Concerning Step Mom

My dad had been calling me to clarify on the stand he should take based on the biblical truth concerning his marriage to my step-mom. The fact of the matter is, he was married to my step-mom thirteen years before he was baptized. In the church-life, shepherding has been carried out in a way of life with the application of the truth in time. Objective truths should be applied subjectively in life by the leading of the Holy Spirit at the right time. Though I myself had this doubt of a brother have two wives I did not get a clear answer until recently when I prayed over the matter, searched the scriptures, studied the ministry, and also fellowshipped with the brothers.

Now, through the scriptures, through the interpretation of the scripture with the ministry, and in fellowship, the Lord made things clear to me. Since my dad's second marriage was before his salvation, now that he is saved, everything of the past should have been forgiven and forgotten; whatever sins, big or small. In relation to the restitution of the past sins, if the sins involved a person, especially in marriage, it cannot be restituted. Whereas material things can be restituted and must be restituted. So there is no need to let the second wife go back as she has already been married and even bore a grown-up son already. My dad has to bear the responsibility of taking care of them both. The only concern as per the scripture is, he may not be officially appointed as an elder in the church. Nevertheless, he must function as all members of the Body should function for the building up. The matter is clear, and I have fellowshipped with the brothers concerned and also with my family members including my dad. Praise the Lord, this doubt that has been in mind for years, even decades, has finally be clarified! Praise the Lord for the ministry of the word!

This conviction has come after years of enjoying the Lord as a result of the growth in life. With the Lord's speaking through His Word, the matter has been cleared. My burden now is to shepherd my step-mon and step-brother also into the enjoyment of Christ in the church-life. And also to help other saints especially the leading brothers to be clear concerning this matter.

Collected Works of Watchman Nee, The (Set 2) Vol. 25: Collection of Newsletters (1) by Watchman NeeThe church cannot help a polygamous brother by doing anything more than forgiving him. When the Lord said that He loved mercy and abhorred sacrifices, He was referring to this matter. If the believers sinned in the matter of polygamy before they were saved, the Lord does not pursue the matter. Because no matter what the sin, whatever was committed before our regeneration is under the blood. Of course, the sin of polygamy is under the blood.

The question that has arisen in the church is whether the concubine he had should be driven out of the house. The Bible gives us some very clear light regarding this matter. Paul told Timothy, "The overseer [the elder] then must be...the husband of one wife...deacons must similarly be..." (1 Tim. 3:2, 8). So we know that among the believers at that time, there were those who were the husband of two wives. For this reason, Paul said that only the husbands of one wife could be elders and deacons. The reason the apostle said this word was to show that if a man had two wives, he could still be a believer, but he could not bear any responsibility in the church.

Furthermore, the sin of polygamy is different from other sins. There are two kinds of sin. One kind of sin can be restituted, the other cannot. The sin of polygamy cannot be restituted. For example, stolen items can be returned to their owner. But if you have married someone's daughter, you cannot return her. Therefore, if you want to send this woman away, you are telling her to be an adulteress. So it would be better if the husband bowed down under God's government and bore this responsibility.

In the Old Testament, David married Bathsheba. God did not tell David to separate from Bathsheba. Furthermore, she bore Solomon. Our Lord Jesus came out of her. Exodus 21:7-11 speaks of the position of a concubine. In this passage, the other wife refers to the proper wife, the maidservant is a concubine. The position God gives the concubine is that her food, her clothing, and her duty of marriage shall not be diminished. 

Fellowship with Seekers

The Lord has reserved His remnants all over India. And He knows how to introduce them to the saints for fellowship at the right time. He works in a mysterious yet amazing way to bring the seekers into contact with us. Last week, two groups of seekers were introduced to us and I am privileged to participate in fellowshipping with them.

An Apostle and An Evangelist

A brother who reckoned and introduced himself as an apostle and an evangelist was in touch with me for the past two years. We only fellowshipped over the phone and decided to meet one day. Last week he called me and came with another co-pastor to visit us in Gurugram. 

He was saved from a right-wing nationalist religious extremist outfit. He used to be a key national leader, speaker, and trainer of that outfit that attempts to vainly wipe out Christians in India. But he came face to face with the Lord in a very miraculous and drastic life or death situation that forced me to believe into the Lord Jesus Christ as the true and living God. He has a personal encounter with the Lord directly without any go-between. Since then, the very faith he vehemently opposed once is now the very faith he vigorously preaches. This is a similar case with Saul of Tarsus who became the apostle Paul in Acts 9. 

This brother came to fellowship for two days and joined the meetings on the Lord's day. Seeing is believing. I did not speak much but simply invited him to join the meeting on the Lord's day. I also took him for home meetings, for a time of truth pursing and fellowship on "The Vision of the Age." The Lord spoke to him through his fellowshipping with the members of His Body. I need not say too much. He saw the church life being practiced in an organic way with most of the saints functioning. He was so impressed by our faith, beliefs, and practices. He himself commented that this is the only Christian group he saw practicing the patter as shown in the New Testament. I simply did my best to give him the best hospitality possible; taking care of his accommodation and love-feast, and fellowship. Actions speak louder than words. He was so enthralled and wanted to meet with us again and in fact "tie-up" with us, if possible. May the Lord lead Him and us for His move in India.

A Seeking Couple

A sister was met by one of our brothers at an ATM booth. She then began investigating our faith, beliefs, and practices as she herself was aware of other cult groups operating in Gurugram. When the saints visited her at her home for the first time all her questions and doubts were cleared. Now, a home meeting has been set up in her home every Monday evening. 

Last Monday I was invited to visit the family. It was my first visit and I simply kept myself open to the Lord for His leading and speaking. As I met the couple and listened to whatever they had to say, the Lord gave me a deep feeling within to minister to them the basic of the Christian life by starting off with the mystery of human life, even though they have already been Christians for years. I began with a simple question if they knew that God created man with three parts- spirit, soul, and body. The sister's reply was an emphatic no. Therefore, I used relevant Bible verses to show them the three parts of man, with a brief expounding on the function and purpose of each part.

The couple was so excited and received much supply of life. They testified that though they have been Christian for years now, they have never studied nor understood the Bible in this way. They requested if they could enjoy such fellowship on the word on a daily basis. They even suggested that they would like to come and meet with us on Lord's days even though they have been already associated with another Christian group. I only told them they are always welcome for a fellowship if they would so desire. The choice is theirs.

These two fellowships with seekers were very supplying to me as well. I have been enjoying the ministry day by day, and when there is an outlet to flow out, it was such a joy; to me and to those to whom I ministered. May the ministry of the word continue to supply life to them and to me as well, day by day. May the Lord recover their enjoyment of Him in His word and also recover them for His testimony.

Standing for the Truth

Acts 4:19-20 But Peter and John answered and said to them, Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you rather than to God, you judge; For we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard.

Acts 5:29   But Peter and the apostles answered and said, It is necessary to obey God rather than men.

A brother fellowshipped with me last week about the situation of a new church that was raised up last year. It was the father's family of one of the brothers in Manipur. They were from a Christian background with denominational teachings and concepts.  Through the study of the word of God, that brother and his family with another brother's family finally took the stand for the Lord's testimony in their village. Though only two families, they happily and boldly took the stand based on the truths they have been enjoying.  In fact, they also attended the combined meeting that I attended when I went to visit the churches in Manipur last year.

Last month, this family came to visit our family here in Gurugram. Out of a deep burden for the seeking believers in his village, I selected some of the ministry books from my collection. Though I have already used them, to provide them the means to study the truth, I have given them. Otherwise, buying them would be of great value and they may not be able to afford them all. While the family was in Gurugram visiting one of their sons, I also visited them to fellowship with them on some crucial truths and practices of the church life. Since then, a home meeting has been set up in their son's home here in Gurugram though they already went back to their village in Manipur.

This family in Manipur was forcibly asked by the village authority to sign a document to state that they will not set up another Christian denomination besides the already existing ones, the Baptist and the Catholic. But the brother who knew the truth stood for the truth and was not willing to sign. His standpoint was, "we are not in any denomination, nor starting one, but simply following the truth of the Bible." This matter was fellowshipped with the brothers in the churches in Manipur, and they concluded to leave the matter to the Lord in prayer and not take any action as of now.

As I heard this news, the Bible verses I have been reading these days confirmed the stand of the brothers. A similar situation was faced by the early churches as recorded in the book of Acts. Once we know the truth we must simply obey God and stand for the truth, come what may. The grace of the Lord will preserve the brothers and sisters who stand for the truth.

It is indeed a proper stand to say, "Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you rather than to God, you judge; For we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard. It is necessary to obey God rather than men."

Perhaps, more and more testimonies of standing for the truth will occur in the coming days. May the Lord be gracious to all His saints.

Training and Fellowship

And now, O Israel, what does Jehovah your God ask of you except that you fear Jehovah your God so that you would walk in all His ways and love Him and serve Jehovah your God with all your heart and with all your soul; Deuteronomy 10:12  

Training

The up-to-date speaking of the Lord these days to all the churches in His recovery is on the book of Deuteronomy. One of the key points from this book is "loving God, fearing God, obeying His Word, and serving Him, and receiving the blessings of God." The saints came together for two weekends and enjoyed the Lord's timely speaking. From this, I also benefited a lot. As a preparation I could go through the Life-study of the Deuteronomy again, read through the entire book of Deuteronomy and listened to the Radio programs on Deuteronomy. I received new light and fresh speaking from the Lord. What nourishment and what a blessing!

Fellowship with the Young People

Last Lord's day, in my fellowship with the young people, I encouraged them to love the Lord and seek the Lord's will. I gave my own testimony of how the Lord led me from my young age in many things great or small. It has indeed been such an exciting exercise to seek the Lord's will for everything and learn to obey and follow the Lord step by step. I even encouraged all the young people to pray, seek the Lord's will in their Christian life, get help from brother Watchman Nee's message on "Seeking God's Will," and share their experience of seeking God's will when we meet next time. This is the practical step I took to help the young people.

Training Excerpt: The Christian Faith

An excerpt from the training outline on the Christian faith is spectacular in its presentation. I was so supplied with these teaching and made a banner out of it.

The Christian Faith

Our Christian faith is composed of our belief concerning sixbasic items: the Bible, God, Christ, the work of Christ, salvation,
and the church—Eph. 4:13: 1.       The Bible, word by word, is divinely inspired by God, as the breath of God —2 Pet. 1:21; 2 Tim. 3:16.2.       God is uniquely one but triune—the Father, the Son, and the Spirit—Matt. 3:16 17; 28:19; 2 Cor. 13:14; Eph. 2:18; 3:14 17; Rev. 1:4 5.3. Christ was the very God in eternity (John 1:1) and became a man in time (v. 14); His deity is complete, and His humanity is perfect; hence, He is both God and man (20:28; Rom. 9:5; John 19:5; 1 Tim. 2:5), possessing both divinity  and humanity.4.  Christ  first  became  a  man  in  incarnation  (John  1:14)  and died on the cross for our redemption (1 Pet. 2:24; Rev. 5:9); then He rose from the dead for our regeneration (1 Pet. 1:3), ascended to the heavens to be the Lord of all (Acts 2:33, 36;10:36), and will come back as the Bridegroom to the church (John 3:29; Rev. 19:7) and the King of kings to all the nations (v. 16); these are the main aspects of the work of Christ.
5.  A sinner must repent to God (Acts 2:38; 26:20) and believe into Christ (John  3:16;  Acts  16:31)  for  forgiveness  of  sins (10:43),  for  redemption  (Rom.  3:24),  for  justification  (Acts 13:39), and for regeneration (John 3:6) in order that he may have eternal life (v. 36) to become a child of God (1:12) and a member of Christ (1 Cor. 12:27); this is our salvation through faith (Eph. 2:4 9).
6. The church, composed of all the genuine believers in Christ, as the Body of Christ (1:22 23; Col. 1:24), is universally one (Eph. 4:4), and a local church as the expression of the Body of Christ is locally one—one city, one church (Rev.1:11):         a. This does not mean, however, that a real believer in Christ who does not agree with one city, one church is not saved; he or she is saved, but there is something lacking, not for salvation but for the proper church life.         b. By standing on the proper ground of the church, we are choosing to love all the brothers, not only those who are meeting with us.(Excerpt from the Crystallization-study of Deuteronomy, Message 10, V,B)

Special Gifts

Since the beginning of this year 2020, I have been considering what best gifts I could give to my children. To my best knowledge, I have trained them to read the Bible every day. In fact, my son and daughter, have completed reading through the Bible for the first time in their life in 2019. Now, my youngest daughter who is six years of age is reading with my wife. They have been reading the word of God from the old and torn Bible that I and my wife have been using for years. As I consider over and over again, I decided to gift them the best gift, the Holy Bible and the best Bible, the imported leatherbound Holy Bible, Recovery Version.

Though the Bibles are quite expensive, and perhaps, the most expensive gifts I would have ever given to my children so far. But it's worth it. This is a life-time investment on all my children. Gifting them with the Bible and helping them read, understand, and live according to the word of God is the best inheritance I can possibly pass on to my next generation. With this inward decision, the Lord also provided enough offering for me to be able to purchase these special and worthy gifts for my children. I have done this in fellowship with my beloved wife as well.

In the gift, I have printed the following Bible verses as a reminder of the importance of the word of God.

Colossians 3:16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another with psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to God.

2 Timothy 3:16-17 All Scripture is God-breathed and profitable for teaching, for conviction, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, fully equipped for every good work.

Today, being the physical birthdate of my eldest daughter, I reckon it best to gift them the gifts today, to all my children. So that all may have the same feeling of being gifted, not just the one whose birthday occurs.

Another reminder from the 16th President of the United States of America on the Bible is"

“In regards to this great Book [the Bible], I have but to say it is the best gift God has given to man. All the good the Savior gave to the world was communicated through this Book. But for it we could not know right from wrong. All things most desirable for man's welfare, here and hereafter, are found portrayed in it.” ― Abraham Lincoln

May the Lord grace all my children to be God-men children on whom dwells the word of God richly, and may they grow, build-up, be perfected by the Lord through His word and become a man of God completed, fully equipped for every good work.

Just Help!

A good number of seekers have been in touch with me for years now. Though I have a burden to shepherd them, I cannot go beyond their own willingness. I cannot force myself to shepherd them unless they willing invite me or at lease welcome me. In fact, these ones were open to me as their brother and yet they have issues with some other saints in the church life. Therefore, they have not fully come into the church life nor did I try to bring them in. I also have been doing my best to shepherd them whenever there is an opportunity and wait for the time the Lord would release them fully for the church life.

Do not withhold good from those to whom it is due, when it is in the power of your hand to do so. Proverbs 3:27   

Sometimes, in my narrowness, I wondered if I should continue to spend time with these ones. At times, I questioned if they were just trying to use me for their own gain? But I have been mysteriously led within not to close the door for these ones even if they do not fully come into the church life nor are fully agreeing with the ministry of the age. Nevertheless, they are all my brothers and sisters in the Lord. I still must be in fellowship with them and be available for any kind of help, if need be. 

Recently, each of them has expressed their need for help. A family requested me to help their son's admission for a college program in Canada. So within my capacity, I did my best to help them. But I kept my intention pure; my only goal was to help them because they needed help and the Lord has placed me in a position to help them. Whether they come into the church life or not through this helping hand, it's all up to the Lord. I must just help.

Another sister came for fellowship and expressed her hunger and thirst for the word of God. Though she has not yet fully come into the church life, she has been using the ministry material for her own benefit. She basically wanted to start her own ministry getting help from us in the matter of the truths of the Bible. I still received her and her husband when they came for fellowship, and also granted her request to be included in the morning truth pursuing over Skpye though she is not an official staffer. It just helped.

Another sister also has been helped whenever she requested it. Especially when her son went to USA for his studies. Though they never came into the church life and even dared to disagree on some truths and practices of the church life, still as a Christian brother, whenever they requested for help, I still did my best to help them; even recommend their son to the saints in a particular locality in USA. I just helped.

And I believe, my attitude should be proper in helping others; not helping others for some private gain or a quid-pro-quo deal. I just helped because they are my brothers and sisters, they needed help, and the Lord graced me to help them within my capacity.

This is another life lesson I have been learning; not to be narrow in helping others who may or may not agree with the teachings I believe or the practices I practice. Therefore, "Do not withhold good from those to whom it is due, when it is in the power of your hand to do so" has been a key supporting verse in helping the needy brother and sisters.

Yes, just help when the brothers and sisters need help, and the Lord has blessed you to be able to help. Just help!

Ministry Journey to Bilaspur

A yearly Christian Mela has been conducted in the outskirt of Bilaspur city where Christians come together for meetings and exhibitions. The ministry of the word has found its perfect spot for ministry display in this Mela. A few weeks ago I came to attend this exhibition with five brothers. It was my first time to attend such, and that too for just one day. And in that one day, the Lord has brought a good number of seeking Christians to receive and buy the ministry books.

In the previous exhibition, a group of seeking believers have been discovered who took the stand for the Lord's testimony as "the church in Bilaspur." In between, there were some misunderstand and turmoil among the brothers and there was no follow-up. On our last day in the city, I requested the brother who knew them, to make a call just for a short brotherly visit. In fact, I told them we should pay them a visit just to say "Hello!". They were more than willing to welcome us and waited for us one Saturday evening. 

As we visited them, the Lord gave me a feeling within to speak the truth on the one new man; the creation of the one new man and the reality of the one new man. The fellowship became so sweet and so strong that the key leading brother took down notes and read all the Bible verses we quoted. After the fellowship and prayer, they requested us if we could stay back on the Lord's day to fellowship with them. My feeling deep with us that I should cancel my trip to the next city and stay back to attend the meeting on the Lord's day. I did not decide it by myself, yet I told the brothers that we could possibly stay back, but we would fellowship and let them know later. Then we left.

As we left I was deeply convinced within that I should stay back. As I fellowshipped with the brothers how they felt about some of us staying back to fellowship with them, they all felt good. Meanwhile, I also checked the status of my train ticket for the next city Raipur. It so happened that among all the train tickets, only my ticket was not confirmed. I took that as a sign from the Lord that I needed to stay back. By the way, I cannot legally board the train without a confirmed ticket. That's how the Lord practically led us.

Two brothers and I attended the Lord's day meeting and ministered the word on the one new man and the way to be brought into the practice and reality of the one new man using Colossians on the need for the arbitrating peace of Christ, the indwelling word of Christ, and doing all things in the name of the Lord: 

3:12   Put on therefore, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, inward parts of compassion, kindness, lowliness, meekness, long-suffering; 3:13   Bearing one another and forgiving one another, if anyone should have a complaint against anyone; even as the Lord forgave you, so also should you forgive. 3:14   And over all these things put on love, which is the uniting bond of perfectness. 3:15   And let the peace of Christ arbitrate in your hearts, to which also you were called in one Body; and be thankful. 3:16   Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another with psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to God. 3:17   And whatever you do in word or in deed, do all things in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.

The believers were so shepherded; they took down notes and recorded the ministering of the word. After the meeting, the saints wanted to fellowship more and I shared on the grace of the Lord upon me in leading me to serve the Lord. Then we were invited for a fellowship over lovefeast lunch and then departed for the ext city Raipur.

May the Lord fully recover the church in Raipur into the fellowship, oneness, blending, and building up of the Body of Christ!

Ministry Journey to Raipur

A few years ago, a brother from the city of Raipur came in touch with the ministry books. Since then he had been enjoying the ministry and had actively been teaching the believers under his shepherding care concerning God's economy. He read the book in Hindi and re-translated it into Chattisgarhi. In fact, he did it out of a burden for over a year by visiting the believers, house by house, day by day. And gradually they took the stand for the Lord's testimony. Then we visited the city for fellowship.

During that visit, there was a sister who just came to attend the meeting when we were there. One Lord's day afternoon she fellowshipped about how much she received the life supply through our visitation. She even invited us to visit her family and meet her husband who was a medical doctor working in her home town. Though it was not possible for us to visit them at that time, I felt led by the Lord to gift her some books and also requested her to let her husband study them as well. I even forgot about the matter and what books I gave them. But the Lord worked even through the books and something marvelous came out of these little gifts.

This month, we visited this group of saints in Raipur again. The sister who received the books and also gave the books to her husband, both of them have now become the key family and pillar for the church in Raipur. As we fellowshipped, the brother and sister came and testified about how blessed they were through the books. The ministry books speaks by itself. The sister surprisingly exclaimed, "Brother, you prophetically gave those books that brought us into the church life!" The title books which I gave them were:

The Glorious Church

The Economy of God

The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob

Now this couple had shifted from their hometown to this city Raipur, got a new job, and are now standing for the Lord's testimony in the city. Our fellowship with them was full of mutual shepherding. Two nights and two days, we spent with the saints, fellowshipping, praying, and ministering the word of God. We taught them how to sing hymns with proper tunes in Hindi, and also answered some of their doubts on the truths. They also came to visit the church in Gurugram and the church in New Delhi. Through the mutual visit and shepherding, the saints were strengthened and brought into the fellowship and oneness of the Body of Christ.

Praise the Lord for the ministry of the word that shepherded the Lord's lovers and seekers to take the stand for the truth. 

Forgiving Debtors

And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. Matthew 6:12

Forgiving my debtors in the Lord's prayer became very subjective recently. There are some saints and new ones who borrowed money from meet their urgent needs. Out of a good heart with brotherly love and concern, I lent the money to them. In some cases, it was not even lending, it was money given for a specific purpose but the work was not done, yet the money was not refunded either. In another case, it was a purchase for an urgent need which was done through my account but was never returned back. As I was going through some needs, though the Lord provided it sufficiently, I thought of reclaiming the money owed to me. For a few weeks, I was contemplating and considering the matter of forgiving my debtors. I weighed between forgiving the debts or making them payback in the principle of righteousness, or to simply consider them as a gift or an offering, then the Lord spoke to me with this verse and other verses in the Bible concerning forgiving the needy saints.

The Lord reminded me that He has been providing my needs in abundance. He has faithfully been taking care of all my needs. And I need not ask any of them to pay back their dues to me but leave the matter to them instead. With this fellowship from the Lord, I have decided not to ask any one of them to pay back anymore. In fact, the Lord has been providing all my needs, and that too, much more than what I have given out, I have received in abundance. Therefore the matter is resolved here.

If the Lord blessed me to be on the giving side, that itself is a blessing. Why should I forfeit the blessing by trying to recover what has been owed to me? I better not. With this life lesson, I understood through experience what the Lord has taught us to pray, "And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors."

Moreover, my study of the book of Deuteronomy has all the more strengthened and confirmed the decision I have made in forgiving the debtors.

Deuteronomy 15:6   For Jehovah your God will bless you as He has promised you. And you will lend to many nations, but you will not borrow; and you will rule over many nations, but they will not rule over you.

15:7   If among you there is a needy one amidst your brothers within any of your gates in your land, which Jehovah your God is giving you, you shall not harden your heart and you shall not close up your hand from your needy brother;

15:8   But you must open your hand to him, and you must lend enough for his need in whatever he lacks.

24:10  When you lend anything to your neighbor, you shall not enter his house in order to take his pledge. 

28:12  Jehovah will open up to you His good treasury, the heavens, to give rain for your land in its season and to bless all your undertakings. And you will lend to many nations, but you will not borrow.

What a blessing to be blessed to bless others by lending to the needy saints! Lord, grace and bless me ever to lend and also forgive all my debtors.

Crowd of Cares

Apart from the things which have not been mentioned, there is this: the crowd of cares pressing upon me daily, the anxious concern for all the churches. 2 Corinthians 11:28

Serving the Lord is the most blessed service in the whole universe. To be able to serve the true and living God is even the pure mercy of the Lord. In fact, no one is qualified to serve the Lord. It is God Himself who calls, trains, and qualifies His serving ones to be able to serve Him. I don't call myself as qualified in any way, but by His grace, I am indeed what I am. God showed His mercy upon me and is training me to be able to serve Him. He graces me day by day to serve Him. What a mercy, and what a blessing!

These days, the service the Lord called me for is also becoming more and more subjective and real. The burden He blessed me with is also increasing gradually. Even as He draws me with His love, the burden for shepherding His sheep also increases. Loving Him is proportionate to serving him in shepherding His sheep.

Then when they had eaten breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, Simon, son of John, do you love Me more than these? He said to Him, Yes, Lord, You know that I love You. He said to him, Feed My lambs. He said to him again a second time, Simon, son of John, do you love Me? He said to Him, Yes, Lord, You know that I love You. He said to him, Shepherd My sheep. He said to him the third time, Simon, son of John, do you love Me? Peter was grieved that He said to him the third time, Do you love Me? And he said to Him, Lord, You know all things; You know that I love You. Jesus said to him, Feed My sheep. John 21:15-17

The Crowd of Cares for the Saints

The saints are going through different situations. It has indeed been a joy to have more saints added into the church life. At the same, as they came in, the shepherding on them also is very crucial. The more I get to shepherd them, the more I realize I need the Lord's shepherding. Each saint has their "problems and hardships." Now that they have come into the church life, they need to be shepherded as well. I am glad  I have been graced to bear the burden of shepherding the saints. As a learning serving one, I praise the Lord for the precious lessons of life He has been teaching me in shepherding the saints. A complicated checker work in the pillar of the temple is now what I and the brothers have been experiencing. However complicated the situation may seem to be, the Lord's abundant supply of grace and life will turn the complicated checker works into a beautiful display of the abundance of life.

The Crowd of Cares for the Serving Ones

The serving ones among us also need shepherding. In the Body serving in coordination, some times, our own serving ones are going through a lot of complicated situations too. Family and financial issues are very common among the serving ones too. Such is a case that I have been facing with a serving one. The busy work schedule is another hindrance in the serving ones' enjoyment and function in the church life. This is another common "problem" to take care of. It appears as though al the working saints are going through such a situation. For this, shepherding is greatly needed. And, we brothers have been praying for this earnestly and take measure to handle the situation.

The Crowd of Cares for My Siblings and Relatives

As a brother and a family member too, I also have the burden to shepherd all my relatives. All need shepherding. I feel blessed to be burdened with my family burden too. Though prayers have been offering almost on a daily basis for my family for years altogether now, I am yet to see the full result of the Lord's answer to the prayer. I still keep praying, and as the Lord graces me I also am indirectly shepherding them over the phone. 

As a serving one, the Lord has been gracious enough to bless me with all these burdens for the saints in the church in my locality, the serving ones with whom I am in coordination with, and also my own blood relatives. Gradually, I could understand what the apostle Paul testified in his shepherding the churches: the crowd of cares pressing upon me daily, the anxious concern for all the churches.

For this, I need to spend and I am spending time with the Lord in prayer. All these burdens make prayer life sweeter and enjoyable. I could release with my burden with much feeling to the Lord and experience His prayer in my prayer. Yes, the prayers are seeming for shepherd those in need, but the prayer, first of all, benefited me the most. What a sweet time of prayer with these burdens from the Lord. Answers to these prayers already have been the experience and enjoyment of the prayer itself. Praise the Lord!

"The crowd of cares pressing upon me daily, the anxious concern for all the churches," are, to me, the blessings of shepherding. And with this crowd of cares, I have been enjoying a lot of prayer time with a good number of saints and serving ones, on a daily and weekly basis. Therefore, this crowd of cares is a blessing in disguise.

Ministry of the Word Literature Journey to North India, Chhatisgarh & Odisha

Report: The Ministry of the Word Literature Journey

Raipur and Bilaspur, Chhatisgarh and Khariar-Road, Bagbahara, Kuskela, Titilagarh- Odisha, 5-13 February 2020

And Ruth the Moabitess said to Naomi, Let me go to the field and glean among the ears of grain after him in whose sight I find favor. And she said to her, Go, my daughter. So she went. And she came and gleaned in the field after the reapers; and she happened to glean in a portion of the field belonging to Boaz, who was from Elimelech’s family. Ruth 2:2-3

Gleaning from the Fields

Bilaspur, a city that embraces a yearly "Christian Mela" for years has been our field to glean from. For, a multitude of believers throng this week-long religiously painted exhibition mingled with festive mood. There, the ministry of the word has its perfect display, to the joy of the minute remnant of the lovers and seekers of the Lord. It was through this, that at least two groups of seekers have been contacted and are being shepherded, who, at their own revelation and initiative declared themselves as "the church in Raipur" and "the church in Bilaspur." Therefore, our visit this time was to fellowship and shepherd these remnants, and indeed it was a gleaning from the fields.

"The Church in Bilaspur," Chhattisgarh 

In 2017, a couple of brothers received the ministry books through the Christian Mela, and since then, they have been studying the ministry books. Though they read The Normal Christian Life by Watchman Nee long before, The All-inclusive Christ, The Economy of God, The Glorious Church, The Breaking of the Outerman and the Release of the Spirit, and few other books have greatly shepherded them. In fact, they took the stand on the local ground of the church and called themselves, “the church in Bilaspur” and are inviting us for more fellowship. 

As we paid a late-night visit to these seeking believers at the leading brother's home one evening, the Lord blessed our fellowship on the one new man so much so that they invited us to meet and fellowship with them on the following Lord's day. Though it was not in our plan, we fellowshipped and decided that two brothers stay back to heed to their request and the rest proceed to the next city, Raipur, as planned. 

On the Lord's, we enjoyed a sweet time of fellowship and a rich ministry of the word on the one new man again in a more detail way. The believers truly enjoyed the fellowship and blending where testimonies were shared and more ministry books were introduced, which even led the leading brother to buy the Holy Bible, Recovery Version. After hours of fellowship and lovefeast, we departed with joy even as they invited us to visit them again soon. May the Lord thrust out His workers to harvest and glean from this field. 

"The Church in Raipur," Chhatisgarh

This group of saints who are now meeting as the “church in Raipur” was also discovered through the Christian Mela at Bilaspur in 2017. Since they received the ministry books they have been shepherded so much by the book by brother Witness Lee, The Economy of God. Since then, there has been frequent traffic with other nearby local churches, especially the church in New Delhi and Gurugram. 

Our visit this time was mostly for shepherding, fellowshipping, and blending with the saints for two days. In an organic way, we taught them hymns singing, ministered the word, and clarified some of their doubts and queries. This was also their timely need after the key brother went to be with the Lord last December. May the Lord continue to shepherd and strengthen the church in Raipur. 

"The Church in Khariar-Road," Odisha

In 2014, a brother searching for ‘free Christian books’ in Google found the Rhema books. Since then, he has been reading and enjoying the ministry books along with another two brothers. They were first visited when one of them requested for the Holy Bible, Recovery Version. Since then, they have been daily enjoying the HWMR, Recovery Version, Life-studies, and other ministry books. They also have been meeting regularly on the Lord's day without breaking the bread and reckon themselves as the "church in Khariar-Road," waiting for the right time to break the bread. May the Lord continue to shepherd them and gain their whole families for the Lord's testimony.

One evening, a mainline Christian group opened their meeting hall for the introduction of the ministry books and also to minister the word. The believers, though rooted in their traditional practices, were enthralled by the riches we presented. In fact, we "broke" their religious way of worship in their "worship center" by leading them to sing hymn in a living way, leading them to call upon the Lord's name out loud over and over again, and ministering the word as an "un-ordained minister." The result was, the Pastor himself and the key members were very happy for the living words and testified of their enjoyment. 

Bagbahara, Odisha

A group of seeking believers who received the ministry books a few years ago are being shepherded by the brothers from Khariar-Road. A seeking pastor had arranged a meeting where we ministered the word on The Mystery of Human Life, Calling Upon the Lord's Name, and Pray-reading the Word of God, much to their delight as we showed them the way to enjoy the Lord. May the Lord strengthen the shepherding through the books and through our brothers for His testimony. 

Kuskela, Odisha

A brother, also a Pastor of an independent group, had received the 7 Rhema books and a Recovery Version Bible have been enjoying the ministry all by himself for years. He testified that his whole concept of a Christian life changed after reading the ministry books. He invited us to visit him and the congregation he is shepherding. He was so excited to meet us in person and overjoyed to share his testimony.

May the Lord continue to shepherd him and recover him with all the sheep he is shepherding. 

Titilagarh, Odisha

We met three Pastors, one of whom has already read and enjoyed The Economy of God and The Glorious Church. After we ministered the word using all the four books in Rhema set, these brothers were very interested to pursue the ministry further. In fact, one of them was interested to translate the ministry books into Oriya. May the Lord gain these brothers and the one who has a burden for Oriya translation. 

May the Lord richly bless the sowing of the divine seeds through the ministry of the word.

Bliss' Prophesying

Today is a very rare day in many years as the date 02/02/2020 is a palindrome date which can be read forward and backward with the same sound. The previous eight-digit palindrome was 11/11/1111, 909 years ago and the next palindrome date will happen on 12/12/2121, after 101 years. 

Well, this is not the real reason for today's specialty. What I heard my daughter prophesy today concerning her testimony at school was what made me thank the Lord for His mercy.

As usual, the children prophesied first every Lord's day. All the children prophesied one by one, and their prophesies were so genuine that it touched my heart so much, I believe the same holds true for all the saints. Especially the prophesy of my daughter Bliss was very very touching.

Bliss prophesied that last week one day the students were lined up to enter a room which she was not aware then. As she approached the room, she smelt some pungent smell, which perhaps could have been the smell of a smoking aggarbatti, an Indian incense stick, burned for "pooja," idol worship. As she approached nearer to the hotspot of that religious worship, she realised it was a worship to an idol. She felt very nervous about doing the same despite other students worshipping the idol as she has been taught and constitution with the word of God that idol worship is a sin and is prohibited by the true and living God as revealed through the word of God, the Holy Bible. She prayed to the Lord and mustered up her courage and politely told the teacher in charge that she is a Christian and that she did not feel comfortable to bow down or worship idol. The teacher acknowledged her request and permitted her not to worship idol if she did not feel comfortable. Therefore, she was delivered from the worship of idol at school.

This prophesy was so touching a testimony for a young girl of 12 years, still in standard VI. The whole church in one accord amened the prophesy. What a joy to hear such a testimony from a young church kid. She happens to be my daughter, even otherwise I would still feel the same. This testimony encouraged the whole church and even uplifted the atmosphere of the meeting and testified of the Lord's work among all the saints in the church, even among the children. What a blessing the Lord has bestowed upon His church! May all the saints be preserved by the Lord for His pure testimony.

I was so thankful to the Lord for gracing our children. The Lord has been answering the prayers we have been praying to make our family a God-man family and our children, God-man children. Though sometimes, as living under the same roof, we see all the shortcomings, yet the Lord has been doing a marvelous works in each one of them. At home, sometimes, children seems to be hard to handle, yet at school they have well been disciplined academically, morally, ethically, and even spiritually. Praise the Lord for His mercy.

Later, I fellowshipped with my wife about my feeling and even thanked the Lord for His mercy upon our children. I also came to learn that my youngest daughter, Christy, too had similar testimony at school. She had been asked to chant some religious words while doing "yoga", but she knew well that it was not proper and right for her to do so, so she silently chanted "Lord Jesus" in lieu of the other religious words she was required to chant. 

Unconsciously, the seed of the word of God sown into the children's being are bearing fruit. We live in a society and community filled with and surrounded by unbelievers, and such incidents will occur now and then as it had and has been so. The only way is to inoculate our children with the word of God, spiritually educate them, and pray for them that they would not succumb to the environment but stand up for the truth. May the Lord preserve all our children and bless them to bear the Lord's testimony. They are our next generation to carry on the Lord's work and bear His testimony.