From the Presiding Evangelist
Dear fellow servants of Jesus Christ,
Thank you once again for what you do in helping and serving God's people. All of us here deeply appreciate your loyalty in the work you are doing out there to help prepare for the Kingdom of God. We are all doing our best here, hopefully, and are very grateful that world events seem to be "speeding up" and fulfilling the prophecies we have given the world for so many decades.
Now, Pentecost is almost here! At the original New Testament Pentecost in 31 AD, there was a literal "outpouring" of God's Holy Spirit on the early apostles and followers of Christ. After describing how Christ was raised from the dead and now sits at the right hand of God, Peter stated, "He poured out this which you now see and hear" (Acts 2:33). Obviously, hundreds of healings began to take place over the next few years. At one point, even the "shadow of Peter" passing over the believers caused a huge number of people to be healed (Acts 5:14-16). Today, it may not be God's time yet to do such dramatic healings and miracles. But it is always God's time—during the New Testament era—for people to be healed supernaturally if we put our full faith and trust in God. So I hope that all of you who will be preaching or giving sermonettes or messages this Pentecost weekend will stress that fact and begin to try your best to help us build a far greater "atmosphere of faith" within God's Church.
Let us pray that at this Pentecost weekend He will begin to intervene and pour out His Spirit and that He will supernaturally heal many more of our brethren who are suffering terribly from cancer and other virtual plagues. You know their names and there are many out there—and there are many out there that we here do not know about. But God's people need healing at this time. And I urge you to pray fervently about it.
Back in 1958, one of the most dramatic healings in the modern history of God's Church took place. Richard David Armstrong prayed for Howard Clark—who had been a quadriplegic because of battle injuries in the Korean War and had been treated over and over in the very top naval and military hospitals with no effect. Howard could not walk, he could barely move. I knew him well and even baptized him. But on Pentecost weekend, 1958, he was supernaturally and totally healed through the prayers of Dick Armstrong! Pentecost pictures—as we have seen—"outpouring" of God's Holy Spirit. So let us realize this and pray that God will grant us this and beseech God to have mercy upon us and to pour out His Spirit in this way and in every way to draw us closer to Him at this time.
You who receive this "Update" are the ministers and leaders in this Work so I ask you to join with us here in also praying fervently that God will truly stir and inspire His people at this time to give generously in their Pentecost offering. So many world events are beginning to come together which we have talked about for decades. I will be reciting some of these and bringing this out in the co-worker letter which I will write in about ten days. Most of you are reading about these things. As Greece begins to leave the EU and the whole system threatens to come apart and may have to be restructured to fit God's plan of the coming "Beast Power" in Europe, as America goes down and horrifying events take place in the Middle East—bringing about the coming King of the South—Europe will come up and China will rise. God's will shall stand. For our God is real. And His promises to heal and to pour out His Spirit are real.
So let's ask our brethren to do all they can in prayers, in tithes and generous offerings and their outreach to others to help us do everything we can to truly have a significant impact on this very sick and confused world before the end of this age. God is watching us, working with us and will certainly reward us accordingly for our works (Matthew 16:27).
Let each of us who are leaders in His service—both men and women—truly "give" of ourselves in serving God and His people and in preparing for this wonderful Kingdom soon to be set up on this earth. We have an awesome opportunity and a tremendous responsibility. May God be with and guide you and inspire you.
Your brother in Christ,
Roderick C. Meredith
Church Administration
Greetings from Charlotte,
As we observe the Day of Pentecost this weekend, it will be good to contemplate how different this world will be when Jesus Christ returns and the Spirit of God begins to permeate the minds and guide the actions of human beings on this earth. Here in Charlotte, Mr. Meredith has been writing and holding meetings. Mr. Wayne Pyle reports that last week's Tomorrow's World telecast by Mr. Meredith entitled "Does God Heal Today?" resulted in over 200 requests for anointed cloths and should draw more than 4,200 responses to the program. Last weekend, the Tomorrow's World Special Presentations in Jacksonville and Ocala, Florida, on the theme of "The Gathering Storm" drew 61 very interested visitors (see below). Mr. Joe Brown will do follow-up presentations this Sabbath in Jacksonville and the following Sabbath in Ocala. So far this year, we have conducted 49 TWSPs that have drawn nearly 1,700 visitors, and we are currently scheduled to make more than 150 presentations around the world in 2012. Mr. and Mrs. Ames will travel to Calgary and Edmonton, Canada for Pentecost, Mr. Mario Hernandez will be in Quebec, and I will be in Tampa and Ft Lauderdale. Please pray that God will richly bless His people and these efforts to do His Work.—DSW
Tomorrow's World Special Presentations
Jacksonville and Ocala, Florida: A Tomorrow's World Special Presentation was held in Jacksonville, Florida, the afternoon of May 19. Dr. Douglas Winnail was the presenter and his talk was well received by 19 guests and 37 brethren. The presentation entitled "The Gathering Storm" held the attention of everyone present and many stayed afterwards to fellowship and ask questions. The brethren did a great job by providing snacks and conversing with the visitors.
The next day Dr. Winnail was in Ocala, Florida, for another presentation of "The Gathering Storm" which drew an enthusiastic crowd of 59 (including 42 guests). Some of the guests could be heard during the presentation voicing their agreement with Dr. Winnail's remarks. Afterwards there were many comments and questions from the guests. The brethren are to be commended for their hospitality in providing snacks and showing forth an attitude of friendliness towards the guests.—Jack Lucas
Winchester, Virginia, Family Weekend (Repeat Announcement)
A Family Weekend in Winchester, VA is scheduled for June 8–10. On Friday evening, June 8, there will be a Bible Study. Sabbath Services on Sabbath, June 9 will be followed later with a dinner and, after sunset, a dance. There will be a softball tournament on Sunday, June 10. For more information, please contact Sheldon Monson at [email protected]; 301-605-7215 (home) or 715-441-6081 (cell), or Gerald Dulaney at [email protected]; 540-662-3696.
Personal Hymnals—Orders Now Being Taken Again! (Repeat Announcement)
To access the order form to order a personal hymnal, please go to the website: http://hymnals.lcg.org. Personal hymnals are in English, purple in color (to differentiate from the current hymnals) and have the option of standard or spiral binding, and option of standard size (same as current hymnal) or large print edition (9" x 11"). The cost per hymnal is $11, including shipping. For this round of orders, please note that purchases are limited to one copy per family, since supplies are limited. To order personal hymnals, please carefully follow the directions on the http://hymnals.lcg.org ordering form regarding payment. If you don't have Internet access, please contact your local Festival Advisor, who can download a paper form for you to fill out and mail in personally.
Brethren from International areas—if you would like to order a personal hymnal, please contact your Regional Office for specific instructions in your area.
Living Youth Programs
Teen Bible Study—Sunday Evening
There will be no Teen Bible Study this Sunday evening, May 13.
Internet Operations
TomorrowsWorld.org web page traffic update: God continues to bless His Church in many ways, including opening up many new doors for us to preach the Gospel of the coming Kingdom of God to a greater and greater audience around the entire world. In addition to all of the doors that God is opening for us in television, through the Tomorrow's World Special Presentations, our print media, Social Media and more, we are excited to report that the TomorrowsWorld.org website has generated a 59% increase in unique visitors for May 2012 as compared to May 2011. Furthermore, this large increase in Web traffic seems to be responding positively to what they see at the TW site, since the average visit duration has remained consistent. We are very thankful to God, and we are also very thankful for your prayerful support because we know that God gives the increase (cf. 1 Corinthians 3:7).—Wyatt Ciesielka
Feast of Tabernacles 2012
Activity Registration Will Begin JUNE 24
The Feast of Tabernacles is still five months away—but will be here before we know it! In preparation for the Feast, our Festival Coordinators are now busy planning the schedules and activities for this year's Feast. Please note: Activity Registration for all Living Church of God Feast sites will begin Sunday, June 24, 2012. At that time, brethren will be able to sign up for activities that are hosted at their Feast site. (If you have not yet registered to attend a site, please do so at your convenience.) If you have any questions about the upcoming activities that will be available, contact your Festival Coordinator, or check out the Feast website by going to the LCG website (www.lcg.org) and then clicking on the "Feast of Tabernacles" link. More information about signing up for activities will be forthcoming in the coming weeks! —Festival Office
Comments
The Church of God: Jesus said, "I will build my church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it" (Matthew 16:18). Jesus' statement indicates that His Church would continue to exist down through the centuries. That Church began on the day of Pentecost (Acts 2:1), and it is named the "Church of God" numerous times in the New Testament (1 Corinthians 1:2; 10:32; 11:22; 15:9; Galatians 1:13). Some think the Work of the Church of God ended with the death of Mr. Herbert Armstrong and that all things were restored at that time. However, Jesus promised, "lo I am with you always, even to the end of the age" (Matthew 28:20), and the scriptural instruction to the Church is to "grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ" (2 Peter 3:18). The Living Church of God continues to grow in understanding and to do the Work of preaching the gospel and warning the nations of Israel and the world through radio, television, the Internet and printed media and now through hundreds of Tomorrow's World Special Presentations. The commission (Mark 16:15) that Jesus gave to the Church He started on Pentecost continues through the doors that God has opened to His Church today!
Have a profitable Sabbath and joyous Day of Pentecost,
Douglas S. Winnail
News and Prophecy—May 24, 2012
Muslim Brotherhood aims for Jerusalem: Recently, a radical Muslim preacher told thousands of Muslim Brotherhood supporters in Egypt, "We can see how the dream of the Islamic caliphate is being realized, God willing, by Dr. Mohamed Mursi [the movement's presidential candidate]... The capital of the caliphate—the capital of the United States of the Arabs—will be Jerusalem, God willing… Our capital shall not be in Cairo, Mecca or Medina… Yes, Jerusalem is our goal. We shall pray in Jerusalem, or die as martyrs on its threshold." Egypt is holding its presidential election at the time of this writing—an election many claim could "change the Middle East." Currently, Dr. Mursi is running a "distant fourth" in independent polls (Jerusalem Post, May 8, 2012). Although the Muslim Brotherhood candidate for President of Egypt is unlikely to win the election, this recent speech highlights the motive of many extreme Muslims—to gain control of Jerusalem. Bible prophecy has long foretold that an end-time "king of the South" (likely involving or led by Egypt) will push for Jerusalem, only to be overrun by the European Beast power (Daniel 11:40-43). We appear to be witnessing the early signs of the formation of this "king of the South." For more information on this sobering topic, review our booklet The Middle East in Prophecy.
Rumors of War: Tensions in a resource-rich region of central Asia threaten to disrupt a 25-year ceasefire between Armenia and Azerbaijan. The two nations signed a treaty after the Nagorno-Karabakh War (1988-1994). However, in a direct provocation, Azerbaijani troops entered Armenia and killed three out-of-uniform soldiers. An Armenian military source stated, "The killing is a clear provocation, we have not reacted yet. I underline: 'Yet'." The "war rumor" has raised concerns in the EU, Russia, and the U.S. due to the critical importance of the region. "In terms of direct threats to EU interests, it would increase oil prices by destroying the BTC pipeline from the Caspian Sea to the Mediterranean. It would also halt EU plans to reduce energy dependence on Russia by building a gas pipeline through the region." Russia's 5,000 soldiers based in Armenia must intervene under a NATO-type Collective Security Treaty Organization agreement, if there is war. The U.S. also has hundreds of diplomats and thousands of Armenian-American passport holders in Armenia (EUobserver.com, May 14, 2012). As nations compete for spheres of interest, resources and recognition, "proxy wars can be expected" (German-Foreign-Policy.com, May 2, 2012). Jesus prophesied that just before the end of this age, "nation will rise against nation," and "wars and rumors of wars" would dominate world news (Matthew 26:6-7). For nearly 6,000 years, mankind has failed to find the way to peace (Isaiah 59:8). Many Bible prophecies indicate that Jesus Christ will return to this earth and usher in an era of world peace in the Kingdom of God (Daniel 2:44; Isaiah 9:6-7).). "He shall judge between many peoples, and rebuke strong nations afar off; they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war anymore" (Micah 4:3). For more information about major end-time events, request our free booklet Fourteen Signs Announcing Christ's Return.
"One Nation (Under Germany)" Noted economic historian Niall Ferguson observed in a recent interview that the only real solution to Europe's financial crisis is a full fiscal union—a true United States of Europe—that would be unquestionably under the leadership of the financial powerhouse, Germany. Ferguson believes Europe could limp along for a while with Greece falling into step with EU demands and Germany digging deeper into its wealthy pockets. However, he states that while "I am not a federalist… the costs of the single currency disintegrating are really so high and would impact so many people, that the only responsible thing for me to do is to argue urgently for the next step to a federal Europe. I see no alternative at the moment that isn't a great deal worse" (Sunday Times, May 20, 2012). These sobering observations echo ancient Bible prophecies that have long foretold the rise of a German-led European Beast power comprised of "ten kings" or nations (Daniel 2:41-43; Revelation 17:12-17). It is sobering to see the ancient prophecies coming to pass and to realize that God is bringing to pass what He has predicted in His word (Isaiah 46:8-11). For more on this fascinating topic, see our article Resurgent Germany: A Fourth Reich?—Scott Winnail, Phyllis Api, Justin Ridgeway, James Bennett and Daniel Bennett