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Denying Our Natural Disposition for Growth and Usefulness

“Then Jesus said to His disciples, If anyone wants to come after Me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow Me.” (Matt. 16:24)

“I am crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but it is Christ who lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live in faith, the faith of the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me.” (Gal. 2:20)

The thing that most damages our usefulness in the Christian life and church life is our living according to our natural disposition. It is the real enemy of our growth in the divine life and the major factor that spoils our usefulness in the hand of the Lord. The way to deal with our natural disposition is to realize and remember that we are crucified persons and remain under that realization and reality throughout the day. Our natural disposition is our self; it is in us, and it is us. Practically speaking, to deny the self is simply to deny our natural disposition. As Christians, we have to live Christ by continually exercising our spirit to reject our self and live by another life, the crucified and resurrected Christ, signified by the tree of life. (Vital Factors for the Recovery of the Church Life, msg. 6, I.C, F, G)

Lord, Go Forth to Conquer Through Us

“And I saw, and behold, a white horse, and he who sits on it had a bow; and a crown was given to him, and he went forth conquering and to conquer… And…another horse, a red one, went forth; and to him who sits on it, to him authority was given to take peace from the earth, and that men should slay one another… And…a black horse… And…a pale horse.” (Rev. 6:2, 4-5, 8)

Human living is characterized by increases in troubling events including murders, rebellions, famines, waves of pandemic, extreme weather, fires, and lies. All of these correspond to the second, third, and fourth horses (war, famine, death). But we stand with the conquering of the first horse (the gospel)! May all the negative events cause people to realize their emptiness and insecurity and turn them to the gospel. May the Lord empower us to rise up more to proclaim the gospel. Lord, run and conquer through us!

North America College Training

The goal of the College Training is to supply our students with a vision, equip them with truth, help them in their experience of life, perfect them in the preaching of the gospel, and develop their character so they can become useful vessels for the building up of the Body of Christ.

This year’s NACT will take place as a hybrid online and in-person training from July 21 to 25. The topic is “Rise Up & Build” and focuses on three Old Testament books (Ezra, Nehemiah, and Haggai) that cover the recovery of the building of the house and city of God.

Nearly 1,600 saints have registered, including over 1,100 students. They are encouraged to gather together, if possible, to participate in the schedule. In particular, the 84 registered saints from LA will be coming together on Saturday to watch the messages and fellowship in small groups.

Lord, gain those who will rise up and build Your house today!

North America Chinese-speaking Saints Perfecting Training

The 2021 North America Chinese-speaking Saints Perfecting Training will be from July 24 to 31. The main burden is based on the ministry book The Ten Great Critical ‘Ones’ for the Building Up of the Body of Christ. Please pray for:

  1. All the trainees to prepare themselves and open their whole being to the Lord.

  2. The burden of the training to be released through the speaking and received by all the trainees.

  3. The trainees to be perfected in truth, life, gospel, and service unto the work of the ministry, unto the building up of the Body of Christ.

Full-time Training in Anaheim

As we prepare to resume the FTTA in person this August, please continue to pray that the Lord would open the way for many to come. We are asking Him to increase our number by sending 120 first-term trainees to Anaheim. Domestic applications will still be accepted up until July 21.

Nordic-Baltic Online Conference

The upcoming Nordic-Baltic Online Conference will be July 23 to 26, hosted by the churches in Norway. We pray and expect the Lord’s rich blessing for this time of fellowship, and hope that many saints, not only from the Nordic countries and Baltic States but also from many Russian- and English-speaking churches, will be able to participate and blend for the building up of the Body of Christ.

Durban, South Africa

The churches in South Africa have been praying for 9 years for the city of Durban, and the saints started meeting on the ground there in 2018. Over the past two weeks, there has been widespread violence and unrest. Pray for the Lord to protect the saints, release the gospel, and increase His testimony!

The Appendix below contains a letter from the brothers in Durban on behalf of the church there.

Announcements

  1. Morning Revival: Week 6 of Vital Factors for the Recovery of the Church Life (ITERO).

  2. Ways to Give: Information about the church’s online giving platform, Subsplash, and where to mail checks, are at http://www.churchinlosangeles.org/members/offerings.

Appendix

A REQUEST FOR PRAYER FROM THE CHURCH IN DURBAN, SOUTH AFRICA

Dear saints,

The church in Durban, South Africa, would like to open our situation in fellowship for the prayer of the Body.

Since July 5, there has been ongoing unrest in our province and city. Things escalated with the burning of trucks on the highway, followed by widespread looting and violence. In the neighborhood where most of the saints live, the mobs have vandalized and emptied every store. We have endured days of hearing gunshots in our neighborhood and have been concerned for the safety of the saints and of our families.

Within the city and the province, we expect that food security is going to be an issue. Food and fuel, where available, are already being rationed. We believe it is no coincidence that there is a battle for possession of this land. The country’s infrastructure has been disrupted as major highways are blockaded. The military have been called in to protect key points, such the airport, the harbor, the law courts, the hospitals, and the fuel refineries, but they are not doing much in the way of protecting the population. The police are understaffed, and armed civilians are now patrolling their own neighborhoods. Similar incidents, but not on the same scale, have also been occurring in Johannesburg and other areas in the Gauteng province.

The churches in South Africa have been praying for 9 years for Durban, and the saints started meeting on the ground here in 2018. For the past couple of years, the saints in South Africa have also been praying strongly for the Lord to strengthen His testimony in 3 cities—Durban, Johannesburg, and Cape Town.

We would ask the saints to fight for this situation. These occurrences will affect the whole country and will have lasting socio-economic repercussions during a time when COVID-19 and rampant corruption have already devastated the economy. We are at a crossroads and need the saints to pray for Durban.

Please pray with us to stand against the powers and principalities in the air over this city, release the gospel, preserve life in this city, strengthen the testimony, and cover the saints in this province.

The brothers in the church in Durban