My Friend's Family

One of my best friends from high school days, who motivated me to be a studious student, be academically competitive to ambitious in studies as a student, has been posted in Siliguri. I felt it best to pay him a visit once all my burdens were released in regard to meeting Christian leaders for the introduction of the ministry of the word. It was surprising that I could visit them in all the three cities they had been posted so far. When they were in Kolkatta, I visited them with a brother from Chennai, and we gave our testimonies of salvation. When they were in Guwahati too, I visited them again when I fellowshipped with them at length on the truth concerning Christ and the church. This time, the visit also had a very special significance spiritually.

My friend has a religious background with the flavour of Judaism though the faith in Christ is still intact. There perhaps could have been some mixture of the Old Testament and the New Testament in their faith. Which undoubtedly could have had an effect on mingling with a Christian with a fundamental teaching of the New Testament. This was the point of fellowship on the fundamental faith of a Christian with my friend's wife. She has been experiencing a lot of reconciling the fundamental beliefs of the Old and the New Testament. Despite other Christian's opinion about her faith in the Lord as she has been married to my friend, she has stood firm and has been learning to balance between the two beliefs. Perhaps, it was for this fellowship on fundamental teaching of the Bible that I could visit the family. I believe so. As the circumstance I was in proved it to be true. I could fellowship at length on the fundamental teaching of the Bible of a normal Christian life.  

Besides, I also could introduce my wife to my friend's wife with the hope that they will fellowship in the coming days. A Christian needs fellowship, and it is through such that she can grow in the Lord. The Lord knew her seeking heart for the truth, and I believe that was the reason why I could visit them. I also gifted them some ministry books on the church for their pursuit. Before I left the next day, we had a short family time of prayer together. I believe the Lord will fully recover my friend's family into the normal Christian life and the church life.

Lord, bless my friend's family. And bless our fellowship in the coming days.

An Opening in Bhutan

An Opening in Bhutan

A brother from Bhutan who also serves the young people and college students in Bhutan was introduced to us. The Lord impressed him with the ministry books and he volunteered to introduce and distribute the ministry books among the students. Besides, we also met with a Bhutanese brother who has been involving in the translation of the Bible into the local languages of Bhutan. The New Testament Recovery Version impressed him so much as it has been done with much accuracy. He even said he would use the Recovery Version as a reference for his ongoing translation.

Ministry of the Word Journey: North Bengal

Jaigaon, North Bengal

A land bordering India and Bhutan is teeming with missions and missionaries, all with the burden of somehow entering into Bhutan with the gospel. We were welcomed by a well-established Christian group and given hospitality with theologians. With our host we had wonderful fellowship on what a Christian life is, and the issue of such a life being the church life. The theologians were appalled with the depth and revelation of the word the Lord blessed the ministry with, supported by the subjectivity of such high peak truths. We were also led to meet the leading and influential Christian leaders to whom the ministry books were introduced.

A Seeking Missionary: A seeking "missionary" invited us for a lovefeast dinner fellowship and testified of how he has been praying and longing for someone to introduce the pure and healthy teaching from the Bible with printed ministry books. He has seen so much confusion among Christianity with different teachings and leadership that leads the believers into  division. He expressed his gratitude to the Lord that the Lord brought us there in answer to his prayer and wanted to pursue the ministry books and also expressed his desire to visit the church life in Delhi and Gurgaon. 

Alipurduar, North Bengal

We were introduced to the top leaders of the Christian groups operating in North Bengal. A leading founder and leader of some 200 “branch churches” was so interested in the ministry books. He placed order for the books in sets, and would mobilize all who are serving with him for the distribution of free Rhema books and tracts. In fact, he testified that he has been praying and waiting for someone to provide healthy teaching from the Bible, and was so happy that we visited him.

Another mainline church leader expressed his desperateness on the state of today's nominal Christians and wanted a revival. The ministry books impressed him a lot and wanted them in Bengali in bulk as soon as possible, as he is the Chairman of many “churches” all over North Bengal, mostly Bengali speaking believers. 

Ministry of the Word Journey: Kalimpong, West Bengal

Kalimpong, North Bengal

The Lord led us to a group of young Christian leaders and pastors, to them we introduced the ministry books. They all were very impressed and took the books and introduced us to the leading pastors in the city. A young pastor on hearing about us, came to meet us and placed order for the ministry books in set. 

The only Christian bookstore in the city on learning about us and the books by Watchman Nee, placed order for the books and made arrangement for us to meet their leading elder. The leading elder testified of how much help he received by reading brother Nee's book since 1977. He loved brother Nee so much so that he loved us too and even requested us to stay with him in their campus. 

House Churches in Kalimpong: A brother who has seen something of the New Testament pattern of the church welcomed and gave us hospitality. With him we had a sweet time of fellowship on the truth concerning Christ and the church. He was so glad that the ministry of the age has reached him. He has been running "house churches" in and around Kalimpong with some 500 believers. He is so burdened to build up the church by perfecting the saints by teaching them in their homes. He also fellowshipped the possibility of conducting training for the believers and the serving ones in the near future.

Ministry of the Word Journey: Darjeeling, West Bengal

Darjeeling, North Bengal

The only Christian bookstore placed order for the books in sets. On the Lord's day, some seekers and pastors came to see the ministry books and they all placed order for the books.

A Seeking Sister in Darjeeling

The Lord brought a sister who loves the Lord so much and has been so desperate to know many "mysteries" in the Bible. She was so excited to learn that many of her questions are actually answered in the ministry books and in the Bible, Recovery Version. She immediately placed order for a set and desperately longed for the New Testament, Recovery Version. We also introduced the online ministry books and online LSM radio program for her pursuit of the truths. 

Ministry of the Word Journey: Majitar and Namchi, Sikkim

Majitar, Sikkim

A brother who is a Rhema contact and has been so much blessed by his reading of BXL 1 invited us for lunch fellowship. On learning about the ministry books, he placed order for the books in sets with the NT Recovery Version.

Namchi, Sikkim

A pastor who loves Watchman Nee's books took the initiative to call up all the pastors in the city to come to visit us in our lodging place. Many leading Christian pastors in the city came to visit us. As we introduced the ministry books, majority of them placed order for the ministry books in sets. The Lord also led us to a brother who is a school principal, a politician, and an artist who also placed order for the ministry books in sets. 

Ministry of the Word Journey: Gangtok, Sikkim

Gangtok, Sikkim

In Gangtok, we were accommodated in the guest house of a brother who loves and enjoys the ministry books by Watchman Nee. He is a retired IAS officer and Ex-Chief Secretary of Sikkim. As we introduced the ministry books and the Holy Bible Recovery Version, he was so impressed with the accuracy of the translation. As I was introducing the accuracy of translation using Ephesians 1:5, on "adoption versus sonship" and declared boldly that God did not adopt us but we were born of God as sons of God in life and in nature. His innate response was, "I got a goose bump!" He then placed a purchase order for the entire set of all books by brother Watchman Nee and Witness Lee. In addition, he also asked for an extra 100 copies each of Messages for Building Up the New Believers 3 Vols for all the pastors serving with him in his 55 “branch churches”. We also met the other leading pastors in Gangtok who purchased the ministry books in sets.

House Churches in Gangtok

The Lord sovereignly led us to a brother who has some light on the church as the Body of Christ and who also dissolved his congregation of one man speaking meeting of about 100 families into 15 small groups which he called "house churches". Their meeting pattern is with the view of making everyone function, simply following the Spirit's leading, without any preset pattern. We also spent an evening meeting in one of his “house churches” in Gangtok where we ministered on Calling Upon the Lord's Name and led all the believers to call on the Lord. He purchased the ministry books in sets and the NT Recovery Version.

Campus Distribution in Gangtok

We distributed Rhema bookmarks in a medical college and Nepali Mystery of Human Life in a Govt. College. A seeking sister in her final year came to fellowship with us as she saw us distributing tracts in the students' cafeteria. She was so happy to meet us and expressed her feeling and desire to serve the Lord full time. We encouraged her to pursue the truths and gifted her Life Lessons and Rhema booklets, besides giving her an "assignment" of reading the Bible and praying everyday as a preparation for her if the Lord would so lead her to come for the full-time training.