Shimla: A Revisit

Acts 15:36Now after some days Paul said to Barnabas, Let us return now and visit the brothers in every city in which we announced the word of the Lord, and see how they are doing.

The burden to revisit Shimla after we first visited for the distribution of the ministry of the word a year ago came up in a fellowship two weeks ago. I felt it was the Lord's feeling and burden expressed in the Body. Though I initially intended not to, I amened the Lord's leading. Then I contacted the contacts in Shimla and other cities and started praying for this revisit. City by city, the seeking contacts replied and we came up with a plan to visit Shimla first, then Manali, then Kullu, then Mandi, and perhaps Chandigarh as well. 

The key contact in Shimla is a brother whom we met last, just before we left the city when we first visited. We spent a solid hour of ministering the word on Christ and the Church and introduced the ministry books to him. He was the main seeking one among all that we met. Therefore, he was contacted, he responded, and we visited him this time. 

Our brother gave us hospitality in his meeting hall and did his best to make us happy. He took us to the best tourist spots in Shimla for sightseeing. While we were in Army Heritage Museum, we had a fellowship on how the Lord brought us together and that he needed to take the stand for the Lord's testimony in Shimla. He seemed to have understood his need for taking the stand for the Lord's testimony and is open for fellowship and perfecting. He confessed his need and how he has been praying for transformation. In fact, the Lord has been burdening him for chain prayer throughout the day with some of the believers, and also recently had 120 hours of fasting prayer. He also acknowledged that the Lord has sent us to him, to meet his need and prayer for transformation. 

As he took us to different places, we also fellowshipped along the way. He testified to us how the Lord saved him through the miraculous healing of his mother from a cancerous tumour through the prayer of a pastor, and that healing led him to believe into the Lord Jesus Christ, be baptised into His name, took Bible training, served full time with a pastor for five years, and finally, started his own ministry. 

The Lord also has been leading him all these years and the ministry literature we distributed helped him realised his need for deeper and inner transformation. At this juncture in his spiritual journey, we met again. May the Lord fully recover him and the believers with him for His testimony in Shimla. 

Last Lord's day, he requested us to minister the word. A brother and I fellowshipped and prayed for the release of the word. Therefore, we shared on the basic of a Christian life: the mystery of human life; the assurance, security, and joy of salvation; the precious blood of Christ; the key to enjoy the Lord; and the importance of reading, knowing, and experiencing the word of the Lord. 

I was burdened to minister to the whole congregation of about forty believers on the spiritual significance of the word of God. Beginning with Psalms 119:105 and John 6:63, I released my burden to help them receive the Spirit and Life through the Word. I expounded John 6 on how the Lord charged us to work for the Food that does not perish, but fills our hunger, quenches our thirst, and gives eternal life. This Food is the Lord Jesus Christ as the bread sent from heaven, the living bread, the bread that gives life, and the living bread. This bread must be eaten daily by coming to the word of God and I encouraged every one to eat this bread through the reading of the word and praying the word daily. 

After we ministered the word, the brother testified of how much the Lord loves them by sending us to them to minister the timely word to the congregation. We trust the word of God will continue to work in them and bless the congregation for His testimony in Shimla. 

May the Lord recover His testimony through His chosen ones for the church in Shimla.

Gurugram Propagation: Seeking Christians

John 10:16And I have other sheep, which are not of this fold; I must lead them also, and they shall hear My voice, and there shall be one flock, one Shepherd. 

The Lord always have His remnants everywhere. Though our focus in gospel preaching is and always will be on the gentiles, still, as we go house to house door-knocking, the Lord still manifested His seekers and lovers. When the Lord brings them to us we cannot neglect them. It was the Lord who manifested them to us, and it is our responsibility to shepherd them. This time round, three such seeking families were met.

The first one is a family of four members. They have been meeting with a pentacostal group for over fifteen years. Yet when they were contacted they were so open to us and the truth that we ministered. Immediately they expressed their interest to meet with us. This is very unusual but the Lord has been preparing them for the church life. They started joining the meetings on Lord’s days and expressed their enjoyment of the Lord in the meeting despite our meeting being so different from the denominational Christian meetings. Outwardly speaking, we are few in numbers and do not have one man leader or preacher, no special choir or song leader with musical instruments, but the Lord has attracted them. On their invitation, we visited them for a home meeting last Monday. The testimony of their meeting with us was very encouraging. The mother of the family testified how she enjoyed the presence of the Lord and appreciated the free movement of the Holy Spirit to speak and move through the believers. To her, this is her home and she longs to meet with us right away. The brother also testified of how he desires to fully come into the church life and have been considering to completely leave the denomination to recover their church life. Our response was that the church is for all the believers and they are always welcome to meet with us. We encouraged them to look to the Lord for His specific leading and follow the Lord faithfully. A regular home meeting has thus been established every Monday night in their home. May the Lord fully shepherd them into His flock.

The second family was first met through door-knocking. A home meeting was held, then they were poisoned by someone with false accusation against the church life in the Lord’s recovery. But one day, they were convicted by the Lord that they were only hearing rumors and that they should find out the truth. We thought they were already closed and was on the verge of giving them up. But they changed and became open again. They invited us for a Bible study in their home and they also invited their friends and colleagues to join the meeting. Every time we went for the meeting, the Lord spoke something new and fresh to them. All we did was, sing a hymn, read few Bible verses, and fellowship on the word of God in depth and at length. As the Lord graces, we will continue to shepherd them.

The third family was met through the introduction of a believer family whom we met through door-knocking. On the first meeting itself we did not withhold what we felt good for the family. We ministered the truth concerning a Christian life and church life. They were so shepherded that they wanted us to meet them again for Bible studies. The Lord has been working on them and preserving them for His testimony.

There is yet another family who came to meet with us due to the frustration they had been facing in the denominational church they were in before, for over a decade. Through one brother they came to know about us and started meeting with us. A cult group that does not believe in Jesus as God contacted them. But in time, they were introduced to us. We immediately visited and inoculated them with the truth of the Bible and expounded to them the truth concerning the Triune God, a Christian life and church life. Yet the father who was enticed by the cult group became very angry on learning that his family started to come to the church meeting. He strongly objected to it and warned his family not be in contact with the church again. But we realized it was the enemy's attack and prayed for the release of the entire family.

Praise the Lord for all these families the Lord has manifested and chosen for His testimony. May Lord shepherd us to shepherd them fully into the full enjoyment of Christ in their Christian life and their church life. 

Kochi Office Visit

The Lord has been faithfully shepherding a brother and his wife through whom He brought in His recovery to India. Though physically they are aged, the Lord still preserves and enables them to continue to serve within their capacity. Though I had no plan to visit them, because of the brother's call, I adjusted my tour plan and visited them for a day. 

My burden in visiting the Kochi office was to fellowship with our brother and also with the team who serves in the literature service there. I am glad that they all were doing well.  I respect the brother who has been faithfully serving from the very beginning. I have learnt from him some crucial matters related to my service. I wish and pray for him and his wife that the Lord would grant them good health and long life to serve Him all the days of their lives unto the end. Though I did not have much to say, my mere presence was sufficient to let them know that I do care for them as fellow serving ones in the ministry of the word. He was so happy that I visited them and he requested that I visit often.

One night, I gave testimonies of the Lord's move in the North East part of India where they used to serve some thirty five years ago. My burden was to let them know that the Lord has been faithfully carrying out His move and that the ministry of the word plays a crucial role in gaining His remnants for His testimonies all over North East. I also updated them on what the Lord has been doing through the literature service in India. They were very encouraged by these testimonies. I was glad that I could visit them and do whatever the Lord burdened me to do, especially to testify of the goodness and faithfulness of the Lord. Another underlying burden in all my sharing was to minister life through giving testimonies.

They also took me to visit a city, Kottayam. On the way we enjoyed a sight seeing tour of "God's Own Country-Kerala." As we travelled for about two hours, I could fellowship with them about the Lord's move in other countries which I visited. I gave them testimonies of the Lord gaining a research scholar and how the saints poured out all their being for the Lord's testimony. Even when we arrived at our destination, the home of a wealthy sister, I had no intention to share anything specific, but as we fellowshipped I gave testimony of a wealthy brother through whom the Lord raised up a local church in my hometown. I also testified of how this brother loves the Lord and and how he became a blessing to the saints and to the church, both spiritually and physically. It so turned out that the testimony I just shared was what she actually need as the brother told me later on. I had no idea of who she was and why we met her, but the Lord has a definite plan in that visit.

The visit to Kochi office was a shepherding visit and I am glad that the Lord led me there. May the Lord continue to grace the serving ones there and bless His testimony in Kerala.

Churching: Southernmost Tip

The southernmost tip of India, Kanyakumari, has the church life where I came to visit for churching and sight seeing. Before this city, I visited Marthandam and Nagercoil. In all these coastal areas the saints took care of me so well. They took me around to different sight seeing spots, to the beach, to the shipping harbour, and specially treated me with different variety of seafood during my stay with them. It was a wonderful time of churching and blending.

The simplicity of the saints and their love for the Lord and care for the members of the Body is amazing. I just felt blessed; not just me, but also them. They indeed have been blessed with all the best that nature can bestow; clean air, clean water, fresh vegetables and fresh seafood, with a  very minimal need for money. On top of them all, they have been enjoying their church life in a simply yet sweet way. Praise the Lord!

The testimonies, fellowship, and prayers of the saints were very enjoyable. Though I did not intend to, I could perceive what has been going on in the churches there. Just by visiting them and being with them, I could discern the situation of the saints and the churches. Whenever I got the opportunity, I tried my best to minister Christ as life and encouraged them to go forward in loving the Lord and pursuing Him. May the Lord continue to shepherd and blessed the saints and the churches there.

As a sightseeing trip, the saints also took me to a rocky mountain being built with museum and statue, to a Sunset Point to see the sun setting over the horizon, to a Sunrise Point to catch a beautiful glimpse of the sun ascending from the vast ocean, and to the place called "Triveni Sangamam", the meeting of three oceans-the Pacific Ocean, the Indian Ocean, and the Bay of Bengal.

One crucial point in our fellowship was, the burden a brother brought up for fellowship related to the visiting of Bihar where he used to serve as missionary in the past. He testified that he has a good number of brothers and sisters who need to be shepherded for the Lord's testimony. As we fellowshipped, I felt it was the Lord's speaking and His open door for His move to North India, especially Bihar this time. Perhaps, it is time for me to visit this state now and sow the seed of the Kingdom of God! In and through the fellowship we were all clear concerning the Lord's move to Bihar. May the Lord gain His heart's desire in Bihar! The move to the North is also from the move to the South. Here is also another precious lesson: the Lord speaks in the Body, through the Body, and for the Body.

Serving Ones Training

This month, the serving ones training in Trivandrum was another step in my spiritual life and service in the Body. This is the city where my marriage to my wife was first made public to all the saints in the churches in India when there was a combined meeting in 2006. It was also the first such meeting for the church in Trivandrum. Now, after twelve years I came again to this city for a training.

The messages in the training was from the recent ITERO, "The Development of the Kingdom of God in the Christian Life and Church Life." The messages were so deep and so convicting. The Lord's speaking was very strong yet very sweet. I was reminded again of my timely and urgent need: to experience and enjoy the reality of the kingdom life. This message is very much needed for me and the churches in India. The underlining burden in this series of message is the need to diligently pursue the growth in life and the need to have a hidden life with God. All the good deeds done must be done in secret, only to the Father, and there must be a strong life of prayer. My personal and intimate relationship with the Lord must be very deep and strong, and my fellowship with the Lord must be very sweet. 

Personally, there was a step ahead in my function and also in my coordination with the brothers serving in the work. Our fellowship and oneness in serving together has been strengthened. We enjoyed a sweet coordination. I could sense the development within me in the way I coordinate with my fellows coworkers. This is a definite breakthrough. In my sharing when the time was given for some selected brothers to give the concluding words, I emphasised this particular burden of the need to live a hidden life and pursue the growth in the divine life for the reality of the kingdom of God.

In this training also we introduced to the churches in India the coming of brothers from various countries for the ITERO to be held in India for the first time. After thirty years of the first local church being raised up in India in Trivandrum, we made this announcement in the city of Trivandrum. What a sovereign arrangement of the Lord it has been!

Praise the Lord for the serving ones training! Every training, especially this one, I have been graced to go forward in my spiritual life and service in the Body.

Gospel Feast

The entire month of April in the church in Gurugram is a month of Gospel Feast. In coordination in the Body, the trainees from FTTT and FTTND with the saints in Gurugram propagated for the entire month day by day, and house to house. In this city under the scorching heat of the burning sun that raised the temperature to 40-43 Celcius, the saints went out faithfully and the Lord has blessed the labor of the saints.

1 Corinthians 15:57-58:

But thanks be to God who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord.

In this Gospel Feast, our labor in the Lord is not in vain. As the Lord burdened us, we set a goal of gaining ten solid families for the church life and thirty baptisms to be gained. So that, gradually, a new district of the church in Gurugram would be raised up! The Lord is leading us toward the goal.

The burden for the Gospel Feast this time is to propagate in Sector 55, 56, 57, and Suncity. The saints were formed into five teams and every day they went our for door knocking house to house, two hours in the morning and three hours in the afternoon. In this way, for one month, over one thousand doors have been knocked and out of which ten homes have been solidly gained where home meetings have been conducted up to seven times in the past three weeks. In these open homes, the gospel has been preached, they believed into the Lord Jesus Christ, called upon His name, and we had prayers, hymn singing, and Bible studies, mostly from the Gospel of Mathew and John. The Lord is faithful to open the homes of the Gentiles as well as that of seeking believers. It was indeed a breakthrough and the Lord has blessed His move in Guregram.

Our goal in gospel preaching to gain thirty baptisms is also being fulfilled. Through the daily gospel preaching of the saints, till date, twenty-two baptisms have been done, and over a thousand people have been contacted and preached the gospel of Jesus Christ to, or at least a gospel tract has been given. This is a marvelous move of the Lord! And there will be no end in gospel preaching. The church will go on and continue the gospel preaching in this city.

Last night, we had a gathering together of the seeking new ones and new believers. The Lord brought a good number of the ones under shepherding, some of them for their first time to attend a Christian meeting. The time was given for saints from FTTT to testify of how the Lord saved them and their experiences of Christ. Then, two brothers released the burden on the importance of "Meetings" in a Christian's life with different kinds of meetings introduced to the new ones. After the meeting, a wonderful time of blending with love-feast followed. This meeting was also a harvest meeting of the Gospel Feast.

Behind the Gospel Feast with all the meetings, there has been a lot of prayers offered to the Lord for His move, and much physical labor was involved too. The sisters were busy in preparing the physical food for all, and the brothers were in fellowship and prayer taking the lead in following the Lord's move. Overall, the church received many blessings; the saints' functions have been renewed, the coordination, fellowship, blending, and building- up among the saints have been strengthened, and a considerable number of new believers have been added to the church!

Acts 6:7 And the word of God grew, and the number of the disciples in Jerusalem multiplied greatly; and a large number of the priests obeyed the faith. 

Praise the Lord for the Gospel Feast! May our entire Christian life and the church life be a Gospel Feast! 

God's Provision: Housing

Mathew 6:25, 33 Because of this, I say to you, Do not be anxious for your life, what you should eat or what you should drink; nor for your body, what you should put on. Is not the life more than food, and the body than clothing?But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.

The Lord has been faithful in taking care of my housing since the time I got married. I never imagined that I could live in a millennium metropolitan city like Gurugram where the cost of living, especially house rent, is significantly high. It has been more than twelve years now, the faithful Lord's promise of "all these things" to be added to me has been true. Sometimes, I wonder how the Lord marvelously placed me in this city and has been faithfully supplying all my needs! House rent in a posh area of a millennium city and school fees are very high for three children, and many other day to day expenses. Despite all these, I praise and worship the Lord for His timely and faithful provision.

Since all that I have are from the Lord, I also do not want to waste any of the Lord's provision. I plan wisely and consider carefully for any expense and try my best not to over expend on anything. It is such a blessing to live and limit within the Lord's supply. Whenever there is an increase in any expense, I tried my best to avoid or reduce it as much as possible.

Recently, I even wrote to the school Principal of my children to consider a concession or discounts on siblings. She was faithful to tell me that she just joined the school and since the school has no discount policy she promised to take it up to the management for consideration. To my surprise, in the new academic year, the school provides a discount of 7% for siblings. Not too sure if this was done because of my request to the school, anyway, this is how I manage the expenses.

With the turn of a new financial year, my house owner proposed an increase of 10%. I kindly requested him to keep the same rent without any further increase and expressed my feeling to him over phone call and face to face talk. Then, he reconsidered and wrote to me the reduction he made to 5%, with a calculation of 2.5% increase per annum as he did not increase the last two financial years.  When I got the proposal for increment, I really considered relocation with a lesser rent. In fact, one night I had a strong burden to pray for a permanent relief from paying house rent month by month, year by year. But to buy a house in the city of Gurugram is beyond imagination. Only if the Lord miraculously provides, that is the only possible way to own a house in this city. I simply released my burden to the Lord that if He so wills, He may provide according to what He deems best.

When this thought of relocation was filling my mind, I considered and prayed if I should go ahead. My feeling was, I did not pay any lesser rent than anyone who lives in a better house. The main reason why I am still in the same house is, the Lord placed my family here and never gave me the leading to relocate. I have tried to relocate a couple of times, but every time the Lord did not lead me to go ahead. Even this time, I seriously tried to relocate, but the Lord spoke to me clearly that "I do not have my own choice, and it is a blessing not to have my own choice." This word came as I was listening to a Life-Study Radio Broadcast with brother Ron Kangas speaking. I really did not have my own choice. I simply submit to the Lord and continue to stay in the same house with an agreement to pay an increase in house rent. I trust in the Lord's simply word, He will take care of the increment too.

On the positive side, this house has been a blessing to my family; my children have an emotional connection to this house and would not like to relocate even if it is to a better house. This house has also been useful for the church meeting especially on Lord's days when the church meeting is held on the ground floor, my house will be for children's meeting and for the saints to take rest. It is also the best option for my office work as the office is on the ground floor and my brothers can easily take care of all the office works just like taking care of a house. This is indeed the housing the Lord has provided, and I have been living here for more than ten years now. I have been learning a lot spiritually, simply by staying in this house the Lord has provided. Praise the Lord for his provision of housing! 

What a blessing to be able to live by faith and trust the Lord!