Greetings from Charlotte,
Nations today are in serious trouble because of misguided leadership. Every day we see the consequences of arrogant, corrupt, self-promoting, godless leaders who recognize no higher authority than themselves (2 Timothy 3:1-5). The Spring Holy Days provide us with an opportunity to begin to build the godly character that will be required of leaders in the coming Kingdom of God. This week in Charlotte, Dr. Meredith has been writing and holding meetings. We are currently undergoing the annual audit for the Living Church of God. Mr. Hernandez headed for Argentina on his first leg of a South American trip for the Spring Holy Days. Mr. Wyatt Ciesielka reports that the number of people sharing our Web site content is growing considerably. Last weekend, Mr. Weston visited the Paris, France congregation, and 52 guests attended Tomorrow's World Presentations in Tucson, Arizona and Peterborough, Ontario. This week we will hold a TWP in Phoenix, Arizona. Your prayers for God's people and for these efforts to preach the gospel are much appreciated.—DSW
Church Administration
New Regional Director: As has been announced, Dr. Meredith plans to bring Mr. Weston to Charlotte in July to assume duties as President and Chief Operating Officer of the Living Church of God. Dr. Meredith will remain as the Presiding Evangelist and Chairman. As a result of these decisions, Mr. Adam West has been appointed to the position of Regional Director for the UK, Ireland and Europe. Mr. West has pastored congregations in the USA and the UK and has more than a decade of experience working in the corporate world as a Vice-President of Sales and Marketing and as a General Manager of an American-based firm with international operations. Mr. West and his family have lived in the UK for the past 3 years where he has pastored churches in the London area. He has studied with Living University, written articles for Tomorrow's World magazine and recorded commentaries for the LCG Web site. Your prayers for Mr. West and his family will be appreciated as he prepares for this new responsibility.
Mr. Roger Allgeyer: We are saddened to report that Mr. Roger Allgeyer died of heart failure this past Wednesday morning. Mr. Allgeyer was a pillar in the New York area congregations where he served as an Elder. He was 77. His funeral will be held on Sunday.
Family Retreat in Jamaica
Over the long weekend of March 25-28, more than 50 Jamaican brethren came together for a Family Retreat in the cool hills of the center of the island at a boarding high school facility. Over the course of the weekend, Mr. Rick Stafford and Mr. Lascelles Fraser conducted seminars for those who are married, for singles, for the youth, for families, and on health. We also participated in team-building activities and games and watched the movie "Courageous" and discussed it afterward. There were two Morning Motivations, two Bible Studies and a Question-and-Answer session, and Sabbath services. One evening, Mr. Stafford was available for one-on-one counselling. Before departure on Monday, Mr. Fraser and Mr. Stafford gave us parting words of encouragement and the Retreat ended with a Hymn Sing. All who attended would like the Retreat to be an annual event. We built friendships, strengthened relationships, learned to work together as a team and encouraged one another to show love and continue in the Faith.
Night To Be Much Observed DVD—Repeat Announcement
Attention Pastors and Video Recipients: In the April sermons package sent last week, we included a supplemental DVD for all congregations with a message about the Night To Be Much Observed, presented by Mr. Stuart Wachowicz. Playing this DVD on the Night To Be Much Observed is optional.
Feast of Tabernacles
2016 Festival Registration Opens on Sunday, May 1!—Repeat Announcement
Festival Registration is scheduled to open on Sunday, May 1, at 12:00 noon EDT (Eastern Daylight Time, USA). At that time, you will be able to register for the Feast site of your choice. You will also be able to indicate any volunteer service opportunities you would like to sign up for at your site. See new Feast site videos and find out information about each of the sites that are being planned for 2016 by going to the Festival Web site: fot2016.lcg.org. (You can also access it by going to the Living Church of God Web site, lcg.org, and clicking on "Feast of Tabernacles.")
If you do not have Internet access, please contact your Festival Advisor to print off information for any site(s) you are interested in attending. If you do not know who your Festival Advisor is, please check with your local pastor.
Please do not make housing reservations until you have registered and been approved for your choice of site.
Pastors: In preparation for Festival Registration on May 1, please make sure that Headquarters has been notified about any status changes in your local congregation rosters. For example, the Festival Registration system only accepts registrations from members and prospective members. Any new people who want to attend the Feast this year will need to be classified as PMs in order to register. Any Church Youths (CY) who have turned 18 should also be reclassified as Prospective Members (PM). Please also let us know of any other changes in status of any brethren in your area (i.e. baptisms, etc.) or if any brethren have moved to another congregation. Send these status updates to [email protected].
Festival Advisors: In preparation for Festival registration, all Festival Advisors will be able to access Registration and Volunteer Forms, as well as the Festival Site Guide 2016 which has detailed descriptions of each Feast site on the MyLCG Web site (www.cogl.org). These documents are necessary for you to print, copy, and distribute to brethren who need your assistance in registering. Reminder: Festival Registration begins on Sunday, May 1.
All brethren: Please make sure your MyLCG account is working. This will be necessary for you to register online. To test it, go to www.cogl.org and sign in to MyLCG with your username and password. If you don't have one, you will have the option of creating one. If you have any problems logging into MyLCG, please e-mail [email protected].—Festival Office
Feast of Tabernacles in Cypress Hills, Saskatchewan
For those who are planning to attend the Cypress Hills Feast site, please let me know if you have special needs. If you will not have transportation during the Feast, if you have problems moving around, if you are looking for someone to share an accommodation with, or if you have a big family and require a big townhouse, please let me know. In addition, after you have registered and been accepted, and you then call the hotel to make a reservation, please try to take the lodging that has no more than the number of beds you require. The Feast site may fill up quickly and we will need to use the rooms as efficiently as possible. We also have a hotel in Maple Creek, which is about 20 minutes away. If you are younger and/or able to travel 20 minutes morning and evening, then please consider staying at the Cobble Creek Lodge. This will allow those with special needs and families with young children to be at the Feast site resort. Please contact me [email protected] or call 800-828-0618. Thank you very much for your cooperation as we try to make sure that those with special needs are accommodated.—Marc Arseneault
Living Youth Program
Online Teen Bible Study Friday Evening
The online Teen Bible Study on Friday evening, April 15, will be on "Is This the Only Day of Salvation?," presented by Mr. Sheldon Monson. This will be the last online Teen Bible Study until the fall. If you haven't had the opportunity to join us for one of these Bible Studies yet, we encourage you to do so. It is a wonderful way to start the Sabbath day.
The Bible Study runs from 8:00 to 9:00 p.m. (Eastern time) and the chat room will be open for a half hour before and after the study. You can access this Bible Study at livingyouth.org. We hope as many of our youth as possible will join us for this wonderful opportunity for godly fellowship and learning. For those of you who are unable to make it to the study, archives of previous Living Youth Bible Studies, including last evening's on "In Training for Rulership," can also be found on the Living Youth Web site.
Teen Camp Ohio 2016—Staff Applications Deadline
All who would like to apply to serve on the staff at this camp are asked to complete an application by no later than midnight on Sunday, April 24. Anyone applying after this deadline will be accepted only if space allows. Staff assignments will be posted in early May.
Latin-American Teen Camp 2016
This year the Spanish teen camp will be held once again at Misión el Faro, Punta Palma in Guatemala. Misión el Faro is a beautiful seaside camp located on the beaches of the Caribbean Sea and surrounded by lush vegetation. It provides a unique setting for fellowship and spiritual growth in harmony with God's creation. The camp will be held from December 15-22, 2016. Simultaneous translation into English will be available throughout the camp. The maximum age allowed for campers is 22. If you would like to attend this camp, please contact us at [email protected] by August 12.—Cristian Orrego
Comments
Preparing for the Passover: In almost two weeks, we will be observing the Passover and the Days of Unleavened Bread. These annual Festivals are a memorial of the great sacrifice that Jesus Christ made for our sins and a reminder that we need to recognize and eliminate sin and inappropriate aspects from our lives. For the Passover to be meaningful and profitable—not just a routine—we must do our part to prepare for this important phase in God's Plan of Salvation. To put the Passover into proper perspective, it will be helpful to review the gospel accounts of the events that led up to the Passover, the crucifixion and the resurrection. Placing our own period of self-examination within this biblical context will help us appreciate the tremendous significance of Jesus' sacrifice. The Passover and Days of Unleavened Bread provide us with an annual opportunity to examine every aspect of our lives in the light of God's instructions in the Scriptures. Spending time every day in prayerful study and reflection, as we go through the Holy Day period, will help us grow to be more like our Savior Jesus Christ.
Have a profitable Sabbath,
Douglas S. Winnail
News and Prophecy—April 7, 2016
Iran Challenges U.S. Global Authority: Iran has become emboldened since the recent nuclear deal and is challenging U.S. foreign policy. "Iranian Army Commander Maj. Gen. Ataollah Salehi… announced that Iran intends to deploy warships and destroyers in Latin America… to expand its military cooperation with countries opposing the US" (Israel National News, April 3, 2016). Last month, "Iran test fired two types of medium-range ballistic missiles… extending a barrage of tests" and its officials vowed "to press ahead with its missile program despite U.S. pressure to curtail it" (Wall Street Journal, March 9, 2016). Iran also informed the U.S. "that any attempt to encroach on the Islamic Republic's ballistic missile program would constitute the crossing of a 'red line'…" (Jerusalem Post, April 4, 2016). Earlier in the year, Iran targeted, captured, and humiliated U.S. Navy sailors in a provocation against the U.S. (New York Times, January 18, 2016). God makes it very clear to the modern descendants of ancient Israel (U.S., Britain, France, Western Europe, Israel, etc.) that if they despise His commandments and turn from Him, their nations will be "defeated by your enemies" and have "the pride of your power" broken—including their military (Leviticus 26:17, 19; Deuteronomy 28:25). Historically, whenever a king of Israel or Judah turned from God, God raised up adversaries against him (1 Kings 11:9, 14, 23). Today, U.S. leadership is arrogantly breaking the Laws of God, and it is not surprising that Iran and other nations are directly challenging U.S. global authority. For more information, read our article "The Demise of the West."
Argentina's Child Abuse? "Lulu, a six-year-old Argentine child who was listed as a boy at birth, has been granted new identification papers by the Buenos Aires provincial government listing her as a girl" (Christian Post, March 22, 2016). In contrast to the politically correct legislation now in vogue around the globe, "The American College of Pediatricians warned legislators and educators… to reject all policies that condition children to accept transgenderism as normal, adding that attempts to normalize a condition classified as a mental illness is child abuse… When an otherwise healthy biological boy believes he is a girl, or an otherwise healthy biological girl believes she is a boy, an objective psychological problem exists that lies in the mind not the body, and it should be treated as such… Pointing to data from the DSM-V, the American College of Pediatricians said as many as 98 percent of gender confused boys and 88 percent of gender confused girls eventually accept their biological sex after naturally passing through puberty" (ibid.). Scripture warns one of the signs displayed by peoples at the end of the age would be that their "whole head is sick" (Isaiah 1:5). Argentinians, like many professing Christians around the globe, express a belief in God and the sanctity of the Bible. However, the social fads rampant today are foolishly embraced by many and hurt the very people they aim to help. One day soon, Jesus Christ will return to the earth and make plain to all the only way that leads to life. For a glimpse into this coming future world, be sure to read or listen to our booklet The World Ahead: What Will It Be Like?"
Millions Running out of Water! "The unthinkable is happening" said one Indian power plant operator in reaction to the severe drop in water levels on the Ganges River that closed his plant for ten days (BBC, March 27, 2016). For the second year in a row in India, monsoon rains have been scarce, snowmelt limited, and ground water levels have fallen. The falling river level has caused power plants to go offline, stranded river barges and caused shortages of drinking and washing water (ibid.). The Ganges provides vital water to 25 percent of India's 1.3 billion inhabitants. Sadly, the remaining water in the Ganges is highly contaminated with feces, rotting bodies, and sewage. Much of the remaining water is promised to Bangladesh by treaty, yet, Bangladesh is also in the midst of major drought (ibid.). Nearly 2,000 years ago, Jesus Christ warned that one of the signs of the end of the age would be "famines and troubles" (Mark 13:8; Matthew 24:7). As these ancient prophecies come alive in the news today, the Bible reveals that the real hope for solutions to the world's problems is to be found in the Gospel proclaimed by Jesus Christ (Mark 1:14-15). For more detailed information on the incredible coming Kingdom of God, listen to our Feast of Tabernacles sermon "The Liberation of the Planet."—Scott Winnail, Justin Ridgeway, Francine Prater and Chris Sookdeo