Week of March 20
Living in the Divine Trinity by Enjoying Christ as Our Food
"As the living Father has sent Me and I live because of the Father, so he who eats Me, he also shall live because of Me." (John 6:57)
"It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing; the words which I have spoken to you are spirit and are life." (John 6:63)
If we are going to live in the Divine Trinity, to abide in the Divine Trinity as our home, we must enjoy Christ as our food. We need to live by Christ as our life supply. He is our food. He is eatable because He is now in resurrection… Now Christ is good for us to eat. After accomplishing death and resurrection, He became perfected for us to eat Him. Because He is living in resurrection, He is good for us to eat organically. (CWWL, 1988, vol. 1, "Living in and with the Divine Trinity," p. 348)
We can eat Christ as our spiritual food in order to live because of Him. To eat Christ is to eat His words by exercising our spirit to both pray-read and muse upon His words so that His words become the gladness and joy of our heart (Jer. 15:16; Psa. 119:15-16; Josh. 1:8-9). To live not only by but also "because of" Christ means that the energizing element of Christ becomes the supplying factor for us to live Christ. (Living in and with the Divine Trinity, msg. 3, I.C)
May we exercise to eat Christ as our spiritual food by eating His words that we may be supplied to live Him!
SCYP Spring High School Conferences
The Spring High School Conference for brothers is this weekend, March 25 to 27. It will be held in a hybrid format with options to join online or in person at Oak Glen. The topic is "Samuel—A Man According to God," and will show the example of an overcoming Nazarite who, in the midst of an age of degradation, was consecrated, sanctified, and separated absolutely and ultimately to God.
We encourage all the saints to pray for the Lord to appear to every young person during these times that they would volunteer themselves to Him for His purpose!
European Spring University Conference
The Spring University Conference for students in the United Kingdom and Europe will take place March 25 to 27. The fellowship will be on "Living the Christian Life at the End of the Present Age." Please pray that all those who registered would not only come but also enjoy the Lord together. May the Lord use this time to gain many who love His appearing in this age.
London – Bower House
Thank the Lord that the current phase of construction at Woodland Camp, with capacity for more than 120 people, will be completed this summer. Attention will then turn to building a new full-time training centre at Bower House with flexible meeting facilities for 800 people, with the expectation that the Lord will bless us over the coming years with a significant enlargement in the training. This project is expected to take several years, with the first step being a clear design for the building. The application for an improved design is currently awaiting decision with the council planners.
Please pray that in our coordination with the council the Lord would release the best design possible according to His will by April, so that construction can begin next year.
Ukraine
Please continue to pray for the ruling of the heavens over the entire situation so that:
- The tripartite being of the saints who are under attack, including the brothers fighting in the army, will be protected and preserved.
- The saints who have escaped into Europe as refugees will be comforted and cared for.
- The saints who are caring for the refugees will enjoy the Lord as their grace, wisdom, and endurance.
- Satan's kingdom will suffer loss.
- God's economy will advance in the spreading of the gospel and the building up of the Body.
Egypt
More than two million people attended the 53rd Cairo International Book Fair, which took place January 27 through February 7. Despite many challenges, this time was nevertheless a real victory to the Lord and a shame to the enemy. What a privilege to offer the ministry of the age, with a proper standing before God and man, to people from Egypt and the Middle East from all different religious backgrounds. Many hungry ones approached our booth, and regardless of how positive or negative they were, they did not leave the same. During this time we experienced the thirsty Savior calling the thirsty ones to come and drink the living water. (See the March issue of LSM's newsletter for testimonies.)
Please pray for:
- The follow-up and the shepherding of new contacts that it would be according to God.
- The ministry to operate in each person who purchased a book that the book would be read and would get into each person so that they would subjectively experience Christ.
- The translation and publication work of the ministry books in Arabic, as well as for distribution channels in the Middle East.
- The preparation for the next year's fair, which we expect will be in January 2023.
Announcements
- Morning Revival: Week 3 of Living in and with the Divine Trinity (Thanksgiving Conference).
- Living Stream Ministry: The March issue of "Having This Ministry…" presents Watchman Nee's message on "World Wars and the Church" in English, Chinese, Korean and Spanish.
- Wednesday Night Ministry Meeting: Live broadcast this Wednesday beginning at 7:25 pm at http://lsm.org/live in English, Spanish, Chinese, and Korean. Outlines will be posted on the same site.
- Opportunities for Giving: As the Lord leads, saints may give through the Church in Los Angeles designated for 'Ukraine' or 'Atlanta Meeting Hall'.
- Bibles for America's latest blog post is "How to Be Freed from Anxiety" based on Philippians 4:6.
- 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.
Week of March 13
Abiding in the Vine and Praying from the Head
"I am the vine; you are the branches. He who abides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit; for apart from Me you can do nothing." (John 15:5)
"If you abide in Me and My words abide in you, ask whatever you will, and it shall be done for you." (John 15:7)
We live in the Divine Trinity by abiding in Christ as the true vine. As branches of the vine, we need to abide in the vine. To be in the Lord is a matter of union; to abide in the Lord is a matter of fellowship. The Christian life is a life of abiding in the Lord.
We abide in the Triune God by the teaching of the anointing. The anointing, as the moving and working of the compound Spirit within us, anoints God into us so that we may be saturated with God, possess God, and understand the mind of God; the anointing communicates the mind of Christ as the Head of the Body to His members by the inner sense, the inner consciousness, of life. (Living in and with the Divine Trinity, msg. 2, III, B, 2, 4; III.D, 4)
May we all exercise to pray according to the inner anointing, the inner consciousness of life, according to the mind of Christ as the Head of the Body.
SCYP Spring High School Conferences
The Spring High School Conferences are March 18 to 20 for sisters and March 25 to 27 for brothers. These gatherings will be held in a hybrid format with options to join online or in person at Oak Glen. The topic is "Samuel—A Man According to God," and will show the example of an overcoming Nazarite who, in the midst of an age of degradation, was consecrated, sanctified, and separated absolutely and ultimately to God.
We encourage all the saints—especially the parents, serving ones and college students—to pray for the Lord to appear to every young person during these times that they would volunteer themselves to Him for His purpose!
Refugees from Ukraine
More than 1.5 million refugees from the Ukraine have or will come into the European Union nations. Local churches in Europe are getting involved in hospitality for saints from Ukraine, and in preparing and distributing care packages and gospelizing at public locations. These actions have begun in Germany, Poland, Romania and Slovakia.
Please pray for the Lord's bountiful supply of the Spirit and physical stamina to all who volunteer to participate in these actions; may they enjoy the Lord as their grace, wisdom, and endurance. Pray for the care and comforting of the saints who have escaped into Europe. Also pray for the gospel to run among the refugees and for many to be brought into the church life.
As for the those who remain in Ukraine, continue to pray that the tripartite being of the saints who are under attack, including the brothers fighting in the army, will be protected and preserved. Pray that Satan's kingdom will suffer loss and that God's economy will advance in the spreading of the gospel and the building up of the Body.
A Report from Gut Elim
Lord's Day, March 13, the church in Bielefeld joined us for the Lord's table and lunch at Gut Elim (the conference center of the churches in Germany, pronounced goot). About 90 Ukrainian refugees are here with about 20 serving saints from churches in Germany. From 9 to 11:30 am we watched a Ukrainian Lord's Table on Zoom. Then we had a break. The Lord's table here started at 12 (all of us together) and ended after 2. Saints from multiple places with music and translation skills served together. A brother spoke in English and was translated into German and Russian. Multiple saints from Ukraine also stood to share. Afterwards, brothers moved tables and chairs and Bielefeld saints loaded the tables with food. Then we had a huge love feast and everyone stayed until quite late.
Zurich, Switzerland
From March 19 to 20, the saints in Tubingen, Germany will blend with the saints in Zurich, Switzerland and other surrounding localities, during which a Bible distribution in Zurich will take place. Please for the Lord's covering and mutual encouragement through the blending and definite contacts among the local Swiss people during the times of the Bible distribution.
Laos
Pray for the proofreading and printing of the translated materials of the Gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke in the Lao language to be completed by the end of 2022.
Announcements
- Morning Revival: Week 2 of Living in and with the Divine Trinity (Thanksgiving Conference).
- Wednesday Night Ministry Meeting: Live broadcast this Wednesday beginning at 7:25 pm at http://lsm.org/live in English, Spanish, Chinese, and Korean. Outlines will be posted on the same site.
- Opportunities for Giving: As the Lord leads, saints may give through the church in Los Angeles designated for 'Ukraine', 'Sacramento' or 'Atlanta Meeting Hall'.
- Bibles for America's latest blog post is "How to Be Freed from Anxiety" based on Philippians 4:6.
- Living Stream Ministry: The February issue of "Having This Ministry…" includes fellowship on the need for training in the Lord's recovery and a report on the literature work in Turkey and Sri Lanka.
- 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.
Week of March 6
The Divine Dispensing of the Divine Trinity
"They are saturated with the fatness of Your house, and You cause them to drink of the river of Your pleasures. For with You is the fountain of life; in Your light we see light." (Psa. 36:8-9)
"And I saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband." (Rev. 21:2)
The divine economy is God's household administration to dispense Himself in His Divine Trinity into His chosen people so that they may be transformed for the producing of the church, which is the Body of Christ, the house of God, the kingdom of God, and the counterpart of Christ, the ultimate aggregate of which is the New Jerusalem.
The entire Bible was written according to the controlling vision that the Triune God is working Himself into His chosen and redeemed people to be their life and life supply in order to saturate their entire being with the Divine Trinity, that is, with the Father as the fountain, the Son as the fatness, and the Spirit as the river. The Triune God—the Father, the Son, and the Spirit—has been processed to become the life-giving Spirit so that we can drink of Him for Him to become our enjoyment. This is the divine dispensing of the Divine Trinity. (Living in and with the Divine Trinity, msg. 1, I.A, C-D)
Ukraine
Daniel said to Nebuchadnezzar, "Your kingdom will be assured to you after you have come to know that the heavens do rule" (Dan. 4:26). It is the heavens that rule, not Nebuchadnezzar or Cyrus or Alexander the Great or illness or turmoil or rebellion. The earth is under the rule of a heavenly administration. The heavens rule for us, and Christ is for us. Furthermore, we are under God's heavenly rule for Christ. The purpose of the heavenly ruling is to complete God's elect so that Christ may be preeminent, that He may be the first—the centrality—and everything—the universality. Because the heavens rule, Christ is with us in all our situations. When we are sick, He is with us. When we are in turmoil, He is with us. I can testify that we can enjoy His presence in the midst of turmoil and rebellion." (Life-Study of Daniel, ch. 12)
Pray for the ruling of the heavens over the entire situation so that the saints will be preserved, Satan will suffer loss, and God's economy will advance in the spreading of the gospel and the building up of the Body. May the Lord help and train us all to ascend with Him, to pray from the position of His ascension, having His view and thought related to the current situation. May the Lord be merciful to us all.
Sacramento
Please continue to pray for the church in Sacramento and the neighboring churches in Northern California. Pray that the peace of God would guard the hearts and thoughts of all the saints in Christ Jesus (Phil. 4:7), that the peace of Christ would arbitrate in the saints' hearts (Col. 3:15), and that the saints would put on the whole armor of God (Eph. 6:11). Pray that the saints would simply bring all their burdens to the Lord and cast all their anxiety on Him (1 Pet. 5:7).
May we all continue to take Christ as our King, Lord, Head, and Husband, recognizing that "the heavens do rule" (Dan. 4:26).
Bibles for America
Once a week, the Bibles for America staff is joined at the BfA distribution center by local volunteers to prepare and package free copies of the NT Recovery Version for shipment. We treasure their heart to serve in this capacity and are so thankful to the Lord for the practical help they are able to render in a regular way. Especially since orders for the Recovery Version have increased, their service has been invaluable, and the staff enjoys their time with the volunteers each week.
Please continue to pray for the BfA staff and all the volunteers as they faithfully prepare and send out these Bibles each week. Pray that they would be supplied spirit, soul, and body, and that their times of service would be filled with the enjoyment of the Lord.
SCYP Spring Conferences
As we prepare for the upcoming conference season in Southern California, we encourage all the saints—especially the parents, serving ones and college students—to pray for the Lord to appear to every young person during these times that they may know and experience Him more in their daily living!
The Spring High School Conferences dates are March 18 to 20 for sisters and March 25 to 27 for brothers. Junior High Conferences are in April and the 6th Grade Conference is in May. These gatherings will be held in a hybrid format with options to join online or in person at Oak Glen.
Atlanta – Meeting Hall
Please continue to pray for the timely progress of the church in Atlanta's meeting hall building project and for the financial need to be met. As the Lord leads, saints may give through the church in LA designated for 'Atlanta Meeting Hall'. More information is posted at http://www.churchinlosangeles.org/prayer.
Sri Lanka
Pray for the Sinhala Recovery Version of the Gospel of Matthew to be released soon.
Announcements
- Morning Revival: Week 1 of Living in and with the Divine Trinity (Thanksgiving Conference).
- Opportunities for Giving: As the Lord leads, saints may give through the Church in Los Angeles designated for 'Sacramento', 'Ukraine' or 'Atlanta Meeting Hall'.
- Wednesday Night Ministry Meeting: Live broadcast this Wednesday beginning at 7:25 pm at http://lsm.org/live in English, Spanish, Chinese, and Korean. Outlines will be posted on the same site.
- Bibles for America's latest blog post responds to the question, "Why Does God Let Me Fail?"
- Living Stream Ministry: The February issue of "Having This Ministry…" includes fellowship on the need for training in the Lord's recovery and a report on the literature work in Turkey and Sri Lanka.
- 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.
Week of February 27
Taking Christ as Our King, Lord, Head, and Husband
"Draw me; we will run after you—the king has brought me into his chambers—we will be glad and rejoice in you; we will extol your love more than wine…" (S. S. 1:4)
"Unto the economy of the fullness of the times, to head up all things in Christ, the things in the heavens and the things on the earth, in Him." (Eph. 1:10)
Our being headed up in Christ rescues us from the heap of the universal collapse in death and darkness, which was caused by the rebellion of the angels and the rebellion of man. The believers participate in Christ's heading up by being willing to be headed up in the church life, by growing in life, and by living under Christ's light.
To hold Christ as the Head is not only to take Him as our unique authority but also to stay intimately connected to Him so that His riches and life supply are dispensed into our being to cause us to grow with the growth of God, growing up into Him in all things and functioning out from Him so that all the Body causes the growth of the Body unto the building up of itself in love.
We have no right to divorce the Lord; we have no basis to forsake Him. We must take Him, love Him, honor Him, respect Him, regard Him, exalt Him, and cling to Him, rejecting Satan to the uttermost. Then we will be blessed. This principle can be applied to the entire human race, to every nation, to every society, to every family, and to every individual. If we love the Lord and hate Satan, we will be blessed. However, we will only get into trouble whenever we change and begin to love something other than Christ. Psalm 33:12 says, "Blessed is the nation whose God is Jehovah." Blessed is everyone—nation, society, group, and individual—whose Lord, Head, King, and Husband is Jehovah. (Meeting God's Need and Present Needs in the Lord's Recovery, msg. 8, III.A-B; Life-Study of Judges, msg. 6)
Ukraine
Man looks at the victory or defeat of the nations. But from God's view, it is His people who are suffering, no matter which nation wins or loses… Today the world is a mess. Peoples are fighting against peoples and nations against nations. We can see war and famine everywhere. These are the works of Satan… If we have any strength at all, we should direct it to prayer. We must ask the Lord to take control of the situation so that God's children will not stumble and so that the gospel will continue to spread. (Watchman Nee, "World Wars and the Church," CWWN, Set 2, vol. 45, ch. 139)
Please pray for the ruling of the heavens over the entire situation so that the saints will be preserved, Satan will suffer loss, and God’s economy will advance in the spreading of the gospel and the building up of the Body. Pray that the Lord will surround the saints with His protection, that the souls and minds of the saints will be covered and guarded from the threats of the evil one, that the Lord will provide them with their daily necessities, and that they will realize and directly experience Christ as the Shepherd and Overseer of their souls.
Wednesday Night Ministry Meetings
The Wednesday Night Ministry Meeting will resume this week on March 2. Only FTTA trainees and staff are allowed to attend the live meetings in person; therefore, the saints and churches in Southern California are invited to watch the meeting free of charge via webcast starting at 7:25 pm at http://www.lsm.org/live. The meeting will be broadcast in English, Spanish, Portuguese, Chinese, and Korean. Message outlines will be posted on the same site.
Please pray for the ministry of the Lord's word week by week and for as many saints as possible to take advantage of the live broadcast format to be nourished and edified. Pray for the Lord's continued blessing of the Full-time Training in Anaheim and covering of all trainees and serving ones.
SCYP Spring Conferences
Registration is now open for the Spring High School Conferences. The registration deadline is March 6 for both the sisters' conference (March 18 to 20) and brothers' conference (March 25 to 27). Junior High Conferences are in April and the 6th Grade Conference is in May. These gatherings will be held in a hybrid format with options to join online through Zoom or in person at Oak Glen.
As we prepare for the upcoming conference season in Southern California, we encourage all the saints—especially the parents, serving ones and college students—to pray for the Lord to appear to every young person during these times that they may know and experience Him more in their daily living!
London Seminars
With nearly 10,000 active contacts in London, Amana Trust is planning a series of seminars in different locations in London on the first Lord's Day of each month from March through June. The first seminar takes place this weekend, March 6. These seminars should be very enjoyable times with singing, presentations on Bible topics and ministry resources, as well as refreshments and time for fellowship. They are opportunities to meet face to face with so many who have contacted us remotely.
Pray that the Lord will attract and gain the seeking ones for His testimony in London.
Announcements
- Morning Revival: Week 8 of Meeting God's Need and Present Needs in the Lord's Recovery. Next week, we begin Living In and With the Divine Trinity (Thanksgiving Conference).
- Bibles for America's latest blog post responds to the question, "Why Does God Let Me Fail?"
- Living Stream Ministry: The February issue of "Having This Ministry..." includes fellowship on the need for training in the Lord's recovery and a report on the literature work in Turkey and Sri Lanka.
- Atlanta Meeting Hall: Offerings for the church in Atlanta's building project may be given through the church in LA with designation for 'Atlanta Meeting Hall'. More information is posted at http://www.churchinlosangeles.org/prayer.
- 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
Week of February 20
Let Us Exhibit Christ!
"What then, brothers? Whenever you come together, each one has a psalm, has a teaching, has a revelation, has a tongue, has an interpretation. Let all things be done for building up." (1 Cor. 14:26)
In the world today there are many exhibitions and fairs…. This is just what we are doing when we come together to worship God. We are meeting together to have an exhibition of Christ, not just the Christ whom God gave us but the Christ we have produced, the Christ upon whom we have labored and whom we have experienced. That is the Christ whom we all come together to exhibit. Brothers and sisters, this is what all our meetings should be—an exhibition, a fair, in which all sorts of the produce of Christ are displayed.
The life of God's people is first a life of laboring on Christ. Second, it is a life of having something of Christ to bring to the meetings to offer, to contribute. The proper life of Christians is to labor on Christ all the time. Then they will have the rich surplus of Christ to bring to the meetings for a rich exhibition of Christ. (CWWL, 1961-1962, vol. 4, "The All-inclusive Christ, pp. 346-347; CWWL, 1965, vol. 2, "Christ as the Content of the Church and the Church as the Expression of Christ," p. 376)
Grace Consummating God's Economy
"But by the grace of God I am what I am; and His grace unto me did not turn out to be in vain, but, on the contrary, I labored more abundantly than all of them, yet not I but the grace of God which is with me." (1 Cor. 15:10)
"That He might display in the ages to come the surpassing riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus." (Eph. 2:7)
When we experience the grace of God in the economy of God, which is the total living of experiencing the processed and consummated Triune God, we will have the growth in life. With this growth in life, there will be the manifestation of gifts and the perfecting of gifts producing the organic function of the members. When every member is functioning, we will have the stewardship of grace to overflow, to dispense, the unsearchable riches of Christ as the varied grace of God to others. When there is this ministry of the stewardship of grace, then God and us will have one corporate living in which we take Him as our life and person and we move with Him as one. Then we live in such a condition as the organic Body of Christ, an organism expressing God Himself.
This is the consummation of the issue of the enjoyment of the grace of God in the economy of God and the accomplishment of God's eternal economy. The consummate and ultimate product of all this is the Body of Christ as God's poem to be the New Jerusalem in the new heavens and new earth publicly displaying the riches of God's grace for eternity.
May we pray for such a work of grace to be carried out in every saint and church for the accomplishment of God's economy in a timely way.
LA College Students' Blending Trip
This weekend on Saturday, February 26, college students from our LA campuses will gather for a mini retreat to Riverside. This half-day blending event with college students in Riverside will consist of fun activities, lunch, and a short message to encourage the going on of all our students.
Please pray for a full release of the students—both inwardly and outwardly—that they may enjoy this time of fellowship and blending!
FTTA
The Spring 2022 term of the Full-time Training in Anaheim began this week on February 20 with around 230 trainees in total. Please pray for all of those serving the trainees, that they themselves would enjoy the Lord's serving of them as their abounding grace. Also, pray for a safe return for all the trainees and a healthy, strong beginning in the Lord together.
Museum of the Bible
The Museum of the Bible in Washington, DC, which already has the English Recovery Version on permanent display, will soon present an exhibition on the life, work, words, and legacy of Watchman Nee. The exhibit will begin on March 6 and run for an entire year in commemoration of the 50th anniversary of Brother Nee's martyrdom. Neither Living Stream Ministry nor Bibles for America have been involved with the exhibit; however, all visitors will be given free copies of The Normal Christian Life and Chinese-speaking visitors will receive a free copy of the Chinese Recovery Version of the Bible. In addition, at the request of the museum's curatorial staff, their gift shop will sell several titles by Brother Nee.
The museum is planning a formal ceremony to open the exhibit. Brother Wu, a former cellmate of Brother Nee, will be attending the ceremony as a featured guest. For more information, visit http://www.museumofthebible.org/exhibits/in-a-new-personal-stories-exhibit-opening-march-6.
Please pray for the impact of Watchman Nee's testimony on all visitors and for the spreading of the truth through the literature being distributed freely or available for purchase.
Azerbaijan
Pray for the further development of the publication work so that the ministry of the New Testament can continue to be translated into the local language, and that the Russian language publications can increase and spread here.
Pray that the Lord will sustain and build up the dozen college students and that in the coming semester He will graciously add three more local college students as remaining fruit.
Announcements
- Morning Revival: Week 7 of Meeting God's Need and Present Needs in the Lord's Recovery. After next week, we will begin Living In and With the Divine Trinity (Thanksgiving Conference).
- Living Stream Ministry: The February issue of "Having This Ministry…" includes fellowship on the need for training in the Lord's recovery and a report on the literature work in Turkey and Sri Lanka.
- Atlanta Meeting Hall: Offerings for the church in Atlanta's building project may be given through the church in LA with designation for 'Atlanta Meeting Hall'. More information is posted at http://www.churchinlosangeles.org/prayer.
- Bibles for America continues to offer easy-to-use resources for telling people about God's salvation. Visit http://gospel.bfa.org (English) or http://gospel.bfa.org/es (Español).
- 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.
Week of February 13
Shepherding the Flock of God
"For you were like sheep being led astray, but you have now returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls." (1 Pet. 2:25)
"Who then is the faithful and prudent slave, whom the master has set over his household to give them food at the proper time?" (Matt. 24:45)
Christ's shepherding of His flock includes His caring for their outward things and also their inner being, their souls. He takes care of the things concerning their souls by overseeing their souls.
To shepherd the flock of God is to watch over the souls of the saints, being one with the Lord as the Shepherd and Overseer of their souls in His care for the welfare of their inner being and in His exercising His oversight over the condition of their real person.
Matthew 24:45 tells us the way to serve; it is to "give them food at the proper time." Give them food refers to ministering the word of God and Christ as the life supply to the believers in the church. Our speaking in the meetings and our visiting people in their homes to minister Christ to them is our giving them food. Toward ourselves, we must deny our soul and follow the Lord in spirit, and toward others, we must learn to always minister the word of God and Christ as the life supply. (CWWL, 1994-1997, vol. 4, "Crystallization-study of the Gospel of John," p. 448; Meeting God's Need and Present Needs in the Lord's Recovery, msg. 6, II; CWWL, 1970, vol. 1, p. 228)
International Chinese-speaking Conference
"And the Word became flesh and tabernacled among us..., full of grace and reality." (John 1:14)
This year's International Chinese-speaking conference (ICSC) is entirely online, February 18 to 20. The general subject is "The Grace of God in the Economy of God." Details regarding the meeting schedule and Zoom link for each language will be communicated by hall or district. Outlines may be downloaded at any time before and during the conference at http://conf.lsmwebcast.com.
All the saints are invited and encouraged to join the blending of all the churches and the saints on the whole earth through this conference. Please pray that the burden of the Lord's present speaking will enter into and operate in the Body and that the churches and the saints everywhere will be blended together in the Lord's speaking.
FTTA
The Spring 2022 term of the Full-time Training in Anaheim will begin next week on February 20. In preparation, all returning trainees will be gathering this Wednesday, February 16 for orientation. Around 230 trainees in total are expected to attend this term.
Please pray for all of those serving the trainees, that they themselves would enjoy the Lord's serving of them as their abounding grace. Also, pray for a safe return for all the trainees and a healthy, strong beginning in the Lord together.
Southern California Young People Blending Conference
"That He might display in the ages to come the surpassing riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus." (Eph. 2:7)
This past weekend, February 11 to 13, we enjoyed a hybrid blending conference for the young people across Southern California. The conference was on "The Kindness of God" and focused primarily on the story of David and Mephibosheth from 2 Samuel 9:1-13.
Over 50 young people across LA attended the conference. We ask that all of the saints in the church in LA pray that our young people would continue to experience and be encouraged by the kindness of God.
Cameroon
There are currently four lampstands in the central African country of Cameroon, with 230 saints in the church life and 120 attending the table meetings. We continue to contact and shepherd people one-by-one and distribute Bibles and the ministry. The Lord has attracted some key contacts, such as a pastor in a free Christian group. We pray for the Lord to bring this seeking one and all his followers to take His way.
The saints have also taken advantage of the many opportunities to blend with saints in other countries through online conferences and trainings, including a precious and unprecedented opportunity for our sisters to participate in a conference with all the French-speaking countries in Europe. Meanwhile, the Lord has been equipping the brothers through the ongoing West and East African Training for Elders and Responsible Ones. Two serving ones from Cameroon have also been in a monthly perfecting pursuit for serving ones all over Africa.
To read more about the church life in Cameroon, see the December issue of the Lord's Move to Africa newsletter in English or Chinese at http://www.lmafrica.org.
Announcements
- Morning Revival: Week 6 of Meeting God's Need and Present Needs in the Lord's Recovery.
- Atlanta Meeting Hall: Offerings for the church in Atlanta's building project may be given through the church in LA with designation for 'Atlanta Meeting Hall'. More information is posted at http://www.churchinlosangeles.org/prayer.
- Bibles for America continues to offer easy-to-use resources for telling people about God's salvation. Visit http://gospel.bfa.org (English) or http://gospel.bfa.org/es (Español).
- Living Stream Ministry: The January digital newsletter includes a consideration of pray-reading the Word of God and an introduction to a new print series, Historical Evaluations of Christian Thought.
- 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.
Week of February 6
Our Need to Be Renewed in Our Inner Man Day by Day
"And He who sits on the throne said, Behold, I make all things new." (Rev. 21:5a)
"Therefore we do not lose heart; but though our outer man is decaying, yet our inner man is being renewed day by day." (2 Cor. 4:16)
The Christian life is a life of being renewed; we need to be renewed in our inner inner man day by day. In our experience we are in the process of becoming a new creation by being broken and renewed. In the sense of being in Christ, we are a new creation, but in actuality in our daily life, we are not that new because we do not yet have Christ as the only One who occupies us, fills us, and is our life, nature, appearance, and expression.
All the sufferings that God has assigned to us have one unique purpose—to renew us. The renewing of the inner man takes place as the inner man is nourished with the fresh supply of the resurrection life of Christ. As our outer man is being consumed by the killing work of death, our inner man—our regenerated spirit with our inward parts—is being metabolically renewed day by day with the supply of resurrection life.
We need to experience and enjoy the renewing capacity in the resurrection life of Christ so that we may be renewed in our inner man day by day. (Meeting God's Need and Present Needs in the Lord's Recovery, msg. 5, V, B, B.1, C.2, D, D.1, E.4)
Southern California Young People Blending Conference
"That He might display in the ages to come the surpassing riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus." (Eph. 2:7)
This coming weekend, from February 11 to 13, there will be a hybrid YP Blending Conference for the young people across Southern California. Pray that all of our young people would gather to be blended and be encouraged by the kindness of God.
Bibles for America
Last October, we asked for prayer regarding an issue that prevented some people from being able to order their NT Recovery Version. We made improvements to the user interface in December and were also able to improve the performance of our ads on social media. We're happy to report that since then, we've seen an increase in Bible orders—we've shipped out nearly 3,000 more Recovery Versions in January than in December. We're continuing to make improvements to the ordering process, but are thankful to the Lord for the progress that has already been made.
Please pray that copies of the NT Recovery Version would continue to go out unhindered to seeking people all over this country.
Vietnam
The Vietnamese-speaking world encompasses more than 97 million people within the country and more than 4 million overseas. The publication work in Vietnam started in the late 1960s when some brothers there began to translate the ministry to supply the saints, who were all in Christianity at the time. This labor of love continued through the early 1980s when the saints officially started the church life.
In 2006, after fellowship with LSM, the publication work officially began with 3 full-timers. Currently there are 9 full-timers, along with some volunteers, to feed nearly 4,000 saints in the country. To date, 235 titles have been translated.
In November 2020, Rhema Vietnam was established with the burden of reaching the seeking ones, especially Christians, who account for 8.5% of the country's population, despite limited freedom. Thousands of e-books have been downloaded and over 400 people have asked for printed sets.
Please pray for:
- The Lord to grace the saints laboring in this work abundantly: pray that they would serve Him and the Body in His rest and under His yoke.
- The preparation of the Old Testament translation project: pray that the Lord would preserve the serving ones' being and consecration.
- The future translation projects, especially the high peak of the divine revelation titles.
- The saints to have their appetite preserved and capacity enlarged to receive even more riches of Christ through this ministry.
To read more, see the January issue of LSM's newsletter or the most recent issue of the Lord's Move to Asia newsletter in English and Chinese.
Announcements
- Morning Revival: Week 5 of Meeting God's Need and Present Needs in the Lord's Recovery.
- International Chinese-speaking Conference: Online from February 18 to 20. Please follow announcements in each hall concerning how to participate.
- Free e-Booklets: Living Stream Ministry has made a series of free e-booklets available to read and share with others at http://www.lsm.org/booklets.
- 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.
Week of January 30
Fellowship and Petition
"One thing I have asked from Jehovah; that do I seek: to dwell in the house of Jehovah all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of Jehovah, and to inquire in His temple." (Psa. 27:4)
"Thus says Jehovah, the Holy One of Israel and the One who formed him, ask Me about the things to come concerning My sons, and concerning the work of My hands, command Me." (Isa. 45:11)
The meaning of prayer is to absorb God. The more we contact God, the more we will absorb Him, and the more we absorb Him, the more we will enjoy Him as our light and our salvation. The meaning of prayer is also for us to express God. In Psalm 27:4 David says that he desired not only to behold the beauty of Jehovah but also "to inquire in His temple." To inquire is to let God speak within us so that the words spoken to Him in prayer are actually God's speaking within us, God's expressions.
During the first aspect of our prayer, we enter into fellowship with God, who then anoints us with His burden for the work and reveals His intention to us. The second aspect of our prayer is then to inquire of the Lord by petitioning Him concerning His will and His burden for the work. Then we carry out the purpose of prayer by coordinating with God to co-work with God. (Meeting God's Need and Present Needs in the Lord's Recovery, msg. 4, I, III, V)
Let us pray for all the saints to learn to coordinate and co-work with God through prayer!
Southern California Special Training on the Eldership
A new term of the special training on the eldership for elders and responsible brothers in Southern California begins this Saturday, February 5 on Zoom. Through regular corporate gatherings, group times, and personal study, the burden is to strengthen the present eldership and responsible brothers in the churches, to perfect and raise up the next generation of leading brothers, and to gradually bring more younger brothers into a functioning role in an organic way. Please pray:
- For the Lord to abundantly grace and strengthen all the participants—both new and returning ones—and become their perseverance and faithfulness to present themselves absolutely to this training.
- That an unprecedented one accord among the churches in Southern California will be ushered in as all the brothers are attuned in the same mind and in the same opinion.
- That the Lord will bless this ongoing training so that all participants will be perfected further for the Lord's testimony in Southern California and for the building up of the church, the Body of Christ.
FTTA Middle-Age Training
The Spring 2022 semester of the FTTA-MA is scheduled to begin on March 21 in Anaheim. Registration is still open. The application deadline is March 1.
In the FTTA-MA, saints of different races, nationalities, and languages, come together to be perfected in an atmosphere of blending to usher in the reality of the Body of Christ for the one new man.
Please pray that the Lord will stir in the hearts of many saints in the Lord's recovery between the ages of 35 and 65 to rise up to redeem the years that the locusts have eaten (Joel 2:25) and seize the opportunity to be trained and perfected. For more details, visit http://fttamidage.org.
FTTL
The Spring 2022 semester of the Full-time Training in London will begin on February 7. Please pray that the Lord will have a way through the FTTL to raise up the university graduates in Europe to be living members of His Body and overcomers for His bride.
Atlanta – Meeting Hall
Please continue to pray for the timely progress of the church in Atlanta's meeting hall building project and for the financial need to be met. As the Lord leads, saints may give through the church in LA with designation for 'Atlanta Meeting Hall' or directly at http://meetinghall.churchinatlanta.org. More information is posted at http://www.churchinlosangeles.org/prayer.
India – Translation Work
The translation work of the NT Recovery Version into the major Indian languages began in 2013. After years of training and labor, the translation of the entire NT (including verses, footnotes, outlines, and cross references) into Malayalam, Tamil, Telugu, and Mizo is now complete. Praise the Lord!
A final proofreading with 64 volunteers per language is taking place from January 3 to February 5. The final typesetting will be done at the end of this period, and the files will be sent for printing.
Please pray for:
- The health, accommodation, food, coordination, and blending of the all the saints during this period of serving together.
- The Lord to grant the translation teams the needed wisdom that the Recovery Version in these languages will provide the best utterance for the revelation in the divine Word, that it may be expressed in these languages with the greatest accuracy.
- The Lord to use this translation to spread His word among the Indians to save tens of millions of Indians to be among the great multitude standing before His throne and be part of the fulfillment His eternal purpose.
To read more, see the December issue of LSM's digital newsletter, "Having This Ministry...".
Announcements
- Morning Revival: Week 4 of Meeting God's Need and Present Needs in the Lord's Recovery.
- All-LA Prayer Meeting: A recording of the fellowship on young people and college students from the all-LA prayer meeting on January may be viewed in English, Spanish, Chinese, Korean.
- Living Stream Ministry: The January digital newsletter includes a consideration of pray-reading the Word of God and an introduction to a new print series, Historical Evaluations of Christian Thought.
- Free e-Booklets: Living Stream Ministry has made a series of free e-booklets available to read and share with others at http://www.lsm.org/booklets.
- 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.
Week of January 23
Faith and Love
"Whom having not seen, you love; into whom though not seeing Him at present, yet believing, you exult with joy that is unspeakable and full of glory." (1 Pet. 1:8)
"Looking away unto Jesus, the Author and Perfecter of our faith…" (Heb. 12:2)
"For in Christ Jesus… faith avails, operating through love." (Gal. 5:6)
Faith and love are two inseparable, excellent virtues of the believers in Christ. Faith is for appreciating, substantiating, and receiving the unlimited riches of the Triune God. Faith is given to us by God so that by it we may receive Christ, the embodiment of the Triune God, and thereby enter into the Triune God and be joined to Him as one, having Him as our life, life supply, and everything.
Love is for experiencing, enjoying, and living out the immeasurably rich Triune God. Love issues out of faith and enables us to live out all the riches of the Triune God in Christ with those who have believed into Christ with us in order that the Triune God may have a glorious corporate expression.
We need to develop and perfect our faith in the Lord and our love for Him—the One whom we have not seen. We love Him whom we have not seen because of believing, that is, because of the faith that has been infused into us through our hearing of the living word. (Meeting God's Need and Present Needs in the Lord's Recovery, msg. 3, II.A, B-B.1, C-C.1, I, A.1.b)
Church in Los Angeles
As we continue our transition toward in-person gatherings in our respective meeting places, let us look to the Lord for doing so safely without fear or anxiety. Let us continue to pray for one another and for more saints to be shepherded back to the enjoyment of in-person meetings and "face-to-face" fellowship (2 John 12). May the Lord gain our true worship and receive all the glory!
Atlanta – Meeting Hall
In June 2020, during a period of social unrest, the meeting hall of the church in Atlanta, Georgia was set on fire by arson; 95% of the building interior was damaged.
The church in Atlanta plays a strategic role in southeast region as many regional and extra-regional conferences are held at its meeting hall. Rather than merely restoring the hall, through fellowship it seems prudent to enlarge the footprint and perform certain upgrades to meet the Lord's present and future needs; such as expanding the conference capacity to 1,500 and adding a 10,000 sq. foot second floor for children's meetings and classrooms. The total project cost is $9 million; $5.5 million are still needed.
Please pray for the timely progress of this building project and for the financial need to be met. As the Lord leads, saints may give through the church in LA with designation for 'Atlanta Meeting Hall' or directly at http://meetinghall.churchinatlanta.org.
Baltic-Nordic Conference
The upcoming Online Baltic-Nordic Conference from January 28 to 30 will be hosted by the churches in the Baltic States (Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania). Five selected messages from the recent semiannual training on 1 and 2 Samuel will be ministered. It is a wonderful opportunity not only to be constituted with the truth, but also for the Russian- and English-speaking saints to be blended for the building up of the Body of Christ.
Please pray for the Lord's rich blessing on this time of fellowship, and pray that many saints will be able to participate in this online conference.
Cairo, Egypt
Living Stream Ministry and the Arabic publication work in Cairo will be presenting all our Arabic ministry books and booklets (over 80 titles) at the upcoming 2022 Cairo International Book Fair, to be held January 27 through February 7. This year we have been given a corner booth, which means more foot traffic and more opportunity for contacting seekers. Thank the Lord for this provision.
Please pray for this book fair, asking the Lord to bring His chosen ones to the booth, to open their hearts to His Word in the ministry, and to give the serving ones a door of utterance to speak forth all the words of this life. A report from last year's Cairo Book Fair is here.
Announcements
- Morning Revival: Week 3 of Meeting God's Need and Present Needs in the Lord's Recovery.
- All-LA Prayer Meeting: A recording of the fellowship on young people and college students from the all-LA prayer meeting on 1/11 may be viewed in English, Spanish, Chinese, Korean.
- Living Stream Ministry: The January digital newsletter includes a consideration of pray-reading the Word of God and an introduction to a new print series, Historical Evaluations of Christian Thought.
- Free e-Booklets: Living Stream Ministry has made a series of free e-booklets available to read and share with others at http://www.lsm.org/booklets.
- 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.
Prayer, Week of January 16
God's Good Pleasure to Meet His Need in This Age
"For it is God who operates in you both the willing and the working for His good pleasure." (Phil. 2:13)
"But holding to truth in love, we may grow up into Him in all things, who is the Head, Christ, out from whom all the Body, being joined together and being knit together through every joint of the rich supply and through the operation in the measure of each one part, causes the growth of the Body unto the building up of itself in love." (Eph. 4:15-16)
God's good pleasure, His heart's desire, is to meet the demand of this age, which is God's need in this age. What He needs is the Body testimony, which is the reality of the Body of Christ consummating in the New Jerusalem. This is to fulfill the Lord's heart's desire according to His word concerning the building up of His Body.
We are being perfected in this present age to become functioning members of the Body of Christ. The church as the Body of Christ is brought forth when all the one-talented ones are functioning. Each member of the Body of Christ has at least one talent. Today the building up of the church hinges on the perfecting, building up, and raising up of the one-talented ones. God is recovering the most difficult thing today, which is the fulfillment of Ephesians 4:11-16. (Meeting God's Need and Present Needs in the Lord's Recovery, msg. 2, I, A, C-D, D.3, E)
May the Lord gain the functioning of all the saints for the building up of His Body to meet His need today.
LA Young People & College Students
Following last week's prayer meeting, let us continue to stand with our young people and college students in prayer. Please pray for the following matters:
- That the Lord would be their peace and joy from all anxiety, cover their health and safety, and shine brightly from them to their friends and classmates.
- For the preparation of the SoCal YP Blending Conference from February 11 to 13, that it would be a help and encouragement to all.
- For the follow-up and fellowship with many new students on campus and the further connection of our college students with community saints in small groups and the church life.
- For the Lord's wisdom to all the parents and serving ones in balancing safe yet engaging activities for our students in light of the pandemic.
South Africa National Student Training
The upcoming South Africa National Student Training takes place January 24 to 30. The timing of this training is strategic, since it universities across the country start the academic year in February. Many students will attend in-person and we hope the Lord could have a way to reach more freshman this year.
The general subject of this training is "Rise Up and Build." Currently, 26 students have signed up. It is an encouraging number considering it will be the first full-time, in-person student training in two years. A number of students are still quite new among us and this will be their first time attending such a training. However, we do need the saints' prayer, as already a few registrants have cancelled in recent days. Please pray that the Lord would:
- Release everyone who signed up, as well as any still on the fence, to attend this training in the best condition to receive the divine dispensing!
- Prepare the hearts of the first-timers and that they would get more built up with the other students.
- Bless all of us with one accord, whether full-timers, community saints, or students. Lord, make us a net to catch men alive for You!
Zurich, Switzerland
For a long time there has been a burden for migrations to six important European cities to strengthen or raise up churches. Zurich is one of these. The urban area population is about 1.8 million. At least four couples will soon migrate to Zurich, two this month. Some of these are native Europeans; others have been in German-speaking church life for many years. Ask the Lord to supply all the practical needs for their moves, and to bless the development of the church life in Zurich.
This year the saints in Zurich started to read the New Testament with footnotes on a 2 year schedule. Pray that all the saints enter into the enjoyment of reading and that through this enjoyment they will rise up and function in the church life.
Announcements
- Morning Revival: Week 2 of Meeting God's Need and Present Needs in the Lord's Recovery.
- All-LA Prayer Meeting: A recording of the fellowship on young people and college students from last week's prayer meeting may be viewed in English, Spanish, Chinese, Korean.
- Free e-Booklets: Living Stream Ministry has made a series of free e-booklets available to read and share with others at http://www.lsm.org/booklets.
- Lord's Move to Europe: Please visit http://amanatrust.org.uk/page/reports for video and written updates on Europe prepared for the recent December Semiannual Training.
- 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.