Shepherding : Prayer

Philippians 4:

6 In nothing be anxious, but in everything, by prayer and petition with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God;

7 And the peace of God, which surpasses every man's understanding, will guard your hearts and your thoughts in Christ Jesus.

Last night two saints came for fellowship and as we to fellowshipped, the Lord gave me the discernment of what they were actually going through. To meet their present need the Lord also gave me Bible verses to prayer-read with them. As we pray-read these verses from Philippians 4:5-9, the timely speaking of the Lord was so precise and profound. It met their actual need. Oh, it was a great relief for them as we used the verses to pray back to the Lord with all the burdens hidden deep within. O what a release to make all the request made known to God! O what a blessing to pray and petition God with thanksgiving and the ensuing peace of God in the midst of hardships, trials and temptations.

Later, I fellowshipped with another saint in Guwahati, as the usual Saturday night prayer fellowship over the phone, using the same Bible verses, the Lord's speaking again was so timely. That family is going through the biggest turmoil in their lives with a member of the family creating havoc within the family. However, using the Bible verses I shepherded this family to trust in the Lord and to bring all their matters to Him; for they cannot solve any problem and explained further the Lord Jesus Christ is the only solutions to all the problems. After this short-while phone call prayer fellowship, we all were full of joy and peace. In Christ Jesus, the peace of God guards our hearts and thoughts.

Today morning I received an SMS from a sister whom I have been praying for the salvation of her and her husband. The SMS stated that she wanted to be baptised at the earliest possible. Immediately I fellowshipped with a brother and we gave her the option for today afternoon. She accepted and confirmed stating that she has been fully prepared to fully give her life to the Lord Jesus Christ. As I picked her up for baptism, on the way she mentioned the same Bible verses in Philippians as her sister shared to her last night after I had fellowshhpped the same matter. And she joyfully got baptised!

Immediately following this another new one, who has not yet been baptised, came to visit me and we read the same Bible verses again. This friend has received the Lord and is waiting to be baptised. Through the fellowship he has agreed to take baptism before the end of this year. This friend has been prayed for over four years till date.

In shepherding prayer is a vital ingredient, without which there can be no real and effective shepherding. All the new ones or saints that the Lord has burdened me to care for are all on my prayer list. Though I may not meet them frequently I have been praying for them, and that is a part of shepherding. When I did meet them, the Lord would give me the timely word for them which really shepherds them. 

Shepherding in much prayer and petition with thanksgiving is the best way of shepherding.  Lord, make me a faith praying shepherd.

Daily Bread

Matthew 6:11 Give us today our daily bread.

The prayer the Lord Jesus taught us is not a piece of religious recital. Nor is it meant to be a mundane and monotonous repetition over and over again under the guise of prayer. Nor is it a format and standard for one’s spiritual prayer. Rather, it conceals within a key to access the treasures of divine blessings. Every word is meaningful, full of divine revelation.

Give:

A prayer of asking the Lord who is the source of every positive thing in the whole universe. All that we had and have and will be having are all from God, the Creator of the universe. As a creature, we are bound to receive from our Creator all that are necessary. Perhaps, one might wonder, why the need in asking when one already has. Well, if this is meant to be a mere asking of physical things the case may hold true. But the emphasis here is in the “faithful dependence on God” who creates and provides to His children. The Lord wants us to depend on Him and have faith in Him every day for everything. So is the prayer, “give.” We all should trust the Lord, have faith in Him and pray all the time, trusting and depending on Him for everything.

Us and Our: 

A prayer in the Body for the Body. Our asking is not for ourself alone but for the Body. All that we do, and all that we are, are all for the Body. Even our prayer must be Body-centered. Our views, considerations, decisions all must be for the Body, as much as our prayers are. We pray as “Us” and for “Ours.”

 Today and Daily:

God is a God of all time; of the past, of the present and of the future. Whenever we pray, we pray in the “present tense”, praying for the need of the hour. Otherwise, it would be an anxious care and concern. We must live in the present and ask for what is needed today. In the usage of “daily” which is a constant and repeated occurrence, we are to always, constantly and repeatedly depend on the Lord for every need. Ever depending constantly on the Lord.

 Bread: 

The Lord revealed Himself as the “living Bread, true Bread, Bread sent from heaven, the Bread of life” in John 6. When He taught us to pray for “Bread” though it may also mean physical food and daily necessities, it much more means the daily necessity of ours for the Lord Himself as our food and means of spiritual livelihood. He wants us to live in Him, with Him and by Him. Christ is our Bread; we must pray to Christ to give us Christ every day. This is a very healthy prayer; to pray to Christ to supply us Christ as our daily Bread. This is synonymous to “living and walking by the Spirit” in Romans 8: 4, 6, 7-13 and Galatians 5:16, 25, “living Christ” in Philippians 1:21 and “praying unceasingly” in 1 Thessalonians 5:17.

Two weeks ago, after enjoying this verse I ministered my enjoyment to a doctor couple who got baptized a year ago, to a sister who came to faith recently, to two sisters who are on the process of recovery into a normal Christian life and church life, and to a professional who was also baptized few months ago. They all were so nourished with the ministry of the Word, which is ever fresh, living and new.

The Lord’s word is a daily bread indeed, so eatable to all who hunger and thirst for Him. May our living be always in the principle of “Give us today our daily bread, Lord.”

The Cloud : A Spiritual Journey

Numbers 9:15 And on the day that the tabernacle was set up, the cloud covered the tabernacle, the Tent of the Testimony; and in the evening it was like the appearance of fire over the tabernacle until morning.

As children of God, the leading of the Lord by the Spirit and the word of God is a necessity for our spiritual journey; a heavenly engine to be driven by and an earthly track to drive on. Yesterday morning the Lord spoke to me a very clear word concerning His leading by the Cloud. The word of God shone within me and made me very clear what to fellowship with the full time serving ones in the Telugu translation team that would follow suit.

As we prayed and pray-read the verses as follows, the Lord spoke to each one of us and whatever we had to fellowship was made crystal clear by the word itself. The Lord spoke through His word.

The Spirit and the Word : 16 So it was always; the cloud covered it by day, and the appearance of fire by night. 

The Spirit is always in our spirit as believer, and the Word is also always with us. The only thing we need to do is to pay heed to the Spirit within and the Word without; They never fail. They are the best of the best for anything and everything in our Christian life and in our spiritual journey, as we are onward bound to the New Jerusalem, even as we are becoming the New Jerusalem.

The Subjective Action:

17 And whenever the cloud was taken up from over the tent, then after that the children of Israel set out; and in the place where the cloud settled, there the children of Israel encamped. 

Our spiritual journey is not determined by human timing and convenience; rather it depends entirely on whether the cloud is taken up or not. When it does, without excuse for whatever reason, we must follow on. Else, no matter what the reason, we will be left behind. When to move, when to rest, where to lodge, all depends on the cloud.

The Objective Command: 18 At the commandment of Jehovah the children of Israel set out, and at the commandment of Jehovah they encamped; as long as the cloud settled upon the tabernacle, they remained encamped. 

The command of God is very definite and very emphatic. We have to heed the Word at all cost. Once the command is commanded forth, there is no question of "let me pray about it and consider". No, there is no need to pray further and try to act foolishly and stupidly spiritual. The Lord has spoken and the Word of the Lord is final and abiding. No further "fellowship" otherwise is needed. Many superstitiously blind children of God are often stuck up in this in their immaturity and blindness. Obedience is all that is required of the children of God once the Word was spoken.

Timing: 19 Even when the cloud extended its time over the tabernacle for many days, the children of Israel kept the charge of Jehovah and did not set out. 20 If sometimes the cloud was upon the tabernacle a few days, according to the commandment of Jehovah they remained encamped; then at the commandment of Jehovah they set out. 21 If sometimes the cloud remained from evening until morning, when the cloud was taken up in the morning, they set out; or if it remained in the daytime and at night, when the cloud was taken up, they set out. 22 Whether it was two days or a month or a longer time that the cloud extended its time over the tabernacle and settled above it, the children of Israel remained encamped and did not set out; but when it was taken up, they set out. 

Once the command was given and the cloud began to move, at whatever time, after any duration of time, we must move on. The Lord's timing is the best. Whenever He moves, we must move on to follow. Not to have any opinion, nor to bargain for convenience sake for whatever reason, we must go on.

In the Principle of Incarnation: 23 At the commandment of Jehovah they encamped, and at the commandment of Jehovah they set out. They kept the charge of Jehovah according to the commandment of Jehovah through Moses. 

In days of old too, the command of God was through His deputy authority as "leader" anointed and appointed by God Himself. Even in this age His leading is always through man in the principle of incarnation. When we are in spirit, in the Body, we will definitely know who is that "man", otherwise, we are in blindness and does not see and know the Body, nor the ways and works of God. The simplest way to be is, just be in the Body as the "Israelites" and follow "Moses". Anything contrary to this would be disobedience and rebellion.

May the Lord grace us on in our spiritual journey until we reach the goal of God.

Later, during the day, as we pray-read and fellowshipped on these words, the Lord's anointing, blessing and leading was so strong. We got a clear leading in many practical arrangement for the Telugu translation service. Praise the Lord! 

The same applies for any matter in our spiritual journey on this earth; follow the cloud and obey the command through Moses.

Fellowship is the Way

Last night we had a wonderful fellowship on Telugu translation. This language translation of the ministry of the word has been going through intense heat and pressure form within and without. Though, more than a decade has transpired since its initiation, it went through many many trials. Even till date, things are not as should have been a decade ago.

With much burden and prayer, we just concluded a two days fellowship on the literature service in this language. The Lord has led us through, and now we can see a dim light beginning to shine. 

When we began our practical fellowship last night, we were not clear at all as to how to go on. But as we considered case by case of different saints involved, assessing and discerning each one's capacity and function, the Lord gave us a clear light. Finally after about four long hours of detail fellowship we came to conclusion; a revamp of the whole literature service in Telugu.

Fellowship is indeed the way. The Lord does speak and He speaks in the Body and through the Body. And this through much and thorough fellowship. Now, we have a definite plan and a definite goal with a definite way to achieve the goal. Praise the Lord!

Even the two days of fellowship we just had was so timely. The items of fellowship were all very practical and anointed of the Spirit. This is in coordination with the Lord's move here in India.

The Telugu speaking regions, both Telengana and Seemandra, are teeming with many children of God from the labour of many faithful servants of God. In fact, many godly and faithful saints have their sources in either of these lands. The ministry of the word in Telugu is an urgent need to feed the spiritual hunger and thirst of these blessed lands. The Lord knows who are His and is preparing His own to supply the need of His own children. What a blessing to be a part of the ministry, and to be able to coordinate in producing the healthy spiritual food. However, for the Lord to move practically, He needs man to coordinate with Him. And that's where we are blessed to be a part of it. All in fellowship and prayer.

Fellowship is the way for the Body to cooperate with the Head in all practical reality.

Greek : Silly Typo

It's a blessing to learn Greek, in fact, to be able to learn Greek under the guidance of genuine scholars who have done and overseen the translation work of the Holy Bible in to many major languages in the world! Under such teachers, I am privilege to be a student. 

Recently I frankly opined on an assignment with the view of drawing the attention of all the other learners to encourage them to faithfully and diligently learn and use the forum more frequently as a learning tool. My teacher's reply has a sentence which read,"Some of the learners here may wish to get everything right before they get the answer key and may feel hurt in pride if they do not." Initially I thought I never had this feeling nor would ever have such. But the second exam I took proved me wrong.

I did my best to study and study, and revised it again and again until I was confident enough to take the exam and score cent per cent. This hidden ambition of faithful study and hard work to get the best result was not bad in a sense, at least, as a student learning Greek. And when I indeed took the test I knew all the answers well and was expecting another 100 score, but I got stuck with a silly matter. 

The definite articles which I knew so well, I just forgot one article; it just slipped out of my head. I had no reason to explain this. But I knew it was the Lord's dealing to prove me of what my teacher commented. And besides, I made a very stupid and silly mistake of "ς" and "ζ", replacing the former with the latter as they look similar too. The tough questions I could answer so well and correctly, and the simplest and repeated question, I made silly typo, and spent more time in the easier part than the tougher.What a paradox! 

And finally on submission of the answers, I lost 2 marks out of 100. This exactly proved what was commented of my comment, "Some of the learners here may wish to get everything right before they get the answer key and may feel hurt in pride if they do not." Initially I thought I never had this feeling nor would ever have such." Thank God for the prophetic comment and the life-lesson I learned through this silly typo. Not just a matter of marks nor Greek lesson, but a matter of my being.

This experience was very perfecting to me personally; to see and know who am I in my naturalness and the Lord's sovereignty in dealing with me. To be a faithful and diligent learner, yet to be humble and expect the Lord's blessing. To do my best, yet to God to leave the rest; and accept whatever He bestows.

This Greek silly typo is a serious training on lessons of life. The God of small and silly things is the God of serious and supreme things as well. He works in silly ways to gain the silly and the serious alike. Thank God for this "Greek : Silly Typo" life lesson!

The Cloud : A Visit to Gujarat

We have been praying for Gujarat for the Lord's testimony and for the ministry of the word to be made available in Gujarati. Though a plan was conceived many months ago, the right time has come only now for us to visit this state. Through some contacts we finally visited this state and landed in a city, Ahmedabad. The brothers who made the arrangement thought we were foreigners and have made the best possible arrangement; in fact, too good, for us. We were accommodated in a star hotel called "The Cloud". Indeed, we are in "the Cloud", in the Spirit, while we are here meeting a couple of believers.

As planned, it is only a two days stay, and the time we spend here are quite fruitful. On day one, we had fellowshiped with a brother who was so much helped by brother Watchman Nee's writings, first by The Normal Christian Life, many years ago, and recently, by The Overcoming Life. In fact, he initiated a translation and wrote to Living Stream Ministry, USA for permission. That's how we came to know each other.

Besides, we got to fellowship with few more translators to carry out the translation work into Gujarati. The Lord has led us to the right people, and now we are in a position to begin the literature service in Gujarati. Though we prayed much for at least one, now we have three or more, perhaps, to choose from. Praise the Lord!

The Lord's timing and ways are always the best. Apart from the literature burden, He also opened up a family for more fellowship on the matter of the church. The books the Lord inspired us to bring as a gift are also very apt and timely, The Normal Christian Church Life by Watchman Nee and The Basic Revelations in the Holy Scriptures by Witness Lee. We have gifted these books to two translators. In fact, with one of them and his family we pursued the latter book on the Church as the "Ekklesia", "The House of God" and "The Body of Christ." 

Sovereignly, a brother from Singapore who is on his business trip to the same city met with us when we visited a Christian bookstore yesterday. He joined us in a love-feast fellowship with the seeking one's family tonight. O what a blessed time we had together! The Lord's timing are perfect; and its always worth the waiting. 

Hallelujah! We are indeed in the Cloud! Not just in the hotel "The Cloud" but much more in the Cloud, in the Spirit, for His move in this city Ahmedabad and this state Gujarat!

May God bless Gujarat and His words in Gujarati.

Duplication

Recently I was so much impressed by the matter of "duplication" in our services in the Lord's work. In fact, this has been a burden in the Lord's work today. Gone are the days of "spiritual giants" where spirituality in an individualistic way was pursued as the main goal of a Christian life. In fact, I was once such. This line of belief is very dangerous for the building up of the Body of Christ; for the Body of Christ is a corporate matter with each members function according to the measure God has measured to them, not going beyond nor below, but just as the Lord, the Head of the Body, sovereignly has ordained.

In a normal Christian life in a normal church life, coordination in oneness with all members functioning is a must. For this practically to happen there must be a mutual shepherding of one another; the learned ones must train and perfect the learning ones, the senior and experienced ones must shepherd and perfect the younger and inexperienced ones. Whatever one has learned under the Lord's grace must be passed on to the next generation, and impart to the ones who have not yet learned. By this way, the building up of the Body of Christ will hasten. God is not seeking for individualistic spiritualist, but He is seek for the Body, His Bride, for Him to marry to consummate this age.

If not for the faithful brothers in the Lord's recovery today who are imparting this burden in this age, I would still be very individualistic, keeping all my learning from the Lord to myself. With this burden released I have started to serve in the way of perfecting and building up one another. What the Lord has taught me all these years must be passed on to many other saints, in a sense, I must reproduce myself in a positive sense to other saints to carry out the same work I am doing. Just as much as I learned from other saints who shepherded me, taught me and trained me, I must do the same to other saints, and that saints must in turn do the same likewise. By this way, the Lord's work of building up His Body will hasten much more. The urgent need today it "duplication" or "reproduction" of the Lord's work in us to others.

These days, the Lord blessed me with some saints whom He graced me to shepherd and have now become my vital group members. Once in a week we would serve together in prayer, visiting new ones, preaching the gospel and shepherding the new ones. So far seven solid group of contacts have been contacted. And the burden for shepherding is growing exponentially. Praise the Lord for such a grace! This all I could enjoy because of the initial shepherding the Lord graced me to carry out. We are mutually shepherding one another.

 Few days ago, we enjoyed pray-reading verses from Jeremiah 24 : 

6 And I will set My eyes upon them for good and will bring them back to this land and build them up and not tear them down, and I will plant them and not uproot them. 7 And I will give them a heart to know Me, that I am Jehovah; and they will be My people, and I will be their God; for they will return to Me with their whole heart.

We prayed these verses applying to all the ones we are praying for; we had no words of our own but the word of God itself. We enjoyed praying in this way so much; every word means so much, and after such pray-reading interceding, our burdens were released and we had the assurance that God has already answered our prayer, for it is His word that we prayed with. This kind of corporate vital group experience and enjoyment would not have happened had I not shepherded my vital members in a way of reproducing my spiritual learning from the Lord to them. 

This is the need of the Body in this age: mutual shepherding and spiritual reproduction for the perfecting of the saints unto the building up of the Body of Christ.