Information Related to "Can You Know What Lies Ahead?"
| Audio/Video |
Can You Know What Lies Ahead?
We greet the dawn of a new year with
excitement and enthusiasm. A new year brings new opportunities, an occasion for a
fresh start. We imagine all sorts of new possibilities.
This year, 1999, brings a special tinge of anticipation as we count down to midnight
on Dec. 31, 2000, which will mark the end not only of century but
a millennium. Only a tiny fraction of humanity has ever heard the clock strike that
magical moment that separates any one 1,000-year period from the next.
The start of a new year is a time for reflection, for considering where we have come
from, where we are and where we are going. So what lies ahead for us?
Much of The Good News is devoted to newsñespecially significant news events and articles
about world conditions. But there's more to the magazine than just that. We like
to think of The Good News as a news magazine with
a difference.
Many magazines and newspapers report the news. Many do an admirable job of keeping
us informed of events in far-off corners of the world. But few if any of them explain
why these events occur. They have no basis for explaining why certain things come
to pass or why some conditions never seem to change
in spite of our best efforts to find solutions.
In spite of our ingenuity, we human beings are frustratingly incapable of solving
some of our most basic problems: our inability to get along with one another; the
seeming impossibility of erasing poverty and hunger; our governments and leaders
focused on preserving and expanding their own power rather than empowering their
citizens to better their lives; the gap between
the haves and the have-nots.
Writers, editors and publishers have their sources to help them make sense of events
in the news. So have we at The Good News. We have a primary source. Although our
source has never been proven wrong, most people remain suspicious of or flatly reject
the source of most of our knowledge. Most writers, editors and publishers pay no
attention at all to our source. As a result, although they can tell you the who,
what, when, where and how of the news, they cannot tell you why.
Our source explains the why of world events. We relay that information
on to you.
The main source for The Good News is the Bible. The articles in The Good News, including
our regular news features "Behind the Headlines" and ìWorld News and Trends,î are
written from the perspective of God's Word. That scriptural understanding of God's
purpose and plan for mankind, and His working out of that plan on earth, gives us
the edge in explaining why our world faces the many problems that threaten our peace
and safety.
What will the next centuryñand the next millenniumñbring? Will it be a time of peril,
or will it be a time of man-made paradise? There are at present several ways in which
human and animal life could be extinguished.
Without the knowledge provided by study and understanding of God's Word, we could
never know in advance whether our planet is destined to be
a smoking, lifeless cinder hurtling through space or a long-awaited utopia,
a shining, light-filled time beyond our imagination.
We can understand where this world is headedñand why. We can understand the factors
that influence events around us. But it takes something that we do not have on our
own. Psalm 9:10 explains what we need: "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of
wisdom; a good understanding have all those who do His commandments."
Continue reading The Good News to gain this understanding we so
desperately need.
ñScott Ashley
© 1999-2022 United Church of God, an International Association
Related Information:
Table of Contents that includes "Can You Know What Lies Ahead?"
Other Articles by Scott Ashley
Origin of article "Can You Know What Lies Ahead?"
Keywords: Bible prophecy
Bible prophecy: