Greetings from Charlotte,
Numerous individuals have traveled to visit the LYP camp in Ohio this year. Mr. Richard Ames was beaming upon his return earlier this week and Dr. Meredith left on Wednesday and was scheduled to talk to the campers that evening and give the Christian Living Class on Thursday morning. South African Living Youth Camp Director, Mr. Lawdi Ferreira, also visited the camp. While circumstances vary due to size and facilities for our camps, we strive to uphold the same values and learn from one another. We are also wrapping up the LYP camp in Belgium. Mr. Rajan Moses and Htoowah Lay Beh recently traveled to Burma to give guidance and service to our members there and filed an encouraging report on their visits. TWPs will be conducted in both English and French this weekend in Montreal and Living University classes begin this Monday. Meanwhile, much of the world is focused on the Olympics. Many of us enjoy watching the remarkable results of the athletes' dedication to their discipline as they strive mightily for a perishable crown. When we observe what these young people do for a few moments of glory, we should be inspired to put forth the effort necessary to obtain a crown that does not perish.—GEW
Church Administration
"Thank You" from the Monson Family
The Monson family would like to express their appreciation for everyone's prayers, cards and e-mails after the death of Mr. Eng Monson, husband and father.
Feast of Tabernacles
Local Church Services on the Day of Atonement and the Sabbath Before the Feast
Pastors: Please be sure to respond to last week's e-mail requesting information about Sabbath Services on the Day of Atonement (October 12) and the Sabbath immediately preceding the Feast (October 15). We would like to have all the information in by Wednesday, August 17, so that we can compile it and make it available to brethren who are traveling to and from the Feast sites. Thank you to those who have already responded.
Activity Registration and Payment Now Open!—Repeat Announcement
All LCG members and guests attending the Feast of Tabernacles are now able to register for activities at their respective Feast sites. Payments for activities are also enabled. Activity registration and payment can be made via your MyLCG account, through the Festival Web site. To access it, go to www.lcg.org, and click on the link "Feast of Tabernacles."
Feast of Tabernacles Sermon CDs—Repeat Announcement
Attention Pastors: The deadline to submit the names of brethren who will be unable to attend the Feast and who wish to receive a set of the Feast of Tabernacles sermons on CD is September 12 for recipients in the U.S. (Sermons are available in English, French or Spanish.) Please send these names to the Church Administration Department at [email protected]. Note: Feast sermons will also be uploaded (one per day) during the Feast at www.lcg.org, for those who have Internet access.
Living Youth Program
European Teen Camp in Chevetogne, Belgium
Greetings from Chevetogne in Belgium where our teen summer camp (30 campers and staff) is progressing well. We have use of some excellent facilities in a beautiful part of the country. The weather has been kind to us each day with little or no rain and health has remained good. Activities have included First Aid instruction and demonstration, arts and crafts, volleyball, soccer, swimming, netball, softball and a fascinating and informative Nature Awareness presentation by Mrs. Ellis. We have canoeing and "Crazy Olympics" to look forward to, as well as Speedminton. One activity that was new to most campers this year was water-skiing, using an excellent custom-made lake with a tow-line circuit. Pretty well everyone was successful and spirits were high. The backbone of camp, as always, is a varied diet of Bible instruction in Forums and Bible Studies by our three resident ministers and deacon: Simon Roberts, Rees Ellis, John Meakin and Monsieur Pirotte. Mr. and Mrs. Ellis and their team of helpers have done an outstanding job in preparing this excellent camp, which has been abundantly blessed.—John Meakin, Camp Director
Living University
Register for First (Fall) Semester Now!
Registration for Fall semester classes is underway and classes will begin Monday! Those interested in taking classes this semester should register as soon as possible so as to order textbooks and be prepared for the start of classes on August 15. Those who have never taken a Living University course will need to enroll in the University first (online), and then register for your selected course. For a listing of classes being offered this semester, visit our "Fall 2016 Class Schedule" (Spring in the Southern hemisphere) on the Living University Web site. Those age 65 and above are eligible to "audit" one class per semester and Living University will waive the tuition fee. High school students interested in taking LU classes while in high school can register for the Early College program and take classes at a significantly reduced rate. Brethren in many developing nations are also eligible for a 50 percent reduction in tuition. To make application to Living University, to register for courses, and to find out more, please visit the www.livinguniv.com Web site. For additional information, please contact Mrs. Michelle Broussard at 704-708-2294 or e-mail [email protected].
Comments
Watch and Be Ready! Our world today is filled with distractions—television, computers, cell phones, video games, jangling music, family concerns and job pressures—that constantly pull our minds in different directions. Yet, Jesus repeatedly warned that Christians living at the end of the age should "watch and be ready" for His return as they see ancient prophecies coming alive around the world (Matthew 24:42-44; 25:13; Mark 13:33-37; Luke 21:24-36, etc.). The events making news today—disasters, corruption, moral decay, ethnic strife, terrorism and the growing threat of war in the Middle East, Central Europe and the South China Sea—should be sobering to anyone with a knowledge of Bible prophecy. The convergence of these prophetically significant events should motivate us all to grow spiritually and prepare for the roles we have been called to fill in the coming Kingdom of God. To avoid being caught by surprise at Christ's return (Revelation 3:3), we need to remember and heed Jesus' admonition, "Blessed are those servants whom the master, when he comes, will find watching… Therefore you also be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect" (Luke 12:37-40).
Have a profitable Sabbath,
Douglas S. Winnail
News and Prophecy—August 11, 2016
China Challenges USA in the Pacific: "China is challenging the balance of power in the Pacific with much greater determination… A symbolic moment was reached in 2014 when the IMF announced that, measured in terms of purchasing power, China is now the world's largest economy… China's rise is just part of a larger shift in economic power. According to the IMF, three of the world's four largest economies are now in Asia" (Financial Times, August 5, 2016). Earlier this year China "reportedly deployed two batteries of HQ-9 surface-to-air missiles to a disputed island in the South China Sea" which was a move telling the U.S. that it was prepared to defend its claims to territorial expansion (Deutsche Welle, February 17, 2016). China has also dismissed a U.N. International Court ruling in The Hague against its expansion in the South China Sea, vowing "We will never stop our construction on the Nansha Islands halfway... no matter what country or person applies pressure" (The Wall Street Journal, July 18, 2016). Recent photos show China continues to build "reinforced aircraft hangars on its holdings" which "have room for any fighter jet in the Chinese air force" (Reuters, August 9, 2016). China's expansion is in line with Bible prophecies that describe an Eastern superpower that will launch a huge army against a European superpower at the end of the age (Daniel 11:44; Revelation 9:13-18). To learn more about China's role in end-time prophecy, read our article "Is this China's Century?"
A World in Shock: A German news source recently reported, "Ansbach, Munich, Würzburg, Nice, Brussels—in light of the many horrific news stories, many are asking: What's the matter with 2016? Has the world gone mad?... Something seems to be coalescing and brewing… Each new development seems to come a bit faster than the last… We are living in an age of shocks and crises that could well be traumatizing in their rapid succession and concentration, since it's not yet clear whether they're only a temporary jolt or the beginning of a trend with no end in sight" (Der Spiegel, July 25, 2016). However, Jesus Christ predicted nearly 2,000 years ago that the approaching end of the age would be marked by false prophets and spreading wars, famines, pestilences—and that these events would be just "the beginning of sorrows" (Matthew 24:3-8). Bible prophecies also indicate the end of the age will be marked by selfish materialism, pride, pleasure-seeking, scandals, brutal activities, and the rejection of moral values (2 Timothy 3:1-5). Because of this descent into chaos, Jesus Christ is going to return to this earth and put an end to the evils and suffering that plague the world (Revelation 11:15-18). Jesus warned that those living at the end of the age should "watch" for world events that line up with Bible prophecies so they are not taken by surprise when He returns to establish the Kingdom of God (Matthew 24:42-44). For more information about events that will precede the return of Jesus Christ, be sure to read or listen to Fourteen Signs Announcing Christ's Return.
Muslim Invasion of Europe? "One of the most important prelates in the Catholic Church in Hungary has warned that the enormous waves of migrants rolling into Europe are due in no small part to a Muslim 'will to conquer,' by expanding their territory into the continent. 'Jihad is a principle for Muslims that means they must expand. The earth must become dar al-Islam, that is, Islamic territory, by introducing Shariah—Islamic law'" (Breitbart, August 3, 2016). "The archbishop of Veszprém said that although there may be other motivations, the conquest of European territory for Islam plays a significant role in the unusual pressure to migrate to Europe. 'There have always been wars and environmental disasters, but the fact that there is now so much pressure on Europe cannot be a coincidence'" (ibid.). The wave of Islamic immigrants rolling into Europe is not a coincidence! Long ago, the prophet Daniel foretold of a coming clash between an end-time "king of the south" and the European "king of the north" (see Daniel 11:40-43). In this prophecy, the king of the south will "push" against the king of the north until the king of the north finally overruns and subdues the king of the south. The struggle we are witnessing between these two regions will continue to escalate before it all comes to an end. For more prophetic insight into this geopolitical struggle, read or listen to The Middle East in Prophecy.—Scott Winnail, Justin Ridgeway, Rod McNair, Chris Sookdeo and Francine Prater