Dear Brethren and Co-Workers,
Mr. and Mrs. Weston just returned from an extensive trip to visit brethren in the northwestern United States and western Canada. He reports on their travels in the upcoming September-October Tomorrow’s World magazine, in his Personal titled “The Ride Is Almost Over.” Be sure to read it when it becomes available.
Our Lord Jesus Christ prophesied that the “gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come” (Matthew 24:14). We thank God that this stirring message is now going forth in power. We also know that the two witnesses will continue that mission for 42 months during the Great Tribulation and Day of the Lord (Revelation 11:3-13). But preceding their ministry, Christ gave the Great Commission to His servants (Mark 16:15), and it continues to this day.
In the last Co-worker letter, Mr. Gerald Weston wrote,
We are working on an exciting new “open door” which I hope to be able to announce next month. I do not want to say more at this time since negotiations don’t always turn out as you would like, but if this comes through, I think you will be as excited as I am. Although I cannot say more, please pray that God will either open this door wide, or make it plain to us that He has closed it.
God has heard our prayers for this open door. About 13 percent of the U.S. population are native Spanish speakers. “And with another nearly 12 million bilingual Spanish speakers, the U.S. is the second largest Spanish-speaking country in the world, ahead of Spain itself” (“Why Spanish speakers in US are getting into trouble,” BBC, May 22, 2018). We are pleased to announce that we have been approved to air our popular Spanish-language telecast, El Mundo de Mañana, over UniMás, a national television network. Mr. Weston explains, “This network covers 18 of the top Hispanic markets in the United States, 8.6 million Hispanic TV households, and reaches 57.6 percent of total Hispanic households in the U.S. All of this looks good on paper, but experience tells us that what is on paper does not always play out in reality. Some doors are open and some are trapdoors, so please pray that this will be the former.”
The telecast began airing Sunday, July 14, at 6:00 a.m. Eastern Time. UniMás airs in many of our major cities: Los Angeles, San Francisco, Sacramento, Fresno-Visalia, and Bakersfield, California; New York, New York; Miami, Florida; Houston, Dallas, San Antonio, and Austin, Texas; Chicago, Illinois; Phoenix and Tucson, Arizona; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; Salt Lake City, Utah; Raleigh-Durham, North Carolina; and Cleveland-Akron, Ohio.
Considering the early broadcast hour, we do not expect a high response. Call centers in the United States are not well equipped to handle Spanish telecast responses, but the Spanish-language team at our Charlotte Headquarters has arranged for Church volunteers to answer such phone requests. If you are not already aware, we also produce a bi-monthly El Mundo de Mañana magazine, as well as 26 booklets in Spanish and 19 in Portuguese. Please pray that the new open door will produce good fruit.
We are also thankful that our German-language website WeltVonMorgen.org is attracting more visitors. Mr. Adrian Kaefer reported that the first six months of 2019 produced an increase of 31.6 percent in unique visitors to the website. Furthermore, requests for German-language booklets increased by 29.5 percent.
The telecast is also presented in other languages (some with subtitles): French, German, Dutch, and Russian.
This past weekend, several ministers gave Tomorrow’s World presentations (TWPs) in four U.S. cities as well as in Chester, UK, and Regina in Canada. By the time you read this, TWPs will also have been given in Cape Town and Durban, South Africa; Yorkshire and Cook in the UK; Invercargill, New Zealand; and Rahway, New Jersey. Jesus stated, “For assuredly, I say to you, you will not have gone through the cities of Israel before the Son of Man comes” (Matthew 10:23). We are trying our best through these initiatives to preach the Gospel to the world. The schedule for future TWPs is listed on the home page of our website, TomorrowsWorld.org.
In the TWPs I have personally given this year, I warn our audience that America’s sins will bring judgment on the nation. Of course, this applies to all nations that rebel against God. One of our national sins is that of covetous greed. Colossians 3:5 tells us that covetousness “is idolatry.” Many in the Western world seek power, position, and material possessions above everything else. The penalty they will incur is further intensified by ingratitude for the awesome blessings God has given our nations. The prophet Malachi states, “You are cursed with a curse, for you have robbed Me, even this whole nation” (Malachi 3:9). The people will ask, “In what way have we robbed You?” God answers, “In tithes and offerings” (v. 8). A tithe is a tenth of one’s “increase” or income. Even the poor who have no increase need to give offerings. Jesus commended the widow who gave two mites: “Truly I say to you that this poor widow has put in more than all; for all these out of their abundance have put in offerings for God, but she out of her poverty put in all the livelihood that she had” (Luke 21:3-4).
We are thankful for the strong economy the United States is currently experiencing, but there are dangerous vulnerabilities. America was once the world’s most prosperous creditor nation, but has been the world’s greatest debtor nation for over thirty years and continues to add to its trillions of dollars in debt. National Public Radio warns,
The U.S. government’s public debt is now more than $22 trillion—the highest it has ever been. The Treasury Department data comes as tax revenue has fallen and federal spending continues to rise….
Despite being in the second-longest economic expansion since the post–World War II boom, the U.S. is projected to rack up annual deficits and incur national debt at rates not seen since the 1940s, according to the Congressional Budget Office….
“Other than the period immediately after World War II, the only other time the average deficit has been so large over so many years was after the 2007–2009 recession,” the CBO said last month (“U.S. National Debt Hits Record $22 Trillion,” February 13, 2019).
Will this trend continue? Associated Press featured this headline on July 3, 2019: “US trade deficit rises to 5-month high of $55.5B in May.” Their report details the deficit:
The U.S. trade deficit rose to a five-month high in May as the politically sensitive imbalances with China and Mexico widened.
The Commerce Department said Wednesday that the gap between the goods and services the U.S. sells and what it buys from foreign countries [that is, the deficit] rose 8.4% to $55.5 billion in May, the highest since December.
Unless this nation turns to God, He will judge it and other Western nations for their depravity, sinfulness, oppression, greed, lust, and idolatry. We need to be ready for such a national financial downturn. Just last week, “Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin informed congressional leaders on Friday that the government could run out of money in early September, pleading with lawmakers to reach a deal to raise the government’s borrowing limit before their August recess or risk a potentially catastrophic default” (“Government Could Breach Debt Ceiling in September, Mnuchin Warns,” The New York Times, July 12, 2019).
Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell said that “the global economy could suffer ‘unthinkable’ damage if the White House and Congress fail to raise the federal debt limit” (“Fed chairman warns of ‘unthinkable’ harm if debt ceiling isn’t raised,” The Hill, July 11, 2019).
Will our nation heed the warnings of a “potentially catastrophic default” and “unthinkable” damage? We thank Almighty God that in spite of carnal, conflicting political groups ignoring His plain laws, He will guide His Work and support it until the time of judgment on our Western nations. As Mr. Weston wrote in the current Tomorrow’s World magazine, “Our world is going morally and financially bankrupt ‘gradually’—the ‘suddenly’ will soon follow” (“Then Comes Sudden Destruction,” July-August 2019).
Brethren and co-workers, let’s stay sober, alert, prayerful, and watchful (Luke 21:36). We have a great mission to accomplish, and God gives us the encouragement and power to work effectively (Zechariah 4:6). Let’s continue to push forward as faithful servants of our Lord, knowing that He has promised, “I am with you always, even to the end of the age” (Matthew 28:20) and “I will never leave you nor forsake you” (Hebrews 13:5).
In Christian love,
Richard F. Ames