Christian Fellowship on Maturity

In fellowship, the brothers took me to visit an Architect who used to be a vehement propagator of a certain religious sect of the country, who now has become an ardent lover of the Lord Jesus Christ and a gospel preacher as "tent maker." Since I was told that he simply would listen to the word without himself opening up, I purposely requested if he could tell how he got saved and which he willingly did. It was amazing to listen to testimonies of saved sinners. I too testified of how the Lord saved me, a sinner, too.

From being a saved believer to growth in life to fulfill God’s heart's desire was our further fellowship, which would issue in the church life. At length, we fellowshipped about how this could transpire based on Paul’s teaching on Ephesians. With that fellowship, we broke the ice and established a brotherly relationship.

Few days later, he visited us in our place when we ministered on loving the Lord with prayers and praises on loving the Lord Jesus Christ supremely above all. We further fellowshipped about the need for recovering back the beliefs and practices of the Bible from present day degradation and distortion to that of the truths of the Bible. The Lord strongly led me to minister boldly on the truth as it is, emphasising mainly on the importance and urgency of the believers' growth in life for the building up of the Body of Christ.

Our dear brother wanted more ministering on the significance of maturity in life. With that, we delved deep into the word of God in Ephesians 4.

Eph. 4:11 - And He Himself gave some as apostles and some as prophets and some as evangelists and some as shepherds and teachers,
Eph. 4:12 - For the perfecting of the saints unto the work of the ministry, unto the building up of the Body of Christ,
Eph. 4:13 - Until we all arrive at the oneness of the faith and of the full knowledge of the Son of God, at a full-grown man, at the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ.

The Lord led me to minster on these verses:

Until we all arrive at the oneness of the faith

The work of perfecting the believers is the ministry, which is the building up of the Body of Christ. This must go on UNTIL we all arrive at the oneness of the faith. This oneness is much attacked by the enemy among the believers today. And this is our prayer too for the Lord to recover the oneness of, and in, the Body of Christ. The Lord's recovery is the recovery of the oneness of the Body of Christ. That's why we do not approve of the divisions and denominations of Christianity. Though we love the believers, we do not agree with the enemy's strategy of divide and rule. We minister life for the recovery of the oneness and fellowship of the Body of Christ.

Until we all arrive at the oneness of the full knowledge of the Son of God

There is an urgent need too, for the believers to arrive at the full knowledge of the Son of God. This entails an objective as well as the subjective knowledge of the Son of God. For this there is a need to pursue the knowledge of Jesus Christ in the ministry of the word till we all arrive at a full-grown man, at the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ.

Until we all arrive at a full-grown man, at the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ

Whence this is accomplished, we will be like Him!

1 John 3:1 - Behold what manner of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called  children of God; and we are. Because of this the world does not know us, because it did not know Him.
1 John 3:2 - Beloved, now we are children of God, and it has not yet been manifested what we will be. We know that if He is manifested, we will be like Him because we will see Him even as He is.

As genuine believers, children of God, we possess the life and nature of God. As we grow in the divine life, we will one day be matured as a full grown man, the full stature of Christ, to be like Him, Jesus Christ, as the fulfillment and reality of God creating us in His image and likeness in Genesis 1:26, and finally conforming us to the image of the Firstborn Son of God.

Rom. 8:29 - Because those whom He foreknew, He also predestinated to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the Firstborn among many brothers.

"This is full maturity,  not according to me,  but according to the Bible," I explained to the brother. In conclusion, God became man,  to make man God, in life and in nature but not in the Godhead.

With this ministering of the ministry of the word, he testified of the power and authority in the Word of God filled with the Spirit. To me, this is the ministry God has entrusted us that we might minister faithfully to all.

Lord, grace us all to grow daily unto full maturity!

Christian Fellowship in Guwahati

It was my first visit to a brother who has been a Christian for years but could not go on,  despite holding important post in a system of Christianity, a Vice President of the denominational church he goes to, at the moment. At the first meeting the Lord led me to minister on life aspect. He  strengthened my burden by himself asking how to grow in life. In response to his quest, I ministered on the four basic items of a Christian practice for growth in life, viz., breathing the Lord by calling upon the Name of the Lord Jesus in spirit all the time, drinking of the Spirit in prayer daily with specific time, reading and eating the word of God through pray-reading, and fellowship in homes or in group meetings. 

Immediately after I released my burden, he asked me to repeat the whole thing again and he recorded them on his mobile, even taking notes on the major points and Bible verses. It was so encouraging to witness and feed the hungry and seeking ones. Besides, the Lord’s anointing was so rich in the fellowship.

After the meeting he invited us again as he wanted us to minister to his whole family and a group of seeking friends. When we went the next day, his wife, a seeking couple and a brother were there for receiving the ministry supply. I simply asked them, what was their actual need and what would they want me to minister? One of them requested for a fellowship on how to daily grow in life. Since it was their request and urgent need I ministered the same burdens what was ministered the day before, this time with much emphasis on practicality.

We even had some practical calling on the name of the Lord together, praying for one another's specific needs and some testimonies of the Lord's works in our lives. The couple who enjoyed the ministry invited us to visit them the next day. Since I was scheduled to visit Shillong I excused myself and asked the other brothers to go.

This experience was an eye opener to two major things. Positively, there is an immense thirst and hunger for the ministry of the word,  and negatively,  the system of Christianity has terribly failed in addressing the real need of the believers. Here comes the urgent need for the Lord's recovery of Christ as life for the believers' enjoyment of the Christian life, and the need for proper shepherding with the healthy spiritual food, the word of God.

Only if all Christians have proper vision of a Christian life and live a normal Christian life, the state of today's Christians would be much better and proper. This is also a direct evidence of the need for the Lord's recovery today in this city Guwahati. 

Lord, gain Your strong testimony in Guwahati!

Shillong: A Specific Burden

Three years ago the Lord introduced me to a group of believers in Shillong. The relationship began with a phone call, then sweetened with an SMS, then strengthened further over phone call prayer that lasted for a couple of months which resulted in brotherly fellowship face to face.

This fellowship further expanded to a more corporate fellowship with beloved brothers and sisters who have been meeting for a couple of years as a local church. The Spirit's moving and anointing has ever been so strong every time we met since then. Though, in between, some negative elements tried to creep in; every time the enemy attempted his vain attempts, it resulted in a sweeter and deeper fellowship with higher truths revealed. Every device of the enemy to thwart our relationship in Christ and in the Body of Christ, were all opportunities for the Lord to gain a deeper and sweeter fellowship among us. Thank God for some "understandings" at times, for God never makes mistakes, He wisely turned all "accidents" into "incidents" to build up His Body.

This time too, the Lord burdened me to visit a brother for personal fellowship concerning his decision on his profession. He felt led by the Lord though with some misunderstandings initially,  but now the believers came to terms with it. I also was initially surprised by the decision this brother had taken when I came to learn of it from Google on searching his name, as I was strongly led by the Lord to do so when I was in California last month. With that news and burden I eventually came to fellowship with him, and finally realised that this indeed is the hand of God. Even as brother fellowshipped, I too agreed that the time has now come for a moving forward of the church in terms of fellowship and blending with other localities. All the happenings were sovereignly ordained by God for His recovery of the fellowship of the Body of Christ, and the oneness thereof.

The Lord's presence and anointing was so rich in all the fellowships, and the speaking of the Lord too was very timely. What I thought to minister was sidelined and the Lord gave me words to speak from Ezekiel 44:15-28, concerning the priestly service in the house of Jehovah, a charge given to the sons of Zadok on twelve wonderful points. Without any pre-plan, the hall we were in, in a brother's house, was filled and the flow of life went on and on for hours, followed by some closer fellowship on practical items of the church life.

Besides, I could also meet my distant maternal uncle and family, followed by another fellowship with another paternal uncle and family. All these fellowships were truly anointed of the Spirit and we all enjoyed the Lord's presence. Praise the Lord!

Hence, with all the fellowship personally with the said brother, and with a group of brothers and sisters, the specific burden the Lord gave me was released. As a follow up on this fellowship, we plan to meet up again to have a broader fellowship with more brothers from the neighboring local churches. As the Lord would grace and lead, the specific burden for Shillong will be released.

In everything we do, we must be one with the Lord, and must not do what the Lord has not led us to do. His timing is the best, and we just follow Him step by step.

Ten Years, the Lord's Mercy

It's been ten years since the Lord called me to His full time ministry. It's been ten years since I have been learning lessons on coordination in serving Him with the saints. It's been ten years since the Lord blend me with my wife. It's been ten years since the Lord started training me to be a family man. It's been ten years since I started serving in the ministry of the word literature service.And it's been ten years since the Lord began to break through my inner man. Now, I am beginning to witness the transforming work of the Lord. And may it so continue...

These days I have been experiencing a ten years leap in major areas of my Christian life. The Lord's continual working on me has intrinsically transpired a bit of transformation in my being; the way I think, the way I feel and the way I make decisions have taken a giant leap. Indeed, I have awaken to a realisation that changes for the better have transpired indeed. The proofs, my relationship and fellowship with my brothers,  and with my wife too,  have been very much sweetened, strengthened, and I could personally sense the genuineness in such fellowship and relationship. In many areas of my life, the unconscious, hidden and secret suppression to get along with people have changed. I am feeling free and light in my inward being; I don't bear burdens that I used to, heavily with struggling, but the burdens have borne me now with enjoyment and lightness within. What a blessing I feel!

Spiritually, I feel, I am beginning to experience the torn veil. Not merely serving at the holy place but gradually entering into the second veil. Nevertheless, still looking to the Lord for His grace that He may fully usher me into the Holy of holies.

In my experience too, I dare not do things loosely or carelessly; I would consider and pray before the Lord until the Lord confirms what needs to be done. I fear and tremble before God as not to misrepresent Him in anyway; in words and in deeds, to be one with Him is my heart's desire. May the Lord have mercy on me to be such as He so desires.

My relationship with my beloved wife and children have become sweeter by the day. Though married for a decade, I am just beginning to learn and enjoy the joy of a family life; as a husband in sweeter romance with my wife,  and as a father in sweeter cherishing of my children. Not that I had never enjoyed a family life before, but now the degree of such enjoyments have taken a giant leap, to a higher and greater extend. Hallelujah!

My prayer life,  my eating of the word of God, my fellowship with fellow believers, my shepherding life, my caring for others, my discernment and perception of things and in many ways, I sense a great improvement, at least to my own assessment. I hope others sense the same too, if not more.

To all these new experiences, I say amen and praise the Lord for His blessings, an all-inclusive blessing of ten years leaping forward. This is truly the sure mercies of the Lord. May this leaping forward continue for the upcoming decades, even unto eternity. Amen.

Chennai: A Revist

According to the burden the Lord imparted me with, after the co-workers training in Chennai I visited the three families I used to visit, and this time one more added. These families have been in my heart for years and they have generated a specific burden within me, to minister life to them, and pray with with them even as I have been praying for them.

The first one was my ex-teacher who was very instrumental in introducing me to the Lord's recovery when I was a student then, and whom I regard so much as a teacher, and much more, as a brother in Christ. It was he from whom I began to learn Christ as life subjectively, and used to fellowship with him often during my student days. And till date, I visit him whenever I visited the city where his residence is. This time too, my fellowship with him was truly on life as was the previous one in the beginning of this year. For over two hours and a half, I fellowshipped with him about how the Lord's presence and blessings were so rich in the recent trips I took to the USA, the North East India and related to him some practical details of the Lord's leading in meeting different people and in the ministering of the word of God. The main burden of the fellowship was on "the Lord's Presence" in everything we do or say. By such testimonies, we enjoyed the fellowship of life when the objective word of God was incarnated and experienced subjectively in real life.

The other family was my local guardian when I was a student. As usual, in spite of their grey hairs, they always treated me with the best love-feast they could prepare. All effort to restrain them from such "trouble" were in vain. Perhaps,  that's how they showed their love to their "spiritual son," as I was much helped spiritually by their daughter and her husband, though the daughter had long been gone to be with the Lord. To them, as they requested, the ministry was on the builders of the Tabernacle in Exodus 31:1-6; on God’s covering grace, the light of Jehovah, being clean and pure, and serving in coordination according to what was commanded, all for the building up of the Tabernacle.

The third family I visited was relatively "poor" physically but the Lord has blessed them richly too. All their children were educationally and spiritually blessed by the Lord, and they have been faithfully following the Lord through all thick and thin,  and passed through trying turmoil time. To them, I testified of how the Lord led me to serve Him and some precious lessons of faith in trusting and serving Him. I also encouraged them to love the Lord and treasure His presence most by spending time with Him in the Word and in prayer. The five children were very precious, three of the elder ones have proved excellency in academics, and I termed it as the Lord's blessings.

The last family I met was on my way to the airport, a family whom I reckon in the Lord as my "spiritual children" according to the truth of the Bible. It was a brief time together, just prayer, as the son and daughter were at office and college respectively. Later,  from the airport I had a sweet time of fellowship and prayer over the phone with the son.

One lesson the Lord taught me with this last one and the last visit was in the matter of speech. One time I spoke a sentence not worthy of a brother to the son. I regretted doing that and the result was, I could not call gain until this time. Through this incident I learned the lesson of speaking: only to minister Christ as life.

All these visits were sweet and, I believe,  profitable too. This revisit to Chennai was indeed a visit that ministered life.

Gospel On Board

Two weeks ago, when I attended a Friday night group meeting at one of the homes of the church in Anaheim, something within me told me to pick up a Christian tract entitled, "The Church in Anaheim" that were piled up neatly on a table greeting every visitors at the main door. Little did I understand that it was to be meant for some needy seekers later. I safely tucked it into my inner pocket of my navy blue suit that I wore almost everyday, not merely for decency but mostly for warmth, to comfort my body that suffered a 40+ Celsius back home. I never even remembered it's presence while in the States until I flew back home bound.

While on board as I was enjoying my time with the Lord in prayer and in the Word with my HWMR and Holy Bible wide open on my food rack, my co-passengers began a conversation with cordial remark, thanking me for all the petty "good deeds" I did to them(?), though it meant nothing to me. Perhaps, it mattered to them for the cordial humanity of offering my window seat, shawl and polite talks, etc. The conversation became a gospel on board as it went further. On their quest to know me more, I testified to them of how the Lord Jesus saved me, and how He has been gracing me to live a Christian life. And I further promised to introduce them to the saints in California, and in Los Angeles in  particular, where they resides as a permanent resident, waiting for US citizenship, of Armenian descent.

As I introduced the availability of free Rhema books online in Russian and guessed it for Armenian too, after an exchange of email ID, phone number, with an in-flight selfie, the mother of the son asked me about life after death. To her I told that all were written in the Bible and explained a bit about a Christian life, overcoming life, the millennial Kingdom and the New Jerusalem. With that I encouraged her to live a normal Christian life of reading the Word,  prayer,  fellowshipping with fellow believers and the importance of growth in life. Then I remembered the lone little tract on my suit pocket. It took me no time to conclude that it was meant for this Armenian mother-son duo, which I graciously handed over to the mother with a brief introduction of what its content were. Later, I saw her opening the tract wide and reading through it.

May the Lord bless the gospel tract and speak to her unto her household salvation and recovery them into the church-life.

The same episode happened while flying from Dubai to New Delhi, with an elder lady of 80+ years old. Initially, she described her faith in one God through many paths philosophy. It took me good patience to listen to all she had to say about her beliefs and opinions. Then the Lord graced me to preach the gospel when we both even called upon the Lord's Name, "Lord, Jesus!" She became very open and narrated her family situation, gave me her address and phone number for further contact. Before we got off the flight we took selfies and she invited to visit her someday.

Praise the Lord for the gospel on board, the Emirates, flying over the Greenland from LA,  Dubai bound, and Dubai to New Delhi, at 34,980+ altitude at 1100+ km/hr speed!

Preach the gospel in season and out of season. And also preach the gospel at all the times,  if necessary,  use words. 

Proclaim the word; be ready in season and out of season; convict, rebuke, exhort with all long-suffering and teaching. 2 Timothy 4:2 

Thank you, America!

America, a dream destination of many, a country whose founders were believers of the true and living God, a country blessed by God, and a country that supports the work of the Lord worldwide and, perhaps, a center of Christian activities globally. I had a wonderful time during all my stay there, especially  I believe, because I was in fellowship and hospitality of genuine believers whose creeds and deeds are orthodoxically in line with the Bible. Not merely in high teachings embedded with heavenly visions and revelations, but also balanced and complemented as well with life practices and Christian living. I am not ashamed to be identified with my fellow brethren in Christ, rather I boast in our being one in beliefs and practices as members of the same one Body of Christ.

On top of all, the Lord's blessings both spiritually and materially upon the brothers and sisters I have been in fellowship with, are most appreciated. My personal experiences of meeting with the people both within and without my circle of fellowship too was very sweet. I was treated with all politeness,  kindness and goodness. I hope it was so with others as well. I wish not that I had been specially treated, but rather a generic temperament of all, if not by the majority. Even strangers who met me greeted me according to the time of the day. I was rather surprised to be greeted by a couple of peoples when on my morning walk on a street and a park with, "Good Morning!" And even more surprised at the road manner, time and again, when I was allowed a first pass by drivers of vehicles that met me at road crossings. The common sense and maintenance of cleanliness at home or outside was also a pattern to me. I am hoping to see the same manner and nature in my own country one day, hopefully, at least in my life time. But what matters most was the love and fellowship of my fellow members in the Body of Christ.

Now for the moment, having finished my temporary course in that wonderful country, I  have flown back home. When I boarded the flight, my first and only thought was, "Thank You,  America!" Perhaps, "See you again"; sooner, if not later. Let life take its own course.

Adieu America... Thank you, America!