Greetings from Charlotte,
We were all deeply saddened by the tragedy that took place in Uvalde, Texas, this week. This is the second senseless mass murder here in the United States in as many weeks. While politicians and pundits argue over the causes, we understand that this is the result of a society that has rejected its Creator, and all the band-aid solutions put forth will not solve this systemic problem.
Here is an update on what is happening in the French language. This week we posted the telecast “The Greatest Conspiracy of All,” which offers the booklet Restoring Original Christianity, and posted a new whiteboard, “What Does the Bible Say About Tattoos?,” offering the What Is a True Christian? booklet. These were dubbed into French.
The onsite Living Education students finished their final exams last week and enjoyed a trip to the Outer Banks of North Carolina where they visited the Wright Brothers museum and spent time with one another before they scatter following graduation tomorrow (Friday). Some will be attending the “Living 4 Tomorrow” weekend in Blowing Rock before heading home. If anyone is interested in an exciting year recapturing true values and building lasting friendships, we still have a few openings for the 2022–23 year.
Let’s remember to pray for the safety of one another in these uncertain times.—Gerald Weston
Church Administration
Death of Mr. Curtis Lambright
We are saddened to report that last Sunday, May 22, Mr. Curtis Lambright died of a heart attack. A second-generation Christian, Mr. Lambright served faithfully as an elder in southern Louisiana for many years. Your prayers for his wife Ethel Lambright and their family are appreciated.
140 Guests at Tomorrow’s World Presentations Last Weekend
Last weekend, four TWPs and six follow-up presentations were conducted in the United States, Canada, and Australia, with 140 guests. So far in 2022, the Living Church of God has conducted 143 TWPs (127 in the United States, 16 in other countries). This week we have follow-up presentations in Fort Wayne, Indiana; Winchester, Virginia; Allentown and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; Baltimore, Maryland; and Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. Your prayers for the success of these upcoming presentations are much appreciated!
Why Get Pre-Engagement Counseling?
The Bible tells us that good counsel is critical for making good decisions (Proverbs 1:5; 11:14; 12:15). Marriage is one of the most important decisions of one’s life (second only to baptism). The ministry must never become a “blessing factory,” just putting the Church’s stamp of approval on a marriage, no matter what. Rather, the ministry is here to help couples seeking marriage discern God’s will as they consider making a covenant with each other before God.
While the Church has historically suggested premarital counseling for all couples considering marriage, it makes much more sense to seek pre-engagement counseling. The intended purpose of counseling has always been to help couples better determine if they are “right for each other” in God’s sight and to increase their opportunity for success in a potential marriage. Regrettably, in all too many cases, once a couple is engaged, their focus is no longer on evaluating their relationship and whether or not they are right for each other. When their main concern is planning the wedding, they are far less evaluative of their relationship. Counseling can become simply an afterthought.
Pre-engagement counseling makes far more sense. The couple may be dating seriously, but they have not yet publicly committed to marriage in an engagement, and they are much more open to honestly evaluating themselves as potential marriage partners. This, in turn, gives much more opportunity for God to guide their decision-making. To better serve our membership in these critical decisions, the Church requests that all couples considering marriage seek pre-engagement counseling from the ministry before any formal engagement.
Television Department
Telly Awards for the Telecast
We received word this week that the four Tomorrow’s World telecasts submitted for review won six Telly Awards in various categories. This is a blessing and exciting news! Many well-known organizations around the world, including FOX Entertainment, Univision, and PBS submit various types of video programs including television programs, television commercials, promotional videos, etc. The Telly Awards are not a competition in which there is one gold, one silver, and one bronze award and entries are compared to each other. Rather, each video is evaluated individually by judges against a set of objective criteria. The value of this for us is that it gives us understanding of where the Tomorrow’s World telecast stands relative to contemporary industry standards. Congratulations to the presenters, editors, and everyone involved!—Mike DeSimone
Feast of Tabernacles
2022 Feast Registration Now Open
As of this writing, more than 4,700 Living Church of God brethren and guests have successfully registered for the 2022 Feast of Tabernacles. This year, we have approximately 91 Feast sites around the world, with 16 in the United States and 75 outside the United States.
If you have not yet registered…
Even if you are going to your assigned site, you need to register. Registering helps us know how many spaces are available for transfers. If you have trouble registering, please consult your local Festival Advisor.
The below Feast sites are closed for further transfers:
- Boerne, Texas
- Branson, Missouri
- South Padre Island, Texas
These sites have ample space and welcome more transfers:
- Florence, Oregon
- Fontana, Wisconsin
- Lake of the Ozarks, Missouri
- New Bern, North Carolina
- Poconos, Pennsylvania
- San Diego, California
- Sandusky, Ohio
- Williamsburg, Virginia
The following sites have active waiting lists:
- Pigeon Forge, Tennessee
- St. Augustine, Florida
Comments
Seeking God’s Guidance: In the world today, it is common to want to “do your own thing.” Yet, the Bible records numerous and tragic results of this approach (Judges 21:25; Jeremiah 9:12–16). In the Scriptures we are admonished, “Seek the Lord while He may be found” (Isaiah 55:6). We are also told that God looks to those who are humble and teachable and “tremble at My word” (Isaiah 66:2). King David reflected this attitude when he wrote, “Teach me, O Lord, the way of Your statutes.… Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path” (Psalm 119:33, 105). Jesus emphasized this same theme when He instructed His disciples to “live by… every word that proceeds from the mouth of God” (Matthew 4:4). One of the important lessons of life is that if we desire to succeed, we must learn to seek God’s guidance in the decisions that we make—and be alert to what He shows us.
Have a profitable Sabbath,
Douglas S. Winnail
News and Prophecy—May 26, 2022
Sri Lanka—Symptom of an Unraveling World! The 22 million people of Sri Lanka are suffering from a “full blown political and economic crisis” (The Conversation, May 11, 2022). Violence, starvation, and severe disruptions are rampant as the nation suffers its worst financial crisis in 70 years. Sadly, the government, unable to protect its people, has resorted to violence against them to quell the civil unrest.
According to the BBC, “The island nation’s economy has been hit hard by the pandemic, rising energy prices, and populist tax cuts. A chronic shortage of foreign currency and soaring inflation had led to a severe shortage of medicines, fuel and other essentials” (May 17, 2022). The nation’s new prime minister noted the country needs $75 million in loans immediately, and it will have to print more money to meet government payrolls. He also warned the nation is “down to its last day of petrol.” And Sri Lanka has now defaulted on its debt (BBC, May 20, 2022). The country’s inflation rate is 30 percent and is forecast to rise to 40 percent in the months ahead.
While the situation in Sri Lanka is dire and sobering, millions in other countries face similar suffering, such as citizens in Ukraine in Europe, Haiti in the Caribbean, and in war-torn nations of Africa, Asia, and the Middle East. Yet, few today realize that Jesus Christ is going to return to this earth as the “Savior of the world” (John 4:42). He came “preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God” (Mark 1:14–15), which He will establish when He returns. This is how the suffering of millions today will eventually be eliminated forever. As we watch catastrophes unfold in Sri Lanka and other nations around the globe, we need to understand that there is a real solution coming. To learn more about the Gospel of the Kingdom of God that Jesus preached, be sure to read or listen to The World Ahead: What Will It Be Like?
Monkeypox—Another Plague? If you have been watching or reading world news, you are aware that another virus is spreading in small clusters in the UK (The Telegraph, May 18, 2022). It has also now been reported in Canada, the U.S., Portugal, Germany, Spain, and several other nations. Monkeypox, an infectious disease closely related to smallpox, originates from Africa and is typically spread among small mammals like rats, not monkeys! It was first identified in the 1950s and originally jumped to the human population in the 1970s.
However, monkeypox does not spread easily in human populations. It requires very close contact to spread through respiratory fluids and mucus (The Guardian, May 18, 2022). Unsurprisingly, public health officials in Britain are witnessing monkeypox spreading primarily through the male homosexual population (Live Science, May 23, 2022). Officials do not foresee monkeypox as a major societal risk at this time, due to its slow spread and the strong public health systems in the Western world.
Jesus Christ warned about a greatly increased incidence of pestilence and disease as one of the signs of His impending return (Luke 21:11). Although monkeypox is not considered by all scientists to be a sexually transmitted disease, sexual contact is an especially effective means of spreading it, and “gay and bisexual men” have been warned by the CDC that their community is especially vulnerable (CNBC, May 23, 2022). Given the role that sexual contact is playing in this current outbreak, the same, powerful technique that stops the spread of over forty different sexually transmitted infections should work to halt monkeypox, as well. That solution is simple to understand and easy to implement, but it requires moral character and the willingness to recognize some behaviors as sin: Simply limit sexual relations to a monogamous, permanent relationship between one man and one woman—which is the definition of a biblical marriage! To learn more about how profound this simple prevention tool is, read or listen to “AIDS Can Be Stopped!”—Scott Winnail and Francine Prater