Greetings from Charlotte,
Our world may still seem comfortable from where we sit, but these are dangerous times. We were spared here in the Charlotte area from the most serious effects of Hurricane Helene, but parts of Florida, Georgia, North and South Carolina, the Virginias, and Tennessee were not. Thankfully, all reports indicate our members are safe. Please see the report below and this week’s video update for more details. Meanwhile, the Middle East has entered a new phase of war. Israeli ground troops have entered Lebanon in an attempt to silence the year-long Hezbollah rocket attacks. This followed the exploding pager and walkie-talkie incidents and aerial bombings that further disrupted and decapitated Hezbollah’s leadership. In response, Iran is launching an aggressive missile attack on Israel, with over 100 incoming missiles reported by the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) in the first salvo. Most were shot down by Israel’s Iron Dome system. One has to wonder whether Israel and/or the United States and other allies will use this occasion to go after the Iranian nuclear program, as Israel, and the world in general, cannot afford to allow Iran to get the bomb. Many major world events happen around God’s Holy Days and Festivals, so let us remember why we observe these days and what these upcoming Festivals mean.—Gerald Weston
Church Administration
Tomorrow’s World Presentations
Last week we held one follow-up presentation in Swansea, Wales, that drew a total of five repeat guests. That concluded the third quarter of the calendar year, during which we held a total of 61 in-person events. These presentations drew a total of 561 guests. We also held six Canadian on-line presentations, three in French and three in English, that drew a total of 240 unique guest connections. This truly has been a successful quarter for TWPs. This week we will hold one follow-up presentation in Buffalo, New York. Thank you all for your continued prayers and support for the Tomorrow’s World Presentations.
Hurricane Helene
Last week’s hurricane blasted through the southern states of Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, West Virginia, Virginia, and Tennessee, leaving a path of devastation. Our pastors have been providing us with up-to-date information about brethren in the affected areas. Some have received emergency assistance (food, water, supplies). Many have been without power and still are. Some have suffered property damage. Others, especially in western North Carolina, are in devastated areas that are now difficult to reach by vehicle. But from reports we’ve received, all of our brethren are safe and accounted for, though it took three days, from Friday to Monday, to make contact with some in the North Carolina mountains due to impassable roads, no power, and no phone service. We are thankful to report that all have now been reached in person or by phone when they were finally able to get out to cell phone reception.
Many brethren in the path of the storm have had trees downed nearby. One of our ministers, Mr. Lenny Bower, living in Bluefield, West Virginia, had about a dozen trees blown down around his house but miraculously none touched the house itself. Some brethren reported noting God’s hand was definitely upon them. As one member wrote: “The area is completely destroyed…. Conditions are truly apocalyptic in western North Carolina. In all of our travels to Central and South America, as well as Asia, we’ve never seen anything like it, even in areas hit by tornadoes and hurricanes. This will truly take years to recover.” And even as brethren deal with the aftermath of the storm, there are dangers—one member suffered a broken wrist when he fell from a ladder while cleaning up from the storm.
We are also hearing from our Feast coordinators who are in contact with the administrators of the Feast sites that were in the path of the hurricane. Though no damage to the Feast sites has been reported, here is a sobering note from our contact in Pigeon Forge: “We are fine here in Pigeon Forge. I missed some work due to localized flooding but NOTHING like what our neighbors to the north are experiencing. Pigeon Forge and Gatlinburg are doing well. We still have some flooding in Sevierville due to the release of water from Douglas Lake into the French Broad River. It only affects those living by the river. I am concerned with the systems that are about to come in…. Please stay in touch and I will let you know if there is anything that you all need to be worried about. Please pray for our neighbors here in Tennessee and North Carolina. This is a catastrophic event and so many people are suffering.”
The death toll from Hurricane Helene stands at 175—but as rescue efforts continue, that number is almost certain to climb. Please keep your brethren—and their neighbors—in your prayers at this time.
Feast of Tabernacles
October 10: U.S Deadline for Feast Sermons for Those Unable to Attend in Person
The deadline to request pre-recorded Festival sermon discs to be sent to recipients in the U.S. is next Thursday, October 10. All international requests should already have been submitted.
We request that as many as are able would please access the Feast sermons by livestream or telephone from their assigned site or view the pre-recorded sermons online. The pre-recorded discs are available for those who cannot use those means and instead need to receive physical sermon discs through the mail. When sending their names and addresses, please also specify if they need DVDs (video) or CDs (audio only).
If possible, please do not wait until the deadline to send in your requests.
Business Office
Please note that our last scheduled day to print checks will be Monday, October 14. After that date, we will not be able to print any checks until Wednesday, October 30. Any invoices we receive by October 10 will be paid before the Festival break.Any invoices we receive after October 10 may not be able to be paid until October 30.
If you have any questions concerning specific invoices or payments, please contact Ms. Michelle Greene in the Accounts Payable Department at 704-708-2234 or Mrs. Nohora Kennell at 704-708-2232. You can also e-mail [email protected].
Comments
Christianity’s Missing Dimension: Many people today have been told that the biblical Holy Days were only given to the Jews and are no longer relevant to Christians. However, the Bible clearly states the Holy Days were to be kept forever (Leviticus 23:14, 21, 31, 41). They were observed by Jesus, the apostles, and the early Church (Matthew 26:17–29; Acts 2:1; 1 Corinthians 5:8), and they will be kept by everyone in the coming Kingdom of God (Zechariah 14:16–19). The Feast of Trumpets pictures the return of Jesus Christ to judge the world and establish the Kingdom of God on this earth (2 Timothy 4:1; Revelation 11:16–18). The remaining three Holy Days—Atonement, Tabernacles and Last Great Day—picture the remaining steps in God’s Plan for mankind. When professing Christians fail to observe these commanded days, they lose sight of God’s Great Plan. This is modern Christianity’s missing dimension. Don’t let this happen to you! Rejoice and deeply appreciate what God has opened your mind to understand.
Have a profitable Sabbath,
Douglas S. Winnail
News and Prophecy—October 2, 2024
Dengue Fever in Europe and USA: Today, people are not the only creatures traveling northward and crossing borders—dangerous mosquitos are also coming! Mosquitos carrying diseases formerly seen only in tropical regions are now moving into Europe and the United States (The Telegraph, September 24, 2024). The mild form of dengue fever causes high fever, headache, body aches, nausea, and rash. However, the more severe form causes hemorrhagic fever, or severe internal bleeding, which, without treatment, is fatal in 50 percent of cases.
Earlier this summer, public health officials identified a unique dengue fever outbreak in northern Italy, infecting 25 people. Now, a small outbreak has occurred in Los Angeles. Although only three people in California have been infected so far, one public official noted, “Local dengue cases in LA are the canary in the coalmine indicating that this has truly come. Once Aedes [the mosquito carrying dengue fever] have expanded their range, there’s no turning back.” Historically, dengue fever outbreaks in northern nations only occurred when infected people returned from high-risk tropical regions, bringing a dengue infection back with them. That is no longer the case. These new, small outbreaks are caused by local mosquitos, meaning the Aedes mosquito territory is moving northwards. Not only can these mosquitos carry dengue fever, but they can also carry yellow fever, Zika, and Chikungunya. Dr. Danny Altmann, Professor of Immunology at Imperial College London, warned, “If dengue is being transmitted locally, there’s no reason why the others can’t be.”
As global threats increase, it should be noted that Jesus revealed to the Apostle John that, before His return, pestilences and spreading disease epidemics, symbolized by an ominous rider on a pale horse, would ravage the world—and that “beasts of the earth” would contribute to widespread death at the end of the age (Revelation 6:8). While mosquitos are tiny, seemingly innocuous “beasts,” they can carry a very deadly payload. We need to take note of what these tiny canaries in the coalmine are doing. To learn what lies ahead, read “Coming Plagues: The Pale Horse.”
Cuba’s Poor Are Getting Poorer: Cuba, like North Korea, is one of a few nations with a centrally planned economy, rationing out to their people items of basic sustenance. After the Cuban Revolution that ended in 1959, the ration book became a cornerstone of Fidel Castro’s government. It gave Cubans access to government-subsidized bread, milk, meat, fish, and cleaning supplies. In recent years, however, items have been removed from the ration book and prices have risen—creating a real crisis in a nation where the average citizen makes only $15 per month.
Due to a reported lack of availability of flour, the government recently reduced the bread ration by 25 percent (Reuters, September 17, 2024). As a Havana resident remarked, “We have to accept it, what else can we do?” Cuba blames the shortages of food, medicine, and fuel on U.S. embargos. The worsening situation has caused many Cubans to flee the country for the nearby United States. In 2022 and 2023, nearly half a million Cubans entered the U.S. (The Week, October 23, 2023)—an astonishing exodus from a nation with a total population of just under 11 million (Database.Earth, September 17, 2024).
While Cubans, North Koreans, East Africans, and many others around the globe suffer with less and less, the world’s wealthy enjoy luxury and plenty. By many measures, the gap between the haves and the have nots is growing. Yet, there is a prophesied time coming, after Jesus Christ returns and sets up His Kingdom, when everyone will be able to have his own vine and his own fig tree (Zechariah 3:10)—that is, his own home and productive land—and there will be such abundance that “the plowman shall overtake the reaper” (Amos 9:13). This is pictured by the biblical Feast of Tabernacles, held annually in September/October. You can learn more about this coming time of true abundance by watching “What Is the Feast of Tabernacles?”—Scott Winnail and Francine Prater