The Kubik Report

Year-end Charitable Giving. Things You May Not Know -- with Howard Marchbanks

Discussion with Howard Marchbanks, Certified Financial Planner and I talk about Year-end Charitable Giving. There are several things that you may not be aware of that could help you and a charity. Howard is also a UCG elder living in Santa Ana, California.
Signs of trusted charities
Charity rating services
Leverage what you give
Donor-advised funds
Giving appreciated stocks
Matching campaigns
Legacy and estate gifts
Lessons from giving
Documents referred to in this podcast in downloadable PDF
Income Tax Charitable Deduction
Qualified Charitable Distributions (QCD)

Sabbath is a 3-way sign, Charlie Kirk: Ken Murray

Human beings were designed to have a day off to function.  Ken Murray takes us back to creation of the Sabbath which is revealed in Genesis 1.  The 7-day week is universal.  We also touch on the life of Charlie Kirk and his discovering the Sabbath as vital to keep from being burned out.  

Religion Gaining Significant Influence in America: Mark Kellner

Mark Kellner and I discuss his October 24, 2025, article in The Epoch Times where he states that more "Americans now say religion is gaining influence in national life than at any point in the past 15 years," which comes from a Pew Research Center report on October 20, 2025.
Mark and I have been friends for 30 years and have discussed many topics related to faith and the Churches of God.  He is a well-known author and a great person to talk to.  This is our third podcast.  
Career highlights
Kellner began writing about issues of faith and freedom in 1983.  
From March 11, 1991, to January 18, 2014, he wrote some 1,200 weekly—and for about 18 months, semi-weekly—technology columns for The Washington Times.  
He authored a religion-news column for The Washington Times titled “Higher Ground,” which debuted January 25, 2013.  
From February 2014 to September 2015, he served as national reporter for the Deseret News in Salt Lake City.  
From 2021-2024, Kellner was a national “Faith & Family” reporter for The Washington Times.  
He is now based in Mesquite, Nevada. 
Areas of focus & contributions
Kellner has covered technology topics (especially earlier in his career) and later moved strongly into religion, faith institutions, family issues, religious liberty, and cultural trends.  
He has also contributed to other outlets such as Religion News Service, Christianity Today, and various magazines/newspapers.  1
Kellner is a philatelist (stamp collector) and is a member of philatelic societies including the Royal Philatelic Society London, the Collectors Club of New York, and a life member of the American Philatelic Society.  
Notable publications
He is the author of God on the Internet.  
He also wrote a book in the “For Dummies®” series (about WordPerfect or other software) during his technology-writing era. 
Significance in journalism
Kellner’s career reflects a breadth of reporting: from technology journalism to deep engagement with faith and family issues in the public square.
His long tenure at The Washington Times (both in tech and faith reporting) gives him significant institutional memory in those realms.
Because of his religion and family-focus work, his writing often intersects with cultural, social and values-based dimensions of journalism.
Current status
As of his website update (2024–25), Kellner remains a freelance journalist available for assignments and has experience covering swing-state elections (for the New York Post in Nevada). 
He continues to maintain his portfolio of stories on faith, family, culture and technology.
 

What Happened After We Left WCG? Guy Swenson

Guy Swenson was my assistant at the Worldwide Church of God for the last two years. We reminisce 30 years later.  It was a painful time that tore apart many relationships and tested faith not from the outside, but from within,

Scott Ashley: Peace! Peace? Hostages released. Thoughts 2 year later

Scott Ashley and I talk about the release of the hostages in Gaza on the day before the Last Great Day.  Scott reminisces about being in Israel when the hostages were taken, a mere 50 miles away.
Scott speaks about long-term peace projection for the Middle East and the world.  
See the earlier podcast done a few days after the hostages were taken.
https://vkubik.podbean.com/e/scott-ashley-return-from-israel-and-witnessing-the-hamas-attack/
 

Estonia part 2: Taxi cab evangelism, the Russians are (very) close and more.

After doing the first podcast about Estonia a few days ago, I thought of a few more things.  Give a listen to this 9 minute microcast. 

With Greg Dullum: Sabbath Scoop; The Widows Might

Greg Dullum and I have known each other for 60 years going back to Minneapolis/St. Paul days of old.  We discuss his continuous newsletter Sabbath Scoop that he has produced in all this time.  Also we discuss his recent article "The Widows Might."  
Greg is an elder in the United Church of God serving in Cape Girardeau, Missouri and can be reached at greg.dullum@yahoo.com.

Vic Kubik: Estonia Feast 2025 -- What We Saw and What We Did

These are my personal observations from my 60th Feast of Tabernacles.  This one was in Estonia, a country between Russia, the Baltic Sea, and the Nordic countries.  70 of us had a wonderful experience the first two weeks of October 2025.  

Ken Murray: The Philemon Principle

Ken Murray and I discuss one of the shortest letters in the Bible, which gives us a wealth of advice about relationships and reconciliation that we could all benefit from. 
Download notes about this podcast

Victor Kubik: From Trumpets to the Day of Atonement - the 10 days of Awe.

The ten days between the Feast of Trumpets and the Day of Atonement are called the Days of Awe.  Also known as the Days of Repentance.  The fast day of Atonement is considered the most sacred day among many Jews.  
Five years ago almost exactly I gave a sermon on the Day of Atonement in Cincinnati, Ohio about our visit to an event in Washington D.C. known as The Return which featured Jonathan Cahn who spoke along with many others about the need for our nation to return to God. 
See full video version on YouTube at https://youtu.be/p4mS8qfQOxE
 

Kurt Hoyer: First Extrabiblical Evidence of Isaiah Found....and much more

My third podcast with Kurt Hoyer about his archeological work in Israel.  The first extra biblical links to the book of Isaiah have been found. 
We talk about Scarabs Seals and Bullae.  Seals are the objects, often rings used to mark a document with the ancient equivalent of a signature, scarabs, can be seals but are usually carved in the shape of a scarab beetle. Scarabs also have names of powerful Egyptian kings on them and were used for good luck charms. (Not really going to talk about scarabs much) Bullae are small dabs of clay that were used to seal documents and other things. They have the impression of the seal on them. 
Why care?  Seals and bullae give us attestation of the names of biblical figures. Most recently an official from the court of Josiah, was found in Jerusalem.  Other Biblical names found include. Hezekiah, Jeroboam II, Ahaz, Isaiah, and Baruch, among others.
 
Link to the st. Anthony Liturgical House where Kurt Hoyer is teaching.
https://www.stanthonysliturgicalhouse.org/product-page/bib050-introduction-to-archaeology-for-bible-student-ceu
 
 
 
 
 

Bryan McClain: Consciousness, Intelligence, AI, Spirit, Eternity

Bryan McClain holds a Master of Science in computer science and a Bachelor of Science in applied mathematics.  He took machine learning as part of graduate school in mathematical theory.   He has designed and trained his own models and has done research into how various AI models work.  Bryan works as a senior software engineer for an Indianapolis tech company.
In our podcast, we talk about Artificial Intelligence, what it is and what it is NOT.  Humans are conscious, AI is not.   Does AI bring us closer to eternity, God, and a fascinating future?   
 

Julie Zutz Brown/Darris McNeely: UCG Member Survey. What are Brethren Telling the Church?

Julie Zutz Brown has conducted various surveys for the United Church of God for the past 17 years.  She and her team have read and analyzed the various surveys.  Some surveys have been conducted by members, others by the ministry, employees, and other entities within the Church. 
Darris McNeely is chairman of the Strategic Planning Committee, which uses surveys to help the Council of Elders develop a Strategic and Operating Plan.  Every three years, the plan goes through a significant update.  This year is one of those years. 
Julie is a senior executive at Johnson Controls, driving innovation in HVAC, security, and fire solutions. She is Vice President of the Global Customer Office, responsible for deploying a customer-centric culture.
 

With Melvin Rhodes we talk about WHY Charlie Kirk was shot. What's going on?

Free speech.  Have we ever really had it?  When did freedom of free speech start?  What is the future of free speech?  What about free speech in the World Tomorrow?  We need your thoughts on this one.....

Rex Sexton: Tribute to Charlie Kirk. What is Authentic Christianity?

Recorded two days after the assassination of Charlie Kirk.  Rex gives insight into what real and meaningful Christianity and prefaces it with a tribute to  Charlie Kirk.

Killing Charlie Kirk - Context and Consequences by Buchanan and Kubik

We live in a spiritually dangerous world that seeks to destroy humanity. Charlie Kirk gave his life to promote healthy moral values among young people.  His murder on Sep 10, 2025 will be long remembered. 
Image attribution 
Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Mitch Moss: Clothing, Consulting, Character, Class, Christian

This was one of our most popular podcasts.  Mitch Moss describes the importance of clothing and dress....using biblical support.  In case you missed this episode, here is the original once again.
Mitchell Moss is a designer, writer, editor, and photographer who lives in Cincinnati, Ohio.  He’s been writing on menswear for more than a decade, helping men discover the principles of how to dress well, feel great and express their style.
We focus particularly on menswear in this podcast; however, Mitch Moss gives us a history and biblical narrative about clothing dating to the first animal skins used for clothing in the Book of Genesis through the regal display of attire in the Book of Revelation.
Find out more about Mitch at his website at menswearmusings.com

Melvin Rhodes: Observations about Russia's War Against Ukraine/Palestinian History/Germany Rising Aug 25, 2025

Melvin Rhodes gives his observations about the world as of today in late August 2025.  His comments come from the latest edition of his popular newsletter, Mel Rhodes Place. We encourage you to subscribe to it by going to it online.
https://melvinrhodes.wordpress.com/
 
Features:
 
Russia and Ukraine:  Why are we negotiating with Evil?
Hamas Response To Israel
Palestine Report Predicted Today's Mess 90 Years Ago.
Germany Thinking Nuclear
.....and much more.
 
 

Ken Murray: Do you understand difference between the Gospel of Christ or another/different Gospel?

Ken Murray and I continue our series of podcasts.
The Term GOSPEL is widely used to describe the work, content and essence of Christianity.   There is a true Gospel defined and identified in the New Testament.  And, there is another gospel defined by men that people fall for that has a different and perilous direction from what Christ brought and Who He was. 
 

Oleh Zajac: The Unprecedented Historic Meeting of European Leaders in Washington D.C. with President Trump. What Next?

Oleh Zajac, an international relationships expert, and I discuss the Historic Meeting on August 18, 2025, in Washington, D.C.  The implications of this event will reverberate to the entire world.  Will the killing of thousands of people weekly end, and will of 20,000 abducted children return?  How is Europe going to react?  What will happen in Ukraine next?