Greetings from Charlotte,
Extreme weather and geopolitical events are again making news. An "epic snowstorm" dumped more than five feet of snow on western New York state, trapping people in their homes and motorists in their cars. Heavy rains and possible tornados are forecast for the central and eastern parts of the USA this coming weekend. In Jerusalem, Muslim extremists savagely attacked worshipers in a Jewish synagogue to further inflame the tense situation in that troubled city. The growing friction between nations of the East and West could lead to the fulfillment of long- standing prophecies about the end times. This week, Dr. Meredith has been holding meetings and he will speak here in Charlotte on the Sabbath. Mr. Mario Hernandez taped several new telecasts in the Spanish language. This afternoon (Thursday), on-site LU students will visit a historical site of a Waldensian community located north of Charlotte. Please pray that God will guide His Work and watch over His people.—DSW
Church Administration
Charlotte Family Weekend Update—Must Read
Online registration for the Charlotte Family Weekend (December 24-28) is now open. For more detailed information and to register, go to your MyLCG page on the www.cogl.org Web site. We need everyone to register for the various activities you plan to participate in as soon as possible. (If you do not have computer access, your local Festival Advisor may register for you.) A special group rate of $94 has been negotiated at the host hotel, the Renaissance Charlotte Suites Hotel. This rate includes a full buffet breakfast for two adults. You may make reservations by using the hotel's Passkey Web site at https://resweb.passkey.com/go/LivingChurchofGod2014 or by calling 877-212-5752 and mentioning the Living Church of God. For those planning to play in the basketball or volleyball tournaments, please get your teams together now. We need all teams to register online as soon as possible. Please note that all teams must have a minimum of seven players and we are limiting the basketball tournament to a maximum of eight teams due to space and time limitations. There will be a fee of $30 per team (basketball only) to help pay for the hired referees. We will also have free play courts available for anyone not on a team. We hope many of you can join us for a weekend of spiritual rejuvenation, fun, food, and fellowship!—Jim Meredith
Kansas City Regional Family Weekend—Repeat Announcement
Clear your calendar for Friday, January 2 through Sunday, January 4, and bring the whole family to the Kansas City Regional Family Weekend.
Registration is now open at lcgkcweekend.org (not an official LCG Web site), where you can find all the details about the weekend.
The Friday night Bible Study and Saturday activities will be at the Hilton Garden Inn in Independence, Missouri, where rooms are available for $79 per night. This rate begins Thursday night, January 1 and is available through Sunday night, January 4. Call the hotel at 816-350-3000 to make reservations and say you are with "LCG" to receive the discounted rate. Hotel rooms will include up to four free, hot-breakfast vouchers per room at the onsite restaurant.
Housing with brethren is also available, but limited, so please register soon if you require accommodations.
Events will include a Friday night Bible Study, Sabbath morning seminar and mid-afternoon services. Sabbath dinner will be a Hereford House catered meal serving your choice of beef brisket or grilled chicken. Cost is $15 per person for adults and $10 per child 10 years old and under. The maximum dinner cost for each family is the price of four dinners—$60 for four adults or teens, or $50 for two adults and two children. If you are not planning to eat with us, we request a $5 donation per person (up to $20 per household) to help defray the costs of the weekend, if you can afford it.
For dinner and Saturday evening, we invite you to don your finest formal attire for our black-tie extravaganza. (Sabbath wear is acceptable, too.) The theme of the evening is "Roll out the Red Carpet." Dinner will be followed by an entertainment program unlike any we've done before… more details to come. Don't miss it! The evening concludes with a formal dance.
On Sunday, we are bringing you an all-new line-up of activities. The day will begin with a thrilling and memorable Big Family Games for people of all ages in God's "family" to enjoy. Sign up your team of 12 to 20 participants of all ages as we challenge you in a multitude of contests including athletics, trivia, problem solving, and more. After the Big Family Games, the afternoon will offer a basketball clinic for the youngsters, a volleyball clinic for those 11 and up, one hour each of Men's Basketball, Women's Volleyball, and Co-Ed Volleyball, as well as children's activities throughout the day.
Please visit our Web site for additional details and be sure to register right away so we know to expect you. Please join us as we "Roll out the Red Carpet!"—Michael Keesee
Television Department
New "Tomorrow's World News" Webcasts!—Repeat Announcement
We are excited to announce new "Tomorrow's World News" Webcasts now available on the Tomorrow's World Web site (http://www.tomorrowsworld.org/webcasts) and on YouTube. These will be timely, brief video commentaries on important news items of prophetic and Biblical importance. We intend to produce a few each week, so be sure to check the Web site regularly.—Wyatt Ciesielka
Living Youth Program
Online Teen Bible Study
The online Teen Bible Study for Friday, November 21, was cancelled. The next online Teen Bible Study, on Friday evening, November 28, will be on "The United States and Britain in Prophecy, Part 4," presented by Mr. Sheldon Monson. If you haven't had the opportunity to join us for one of the online Bible Studies yet, we encourage you to do so. It is a wonderful way to start the Sabbath day.
The Bible Study runs from 8:00 to 9:00 p.m. (EST) and the chat room will be open for one half hour before and after the study. You can access this Bible Study at livingyouth.org. We hope as many of our youth as possible will join us for this opportunity for godly fellowship and learning. For those of you who are unable to make it to the study, archives of previous Living Youth Bible Studies can be found on the Living Youth Web site.
Finance Department
Greetings! The Finance Department is in the process of moving to a paperless system. A big part of this process is having all requests for reimbursements, including MINEXs and Hall rentals, scanned and e-mailed to us. If you would like to participate, please e-mail Lanna or Haley ([email protected] or [email protected]) for detailed instructions. This method will save the Work money and valuable time and should speed up considerably the reimbursement process.—Jerry Ruddlesden
Living University
Living University—Registration for Second Semester
Registration for second semester classes is now underway! The Spring Semester (fall in the Southern hemisphere) will begin on Wednesday, January 14 and you may register anytime between now and January 14. Those who have never taken a Living University course will need to enroll in the University first, and then register for your selected course(s). This semester, along with many of our traditionally offered spring classes, we will be offering four completely new courses. Watch for these in the weeks to come. The following are brief descriptions of several courses being offered next semester. A complete listing of second semester courses can also be viewed on the Living University Web site under the link "Spring 2015 Schedule." To make application to Living University, to register for courses, and to find out more, please visit the www.livinguniv.com Web site. For additional information, please contact Mrs. Michelle Broussard at [email protected] or 704-708-2294. Note that the earlier students register and purchase textbooks, the better the prices they may find for the textbooks.
THL 136—Acts and Writings of Paul
This class focuses on the book of The Acts of the Apostles and deals with Paul's life, times, and writings. In this class Dr. Meredith's lectures focus on the background, purpose, message, and themes of Paul's letters; his personal life and character; his companions; and the chronology of the apostle's life. Emphasis is on the theology of his writings and the issues that Paul dealt with in apostolic times. This class is a prerequisite for the Epistles of Paul and the General Epistles and Revelation classes.
NEW! COMM 265—Advanced Public Speaking
This course builds on the principles and skills developed in COMM 260 and gives advanced study into the process of effective and polished public communication. It also provides more experience in preparing and delivering extemporaneous sermonettes and speeches. By the end of the course, students should be able to prepare and deliver well-organized speeches to a variety of audiences.
ENGL 112—Argument-Based Literary Research
This course, the second in a series of two, introduces research techniques, documentation styles, and argument strategies. Emphasis is placed on analyzing data and incorporating research findings into documented well-argued essays and research projects. By the end of the semester students should be able to summarize, paraphrase, interpret, and synthesize information from primary and secondary sources using standard research format and style. This course is required for the LU diplomas and also bachelor and associate degrees.
Comments
Age of Skeptics: The Apostle Peter warned us that in the last days "scoffers will come" who will ridicule biblical ideas such as Jesus' promise to return (2 Peter 3:3-4). Today, these skeptics are publishing books that refer to Christians as people who believe in "The God Delusion," and they openly claim that "god is not great." These modern skeptics have nurtured an attitude of disrespect for authority figures such as parents, teachers, government officials, policemen and even religious leaders. We need to be careful that these critical attitudes in society do not spill over into the Church and affect our attitudes toward the leaders and members of the body of Christ. Peter also warned that false teachers would come who would "despise authority" because they are presumptuous, self-willed and are determined to do their own thing (2 Peter 2:1, 10). The Apostle Paul urged Christians to respect authority and be subject to governments because God is the author of authority and organization (Romans 13:1-2). Questioning, criticizing, and ignoring authority only leads to confusion and chaos—and God is not the author of confusion (1 Corinthians 14:33). Let's value this biblical advice and be on guard against the fruits that flow from the age of skeptics.
Have a profitable Sabbath,
Douglas S. Winnail
News and Prophecy— November 20, 2014
A New Cold War: In a recent interview, the Soviet Union's former premier Mikhail Gorbachev warned "The world is on the brink of a new Cold War. Some are even saying that it has already begun" (Agence France-Presse, November 8, 2014). He cautioned, "Let us remember that there can be no security in Europe without German-Russian partnership" (ibid.). In addition to the escalating situation in the Ukraine (UPI, November 12, 2014), Russian military presence is increasing around the globe. Last month a Russian submarine was found in waters just outside of Stockholm (Newsweek, October 21, 2014). This followed a simulated Russian missile attack on Stockholm last year (ibid.). In September, Russian bombers and fighters were intercepted by Canadian fighters just 40 nautical miles from the Canadian coast line (Christian Science Monitor, September 20, 2014). Russia has made airspace incursions over Europe in recent months (AFP, October 31, 2014). Russia also "plans to send long-range bombers to the Gulf of Mexico in what appears to be Moscow's latest provocative maneuver in its increasingly frosty relations with the West" (CNN, November 13, 2014). The growing tension between the East and West could lead to the fulfillment of major Bible prophecies. Jesus Christ warned that one of the signs of the end of the age would be "wars and rumors of wars" (Matthew 24:6). Russia's increasingly aggressive activities could push Germany and Europe to increase their military capability. In a recent meeting, German Chancellor Angela Merkel insinuated that Russia was working to take back its former Soviet satellites (The New York Times, November 17, 2014). For more on this situation, be sure to read The Ukraine Crisis: History and Prophecy.
More "Rumors of Wars": "North Korea threatened Thursday to bolster its war capability and conduct a fourth nuclear test to cope with what it calls U.S. hostility that led to the approval of a landmark U.N. resolution on its human rights violations… to refer the North's rights situation to the International Criminal Court" which could lead to North Korea's absolute leader Kim Jong Un being targeted as a criminal in the coming weeks (Reuters, November 20, 2014). Experts believe that North Korea is bluffing, but, North Korea is also unpredictable. They already tested nuclear devices in 2006, 2009 and 2013 which have invited previous sanctions (ibid.). This latest threat by North Korea only adds to the increasing polarization between Asia and the West, and Russia and China fall on the side opposite the majority of Western nations. Bible prophecies have long warned that a powerful group of nations referred to as the "kings of the East" will clash with a European Beast power at the very end of the age (Revelation 16:12; Daniel 11:44). These kings will combine forces to muster a 200 million-man army that will fight against the Beast (Revelation 9:13-19). As time goes on, we will see more indications that this alliance in the east is taking root. For more on this, read our booklet The Beast of Revelation.
Scope of Modern Slavery: According to a new survey by The Global Slavery Index, "Nearly 36 million people in 167 surveyed countries live in modern slavery," which is almost double the estimates of a 2012 survey (The Washington Post, November 18, 2014). The number of enslaved people worldwide is roughly equivalent to the entire population of Argentina or Poland or the Sudan (The Global Slavery Index). Nations that enslave the largest number of people are India (14 million), China (3 million), Pakistan (2 million) and Uzbekistan and Russia (1 million each). Most nations enslave their own people and not foreigners. In Mauritania and Uzbekistan, nearly 4 percent of the population is enslaved. According to the survey, even leading Western nations have a slavery problem: the UK, France, and Germany each have roughly 10,000 slaves and the U.S. has roughly 60,000 (ibid.). Factors that increase the likelihood of slavery include: political instability, lack of human rights protections, poor economic development, historical subjugation of and discrimination against women, and a lack of governmental policies against slavery (ibid.). Powerful government action is required to prevent slavery—something the entire world will finally experience when Jesus Christ returns. The prophet Isaiah gives a wonderful vision of this time: "He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound" (61:1). God speed this time! For more on this vision, read The World Ahead: What Will It Be Like?—Scott Winnail, Leatrice Erlander, and Francine Prater