January
Sri Lanka
Newly Established Churches
The church in Rambukkana
The church in Rambukkana started with a sister and her family. They had to travel from home to Kandy every week to attend the Lord’s Table Meeting, which was a four-hour round trip. This spurred their burden to establish a church in their hometown. The year before last, some brothers preached the gospel there and gained another family, so the saints started to have meetings in Rambukkana. In the past year, three nearby churches―Kurunegala, Alawwa and Kandy―joined forces to propagate. Through the saints’ knocking on warm doors and regular weekly shepherding, ten households who were open to the Lord’s recovery were gained. Based on the fellowship of the brothers of the three nearby churches in the consciousness of the Body, the ten house-holds were divided into 3 groups, with each locality taking care of one group. Every week, there was a definite time of visitation to shepherd and perfect these seeking ones, and three local brothers were thus perfected into one accord. The Church in Rambukkana officially took ground on December 20, 2020. At present, the most urgent need is the continuous shepherding of the seeking ones to bring in the multiplication of the church.
The Church in Kelaniya
The Church in Kelaniya started with a pastor who led a free group. Three years ago, when the church in Gampaha was established, he sent someone to attend our meeting to find out about our teaching. After two years of observation, he became totally subdued by the truths in the Lord’s recovery. Starting in the year before last, three brothers from Biyagama regularly contacted and fellowshipped with him. Then beginning in last July, these three brothers started to attend meetings of this free group every Lord’s Day afternoon to share the truths with them. This pastor was very much convinced with the truths and encouraged his congregation to read the Holy Word for Morning Revival, our ministry books, and especially the book “The Economy of God”. Last October, we held a special conference for the seeking ones. The believers that came were all surprised by the truths among us that they had never heard before; they were very convinced. In November, the brothers started a morning revival group to take care of the seekers. Every morning about 10 saints would get on the phone with the brothers. They learned how to be revived every morning, call on the name of the Lord, pray-read and speak the word. Currently there are about 25 saints meeting in Kaleniya. Last year the brothers felt that the time was ripe, and on December 27, the church in Kelaniya was raised up.
The Church in Ella
The brothers got in touch with a certain Pastor in December 2019. He had functioned as an evangelist for over 30 years while holding a job at the same time. He had some conflict with the leading pastor in his congregation and began to meet in his own home. At one point he came across and read many of our ministry books. After half a year, he started to attend the meeting in the church in Batticaloa. He was fully convinced by the truths among us, and highly appreciated the content of the Holy Word for Morning Revival. Last year he came in contact with some believers in Ella through a brother. Since July, he and this brother have been coordinating in shepherding these believers in Ella by phone every day. Then in August some brothers went to Ella to hold a 3-day conference and baptized 8 new ones. These believers in Ella did not receive much supply of the word in the past. Through us they came to know the truth and witnessed the oneness of the brothers. They became clear that the way of the Lord’s Recovery was the proper way and chose to take this way. The above-mentioned pastor joined the trainings for the responsible brothers both in last September and October. His eyes were furthered opened and he became more burdened to labor in Ella. Since then he and the brothers have been in close coordination. Early in the morning from 4 a.m. to 7 a.m. everyday, they hold several online morning revival groups. They also have online Bible-reading and online prayer times with the brothers in Jaffna. At present, there are ten families, a total of 28 saints, in Ella. Eight of the saints joined the past Thanksgiving Conference online with the messages translated into Tamil. They were very joyful. The church in Ella will officially took ground on January 24.
The Short-term Trainings
At present we have four full-time trainees in Colombo―two brothers and two sisters. This lays a very good foundation for us to perfect more young people. We hope that more college students and working ones will be able to join the short-term trainings for two weeks or one month. Some may then stay for three months, and eventually, for the entire training. Having the four full-time trainees was a great turn for the Lord’s move in Sri Lanka this past year. May the Lord make them patterns for the young people that more will be perfected and some local full-timers will be raised up. At present, we have only one young person who finished the two-year full-time training. We hope that in the next five years, there will be 20 local young people who join and complete the two-year full-time training.
Prayer Request with regard to the Pandemic
In the second wave of the pandemic, Colombo and Gampaha are the hardest-hit areas; thus, currently both the church in Colombo and the church in Gampaha hold their meetings online. Although the government did not impose a lockdown, we refrain from going outside of Colombo for gospel preaching as people in general fear those coming from Colombo. Trainings for the responsible brothers are also conducted online. Previously we held physical trainings once a month; now we use a small segment of time every week for fellowship. The Young People’s trainings have also moved online. This pandemic has affected our propagation very much as we cannot go out and can only have meetings online. Although times are difficult, the Lord’s move continues to go on. We believe this is due to the one accord among the brothers and the daily steadfast and persevering prayers of the saints. Please continue praying for us.
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National Conference in Pakistan
Under the Lord’s leading and through the intercession of the members of the Body and the coordination in one accord of the brothers, the 2020 National Conference in Pakistan went smoothly in November. Due to the pandemic, the conference was held online and saints joined in online by groups. Around 210 saints attended this conference. Most of them were saints from the four localities in Pakistan, some were the invited seekers, and others were co-workers from abroad who coordinated to give the messages.
The subject of the conference was “The Uniqueness of the Lord’s Recovery” with a total of four messages. The first message was “The Difference between the Lord’s Recovery and Christianity.” This message strongly impressed upon the saints a clear vision that the Lord’s recovery is unique, that it is absolutely different from Christianity, and that there is an insurmountable gulf between the two. We must come out of Christianity to go outside the camp, bearing the reproach of Jesus. The second message was “The Recovery of God’s Economy.” What God is recovering today is His economy. In the Lord’s recovery, we must have a clear vision about God’s economy and be governed, controlled and led by this vision, being steadfast and immovable, cooperating with and living a life for His economy. The third message was on the God-ordained way. The God-ordained way is the way to build up the Body of Christ according to the Scriptural way of meeting and serving, which is in opposition to the traditional and natural way of meeting and serving. We need to become vital persons taking the God-ordained way, practicing begetting, nourishing, teaching and building up. The last message was on the producing of the overcomers. The Lord needs the overcomers to accomplish His economy. The Lord’s recovery is to build up Zion, the overcomers in the church. The overcomers are those who overcome everything that is against Christ or is a replacement for Christ. The way to become the overcomers is to eat the Lord Jesus.
At the end of the conference, the brothers fellowshipped specifically on the burden of migration. The world situation is an indicator of the Lord’s move on earth. Under the condition of the pandemic, we need to help the white horse run faster for the gospel of the kingdom to spread to the whole inhabited earth as a testimony to all the nations. For this, we should not stay and remain in our own place, but should be prepared to move and migrate with the Lord for the spread of the truth to bring the recovered church life everywhere .
May the Lord cause the saints to have a clear realization of the Lord¡¦s recovery through His speaking, and may the saints be absolute for His economy, practice the God-ordained way, and spread the truth of the Lord’s recovery. May the Lord also work to raise up more local saints to participate in migration and propagation that His testimony in this country may shine brighter!