But that’s not in any way a reflection on the quality of the book. It’s an exciting, entertaining and important read and the only reason for its lack of availability is that it has yet to be picked up by a major publisher.

I read Copeland’s book recently, and it served to remind me that in the midst of all the chaos and confusion occurring around us that the Lord is still working out His purposes on earth and that He is still in charge.

As the back of the book shares, "The Apostasy" deals with the lives of two boys born the same day on opposite sides of the world.

The back cover tells readers that one of the boys, reared by a Native American grandfather in Arizona, will become a major in the intelligence branch of the U.S. Army. The birth of the other child parallels the birth of Jesus Christ. This boy is brought up by a mysterious individual who belongs to an ancient secret society. His destiny is to rule the world.

Years down the road, the book cover tells us, both men will be affected by a demonic supernatural event targeting Christians, "an occurrence that will send a wave of emotional disturbance through everyone on earth." The ultimate prize, Copeland writes, is the souls of men.

Copeland asks, "Will Christians stand against sudden world persecution ... or will they lose hope because of the coming apostasy?"

In case you’re unaware what the word "apostasy" means, one definition is "the state of having rejected your religious beliefs or your political party or a cause (often in favor of opposing beliefs or causes).

In a recent e-mail interview I asked Copeland why he wrote the book.

He said, "I believe we are living in the last days before Christ’s second coming to (take) His church. I believe that ... God desperately wants people to understand about ... events that are about to happen on earth right before Jesus’ return."

Copeland added, "If Christians are not prepared and aware of the coming apostasy that Paul talks about in II Thessalonians 2:1-3, the Bible says that many people ... will be deceived and lose their faith in God in that time period."

Copeland said, "God compelled me to write ‘The Apostasy.’ Over a period of 19 days He supernaturally instilled in my mind what each chapter would contain ... I do not propose that the scenario I write about is what is (necessarily) going to happen, although I believe the facts in the book are all relevant to what will occur. I only present them to warn people that the Bible tells us that something is going to happen."

Copeland told me that Christians shouldn’t be fooled by what he called the soon coming spiritual delusion that Paul tells us will happen before the rapture and the Antichrist’s appearing.

"That is something right out of the war planning room of Satan himself," he said. "What is amazing to me is that the church is not teaching about it all, even though many pastors that have read my book agree with its warning completely."

I asked Copeland to tell me about some of the experiences he encountered while writing the book. He said that when the Lord placed the concept for "The Apostasy" on his heart he had no idea what he was getting into, even though he expected to encounter spiritual opposition.

According to Copeland, when he began writing the book his computer’s hard drive wouldn’t save any of his work.

"I have several people who will attest to this," he said. "Not only would it not save on my hard drive, it would not save on any disc for any longer (than) that night. I had computer experts; even the people at Wycliffe (Bible) translators could not make me copies that would stay on a floppy disc at the time. My computer hard drive would scramble constantly, printing out gibberish, or pages of ‘Celtic’ writing ... Some times pages would come out with the word ‘SATAN’ printed in the middle of the page. The only way I could keep what I was writing was to make hard copies of every page as I wrote it. This proved very exasperating."

Copeland said had it not been for his wife’s encouragement and the help of the Lord he would have quit the project.

" The stories and events I could tell that occurred while writing this book most people would find hard to believe," Copeland said. "Satan and his angels do not like to be written about. What is even more dangerous is revealing the plans of Satan. This book is a revelation of future events that will have earth shaking consequences for every soul on this planet. Satan did not want it written, and has done many things to discourage me and stop me, even the threat of death."

I asked Copeland to explain what he meant. He said, "The devil has tried to kill me. I have narrowly missed dying in crazy events that I know Satan has orchestrated. The devil has tried to make me sick at times. He has sent the spirit of discouragement, fear, even anger to try to stop this project from going forth. I know this, because I and others close to me recognize it for what it is and am in constant prayer to our Lord for protection, wisdom, and guidance by His Spirit."

So what made Copeland go on with the task, I asked him? He said he realized to do so "was going to take a great deal of intercessory prayer on my part, and (from) many other people who believed in the crucial message of this book. Only then and since have things settled down. But I still feel the oppression every time I move the book in some kind of direction to try to get it out there to the world."

Copeland gave an example of what he felt was the Lord’s direct intervention in the book. He said the Lord sent a number of people to him who provided information essential for the book.

He said, "For example. Soon after I began to write a stranger came into my business one day and was walking around looking at my art work. We struck up a conversation that lasted over two hours. I learned that he was a Jew and an air marshal for the Israeli air lines, and was a member of Mossad (the Israeli intelligence agency). He gave me this information and everything else he told me very reluctantly."

Copeland said the stranger told him things he didn’t know "and confirmed to me facts that most people only consider to be conspiracy stories. When finally he got ready to leave I asked him why he had come into my business. He looked at me quite strangely and told me he had just flown into Los Angeles that morning, had rented a car and driven over 60 miles straight to my place of business having never been there before. And quite frankly he had no idea why he had done it!"

Copeland told me that he believes "The Apostasy" emanated in God’s heart. He said, "This book is a project that the God of the universe has wanted to happen, in the (time) that we are living in. It is His book, not mine. Its future and success is not because of anything I have done but to follow my God's direction ... I did not write it to become famous or wealthy. I wrote it because of the message it contains. When I see that message out there, then I will consider it a success."

I asked Copeland if he could share with me any reader comment. He said that "hundreds" of people have read the book over the last couple of years.

"Of the many who have talked about it with me," Copeland said, "I always tell them to give me the truth of what they really think of it, and not just tell me stuff to make me feel good. This has helped me refine the manuscript over time ... Most people consider it deeper and more exciting of a read, like a combination of Tom Clancy adventure thriller and a scary Frank Perretti. (Most tell me they can not put it down once they get into it). They like the scriptures at the beginning of each chapter that parallel the story that is unfolding ... "

Pastor Danny Diaz of Pomona Calif.’s Victorious Living Christian Center is a big fan of "The Apostasy." By e-mail he told me, "‘The Apostasy’ will ignite a living flame in your heart concerning prophecy as it pertains to the last days. This novel is not only well written, but will provoke the reader to study the book of Revelation. (It’s a) life changing read."

And Pastor Miles Clark from Roses of Sharon International Fellowship out of Upland, Calif. was "captivated" by "The Apostasy."

By e-mail he said, "The details of the characters and the unfolding of the story moved me and I just wanted more. I literally could not put the book down. I read in it in less than two days. As I saw the story unfold before my eyes I could sense and see what was going on. I became part of it, I was stirred in heart and soul as the culmination of circumstance began to build. The suspense was addictive as I had to see what was going to happen. I was not disappointed in any way. I would highly recommend this book as a great read."

I echo that recommendation from Diaz and Clark. Buy a copy of Copeland’s book and in addition to challenging your heart by showing you what the Lord may be getting ready to do on planet earth, you’ll also be encouraging Copeland to keep writing.

To obtain "The Apostasy," send a check for $19.95 and $4.95 shipping and handling to Bill Copeland, 34428 Yucaipa Blvd. Ste E-159, Yucaipa, Calif. 92399-2474

Jeremy Reynalds is a freelance writer and the founder and director of Joy Junction, New Mexico's largest emergency homeless shelter, http://www.joyjunction.org or http://www.christianity.com/joyjunction. He has a master's degree in communication from the University of New Mexico, and a Ph.D. in intercultural education from Biola University in Los Angeles. His newest book is "Homeless in the City: A Call to Service." Additional details about "Homeless" are available at http://www.HomelessBook.com He lives in Albuquerque, New Mexico. For more information contact: Jeremy Reynalds at jeremyreynalds@comcast.net. Tel: (505) 877-6967 or (505) 400-7145. Note: A higher resolution JPEG picture of Jeremy Reynalds is available on request from Dan Wooding at danjuma1@aol.com.