Sabbath 2/3/36/120                                                                                                      

Dear Friends

This week we had a prayer request for the people of Western Uganda damaged by floods and without adequate supplies.  Within 24 hours the people from Brazil has sent us a message in Portuguese cc Eric Stephenson the Portuguese coordinator based in Uganda.  In spite of their own problems they were able to scrape together enough support to get some assistance to them and publication assistance for their people to be assisted with their Bible studies for Pentecost next week. 

In a previous emergency the South Sudan sent another amount of funds to help the Congo refugees.

We are encouraged by these shows of devotion to each other that are made with scant resources.

We are slowly progressing in growth and are strengthening from area to area.  It is important that we do not lose sight of the objective and that we proceed to develop the faith and spread it throughout the world.

I was amused by a conversation with Russell this week when he told me about the US Justice that was set up by the “liberals” among the senators that stopped him from being appointed to the Supreme Court because of his views on abortion and other matters.  He then wrote a book called “Slouching towards Sodom.”  I would have thought the title “Galloping towards Gomorrah” might have been more appropriate given the behaviour over recent years.

As things get worse we will be more dependent on each other and examples of the provision of assistance no matter how little are important.  People are now looking at themselves as being underprivileged in Western nations when they simply can’t afford everything and have to make choices as to what they will have to do without and prioritise their expenditure as we did in the past. In the age of those of the depression and WWII years children had to do without shoes in many nations and areas.  Many could only afford one good dress.  However, they did not often consider themselves the underprivileged.  Now people earning $100,000 think they are stressed and a struggling class because they can’t have everything now and have to make decisions.  There are those without jobs that do not consider they are underprivileged and are merely concerned to get employment so they can contribute by tithing to the work of God.

John F Kennedy said: “Ask not what your country can do for you. Rather ask what you can do for your country.”  This important observation reflected on what our priorities are and should be.  Giving is becoming a rarer thing.  Those who are Middle and Upper Middle Class and even Upper Class are seeing themselves in a different light and are ignoring their obligations to God and their fellow man.  That is part of the decline of our civilisation.  Sects fight and kill one another arguing over their bizarre interpretations of the Scriptures and the Koran.  Sunni kill Shia over trivialities and because they have no concept of democracy.  Trinitarians are prepared to kill anyone over their perceived right to world domination. The US and NATO has become a military monster ruling by induced chaos and propaganda. Its banking system rules from behind the scenes and private property and human rights are being removed.

Let us pray that God will send the witnesses soon and then the Messiah will follow immediately thereafter.

Prepare for the Feast next week and look again at the importance of the Omer Count and also look at the paper The Ascents of Moses (No. 070).

Wade Cox
Coordinator General