GLADEWATER, Texas (BP) – When God called Teddy Sorrells to plant a church in 2020, he expected to be sent to San Francisco or Denver, one of the popular church planting cities. Instead, a quick demographics study led him to plant in the small East Texas town he’d been trying all his life to leave.

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — Authorities in Bend, Oregon, say an employee who died in a shooting at a Safeway supermarket attacked the gunman in the produce section and tried to disarm him, likely preventing more deaths. The 66-year-old employee, identified as Donald Ray Surrett Jr., was hailed as a hero by police. Surrett and a customer, 84-year-old Glenn Edward Bennett, were killed Sunday evening and two others were injured.

SAN DIEGO (AP) — A member of the San Diego Zoo’s African penguin colony has been fitted with orthopedic footwear to help it deal with a degenerative foot condition. The San Diego Wildlife Alliance says the 4-year-old penguin named Lucas has lesions on his feet due to a chronic condition known as bumblefoot. If left untreated, bumblefoot could lead to sepsis and death by infection.

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Three of the 12 unions negotiating with the nation’s biggest freight railroads have reached a tentative deal that will deliver 24% raises in line with what a special presidential panel of arbitrators recommended earlier this month to resolve the stalemate before a strike could happen. The tentative deal announced Monday covers more than 15,000 workers although the two biggest rail unions that represent engineers and conductors said over the weekend they still haven’t been able to reach a deal their members would accept.

ATLANTA (AP) — In his two years in the NFC South, Tampa Bay quarterback Tom Brady’s dramatic impact has forced other teams in the division to scramble. It’s no easy task trying to keep up with the quarterback regarded by many as the best in NFL history. He has a Super Bowl championship and division title in his two seasons as the Bucs' starter. Brady is 45, but he has looked sharp in practice. Carolina, Atlanta and New Orleans all added veterans to their QB depth charts.

ST. SIMONS ISLAND, Ga. (AP) — A lighthouse on the Georgia coast will light up like a giant birthday candle to celebrate turning 150 years old. The lighthouse on St. Simons Island opened in 1872 to replace an earlier version destroyed during the Civil War and is still used to help ships navigate St. Simons Sound. The Coastal Georgia Historical Society plans to mark the big 150th anniversary over Labor Day weekend by having an animated light show projected on the outside of the 104-foot tower.

In as little as two weeks, the U.S. Senate could vote on the deceptively named “Respect for Marriage Act.” This proposed bill threatens Americans who follow the biblical definition of marriage, and it should be of concern to every pastor and person of faith. This legislation enshrines same-sex marriage into federal law and jeopardizes the religious freedom of millions of Americans who follow the biblical definition of marriage as being between one man and one woman.

KYIV (AP) — A U.N. nuclear watchdog team has set off on an urgent mission to safeguard the endangered Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia atomic power plant at the heart of fighting in Ukraine. The world hopes this long-awaited trip will help avoid a nuclear catastrophe. The trip is to a country where the world’s worst nuclear accident, at Chernobyl in 1986, sent radiation throughout the region, shocked the world and intensified a global push away from nuclear energy.

BAGHDAD (AP) — An influential Shiite cleric has announced he would resign from Iraqi politics and hundreds of his angry followers stormed the government palace in response, sparking violent clashes with security forces in which at least five protesters were killed. Medical officials said at least 15 protesters were wounded by gunfire and a dozen more were injured by tear gas and physical altercations with riot police in the protests Monday that followed the announcement by Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr.

ISLAMABAD (AP) — International aid is reaching Pakistan, as the military and volunteers desperately tried to evacuate many thousands stranded by widespread flooding driven by “monster monsoons” that have claimed more than 1,000 lives this summer. Two cargo planes from Turkey and the United Arab Emirates landed near Islamabad on Sunday and more help arrived.

MOSCOW (AP) — The Russian military says it will launch sweeping military drills in the country’s east that will involve forces from China. The maneuvers that start on Thursday reflect increasingly close military ties between Moscow and Beijing amid the tensions with the West over the Kremlin’s action in Ukraine.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The large fencing that has encircled the U.S. Supreme Court for months has now been removed. The non-scalable fencing was gone Monday morning, leaving only small barricades blocking off the plaza and steps in front of the high court. Court spokeswoman Patricia McCabe would say only that the fence came down sometime during the weekend. “The Court as a matter of policy does not discuss security arrangements,” McCabe said in an email.

TOKYO (AP) — Major South Korean battery maker LG and Japanese automaker Honda are investing $4.4 billion in a joint venture to produce batteries for Honda electric vehicles in the North American market. They say the plant’s U.S. site is still undecided. Construction is to begin in early 2023, with mass production of advanced lithium-ion battery cells to start by the end of 2025.

JACKSON, Miss (AP) — Some Jackson residents are moving belongings out of their homes while others are stocking up on sandbags in anticipation of the Pearl River flooding Mississippi’s capital city. Officials have not implemented a mandatory evacuation order but the city’s mayor urged anyone who could leave to do so immediately. Officials said residents risk fending for themselves if they choose to stay home.

DETROIT (AP) — Detroit police say a tip from someone close to the suspect led to his capture in the random shootings of four people, three fatally. Chief James White also said that the 19-year-old man may have been suffering from mental illness. He said an investigation is still underway into a motive for shootings that erupted early Sunday and fueled anxiety across the city until the man was captured later that evening.

TUBAS, West Bank (AP) — At least 85 Palestinians have been killed in the West Bank this year as Israeli forces carried out nightly raids in cities, towns and villages. That makes 2022 the deadliest year in the occupied territory since 2016, according to tallies from the Palestinian Health Ministry and an Israeli rights group. The military says the vast majority were militants or stone-throwers and began the raids in response to deadly attacks against Israelis.

ST. LOUIS (AP) — Tyler O’Neill hit a three-run homer to break an eighth-inning tie and the St. Louis Cardinals rallied past the Atlanta Braves 6-3. Tommy Edman pulled the Cardinals even with a leadoff homer in the eighth against A.J. Minter, who also gave up O’Neill’s two-out drive to straightaway center field. Lars Nootbaar went deep with two outs in the sixth for the first hit off Braves starter Jake Odorizzi. The Cardinals have won 12 of 15 and are six games in front of second-place Milwaukee in the NL Central.

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (AP) — Austin Dillon avoided a massive wreck in the rain to win at Daytona International Speedway and snag a playoff spot in the Cup Series’ regular-season finale. Dillon passed Austin Cindric for the lead with three laps to go after a 3-hour and 20-minute red flag for inclement weather. It was an aggressive move that capped a drama-filled race.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Washington Commanders say rookie running back Brian Robinson Jr. was shot during an attempted robbery or carjacking. The 23-year-old former Alabama player was taken to the hospital with what the team called non-life-threatening injuries. The team says staff members were with Robinson at the hospital.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — A fuel leak and then an engine problem has forced NASA to scrub the launch of its new moon rocket on a crewless test flight. The next launch attempt will not take place until Friday at the earliest. The 322-foot Space Launch System rocket was set to lift off Monday morning with three test dummies aboard on its first flight, a mission to propel a capsule into orbit around the moon.

BEIJING (AP) — More than 100,000 people have been evacuated to safer areas as heavy rains bring flood risks to a region of southwest China that was devastated by heat and drought for most of the summer. Heavy rain is forecast for parts of Sichuan province and Chongqing city through at least Tuesday. Chongqing, a megacity built in a hilly area and including mountains and countryside, issued a flash flood warning.

DALLAS (BP) – Texas Baptist Men flood recovery team leader Art Brandenburg was greeted Aug. 26 when he arrived in Balch Springs to help homeowners recover from flooding in the Dallas suburb. “One of the men came out and our vehicles are parked across the street in a field,” Brandenburg said, “and he walked up to me a while ago and he said right there, ‘God’s vehicles. That’s God coming right there. I see those vehicles, I see God coming to help us.’”

Most older Baptists can recall being a part of local church revivals, tent revivals, brush arbor revivals, camp meetings, simultaneous revivals, and city-wide crusades. Many of those dear souls were …

ISLAMABAD (AP) — Deaths from widespread flooding in Pakistan topped 1,000 since mid-June, officials said Sunday. Flash flooding from the heavy rains has washed away villages and crops as …

WASHINGTON (AP) — A federal judge has told the Justice Department to provide her with more specific information about the classified records removed from former President Donald Trump's Florida estate. In an order on Saturday, U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon in Florida says it's her “preliminary intent” to appoint a special master in the case. A special master is often a former judge.