Back-to-Back-to-Back!
Personal Appearance Campaigns are going back-to-back-to-back right now! Last night we held a one-night event in Phoenix, tonight we are in the Los Angeles metro, and tomorrow night we will be in Sacramento. Trumpet subscribers in each of these cities are receiving a rare chance to hear a strong message, to ask questions, and to hopefully take action.
Many of us have been praying about these campaigns for years now, and recently we have especially prayed that those who are familiar with the teachings of Herbert W. Armstrong and who attended the Worldwide Church of God will come to a campaign. Many of them are subscribers, and attending a campaign is an eye-opening and hopefully life-changing experience. The setting is comfortable, relaxed and positive. You can choose to speak with campaign volunteers or ministers if you like: I encourage you to take advantage of the opportunity, but it’s up to you. The only pressure comes from God working on your mind to step out in faith and act on what He is communicating to you through the Bible and through the lecture.
In Phoenix, 116 attended, including 50 subscribers who are not already members of the Philadelphia Church of God. (The pcg continues the teachings of Mr. Armstrong. These personal appearances are based on and even named after his campaigns.) We’re excited to see pcg members in all these cities, of course, but I get really excited to meet those who aren’t members. Some are going through hard times. Some are fresh with enthusiasm about learning what the Bible really means. Some have read the Trumpet for years but have gone no further. And some have believed and followed the biblical truths Mr. Armstrong taught, but then turned away. What a thrill to see them step out and come to a campaign!
For those who attend these pacs, we also offer follow-up Bible studies two or three weeks later, conducted by our regional directors. Following last night’s event, we had 17 of the nonmembers sign up for the follow-up study, which is tremendous!
I’d also like to share with you some exciting news from three other follow-up studies that also happened last night in Red Deer, Alberta; Memphis, Tennessee; and New York City. In Memphis, we had nine nonmembers attend, along with 22 pcg members. In Red Deer, there were 11 nonmembers in attendance, many of whom seem very interested in becoming members. That is exciting!
The news from New York is exceptional. When we conducted the campaign in Manhattan two weeks ago, we had 73 nonmembers sign up for the follow-up study. Last night, 55 people showed up for the meeting. Of those, 39 signed up for another Bible study next week. They want to dig deeper into God’s Word. Many of them are intensely interested in becoming pcg members. And most of them live in Manhattan, where we have not had a congregation since 2007. We do have a handful of members who live in New York City. But the nearest Church congregation is located in New Jersey.
Please be praying that God would open the door for us to establish a new pcg congregation in Manhattan in the coming months.
God’s Work is growing! These campaigns and Bible studies are producing fruit! And like I alluded to earlier, that success completely depends on prayer. Only God can make these campaigns successful. Only He can inspire those who are suffering, those who need answers, those who are in their first glow of learning the Bible, those who have turned away from Him and are hesitantly thinking about turning back—to come to these campaigns. And He is doing so! So thank you to pcg members and nonmembers who are earnestly praying for the details of these campaigns, especially the crucial detail of who comes. And thank you especially to all of you who have stepped out, perhaps when it was hard to do so, and have come. Thank you for listening to the lectures about God’s prophecies, His correction, His way of life, His promises. Thank you for coming up and introducing yourself. I ask all of you to please continue to pray for these campaigns—and I ask those of you who have received or will receive an invitation, please step out and come!