Ministry of the Word to Reckong Peo and Kalpa

The first time I heard about Reckong Peo was when I first visited Shimla. I saw bus at the bustand with Reckong Peo written on the upper front wind screen. Upon inquiring about the name, I was told that it was one of the hill towns on the far east of Himachal Pradesh not very far from Indo-Tibet border. The very name itself painted a burden in me to visit one day. Now, this time, the Lord opened the door, after four years of receiving the burden. 

The brother the Lord arranged for us was introduced to us by the brother in Ganvi. True to his word, he waited for us at the bustand. The moment we met, we were quite comfortable with one another as though we knew each other much before, though we only met for the first time. As we walked around the market place for sightseeing, we were very impressed by the scenic beauty surrounding the hill station. A beautiful view of the snow clad mountains was simply breathtaking. Later, as we were driven to the hotel owned by the brother, the view from our window was even more pleasant, a mountain range covered on the top with snow, and dwindled down as the snow melted. 

Later, we met a group of young ones who have been shepherded by an ex-catholic priest and his sister who are in the church life. These ones have been shepherded so well that we were impressed by the constitution they had of the truth being presently pursued in the Lord’s recovery. Though they had never been to any physical meeting in the Lord’s recovery, they have actually been already in the church life virtually. When we visited them the next day, they shared their testimony of how they have been shepherded by the saints in the church in Mumbai and how they daily enoyed morning revical and pursue the Life-studies,  all online. We marvelled at what the Lord can do to people who loves Him and the ministry of the word. These young saints are a testament to the effectiveness of the ministry of the word! 

The brother, our host, was also prepared by the Lord for His testimony. He is a retired Government engineer. He happened to be one of the firstfruits of the gospel work in Reckong Peo. Though he was initially with a group of Chirstian missionaries, now He and a few brothers are taking care of the local church which he called it as the "Body of Christ" based in the revelation he had seen concerning the church. As we introduced the ministry books to him and a few other brothers in Kalpa, which is another ten kilometers up on the mountains, he placed order for two full sets in Hindi and a Holy Bible Recovery Version for himself. In both the localities, we could already foretaste the Lord’s testimony. 

Our visit to Kalpa required us to walk up and down on the rugged hilly roads as vehicle could not enter iur exact destination. Outwardly, we exerted a lot of energy with the heavy bag full of books we carried, but it was worth all the pain as we introduced and distributed the ministry books to these local believers. It was for this purpose that we went there too. In fact, we were full of joy to bring the ministry to all these local himachalis.

We also met a missionary who established his ministry among the local people there. This brother was from Nagaland and as we introduced the ministry literature, he received them willingly and also purchased the Holy Bible Recovery Version for himself.

Thus, in this way the Lord brought the ministry to Reckong Peo and Kalpa. May the Lord continue to work in the seekers through the ministry of the word and raise up His lampstands in these localities soon.

Lord, raise up the church in Reckong Peo and Kalpa!

Ministry of the Word to Ganvi

Ganvi, a beautiful village on the foothill of the Himalayan ranges, beside a river of melting snow from the mountain was about an hour's drive from Jeori town. Though it was just about 15 kms away from the town, the winding curves road on the mountain took disproportionately longer time than excepted. The reason we went there was to meet a brother who had called me last year for the ministry books in Hindi. In fact, this time the burden the Lord gave me in Jeori was just to meet this brother. The Lord indicated indirectly to me that the onward journey to Kinnaur or Reckong Peo will be made known by this brother. Therefore, we only had a plan to meet this brother for the entire day.

When we arrived Ganvi bustand where this brother asked us to wait for him, he was in no way contactable. His phone rang without being answered despite multiple attempts. His unanswered calls left us wondering for a while if he was a genuine brother. But we would not give up the matter so easily. Instead, we enquired the local people and were shown his house from a distance. So, we went directly to his house. 

The moment the brother saw us walking towards his house, he realised we were the one to visit him. Immediately, he came to receive us and welcomed us. Later, he apologised that his phone battery was almost dead and it was kept in the other room for charging. That was the reason why my calls went unattended. Even in this, there was an attempt from the enemy trying to thwart the Lord’s plan for Ganvi.

As we settled down after informal introduction, the Holy Bible Recovery Version and ministry books were introduced to him. The ministry of the word caught the attention of this brother and he showed a lot of interest in it. We also reciprocated his response by further fellowshipping with him concerning the church, God’s desire for oneness among the believers, and a couple of practical matters on the Christian life and the church life. Our fellowship went on and on until lunch and we also prayed together. 

This brother bought the Holy Bible Recovery Version and a few other Hindi ministry books. He also testified of how he got saved, came to serve the Lord as a working one as he is a Government teacher in the village, and his experiences with some other Christian workers. According to the truth he received from his study of the word, he called the congregation he has been shepherding as "the church of Christ in Ganvi." He even invited us to visit him again with a plan for about a month's stay to visit all the groups he has been shepherding. We also thanked the Lord for bringing us together. We believe the Lord has been preserving him for His testimony in Ganvi. 

As he asked us about our plan, we told him that we had the burden to go to Reckong Peo but knew nobody. Immediately, he made a call to one of his acquaintances and connected me to him. As I called that brother in Reckong Peo, his response was very positive. He said he would wait for us at a certain bustop and took us to his place. Thus, the Lord showed us our next step. One step at a time.

In the evening, we had a time of fellowship with the seeking ones in Jeori and encouraged them to have a regular weekly meeting on one of the week days and on the Lord’s day. The saints themselves decided to meet every Thursday night for a group meeting.

Thus, our visit to Jeori and Ganvi was a step ahead in the Lord’s move for the gaining of His testimony in this area one day.

Lord, raise up Your lampstand in Jeori and Ganvi soon!

Ministry of the Word to Kotgarh, Jeori, and Rampur

Kotgarh, a small hill station not far way for the capital city of Himachal Pradesh, came to into the picture for the ministry distribution journey this time due to a brother in the church in Gurugram who had already gone there. As I fellowshipped with him about the burden the Lord gave us for Himachalis, he mentioned about Kotgarh and subsequently made all the necessary arrangements for our pick up from Shimla Airport and a drive to Kotgarh and the other nearby towns and villages. The Lord had set the stage for the distribution, arranging even Gentiles to take care of us as we had no local person who could coordinate with us. 

The moment we landed at Shimla airport, a local taxi driver picked us up and drove us to some beautiful places to cherish us. First, we had a touch of snow on the way as some still remained though about to be melted fully. Then, to a beautiful mountain lake surrounded by lush green tree with the back drop of a blue sky. We then drove around Kotgarh and met the Pastor and his wife, of the only Christian church in this beautiful hills. 

The Pastor and his wife were in grief, shock, and pain as they just met with an accident on his way home. There was no casualty as such, but their psychology was affected very much. Despite their mishaps and our surprise visit, the Lord graced us to introduce the ministry literature to both of them and a few church elders who came to console them. After all the introduction, the Pastor was so interested in the Spiritual Man (3 vols) by Watchman Nee and he purchased it right away. They also received the free Rhema booklets to introduce to the congregation there. Then, in fellowship we decided to move on to other places to save time.

Kotgarh also holds a very significant part in that Sadhu Sunder Singh had come to spent time in prayer at a cave. The exact location was Rogha. I had the opportunity to visit that very cave and wondered if this was the place Sadhu Sunder Singh mentioned about his conversation with the Lord in his book, "At the Master's Feet." 

Then, as we drove on the mountain road, I preached the gospel in Hindi to our cab driver and led him to call upon the Lord’s name and believe into the Lord Jesus Christ. He was so open to us and the gospel of Jesus Christ. I believe, that was the definite day of salvation for him. He had been to many religious places and has a soft heart towards any deity, but this was the time he began to see that Jesus is the true and living God into Whom he has believed for his salvation. Perhaps, this was the firstfruit on the first day of the ministry journey!

Then, we visited Rampur and Nogli where we met the Pastor of the largest Christian congregation. In fact, I met this brother when I first visited in 2019. Though I had no plan to visit him this time, the situation forced me to meet him. So that he can be a channel for the spread of the ministry in Rampur area. In these two places, the Lord used a gentile who on the way became a brother to be our guide. This local cab driver was the only local contact we had and he turned out to be the one prepared by the Lord to lead us to different people and places. Otherwise, it was not possible for us to visit these hill stations in one day itself and move on to the next destination. 

Then, we drove straight to Jeori and arrive at lat night. A sister and a brother welcomed us, and we all, including our cab driver, enjoyed a good night rest. The following day, we had a morning time of fellowship with our hosts and in the evening with all the saints who have been joining the Church in Gurugram meetings online. One of the sisters shared her enjoyment of the ministry through daily Hindi morning revival. I was surprised by what the ministry can do to people; renewing their minds, transforming them, and reconstituing them with the truth. In fact, we came to witness what the Lord has been doing among the local people of Himachal Pradesh.

Lord, bless Your move in Kotgarh!

Family Time

My son turned fourteen on the eighteen of this month and my wife turned forty seven on the twenty fourth of this month. This month, we witnessed two birthdays though we do not celebrate birthday as such. As a family, we simply thanked the Lord for adding to our lives one more year and prayed to the Lord that we love Him more, gain Him more, and grow up to Him more. This is what we generally do when we faced our birthdays. Thanking and praying Him for His grace.

For my son, on his birthday I purchased for him a new school bag which can be used for travelling as we have travelling schedules lined up the coming months. For my children, they were happy if I took them out on their birthdays, for a meal at the restaurant of their choice. They did not expect more than that. They were just happy with a time of family eating out on their birthdays. We used those occasions for family time out together. No invitation, no celebration, just a family time together, eating together. Only if I find the need, I used to purchase a gift or two. But very rare was such a need. For my wife, I bought a cake of her choice. We prayed for her and enjoyed the cake together. That made her more than satisfied. In small and big things, we grasped the opportunity to spend time together.

These days, the Lord has blessed us with much time for family bonding. The Lord has been gracious to bind our family together. Gradually, we also established our family prayer and truth pursuing time, personal prayer time, corporate morning revival time, and also corporate prayers with our companions. To me, spiritual life is the most important part of a human life. Once our spiritual life is normal, all the rest will be in good order. So, as a father, I have been doing my best to make sure we all exercise daily for a healthy spiritual life in our family so that we can all become channels of blessing in the church and the community we live in. After all, our lives are for Christ and for the church life.

Lord, bless our family. Gain our daily living for Your testimony, that as Joshua our testimony will indeed be:

And if it seems wrong in your sight to serve Jehovah, choose for yourselves today whom you will serve, either the gods from across the River, whom your fathers served, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve Jehovah. (Joshua 24:15, RecVer)

Lesson on Wisdom

God chose the wise and prudent and well attested ones to be the leaders over His people. But how to determine who are the wise in heart? They are the ones who keep and do the word of God. 

So, to be wise and prudent, the basic requirement is to keep and do the word of God. Which means, to do and keep the word, one must know the word, and to know the word, one must read the word. This is the only way to be wise and prudent.

Choose for yourselves men who are wise and prudent and well attested, according to your tribes, and I will make them your leaders. (Deuteronomy 1:13, RecVer)

So I took the leaders of your tribes, men who were wise and well attested, and I made them leaders over you, captains over thousands and captains over hundreds and captains over fifties and captains over tens and officials for your tribes. (Deuteronomy 1:15, RecVer)

Keep and do them therefore; for this will be your wisdom and prudence in the sight of the peoples who hear all these statutes and say, Surely this great nation is a wise and prudent people. For what great nation is there that has a god so near to it as Jehovah our God is whenever we call upon Him? And what great nation is there that has statutes and ordinances so righteous as all this law which I am setting before you today? But be careful and guard your soul diligently, so that you do not forget the things which your eyes have seen and they do not depart from your heart all the days of your life; rather, make them known to your children and to your grandchildren. (Deuteronomy 4:6-9, RecVer)

When David’s time to die drew near, he commanded Solomon his son, saying, I am going the way of all the earth. Be strong therefore and be a man; And keep the commandment of Jehovah your God by walking in His ways, by keeping His statutes, His commandments, and His ordinances and His testimonies as they are written in the law of Moses, that you may prosper in all that you do and wherever you turn; (1 Kings 2:1-3, RecVer)

In addition to being wise and prudent by keeping and doing the word, one can also prosper in all what he do. This is a gem that I have discovered. Initially, I used to think that wisdom and prudent is a gift of God. Solomon received God's wisdom as he prayed for it. Yes indeed, it is a gift from God. But much more, it is also by paying heed to the word of God. Though God gifted Solomon wisdom, he did not keep the word of God in the latter part of his life as he married pagan women in disobedience to God’s words who turned his hearts away from God. So, for the longevity of wisdom and prudent in one's life, in addition to the wisdom as a gift of God, one also needs to keep and do the word of God.

These days, I have been spending sufficient time to read the Bible daily. The Lord showed me new things as I read the word of God again and again. I read it not only for wisdom and prudent, but also for my life supply. He gives both. So I find it best to read the word of God as much as possible. I do not limit myself to few chapters anymore. I read as much as I can within the time I have and also alloted for Bible reading. And as I read and read, the Lord also showed me new things here and there, now and then. I pray that the Lord will grace me to continue reading the Bible daily as much as I can and also receive light and life along with wisdom and prudent.

Lord, grant me wisdom and make be prudent

Lesson on Purity

In my reading of the Bible, the Lord impressed me so much about Mephiboseth. I saw an excellent character in him which I never saw before. 

Firstly, he was the son of David's beloved, though crippled, he was honored to eat at the king’s table. Despite his handicap, he need not look done on his crippled feet, but look at the food placed on the dinning table of the king.

And Mephibosheth dwelt in Jerusalem because he ate at the king’s table continually. And he was crippled in both his feet. (2 Samuel 9:13, RecVer)

Secondly, he was deceived by his own servant Ziba who wanted to win David's favour and coveted his inheritance.

And when David was a little past the summit, Ziba, Mephibosheth’s attendant, came to meet him with a pair of saddled asses and upon them two hundred loaves of bread and a hundred clusters of raisins and a hundred summer fruit and a skin of wine. And the king said to Ziba, Why do you have these? And Ziba said, The asses are for the king’s household to ride on, and the bread and the summer fruit are for the young men to eat, and the wine is for those who faint in the wilderness to drink. And the king said, And where is your master’s son? And Ziba said to the king, He is now dwelling in Jerusalem, for he said, Today the house of Israel will restore to me the kingdom of my father. And the king said to Ziba, Now all that belongs to Mephibosheth is yours. And Ziba said, I bow myself to you. May I find favor in your sight, O my lord the king. And when King David came to Bahurim, a man of the family of the house of Saul came forth from there, whose name was Shimei, the son of Gera; he came forth, cursing as he came forth. (2 Samuel 16:1-5, RecVer)

Thirdly, he acknowledged the fact that he and his whole family were worthy of death. And further confessed that he had no right to cry out to the king.

Fourthly, when David said that he and his servant would divide his inheritance by half, he even offered that Ziba can get the whole.

And he said, O my lord the king, my servant deceived me; for your servant said, I will saddle myself a donkey that I may ride on it and go with the king. For your servant is lame. And Ziba slandered your servant before my lord the king. But my lord the king is like an angel of God; therefore do what is good in your sight. For all my father’s house were but men worthy of death before my lord the king, but you set your servant among those who eat at your table. What further right then do I have to cry out more to the king? And the king said to him, Why speak any more of your affairs? I say that you and Ziba shall divide the land. And Mephibosheth said to the king, Let him even take it all, since my lord the king has arrived at his house in peace. (2 Samuel 19:26-30, RecVer)

Such a character as Mephibosheth impressed me a lot. It reminds me of the purity of heart needed of a believer. I am not sure if I were as pure as him. But I do pray and wish that I be pure in heart too. 

These days, I have also been exercising to deal with my heart of any impurity. I do not want to be double standard and hypocrite. I want to be straight, simple, single, and sincere in my words and deeds. But I am not sure either where I have come upto now. I only hope and pray that the Lord will train me day by day, deal with my heart until it is pure. My motive, intention, attitude, opinion, and thoughts should be pure before God and man concerning anything.

Lord, purify my heart, I pray.

Fellowship of Offering

And my God will fill your every need according to His riches, in glory, in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 4:19, RecVer)

A new brother's family in the church in Gurugram has been going through a lot of financial difficulties. He has been working so hard to make ends meet. He even decided to send his wife and child back to his village as he felt he could no longer support them for house rent and school fees. This matter was brought to me recently. As usual, I did not react according to my emotional feeling. Nor did I want to give the poor saints an impression that by being in the church life they can get an easy money through offering. I took the matter before the Lord in prayer and felt to offer according to the Lord’s supply. I also fellowshipped with my wife and we both had the oneness to offer. Incidentally, I withdrew one my FDs and had sufficient money to offer to this family and thus it was done so through the church offering box. Later, I heard a testimony that this family's faith in the Lord has grown much by this experience and they felt very comforted by the love of God expressed through the saints. A few weeks later, their son also got admission in a school meant for the underprivileged. So, the Lord took care of their financial needs and they need not go back to their village. Since they got saved here in the church and are now enjoying the church life, they did not want to go anywhere. 

At the same time, another brother has been going through serious health issue. Though I wanted to visit him, I could not make it due to my busy schedule. Instead, I used to pray with him over the phone. When the Lord provided me sufficient money, I had the burden to offer to this family as well. Then, one Lord’s day, with three other brothers, we went to visit him and transfered the offering. 

These offerings were done at the crucial time when we also need the most for our family's overseas trip. At one time, everything I had almost ran out. I even had to write to a brother who owed us quite an amount of money for a couple of years now. Though I tried my best to not write anything about him paying back, my situation forced me to at least remind him of what he owned and checked with him when he could possibly settle it. Though he could not make it, still the Lord had His way.

Then, the Lord showed me the saving that I could make use of. Which then provided our needs and that of the others in abundance. This was a wonderful experience of fellowship in money matters. The Lord bountifully met out own needs and the needs of other saints. A joyful enjoyment of fellowship in offering. The Lord is the Source, He provides richly and timely!

And my God will fill your every need according to His riches, in glory, in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 4:19, RecVer)