Greetings from Charlotte,
Mr. Dexter Wakefield and I returned home Wednesday evening after a productive trip to Dallas, Texas, for the National Religious Broadcasters’ annual convention. This convention gives us the opportunity to touch base with our agents who negotiate on our behalf and provide new opportunities for television stations and networks. We also learn from keynote speakers regarding trends in media that go beyond television, regarding government regulations that may affect us and regarding such things as how Artificial Intelligence brings both opportunities and pitfalls. I explain more about the NRB in this week’s video update. Our Tomorrow’s World Presentations in 2025 have thus far yielded good fruit, with 369 visitors attending 43 live events. Mr. Rees Ellis and Mr. Pascal Devillé have reported on the success of an online French-language Spokesman Club with men from Madagascar, Gabon, Cameroon, Benin, Togo, Guinea, Belgium, and France. We are truly a worldwide Work! Thank you for your prayers for God’s Work in these end-times. —Gerald E. Weston
Church Administration
Ministerial Move
After serving congregations in Wisconsin, Illinois and eastern Iowa for the past seven years, Mr. and Mrs. Bob Rodzaj will soon be moving from Milwaukee, Wisconsin, to the Northeast. Mr. Rodzaj will take the place of Mr. Adam West (who will be moving to Charlotte, as previously announced), pastoring congregations in Upstate New York and eastern Pennsylvania, as well as serving as the Regional Pastor for the Northeast region of the United States. These moves will take place shortly after the Days of Unleavened Bread. We will be announcing Mr. Rodzaj’s replacement in Milwaukee in a future World Ahead update.
Tomorrow’s World Presentations
Last week we held seven Tomorrow’s World Presentations—five follow-up presentations, one initial presentation, and one online presentation. These presentations drew a total of 42 in-person guests and 67 guest connections. This week we will hold initial presentations in Savannah, Georgia; Sanford, Florida; and Walterboro, South Carolina; as well as one follow-up in Anderson, South Carolina. Thank you to everyone for your continued prayers and support for the Tomorrow’s World Presentations.
Feast of Tabernacles
Feast of Tabernacles 2025 in France
As was the case last year, the Feast of Tabernacles in Europe will be held in Port-Barcarès, France, at the Miléade Vacation Village. Church members in Europe who are assigned to this Feast site, as well as those who will be requesting a transfer to this site, must register online at https://fotreg.cogl.org/. Registration will begin in early May. From the registration page, you will be directed to the webpage where you can register for your accommodations. Do not register directly with the hotel.
Living Youth Program
Adventure Camp 2025 – Voyageurs National Park
Registration is still open to staff and campers for this year’s Adventure Camp (June 23–30), which will be a canoe trip in Minnesota’s scenic Voyageurs National Park. We are accepting campers ages 14–17, and those who are 18+ are welcome to apply as staff. There is a limited number of spaces available on this trip—so please register soon if you plan on attending. For more information about the trip, visit https://camp.livingyouth.org/. If you have any questions, please contact the camp’s director, Mr. Jonathan Bueno ([email protected]).
Comments
Promoting Unity: King David wrote, “How good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity” (Psalm 133:1). Unity does not happen by accident—it is the result of conscious actions. The Apostle Paul advised Christians to “keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace” by being humble, gentle, and patient in our dealings with others (Ephesians 4:1–3). Paul also encouraged disciples to “be kindly affectionate to one another” with respect and concern, saying that we should strive to live peaceably together, “as much as depends on you” (Romans 12:10–18). Both Paul and Peter stated that patience and kindness toward others are fruits of God’s Spirit (Galatians 5:22–23; 2 Peter 1:5–8), and that showing real love involves exhibiting these fruits (1 Corinthians 13). We also need to remember that if we criticize and accuse others, Satan can use us to undermine and destroy unity between brethren (1 Peter 5:8–9; Revelation 12:10). Let’s strive to promote unity and not contribute to division.
Have a profitable Sabbath,
Douglas S. Winnail
News and Prophecy – February 27, 2025
Will U.S.-Russia Meeting Force Europe to Act? After three years of war between Russia and Ukraine and no end in sight, returning U.S. President Trump now has Russia at the negotiating table. While many are hopeful that the war might end, this is not the way Europe or the rest of the world envisioned peace in Ukraine. Last week, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and his team met in Saudi Arabia with their Russian counterparts to begin to repair the diplomatic rift between the two nations (AP News, February 18, 2025). While the talks did not directly outline a plan for peace in Ukraine, they apparently ended with both parties feeling positive about the future and planning to meet again. The talks ended with three goals for future discussions: “to restore staffing at their respective embassies in Washington and Moscow, to create a high-level team to support Ukraine peace talks and to explore closer relations and economic cooperation.”
Although the meeting in Saudi Arabia did not outline a plan to end the war, many in Europe and Ukraine believed that they should have been involved in the process and felt snubbed by the United States. In response, French president Macron called an emergency meeting of EU leaders in France to discuss how to respond to the U.S.-Russia meeting and any peace plans that might result from it. The annual European Security Conference also took place in Munich last week, where many profound observations were made. As France’s minister of European affairs noted related to recent U.S. actions, “Denial is no longer possible. The message is clear: It’s time to take our [Europe’s] responsibilities, to safeguard our own security” (Wall Street Journal, February 16, 2025).
A former German defense official stated, “The question that is important to everybody is: Can we trust the United States of America?” Ukrainian president Zelensky, also present at the meeting, urged, “We must build the Armed Forces of Europe so that Europe’s future depends only on Europeans and decisions about Europe are made in Europe” (MSN, February 17, 2025). The European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen announced that she will “activate the escape clause for defence investments,” allowing EU nations to overspend their EU-legislated budget caps in the name of defense. Finally, German CDU head Friedrich Merz—who has been selected to become Germany’s new chancellor—commented about Germany’s future in Europe: “I fully agree with those who are demanding leadership from Germany, and frankly I’m willing to do that because I’m seeing that Germany is in a strategic position at the centre of Europe; that so many things in Europe depends on Germany.” And Bible prophecy reveals that Germany will lead Europe in the future!
The world is changing rapidly. What President Trump did not achieve in his first term by working with Europe—a European commitment to greater defense spending and less reliance on the U.S.—he may now achieve by actions taken outside of Europe. However, what we see playing out on the world stage is not the plan of Donald Trump or any human leader. It is Bible prophecy coming to pass as foretold long ago. The Bible describes the future emergence of an end-time European “beast” power led by Germany (modern-day Assyria)—one that will dominate the globe for a short time. It also predicts powerful regional rivals to the south (the “king of the South,” Daniel 11:40) and east of Jerusalem (“kings from the east,” Revelation 16:12).
Forces that may be pushing these prophesied power blocs to form at an even quicker pace are now at play. The old way of doing things is changing, and the Bible gives powerful insight on what is happening and what to expect. To understand just where these volatile events may take our world, read or listen to our informative booklet Fourteen Signs Announcing Christ’s Return. —Scott Winnail, Rod Wissinger, and Francine Prater