Dear Members and Friends,
Have we ever been in a situation in our lifetime when virtually the whole world is concerned about one nation, specifically one man, as we are experiencing now? Not a day goes by since the current President of the United States has been elected into office that we don’t see some kind of grave anxiety, based on the reactions all over the world, and the year has just started.
All we need to do is turn on the news or the home page of our browsers on our computers. When it comes to the latest approval rate, as of February 17, 2017, President Trump has reached his all-time low. According to theweek.com, his approval rating dropped to only 38 percent.
The article points out, “President Trump’s approval rating has sunk to its lowest level since his inauguration, with just 38 percent of Americans approving of his job as president, Gallup reports. Trump is now 23 points below the historical average for new presidents in mid-February, who are typically approved of by 61 percent of voters. He is also 13 points below the lowest mid-February approval rating for any other president in modern polling history, which was Bill Clinton with 51 percent. For context: Former President Barack Obama’s lowest approval rating in eight years as president was 38 percent, a drop that followed instances such as the 2011 debt ceiling negotiations and downgrading of the U.S. credit rating, or in September 2014, just before the Islamic State released videos of U.S. journalists being beheaded. Trump’s highest approval rating since taking office was 46 percent, on his fourth and fifth day in office. It’s all been downhill from there; by Friday, 56 percent of Americans disapproved of the job Trump was doing in office. Gallup’s poll reaches 1,500 adults across the nation by telephone, with a margin of error of plus or minus 3 points.”
This number might drop even further. Right now, rejection of the White House is the viewpoint of a vast majority of the people of this nation.
Overall, this nation is not happy! Talks about impeaching Donald Trump have already come up, only weeks after he was elected into office, in addition to his highly controversial actions which have caused outrage across the world. People across the globe are not very happy! And this is only the beginning!
Can we see and do we believe how prophecy is unfolding before our eyes? Do we really believe that we have a lot of time left? Is America really going to become great again? We should know the answers to these questions from the pages of the Bible.
As more things come to light, we need to have our head on straight and focus on what is really important. But if we are not careful, we might be challenged getting ourselves caught up in all the propaganda hype, especially among people who love to debate political matters. Even though we should understand what is going on in the world right now, we might still give in to distractions. There is much in the world which could divert our thinking, by focusing on things that the world has to offer, and also by being caught up and sidetracked with political viewpoints, prophetic speculation and assumption. We should not allow ourselves to be deceived with all the propaganda, politics and conspiracy theories floating around the Internet and media sources. God tells us not to speak of a “conspiracy” concerning “all that this people calls a conspiracy” (Isaiah 8:12). Not every piece of “news” is “fake news,” only because somebody says so, while not every piece of “news” is based on facts. These are distractions which can consume our thinking. If we are not careful, they can lead us down a wrong path.
Understand who the author of confusion is; who the deceiver is; who the ruler of this world is (John 12:31; 2 Corinthians 4:4; Revelation 12:9)! Understand what our commission is and what our purpose is, for God has called us for a purpose! Jesus told us: “You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit, and that your fruit should remain…” (John 15:16; also compare Mark 16:15-16; Romans 8:28; 1 Corinthians 1:27-31). The weekly Updates that we publish are for our benefit. They report the real news—the news that we need to concentrate on as we prepare ourselves for what is happening now and what is to come in the near future, based on the correct understanding of BIBLICAL PROPHECY. This is how we bear fruit and make sure that our fruit remains—by watching what is going on and continuing to do so, while also remaining faithful and obedient to God’s laws.
Look at what last year has brought and the years before that, leading up to now. Look how quickly things have changed in America and how the whole world is being affected. Look how things have changed in Europe, especially last year with the whole migrant situation; and we will see an escalation of things in the near future. What can we expect for the modern descendants of the House of Israel, which the Bible talks about, especially the United Kingdom (Ephraim), the United States of America (Manasseh) and the State of Israel (Judah)? Our latest booklet, The Fall and Rise of the Jewish People, discusses at great length the history and future of the House of Judah.
What does the Bible prophesy? Those who are faithful in the Church of God know and proclaim the answer to this question. We have literature and messages on that, including two of our many booklets, The Great Tribulation and Day of the LORD and the Fall and Rise of Britain and America, which discuss the future of America and other English-speaking nations and the responsibility that God has given His end-time Church. Matthew 24:22 commands us to watch, and that is exactly what we should be doing—watching and also warning of what is to come.
So are we prepared? Are we ready? Or are we giving in to distractions? We should not take lightly what is happening presently. Rather, we need to be on guard. People in the world and “their” beliefs can easily distract us, when we give in to consider and even embrace what they believe, while the Bible proves them wrong. Satan is very clever and he will try everything he can to draw us away from the Truth. Remember, what is not of God, is of Satan.
Holidays can be a distraction, for many of them are ungodly. Oftentimes, man has twisted the true meaning behind them by making them appear “innocent fun”; or they might appear “Christian,” while they have no relevance with what the Bible teaches. Instead, man has replaced God’s Holy Days with man’s holidays by giving in to pagan worship, which God prohibits. And He tells us not to worship Him in the way the pagans worshipped their gods, by adopting pagan customs and incorporating them in our worship (Deuteronomy 12:30-31).
There are many other distractions that could affect us in different ways: our jobs, social media like Facebook and the Internet, culture, relationships, technology, entertainment, material things, money, or our conscience. This is not to say that all of that is bad, but we need to have a proper approach and balance as to how we act and react. There is a lot of confusion out there, and we need to understand what the Bible is saying, making sure that we do not drift away from what is vital.
Indeed, there are many things which could affect our focus. God wants us to be ready; He wants us to be prepared; and He wants us to conquer our weaknesses and overcome the distractions that Satan throws at us. We know that Satan will tempt us in every way possible, but we also know that we can overcome every obstacle which faces us, as with God’s help, there is nothing too difficult for us to handle.
Take it personally. God has called us for a reason. He has a purpose for us NOW. And we need to understand that we could possibly delay the return of Christ if we are not faithful in doing the Work and if we are negligent in overcoming our sins and transgressions (2 Peter 3:4-9; 14-18).
An interesting year is ahead of us, and we are indeed getting closer to Christ’s return. Prophecy shows us that that Day cannot be that far away. We are enclosing for our American subscribers a free copy of our new booklet, The Fall and Rise of the Jewish People, which discusses many end-time prophecies. (Our subscribers in other parts of the world will receive their free copy with a separate mailing). Fulfillment of prophecy should encourage us to focus on the really important things in this world and in our lives.
We will be tried and tested more and more to see how strong we are in the faith. Satan knows where we are vulnerable, which is why we need to remain vigilant at all times. God knows—and we should know, too—that we can and will succeed IF we obey Him.
In God’s service and with brotherly love,
Michael Link
