Life Lessons: Missed Train

On the 20th January I was to board a train from Delhi to Ranchi for the first ministry of the word literature journey for the year. Peacefully I was preparing for the trip but I could not accomplish a very important official task of preparing and submitting office budget for the year 2020. For some reasons or the other, the different serving ones could not submit their work report and plan on time so I could not compile together the final budget. My plan B was to take a laptop in my trip and finalise the budget while on the tour. So I made all preparation ready for the journey.

I stared from home well on time, but the cab I booked took me on a round about way besides the traffic snarl due to the Republic Day celebration in the capital city in a week's time. When I finally reached the train station, Hazrat Nizammudin, I could not find my train number displayed on the board. As I rechecked my ticket, I discovered to my surprise that my train would depart from another station nearby, New Delhi station. I just had 30 minutes then, to catch the train at the other station. An auto driver agreed to drive me within the time available. He did his best to drive as fast as he could except that he could not jump the traffic light nor could he drive through the heavy traffic due to re-routing of traffic for the upcoming national event at the national capital. Finally, when I arrived at the train station, the train had left as I was late by 15 minutes. I had not choice but to return back home and book a flight ticket for the next day.

This incident was quite enlightening in at least two aspects. Firstly, I got to be careful and clear about my travel plan in timing and stations as there are about five stations in New Delhi itself. Secondly, I cannot keep it on hold an important office task and I must not take the risk of doing such an important task with some other tasks while on a tour. I believe that for these two reasons the Lord interfered in my schedule and set me right.

With the new itinerary, I could very well and wonderfully compiled and submitted the office budget for 2020, and at the same time I could still accomplish the literature tour on time as I took a flight the next day afternoon itself. The time that would have been spent on the train was now saved just by taking a flight of less 2 hours journey which otherwise would be about 17 hours. Even in this missed train, the Lord worked out the best for me. What a lesson! The Lord is sovereign in all things seen and unseen.

Prophesying Indeed!

It was on the 12th January, Lord's Day, that I prophesied in the prophesying meeting of the church in Gurugram concerning the need to be constituted with the word of God. It was when I released the burden on "Carrying Out the Stewardship of  God for the One New Man" that the Spirit led me to prophesy concerning a sister who was deciding to go back for job after her short-term training. I followed the Lord's leading within me and called named her out and openly encouraged her to continue her training and complete the two-years full-time training. It came as a shock to her and her mother who was also present at the meeting. In fact, the whole church amen such a word to a young sister who just completed her secular studies. The Lord's speaking was very clear.

Later, after the meeting, the mother came and fellowshipped with me about their real situation that made it difficult for her daughter to continue her training. Her husband just lost his job and they were stuck up with a pending loan to payback for their house construction, and despite trying many alternatives, the only solution seemed to be her daughter to work and support the family's need. So it was the circumstance that stopped her daughter from continuing the training. 

My innate reply and fellowship to the sister was that if her daughter has the heart for the training the Lord will open the way. And I further fellowshipped that if finance was the only issue, in fellowship with the church, her daughter can be supported by the church. But I definitely encouraged a young sister to join the training even as I would with my own daughter. I even gave a testimony of my own younger sister whom I encouraged to join the training after her Master's degree. After the training she got into one of the prestigious universities of India and completed her M.Phil. and PhD, and right after her academic pursuit, she got an Asst. Professor job, got married, and is now a working sister and a mother. The time invested for the full-time training was never a waste. In fact, it was the best "life-time investment!" When our hearts are for the Lord, the Lord will open all the ways. Then, both mother and daughter said they would consider the fellowship I had with them.

The following day, they came and fellowshipped that they would take the way of joining the full-time training. Then all necessary fellowships were done with the local churches involved, the church in Trivandrum and the church in Gurugram, and also with few other brothers and the training center. 

Yesterday, the 29th Jan, this sister came back to join the full-time training. May the Lord grace her to complete the training and be trained and perfected to become useful vessel to the Lord. This experience was indeed a prophesying.

Pathway of Truth

Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path. Psalms 119:105

The word of God is my path and it shall ever be. The word in its written form which has been interpreted through the ministry of the word has been my path since the time the Lord saved me. His words have been leading, guiding, instructing, and feeding me all this while. Through His words I have been trained and being perfected day by day. 

Last night I had a dream which seemed mysterious initially but as I considered carefully, I understood the meaning and thanked the Lord for His revelation. In the dream, there was a long and difficult path that I and other brothers have been traversing. Though the path seems long, rough, and dangerous with its many steep slopes, the pathway perfectly leads to a distant destination. On account of traversing frequently, we, the brothers, have been very acquainted with the pathway.

Then I saw in my dream, a huge flood of water like sea waves overflowing the entire landscape. On the top of the sea of cloudy flood and thunderous storm, a group of mysterious looking precious stones hanging in the sky dropped down one by one until nothing was left and the sky became clear. What all remained was just storm and flood of water covering the the pathway I used to tread. Now, the pathway became invisible as it was fully covered by stormy flood.

Then a group of brothers, two of them leading on the front and the others followed by, all of them at peace and sweetly fellowshipping as they walk along the the invisible pathway as they were all sure of the path, though covered by flood. I could vividly identify some of them. Those on the front, one of them, Samson Samuel, and some among them who followed along were Enoch V, Jacob George, Shibin Matthew, Joshua Murali, Benny, and others. They all walked on the pathway, though invisible, without any fear or doubt. As they walked along amidst the stormy flood, it seemed as though they were walking on the sea, for the path they took were solid yet invisible.

As I pondered on the mysterious sight I beheld, I woke up. For a while I wondered what the dream could have been. It took me not much time to understand the interpretation of the dream.

The dream is about the pathway of the truth, the way carved out by the ministry of the word. As one is constituted with the truth, the truth itself becomes the pathway. This pathway is solid and firm. Those who tread in it do so with full assurance, with much joy and peace and rest. No matter what happens, even under stormy situation when the whole world is engulfed by scary thunder and fearful flood, those who know the word of God and walk in it will peacefully pass through difficult situations at difficult times as though walking on the sea.

I was thus comforted and felt blessed that the ministry of the word has been my pathway. I simply must enjoy and follow the ministry. I must even be constituted with the ministry to be my pathway and my way of living. Come what may, the word of the Lord, my pathway, will lead me on and on unto my destination. 

New Beginning

So then if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old things have passed away; behold, they have become new. 2 Corinthians 5:17   

The new year 2020 has been a new beginning indeed. From day one, everything seems to become new at least as far as I am concerned, especially, in my personal spiritual experiences. The change of year has brought in a drastic change in my living and function. Some crucial items I have been wanting to implement in my life the previous years were systematically falling in place this new year. The Lord also moves behind the scenes and works out all things good for me. So far, I have been very thankful to the Lord for this new beginning, and I trust the Lord will continue to grace me to have this new life, new living, new beginning throughout the years, even all the days of my life.

In Shepherding

The Lord has been gracing me, beginning this year, to have a morning revival time with three brothers. One in the morning with prayer, then another one over the phone during lunchtime, and the other one also during lunch break, over the phone. On the one hand, these brothers have been shepherded and yet, on the other hand, I have been very much shepherded too. Each time, I could spend 10-30 minutes with these brothers on a regular basis. My function in the church, mostly in the shepherding of the saints and my own enjoyment of the Lord has increased a lot. Praise the Lord for His grace!

In Function

The Lord gave me, perhaps, he revealed to me with whom I have to coordinate in my specific function in the church. A brother and I started to pray, pursue, fellowship, and shepherd the new ones together since this year's beginning. As we coordinate to pray and fellowship together to take care of new ones, we ourselves are being shepherded very richly.

New Service

A new service was allotted to me; the Young People Service of the church. I used to have a burden for the young ones, yet my burden had diminished for years, as I have been functioning more on the community and working saints. When this burden came to me in fellowship, it was rather a shocking assignment to me. But later, I realized the Lord wanted me to specifically function in this area of the church life. Honestly, I do not consider myself worthy nor do I have any confidence that I will be able to help the young people. Moreover, my burden to date has been more on the working saints.

I began this service by prayer and received this burden as it is from the Lord. My goal in serving young people is to shepherd them even to join the full-time training. At the moment, there are nine young people in the church life. Each of them needs a special care; to begin with, by prayer and then to shepherd them one by one and one on one.

My first action in serving the young people was in prayer and studying the booklet, "How to Lead the Young People".  Then I invited them to my home for a love feast dinner and fellowshipped with them on "loving the Lord", giving them a vision of how precious their youth life is, and encouraged all of them to read the Bible daily, even to read through the Bible this year.

New Ones and New Homes

Beginning this year, some new ones that I could hardly contact them started contacting me. They became so open that I could start meeting them, pray with them, and visit them at their homes. Surely, the Lord is behind the scene in all these. May the Lord grace me to be a faithful and diligent servant and steward.

A man should account us in this way, as servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God. Here, furthermore, it is sought in stewards that one be found faithful. 1 Corinthians 4:1-2

May the Lord preserve me in His newness to faithfully carry out His new commission and blessing.  

New Year Goal 2020

As the church when we gathered together on the 31st night for fellowship and prayer, and also on the 28th Dec 2019 in the church service fellowship, the Lord gave us a clear direction for the going on of the church in 2020. The following are the burdens and goals for the coming new year.

INCREASE AND MULTIPLE

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

One of the key burdens for the increase and multiplication of the saints' enjoyment of Christ and also for the increase in number of the saints meeting regularly. The increase in number to be achieved in two phases: 

New District:  Increase one new district by June 2020

Increase in Saints Meeting Regularly: Each saint bear at least one remaining spiritual fruit and increase the number of regular saints to 100 by Dec 2020.

PRAYER

The practical way to gain such an increase in multiplication is by prayer.  So the burden on prayer was released. 

Persevere in prayer, watching in it with thanksgiving. Colossians 4:2

Abide in Me and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself unless it abides in the vine, so neither can you unless you abide in Me. John 15:4

We trumpeted the burden to strengthen the saint's daily prayer life; personally, as a family, and even as the church. For this we encouraged the saints to have a Daily Prayer--Personal, Family, Companion,  and attend regularly the Weekly Church Prayer Meeting

GOSPEL PREACHING and SHEPHERDING 

The prayer life has to be followed by going forth to preach the gospel, and as we are blessed with new believers, they have to be shepherded in their homes in the home meetings.

For if I preach the gospel, I have no boast, for necessity is laid upon me; for woe to me if I do not preach the gospel. 1 Corinthians 9:16

But we were gentle in your midst, as a nursing mother would cherish her own children. 1 Thessalonians 2:7

For practicality, we encouraged this burden of Regular Gospel Preaching by all the Saints and Shepherding in homes and small groups to the extent that every saint is shepherding and is being shepherded.

TRUTH PURSUING

There is also an urgent need for the saints to be constituted with the healthy biblical truths.

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. Colossians 3:16

So we encouraged all the saints to have a Daily Bible Reading with the goal of reading through the Bible in 2020 again as the Lord graced us in 2019.

Besides, we also encouraged all the saints to have a Daily Morning Revival and daily pursuing of the truth through the ministry of the word. Since the recently concluded winter training and the Lord's up-to-date speaking is on the book of Deuteronomy, we have the goal to pursue the Life-study of Deuteronomy, 30 messages in Jan and Feb 2020 as a preparation for the video training by Feb.

And day by day, continuing steadfastly with one accord in the temple and breaking bread from house to house, they partook of their food with exultation and simplicity of heart, praising God and having grace with all the people. And the Lord added together day by day those who were being saved. Acts 2:46-47

May the Lord bless our goal and grace us to achieve it. 

Lessons and Blessing of 2019

On the 31st night of 2019, as the church in Gurugram, we had a time of year-end love-feast along with the "Counting Blessing and Fellowship" and consecration prayer meeting. It was indeed a wonderful way to end the year as the church. And the meeting was special and unique from all the regular meetings we have had.

For over three and half hours, family by family, there were overflowing of the Lord's mercy and grace with testimonies of the Lord's blessings in each family and individual's life. It was indeed a time to review all that the Lord has done and a time to reconsecrate for the new beginning for the coming new year. All the saints enjoyed and we could enter the year 2020 with prayer and consecration afresh.

Personally, I summarised my fellowship under the following lessons and blessings.

Lesson and Blessing of the Cross

Then Jesus said to His disciples, If anyone wants to come after Me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow Me. Matthew 16:24  

Personal Experience and Learning

One of the greatest lessons and blessings I have received is on the subjective experience of the cross. I had been very much buried in my self. The Lord gradually dug me out, layer by layer, until I could fully come through and be "resurrected" from my self to see the Lord as the Lord of all in all things great or small. In my thinking, I have been crossed out to a greater degree; in my feeling, I have been crossed out to deny my own feeling altogether; and in my will, I have been crossed out to simply amen the Lord's will. This was not so before. Now, I can testify for myself, I have been learning the lesson of the cross to some extent. I look away to the Lord to learn this lesson thoroughly even more. Now, I am at peace to simply amen whatever the Lord is doing. I dare not hastily express my opinion or feeling or will unless I have the assurance and peace within to do so. Even if I was found to be wrong, I am quickly able to deny all that of myself, and simply amen the Lord's will. Praise the Lord for the cross!

Lesson and Blessing of Learning the Lord's Leading

I will instruct you and teach you concerning the way you should go; I will counsel you; my eye is upon you. Psalms 32:8

Official Responsibility

As a serving one in the literature service, the Lord has been my Counsellor and Instructor in all these years of my service. Since 2007, the Lord has been leading and guiding me in all the ministry of the word literature journey. Now, by 2019, the Lord has graced me to visit all the states of India for the introduction and distribution of the ministry of the word. What an honor and what a blessing this is! Now, there has been a deep sense of joy within, that the ministry of the word has been sown to all states of India. Of course, there are many more cities, towns, and villages yet to be visited, still, most of the important ones have all been visited. And in all these years of my literature journey, the Lord's instruction and teaching with His sweet presence were richly felt and enjoyed. In fact, without His presence, the journey itself would not have taken place. Praise the Lord for the Lord's leading!  

Lesson and Blessing of the Lord's Timely Supply

And there you shall eat before Jehovah your God, and you and your households shall rejoice in all your undertakings, in which Jehovah your God has blessed you. Deuteronomy 12:7  

Family Responsibility

As a father and a family man, the Lord also blessed me abundantly in all my family's need; be it spiritual, psychological, or even physical, His hand has been upon my family. In no way, I can take credit for this, for it is the Lord's pure grace and blessing bestowed upon my family. We have been graced to enjoy the word of God and prayer together as a family on a regular basis. Though we still have many more lessons to learn, all that the Lord deems best has been taught to my family and we are still learning them one by one. The word of God, prayer, love, peace, joy, oneness, and happiness has been my family's enjoyment. Though hard times and troubles aroused in between, the Lord has been leading us through. Even in physical matters, the Lord has been faithfully supplying all our needs on time. Not once has He failed us nor delayed His timely supply. Though school fees and house rent are high and huge amount needs to be paid monthly and quarterly, the Lord met all of them well before time and in abundance. When and where my family's expenses were more, there and then, the Lord supplied on time and abundantly. Praise the Lord for His timely supply!

Lesson and Blessing of the Function of the Church

But to each one of us grace was given according to the measure of the gift of Christ. Ephesians 4:7

Church Responsibility

As the church, the Lord has been leading us through to overcome the degraded system of Christianity where only a few gifted ones function. The Lord has revived a good number of saints, especially sisters, to fervently love and pursue the Lord, and also to function in the church-life. Until last year's beginning, the functions of the saints were minimal especially when it comes to gospel preaching and shepherding. We have trumpeted the burden of each one functioning time and again. Gradually, the Lord shepherded us and brought many saints' functions into function. A good number of saints have been regularly going out to preach the gospel and shepherd the new ones, a good number of new baptisms were done, and a good number of new believers were brought into the enjoyment of the church-life. Praise the Lord for the recovering of the functions of the members of the Body of Christ!

These were the main lessons and blessings I received in 2019 which I testified to the saints. Praise the Lord for all the lessons and blessings!

The Lord is the Lord!

Acts 10:36 The word which He sent to the sons of Israel in announcing the gospel of peace through Jesus Christ (this One is Lord of all).

1 Corinthians 12:3 Therefore I make known to you that no one speaking in the Spirit of God says, Jesus is accursed; and no one can say, Jesus is Lord! except in the Holy Spirit.

Philippians 2:11 And every tongue should openly confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father.

One important lesson I have been learning experientially is, "the Lord is the Lord!" Truth-wise, I have known this since my childhood, and I began to experience this truth as I grew in life, and more subjectively so since the time of my personal salvation experience. Yet there were times, I could not understand or accept many things though I knew it was the Lord who allowed it to happen; I still had my opinion on things. All these years of my Christian life, the Lord has been teaching me in His sovereignty that He is the Lord. This is not merely one of His titles, but it is His being as well. He is the Lord and He is the Lord of all. Yes, to me, He is my Lord too.

One of the deepest lessons I have been learning is recognizing the Lord's lordship in many circumstances personally and otherwise. In my personal life, all that has transpired and is happening is directly related to His being the Lord. To be able to realize and accept this fact requires a necessary dealing by the Lord in my inward being. When the Lord does a thing and if I have a differing opinion on that thing, it proves I am opposed to acknowledging the Lord's lordship. To some degree, in almost all instances in my personal life thus far, the Lord graces me to accept His lordship and quickly swallow up all my opinions and preferences. This is not an easy lesson to learn. The grace of the Lord with His life supply can only make me take my cross, deny my self, and simply follow Him. He is the Lord.

Time and again, the Lord has proved His lordship over my personal opinions and choices. I have been considering matters of the saints which I thought was quite good and even perfect, but the Lord simply scrapped them off and inserted His will. And I learned my lesson of His sovereignty and humbly accept it. Now, be it my personal life, family life, church life, or official work life, I simply learn to accept the Lord's arrangement. It has been much easier and breathier for me to accept the Lord's sovereignty unlike before. Even while in fellowship about matters whatsoever, though I rarely express my opinion, even when I did, I did it with a clause, "the will of the Lord be done."

What a relief to learn this important spiritual lesson! Almost in everything, it is such a joy to acknowledge the Lord's lordship. It saves me from unwarranted anxiety or needless struggle. Whatever the Lord does, I have the grace to simply say amen and accept the Lord's lordship in that matter. What a blessed lesson! What a relief!

In all things, the Lord is the Lord and He knows best how to be the Lord indeed. What a blessing to be able to acknowledge the Lord's lordship and be at peace. Praise the Lord!

Jesus is Lord indeed! Much more, Jesus is my Lord! In my faith and also in my living, Jesus is Lord indeed. This is one of the precious lessons I have been learning and are willing to learn more in this new year 2020. Jesus is Lord!