Bless, Give, Help, and Pray

“In all things I have shown you by example that toiling in this way we ought to support the weak and to remember the words of the Lord Jesus, that He Himself said, It is more blessed to give than to receive.” (Acts 20:35, RecVer)

I have been experiencing with some people, both Christians and unbelievers alike, trying to get my help just to meet their selfish needs. The Lord has been teaching me not to be selfish nor grap anything by force nor do anything with selfish motive. The Lord has been teaching me to help and give as much as He blesses me. 

A Christian dentist I have been contacting for my father's dental treatment is a good test cae foe me. Though I requested him to consider a good discount as a Christian brother, he seems to simply stick to his own price. I dare not argue with him but decided to go ahead and somehow teach him a lesson of generosity even in professional service. So I gave him all that he asked for. Deep within himself, he was convicted that he charged more than necessary. I could sense this from his behaviour. Later, he called me at least twice to pacify his conscience by trying to offer more free check ups, perhaps, to compensate for the amount he charged for a dental work. I knew it right away from his tone of speech. Instead, I offered to pray for him at least twice now, for the prayer request he made for his wife and himself. I am more than glad to pray for his inward spiritual recovery. It's worth if he realised what he had charged was more than it should from a brother, and he further realised his need for brotherly fellowship. It's worth the price I pay to keep him in want for more fellowship and help that I could possibly render to him. I say this for his recovery into the proper church life soon. He promised to invite me to his home for fellowship. Meanwhile, I would do my best to help him in his request for his wife who recently had gone abroad for further studies. 

Another brother who I have paid for his computer services even though higher than usual, have been in touch with me. He even requested me to pray for him and his family which I did readily. He seems to have taken advantage of me being a Christian brother and began to charge a higher amount than usual. Without any question I paid him all that he asked for without bargaining a bit. I took my brother's word and paid him the full price he demanded. The rest, I left to his conscience. And I know he has been convicted. But my intention is to bless, give, help, and pray that through this, the Lord would show him what a Christian life and church life is.

Another gentile uncle has been receiving my help in his publication of books. So far I have helped him release four books. I gave my time and professional skill to help him freely. I have been doing so with the intention that he would realize I did all that for his spiritual salvation. I had tried preaching the gospel to him at least twice but as he told me he is not interest I did not press it further. Nor did I stop to help him or cut off from being in contact. I still hope, my bit to help him would touch his heart and see the love of the Lord. One day, I pray that he and his family would be saved. For the gospel, I would pay any price as the Lord graces me so.

To me as the Scriptures says, It is more blessed to give than to receive; and the greater blesses the lesser. Therefore, as the Lord graces and provides, I will bless, give, help, and pray.

Sometimes, Silence is the Solution

The Lord has been shepherding me through complicated life experiences to learn the lesson of silently trusting in His secret move. At times, it was so tempting to react in my natural man to the situations happening now and then. Yes, I was so much tempted to act according to what I felt I should, to situations so complicated and unexpected. But the Lord taught me to keep quite and waitin silence. 

Often, I asked the Lord, how long should I remain silent? Shouldn't I be doing what I am suppose to do? Well, my feelings, perhaps, may be just emotional. How am I so sure that I am all in oneness with the Lord when I am emotionally driven?

I have been observing the situation of a certain sister under my shepherding care who has not been keeping spiritually well. I also know what she has been going through. But I have been restraint by the Lord in my spirit not to react according what I feel or know about her situation. Therefore, I refrain from making any comment whatsoever until I am cent per cent clear of the Lord’s leading. So I remain silent all this while. Perhaps, silence is the solution for now unless otherwise the Spirit leads me to take action. It needs more exercise of my mingled spirit to be in silence. It would have been much more easy for me to react at the spur of the moment. But now, I have been restraint to simply be in silence and wait for the Lord to move. Therefore, I pray all the more, and more intensely for her and for the situation she has been entangled in. Silence is the solution for now, until the Lord leads me to take action.

Another case is with a brother who has gradually withdrawn himself from the church life. For reasons best known to him, he started skipping meetings, avoided phone calls, and messages. Recently, he dropped out of the church messaging group without any explanation. Unethical, yet he just dropped out. How shoud I react?

I did try to call him and send text message but he didn't even bother to reply. I sense that he is not in the right spirit and its not wise to do things when one is not in the spirit. So I simply have to pray for him and wait in silence for the Spirit's move in him.

Today morning, the Lord burdened me to pray for him specifically and his recovery back to the normal church life. I am open to the Lord for His leading and would act only at His command. I dare not use my natural good man even in the name of shepherding a brother. I don't trust even in my so called "shepherding" anymore. I only trust in the Lord. Only in the Lord’s command I will shepherd.

I reckon this situation as a test for him. If the Lord would visit him and open the door for me, I would pay any price for the recovery of my brother. But if the Lord put him to a test and he continue to harden his heart towards the Lord or the brothers or the church, I would not use my natural strength to do anything. It is futile to recover "Absolom" who would rebel and cause division in the kingdom of God to his shameful death. I hope that this brother is not like "Absolom." I hope and pray that he be sobered and see the vision of the Body of Christ clearly. I hope that he repent of all distractions and he be recovered into the fellowship of the Body of Christ. Only the Lord can recover him and I am willing to cooperate with Lord if He so leads me. Until then, I would pray and silently wait for the Lord’s move in him. Therefore, for now, silence is the best solution.

Sometimes, silence is the solution.

A Testimony and Blessing of Truth Pursuit

Today, I wrote a testimony and blessing of truth pursuit and sent it to some brothers whom I regard dearly as my spiritual brothers as I thank the Lord for gracing me to complete reading the Life-study messages with corresponding radio programs and High Peak messages. 

Dear brothers,

 

Having been graced by the Lord, as your brother, I am sharing with you my personal testimony and blessing of truth pursuit. One thing that attracted me most to the Lord’s recovery is the truth. When I was first introduced to the Gospel Book Room in Chennai as a student, out of my thirst for the word of God, I purchased all the Indian print ministry books available in English then. A box full of them which I read one book after the other! It was only after two years of praying, considering, researching, studying the ministry books, and being confirmed deep within by the Lord with much peace that I decided once and for all to take this way, the way of the Lord's recovery, as a Christian. Then I fellowshipped with the key brothers in my previous Christian group and left the "system" while still in fellowship with them as Christian brothers even to date.  In fact, all of them, fully aware that I had made up my mind to leave the "system," prayed for me and blessed me, and charged me to be faithful to the Lord wherever I am. 

 

Since I came into the Lord’s recovery in 2003, as a new one who entered straight into the full-time training in Chennai without any prior church life, I continued to pursue the truth through the training classes and the ministry books. After the training too, I continued to read a good number of ministry books including some Life-study messages. But I have never systematically pursued the Life-study messages or the High Peak with a goal to complete studying them, or at least reading them through. My reading sequence was a random selection of books.

 

Burden

In 2014, during the Coworkers and Full-timers Training in Tenkasi from June 16 to 22, Brother RC encouraged all the saints to get a “Graduation and Ph.D. Degree in the Lord’s Recovery” by pursuing Life-study of the Bible (1984 messages), and High Peak and Crystallization-study (347 messages). When Brother RC released the burden on 21^st June Saturday, I just felt like it was the Lord’s specific speaking to me. Later, during the lunch break, I went before the Lord to pray and seriously consider His speaking. In fact, that day, the 21^st of June, happened to be my birthday as well. Therefore, I took the word for pursuing the Life-studies and the High Peak messages as my “Birthday Gift!”

 

Schedule for Life-study Messages Pursuit

I made a five-year schedule to complete pursuing the entire Life-study messages before Dec 2020 along with a schedule to listen to all the corresponding Life-study radio programs online as a revision and recapitulation of the messages pursued. But I could not meet the target as I traveled frequently for the ministry of the word literature journey to different parts of India.

 

Schedule for High Peak Truth Pursuit

The churches in North India released the burden to pursue the High Peak messages in 2022. I took that as an opportunity for further truth pursuit along with the Life-studies.  I pursued the High Peak messages and completed them in one year (Feb 2022 to Feb 2023).

Finally, today, 1^st May 2023, the Lord graced me to complete pursuing, reading the 1984 Life-study messages with the listening of the 1762 audio programs and the High Peak messages!

 

The corporate readings of messages were mostly with the serving ones in the literature service. It took about an hour's time with prayer and sharing for 5 days a week. While on the literature journeys, I pursued alone. Altogether, it took me 8 years and 10 months approximately to complete the pursuit. It took much more time than I planned. Nevertheless, I am glad that I could complete it at last, albeit rather slowly.

 

Blessings

I dare not profess that I understood fully all that I have read and listened to. But I do testify that I have received a lot of life supply and spiritual nourishment while pursuing the messages. I have no words to express my enjoyment fully. The Life-study messages have completely changed many of my views and understanding of the Bible. I do believe it has also changed my life to a great extent. In fact, I have re-spoke my new learnings and discoveries from the reading of the Life-study messages to many saints whenever I fellowshipped with them. I have also shared my enjoyment of the truth with many Christian leaders during the distribution trip and also spoke a good number of messages when invited by different Christian groups to minister the word in their meetings.

 

Thanksgiving

I thank the Lord for the rich revelation He has bestowed upon us through Br. Witness Lee. I also thank LSM for making the Life-study messages and radio programs available online for free. I pray and hope that one day I can contribute something as a token of thanks to LSM for all these free resources. To me, the Life-study messages and the ministry materials including the audio programs are the best spiritual resources available online, in addition to the Bible! I have shared and recommended the ministry online links to many saints, friends, and Christian leaders and seekers.

 

I would also sincerely like to thank Brother RC for his encouragement, time and again, to pursue these messages.

 

“And the man became very rich and continued to grow richer until he became very rich” Genesis 26:13. 

I pray and claim this Bible verse for me, to be rich in the truth and “let the word of Christ dwell in me richly.” Col. 3:16a

 

My next plan will be to pursue the Collected Works of Watchman Nee and the Collected Works of Witness Lee.

 

Thank You, Lord Jesus! And thank you, brothers!

 

Remember me in your prayers, for more grace to continue to pursue the Lord through His words.

 

Your brother,

Palmei

 

Lesson of Forgiveness

Today, the Lord gave me a wonderful experience of forgiving my brothers who have hurt me in the past by their lies and committing things not expected of them despite the trust I have had in them. In fact, I had even blocked one of them for his repeated calls which I refuse to attend as I could not trust him in his words anymore. Repeated offenses put a negative marking on them and I was so upset with them. I did not know how to handle the situation in dealing with them so I just prayed to the Lord for more grace that I should not regard them negatively as they are my brothers in the Lord. It was a tough time for me to reconcile the fact that they are my brothers yet they behave unbecomingly of being brothers in the Lord. Emotionally I was hurt and it pains me deep within. Nevertheless, they are still my brothers.

Today morning in my time with the Lord, the Lord told me to forgive all of them. I turned to the Lord and take His grace and His forgiveness as my forgiveness. Then, I unblocked the brother’s number I blocked over a month ago. I called up another brother and maintained the relationship as brothers and asked for a monthly fellowship and prayer over the phone. After this experience of the Lord’s forgiveness in forgiving my brothers, my attitude toward them completely changed. I do not regard them as I used to do before.  The cloud between them and me has cleared up and I could normally reckon them as any other brothers in the Lord. What an experience of forgiveness!

The word forgiveness is not a doctrine to be preached and understood, but a price to pay by taking Christ as the Forgiver and forgiving in the forgiveness of Christ. What is humanly impossible or difficult is easy and possible with the Lord. The true Forgiver is the Lord and the true forgiveness is the Lord’s forgiveness experienced by us.

This reminds me of what the Lord said about forgiveness:

For if you forgive men their offenses, your heavenly Father will forgive you also; But if you do not forgive men their offenses, neither will your Father forgive your offenses. Matthew 6:14-15

I used to think that I could not be hurt easily by anyone, but I was proven wrong. I used to think that I can easily forgive others, and that too I was proven wrong. The more I grow in life, the more I realize how weak I am and how strong the Lord is. All my self-confidence decreases and I begin to trust in the Lord more. I begin to understand what John told about the Lord Jesus:

He must increase, but I must decrease. John 3:30

In the experience of forgiveness, it is the experience of I decreasing and the increase of Christ in me. Only when I decrease and Christ increase, then Christ’s forgiveness becomes my forgiveness.

Lord, increase in me and grow in me daily. May I decrease to the extent that I no more take preeminence but You only.

Lesson on Hospitality

1 Timothy 3:2 The overseer then must be without reproach, the husband of one wife, temperate, of a sober mind, orderly, hospitable, apt to teach.
Titus 1:8 But hospitable, a lover of good, of a sober mind, righteous, holy, self-controlled.
1 Peter 4:9 Be hospitable to one another without murmuring.

By nature, I am not hospitable. Though I may try my best to give hospitality within my means, still it is far from what it should have been. I am still learning how to give hospitality. I thank the Lord that there are many saints around me who are so hospitable from whom I can learn to give hospitality. I may have my excuses for not being so hospitable but I must learn to be hospitable.
 
In all my travels for the ministry literature journeys, the Lord has arranged for people to give us hospitality. Many of them were the ones I met for the first time. Despite being so, they gave us the best treatment they could within their means. I thank the Lord for them, not merely for the hospitality they gave to us but  also for showing me how I should learn from them and learn to be hospitable.
 
One particular incident that impressed me a lot is my recent trip to Bhilai, Chhattisgarh. A new one who has been enjoying the ministry books was so open to our visit to the city. He even openly proclaimed at the very first call that he was so willing and happy to give us hospitality by stating that his house is always open to the servants of God. When we actually arrived at Bhilai, He even came to pick us up from the railway station and drove us around to the houses we intended to visit. He made arrangements for our stay in his house and further stated that if his house was not comfortable enough for us, he would even book a hotel room nearby. He did his best to give us hospitality. In fact, during all the four days of our stay in Bhilai, he was with us, taking care of us, leading us to different people, driving us around, and spending himself and what he has for us. He created such an impression on me that he is a brother from whom I can learn hospitality. His treatment of us was the lesson I learned.

As I am learning to serve the Lord in the locality the Lord has placed me in, one qualification mentioned in the scriptures is on hospitality. This is the lesson I am still learning. I believe as I am open to learn, the Lord will give me the grace and wisdom in giving hospitality to the saints and to people who may need it.

Lord, teach me to give hospitality and be hospitable to others in need.

Learn to be Pure

Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. Matthew 5:8

The Lord’s speaking to the churches through the recent study of the book of Ezra and Nehemiah impressed me deeply with the need for purity on my part. To be pure in heart and conscience is needed to be able to see the Lord. Though I knew this truth doctrinally, I have never been so convicted deeply as it does today. Now, in every matter great or small, I checked within myself first if I were pure in my attitude or in my consideration. As I began to check any doubtful matter carefully before the Lord, in many cases, I was convicted of not being as pure as I ought to be. Therefore, I exercise myself to deal with myself and took action in a way that would be deemed pure. Be it money matter or any matter, now I first checked within myself, “Am I pure?” This exercise helps me in dealing with my conscience to be pure.

The area of dealing comes now and then in my life experiences. When I minister the word, did I minister with a pure heart so as not to gain any self-seeking attention? When I talk to people do I have any ulterior motive? When I settle accounts, do I do it purely without any manipulation? When I talk to people do I speak purely without any play of words or diplomacy? 

I have now been learning to check over and over again as I begin to exercise to learn to be pure. I do know that only the Lord is pure. Now that the Lord is in me, I must learn to take His purity as my purity and not try to impose my purity upon the matter in consideration.

This lesson of purity helps me a lot in my Christian life and Christian ministry. It filters off any impurity within as I turn to the Lord cross-checking the matter for purity. What a release I have been experiencing when I learn to take Christ as my purity! With a good, clean, and pure conscience, I can deal with matters peacefully.

Having mentioned this exercise, my purity is only the Lord. On my part, I exercise to be pure, but it is ultimately the Lord’s purity that can make me pure. As such, like Job, I abhor myself seeing how impure I am and dealing with my impurity, I take Christ's purity as my purity and see the Lord by gaining Him through the exercise of taking Christ as my purity.
 
Lord, make me pure in heart that I may see You in every matter and situation.

Ministry of the Word to Bhilai

I have been hearing about the city of Bhilai for many years. Since last year I have had the burden to visit this city at least for two reasons. First, the estranged wife of a brother resides in this city and I wanted to meet the brother along with his wife as he has been in fellowship with me for over a year now. Out of concern for his Christian life and testimony, when I came to know about his marital matter I felt burdened to fellowship with them as the Lord would lead. The second reason was for the introduction and distribution of the ministry literature among the many Christians in the city.

As we visited this city, the Lord prepared a seeking brother as our “guardian angel” to take care of us during our four days stay in the city. We did not make any practical plan for food, lodging, and transportation. But we just made the plan out of burden from the Lord and according to His leading. True to His word and faithful to His promises, the Lord used a brother to be our guide. In his house, we were given hospitality, in his care we went to different places within the city for the ministry, and with him and his family, we also enjoyed a wonderful time of fellowship. He was a seeker and helper too.

He was a brother who received all 7 ministry books distributed free by Rhema via Facebook promotion and has been thoroughly enjoying the ministry. He testified that his Christian life has changed since he read The Economy of God. He was so eager to receive us and give us hospitality when we first contacted him saying his house is always open for the servants of God. He even came to pick us up from the railway station, gave us hospitality for four days, during the entire period of our stay in Bhilai, and drove us around to meet different Christian leaders and groups. Having done all these, he thanked us for giving him the opportunity to participate in the Lord’s work as he has the heart to serve the Lord as a retired person.

Declaring Our Statement of Faith

The President of the Christian association in the city was first introduced to us to “check us out” and verify our statement of faith as a precaution from heretical teachings and cultic ministries being introduced to the Christian populace. After our “defense and confirmation of the truth,” the President himself was very impressed by the riches and depth of the ministry and he volunteered to make arrangements and invite all the Christian leaders in the city via social media to meet us and receive the ministry literature.

Meeting the Counselor

The Lord led us to introduce the ministry literature to the Student Counselor of the top school in Bhilai. He was so impressed by the truth and the ministry literature so much so that he purchased all the selected title books by Watchman Nee and Witness Lee, the whole set of Life-study of the Bible, and the Holy Bible Recovery Version. Besides, he also received the free Rhema literature to be used among the 5000 plus students, children of many high-class gentile parents, whom he has been counseling. He was first contacted as he placed an order for Free Rhema books on Facebook during the Covid-19 lockdown.

Ministering to Seeking Christain Groups

Two nights, we were invited to minister the word of God to two different groups of seekers in the city. In both the meeting, we ministered on something very basic, calling upon the Lord's name, eating His word, and spending time e with the Lord in prayer. This basic ministry of the word was a great nourishment and encouragement to the believers.

Home Meeting with Tow Family

We also enjoyed two afternoons for home meetings. First with the family of our host and then with his sister's family. In the latter meeting, the Lord gave me a specific burden on baptism as one young brother has not yet been baptized not being clear with the truth concerning baptism. So I used seven important Bible verses on baptism with a good number of examples of baptisms in the book of Acts.

Though the first reason for coming to the city did not materialize, still the reason was used by the Lord for our coming to the city to introduce the ministry of the word. One day, I believe the Lord will raise up a group of His remnant to take the stand for His testimony. The seed of the ministry has been sown, now waiting for the harvest at the proper time. 

Lord, raise up the church in Bhilai soon!