Dear Brethren and Co-Workers in Christ:
Greetings from Grover Beach, California.
Today, we were hit with something that has affected the COGwriter.com website. I contacted some to assist with this.
As Paul and Barnabas once said in Acts 14:22: “We must through many tribulations enter the kingdom of God.”
Hopefully, the COGwriter.com related links in this Letter will be working soon.
On other matters, we continue to update literature, and our prayer booklet has now been updated online and should also be soon ready for our printer.
One of the reasons I recently gave a two-part sermon on prayer was because we were updating that book. Here is a link to our updated eBook version: Prayer: What Does the Bible Teach?
Feast of Tabernacles for 2026
The Feast of Tabernacles pictures a culminating event in God’s plan. Church services for the Feast in 2026 are to begin the evening of September 25th and run (including the Last Great Day) until sunset October 3rd.
Last week, we announced the Canadian site, which is to be in London Ontario. We previously announced that the USA site would be in Branson, Missouri.
This week, we received the following list from evangelist Evans Ochieng:
Pastor Dr Bob,
Greetings from Kenya.
Here are feast sites in Kenya this year.
Ndhiwa
Got kachola
Kisii
Daktech
Chilani
Bomet
Ngaroni
Mau
Njoro
Molo
Kromuok
Chebunyo
In Malawi
Njenjete
Migowi
Mwanza
Cheleka
Mulanje
Salima
Chikwawa
In Mozambique
Duya
Nasiaya
Damasiko
In Ethiopia
Gambella
In Burundi
One site
In Congo
One site
In Tanzania
One site
Rwanda and Uganda will come to Kenya.
Ghana …
Evans .
Here is a report from Rwanda from Moise Nshimiyimana:
Dear Pastor and Overseer Dr Bob ,
Greetings from brethren of Rwanda and Congo .
Dear Pastor , the work is continuing online . In particular , I often receive phone calls from in different areas here in Rwanda especially from people of Seventh day Adventist Reform Movement Church , for that I am planning to visit them .
Again , with brothers and sisters from Rwanda and Congo , we were pleased that , God willing , we all of us , those who are able to meet the requirements will go to Kenya to keep the Feast of Tabernacles …
Best Regards ,
Moïse .
Deacon Koang Deng earlier sent the following emails:
Dear Elders,
Our brethren lives in camp start to build a praying hall in camp.
This hall will be a praying place for them and also for the coming Feast of Tabernacles.
And we all do plan that, the feasts will be celebrate together in that camp.
Please, pray for our brethren and families
Thanks,
Koang
Dear Elder,
The camp is now in Gambella city but it was settled in a district outside of Gambella city.
One full day trable by car.
Thanks for this reply.
Koang
The camp is now settled in the land of Matar, One district of Gambella Region.
Koang
Gambella is in Ethiopia. The above site is expected to have brethren from both Ethiopia and South Sudan.
The Ethiopians and South Sudanese are quite poor and there can be health risks here (as well as anywhere in Africa we have sites). If you want to go, please contact Evans Ochieng, email evochieng74@gmail.com or Koang Deng koangdeng5@gmail.com; Koang Deng lives in Ethiopia.
For a listing of planned and expected sites, check out the following link: Feast of Tabernacles’ Sites for 2026.
Food Price Inflation
Evangelist Evans Ochieng sent the following in an email:
Pastor Dr Bob,
Greetings from Kenya.
The price of cereals are rising up since the harvest was not good due to much rainfall. So price has started shooting up. Meaning in September it’s going to be more higher than its now. You can remember last year you gave us some little part of feast of Tabernacles funds we took maize and other things earlier which help us so much that even if the shooted up, we had already had some food staff in stock. The same thing we want to do now if you can get to us part of feast site funds for preparation to put the serials in stock, can help us so much.
If we can get {funds} so that we can take food staff now that will help us so much.
Since they war in Iran started, things are not ok. The fuel price has gone up highly. So things are not good in Kenya. Peoples starving.
Evans
Jesus’ half-brother James taught:
14 What does it profit, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can faith save him? 15 If a brother or sister is naked and destitute of daily food, 16 and one of you says to them, “Depart in peace, be warmed and filled,” but you do not give them the things which are needed for the body, what does it profit? 17 Thus also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead. (James 2:14-17)
We were able to provide some assistance, but we do not have the funds to fulfill all the requests we receive from Africa.
Yet, instead of saying no, we provided what we could. Remember that the Bible teaches us:
27 Do not withhold good from those to whom it is due, When it is in the power of your hand to do so. (Proverbs 3:27)
10 … we should remember the poor (Galatians 2:10)
Please pray, as Jesus said, for more laborers for the harvest (Matthew 9:38).
Suggested Sabbath Services
Here is a suggested Sabbath day service for our scattered brethren and other interested people for this Sabbath service:
- 2-3 hymns (our songbook, The Bible Hymnal, contains the materials from the 1974 Bible Hymnal from the old WCG with new covers, plus ten additional hymns; there is also some Choral Accompaniment online).
- Opening prayer.
- Sermonette: Can the Jews Build the Holy Temple? Other sermonettes are available at our Prophecy channel on BitChute https://www.bitchute.com/channel/prophecy/
- Announcements (if any; though for many it will be this letter) and one hymn.
- The suggested sermon is: 1 John 1-3: Love and Sin. Other sermons are also available at the COGTube channel on BitChute https://www.bitchute.com/channel/cogtube/
- Final hymn.
- Closing prayer.
Note: If you have a slow internet connection, you can watch these by starting the video, then below it (and towards the right) look for an outline of a gear–if you click on that, it will allow the YouTube video to be played with lower video quality, but at least it will not stop often–you can select a quality as low as 144p. If your internet connection is still too slow (as my home one is) and/or you prefer audio messages to audio-visuals ones, go to the YouTube link for the message, click on SHOW MORE related to the description. You will then see something that says, “Download MP3.” Below that is a link to an MP3 file. Most computers (and even some cellular telephones) will allow MP3 files to be downloaded and played. This is an option we have made available (but we are also looking into ways to improve that as well)–and, of course, we have written article options. Some people have found that if their internet connections are not fast enough, that they can simply listen to the messages that are found at the Bible News Prophecy online radio channel.
IN CASE YOU DO NOT RECEIVE A ‘LETTER TO THE BRETHREN’ FOR ANY WEEK, REMEMBER THAT THERE ARE MANY SERMON MESSAGES ON THE ContinuingCOG channel AND MANY SERMONETTE MESSAGES ON THE Bible News Prophecy channel. There are also some messages at the CCOGAfrica channel. There are also messages in the Spanish language at the CDLIDDSermones channel.
World News Items
There have been additional reports about the Mecca Defense Alliance, such as Turkey expects Egypt to join. The old Radio Church of God pointed to an Egyptian as being the final King of the South on Daniel 11 (see Egypt, the possible home of the King of the South, is expected to join the Mecca Defense Alliance)–and that may well be.
Many in the nation of Israel are concerned about this Mecca Alliance and prophecies such as in the 83rd Psalm point to a confederation of nations in that region who will be bent on destroying Israel (see ‘Is the Mecca Agreement Israel’s worst nightmare come true?’ Muslim NATO? Psalm 83?).
While we have seen many events that look to be laying the groundwork for the coming King of the North, we are now seeing more steps that look to be setting up for the arrival of the King of the South.
Both “Kings” need to be somewhat in place before Jesus returns as well as prior to the start of the Great Tribulation.
Over in Russia, a banker has announced that Russia has a financial system in place that bypasses the USA-dominated SWIFT money transfer system as well as technically bypasses sanctions. In past sermonette videos, we warned that there would be a cost to USA sanctions (watch US Sanctions and Tariffs leading to New World Order? and Russia, Sanctions, Transnistria, Europe & Prophecy) and that the SWIFT system would be affected (watch SWIFT end to the US dollar?). Russia and others have been chipping away at US dollar dominance and putting systems in place to bypass the US dollar. Eventually, the US dollar will not be worth any more than the cotton-paper it is written on.
Concluding Comments
Earlier in this Letter, I quoted part of the Book of Galatians, here is some of that again, plus more that the Apostle Paul wrote:
9 when James, Cephas, and John, who seemed to be pillars, perceived the grace that had been given to me, they gave me and Barnabas the right hand of fellowship, that we should go to the Gentiles and they to the circumcised. 10 They desired only that we should remember the poor, the very thing which I also was eager to do. (Galatians 2:9-10)
6 Let him who is taught the word share in all good things with him who teaches.
7 Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap. 8 For he who sows to his flesh will of the flesh reap corruption, but he who sows to the Spirit will of the Spirit reap everlasting life. 9 And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart. 10 Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all, especially to those who are of the household of faith. (Galatians 6:6-10)
Paul said he was eager to support the poor.
Brethren, hopefully you have the same attitude.
If not, this is the time to change.
Sincerely,
Bob Thiel
Pastor and Overseer