Dear Brethren and Friends, Our Father in heaven is truly granting us the opportunity and the inspiration to greatly increase the impact of the Work. As you may know by now, we are testing three television options in Britain—and also plan to go on a satellite radio station there, God willing. This is in addition to the new television stations we are adding here in the states—most recently in Memphis, TN, and in Houston, TX. Together, these new outlets will add millions of people to our potential audience. So we thank God for this opportunity!
In the past, as you know, we in our former association were never able to have a really big impact in the British Isles. We did have Ambassador College at Bricket Wood—where I acted as Deputy Chancellor for a couple of years and which I had earlier helped establish back in 1960. But, in spite of this, our actual Church attendance never even reached the 5,000 level and was far below, proportionally, the attendance in Canada and Australia.
However, we did reach a few people in Britain, for a couple of years, through the "pirate" radio stations. Mr. Armstrong was given the impression that most of the people in Britain knew about us because of this and other outlets. But, as I learned from all five of the leading British ministers just a few months before Mr. Armstrong's death, probably only about 1 percent of the British people would even recognize the names World Tomorrow, Plain Truth or Ambassador College. Our low Sabbath service attendance certainly verified this, as well.
Personally, I helped get the Work started there on various trips including one in 1954, another in 1956, and another in 1960—when I held extended evangelistic campaigns and raised up the churches in Bristol, Birmingham and Manchester. Then, Mr. Armstrong asked me to stay on for several months to help teach, and help the college there become established. During those extended visits to Britain, my eldest daughter and next-older son were born. I love the British people, and have prayed for decades that we might do a far more powerful Work there. But, somehow, it just never worked out.
Now, as the end of this age approaches, the living Christ does seem to be opening up opportunities to genuinely affect the British people in a significant way. For years, as I just mentioned, I have prayed about this because of my deep interest in genuinely reaching the "mother country" of our English-speaking world. Now, dear brethren, I ask you in Jesus' name to please join me in praying fervently that God will enable us to stay on these television stations, to obtain additional outlets on television in the future, on radio and in the print media and to have a truly significant impact on the British people. Those dear people need to be reached with the full message of Jesus Christ and the "Ezekiel Warning" of the coming Great Tribulation—before it is too late!
On another vital matter, I pray that all of us can begin to pray, plan and work toward helping the youth in God's Church even more effectively. We on the Headquarters team here in Charlotte have recently had meetings on this matter with Mr. Gerald Weston—our Youth Director. We are very grateful for the excellent job, at the Living Youth Camp, that Mr. and Mrs. Weston have been doing for years— and for the tremendous help provided by Mr. Lambert Greer, Mr. and Mrs. Jonathan McNair, Mr. and Mrs. Sheldon Monson, Mr. and Mrs. Larry Solomon and so many others. There have also been many youth gatherings across the country with some of our key ministers and other leaders involved in helping conduct these programs, and some fine Bible studies and inspiring talks and programs for our young people. These must continue and even be improved upon as we go along.
We all need to think and pray about this need, and become involved! For our young people in their teens and twenties are the "leaders of tomorrow." We need to appreciate their potential and involve them more and more in our Church activities—and in various opportunities for leadership and service. They can become involved in serving the congregation in many ways, such as helping out in the parking lot, setting up chairs, passing out songbooks, participating in our music services and song-leading—and our young men can lead in prayer at Church services.
All of us who are older should be more than willing to step aside occasionally and give a young person this opportunity to serve and to genuinely feel part of the Work of the Church! Remember how David was looked down on as the youngest and the least important before he became king of Israel? He was almost overlooked before Samuel thought to ask his father Jesse, "'Are all the young men here?' Then he said, 'There remains yet the youngest, and there he is, keeping the sheep.' And Samuel said to Jesse, 'Send and bring him. For we will not sit down till he comes here'" (1 Samuel 16:11).
And why did Samuel anoint with oil this very young man, to be the next king of Israel? Before choosing David, God had instructed Samuel not to select the outwardly impressive Eliab. For "…the Lord said to Samuel, 'Do not look at his appearance or at his physical stature, because I have refused him. For the Lord does not see as man sees; for man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart'" (v. 7). God saw David's heart. So, as with David, even in his teens or early twenties God might designate a young man as a future leader—though perhaps it would be a few years before he would actually take office or assume responsibility.
Remember that the Apostle Paul told Timothy: "Let no one despise your youth, but be an example to the believers in word, in conduct, in love, in spirit, in faith, in purity. Till I come, give attention to reading, to exhortation, to doctrine" (1 Timothy 4:12–13). Although he may have only been in his twenties when Paul wrote this, Timothy obviously understood God's inspired Word and had genuine faith in the God of Israel. For Paul told Timothy in his second letter: "But you must continue in the things which you have learned and been assured of, knowing from whom you have learned them, and that from childhood you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus" (2 Timothy 3:14–15).
Who helped Timothy develop the outstanding faith to which the Apostle Paul referred? In Timothy's case, it was not his father but his mother and grandmother! For the Apostle Paul wrote to Timothy about calling to remembrance "the genuine faith that is in you, which dwelt first in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice, and I am persuaded is in you also" (2 Timothy 1:5).
So, "from childhood," the Evangelist Timothy had been taught the Holy Scriptures by his faithful mother and grandmother! These capable and dedicated women imparted to this young man a deep awareness of His Creator and of the Holy Scriptures, and enabled him to have the capacity to later serve alongside one of the most outstanding Apostles in human history!
In addition to being outstanding examples of dedication and service in their own right, as were Deborah, Ruth, and many other women, many ladies in God's Church have a unique opportunity to spend time at home with their sons and daughters and thoroughly teach them the ways of God—hour after hour—in a way that the working fathers may not always be able to do. Certainly this was the case with Timothy. And certainly it can be in the lives of our ladies—and especially mothers—in God's Church today.
Faithful mothers can, through their children, have an awesome impact upon the lives of millions of other human beings—as we know from the stories of the impact of the mothers of Abraham Lincoln, Dwight Eisenhower and many others.
In my own case, I can honestly say that my own mother and grandmother—as was the case with Timothy—had a remarkable influence upon my life and upon my later relationship with God. For I can remember spending time with my grandmother—on literally dozens of occasions—when she would read to me from the Bible, talk to me about God and impart to me a deep awareness of the Creator and a heartfelt feeling regarding His inspired word. My mother interested me deeply in reading, and in understanding the purpose of life. She inspired me to develop a degree of character, persistence and drive that has served me well in later life. I owe both of these dear ladies a tremendous debt of gratitude, and will be able to thank them in a special way when they rise in the second resurrection!
The remarkable motherly influence upon Timothy— and, no doubt, that of Mary upon Jesus Christ Himself— no doubt played a significant part in their effect on others' lives. The impact that all parents have upon their children can never be underestimated. For having their own parents or grandparents talk sensibly and faithfully about the Creator can certainly deeply impact and encourage young men and women—even in later life—to have an awareness of God and of the importance of genuine spirituality. As in my case, Timothy no doubt often recalled his mother and grandmother personally teaching him about the meaning of life—and he later displayed the wonderful "fruit" of that early relationship.
Timothy really believed God, and constantly acted on that faith! He dedicated his life to serving God and his fellow believers. He was obviously very conscientious in truly serving his fellow man. The Apostle Paul relied on Timothy to teach the Word of God correctly, and to help and encourage the brethren in a completely un-selfish way. Paul wrote movingly of Timothy: "For I have no one like-minded, who will sincerely care for your state. For all seek their own, not the things which are of Christ Jesus. But you know his proven character, that as a son with his father he served with me in the gospel" (Philippians 2:20–22).
Having visited our own Living Youth Camp a number of times, and having talked with our ministers in many areas, I am pleased to see that we have quite a number of young people who are beginning to exemplify the kind of dedication, service and character development that Paul ascribed to Timothy. In many areas, we are on our way! But we need to do even more. So, in the future, other programs may be suggested and put into action.
As the end of this age approaches, brethren, we all need to genuinely try to restore Apostolic Christianity in every single phase and facet of God's Church. We all need to have Christ directing our relations with Him, with God, with one another—and with our young people! They will undoubtedly provide an energy and youthful perspective to help us complete this Work over the next several years in a way that we might not be able to do otherwise. They will help reach out to the broader community in a way that many of us cannot—especially reaching other young people around the world. Some of them may also live right on over—in the human flesh—into Tomorrow's World. With their special background and training, they may easily become outstanding leaders—under the guidance of God's Family—in directing the way of life of this entire earth! Our youth are truly precious to God, and should be to us.
