Roy Holladay Leslie L. McCullough
Chairman President

Dear Ministers and Brethren,

The Council of Elders will soon be gathering at the Home Office in Cincinnati, Ohio to conduct its next face-to-face meetings. We will have committee meetings on Monday and Tuesday, February 25 and 26. Council meetings will begin on Wednesday, February 27 and run through noon Tuesday, March 5. As usual, a number of Council members will travel to various congregations in the area to speak on the Sabbath. We will also conduct a full day of meetings on Sunday.

As I wrote you at the beginning of the month, your prayers and fasting for these meetings are essential to their success. The agenda of the Council meetings is included with this letter to aid you in praying for them. Please ask God to guide these meetings and to grant us, as a collective body, the wisdom to make appropriate decisions. As David wrote in Psalm 127:1: "Unless the Lord builds the house, they labor in vain who build it." We need your help through prayer in all that we do and thank you in advance for your concern.

There are many important issues that the Council will be considering. We will be approving the Strategic Plan, the Operation Plan, the 2002–2003 budget, as well as the selection of the president. I am sure all of us can appreciate that we always can find more ways to spend money that we actually have available. We have to make difficult decisions -- sometimes curtailing one area, for growth in another. God's direction is certainly needed to make wise decisions for the long-term effectiveness of the Work.

Another major item on the Council's agenda is the upcoming Annual Meeting of the General Conference of Elders (May 2002). The theme for this year's GCE meeting is "Equipping the Saints, Edifying the Body." The Council will be discussing presenters and presentations that will help the ministry to better serve the brethren. During its meetings, the Council will also focus on doctrine, committees of the Council interfacing with operations, and reports from two international areas.

You will once again be receiving regular reports about the Council meetings from Doug Johnson. We again want to express our appreciation to him for his fine work, as well as to the several Council members who help refine and edit these reports. Council reports are normally available in local congregations on the Sabbath, and they are always available on United's Web site.

It is an honor and a privilege to serve God and His people. Thank you always for your prayerful support.