Pursue, Gain, Experience, Magnify the Unlimited Christ
“I know that for me this will turn out to salvation through your petition and the bountiful supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ, according to my earnest expectation and hope that in nothing I will be put to shame, but with all boldness, as always, even now Christ will be magnified in my body, whether through life or through death. For to me, to live is Christ.” (Phil. 1:19-21a)
To magnify Christ is to express Christ without limitation; it is to show the whole universe that the very Christ by whom we live is unlimited. (The Experience of Christ, msg. 1, I.C)
We have knowledge but we must pursue Christ to gain more of Him and experience Him more. He is unlimited, unsearchably rich, but our experience and resulting magnification of Him is too small. Lord, save us from emptiness; fill us with the experience and enjoyment of Christ in our daily living. “Draw me, we will run after You” (SS 1:4a).
Living the Hidden Life of Our Father
“When you pray, enter into your private room, and shut your door and pray to your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will repay you.” (Matt. 6:6)
“Surely You are a God who hides Himself, O God of Israel, the Savior.” (Isa. 45:15)
The principle of the kingdom people is that they live a hidden life. The kingdom people, who live in an emptied and humbled spirit and walk in a pure and single heart under the heavenly ruling of the kingdom, are not allowed to do anything in the flesh for the praise of men but must do all things in the spirit for the pleasing of their heavenly Father. We can never practice living a hidden life in secret in our natural life; if we are serious about being the kingdom people, we must learn to live by the hidden life of our Father. (The Development of the Kingdom of God, msg 2, II., II.B, I)
Lord, bring us into many little experiences of living a hidden life and having times with the Father in secret!
North America College Training
We believe that forty days of persevering prayer in one accord will result in an unprecedented move of the Holy Spirit in this generation of college saints during the upcoming NACT. We ask that you join us in earnest and persistent intercession on behalf of the NACT this year. Specifically, we hope to have forty days (June 11—July 20, the last day of the training) of dedicated prayer on the part of the churches and the saints in the following five general directions:
- To fully gain a new generation of college-age saints for God’s eternal purpose of Christ and the church—Psa. 24:6; Eph. 1:9-10
-
To bind the strong man Satan and to plunder his house of young vessels chosen by the Lord for His use—Matt. 12:29; 2 Tim. 2:21
-
To prepare the hearts, strengthen the spirits, and preserve the health of the saints so that they can partake of the training—Eph. 3:16-17; 1 Thes. 5:23
-
To grant the serving saints the love, faith, grace, wisdom, energy, and endurance to minister to the young people—1 Thes. 1:3; 1 Tim. 2:1
-
To rule over all things in the outward environment (weather, transportation, food and lodging, safety) related to the training—Rom. 8:28; Eph. 1:22
At http://www.40daysprayer.com we can subscribe to receive prayer burdens and updates.
At http://collegetraining.org/2019/pray.php we can sign up to pray 15 minutes one day or multiple days.
Ministry Digest
Issue 1 is out in English and Chinese; available copies have been distributed. Issue 1 in Korean and Spanish will be published in September, issue 2 for all languages in October. The purpose of the Ministry Digest is 1) to gradually get us into into the riches of the collected works of Witness Lee, and 2) to bring churches and saints into a regular habit of reading the ministry. You may subscribe at http://md.lsm.org.
Oak Glen
At the end of the SoCal Blending we heard an update on Oak Glen. This is our SoCal conference center, not only for young people but for all ages—for conferences, churches, districts, and groups to use.
The remaining loan is $372,000 but we have paid down the loan (to reduce interest costs) by using $2 million from the sale of Engedi that was intended for improvements at Oak Glen. To pay the remaining loan and release funds for the planned improvements, it is suggested that each giving unit pledge $50 per month through the end of next year.
Donations may be to the church, designated for Oak Glen, or at http://socalblendingcenter.org; this website will soon have the slides shown at the SoCal Blending.
Bibles for America
The BfA Blog in Spanish has been relaunched at http://blog-es.biblesforamerica.org. The format has been redesigned to make the content more accessible and readable. In the past, the posts have been read by audiences in the U.S., Mexico, Colombia, Argentina, Peru, Chile, Venezuela, Guatemala, and Ecuador, as well as other Spanish-speaking countries.
Please pray that Spanish-speakers all over the world will continue to discover the blog and receive help to understand God’s Word and live the Christian life.
FTTL Graduation
The graduation meeting of the Full-Time Training in London will be this Saturday, June 15 at Bower House. Fourteen trainees from nine nations will graduate. Please pray for the Lord’s blessing on the graduates to be useful, living, and functioning members of the Body, as well as for a new crop of first-term trainees from the UK and Europe. Please also pray that the graduates will experience and enjoy Christ, live Christ, pursue Christ, gain Christ, spread Christ, and minister Christ for the building up of the Body and the preparation of the bride.
Announcements
-
Morning Revival: Week 2 of The Development of the Kingdom of God in the Christian Life and the Church Life (April ITERO).
-
Audio of the May 12 joint meeting of the church in LA is available at http://tinyurl.com/LAnextgen.
-
July Semiannual Training is July 1 to 6. Registration for LA webcasts including payment ($105) is due by June 11 at http://tinyurl.com/summertrainingla.
-
Audio/video of SoCal Blending messages will be available at http://www.socalblending.org.
-
Summer School of Truth: Please reserve August 9 to 17.