We just finished a very positive Council of Elders conference. Mr. Meredith led all the discussions and strongly emphasized the importance of being willing to grow, staying unified on doctrine and avoiding being misled by Satan’s devices so we can finish the mission that Jesus Christ has given to His Church. The Council discussed a number of challenges and opportunities facing the Church today. Very encouraging reports were presented by Regional Directors and Area Pastors from different parts of the world. Television and Internet responses continue to grow and the Tomorrow’s World Bible Lectures are bearing real fruit. Mr. Wallace Smith’s program that aired last week, “2012, Bible Prophecy and You!,” set two new records: a personal best for Mr. Smith and the highest response ever received for the booklet, Revelation: The Mystery Unveiled! The two recent lectures in Phoenix, Arizona, drew more than 80 new attendees. And we just learned this week that an additional 20 people received the Feast of Tabernacles pre-recorded sermons, which takes our total Feast of Tabernacles attendance (including shut-ins) for this year to more than 8,000.

 

Members of the Council of Elders recorded sermons in the television studio this week, to be sent to all our congregations. Mr. Rod King is planning to tape a new Tomorrow’s World program tomorrow and Mr. Hernandez is also scheduled to record a Spanish telecast. Mr. Rees Ellis from Belgium arrives in Charlotte tomorrow for meetings at the office. Mr. Martin Fannin will present a Tomorrow’s World Bible Lecture in Asheville, North Carolina this weekend. This morning we discussed future directions of the Church Youth Program. This weekend I will be in West Virginia to conduct a mini-conference for leaders in that area. 

 

 

 

 

Mr. Rodger Bardo reports that last week’s follow-up Tomorrow’s World Bible lecture in Phoenix was very successful. Sixteen new attendees, in addition to 11 who also attended the first presentation two weeks ago, were present (a total of 87 new attendees attended both lectures). Mr. Bardo wrote that most of the comments about these lectures were very positive by all who attended and that a couple of people have already shown interest in baptism.

Cancer pulled off. The mother of Mr. Joe Brown, Area Pastor serving the North Florida and Thomasville (Georgia) congregations, was diagnosed with cancer just prior to the Feast of Tabernacles. Her doctors believed that it was located in the tube that connects the kidneys and the bladder, also causing one kidney to malfunction. They scheduled surgery to remove the tube and one kidney, but realized that the kidney to be removed was working better than the other. They recommended she seek a second opinion. In the meantime, she requested Mr. Brown to anoint her. He did so and also requested prayer from the brethren. God was intervening. During the second examination, the doctor located the cancer. It was in the tube itself. He pulled the cancer and it came off entirely. He also found its roots and was able to eliminate any more growth by searing it. She still has her kidneys, her bladder and the tube. 

Member starts breathing again after being anointed. Mrs. Diane Gilchrist reported, “On the Sabbath of October 31, an amazing event occurred.  A member of the Seattle/Tacoma congregation who has had heart problems was eating at a covered-dish meal after services when suddenly she became faint and lost consciousness. She stopped breathing, lost all color, her lips turned purple, and helpers couldn’t find her vital signs. While Mr. Gilchrist was contacting emergency services, Mr. Graves came over to anoint her and she started breathing. When the paramedics took her to the hospital, the doctors couldn’t find anything wrong in her medical tests. We visited her and she had really good color and was mentally sharp. They kept her three days to run tests and no tests showed anything wrong.  Everyone who saw what had happened knew we had witnessed a miracle.”

 

Prospective member healed. In France, a prospective member (who attended the Feast of Tabernacles this year for the first time in Forges-les-Eaux) recently became seriously ill. He was rushed to the hospital because his potassium level had dropped dangerously low, risking cardiac arrest at any moment. He was released from the hospital. His doctor prescribed a treatment, but his potassium level was not increasing enough. His legs and ankles were very swollen, retaining water. French elder Vincent Lardé explained to him the Bible’s teaching on healing, anointing and anointed cloths. The prospective member accepted the anointed cloth, which the minister sent to him along with the instructional letter. On Wednesday, Mr. Lardé spoke with him over the phone and the prospective member reported that he had been completely healed and that the swelling had disappeared.

 

 

 

For those interested in taking Living University classes next semester, classes will begin on January 19, 2010. Registration for courses is currently underway. Courses being offered include: Biblically Based Literary Research, Acts and the Writings of Paul, Introduction to Biblical Communication II, Old Testament Survey II, Christian Camp Leadership, Christian Leadership, Introduction to Biblical Doctrines, Epistles of Paul II, General Epistles, History of Christianity II, Historical Geography of the Bible Lands, and Archaeology and the New Testament. We plan to give you additional details about these courses in the weeks ahead. A listing of “Spring Semester” courses (Spring in the northern hemisphere), can also be viewed on the Living University website under the link “2010 Spring Schedule.” To make application to Living University and to register for courses, please visit the www.livinguniv.com website. For more information or questions, please contact Dr. Scott Winnail at swinnail@livinguniv.com, or call 704-844-1966, option 7.

 

 

Media

Another great week! We are expecting the week’s final count to reach just under 5,400 responses. This week’s response is a personal best for Mr. Smith. His previous high was from program #310, “End-Time Powers of the Middle East,” which offered The Middle East in Prophecy booklet in January this year, which produced a total of 5,061 replies. The timing of this telecast, just when the new blockbuster movie “2012” hit the movie theaters, and right after Mr. Ames’ program last week, “You Can Understand Prophecy,” was perfect. This week’s telecast was also the 29th time for the Revelation booklet to be offered, and this week’s Revelation booklet-offer set a new record with 5,390 responses. The previous high was set nearly two years ago in February 2007, when program #292, “Armageddon and Beyond,” generated 4,874 responses. —Wayne Pyle

 

 

 

Pay Attention to Prophecy: Jesus told His disciples to stay alert and watch for the fulfillment of specific prophecies that will mark the approaching end of this age (Matthew 24). He also warned in the parable of the foolish virgins that many will be caught napping and unprepared by the surge of events that will precede the return of Jesus Christ to this earth (Matthew 25:1-13). It is both sobering and amazing how God has given His Church a “more sure word of prophecy” (2 Peter 1:19, KJV) so we can warn both the nations of Israel and this world about the prophetic significance of both current and impending world events—it is an awesome responsibility to be a watchman (Ezekiel 3 and 33). Yet, it is also interesting to see how Satan has used misguided individuals to ridicule the Church’s understanding of prophecy by accusing members of suffering from “prediction addiction.” As we see world events building to a prophetic crescendo, let’s make sure that we are building a closer relationship with God and that we are learning to really live by every word of God (Mathew 4:4).

Have a profitable Sabbath,

Douglas S. Winnail

 

 

News and Prophecy—November 19, 2009

 

Britain’s Growing Disbelief. “The east of England may be the most godless region of the UK, according to a ‘belief map’ published by a theology think-tank… Almost half of adults there believe the theory of evolution makes God obsolete, and more than 80% disagree with creationism and intelligent design, which propose that humans were created by God… and that life owes its complexity to divine intervention.” By contrast, Northern Ireland reported the highest rates of belief in Creation in the UK. Yet only one quarter of the population hold this belief (Guardian.co.uk, March 2, 2009). As time passes and media influence increases, a growing number of people believe that “evolution removes the need for a belief in God.” With a growing disbelief in God, is it any wonder God prophesied of the end-time Israelite nations, “…Israel has forgotten his Maker…”? (Hosea 8:14). “…For you have played the harlot against your God” (Hosea 9:1). “…Yes, gray hairs are here and there on him, yet he does not know it… Woe to them, for they have fled from Me! Destruction to them, because they have transgressed against me…” (Hosea 7:9, 13). We are witnessing the sobering fulfillment of God’s prophecies as Israel, and in this case Ephraim (the UK), drifts further from God. These events signal the approaching end of the age and Christ’s return!

 

Welcome to the “Fully Functional” European Union. By the time this News and Prophecy item is published, the EU may have its very own President and Foreign Minister. The EU now maintains the world’s largest economy, rivaled only by the combined economies of the U.S. and China. The EU will soon surpass the half-billion mark in population. The EU’s military force abroad (71,000 troops) is second only to the U.S. and the EU’s troop levels will increase as the Lisbon Treaty is fully implemented. EU nations are also emerging from the global economic crisis at a more rapid rate than other nations. A sobering quote from The Sunday Times of London reads, “Britain may not like it, but under the Lisbon treaty the likely emergence of an EU military force will help to expand Europe’s global ‘footprint’. It gives a prophetic ring to a book written four years ago by Mark Leonard, director of the European Council on Foreign Relations: Why Europe Will Run the 21st Century” (November 15, 2009). For decades, we have predicted the rise of a powerful European super-state, based on Bible prophecy. The last two weeks have seen the reality of these predictions come to pass. The EU is now poised to play an even bigger role on the world stage. It is methodically growing and moving forward—just as God prophesied millennia ago. From the current configuration of 27 EU members, we now must look forward to a future organization of ten kingdoms or groupings in Europe that will make up the final Beast power spoken of in Daniel and Revelation.

 

“The Hunger Century.” The president of the German organization Welthungerhilfe recently suggested the 21st century could become known as the “hunger century.” There are currently 200 million hungry children. Every six seconds a child dies of hunger. This week, the UN World Summit on Food Security met in Rome. Obviously absent were leaders from the world’s richest nations. The Italian prime minister was the only G-8 representative. Oxfam spokesman Frederic Mousseau noted that the world’s wealthiest nations were failing to see the urgency. “At the G-8 in Italy this summer they pledged $20 billion (13.5 billion euros) for agriculture over three years, so they believe they have done enough. They haven’t—and the $20 billion is a mirage,” stated Mousseau (Deutsche Welle, November 16, 2009). As a child dies every few seconds from hunger, leaders of the world’s nations “move on,” trying to improve global economic conditions and trade relationships. Where are the leaders who care enough to change conditions that are hurting people? God foretold that at the time of the end, world leaders would “feed themselves” rather than their flocks (Ezekiel 34:2-11). Thankfully, Christ is going to return and will implement His perfect government of love, mercy, and abundance for this very needy world—a time when starvation will become a thing of the past (Leviticus 26:5-6).—Scott Winnail and Sue Bennett