Greetings from Charlotte,
It has been another eventful week on the world scene. A powerful 6.9 earthquake rocked northeast India, Tibet and Nepal causing landsides and claiming more than 100 lives. Volcanoes are rumbling again in Indonesia, serious flooding and mudslides have ravaged southwest China, a typhoon with 130 mile per hour winds and drenching rain pounded eastern Japan and more hurricanes are brewing off the coasts of Mexico and the USA. Europe continues to struggle with a financial crisis that could impact the composition of the EU; the pope visits Germany and speaks to the German parliament; and the Palestinian bid for statehood in the UN threatens to embolden Israel's neighbors and embarrass the United States. Ancient prophecies continue to come alive!
Here in Charlotte, Mr. Meredith, Mr. Ames and Mr. King taped three more Tomorrow's World programs. Mr. Meredith's latest co-worker letter was mailed to more than 10,000 recipients. Last week's Tomorrow's World program by Mr. Ames entitled, "Death, Resurrection and Your Future," is expected to draw more than 4,900 responses. Mr. Wayne Pyle reports that our Internet and Tomorrow's World magazines have reached all but two nations in the world: North Korea and the tiny city-nation of San Marino in northern Italy. Mr. Ben Whitfield was encouraged the results of the follow-up Tomorrow's World Special Presentations in Denver, Colorado, and Casper, Wyoming. The Fall Holy Days begin next Thursday with the Feast of Trumpets—please refer to the announcements below. Plans for the Feast of Tabernacles are coming together well. Please pray that God will inspire and bless the Fall Holy Day season and protect His people has they travel to where He has placed His name.—DSW
Church Administration
French Update: The French-Speaking Peoples in Prophecy
After almost 20 years out of circulation, Mr. Dibar Apartian's booklet, Les pays de langue française selon la prophétie (The French-Speaking Peoples in Prophecy), has been republished and is now available online at our website www.MondeDemain.org. It will also be available in print soon. In his booklet, first written in the 1960s, Mr. Apartian traces the origins of the Gauls to the tribe of Reuben, Israel's son. This work is a great companion to our booklet The United States and Great Britain in Prophecy.
Feast of Tabernacles 2011
Orford, Quebec
With the Feast coming very quickly, we would like to remind all the talented people of the Church of God who are coming to Mont Orford, QC, Canada not to forget their guitars, harmonicas, tap shoes, etc. On Sunday night during the Feast, we will be holding a Talent Show. Whether you are a juggler, musician, singer, tap dancer, mime or other, come and brighten our evening with your skills. On another subject, remember that the Feast is in mid-October this year and, therefore, the temperature may be cold. Do remember to bring warm clothes and warm shoes or boots. Also, please do not forget that this is a bilingual site. Remember, each person must bring his own FM radio receiver and earphones for translation purposes. These can be purchased for less than $10 at any electronics store. Most services will be held in English, but two will be in French. Translation into both languages will be provided.—Marc Arseneault
Audience Etiquette at the Feast (it is suggested that copies of the following are made available to the brethren)
As we prepare for the Feast, it is helpful to review some general guidelines of "audience etiquette" at the Feast. Important skills and habits of civility and good manners should be exhibited in all situations, but particularly in a group setting like the Feast. These services are a commanded convocation, as people come before God to hear His word expounded and to enjoy the fellowship of other like-minded people. To enhance the experience and to add to the enjoyment of everyone involved, there are some basic rules of audience etiquette that should be observed by adults and children alike.
In addition to being on time and dressing properly for services, there are other things that all of us can do to enjoy services and our fellowship even more. For example, unless you have some particular need or duties that require you to sit on the aisle, please move to the middle of the row to facilitate seating as people arrive. If you have a particular need that will require you to leave the audience during services, it is prudent to locate a seat near an exit or the restrooms. Taking care of the restroom detail and need for water, etc. prior to the beginning of services will prevent having to exit during services and possibly disturbing other members of the audience.
If someone happens to arrive at the meeting room as the opening or closing prayer is being given or while special music is underway, the courteous thing to do is to wait until the prayer or performance is finished before taking a seat.
Families with small children should take care to train their children at home to sit quietly on a pallet on the floor or in a chair. Small children can be trained to nap at this time. Having a quiet toy or appropriate quiet game to occupy the little ones is a great help in keeping them happily focused so they don't create a disturbance for those around them in the audience.
As services begin, food and drink should not be taken to one's seat for consumption during services. The likelihood of a spill or some disruptive accident is eliminated if we avoid eating and drinking during services. Passing of notes or being inattentive for any reason should be avoided during services. To this end, children should sit with their parents during services, not with their friends and their families. The fact is that children can visit with their friends before and after services, but not during services. By sitting with their parents, the temptation to visit with their friends and disrupt those around them should be eliminated.
As services come to a close some people begin to fold up notebooks, open brief cases, etc. even before the minister is finished. This activity in the audience can detract from the close of the sermon and an important point or the conclusion of the message may be missed. We should not begin packing up until after the closing prayer.
After sitting for a couple of hours, children may have a lot of pent up energy. Without thinking, they may run through the hall not realizing that it is not the time or place for such activity. To avoid disruption and potential injury, particularly to our older members, parents should teach their children to refrain from running in the building.
While these principles are important guidelines for conduct in all of our assemblies, they are particularly important during the Feast of Tabernacles, when our crowds are larger and we are interacting with outside people in our various activities. This may seem like a lot of "dos" and "don'ts," yet practicing simple audience etiquette will add to everyone's enjoyment of services and ensure that "all things are done decently and in order" at the Feast (1 Corinthians 14:40)!—Festival Office
Blessing of the Little Children
Mark 10:16 says that during Christ's ministry, when little children were brought to Him, "…He took them up in His arms, laid His hands on them, and blessed them." Following this example and other Scriptures (Matthew 19:13-15 and Luke 18:15-17), the Church has traditionally conducted the "Blessing of the Little Children" during one of the services at the Feast of Tabernacles. If you have small children ("babes-in-arms") who have not yet taken part in this very meaningful blessing, check with your Festival Coordinator to find out on which day it will be conducted, and any other pertinent details. If you have any questions about the Blessing of the Little Children in general, please check with your local Pastor.—Festival Office
Human Resources
Employment Opportunities: Please review and announce the following job opening
Receptionist/Record Specialist: This position requires spending half time as Receptionist at the front desk answering phones, transferring calls, greeting and assisting visitors, and the other half as Record Specialist. Candidate must be familiar with data entry, general office procedures and have a pleasant and professional phone presence. Duties include entering a variety of standard and/or complex coded or non-coded business and statistical source data into the computer, taking orders over the phone and routing office calls; reading, coding and routing mail. Job requires a high school diploma with 2-5 years of experience in the field or in a related area.
Anyone interested in this position should send a resume to: Living Church of God, Human Resources Department, P.O. Box 3810, Charlotte, NC 28227. Fax: 704-844-1973; e-mail: [email protected].
Mail Processing Department
Holy Day Offering Envelopes: Holy Day offering envelopes were sent to all U.S. households on September 7, but apparently are hung up in the postal system. So far, brethren from only a handful of states have reported to have received them. With the current problems in the U.S. Postal System, we encourage all U.S. brethren to be prepared to bring their own envelopes for the offerings on the Feast of Trumpets and the Day of Atonement. If you use your own envelope, please be sure to write your Personal Identification Number on it. You can find your PIN on the Tomorrow's World magazine label. Extra green envelopes should also be available from ushers at services on these two Holy Days.
Attention Video Recipients and Festival Coordinators: We have been notified that some of our sermons on DVD, recently sent, are damaged and, therefore, do not play correctly. Please pre-screen the Trumpets, Atonement and, if applicable, the Feast of Tabernacles DVDs to ensure that your copies play correctly. If any of your DVDs are damaged, contact us immediately so we can send you a replacement as soon as possible.
Comments
Naptime Is Over! Jesus warned us to WATCH for a series of events that would signal the end of the age. He said increasing turmoil within nations and threats of wars between nations, spreading droughts, famines, disease epidemics, earthquakes and natural disasters would be the "beginning of sorrows" (Matthew 24:8). Other signs would be the rise of a German-led 10-nation "beast" power in Europe influenced by a notable religious figure—both with links to the Roman Empire—and referred to as the "king of the North" (Daniel 2,7,11). This emerging European power will be challenged by an emerging Islamic coalition referred to as the King of the South, and Jerusalem will become a focal point of contention (Luke 21:20-24). All this will happen as moral decay and corruption in Israelite nations (USA, Britain, etc.) becomes evident and their power and influence begin to fade on the world stage. We are watching these prophesied events happening today! We need to heed the Apostle Paul's admonition, "The night is far spent, the day is at hand… let us cast off the works of darkness…. Let us walk properly… not in revelry and drunkenness, not in lewdness and lust, not in strife and envy. But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh" (Romans 13:12-14). Brethren, it is time to wake up and get ready for what Jesus said is coming!
Have a profitable Sabbath,
Douglas S. Winnail
News and Prophecy—September 22, 2011
Pope Rallies World Youth. Last month, hundreds of thousands of Roman Catholic youth from around the globe met in Madrid for World Youth Day (WYD) and to hear Pope Benedict XVI speak. WYD is designed to reach Roman Catholic youth and bring "meaning" to their beliefs. "The general consensus from those who have done research on them [WYD youth] is that World Youth Days tend to combine young people's taste for stars and big events with a spiritual dimension." Testimonies show the results. "'I was really touched by the pope's words,' says Jonathan Meunier-Doyon, 16, of Quebec. 'What he said to us about Christ being a rock on whom we can build our lives has really moved me.'" Stella, age 17, commented, "WYD has been the best experience of my life. When I go home I'll tell young people not to be afraid to follow Christ." Lupita Ramírez, 23, from Monterrey, Mexico observed, "We queued for five hours in the Plaza del Sol to see the Pope. If every young person in the world followed Christ, it would be full of peace" (Times, August 27, 2011). These comments reveal a desire in young people to understand the meaning of life and a need for encouragement to live their faith. While the pope's words appealed to the idealism of many young people, important details were not addressed. The message of WYD only contains "part" of the truth—when the world does follow Christ, it will be full of peace! However, the Scriptures reveal that human beings do not know the way to peace (Isaiah 59:8). Real peace will only come with the return of Jesus Christ (Isaiah 9:6-7) and when the world begins to follow the laws of God (Psalm 119:165). Jesus also warned that at the end of the age many false teachers would use His name and talk of "peace" (Matthew 24:4-5; Jeremiah 8:11). The real way to peace involves teaching young people God's ways and His truth (Deuteronomy 11:18-21). Youth, like all people, yearn for a hope for the future and to understand the purpose for life. Sadly, today many grow up without real hope. And although the pope provided "some" hope for those attending WYD this year, he was unable to reveal the real meaning of life or the true way to peace. This will happen when Christ returns and the knowledge of God will cover the earth "as the waters cover the sea" (Isaiah 11:9). For more information on this incredible hope, see our booklet Your Ultimate Destiny!
End-Time Scoffers. Professor Richard Dawkins is well known for his philosophical conjecture that life came into existence by chance evolutionary processes. As a "scientist," Dr. Dawkins prefers to lecture on philosophy, ridiculing people for their "irrational" belief in God. He usually "… declines to talk in San Francisco and New York; these cities are too gloriously godless, as far as he is concerned. 'As an atheistic lecturer, you are rather wasting your time,' he says. He prefers the Bible Belt, where controversy is raw." In a recent interview, Dr. Dawkins commented, "Religion teaches you to be satisfied with nonanswers. It's a sort of crime against childhood." Yet he also admits, "I did not end up as broadly educated as my Cambridge colleagues, but I graduated probably better equipped to write a book on my chosen subject" (The New York Times, September 19, 2011). Perhaps that is why elements of his arguments ignore basic understandings of other scientific disciplines. Dr. Dawkins is highly intelligent, yet apparently refuses to even consider arguments for the intelligent design of the universe—a stance he has taken since he was a youth. He admits there could be all-powerful god-like beings "out there" who came to that point through evolution, yet he refuses to admit an Eternal God could have created the universe and humanity. Evolutionary theory fails to give "meaning" to life and cannot explain the real future of all mankind. The Bible states, "The fool has said in his heart, 'There is no God'" (Psalm 14:1). The Apostle Paul warned about those who are "always learning and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth" (2 Timothy 3:7). Dr. Dawkins made a very revealing statement when he said about a respected colleague's belief in a personal God, "I just don't get it." The Bible reveals that an understanding of spiritual things must come from God (1 Corinthians 2:7-14). One of the keys to gaining that understanding comes from humility and being willing to learn from the word of God (Isaiah 66:2). The apostle Peter prophesied "that scoffers will come in the last days" and they would ridicule God and the Scriptures (2 Peter 2-3). For more information on the reality of God, see our booklet, The Real God: Proofs and Promises.—James and Sue Bennett, Scott Winnail