Lord, Open the Doors and Close the Gates
“I am the First and the Last and the living One; and I became dead, and behold, I am living forever and ever; and I have the keys of death and of Hades.” (Rev. 1:17b-18) Christ is the real David, the One who has the key of God’s dominion. We need to know and experience Him as the One who has the key. We can do this by our binding and loosing.
- Lord, open the door of faith to more Gentiles (Acts 14:27), especially to the millions gathering in London the weeks of the Olympic Games.
- Lord, we ask You to remove the stumbling blocks (that weaken our faith) the recovery. Especially Lord, shut the door (Rev. 3:7) on gossip and corrupt words so that all our speaking with one another will be words of grace for building up (Eph. 4:29).
An Open Door for the Gospel in Los Angeles
“For a door is opened to me, great and efficacious, and there are many opposers.” 1 Cor. 16:9
Since February of this year, the re-launched church website (http://www.churchinlosangles.org) has opened many doors for the spread of the gospel in Los Angeles. The website has proven to be efficacious in presenting our testimony to many seeking ones in Los Angeles. On average, each week there is at least one interested person contacting us through the church website. Many of these have visited meetings or have begun appointments. Let us pray for the following:
- the website would be an increasingly effective open door with many more people contacting us each week;
- that saints throughout Los Angeles would promptly rise up to care for and shepherd the ones who contact us through the website; and
- that some saints would be moved by the Lord to definitely commit themselves to practical service in support of the website.
Summer School of Truth
The summer school continues through July 29. Please pray for 1) the Lord’s blessing of life on the coordination of the serving saints, 2) all the young people to receive a fresh and up-to-date vision of the church, 3) lasting connections between young people and college students, and 4) gaining of whole families through this summer school.
Perfecting Training for So. California Spanish-speaking Saints
This training continues those of prior years. It will be all day three Saturdays—July 28, August 25, and September 29. The emphasis is perfecting for the follow up to the Bibles for America recipients and Life-Study of the Bible radio program contacts.
BfA Korean Section at Haskell
Lord’s Day, July 29, there will be a Korean-language presentation at Haskell to introduce BfA to the Korean-speaking saints in the church in L.A. The goal is to prepare them to pray specifically, to present the NT Recovery Version, and then to shepherd those who receive it.
European Young People’s Conference
The purpose of this conference, July 29 to August 4 in Poland, is to provide an atmosphere of truth, love, blending, and enjoyment that imparts light and life, and builds up and inspires the young people to consecrate their lives to the Lord and take positive directions in their Christian walk. Young people from all over Europe will attend, with some from outside Europe to extend the scope of blending. Our hope is that we all would develop a sense of mutuality, and receive the spiritual energy, strength, and motivation to live for the Lord and His recovery.
Bibles for Europe
Thank you very much for your support in prayers, giving, and even coming to London! Do pray for our follow-up effort and ongoing distributions. The Olympic Torch has come to London this week and the Games begin this Friday. We have begun to distribute the rest of the 100,000 New Testaments to 12 million people from 200 nations who will attend the Olympics in London. May the Lord gain many British for His testimony in UK and gain thousands of seeking ones from all over the world for the building up of the universal Body of Christ through the distribution of the Recovery Version New Testaments! Some events:
- Five days this week and five next week, distributions are scheduled in various parts of London.
- July 21 there were seminars for NT recipients in three cities near London.
- July 15 in Southampton 453 NTs were given out and 277 people requested further contact.
- July 12 in Luton, despite some rain, 300 NTs were distributed with 169 open to further contact.
Perfecting Training in Ghana
There is a perfecting training in Accra, Ghana (west Africa) July 23-29. It is anticipated that saints from Cameroon, Ghana, Nigeria, and Sierra Leone will be in attendance. Please pray that:
- The exercise of the spirit would be strong and the atmosphere would be full of light.
- Every trainee would be fully open to the Lord’s perfecting through the speaking brothers.
- The Lord would use this training to equip and perfect the saints for the building up of the churches.
- The Lord would cover all the travel of all those involved with the training to and from the training.
Tanzania (east Africa)
There has been recent contact with saints in the town of Kibaha, Tanzania, a short distance from Dar es Salaam, the capital. These believers have received ministry literature and Bibles from Amana Trust.
- Pray for these saints to grow in life and become clear concerning the truth of God’s economy.
- Pray that through these the Lord will gain a lampstand in Kibaha and other towns in Tanzania.
BfA Military Distributions
Since August of 2010, Bibles for America has shipped over 12,000 military packets and nearly 3,000 copies of the New Testament Recovery Version to chaplains and other contacts at over 100 U.S. military installations. Many locations have put in orders for more. Some installations and chaplains, however, have remained closed to the Recovery Version.
Recently there has been prayer for the Lord to open the way for the Recovery Version to get onto specific closed bases and for the chaplains to enjoy and distribute the materials. In a very short time a base which has been closed for years, has opened!
Nearly 1000 packets were ordered by various installations one week in July, more than in any week previously. Finally, BfA received this encouraging e-mail: “I am writing today to thank you for the shipment of Bibles. Our airmen are enjoying them, and we are in need of more as they are flying off the shelves and we cannot keep them in stock. I am sharing with our chaplain’s office, too. The chaplains are especially enjoying the black-covered Bible, the New Testament Recovery Version, to be specific. Another shipment of that specific Bible would be terrific and very much appreciated.”
Praise the Lord for His move in the U.S. military! Please continue to pray that many more previously closed bases would be opened to the Recovery Version and that many servicemen and women would be nourished and supplied through the Word and the ministry.
Announcements
- Morning revival: week 2 of The Genuine Oneness of the Body… (Memorial Day conference).