Facing the Future With Confidence
In the face of widespread economic strain, national conflicts, and social unrest, surveys indicate that confidence in the future is at an all-time low in many countries, including the United States. According to the 2023 Edelman Trust Barometer, 24 of the 28 countries surveyed are seeing “all-time lows in the number of people who think their families will be better off in five years.”
Against this backdrop of pessimism, a special global program featuring the theme, “You Can Face the Future With Confidence!” will be held on the weekend of April 1–2, 2023. The free 30-minute presentation will be hosted at local Kingdom Halls of Jehovah’s Witnesses, with a videoconferencing option available. Please check the “Attend a Meeting” section on the homepage of jw.org for local addresses and meeting times.
“The practical value of the Bible can be seen in a real hope for the future. That hope can also help us right now during these unsettling times,” said James Gianopoulos, spokesman for Jehovah’s Witnesses. “This global program is designed to give all those attending real reasons to face the future with optimism.”
Bella Valadez, of Benbrook, Texas, was devastated after suffering multiple strokes that left her with permanent disabilities in 2016. When she began to study the Bible, however, she gradually started to see her situation from a different perspective. “My outlook changed from hopeless to hopeful,” said Valadez, who is looking forward to attending the upcoming special program. “Most times I forget about my disability.”
The special talk is the first of two free programs that will be held in all 118,000 congregations of Jehovah’s Witnesses during the first week of April. The public is also invited to join nearly 20 million other global attenders for the annual observance of the Memorial of Jesus Christ’s death, to be held on the evening of Tuesday, April 4, 2023.
Admission to both programs is free, and no registration is required. Details on when and where these events will be held locally are available on jw.org, the official website of Jehovah’s Witnesses.
