Greetings from Charlotte,
As mentioned in this week’s video update, Mr. VG Lardé was in Charlotte to discuss French-language translations and schedules. Teen LYP registration is off to a robust start—be sure to register early if you plan to attend, as this helps with planning.
According to the BBC, several British celebrities are calling for banks to stop financing the fossil fuel industry. Also, according to the BBC, the city of Mohe—known as “China’s North Pole”—had temperatures drop to -53° Celsius (-63.4° Fahrenheit) on Sunday, which broke the long-standing 1969 record of -52.3° Celsius. For three consecutive days, the city recorded temperatures below -50° Celsius. One has to wonder how riding a bicycle to work or driving an electric car will work out in Mohe and other cold winter locations.
Tomorrow’s World circulation rises and falls as a result of new subscribers adding to and renewal programs trimming circulation. In a typical week we add between 3,000 and 3,500 new subscribers, so even if the total circulation stays the same, we are reaching a far greater number of people than that number indicates.—Gerald Weston
Church Administration
Tomorrow’s World Presentations in 2023
2023 is off to a good start! As we approach the end of January, our ministers have so far conducted 15 presentations (including four outside the United States) with 207 guests attending. Last weekend alone we had 91 visitors! This weekend, Mr. Peter Nathan will be conducting a Tomorrow’s World Presentation in Dublin, Ireland, and we’ll have follow-ups in five other locations. Thank you for your fervent prayers for these important events!
Appreciation for 25 Years of Service
This week, we would like to honor those ministers in the Living Church of God who, in 2022, reached their 25th year since ordination. We are sending them each a plaque to mark this milestone, as a small token of the Church’s appreciation for the many years they and their wives have served the Church. Please join us in acknowledging them for their dedication and sacrifice in serving God and His people.
Ordained 25 years in 2022:
- Mr. Rodger Bardo (U.S.A.)
- Mr. Raul Colon (U.S.A.)
- Mr. Irvin Woelfle (U.S.A.)
Passover 2023—International Deadline for Requests Is Tomorrow, January 27
Important Notice to All Pastors: In 2023, the Passover Service will be observed on Tuesday evening, April 4. Please let us know as soon as possible if any of the congregations you serve will need additional Passover Service supplies (bread trays and/or wine trays or glasses) or a physical copy of the Passover Service recording and letter instructions (available in English, French, and Spanish). Passover Service recordings for 2023 were made by Mr. John Strain in English and by Mr. Kenneth Frank (translated by Mr. Yvon Brochu) in French. To ensure timely delivery and to save on shipping costs, we need this information before January 27 for international congregations and by March 17 for U.S. congregations.
Also, please let us know of any scattered members who are unable to keep the Passover with a congregation and who need to receive a physical copy of the Passover Service recording and letter instructions for observing it at home. International requests should be received before January 27 and U.S. requests before March 17. Please direct your requests to the Church Administration Department at [email protected] as soon as possible. These dates take into consideration the slowdown of mail service in some places.
Note: As has been the case the last couple of years, the Passover Service recording will also be available digitally to pastors and video recipients via the FTP site. A private YouTube link will also be provided ahead of time.
Living Education
Living for Tomorrow: L4T Eagle Rock—Deadline to Sign Up Is February 9!
Young adults in the Midwest United States! Now is your opportunity to join other young people for a weekend of enjoyable activities and focused presentations, all centered around the theme “Journey of a Lifetime.” How can you prepare for the storms facing you in today’s world? What skills will be necessary to have a meaningful and fulfilling life? These questions and more will be the focus of the Eagle Rock L4T to be held February 17–20. Camp Eagle Rock is located west of Branson, Missouri, and this L4T event will be held on Presidents Day weekend, with activities beginning Friday evening, February 17, and departure Monday morning, February 20. It is open to young adults ages 18–30. Registration is open (log in to MyLCG for a link to register for the weekend). If you have any questions at all about registration or the weekend, please contact Mr. Rod McNair at [email protected] or Dr. Richard Franz at [email protected]. Deadline to sign up is Thursday, February 9. Sign up now and make that weekend a highlight of your winter!—Jonathan McNair
Living Youth Program
Camp Registration
Registration for Teen and Preteen Camps is now open. Camps are planned for:
- Texas Teen
- Texas Preteen
- West Virginia Preteen
- Missouri Preteen
For dates, tuition, other information, and registration, go to camp.livingyouth.org. Registering early helps immensely in planning, so please register early.
Comments
Perseverance—A Vital Quality: Perseverance is one of the laws of success. It is defined as tenacity, remaining steadfast under pressure, and continuing on a chosen path in spite of difficulties and opposition. The Scriptures stress the importance of this vital quality. Solomon wrote in Proverbs 24:10, “If you faint in the day of adversity, your strength is small.” Jesus stressed, “he who endures to the end shall be saved” (Matthew 10:22; 24:13). The Apostle Paul warned, “let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart” (Galatians 6:9). The Apostle John recorded the same advice to the Philadelphia Era of the Church, “Because you have kept My command to persevere, I also will keep you from the hour of trial which shall come upon the whole world.… Behold, I come quickly! Hold fast what you have, that no one may take your crown” (Revelation 3:10–11). When trials and difficulties come our way, let’s remember this advice to persevere on our chosen course.
Have a profitable Sabbath,
Douglas S. Winnail
News and Prophecy—January 26, 2023
America’s Troubled Youth: The American Psychological Association has reported on multiple findings, warning that children in America are experiencing an unprecedented crisis in mental health (2022 Trends Report, January 1, 2022). Schools and hospitals are seeing a striking increase in children and young people seeking mental health care, and suicide has become one of the leading causes of death for individuals 12 to 24 years of age. This crisis has been aggravated by nearly two years of lockdowns and loneliness due the COVID pandemic, trauma and anxiety related to school shootings, fears generated by news reports about the “climate crisis” and growing violence in cities and communities, and terrorist activities and wars around the world. The solution many propose to this crisis is more money to place more psychologists and mental health counselors in schools and communities.
However, less expensive and potentially more effective remedies are being overlooked. Studies document that people who attend church regularly experience much less depression and better mental health (Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, May 6, 2020). Yet, at the same time as this mental health crisis has grown, church attendance has steadily declined (PEW Research Center, October 17, 2019). This is especially true for young people, of whom nearly 40 percent now claim no religious affiliation and seldom or never attend church. Churchgoers not only have more social support, but they also often have a greater sense of purpose, which is an important element in dealing with depression (MedicalNewsToday, November 21, 2022).
Long ago, the prophet Hosea warned the children of Israel, “Because you have forgotten the law of your God, I also will forget your children” (Hosea 4:6). As our nations turn away from God and reject His laws, our nations are reaping the fruit of the secular seeds that have been sown in our modern world. To learn more about an overlooked solution to this modern crisis, read or view our booklet Biblical Principles of Health.
Can We Save Ourselves? In a wide-ranging interview, Lech Walesa, former President of Poland and leader of the famous Solidarity trade union that helped topple the communist government of Poland, made some sobering observations about the continuing military conflict in Ukraine (The Epoch Times, January 21, 2023). Mr. Walesa stated that “Communism’s days are numbered” because it “didn’t work anywhere.” He noted that the clash between communism and capitalism continues and has worsened with the growth of secularism since the end of the twentieth century. The sense that God was real, “operating somewhere in the back of people’s minds,” acted as a restraint on human behavior. Today, that restraint has been removed.
Mr. Walesa also observed that previous civilizations have gone down this same path and destroyed themselves, and many wonder if we will make it through this current period of turmoil. “So we are in the moment,” he remarked, “that either we destroy our lives as they did, or we save ourselves.”
Today, few realize that Jesus Christ foretold that just before He returns, human civilization will come to the point where the future of all life on earth would be in jeopardy, teaching that “unless those days were shortened, no flesh would be saved” (Matthew 24:22). Christ’s return is the good news about our future that world leaders do not understand. To get a better grasp of where world events are heading, request our booklet Fourteen Signs Announcing Christ’s Return.