Being Renewed to Testify to the Truth
“For this I have been born, and for this I have come into the world, that I would testify to the truth…” (John 18:37b)
The Lord’s recovery is the recovery of the divine truths as revealed in the Word of God. Many truths in the Word have been lost, misunderstood, and wrongly applied; thus, there is the need of the Lord’s recovery. We need to know the truth and be absolute for the truth, for upholding the absoluteness of the truth, and for testifying to the truth in the present evil age.
If we want to testify to the truth in the present age, we must obey Paul’s command in Romans 12:2: “Do not be fashioned according to this age, but be transformed by the renewing of the mind.” We should not be assimilated by the world to the extent that we who have been separated from the world unto God have the same image as this age. We need to be renewed in the spirit of our mind, allowing the mingled spirit to spread into our mind, thus becoming the spirit of the mind and causing our mind, emotion, and will to be renewed by a new element being wrought into our inner being. (Knowing the Truth, msg. 1, I, B, Key Statement 1, IV.E, E.2-3)
Let us pray for all the saints, including our young people, to be renewed in the spirit of our mind in order to meet the Lord’s need in this age to testify to the truth.
FTTA
Hebrews 6:1 says, “Let us be brought on to maturity.” In the experience of our spiritual life, there is always the Lord’s doing, on the one side, and our pursuing in cooperation with Him, on the other side. The Lord wants to bring us on to maturity, but we still need to cooperate with Him by being brought on to perfection, to maturity. The Lord wants to bring us on, but we must let Him do it. This is our willing cooperation with His gracious work. (Footnote 3 on Heb. 6:1)
Pray for the beginning of the new term of the FTTA, that the trainees would be built up in Christ in the growth of His life unto maturity and would have a solid pursuit and progress in life.
South Africa
Full-time Training in Pretoria
FTTP is back in session with pre-training from August 9 to 15. The training is in-person for those who are able to come and online for those who could not get visas; many community saints are also joining online. This term, the Lord has blessed us with 17 trainees, including four first-termers.
Please pray for the release of the Lord’s speaking this week to all trainees and saints in attendance. Also ask the Lord, according to His will, if He would release more saints to enroll as trainees for this term, even at the last minute.
Update on Durban and the Recent Unrest
We thank the Lord that daily activities in Durban and the rest of South Africa are returning to normal. May the Lord continue to stabilize the situation in South Africa for His interest. May He preserve the saints in His up-to-date calling and move, and may He protect them from the wearing-out tactics of the enemy.
Please see the Appendix below for the full update.
Bibles for Canada
Last month, Bibles for Canada (BfC) sent two brothers to participate in an internship with Bibles for America (BfA) with a view toward maintaining the fellowship and healthy circulation between BfA and its affiliates. Both the BfA staff and the BfC interns thoroughly enjoyed this time of mutual encouragement and felt refreshed in the burden to spread God’s Word to the hungry seekers.
Please pray for the Word of God to continue spreading throughout the Canadian provinces in both the English- and French-speaking communities. Pray that many more people would order a free NT Recovery Version from BfC and come to the full knowledge of the truth.
Vietnam
Pray for the distribution of seven Rhema e-books, that the gospel of the kingdom can be spread to all Vietnamese-speaking people and the word of the ministry can be supplied to the seeking Christians.
European Young People’s Conferences
The last of the European Young People’s Conferences will be carried out in Norway from August 12 to 15. Please pray for the Lord’s continued blessing on the YP conferences in Europe, especially that the Lord will gain a group of young people who will be one with Him to consummate His eternal economy by building up His organic Body for His coming back.
Announcements
- Morning Revival: Week 1 of Knowing the Truth, Being Absolute for the Truth, and Proclaiming the Truth in the Present Evil Age (Memorial Day Conference).
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Living Stream Ministry is offering a free e-booklet, Life’s Purpose—To Build the House of God. Formats include PDF, Kindle, Audiobook, and more! Visit http://www.lsm.org/lifes-purpose.
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Bibles for America has easy-to-use resources for telling people about God’s salvation. Visit http://gospel.bfa.org (English) or http://gospel.bfa.org/es (Español).
Appendix
AN UPDATE ON THE RECENT UNREST IN SOUTH AFRICA
Thank you very much for your concern and prayer during the unrest and looting which impacted South Africa, particularly the KwaZulu-Natal and Gauteng provinces. All the saints in South Africa have received much supply and encouragement from the prayers of the Body, even though the greatest need was in the church in Durban. We wish to give you the following update:
The South African government has been trying to ensure that peace and stability are maintained throughout the country and that there are no further incidents of violence. The President, Cyril Ramaphosa, has said that the riots were a “coordinated and well-planned attack” and “those behind these acts have sought to provoke a popular insurrection.” Thankfully the attempted insurrection has failed and the situation has calmed down. Daily activities in Durban and all of South Africa are returning back to normal. It has, however, affected both poor and middle-class areas. Private and government property have been damaged and destroyed. People have been injured and lives have been lost. Many South Africans have been so disturbed by these events, which unfolded in such a rapid and uncontrolled manner, that they are making plans to emigrate.
It was a traumatic experience, especially for the saints in Durban. However, it was measured and there was much grace. Thankfully, no lives or livelihoods of the saints were directly affected because of this satanic chaos. Therefore, there are no direct financial needs among the saints and churches due to this unrest.
We really appreciate being in the fellowship of the Body. The prayers of the churches in this regard are much needed. May the Lord continue to stabilize the situation in South Africa for His interest. May He keep using and blessing South Africa for the carrying out of His will and continue to use this country for the accomplishment of His economy on earth. May the Lord preserve the saints in His up-to-date calling and move, and may He protect them from the wearing-out tactics of the enemy.
On another note: the saints in South Africa also need much prayer regarding the COVID-19 pandemic at this time. South Africa was just emerging from a third wave driven by the Delta variant and was in the throes of it when the unrest began. During this third wave many more saints have been directly affected with a number contracting the disease and having hard battles to recover. Currently (beginning of August) more than 20 saints who are in the church life in different parts of South Africa are suffering from the illness. Others have also lost family members. This has resulted in much grief and many difficult changes in their living. May the Lord head up this situation in Himself and protect the saints during this time. May the Lord strengthen and advance His move in Africa!