Greetings from Charlotte,
Campers arrived on Tuesday at the Texas Teen Camp. From reports received, the opening orientation and the first activities have gone well. You can find pictures at LivingYouth.org by logging in with your MyLCG password. Mr. Htoowah Laybeh reports that the brethren from Myanmar who fled to Thailand one year ago passed an important milestone recently, obtaining their “Pink Cards,” which will enable them to go to the Feast in southern Thailand this year (see report below). We received the sad news last week of the death of Mrs. Jeanette Tanner, who was the wife of Mr. Dayrell Tanner, one of our ministers in Australia. They served together faithfully for many years, and she will be dearly missed. Please pray for the comfort and encouragement of Mr. Tanner and his family.
—Rod McNair
Church Administration
Tomorrow’s World Presentations
Last week, we held one follow-up presentation in Red Deer, Alberta, Canada. This presentation drew five guests. This week, we will hold eight Tomorrow’s World Presentations. Mr. Rick Stafford will present in San Antonio and Kyle, Texas; Mr. Hugh Stewart will present in Borehamwood, England, UK; Dr. Jeffrey Fall will present in Erie, Pennsylvania; Mr. Herb Ellis will present in Lethbridge, Alberta, Canada; Mr. Phil Sena will give a follow-up presentation in Erie, Pennsylvania; and Mr. Marc Arseneault will give two online French presentations—one on Friday evening to the French subscribers in the Western Hemisphere and one on Sunday to the French subscribers in the Eastern Hemisphere. Thank you all for your continued prayers and support for the Tomorrow’s World Presentations.
“Pink Cards” for Myanmar Refugees
This week marks one year since our second group of Myanmar refugee brethren arrived in Mae Sot, Thailand, and settled. On behalf of these brethren, I sincerely thank everyone who was involved in facilitating this process and supporting them in reaching their current situation.
Their journey has been challenging, but with God’s help and wisdom, we have succeeded in helping this second group obtain their legal status, known as the “Pink Card”—a Non-Thai ID card that serves as proof of their identity in the Thai legal system. This document allows them to move somewhat freely within Thailand: They can now obtain travel permits from the local district office and travel outside Tak Province to observe the Feast of Tabernacles with other local Thai members in Nakhon Sawan Province this year.
Living among the Thai community as refugees is challenging for our Myanmar brethren, as they sometimes encounter discrimination from locals. This is a profoundly humbling experience, and our Myanmar brethren have been handling these challenges in a godly way. Once again, on their behalf, thank you very much; your thoughts, love, support, and prayers are deeply appreciated by your Myanmar brethren. It means a great deal to them to have this opportunity to move freely, without fear of being arrested by local police or authorities anymore. —Htoowah Laybeh
Minneapolis, Minnesota, Family Weekend
The Minneapolis congregation will be hosting a Labor Day Family Weekend from Saturday, September 5, to Monday, September 7. On Saturday there will be a morning Bible Study, Sabbath services, a shared meal, and evening activities, which will include basketball and board games. On Sunday, there will be softball, a picnic, and other activities at Grandview Park in Hudson, Wisconsin. Please contact Mr. Matt Lyons ([email protected]) or Mr. Mark Sandor ([email protected]) to register or if you have any questions.
Living Youth Programs
Living Youth Camp Texas
A big hello from Living Youth Camp in Athens, Texas! We are now in full gear as all 112 campers have arrived and jumped into their first day of activities. Mr. Gerald Weston led the Orientation, emphasizing the importance of the godly values we teach at camp. A few of those are “nobody gets left out,” “personalized attention for all campers,” and the importance of caring for one another through the maxim “Don’t hurt things, don’t hurt others and don’t hurt yourself.” One hundred and one staff members are fully engaged in creating an environment that will encourage and strengthen the campers as they make new friends and have a lot of fun!
Comments
Why Fear God? Many seek the key to success, yet only the Bible reveals that key! Solomon records that “the fear of the Lord” is the beginning—the starting point—to gaining knowledge and wisdom (Proverbs 1:7; 9:10) and that gaining wisdom and understanding is a principal goal in life that brings honor and rewards (Proverbs 4:7–9). Solomon also revealed that fearing God and keeping His commandments “is the whole duty of man” (Ecclesiastes 12:13, KJV). Yet Solomon warned that fearing man—going along with the crowd and being “politically correct”—leads to trouble because the wicked do not fear God (Proverbs 29:25; Psalm 36:1). God held Job in high regard because he feared God and shunned evil (Job 1:8). Joshua was instructed to be strong and courageous and to obey God so that God would be with him wherever he went (Joshua 1:7–9). We need to remember that God is looking for people who fear God—who love Him and are determined to walk in His ways—because that will bring blessings now and forever (Deuteronomy 10:12–13).
Have a profitable Sabbath,
Douglas S. Winnail
News and Prophecy
Devastation and Destruction in Venezuela: Just over a week ago, twin earthquakes struck Venezuela, not far from its capital city of Caracas. According to an initial review of satellite data, more than 58,000 buildings may have been damaged or destroyed (The Guardian, June 30, 2026). At the time of this writing, thousands have been reported dead, tens of thousands are still missing, and experts estimate as many as 6.8 million may require food, water, shelter, sanitation, and medical care. The specter of infectious disease looms as people lack access to clean water and sanitation, and their risk of contracting mosquito-borne diseases is higher while they lack proper shelter. Medical facilities are inundated and understaffed as doctors and nurses try to work through the carnage. A lack of machinery has hampered efforts to dig through the rubble.
“More than 500 aftershocks have been recorded in the country since the two successive earthquakes” (BBC, June 29, 2026), and every aftershock weakens the foundations of already-tottering buildings. “More than 25,000 emergency workers, police officers and soldiers” have been deployed, yet many civilians digging through the rubble with their hands, looking for missing loved ones, feel the government is not doing enough to assist.
Far more suffering and death will be uncovered in the weeks and months ahead, and followers of Christ should pray for those in Venezuela. Such destructive disasters raise the question, Why does God allow suffering? If a loving God is really in charge of the universe, why does He not prevent such awful events? There is an answer! You can find it by watching “Why Suffering Exists.”
Blurring the Line Between Truth and Hate: The Canadian senate recently advanced legislation that may significantly alter how hate speech and religious expression are interpreted (The Jurist, June 6, 2026). Many believe that this bill blurs the line separating good-faith religious practice and willful promotion of hate. Bill C-9 states that it does not prohibit “a person from communicating a statement on a matter of public interest, including an educational, religious, political or scientific statement made in the course of a discussion, publication or debate, if they do not wilfully promote hatred against an identifiable group by communicating the statement” (Parl.ca, March 25, 2026).
“The amendment removes from the Criminal Code a religious exemption for hate speech that is deemed to be a good-faith expression, argument, or opinion based on ‘a belief in a religious text’” (The Canadian Press News, April 15, 2026). The Canadian Constitution Foundation stated that context will determine the ramifications of the bill regarding Scripture—for example, just reading aloud Leviticus 20:13 is not likely to bring criminal charges, but if this passage is read aloud in the context of extreme disgust or hostility, it may well be considered to represent illegal hate speech (Canadian Constitution Foundation, June 5, 2026).
The Bible instructs us be lights to the world (Matthew 5:14), giving no unnecessary offense (1 Corinthians 10:32), speaking with grace and in love (Colossians 4:6; Ephesians 4:15), not being quarrelsome (2 Timothy 2:24), and being humble even when giving needed correction (v. 25). This news reinforces the fact that we must be wise and careful with our words, especially in a time when the truth itself is increasingly considered offensive (2 Timothy 4:3–4). You can start making sure you are on firm footing with God and His word by enrolling in the free Tomorrow’s World Bible Study Course. —Scott Winnail, Francine Prater, and Richard Franz