling the incident on CW6, said, “I love the little girl, saying ‘Alexa ordered me a dollhouse.’” When Jim repeated Brooke’s words on air, viewers all over San Diego reported that their devices heard that command and began trying to order dollhouses as well!

Though there are settings and controls that can help prevent this type of thing from happening, it might be a good idea to whisper when you’re around Alexa. After all, as Brooke’s mom told her, “Alexa is a very good listener.”

Coroner’s Office Out of Room

Earlier this year, the Montgomery County Coroner’s Office in Ohio ran out of room for corpses, leading them to ask a local funeral parlor to take four bodies for temporary storage. The reason for this epidemic? Opioid overdoses.

Overdose death rates in the US have risen to all-time highs because of the widespread abuse of opioid painkillers like hydrocodone, oxycodone, and fentanyl. The CDC reports that 91 people in the U.S. die daily from opioid overdose.

The Montgomery County Coroner’s office reported that in 2015, the total number of bodies they received from accidental overdoses was 259. In 2016, from January to September, that number was 253. This year, in the first 33 days of the year, they had already received 163.

Kenneth M. Betz, director of the coroner’s office, told The New York Times, “This increase from year to year—I’ve never seen anything like this . . . The drug problem we have is absolutely phenomenal.”

New Restaurant Making Lego Burgers

A new restaurant in the Philippines is making headlines because of its unique burgers. Jergs Correa, a Lego enthusiast, recently opened Brick Burger, a restaurant featuring burgers shaped like Legos. With names like Nacho Tuesday and Wildstyle, Lego lovers everywhere are sure to enjoy this unique twist on a typical burger.

Lindsey Bell is an author and speaker living in Southwest Missouri with her husband, Keith, and their two children (lindseymbell.com).