I had an interesting conversation with two women last week after church. They had only recently started attending the Worldwide Church of God and have been baptized for about one year. They were expressing their gratitude for the changes in our fellowship.
In both cases, they had lived in a divided home. Family ties had been severed. Family reunions and gatherings were met with remarks about paganism. But today their families have been healed because the Worldwide Church of God, and their husbands, had come to see the error of our past teachings and the veracity of the orthodox Christian church. Today, they worship together, each and every Sunday, for the first time in more than 25 years. And for the first time in as many years, the family will come together and celebrate the Incarnation of our Lord and Savior.
That may not be your experience in the Worldwide Church of God, but for many of us the traditions of the WCG separated us from family relationships. Christmas 1960 was the last time I assembled with my aunts, uncles, cousins and grandparents in place.
Last year, I was able, for the first time in years, to celebrate Christmas with my father. He flew to New York City and attended our candlelight Christmas Eve service. To say the least, it was a tear-filled reunion, that encouraged, not just us, but the entire congregation. The gospel is the ministry of reconciliation, not the ministry of separating.
Craig Bacheller
Pastor
Queens, New York
How thankful I am to our Father for your series of articles that appeared in The Worldwide News.
These have been topics of great misunderstanding, and he has inspired you to clarify them using easy to digest language. To me this also shows how tenderly he loves us.
Jan Miller
Wilmington, Delaware
God has taught me so much from your articles back to the beginning of the year. My heartfelt thanks to our Creator and Lord. This sinner is exceedingly joyful.
Raymond Lequin Sr.
Florence, Massachusetts
Thanks for the November issue on evangelism.
I particularly appreciated the article titled "Why Would Anyone Want to Be a Christian?" by Michael Morrison. Things got even better when I read "The Empty Tomb: Reasons to Believe" by Neil Earle.
Andrew Diprose
Rome, Italy
Copyright © Worldwide Church of God, 2001