Home Office Weekly Update

Ambassador Bible College Welcomes Class of 2026

This week a new group of students gathered at the home office for a new academic year at Ambassador Bible College (ABC). This is always an exciting time. New friendships begin, new opportunities arise, and a deep dive into God’s Word begins.

This year the ABC class consists of 16 students, with an even mix of men and women. They come from across the U.S. and around the world. Two are from Canada, one from Mexico and one from Trinidad. Some students have just finished high school, others have attended college, and a few are mature adults bringing their life experience into the classroom.

Over the years it has become apparent that God brings together exactly the group of students He wants to have at ABC each time. Together they all devote considerable time and energy to studying the Bible—learning its meaning, context and application to daily life. But also significant is the impact the students have on each other. They face challenges together, they learn to trust and rely on each other, and often achieve remarkable things they couldn't have done alone.

The students of ABC don't just impact each other, they also have a profound impact upon the faculty. Each year we on the faculty come to know them personally. We grow to love them. And then, all too soon, the school year ends and they move on. But this cycle is part of what strengthens the Church of God.

Students come to ABC for more than just information. Our Mission Statement says, “It is intended that those who receive these teachings will be better equipped to explain the precious understanding of God’s truth to others.” It also says ABC’s purpose is, “to equip disciples of Jesus Christ for a life of faithfulness and godly service.” We know that many graduates of ABC have have gone on to do exactly that, and expect that many more will. That is our hope and our goal for this new group of students who have just begun this journey.

So, with anticipation, we welcome the ABC class of 2026 to the home office!

—Frank Dunkle, Ambassador Bible College Coordinator and Director of Admissions

From Ministerial and Member Services...

Sermon to Play in All Congregations

We are recommending that John Elliott's sermon, “Control Your Future” given on August 9, be played in all of our congregations in the next week or two. You can find it online at: ucg.org/sermons/control-your-future.

At this page you can download MP4 video at either 1080p, 720p or low quality, and also the audio-only version.

—Steve Myers, Operation Manager, Ministerial and Member Services

Results of Russian Booklet Advertising

Two of our Russian booklets are being advertised on Google. For the past 12 months, here are the results:

• “Jesus Christ the Real Story” has been active since December 2024. It has had over 1.7 million ad impressions with over 28,000 clicks that turned into 4,200 downloads of the booklet from the Russian website.
• “What Happens After Death” has been advertised since May 2023. It has had over 15 million ad impressions with over 330,000 clicks leading people to the Russian website where over 10,200 copies of the booklet have been downloaded.

These two booklets have been downloaded from the Russian website to 39 different countries over the past year. Here are the countries that have downloaded the most brochures: Ukraine, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Moldova, Russia.

In addition, we found that our Russian brochures were of interest to people in some regions that we would not normally associate with the expected Russian audience, such United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Indonesia, China, South Korea, France, Spain and Israel.

We appreciate your prayers for this and all aspects of our work to preach the gospel of God’s Kingdom!

—Natallia Teague, Managing Editor, Russian Work

Jelly's Big Bible Bowl!

Jelly and his friends face off in a high-stakes battle of Bible trivia! This isn’t your average game show—it’s a faith-filled, laugh-out-loud, edge-of-your-seat experience for the whole family.

This episode is packed with puppets and powerful truths about Jesus. Kids will walk away knowing who The Word really was, where “Jesus” appears in the Old Testament, and that He’s the only true foundation we can build our lives upon!

Watch as Scripture comes to life with fun, music and a surprise twist no one saw coming! Watch Jelly’s Big Bible Bowl—our biggest episode yet!

We also have an interactive family study guide to go along with this video that can be found on the UCG.orglanding page at ucg.org/members/kids/jelly/jellys-big-bible-bowl. The direct YouTube link is youtu.be/LyX7HX90LVI.

—Jamie Schreiber, Video Production Supervisor | Special Assignment Producer

Camp Jamaica 2025

After a ten-year hiatus, Camp Jamaica was a reality for our teens again! Eight campers ages 13 to 17 and seven full-time volunteer staff gathered at Shortwood Primary School in Kingston, Jamaica from Aug. 10-15 for an experience of fun, spiritual enrichment and bonding based on the theme, “Building on the Foundation.”

Every morning we were up at 5 a.m. to stretch in the cool (78°F) of the morning. As the sun rose at 5:30 a.m. we had Christian Living classes prepared by the staff to share elements of “The Zone.” Then it was time to prepare breakfast, like ackee and saltfish, baked beans and fried plantain!

Activities during the day included volleyball, team challenges, archery, learning a choreographed dance routine (to be performed at the Feast), football (soccer), swimming pool time and downtime to rest. Football was a highlight, supervised by Trinidad church member Annan Ramnanansingh, a highly respected national championship coach.

After dinner, Jeff Lockhart led interactive discussions about each step of the theme: Blueprint, Cornerstone, Living Stones, Spiritual Tools and Built on the Rock. At the first session each camper was given a piece of graph paper to design a “blueprint” for his future. Each evening campers added two to three scriptures (to the 2”x2” squares within a large rectangle), like John 3:16-17, 1 John 3:2-3, Isaiah 28:16, 1 Peter 2:5, 2 Timothy 3:14-15, Matthew 7:24-25 and more, to have key memory verses all in one place.

Camp started out with a fun “BINGO” icebreaker where campers and counselors learned interesting facts about each other, and before we knew it, it was time for the closing ceremony participation awards!

A big thank you to Mrs. Sonia Davis (Camp Director), the Kingston congregation volunteers, the Ocho Rios young adult counselors, the Lockharts and Annan who traveled in, and those who gave financially to make this camp possible. We appreciated the camper and staff shirts donated by the Dallas-Fort Worth, Texas and Lawton, Oklahoma members and Camp Woodland!

—Jeff and Alisa Lockhart

REMINDER: Salem, Oregon—70th Anniversary

The Salem, Oregon congregation cordially invites you to join them on Sept. 13, 2025 to commemorate 70 years of Faith, Hope and Love.

Sabbath services will be held at Meadowridge Elementary in Albany, Oregon at 2 p.m. Following the Sabbath we’ll have a potluck meal with hamburgers, hot dogs and all the fixings provided. Please plan to bring a side, dessert or drink to accompany the meal. Later that evening we’ll dance the night away together through the decades with a mix of music from the 50s, 60s, 70s, 80s, 90s and the 2000s. There will be a space for those who wish to fellowship, play games together and enjoy the dance mix from afar.

We will be joined by the former assistant pastor of the Salem congregation, Rex Sexton, who will provide the sermon, and we look forward to spending the day with past and current members of the congregation, remembering, reminiscing and looking forward to the future of the work of God in this part of the world.

If you have any questions, please reach out to Benjamin Light at ben_light@ucg.org.