In 1972, he began attending Ambassador College in Bricket Wood, England, which was one of three colleges that was established by Herbert W. Armstrong, the apostle to God’s Church. Then in 1974, he transferred to Ambassador College in Texas and graduated in May of 1975 with a degree in Theology.
He married Laura Short, whom he met at Ambassador College, and they moved to Houston, Texas, where they lived for several years, and it was there that Ronald Weinland was first ordained on Passover of 1981. Then, a year later in 1982, he was asked to become part of the full time ministry of the Worldwide Church of God. In the middle of 1994, after serving in different locations in the ministry, Ronald and Laura, along with their two children, were transferred to pastor the churches in Toledo and Findlay, Ohio.
Mr. Armstrong died in January of 1986. After his death, Joseph W. Tkach, Sr. rose to the position of replacing Mr. Armstrong as the one who would lead the Worldwide Church of God, even though he was not an apostle. By December of 1994, the same year Ronald and his family had relocated to Toledo, Ohio, Joseph W. Tkach, Sr. gave a sermon in Atlanta, Georgia, where he set out to change every major doctrine of God’s Church. It was on that day that the beginning of the Apostasy (great falling away from the truth) that was foretold by Paul occurred.
After that event, only one-third of the Church tried to hold to the truths God had delivered to them through Herbert W. Armstrong. That third consisted of approximately 31,000 baptized members who then became scattered and gradually split apart into over 600 different organizations. Another third went back to false religious practices God had originally called them out of, while the rest simply gave up on religious practice altogether.
Satan was allowed to attack God’s own Church that had become spiritually lukewarm after Mr. Armstrong’s death, and as God prophetically stated He would do, He spewed the Church out of His mouth. The Apostasy became the means through which God separated the Church from Himself and began to cleanse it. God cleansed those in His Church who would humble themselves and repent of the spirit of pride and lethargy that had led to the Church becoming lukewarm. Some began to repent immediately, and God then began gathering a remnant from all those who had been scattered in order to strengthen, mold, and fashion a people who would be made ready for Christ’s second coming. After all the destruction, confusion, and growing opposition that was developing in doctrine among all who had become scattered after that Apostasy, God worked to fully reestablish His Church by Pentecost of 1998. God did so through a small group who then took on the name describing what God was going to accomplish within them—the Church of God – Preparing for the Kingdom of God.
God made Ronald Weinland both an apostle and prophet in order to fulfill a commission He would give to him as the counterpart to John who wrote the Book of Revelation. John did not understand what he had written, as that was not given to him, since what he had written was not for his time period, but instead, was for the end-time. It is for this reason that God raised up a prophet at the end who would be the counterpart to John and who would be used to reveal to the Church and the world what God had given to John to record. John and Ronald are the only two whom God made both apostles and prophets.
God’s purpose for mankind is for all to have the potential to become part of His Family. Therefore, God is once again emphasizing the importance of family just as He has at other times throughout the past 6,000 years through those with whom He has worked. So God is now working through Ronald and his wife, Laura, to be His two end-time witnesses written about in Revelation 11 who appear on the scene at the very end of the end-time.
As part of God’s purpose to emphasize the importance of family, He has also prepared and placed both of their children into important areas of service within His Church. Their daughter, Audra, has been ordained a prophet, even as Deborah was a prophet in the time of the Judges of Israel, and she has been placed to serve over the Church in the U.K., Ireland, and continental Europe. Their son, Jeremy, has been ordained to serve as an evangelist to God’s Church.
As with so many whom God has called as prophets and apostles, most all have been imprisoned and/or killed by the governments of this world. Although some history has different accounts, it is believed that all the original disciples who became God’s apostles, including Paul, were all imprisoned and killed, except for John. John was imprisoned on the Isle of Patmos by the Roman government, and it is there that he was given the Book of Revelation to write.
In like manner, and as his counterpart, Ronald Weinland was falsely imprisoned by the government of the United States for evading to pay taxes. Some of that is covered in the other bios. However, very soon now, the truth about what occurred is going to be clearly revealed. For God’s end-time prophets, God reveals there will be great power that He is going to give to both of these witnesses. God has purposed for them to become directly engaged in administering much of the correction and humbling that must take place in this world, and also within the Church that was scattered, before God sends His Son to take over the governments of this world and reign over every nation.
Just as John was in prison when given the Book of Revelation to write, God has given Ronald to write a third and final book that is entitled, Prophesy Against the Nations. This book reveals more fully why at least half the world’s population will die before Christ returns. It also reveals, however, that it is in the hands of people and nations whether an even vastly larger number of people will die in this final end-time or if hundreds of millions can be saved when catastrophic physical tribulation strikes the earth, along with a third world war that will eventually lead into a full scale nuclear war. God has directed this revelation to be sent out to the world. In addition, God has also revealed that nearly 63,000 people from the environs of the Church that was scattered can potentially be saved to live into the Millennium. It is also revealed why a much smaller number than this may survive.
The Church of God - Preparing for the Kingdom of God