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the grapevine
(Issue 137; July 15, 2002.)

       The news and views from Family members published in the Grapevine do not necessarily reflect WS policy. Suggested reading age for this publication is 14 years and up. Selected portions may be read by or with those younger at parents' or shepherds' discretion. All Family members in China use pen names for their contributions to the Grapevine. The Grapevine, P.O. Box 168751, Irving, Texas, USA - 75016-8751 e-mail: gv@wsfamily.com Copyright © 2002 by The Family

Table of contents:
       CESNUR Conference 2002       2
       Activated and our tools       9
       Happenings/Professional ad       11
       News from Activated desks       12
       CD offer/help wanted       13
       Home schooling corner       14
       Lemon made into lemonade       16
       Prayer list       17

Second quarter Activated subscription shiners!
       1st place: IA27, Elkanah and Faith (India)
       with 267 subscriptions out!

       2nd place: IA42, Bangalore Service Home (India)
       with 242 subscriptions out!

       3rd place: IA40, Rose Garden Home (India)
       with 161 subscriptions out!

       4th place: RO001, ROPPC (Romania)
       with 152 subscriptions out!

news: MEXICO national retreat!
By Pedro (CO), Mexico
       Please pray for the first national retreat that will take place in Mexico in September 2002. We believe this will be a milestone in the growth of the work, a gathering for friends we've been ministering to for years in different parts of the country, as well as new ones the Lord has put in our path more recently. All of us on the CGO board are pretty sold on the positive effects of retreats, so we'd appreciate prayer that His sheep will come since for some this is a new concept. We're inviting brethren from Central America as well, in hopes that this will also unite us as an area in heart, mind, and vision!
       To see pictures of the retreat location and advertisement (in Spanish), check out the MO site at:

ponder

       It isn't the number of people employed in a business that makes it successful, it's the number working.

backtracking
       Our apologies to those board members whose pictures we didn't have space to print in recent Grapevine issues. Due to space constraints, we were only able to print a limited number of pictures of our terrific board members from each board area that has sent in photos so far, but the others can be viewed on the MO site, under board members! Be sure to check it out. Here's the link:
       http://www.familymembers.com/artphotos/thms.php?cat_id=101

post-its

More CVC web site news: Online for you--the CVC CDs!
       Your CVC cyber school is growing! Now available to you at the CVC Web site are the CVC 2000 CDs: the Pubs CD and the Books CD. Every CVC course and all you need to know to earn CVC certificates is there waiting for you--including all of the CM/FM reading material found on the CDs. Just point, click, and up pops your reading item. Look and see! It's simple!
       Open http://www.cvcollege.com/ and then click on Student Center. Password? The same password you use to enter the MO site. Presto! You're in and can start your studies if you haven't already.
       Currently the CVC 2000 CDs are posted,which arethe same CVC CDs that were sent to the Homes (with a few minor changes). But the wonderful news for all CVC students is that now that it is online, we can begin adding updated material to it, DV. Please keep this project in your prayers. We're claiming the power of the keys for the wisdom and skill needed to get the job done.

Activate the Power!
--Highlights from Brazil's 7th National Retreat
By Tommy (of Joanie), Brazil

[Box]

Welcome to a Spiritual Banquet!
       The peaceful tourist town of São Lourenço in the state of Minas Gerais will be rocking and reeling once again to the music and message of the Family on this long holiday weekend. More than 850 participants from all over Brazil and South America will gather for four days of praise, fellowship, study, special speakers, and lots of fun. It will be the largest event of its kind in the history of the Family.
       Entitled “Activate the Power,” the main goal of the gathering is to help the participants establish a stronger and more intimate personal contact with the Lord, thus having greater power to serve Him, feed their sheep and rise above their daily battles. This retreat has all the earmarks of a true spiritual banquet!
[End of box]

       Once again, the Lord surpassed all our expectations at the national retreat for Active members that was held over a four-day weekend in late May and early June. Over 850 Family members (an increase of over 50% from last year) from all over Brazil and seven other countries participated in one of the most electrifying events ever! We filled up a total of four hotels in the small resort city of São Lourenço. The Lord dramatically revealed His power through the keys of the Kingdom on the last day at a healing prayer session where dozens received healing--everything from the dissolving of malignant tumors to the crippled walking--right before our eyes!
       It was a blessing to have Zac and Lucero with us as special guest speakers, as they were able to not only share the incredible healing testimonies they've been experiencing in Colombia, but they were able to lead us in the above-mentioned powerful prayer meeting where the keys were employed with authority, resulting in many healings and deliverances! None of us will ever be the same! We are now compiling the testimonies of those healed to better communicate the true dimension of what happened here. To sum it up, we would call it a literal “contact with the power!”
       “To be a generator of the power of God, you must learn to focus on the power! You must focus only on the power and not on the obstacles or hindrances in the way.” As Mama mentioned in the introductory paragraph of “Focus on the Power” (GN 971, ML #3374): “the dynamics of the spirit are changing, and He has said we're going to start feeling the effects immediately.”
       I don't think many of us had previously witnessed an outpouring of the Spirit in this proportion before with literally dozens of miracles of healing and deliverance in a large public meeting (over 700 present), so it's all quite new and we are still processing what happened on that Sunday morning of June 2nd!
       Those who were present at this Family “Pentecost” will be marked for life! All the Letters on the keys and how we are to call on them and use them came to life. There is just something about “seeing” that makes a believer out of you. The miraculous healings that took place were proof that we have indeed entered a whole new era, as was prophesied last year: “Welcome to the start of a new era! Welcome to the beginning of the greatest period in history! That's right! I'm welcoming you, My disciples and friends to partake in the most important thing happening at this time in the world!”

Major breakthroughs
*       An outpouring of healings through the use of the keys of the Kingdom and Zac and Lucero's visit.
*       The organizing of “prayer warrior” intercessory teams throughout Brazil well before the retreat, in anticipation of major battles and the ensuing victories.
*       The expanding of the staff from 25 to 40 Family members, both live-in and Active, to accommodate growth of the event.
*       The organizing of participants into four different groups according to spiritual maturity and Word knowledge: beginners (babes), intermediates (discipleship), and advanced (leadership). We also had our first youth group of young people from all over Brazil (ages 15 to 21). All participants received teaching according to their needs, helping them get an overall vision for training and future leadership responsibilities.

Intercessory prayer makes the difference!
       Our experience from previous years of national retreats has turned us into believers that the real organization and battle is in the spirit; the Enemy needs to be defeated in prayer well before he can try to get through any breaches. In such mega-events with nearly 1,000 participants, it is difficult to keep tight security in the physical, so the security needs to be established in the spirit beforehand--action through prayer. We sent out specific prayer requests to the ABMs regularly for everything from health, protection, music, equipment, class prep, production, to relations with the hotels.

Expansion of retreat staff
       With growing responsibilities comes the need for a bigger staff. Thank the Lord for everyone's enthusiasm to pitch in and help, as this event has truly become a team effort. What started out as an informal event among a few of us who work in follow-up has reached mega-proportions. Each year we acquire a bit more experience from our mistakes as well as successes, so keeping the same basic team together through the years has its advantages, as you can pass on tips to the new members of our ever-growing team.
       This year things went smoother than ever, even though there were tons of things that could've gone wrong! We never fail to marvel when we see the Lord take care of the details that either we overlooked or simply didn't see. Getting organized into bigger teams with experienced department heads was important, but what really made the difference this year was all the prayer power that was generated at the committee meetings, which later spread to the Family who would be attending through prayer meetings led by the various VSs around the country. Juan and Cristina, in charge of the monumental job of retreat finances, were amazed at how smoothly the payments went. It was only Jesus! But for sure, the added prayer power is what made the difference!

Organization of groups according to spiritual maturity
       It had become increasingly difficult to please everyone at the national retreats, with new people coming every year, needing to be grounded in the basics. Our older Active members were willing to make the sacrifice to cover familiar territory in the classes, but it was becoming a bit repetitive as the material covered for such a homogeneous crowd needed to be geared to the GP/DFO level. We also noticed that classes for over 200 people were becoming increasingly impersonal, as interaction becomes limited, if not impossible, under such mega-circumstances.

Healing session
       The Lord led us this year to use “Activate the Power” as the main theme of the retreat. Since Zac and Lucero have quite a healing ministry already rolling in Colombia, dear Mark CO suggested we invite them to share the vision for healing (both physical and spiritual) through the power of the keys, and possibly open the floor for those who need healing.
       Since we hadn't worked directly with these precious brethren, we communicated with them ahead of time about their class slots and the Lord showed us that we should give them two classes where they could share about the power of the keys, their healing ministry, and how the Lord led them in the pioneering of their ministry. Lucero had already been healed from lupus and endometriosis, and Zac had been healed of asthma, so their faith had been strengthened through their personal healings. They also documented many of the miracles that happened in Colombia through their ministry, impressive miracles of healing of AIDS, endometriosis, hemophilia, brain tumors, cancer, paralysis, anorexia, chronic back ailments, emotional and spiritual bondages and much more.
       The literally dozens of healings they've seen the Lord do were well documented and thus very strengthening for anyone seeking a miracle. These testimonies were shared with two of the groups during the classes that were given the day before the final plenary prayer session, and again before inviting the sick for prayer at the plenary session on the last day. These faith-building testimonies were proof that “God is still on the throne” and the keys are fully operative. This put the doorknob at a reachable level for all and there were literally dozens of miracles that happened before everyone's eyes as a result. (More healing testimonies coming soon!)

Group breakdown
       This year, the Lord led us to divide the 850 participants into four groups, according to their maturity and Word knowledge. After attending a general praise and prayer meeting with all 750 of us in the mornings (the 100 children had separate care with our precious CC team and a handful of hotel monitors), the different groups gathered after lunch in smaller groups of 150-200.

Group #1: Beginners/Babes/Newcomers
       We called them the “Activated Group”--so as to avoid the greenhorn connotation of “beginners” status). These are newcomers who were attending their first National Retreat and/or are very new to the Family and needed a basic understanding of the milk of the Word and a simpler version of Family history, based on pubs that are more appropriate for them.
       About 120 new members (or about 15% of the total of this year's 750 adult participants) attended the Activated Group where they were given basic classes, giving us a pretty clear idea of our current “church growth rate” here in Brazil. (Although our retreat total continues to grow at the same 45-50% rate since 1996, this doesn't reflect the actual Active member growth, which is better reflected in the 15-20% new convert statistic. This national retreat growth is also due to a greater CM/FM participation with every passing year. In the first year of the national retreats--1996--the Active member/CM/FM member ratio was about one to five, but has since progressively diminished to approximately one to 1.5. At this last national retreat, there were about 475 AMs and 375 CM/FMs.)

Group #2: Intermediates (Discipleship)
       This group consisted of those who have already known the Family for a while and are growing. At this year's retreat, this group made up another 35% of the adults who attended (approximately 150). They needed a basic review of their spiritual commitments to grow and become good disciples, as well as to know about the deeper truths of the New Wine and some of the more controversial side of the Family and the belief that Dad is the prophet of the End and Maria and Peter are our anointed leaders, etc.

Group #3: Leadership (Advanced)
       This group includes those who have been with us for years and may even have a place of leadership and are strong supporters of the local work. Some of them may already be leading their own Bible studies or Activated groups under CM or FM supervision. These are generally tithers, mature enough to not be taken aback by the realities of persecution, firm in their convictions about Dad, Mama, Peter, and the Family, and our doctrines. Each year this group grows in number, and this year, about 20% of the attendees were included in this leadership level.

Group #4: Youth (includes all three of the above categories: beginner, intermediate, and advanced)
       The Lord showed us to give special focus to the youth who attended this year, ages 15-21, and even have a “side retreat” for them with many of the same classes as the adults, but in a more youth-oriented format and environment. This “chemistry” was incredibly effective. This group totaled about 150. The vision for this group was to help them develop an identity and promote the Contato youth ministry throughout Brazil. The classes could be more direct and even included more of a direct “discipleship message.” One goal was for the young people attending to get the vision to open Activated groups in their home cities.

Famous Brazilian TV personality attends retreat
Suzana Alves, a.k.a. Tiazinha, was at the retreat and gave her personal testimony and signed up for Contato right there at the stand. Having someone nationally famous like her at the retreat was an eye-opener, to say the least. She participated in the “youth group” part of the retreat and loved it! She rocked out just like one of us and fit right in! She was interviewed by local newspapers and TV, where she explained why she was there at our retreat and promoted the Family and Contato!

2002 National Retreat
By Ana Céu, Heavenhome, Brazil
       Cassia and Christine are sisters who went to the 2002 Brazil national retreat. Both are new sheep, especially Cassia, who is only 18 and didn't know much about the Family. So taking Cassia to the retreat was a test that Christine was using to see if her sister would like the Family. On the trip there, we witnessed to her and she confessed that she was looking for something different in her life and wanted real satisfaction and peace in her heart. She prayed to receive the Lord. Until then, she had been doing drugs and hanging out with a rough gang of people. So the first day the Devil really attacked her and her sister with doubts and thoughts of leaving the retreat. I had to practically glue myself to them the whole time--praying and explaining things and answering their questions to make sure they were getting the point of the meetings. But it was worth it! I was praying so hard that the Lord would break through in the spirit with them, and the second afternoon, they were delivered! They didn't seem like the same people! They said that they felt like the Lord had delivered them and they started wholeheartedly getting into the retreat. They came home completely transformed!
       One week after Cassia got home, her mother told us that the retreat had completely transformed her daughter, and that it was the answer for her search for the love of Jesus. She said she is a new person!
       Along with Christine, Cassia, and their friend Alessandra, there are 10 more people who started studying the pre-discipleship class with us the week after the retreat. The whole group is really on fire! We've never had such an on-fire group as this after a retreat!

Testimonies from a few Active members
By Giuliana (22, Active member)
       This was my first retreat. The nicest thing about the retreat was that it gave me four days of complete peace. I'm used to the busy schedule of São Paulo and the day-to-day running here and there, and it was so relaxing to be with so many people from the Family in such a tranquil atmosphere. I felt like I was in prayer all day long. At night when I would go to sleep I didn't feel like I needed to say a big cleansing prayer like I usually do; I had been constantly in prayer throughout the day. Even though I slept few hours, as there was so much going on, I felt much more rested than the days when I sleep in until noon.
       The atmosphere was so loving. Everybody you would pass by in the hallway or elevator would look into your eyes and say “I love you!”--People you'd never met before! And the morning that we had the big healing session, there was so much faith in the atmosphere; it was amazing. I connected with so many people in the spirit. There were people here who I know from the other Bible class groups in São Paulo, who were crying and praying for healing for themselves or loved ones, and I felt so moved for each of them. I wasn't asking for anything for myself, just pouring out my heart in the spirit for them.
       I liked the classes, both the young people ones and the leadership one that I attended. Of course, there was tons of inspiration and fun, but the actual meat of the classes was very good. I returned home with a new challenge: to start witnessing to my friends more. The idea of witnessing sounds great to me, but when I actually witness I get shy and I'm afraid of being called a crente (derogatory term for fanatical evangelicals). But there was such an emphasis on witnessing at the retreat that I realized I needed to break out of those fears. So Lord helping me, I'm going to start from now on.

By Raquel (16, Active member)
       The retreat was wonderful. It touched my life in an incredible way! It was total contact with the power of God and the Holy Spirit. One thing that has always been difficult for me has been to hear the Lord's voice speaking to me personally, but at the retreat I actually heard Him right there by my side. I didn't even have to ask the Lord for the gift of prophecy or for faith to hear Him speak, I just started hearing His voice and I heard it the whole time we were there--almost constantly.
       During the inspirations, I would praise the Lord with my eyes closed and I would actually hear Him saying the sweetest things to me. It was incredible; the things He said lifted me to Heaven and I didn't come back down.--I still haven't come back down!
       The Lord used many people to talk to me. Every word that someone would say, I could feel it was the Lord speaking through them to me. One experience that I had was during a praise session we had, when the Lord told me very clearly, “I'm going to send you a hug directly from Me. Someone will come and hug you and it will be Me hugging you.” Right then a friend of mine came and gave me a hug, but it was so different. He hugged me so tight and so special, I just said, “Wow! Thank You, Lord!”
       Something interesting happened during one of the classes: I've been going through a time of decision making because I'm finishing high school now and I've been thinking about maybe studying medicine at the end of the year. The Lord had revealed to me before that it was His will for me to try medicine, but I've always wanted to be a missionary, especially since I've known the Family. But for some reason the Lord never led me in that way. He always said that He would use me a lot more if I took medicine than if I joined the Family. So I was really in conflict between wanting to forsake all and be a missionary or taking a course in medicine. Then during Chris' class (young people), he was talking about discipleship and the will of God, and without knowing anything about my situation, he said, “Sometimes you may want to be a missionary, but God may ask you to become a doctor, for example, knowing that you will be more useful to His work that way.” That was the exact answer that I needed from the Lord. It was so strong; I started crying and crying.
       I have a totally new vision for my life. Everything I do I want to do in service to the Lord. I now understand the sacrifice He made for me when He died, so I want to pay it back for the rest of my life. I know I never will be able to, but I want to do my best to try. I want to do anything I can to change the world and the people around me!
       During the healing session on Sunday morning, I had tons of things to pray for because my family has a lot of health problems. The Lord laid on my heart to pray for other people instead of myself and my family, so I went around the whole room laying hands on people and praying in tongues for each one of them, and I started feeling so close to each person. The Lord put so much love in my heart. Now we really are a Family!

By Carol (20, Active member)
       The retreat was wonderful! While there, I experienced no desire to come back to the world. I'd wake up in the morning and the first thing I'd hear was the band playing those wonderful Family songs and praising the Lord. In São Paulo to wake up in the spirit is difficult. I usually read a Daily Might over breakfast and say a quick prayer and go off to my job in a hurry. So to wake up totally in the spirit by hearing those songs from the meeting hall full blast totally lifted me into the spiritual plane. There is just no way you could have a bad day!
       I realized that I need to learn to witness more. I'm very shy when it comes to witnessing. A lot of times when I'm on the metro I'll see someone who looks real sad or is crying and I feel very burdened to talk to them, but I can't take the initial step. I end up just praying for the person. Now I feel it's a challenge that I need to have in my life, and with the Lord's help I'll start to lose my shyness and my fear of talking to people about the Lord.
       One thing that was incredible was on the last day during the healing session. Zacarias started saying, “If you are feeling right now that your hands are getting hot and tingling, and you're feeling a warm sensation sweeping over your whole body, it's the Holy Spirit's power in you.” At that moment I was feeling exactly what he was describing! I've never in my life experienced the Holy Spirit so close to me, so close that it was totally inside of me. There is no way to leave there without being totally changed.
       I can't wait until next year's retreat!

What the Activated subscribers say…
       I want you to know that I really study the Activated magazines! I absorb them, literally speaking! The joy I find through the life-giving words contained in them, I try to share with others, so that indeed my joy will be full. Often I pray for that kind person who paid my subscription fee. Even though you, dear one, don't have a name in my prayers, I know that Jesus hears my prayers. I'm persuaded that in His good time He will reward your efforts. I pray He'll pour His blessings upon you to overflowing!
       --B. R., Romania

       I have read a lot and heard about the happenings and the power of Christ though your Activated magazine. I would like to know more. Though I come from a Hindu background I do know about Christ because I studied in a Seventh-day Adventist school. I believe in Jesus, because when my dad was not well I used to go with my sister to Infant Jesus Church, and my dad recovered not by medicines but by prayer. So I strongly believe in Jesus. Please I request you to send me more details on how I can receive Activated regularly. Thank you.
       --Hamsa, India

       Activated has changed my life and I want to be a member forever! I want to come to the weekly meetings.
       --Nitin, India

Activated and our tools!

The power of a mag!
By Francis and Joanna, Argentina
       Alicia, our Conéctate member, is a young widow. She cherishes each and every Activated issue. She explained how she uses quotes and paragraphs from different issues to write friends and relatives. She said the Lord had showed her a way to get out more Word by photocopying the back page of the mag, with the words from Jesus. She then places a copy under the glass counter of her little grocery store and as customers come in to shop, they invariably stop to read the message.
       To the more interested she offers a free photocopy and this way she's gotten out quite a bit of literature. An old man read the letter from Jesus and asked Alicia if she had a copy of the letter. “Jesus has never talked to me so directly,” he said. She had one copy left. He took it home and placed it over his bed. He said he doesn't go to bed without reading it.
       Now, every month, Alicia changes the “letter from Jesus” and has a growing number of people looking forward to coming to her shop and getting a copy of the “divine letter.” Alicia feels the responsibility to help the people in her community with the little she has to share with them. She believes that if she can get her customers accustomed to read the “letter” that she is helping them get a contact with Jesus.
       Friday night our women's group gets together faithfully. Each woman brings a different dish; we eat together and then read a few chapters of Obstacles Are for Overcoming and some pertinent Daily Mights. Then we discuss the topics and end with prayer. We make copies of everything we read and each of the women are so thankful. We are hoping to eventually move up to the 12 Foundation Stones classes, but we're using this time to find out which ones are really serious about the Word. So far, their reactions have been so positive.
       Alicia commented, “Martha and I look forward so much to these weekly meetings. It's the high point of our week.”
       Lizzy says, “I've never had the opportunity to have a social gathering that also brought me so much spiritual feeding. It is a unique and special time for me and I thank God for friends like you.”
       As we become closer to one another, share our hearts and learn to pray together, each meeting becomes more meaningful and anticipated.
       Recently, I asked our bellwether Alicia, to choose a couple pages from the book De Jesús con Cariño (From Jesus - with Love). She was happy to help me prepare the meeting and was overwhelmed by the beautiful messages from Jesus. We only have one copy of this book in our city so I had to ask her to return it. She held the book so lovingly in her hands and told me she needed one so badly, so I let her keep it for a few more days. I can't wait to see her face next week when I return with this book for her!
       The many problems that people are suffering in Argentina is amplifying their need for His Word. It's like a desert in need of living waters and we have so much to offer. Please pray for us and that we will not be bound by the terrible financial problems so that we can have more books and tools available to feed these hungry and desperate people.

Activated amplifies giving
By Dan and Abi, India
       We have known Mr. V. for over a year now. We first met him when we approached him for help for our CTP projects. He gave us a good donation and shortly thereafter decided to start helping with a regular monthly pledge, which has been a real blessing. Because he is such a busy man, it has been difficult to see him much and feed him. But ever since he subscribed to Activated and started getting his regular monthly magazine, his giving has increased and he has also started helping with goods from his factory.
       Recently, a courier company lost a shipment of export goods that his company was sending overseas. Although it was later recovered, the courier company paid him compensation for their mistake. When he received the compensation, he thought to himself that this money wasn't meant for him but for us, and so, besides his regular monthly pledge, this time he had a check waiting for us, which was seven times his pledge! This generous decision on his part was a direct result of getting fed spiritually via Activated!

Gifted subscription pays for itself
By Ruth (of Prem), India
       Some time back, we gave an Activated subscription as a gift to a dear lady whom we have known for a few years now. She works with spastic children and is from a very traditional South Indian family. When we asked her what she thought of the magazine, she said: “I bless the people who made this magazine! I read Activated every day! Whenever I am down or in need of inspiration I pick up a copy and I read it and it cheers me up. I would like to sign a couple of my friends on for this magazine as well.” It was neat to see how this gift subscription paid for itself and two more!
       Some time back I showed Activated to my cousin who is a doctor in a school and she signed up for it right away. Recently when I asked her how she was enjoying the magazine, she said she not only reads the magazine cover to cover, but every month, after she has read it, she copies out the “From Jesus with Love” prophecy on the back page and puts it on the school bulletin board for all to see! What a witness!

Tithing works!
By Ana Céu, Heavenhome, Brazil
       We have been ministering to Leila, the owner of a small business. She is young and a wonderful person but was superficial in her relationship with Jesus and the Family. She met us through her boyfriend, visited us a few times, then disappeared. Time passed and she and her boyfriend broke up and we started visiting her at her office. She subscribed to Activated and then started coming to our Bible studies and the different courses we were offering (Inner Healing and pre-discipleship course based on the Word Basics).
       The Lord started to work in her life and as time went by, she started getting more personal shepherding and guidance from the Lord through prophecy. Even so, the Lord let her go through a lot of battles with her former boyfriend who had backslidden from the Lord and us. Things weren't going good at the office either. So we challenged her to start tithing and once she started, the Lord started greatly blessing her business! She works with laptops and wasn't selling any until that point, but the very week that she started tithing, she sold six Notebooks and began seeing miracles happen! It was obvious that it was the hand of the Lord! And her boyfriend? She said, “With or without him, I'm going to serve the Lord!”

It pays to push the tools
By David, Charity, and Home, India
       It's been a month of miracles for us! We had a substantial shortfall in our budget this month, but when we prayed about it, the Lord showed us not to worry, but to focus on our main job--preaching the Gospel, following up on the sheep, and getting out the tools--and He would supply! And He did! We were able to make two road trips this month and one of our contacts ordered 200 Mottos for Success, which enabled us to make our budget!

“Long live Mottos for Success!”
By Simon, India
       It has been said that God specializes in using broken things. I agree. Let me tell you the story of my tooth. It broke. I found myself face to the face with the distinct possibility of making a visit to the dentist. After much deliberation (and procrastination) I finally decided to take the journey. So there I was, getting my teeth examined at a fancy dental clinic, trying desperately to look cool, unruffled and completely at ease. (My partner later told me I failed miserably in the attempt!)
       After carefully examining the damage, the dear, determined dentist, driven by a deep desire to decimate dental distractions, told me in a sonorous and somber tone, “We'll have to extract!” I looked up at him with all the nonchalance of a zookeeper about to get eaten by a lion, shrugged my shoulders and said, “Okay.”
       I then pulled out our newsletter and explained who I was--a full-time volunteer with the Family--and would he please keep that in mind while making out his bill. He glanced at the newsletter and this dignified, totally together, completely in control, immaculately imperturbable master of medicine let out a whoop! (That's right, ladies and gentlemen, a whoop, no less!) He yelled, “Mottos for Success!”I jumped! His secretary jumped! We all jumped! His voice shot up three octaves in three seconds flat. “You're the Mottos for Success people!”Our newsletter had an ad for the Mottos!
       He said, “I bought a Mottos last year and someone stole it from my clinic last week. I'm missing my Mottos so much! Every day I call my friend who has another copy and I ask him what the quote of the day is! Can I buy four Mottos right away please?”
       Then he turned to his wife, who is also a dentist, and said (and I am not exaggerating!), “And this time, glue it down to the table so no one steals it!”
       Well, whaddya know? These dentist guys are okay. God bless him, he turned out to be a really sweet guy who gave me a big discount for my tooth extraction. Long live Mottos for Success!

How far can one tape go?
By the Mountain Villa Home, Indonesia
       Several months ago we started visiting a school here called “Tumble Tots.” Once the lady in charge had seen the Treasure Attics herself, she began to use them at the school and also made them available at the front desk of her school for parents to buy, and she has gotten out quite a few for us this way. Recently the school invited us to help with a presentation that they were doing at a mall. We agreed to help them with one clown doing ballooning if they let us set up a table to sell our tools. They were happy to let us do so, besides helping us with a donation for the ballooning. The day went well, we were able to meet a lot of very sweet parents, and lots of tools got out.
       One week later a lady phoned who had bought a Sweet Dreams Tonight tape from our table one week earlier, saying she liked it and wanted more of our tools. She asked if we could come and see her as she was also going to be opening up an international preschool franchise called “Tutor Time” in our city. A few days later we went to see her and presented her with a full set for her school, which she was very happy to take.
       She then said that since this was a new school, she wanted to give a prize to the first 50 students that enrolled, but she couldn't decide what to give as a prize. So she decided that she wanted to give each one of them a Treasure Attic and proceeded to order 50 as well as 50 tapes, to give to the next set of 50 students who sign up. So on the first day she took 75 Treasure Attics and 50 tapes. PTL!
       She invited us to come to her school's first open house a week from then. She asked if we could help with clowning and ballooning, and let us set up a table displaying our tools at the entrance of the kindergarten. We were able to get out another 30 Treasure Attics and kids CDs. Over the next few weeks she hosted two more open houses and invited us back for those also. Our clown helped with ballooning and keeping the children happy while she and her staff were able to explain to visiting parents about their school. This lady was so flipped out about our tools that our tool display became a part of their little “tour” for visiting. It was almost funny for us when going into the school's office where they were storing school supplies, to see their huge stack of Treasure Attic VCDs. They almost had more than we did, ha!
       This same woman then introduced us to a lady who is opening up another kindergarten in different city, that is part of the same franchise. She told her how good the Treasure Attics were and also gave her the wonderful idea of giving them away as gifts to the first students who enroll. Her friend was interested and ordered 100 videos for her school. She also invited us to come for her school's opening day to make balloons for the children and sell our tools. That day we got out another 30 videos and 20 tapes!
       It showed us how good our products are! All of this started from just one Sweet Dreams Tonight tape. It inspired us to see that if we put witnessing first and make sure that we are incorporating it and getting out the toolswith any offers we get for clowning or ballooning, then the Lord really does bless it!

The snowball effect
By the Mountain Villa Home, Indonesia
       One day one of our outreach teams met a young couple who liked our Treasure Attics and our work and took some VCDs for their young child. The woman said, “Why don't you go and see my brother who owns a Christian bookstore? Maybe he would be interested in your materials and these videos.”
       We tried calling him a few times but he was quite difficult to get ahold of. Finally we were able to get an appointment with him and he was very interested in the work that we are doing here. He was also interested in the Treasure Attics and we asked him if he wanted to have some available to sell in his shop, to which he agreed.
       “Actually, I am a distributor of Christian books for this whole city,” he told us. “Why don't I buy a whole bunch and put them in all the bookshops for you?”
       “That sounds like a good idea!” we exclaimed. “How many would you be interested in getting to start out with?”
       “Let's start out with 250 VCDs!” He asked if he could get them on consignment, but we explained that because of our work we couldn't afford to do that. He then offered to buy them at a slightly discounted price, and every month he would get more. So far we have given him the first month's installment to put in various different stores and we are praying that they will go well and that he will continue to order next month too.
       This is a testimony of the power of the keys as recently we have been trying to look at ways to get out more tools as well as be faithful with our follow up, CTPs, and feeding the sheep, but it can be a real challenge in a small Home. Then the Lord raised up this sweet man. We had also been trying to break out of just selling the videos one by one, so this was a real boost.

Try a library!
By Lydia Cook, USA
       Dawn had a check to call our local library to see if they would be interested in our videos. She made an appointment with the lady in charge to meet and show our materials and I took some samples of the Treasure Attics, etc. The woman took a minute or two to preview one of each and liked them immediately! She ended up ordering a whole set of Treasure Attics, plus the Interactive CD and the two Great Adventures CDs. We're hoping to contact more libraries to do the same.

“You just changed my life!”
By Joy, USA
       My mother took me out to dinner as I was staying with her while my stepfather was in the hospital after he'd had a heart attack. A tired young girl came to clear our table as we were finishing. She smiled and asked if we'd enjoyed the meal. You could tell she was a hard worker and was trying to be kind. After she left, the Lord told me to give her a tract, along with a $5 tip. My funds are limited, but I know it always pays to obey. So I went looking for her. I gave her the money and wrapped it around the tract. I told her, “Jesus loves you. Thanks for doing a good job.”
       About 10 minutes later, she came up to me at the table, put her hand on my shoulder and said, “I read your paper. I think you just changed my life. Thank you so much!” My 82-year-old mom also saw this and it was a good witness to her.

news from Activated desks, July 2002

BRAZIL DESK
       We attended the Brazil Family's three-day annual national retreat. This event, which this year drew 850 participants, is directed towards Active members. It also attracts hundreds of CM and FM members. It was a perfect place to promote Contato.
       We sent a good-sized team of seven people who spent virtually 18 hours a day witnessing, selling, and renewing subscriptions, offering the new Portuguese versions of My King and I, From Jesus - with Love, Dare to Be Different, etc., all of which were big hits.
       We were thrilled to receive the new Activated flyer from WS just in time to translate and print it before the retreat. We handed out thousands of free samples of the flyer to the participants in little kits, together with an edited version of Dad's message about making Contato a “household word.” It was so special as the art on the flyer--the cover of the May mag--was also the visual theme we had adopted for our stand, stickers, etc. It was perfect! (By the way, these flyers are beautiful! Our promotion and marketing, as well as the magazine itself, is getting better and better--as it should. After all, we are the professionals!)
       At the retreat we also:
*       Decorated the entrances of the four hotels with Contato pennants.
*       Mounted a 25-square-meter stand with a giant 3X4-meter façade. We had a local firm print beautiful vinyl banners (graphic design by our dear Mike), which we stretched over a steel frame to decorate the front.
*       Distributed thousands of plastic car window stickers with the Contato motto “Change your life, Change your world” on them to the participants.
*       Published and distributed our daily Fazendo Contato (Get Activated) newspaper each morning of the retreat. It is a one-page pub laid out tabloid style. It contained reactions, testimonies and news and photos from the previous day's activities. (This seemed to be a big hit!)
*       Awarded 22 Homes with special “Premio Contato” trophy plaques for their projects in witnessing, follow-up, Contato subscriptions, tool distribution, CTP, etc.
*       Participated in all three of the study groups (beginner, intermediate, and advanced) at least once, getting out the Contato message in the actual classes.
*       Received an unexpected visit from Suzana Alves (Tiazinha), a very famous TV personality here, who is a Contato subscriber and follow-up sheep. She gave a beautiful testimony to the entire retreat of how the Lord and Contato are working in her life.
*       Distributed balloon figures to the children in attendance.
*       Covered everybody with thousands of Contato lapel stickers.

       All in all it was an adventure! We got over 60 subscriptions, sold a number of books and other tools, and generally had a blast. Now that the retreat is behind us we are preparing our next shiner prize/contest to try and build the subscription fever as we head toward the end of the year/Christmas push.

CENTRAL EUROPEAN DESK
       When switching from the free MM program to Activated subscriptions, there were a large number of precious sheep who couldn't afford to pay the subscription fee--many prisoners, orphans, and very poor, yet very spiritually hungry people! In response to our ad in the Grapevine,a good number of Family members heard our cry and offered to help us to feed these sheep further, by sponsoring subscriptions for them.
       One sweet Romanian brother, Sam (of Vicka), felt very burdened when he read our ad. He wanted to help, but how could he? Romania is a poor field, and while the Lord always supplies the needs of His children, finances are always pretty tight. Since his Home didn't have the money to help sponsor subscriptions, he started to ask his contacts and friends if they would like to help! He knocked at different doors, till the Lord opened the right one! A long-time friend and supporter of his Home offered to sponsor 150 subscriptions for the prisoners and poor people we had waiting on line! This together with those sponsored from different Family Homes around the world, enabled us to send out--in Romania alone--a total of 189 sponsored subscriptions!
       Besides those Romanian-sponsored subscriptions, 75 were sponsored in Russia, 11 in Hungary, plus 11 in Ukraine. A total of 135 subscriptions which were sponsored by the Family around the world! Thanks to all of those who helped make it possible!

       First Albanian mags roll off the presses! Thanks to the diligent and faithful labors of Gabe and Dust, who put in many long hours to finalize the first six Activated mags (new version) in Albanian, we were able to get issues one and two printed this month, and our printers will be printing numbers three, four, five and six this next month.

       Romanian field translators: Through the translations “test” we did last month, the Lord raised up two more field translators who are now helping us to finalize the new versions of Activated mags one, two and three.

CHILE DESK
       We created a Conéctate Club for the Homes in our area. To be a member you just have to make a commitment to buy a minimum of 30 new mags every month. This gives the Homes or the individuals associated access to discount prices and different gifts, rewards, etc.

MEXICO DESK
       Three more Homes subscribed to our Mag of the Month program this month, bringing our number of total Homes participating in the MOTM program to 22, and MOTM monthly requests to 5,000 mags a month. One Home alone subscribed to 2,000 MOTM monthly!

       Special mag sale: This month, our special mag sale (from #2 to #12, at one peso per mag for a minimum of 200 mags) amounted to approx 6,000 mags sold.

       Big deal: A deal went through with a large company here. After buying and distributing our Farmyard Heroes booklets (as a free gift to the children of the 5,000-some families attending a particular festival), the marketing manager of this company called us to let us know how pleased he was with the book, how the kids loved it, and how he himself read it and learned some valuable leadership lessons from it! Ha!
       They want to keep doing these types of projects with us, and we would like to try and expand this type of production, and approach other companies to see about doing similar projects with them, which can be a good fund-raiser for the desk, to help us subsidize other programs, DV.

legal and media

Attendance at 2002 CESNUR Conference
By Marc and Claire, USA
       Our attendance at this year's CESNUR Conference in Salt Lake City, Utah, was another opportunity to interact with the academic community, especially with scholars who are particularly focused on the study of new religious movements such as the Family. There were a variety of religious topics discussed at this year's conference, from religion and violence, to a re-opening of the brainwashing debate. Professor Eileen Barker spoke at a plenary session on “When NRMs Cease to be New Religions--Emergence of Traditions” and referred several times to the Family, pointing out our growth rates, membership ages, etc., all from the statistics that we had passed on to her at her request.
       Throughout the conference, the Family was referred to as a “successful new religious movement,” due to having passed the 30-year mark and the transition of the original charismatic leader (as they refer to Dad) to new leadership. From what was discussed, very few religious movements actually make it past that transition point, as most die out shortly after the death of the founder and/or original leader. Prof. Barker pointed to the change and transition that had occurred since Dad's passing, as did Profs. Gary and Gordon Shepherd during their presentation on the Family. In both these presentations, the scholars highlighted the problem-solving abilities of the Family as positive characteristics. It was encouraging and inspiring to hear these scholars discussing our current history, rather than focusing on the earlier history of which there has been much written already; definitely a sign of progress.
       Prof. Barker also mentioned that in order for an NRM to not change its basic nature and purpose, it has to undergo a lot of adaptation, which sounded quite a bit like our own experience. She also mentioned the serious difficulties the technological advances of the Internet, for example, pose to religious groups, as there is a far greater free exchange of ideas in an anonymous fashion via e-mail, chat rooms, etc., which opens the door for fringe members to share opinions with other members, anonymously, and without supervision and this is having repercussion on many new religious movements. We could certainly relate to the dangers of the Web, with all the Lord has given in the Word about this!

       Session on The Family--”The Family--1992-2002: A Decade of Transition”
       The session on the Family went very well, thanks to everyone's prayers and calling on the power of the keys! It was well attended even though there were a couple other outstanding sessions running at the same time. Our dear Husband answered every prayer request for the session.
       Prof. Barker opened the session with remarks and a short review of Bill Bainbridge's new book, The Endtime Family--The Children of God. We were happy to see Dr. Bainbridge's book receiving more exposure through this session as well as the many different avenues that the Lord is using to distribute the book. Profs. Gary and Gordon Shepherd followed by presenting their paper, “The Family in Transition: The Moral Career of a New Religious Movement” (). For the most part we were very encouraged with their paper as it is very factual and helped to explain from a sociology of religion perspective the changes that we have undergone over the last decade.
       Psychologist Doug Sell then gave his paper, “The Personality and Religiousness of Youth Members in The Family” which was based on the research that he did several years ago, resulting in the paper that he presented at the 2000 Society for the Scientific Study of Religion (SSSR) conference, which is now posted on the CESNUR Web site (www.cesnur.org).
       The papers were followed by our response, in which we commented on some of the points that were brought out by the presenters (Charter, definitions of terms, etc.) and then opened the floor for questions from the audience. This opened the door for us to explain more about our lifestyle, beliefs, etc. We didn't read from the paper that we had prepared, but instead opted to pass it out to those attending to take with them and read later so as to give more time for answering questions and personal interaction with the attendees, which is often lacking in conference sessions. Our dear Husband gave us this plan before the session, which as always, proved to be the best way! We also distributed a number of copies of our paper “The Family--1992-2002--A Decade of Transition” to other attendees. () When praying about what the format of the paper should be, the Lord showed us to use sections from the GNs, as well as scholarly writings, to document the transitional changes that had taken place within The Family during the last 10 years. We received some very positive comments on the paper as those receiving it commented on the length and detail of the paper, saying that the information was quite helpful in understanding the changes that had occurred over the last decade from the Family's point of view.
       Another academic who attended the session was from the Philippines. She is part of a social research center at a high-ranking university. Her center is now conducting a study on family life in Far Eastern countries and after hearing the presentations was interested in visiting our communities in the Philippines to see how we raise our children in a religious/communal environment.

Update on Brainwashing Debate/ACMs
       A plenary session was held on the brainwashing debate, which is in response to the “new” brainwashing theory forwarded by Ben Zablocki and supported by Stephen Kent and a few others from the anti-cult side of the fence. (These folks are in a very small minority, as brainwashing has been officially written off as unscientific by both the sociological and psychological communities.) Although much of the information presented was the same as in years past, making it clear that the overwhelming consensus of the scholarly community hasn't changed and that the brainwashing theory has been, and still is, without a scientific foundation, there was some interesting information.
       Apparently Zablocki is publishing another book on brainwashing, in which he uses obscure rulings in small state cases that supposedly support his theory, and this book is to be sent to Europe for use there. One of the dangers of Zablocki and Kent is that their writings carry little if any weight in the U.S. or Canada, but do tend to be viewed in Europe as credible due to the strong ACM and anti-religious legislation that has been imposed in some European countries.
       On the other side of the debate, Prof. Richardson presented statistics showing that since the Fishman case, which discredited Margaret Singer's claims to brainwashing, there has actually been an increase in cases using the brainwashing theory rather than a decrease, and it was generally decided that more research needs to be done on this. In other words, although it has been discredited scientifically, the theory is still being promoted by ACM activists, both in the media, as well as the courts. There was a differentiation made, however, between the case of the brainwashing model being attempted or mentioned in court, and that of a judge actually admitting it as a bona-fide scientific model. Thankfully, although brainwashing is still a buzz word thrown freely about in popular culture, the courts rarely pay it much attention. At this point, academics are waiting to see how the courts will rule in the case of John Walker, the young American who fought on the side of the Taliban in Afghanistan. The brainwashing argument is being used in his defense, so this could be a key case in the debate.

Visit to the Mormon Tabernacle and Missionary Training Center
       While in Salt Lake City, we visited the Mormon Tabernacle and their Missionary Training Center, which was an interesting experience. The Missionary Training Center was quite an eye-opener, as all their 18-year-old young men and 21-year-old young women who will serve as missionaries go to their training center for a two-month intensive missionary course (3,000 each two-month term). They say goodbye to their parents when they enter and don't see them again until they complete their two-year mission. It was interesting to see the level of dedication that is required and the seriousness to applying themselves to missionary work.
       One twenty-some-year-old young person who was explaining the center to us, told us that if people don't want to follow the rules and do what it takes to be a missionary, they shouldn't come. They run a very tight ship. During their two-month period, if the young person is going overseas to a country with a foreign language, they receive language training and memorize the first six membership lessons in the language, so that they are able to give new members a foundation in their faith.
       During their two-year tenure, these 18-year-olds go out two by two after their two-month training period, and are expected to bring converts to the church without the assistance of older members. They send out about 30,000 young people all over the world each year, and each of these wins an average of five converts a year to the church (must be baptized, tithing, etc., to be considered members). The method is highly successful and the Mormon Church is the fastest growing church in the U.S. and one of the fastest growing churches in the world. We were quite taken with the high expectations they have for their membership and although only about a third of the youth do embark on mission programs, that third is quite a dedicated representation. The kids aren't allowed to date, have sex before or outside of marriage, smoke, drink alcohol or coffee, watch TV, etc. They had a very sweet and happy spirit and went out of their way to be courteous, hospitable and share their faith with us.
       When we visited the Tabernacle, a young person in her 20s from France, on a mission in Salt Lake, asked us what kind of work we did. When we explained we were missionaries, she got excited and said, “I knew it, after seeing thousands of people here every day you can always tell who has Jesus.--It's written all over their faces!” We were touring with a few of the academics from the conference, and an interesting discussion arose. When comparing our missionary endeavors, it became clear that although theirs is very committed for two years, after that, the Mormons consider getting married, being economically stable and going to school as their sample to the world. This young person was awestruck when we shared how we live by faith and how the Lord has supplied for us for these many, many years.
       It was an interesting experience, as the Mormons have suffered their share of persecution and have had sexual beliefs outside the norm (polygamy, which they renounced under pressure from the government), as well as believing in prophecy and spirit helpers, etc. Of course, they have settled into the mainstream and are interested in being successful and accepted in this world, which leads them to compromise in many areas. Although they believe in prophecy, for example, it is practiced very little, and only by the elders. After our tours, we were so thankful for the dropped-out radical spirit of David! The Lord has blessed us with so much of His Spirit, Word and freedom, love and unity.--We truly are blessed in so many ways!
       (Editor: To read about the history of the Mormon Church, and a word from Dad about the Mormons, check the MO site at: )

Anti-cultist/French minister Alain Vivien resigns
By Marc and Claire, USA
       We received a press release from CESNUR regarding anti-cultist/French minister Alain Vivien's recent resignation. Vivien had presided over the Inter-ministerial Commission to Battle Sects and Cults (MILS). Although this is seen as a victory, scholars who are keeping abreast with developments in France say that it is too early to tell how much of a victory it really is, as no one at this time knows who will be appointed in Vivien's position. There are many academics, religious freedom advocates, lawyers, etc., who are calling on France's Prime Minister Raffarin to abolish the MILS altogether and are keeping an eye on how things develop.
       One interesting point is that Vivien has recently taken a world tour visiting a number of countries (one of which is China) in which he has encouraged them to adapt the same anti-religious laws/ministry as they have in France to fight sects/cults. At this time, France is the leader in the promoting of anti-religious legislation targeting minority religious groups. In answer to prayer the Lord has removed this man from his position. Please continue to pray that this entire commission will be abolished.

happenings

Pioneering business seminars
       Rejoice (YA), Japan: I went to Africa from January to May of this year. It was a good experience and I learned a lot. It gave me more of a burden for witnessing and a love for the Japanese. Prior to the trip, the Lord told me that one of the purposes for my time in Africa was to lead many Japanese to Him through my testimony. He is very faithful to His word. Through my testimonies of Africa, I've met many people from all walks of life and led many Japanese souls to the Lord.
       I've attended two business seminars since I moved to my present Home. At the first seminar, after the main speech, I got a chance to speak about my experiences in Africa. At the second seminar, I was able to speak at the party after the seminar, when the attendees were relaxed and very attentive. I made a presentation about the Family's activities and we collected donations for some Homes in Africa. I want to keep in touch with and follow up on these precious people and win them to the Lord.
       P.S. by Lynn: Since our young people have the love of Jesus and many good qualities, many Japanese are deeply impressed with them when they share what they have done on mission fields. Plus, meeting young people who are willing to go to such difficult countries to help others is a wonderful experience for them! It doesn't matter even if you can't speak the language or you need an interpreter for your presentation. Also, presenting your name cards helps people to trust and respect you more.
       If you (both older and younger folks) try to attend business seminars like these, often the doors for other seminars or repeated attendance will be opened. In some cases, the hosts have asked us to be receptionists because they really want us to attend. Sometimes you can get opportunities to make an appeal like Rejoice did. So if you feel led to do it, you can look into the business seminars that are held in your area and pioneer them!

A bitter lemon made into lemonade
By Andrew, England
       It was 1993 and our family had been re-classified to TS. We wondered, Where are we going to go? What are we going to do? Is our usefulness over? Life seemed to have served us a very bitter lemon, but the Lord had something in mind.
       We returned to the UK with our seven kids, soon to be eight. Thankfully the Lord didn't let us down. (Does He ever?) A good FM Home took us in and from there we found our own Home and moved in with a single mum and her eight kids.
       Our kids were previously unchallenged, not involved in solid outreach. We decided we needed to do something as a family; we needed to pull together. We resolved to maintain a discipleship standard while having fun together as a family.
       Joy made costumes for the girls which had a very Austrian touch, and we later received envelopes for the “Von Trap family singers”! I'm originally Austrian. I started booking shows in the old folks homes around the area for Christmas. Joy scripted the show and was the emcee. Part of the show was the nativity play, and Miguel was born just in time to be baby Jesus! He was happy to be passed from one dear older lady to another, making their day!
       The shows were a great hit, and our eldest daughter, Rosa, did most of the choreography. One of our most cherished possessions is now the videos of some of these shows. We did 32 shows that first Christmas and found there was such a vacuum. The Letter “Solitaire” took on a new meaning for us.
       We found there was a great difference between homes for the elderly. The owners or managers who cared for their people had very sweet, intelligent older folks; the ones who didn't put as much into the care of their older folks tended to have the opposite. We performed in a home where there were retired teachers and other professionals; one of the ex-teachers had gone up in an air balloon on her 75th birthday. There was a former missionary to India who was 101 and very alert. A lady that was 105 had gone on her first plane ride at 100! She was “all there.” After the shows which we did with BMTs, the children circulated with their photo books and prayed individually with people. The photo books are of their travels, giving them a starting point to interact with the old folks which they appreciate so much.
       Our family gained a new sense of purpose. We started booking shows for Easter and involved two other families. Having others get involved with the shows also made for continuity, as when we went to India in '97, we were able to turn our shows over to Martin and Mary. When we came back in 2000, we took over the bookings once again.
       We kept going to the same homes over the years and the long-term results of this follow up have been rewarding. We now have two regular supporters among the owners of the homes who are Activated members. They have many of our Activated tools, and we also have many friends who we are in the process of activating. We also have an Activated member who is an elderly lady in one of the homes. This is an addition to the immediate fruit we reap when doing the shows--the souls won, the income, and tools out (CDs and tapes go particularly well, and the posters and Activated mags are a treat.) The fact that we do these shows has turned many hearts towards us and has made provisioning much easier.
       My wife Joy came down with cancer and we came back from India for treatment. She could no longer handle the job of training the kids, but our great Love didn't let us down. Twins Shannon and Shane (19) joined our Home, and took over the show team. We rolled on with the show and even performed in the hospital where Joy was getting treatment. (Editor's note: Joy graduated on May 12, 2001.)
       Here are a few recent reactions we've received:
       “When you came into our club (for the elderly), I could feel the Lord's Spirit enter the room. The children shine! You've got to continue this ministry!”
       “I was annoyed by the interruption of my routine of watching the news to have to come in for this show, but I was so pleasantly surprised. Everything is so clear to me now. I understand how God has had His hand on my life. The last thing I wanted in life was to end up in a place like this (nursing home). Your show and explanation of how things work together for our good has changed my life. I can see now I was watching the bad news of this world and God wanted me to see the good news.”
       Enclosed are a few photos of how our show group has developed over the last nine years. If you have any questions or would like to get in contact with us, please write us at e-mail: andbold@onetel.net.uk

letters to the editor

Re: “Speak for Yourself” FSM
By Colin (FGA), Australia
       I would like to thank all those who responded to Daniel in the “Speak for Yourself” FSM. I was truly encouraged to hear such expressions of love and conviction, especially from the second generation. Keep on fighting, fighters!

Re: Saying things nicely
By Angela (YA), South Africa
       I just wanted to say a big thank you to everyone in WS.--To the ones who receive the prophecies, those who lay the pubs out, to the faithful secretaries who type things out, to the cooks and clean-up staff for making things in WS possible, to the childcare workers who take care of the kids, to the research staff, and to everyone else whose job I forgot to list. Thank you so much for all you do for us out here.
       Aren't the mailings wonderful? I just love it when we get a new mailing! Everybody scrambles to see what's new and everyone pores over the Word. Isn't that great? So much time and effort goes into every mag. God bless Mama, Peter, and our WS family for being so faithful to get the Word to us.
       I had a point that I have wanted to mention about how people present their questions. There have been a few times when I have been pleasantly reading an Eve or a Grapevine or a GN and have been rather shocked at the severity with which some people had brought up their points. I guess the issue is not that we shouldn't question things or mention what we have on our heart, but I feel that there should always be room for the other side.--Especially if it's in regards to something we don't understand about a prophecy that has been published, or some counsel that has been given.
       It is very offensive to me to read mocking or sarcastic remarks in regards to the published Word. Perhaps it would behoove us all to remember that the Family is extremely diverse and those in WS have to try and cater to everyone's needs. It is a very difficult job and they deserve our thanks rather than our scorn. They do also check with the Lord concerning each and every aspect of the Word that they send out. Let's all try to do our best to say it lovingly and nicely, and if we really do feel that something is wrong, to send it to the appropriate channels. Please don't spew it out in such a negative way!

Re: “Remembrances of Mama's Home” (GV #132)
By Julie Trusting, Ireland
       I was inspired by the testimony from Dawn who visited Mama's Home pointing out the two things she felt are weak areas in Homes--intercessory prayers and the use of the keys in our daily prayers. Sometimes I feel overwhelmed by all the new things to work on and implement, so I found these two specific areas being pointed out very helpful.

Re: Homeschooling corner (GV #132)
By Julie Trusting, Ireland
       I turn to these sections as soon as the Grapevine comes because I find it so helpful and interesting. I've taught my children with CLE for years now, but oh, how I miss giving classes and getting the children to participate using their individual talents. So lately that's what I've been doing, especially with the JETTs, and school time has been more fun. There is a set time for workbooks and goals and there is a time for class participation. This helps class time be more upbeat, plus there are less behavior problems.

personals
       Celeste (of Arthur) would like to get in contact with Angel (of Maggie) in Thailand, Kate and son Ian (Venezuela), and Dawn (Angie Dawn) in Colombia. Write us soon! Our e-mail is: freckledfrenchy@hotmail.com

former members - seeking contact
       Paul and Faith, who were working in India and Chechnya and went back to England, Swiss Lisa is looking for you! She met Paul first in India (Agra). Please contact her at the following address: E. Fischbacher, Schmiedenstr. 23, 8840 Einsiedeln, Switzerland

help wanted
       We are Philip and Hannah (a.k.a. Asher and Lydia Thanksgiving) writing from Chennai, India. We have been in the Indian Subcontinent, the Middle East, and Greece for the past 28 years. After Hannah's recent visit to the U.S., the Lord has shown us that it is time for us to return for a while to the West for a furlough and also to visit with and help our older children in the States. Most of them are out of the Family and we would like to try to help them and be near them for a while. We still have four children with us (ages 14, 12, 9, and 7).
       We would like to ask if anyone would like to help us financially towards the cost of our fares. We would greatly appreciate it. Our desire is to leave as much of our equipment as possible on the field (car, computers, TV, VCRs, etc.), and not have to sell it. Any and all gifts would be a tremendous help, and can be sent to us either via the TRF to Philip and Hannah (IA34), or sent through our bank account in the States which is Ruth Martin, Bank of America, Lemon Grove Branch, San Diego, Cal. Acct. # 000917715078. E-mail: martfam@md4.vsnl.net.in.

* * *

       For finances to purchase laptops for the four newly appointed VSs on the Southern area African Board. If anyone has any contacts for laptops, or would have an extra one they would like to donate, or contribute with a donation towards it, please contact Dom via the African ABM.

How we do our prayer days
By Abi, Taiwan
       We used to have a hard time fitting in our monthly prayer day (or two half days), until someone suggested we start taking one and a half days per month! The Lord encouraged us with the idea, and it eventually leveled out to three half prayer days per month, nearly every Friday afternoon. At every Home council we decide for the week ahead if we'll have one for that Friday or not. Sometimes when a lot's happening, we'll ask the Lord if we need to take one that Friday, and the answer He often gives is, “You can't afford not to!” So sometimes we have them four times a month, and it's starting to feel like we're missing something on Friday if we don't have it!
       We've discovered that the more we intercede for our dear Family worldwide, the more He also seems to take care of us and our needs! Quite miraculous! We used to have prophecy time on prayer day, but we found it cut too much into our prayers for others, so we just moved it to another evening, so we could devote more time for interceding in prayer.
       We use most every idea and method that's been printed for our prayer days--and then some new ones. We try to keep a good balance between upbeat and serious. We usually do a portion together, then break up into twos or threes, each with a different prayer list (and a set of keys and promises). We keep a couple of updated folders with a variety of prayer lists inside--online prayer list (from the Web site), our area list, GV list, Home prayer list, a friends and contacts list, long term general (PL 57), and requests gleaned from “Heading into 2002.”
       We've recently started having different volunteers (young and old) lead the prayer afternoon, so we don't waste time when together trying to decide the details of how and where we're going to pray.
       The more we pray, the more we want to pray, and the more we find to pray for, so it really gets rolling--better and better!

Wine Press news, May 2002
       Number of current Wine Press members
       Supporters: 65
       Regular: 254
       Total Wine Press members: 319

Significant e-mail received
       From Ray: Thank you for sending me the Wine Press. I decided to tithe to you last year, and I was able for two months and then 9/11 happened and my finances went. … Since then until about four months ago I was able to get by, but things were really short; actually I went into debt. About four weeks ago I started getting sick to the point of feeling I was going to die, then kind of hoping I might. Then you sent me the Wine Press about comfort in affliction. Thank you!
       As of last week I began setting aside my tithe and 3% gift for the Family here in Colorado. I will send you my tithe on a regular basis now. Please keep me on your mailing list and forgive me for not keeping up there for a while. Thank you so much for your prayers and concern.

       From Eric: It's always good to hear from you, Maria, and Jesus through the Wine Press outreach! I'm trying to express the joy that I have after all I read in this month's mailing. Each issue touches a different area of our hearts to encourage with this love potion He gives each of us when we yield to Him and simply spend time reading and absorbing the mailing. A certain testimony or thoughtful explanation from Maria or a testimony from a Family member all contribute to a feeling of fulfillment that is impossible to receive anywhere else.

       From John: Thank you for your letter and encouragement. There is nothing like the Word and your prayers to keep me alive and healthy in the Lord.

       From Nicholas: I just wanted to write and say how amazing the latest Wine Press is (No. 52). “Call on the Keys” is such a deep Letter, yet so helpful and practical in telling us exactly how to use the power of the keys. It also makes me examine my heart and dedication to the Lord, especially knowing that this will affect the power of the keys in my life. When are more Letters on the keys coming out? They are life changing.
       Here's a short testimony of something that happened to me just before Christmas. The Colombians have a Christmas tradition called La Novena or “the ninth.” Starting nine days before Christmas they get together with family and friends to go through daily prayers, praises, and readings of the Christmas story. It's basically the same thing every day, but the Christmas story progresses.
       A few days before Christmas I went by a park where I used to take my dog, and where I had a lot of friends. One of them was there, and saw me and asked if I had come for the Novena, as they had planned to hold it that night in the park. I had been invited, but no one had told me, so it was the Lord's set up. A few more people arrived, and we finally started the ceremony. Everyone read a part, and I was the last and had to read the prayer to the Christ Child. After the prayer I was able to pray with the nine people there to receive Jesus. TYL! Not a huge quantity of souls, but still, a gift for Him for His birthday.
       Thanks for the mailings; they have helped me and make me feel part of the Family again. God bless you for all your hard work in getting them out to us, especially those who live in other countries.

ads
       For an update on NuBeat's latest, reactions from the listeners, and an interview with the RadioActive dance team, check out the MO site at: http://www.familymembers.com/newswire/article.php?nwid=919.

       Now available on the MO site: The DB version of “King Arthur's Nights!” Why Dad and Mama began FFing, and what it was like, and the wonderful fruits! This is the first section of DB 14, which covers ML Volume 4, and we'll post more in the months to come, God willing.

       If you enjoyed the “Speak for Yourself” FSMs, parts I and II, check out the MO site for 101 new reactions, replies, and comments from Family members around the world to “The Professionals!”

Simple Beauties - CD available!
By Ben G., Hungary
       I have produced a CD called Simple Beauties that is dedicated to my daughter Leianna who passed away from cancer. My desire is that it can inspire hope and encourage others who have had to say goodbye to loved ones. I would like to offer it here for anyone who would want a personal copy, or if you would like to get one for someone you know.

       1. From My Arms
       2. All I Need Is Faith
       3. Love Will Find a Way
       4. Simple Beauties
       5. Soft and Tenderly
       6. Beauties Beyond
       7. You Understand
       8. Wings of Prayer
       9. Never Alone
       10. When Morning Dawns

       “Wings of Prayer” (lyrics by Helen Steiner Rice, music by Ben G)
       “Never Alone” (by Ben G and TJ)
       “When Morning Dawns” (By Paul Michael)
       All others are written and composed by Ben G.

       To get a copy of Simple Beauties:
       1. Send $5 through the TRF to HU 146 stating that it is for Simple Beauties.
       2. Make sure that you clearly state with name and address who the CD should be sent to.

       Another way that you could do it is to send cash to me inside a card. Although this is not as reliable as the TRF and you would have to do it at your own risk, you would get the CD sooner. I have had people send me money this way from the States and within Europe, and so far it's been fine. But if you want to take extra precautionary measures you could send it as registered mail.

       The postal address is:
       The Family
       Budapest H-1458
       PF. 11 HUNGARY
       [And in the corner write: “Attn. Ben”]

       As soon as I receive your payment and address information, I will send you a CD. Thank you so much. Happy listening!

pray
       Healing key: Some put their trust in doctors and medicines, but when you put your trust in Me, and through the power of the keys ask what you desire, you will see miracles performed, bodies strengthened, the weak and afflicted encouraged, diseases healed, and the power of Heaven at your command.

Testimonies of Answered Prayer
       By Love (of Pat), USA: I had prayer over my ganglion cyst located on my left wrist for over a month. I would get it before, but it would go away after two to three weeks. However, this time it seemed to hang on, and I thought it was growing roots! I scheduled an appointment with the orthopedic surgeon. Then I read an article about the power of the keys, and how a Family member had repeated the prayer several times, so I put my hand over the bump and repeated the prayer for about five minutes, claiming the power of the keys. At the end I looked, but the bump was still there. So I said “I believe You, Lord, even if it's still there.”
       The next morning the cyst had visibly dissipated! I showed it to people at work who knew I had the problem and told them about the prayer and they were amazed. What a miracle!
       By Carina (of Mark), India: We wanted to thank all of you who stood by us in prayer for Seth (10 months) who had contracted viral pneumonia due to a bad case of chicken pox. He has been miraculously healed, an obvious manifestation of the power of the keys and united prayer. Thank you for being a part of that miracle and for helping us overcome!
       By Maria (of Martin), Mozambique: I want to thank you all, my dear Family, for fighting for my life in prayer, and most of all, I want to thank our sweet Lover for the power of the keys. The day after the prayer request was sent around for me, the doctor was surprised at how quickly my blood pressure went down as he said it would take about four weeks for it to lower to normal.
       By Jenai, Romania: My son, Poul (7), stopped wetting his bed at night after we put him on the prayer list. Steven (3) is also making much progress in getting over his bedwetting. Thank you for all your prayers!
       By Martha, China: Last August I started to feel dizzy when I made certain movements, like looking up (while hanging laundry), turning quickly or when I first lay down or got up. This persisted for three months, and then I asked for prayer when we were having communion and I got healed!
       However, in March of this year I woke up one morning with the same sensation and remembered I had never publicly testified of my healing. Again the dizziness continued off and on until we had a communion in our Home and I gave my testimony and asked for prayer once again. Since that day several weeks ago I have not had the dizzy spells--a definite answer to prayer!
       By Simon (of Julia), Poland: I feel a little better after I was put on the prayer list against pains in my back and hips. Before I could hardly walk or stand, so we were in a very difficult situation as I was the fundraiser. But since your prayers I feel better.
       Also after we put Francis (3) on the prayer list, the problem he's had for a year with haemorrhoids is gone! The Lord has also been supplying our needs from unexpected sources. Our relatives didn't help much before, but now the Lord has touched their hearts to give more.
       By Mary D., Denmark: For about two months I've had a virus which made me cough a lot, leaving me weak and tired. I made a habit of drinking a bouillon drink with cayenne and garlic every night when I went to bed and it did help the cough a little, but I still felt very weak.
       A sister came to visit us from Romania and she told me she had the gift of healing, so the next day, when we had communion I asked her to pray for me. She did and the feeling of weakness completely disappeared! She also prayed against a muscle pain I'd been experiencing and that pain has been gone since! Before I couldn't take a deep breath before without having a coughing spell, but now there is no problem! What a miracle!
       By Marina (of Timothy), Japan: In the last months, my cancerous breast tumor had grown quite rapidly to the point where it was sticking out. The Lord has promised to heal me since the cancer was discovered five years ago, and all the faithful prayers of our precious Family have been stored up over the years, waiting to be released. Suddenly about one month ago--boom!--the tumor starting shrinking! It has shrunk 3 cm already! Please continue to pray that it will disappear completely.
       By Stefan Pioneer, Switzerland: The previous month I put on the prayer list my requests for healing from the pain in my left arm and the healing of my sore eyes, especially when doing translations and layout work on the computer. It was so bad that I actually had to stop doing my ministry for a while.
       A week after the prayer list came out, somebody told me that he saw me on the list and that he had just prayed for me. I had been quite busy that week, and must have totally forgotten about the problem, not realizing that I was completely healed. So I asked the brother then, “I'm on the prayer list? Why am I on the list?”
       He didn't remember the exact details so I kept questioning, “I feel absolutely fine, why would I be on a prayer list? Oh, yeah, my arm hurts sometimes and I put that on the prayer list and I guess there was something else, but I don't remember right now.” I was wracking my brain for a while. Two days later I looked at the list and finally remembered that I had had this big problem with my eyes. I realized in amazement that the Lord had completely healed me of my difficulties. Even if we forget, the Lord never does!
       By Claire, Japan: Last month I put a prayer request in the prayer list against my skin rash and pain in my knees and now I'm totally healed!
       By Daniel, Angela, and Hope, Romania: Nadia's mouth rash disappeared once we put her on the prayer list.

Asia
       Andre (15, of Victor and Dove): Hepatitis.
       Crystal (of Hab): Lymphedema (persistent swelling of tissue) in left arm, dermoid cyst (benign tumor) on left ovary.
       Victory Fighter: Chronic headaches, vertigo (severe dizziness); endometriosis (mucous membrane present in places other than the womb).

Europe and Africa
       Africa boards: Four new laptops need for the VS teams.
       Francis (2, of Mark and Esther): Bronchial asthmatic reaction; difficulty breathing; possible urinary infection.
       Hope: Appendicitis.
       John Michael: Frequent malaria attacks; yellow eyes during his sickness.
       Leina (2, of Daniel and Tirzah): Chronic malaria outbreaks.
       Lisa (of Jonas): Form of rheumatism.
       Mercy (12, of David and Peace): Chronic ear infection.
       Mikeal and Andreas (twins, 5, of Ben and Mary Dear): Developmentally handicapped; testicles to descend.
       Miriam: Malfunctioning thyroid gland.
       Natalie (7, of Steven and Grace): Low immune system, frequent sinus infections and resultant headaches; heart pains; poor eyesight.
       Nicole (15): Ovarian cysts; hormone imbalance.
       Peter (of Dust and Maria): Leukemia.
       Rose (of John): Degeneration of the joint cartilage in neck and left shoulder.

North America
       Becky: Eating disorder; depression.
       Cherish (of David): Hepatitis C; large fibroid tumor attached to her uterus.
       Christine (of Patrick): Chronic muscle pain (fibromyalgia) and dizziness.
       Clare (19, of Jareb and Joy): Second reconstructive surgery to correct a serious knee problem.
       Lilly: Arthritis and carpal tunnel syndrome; lump in throat or lymph node.
       Pat (of Love): Hepatitis C. Pain in throat and neck caused by a previous injury.
       Praise (of Solomon): Hysterectomy to remove cantaloupe-sized fibroids growing in her uterus.
       Pricilla:Skin cancer near her eye, requiring surgery.

Pacific
       Aaron (of Jewel): Malignant melanoma; lack of energy, strength; experiencing weight loss, fevers, and nausea.
       Haley: Herniated disc in his back.
       Lily: Myalgic encephalomyelitis (chronic exhaustion and muscle pain).
       Marina (of Timothy): Breast cancer. Intestines are sticking together after operation a few years ago, the scar didn't heal properly, stomach tissue wall is very thin without muscles. Digestion problems.
       Megumi: Tumor.
       Mercy: Perimenopause; seven benign cysts in her breasts; tumors in ovaries.
       Nana (10, of Micah and Jewel): Seizures.
       Paul (of Lovelight): Nervous gastritis.
       Praise: Urinary infection caused by a parasite in white blood cells called mycoplasma.
       Steven (of Tabitha): Abscess; tiredness and fear after recurring spasm attack.

South America
       Miguel Amado (9, of Juan and Ester): Cystitis.
       Flor (of Richard): Cancer; in critical condition.
       Rebeca Fe: Arthrosis.

home schooling corner
       “I am much afraid that schools will prove to be the great gates of Hell, unless they diligently labor in explaining the Holy Scriptures, engraving them in the hearts of youth. I advise no one to place his child where the Scriptures do not reign paramount. Every institution in which men are not unceasingly occupied with the Word of God must become corrupt.”-- Martin Luther
       Timothy Dwight, who was president of Yale University from 1795 to 1817, said, “To commit our children to the care of irreligious people is to commit lambs to the superintendency of wolves.”
       --from article: “Is It Time to Abandon Public Schools?” by Warren Smith, AgapePress

NEWS ARTICLE
       PARENTS BOYCOTTING PUBLIC SCHOOLS?
       A May 7, 2002, Fox News article by Wendy McElroy gave an account of an uprise of parental discontent that may affect change in American public education. Prominent radio personalities expressed to their listeners that they should take their children out of public schools.
       James Dobson, founder of the conservative Christian organization Focus on the Family, told more than five million American listeners in a March 28 broadcast of his daily radio show to “take your children out of public schools.”
       Ms. McElroy states, “The campaign against public schools snowballed April 9 when the popular radio personality Dr. Laura Schlessinger declared, 'I stand with Dr. James Dobson.' Indeed, Dr. Laura did not restrict her comments to California.
       “'Take your kids out of public schools,' she advised. The same day, in his Christian talk show Point of View--broadcast over 360 American radio stations--Marlon Maddoux added his agreement.
       “Marshall Fritz, founder of the Separation of School and State Alliance, described the power of these endorsements in an April 15 press release. SSSA has created an online Proclamation for the Separation of School and State. In the week following the broadcasts, signatures on the proclamation increased from an average of five per day to over 100. Then, on April 23, Fritz circulated an excited memo. An article in WorldNetDaily had reported on the controversy. In one day, the proclamation received over 2,500 new signatures.”
       Ms. McElroy reported that even though some public schools have threatened parents who have chosen to home school, “parents seem more likely than ever before to remove their children from 'the system.' With reports of homeschooled children outperforming those educated by government schools in national spelling bees and on some tests, parents who would never resist authority in any other area seem willing to step forward for the sake of their children's well-being.”
       There are some interesting links to follow at the website. To see the article in its entirety, go to http://click.topica.com/maaamTGaaScEPa38gExb/

CVC QnA
       Q: As silly as it may sound, I'm having difficulty trying to implement the CVC with the teens. For sure the problem comes from my inability to fully understand it, because I'm still unsure of all the steps that need to be taken, even though I read it myself and even asked questions to different people here and there. To say it briefly, I would love to see the teens getting into it, but I get so mixed up myself, I don't know how to do it! Do you have any suggestions?
       A: The simple steps to begin using the CVC program are (all page numbers refer to CVC Handbook 2000):
       1. Become familiar with what study areas are available in Step 1 (pgs.15-20).
       2. Learn about the CVC Supervisors in Step 2 (pgs.20-21).
       3. Students can do the Educational Inventory to help determine what they want to study. This is optional, but could be very helpful, especially for students who may not know what area(s) they want to concentrate on. See Step 3 (pgs.21 and 29-43).
       4. The first area for most students to concentrate on is their Junior and/or High School Diploma. To find out what is needed to get one, turn to Step 8 (pgs.25-27).
       5. Vocational certificates can be earned before, after, or at the same time as working on a High School Diploma. Except for a few cases (such as Primary and Secondary Teaching certificates), a High School Diploma is not required before receiving a vocational certificate. See Steps 4-7 and 9 (pgs.21-25, 27).
       The above five points should get you started on the program. The following FAQs (answered in the CVC Handbook, page numbers noted) will also help cover some of the questions you may find yourself asking:
       FAQ 1: Do I need to be in a certain location to attend the CVC? (pg.46)
       FAQ 2: How long does it take to complete a CVC course? (pg.46)
       FAQ 8: Can the CVC program provide all the training I need for the ministries I choose? (pg.50)
       FAQ 13: How do students prove they qualify for a CVC certificate? (pgs.52-53)
       FAQ 19: What about past vocational experience? (pg.57)
       For more information about various details of the program, please look at the rest of the FAQs, beginning on page 44.

How we started the CVC program
By Magdalene SGA, mother of four
       I want to share with you how we got the CVC course started in our Home. First I studied over the CVC book from start to finish. It took quite a bit of time, but it was exciting to go over it. Then I gave the teens a morning to read over the introduction, after which we had a meeting together to answer any questions. I then asked them to take some time to go over the courses and pick those they had the most credits earned in. In other words, where they had the most experience and would have to do the least work so that we could get some sent off right away for their inspiration's sake. I suggested that everyone choose three subjects they could get right away and two that would be more long term. We also tried to pick subjects we could work on together to make it easier on photocopying and paperwork. I was also doing the courses myself so this made it easier to see what they needed.
       One of the first courses we decided to start with was Baby Care, as everyone had the hours needed for that already, so we just had the reading list to work on. I had already read everything on this subject and just needed to review it. The teens had read many things on it as they had been working with babies already, but still needed more. We assigned evening study halls for reading time on the HomeARC and also sometimes had study hall devotions. We also read on WnR and at quiet time. We spend quite a bit of time traveling, so we would take the material with us and read it in the car, or one person would read aloud to everyone. We were all doing it together so it helped to keep us all on the ball. At the beginning we had set a deadline to be finished with our courses, so there was also some Godly jealousy involved.
       As we were taking similar courses, I had the idea to put all the reading lists on one page and then everyone used this original to make photocopies from. This is because the reading lists are often on different pages and sometimes you have to photocopy a whole page for one little list, so by the time you have finished your course you have a stack of little papers stapled together. This not only cuts down on photocopying but also some time. For some who couldn't get it together and were about to give up, handing them a page or two already laid out, helped them to get into the CVC groove.
       I would say that one key was doing it together and frequently touching base on it to keep everyone inspired about it. Also being very involved is important. I have four kids and it's not always easy to keep on top of the other four (teens, I mean, ha!) as well, but the Lord did it and we were able to send off for about 18 certificates after three months of hard work on it.
       Now we are working on the long-term ones, such as Computer Skills. We divided into teams of two to work on this to help keep us going. We have two on Computer Generated Art and two on Computer Generated Music, and we each do a couple of hours on it faithfully every WnR. So hopefully we'll be able to send in for our certificates soon.

Home schooling a key
By the Mountain Villa Home, Indonesia
       One day we were taking a walk around our neighborhood with the kids and we met some of our neighbors who we hadn't yet met. They started asking about the education of our four children, so we told them about home schooling. The man was surprised to hear that we home school our kids, as in Asia home schooling is not common or well known.
       This sweet young couple have a one-year-old daughter. They are interested in early learning, and the wife has learned about Glenn Doman's methods through the Internet, and had made her own set of math dots and flashcards. In all our many years living in Asia we've hardly met anyone that knows about these teaching methods.
       The grandfather of the little girl was so enthusiastic, not only about our home-schooling education, but also about our work. He exclaimed that he has been looking everywhere for people like us, as he is also very concerned about his little granddaughter's training. He then said, “I have been looking all over for people like you and all this time you have been my neighbors!” Shortly afterward, this young couple and their baby were at our door.--They were so eager for anything we could teach them and share with them. This dear mother has “pioneered” early learning all on her own and was so eager for input and company.
       Right away they ordered a full set of Treasure Attics as well as some Kiddie Viddies. After bringing the matter of their little girl before the Lord several times, the Lord confirmed that He did want us to try and include her in some way, and that we should try and include her in our youngest ones school time two times a week. Our simple classroom set up was lacking, but in a short time the Lord supplied everything that we needed to do a major overhaul on it.
       After bringing this dear couple their Treasure Attic set, they sent a card to our house that said, “We are grateful to the Lord Jesus who has sent you both as our daughter's teachers at just the right time. And what's more, He also has given her new friends…,” and listed the names of all our children.

Using a computer-based school program
       Look on the MO site (CC/FED section) to see Tim and Maria's response to Matt and Rose's questions (from GV #134) concerning the practicalities of using a computer-based school program with a number of children. Here's the link: <>

entertainment

Movies Rated for Senior Teens and Up
BOURNE IDENTITY, THE (2002)
       Matt Damon, Franka Potente
       After being pulled from the sea unconscious and with bullet wounds, an amnesic man tries to figure out who he is and why various people are trying to kill him. Action entertainment. (May be okay for junior teens with parental previewing and permission.)

       (Jesus:) This is a fast-paced suspense thriller, with good action, good acting, and an interesting plot. Like most films of the action genre, it has its share of violence and foul language. It's an older movie redone, and done well. It's not an exceptionally deep film as far as character study or development.
       It gives the viewer a pretty realistic idea of how quickly and easily government and intelligence bodies can track and pinpoint an individual's location, even those who are the “Gypsy” types with no credit or work history, living outside of the System for all intents and purposes. This is a good security primer for the days ahead when the AC government is in place and will be searching for My children.
       It gives a glimpse of what goes on behind the scenes in the inner echelons of the government agencies--the secret projects they're working on and how they manipulate people to their own ends. Yet all they do is justified in the name of patriotism and national defense and national pride.
       There's a fair bit of violence, so it would be up to parents' discretion whether they would allow a junior teen to view this movie.

MEGGIDO: OMEGA CODE 2 (2001)
       Michael York, Michael Biehn
       Thriller about the Antichrist, his rise to the head of the New World Order, and his struggles to crush the last pockets of pious resistance on Earth so he can begin the Apocalypse.

       (Dad:) The most interesting thing to me about this obviously Endtime-oriented movie was how it portrayed the media as being a tool of the Antichrist. He was pretty smart. When it was time for him to start making his move, he knew he had to get control of the media, and he did. He used the media to prepare the hearts of the people and turn them to him. He used flattery and lying vanities to manipulate the masses. He created the problems in order to be able to come in with his solutions.
       It showed that there are going to be those who are willing to take the stand against the AC and his false prophet. God bless the AACs and those who are going to refuse to fall under the Antichrist's spell.
       I wouldn't say it is the greatest movie, and it didn't have nearly as much message as it could have, and some of it was a little improbable, and not too close to how things are going to be. But I understand the difficulties they must have faced as they were trying to make such a movie. They obviously wanted it to have a message and get people to think about the Endtime and to be able to recognize the signs of the Antichrist's rise to power when it happens; and yet they also had to try to make it interesting and sellable. So, God bless'm for trying. The movie is okay as long as no one goes into it hoping to get a class on eschatology.

Movies Rated for Junior Teens and Up
AN EVERLASTING PIECE (2000)
       Barry McEvoy, Brian F. O'Byrne
       Comedy. Two men, one Catholic, the other Protestant, team up to try to get a monopoly on selling hairpieces in Northern Ireland during the 1980s.

       (Dad:) This is an interesting movie and a look into a time and a society that most movies don't enter. It's a satire, British/Irish humor, that pokes fun at the sectarian violence and politics of Northern Ireland between the Protestants and Catholics. It takes place in the '80s, when the “troubles” between these factions was raging heavily. It does have a message in that the main characters, one a Protestant and the other a Catholic, find that their friendship and partnership in a rather bizarre business venture is more important than the sectarian division their society is involved in.
       The movie gives you a feeling for what it is like to live in a divided country with so much hatred between fellow citizens. Humor is used to show how ludicrous the whole state of affairs is. There is a lot of foul language.

HIGH NOON (2000)
       Tom Skeritt, Susanna Thompson
       The classic western is updated in this made-for-TV version. Newly married, the marshal hero finds that his archenemy has been pardoned, and he's on his way to the town to exact his revenge.

       (Dad:) This is not your normal shoot-'em-up western; in fact, there's not much shooting in the movie at all, until near the end. This is a character study and it has some good lessons. The hero is a man of principles. In many ways, you can find this a parallel to trying to recruit disciples for the Family, or even like Jesus calling His disciples. Many have their reasoning and excuses why they can't do what is being asked of them.
       The whole movie takes place in a little over an hour in time, in one town, and is about one incident, but it keeps your interest with all the characters you meet during that time, while it builds the story of this man's dedication to his job.
       Fortunately, you in the Family have each other's support in your righteous cause, whereas this man had to go it on his own. This in itself is a good lesson on being willing to do what is right, even if almost everyone else is against you. Many would find this story inspiring and worth the time to watch.

Movies Rated for MCs and Up
MVP2: MOST VERTICAL PRIMATE (2002)
       Cam Bancroft, Richard Karn, Scott Goodman
       In this sequel to MVP: Most Valuable Primate, Jack the chimp finds himself back on the ice after being drafted for the ZHL hockey league. After being unjustly condemned for biting an opponent, the monkey winds up alone in the city until he's befriended by a runaway boy.

       (Jesus:) This movie is fine for kids to see. It does need a little pow-wowing though. An adult should watch this movie with the kids, as there are some things that should be explained--especially about the kid who has run away from home. Kids should understand that when things go wrong at home, the solution is not running away, and that if you run away, you won't find a cool, independent life where you can make money, hang around and have fun, and then everything will turn out great in the end.
       There is sports violence in the hockey, which should be skipped for young children, as little boys especially could easily pick up on this rough behavior.
       The story is way out there and unrealistic, but on the other hand it is a sweet story with a happy ending. If you explain to the kids that it's a “just for fun” thing, it should be okay for the most part. There are sweet lessons about having determination to reach your goals and not giving up. It also shows that if you show love, or try to reach out to someone, then you will be shown love in return.

Movies Rated for All
SPIRIT: STALLION OF THE CIMARRON (2002)
       Animated, voices of Matt Damon and James Cromwell
       An animated tale of the old wild west, when stallions ran free, following Spirit, a mustang stallion, from birth to adulthood.

       (Jesus:) This is a sweet and touching animation, a rare jewel in today's movies for kids. It has a good message and doesn't have the usual violence and evil characters so predominant in movies today. It's a movie that's fine for all ages.
       When viewing with younger audiences, parents should be aware to explain certain things to their children--such as the “breaking” of the horse, and that that's how they train horses, etc. No one is really mean to the horse or does anything bad to him, but it might seem this way to the little ones. Explain that this is how horses are trained and that if people want to ride on horses, they have to tame them first so they don't kick them off.
       This is a movie the whole family can enjoy. It's got beautiful scenery and glorifies the beauty of My creation. It glorifies Me and the freedom I gave to begin with upon the earth, and the way it will be again some day. It's a refreshing change from the normal fare of cartoons with adult humor that have flooded the market in recent years.

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