[View as PDF]

Running the Race and Finishing the Course

“Do you not know that those who run on a racecourse all run, but one receives the prize? Run in this way, that you may lay hold.” (1 Cor. 9:24)

“Run with endurance the race which is set before us, looking away unto Jesus, the Author and Perfecter of our faith…” (Heb. 12:1-2)

“I have fought the good fight; I have finished the course…” (2 Tim. 4:7)

Like the apostle Paul, all Christians must run the race to win the prize, not salvation in the common sense but a reward in a special sense. We run the Christian race by “looking away unto Jesus, the Author and Perfecter of our faith.” When we look away unto Him, He ministers heaven, life, and strength to us, transfusing and infusing us with all that He is, so that we may be able to run the heavenly race and live the heavenly life on earth. As we look away unto Him continually, He will finish and complete the faith that we need to run the heavenly race.

We need to be encouraged and warned by the type of the children of Israel, whose journey toward the good land typifies the Christian race toward our good land, the all-inclusive Christ. We have been redeemed through Christ, delivered out of Satan’s bondage, and brought into the revelation of God’s economy. We may yet fail to reach the goal of God’s calling, that is, to enter into the possession of our good land, Christ, and enjoy His riches for the kingdom of God that we may be His expression in the present age and participate in the fullest enjoyment of Christ in the kingdom age.

The last part of the journey ordained by God for each one of us is the most difficult part of the journey. An important thing in the Christian life is to seek out the journey that the Lord has ordained and faithfully walk on it. We may be delighted to be on the right course; but how we run and end is still a question. We should not grow weary, fainting in our soul for any reason; rather, we should be those who run the race to the end. (Fighting the Good Fight, Finishing the Course…, msg. 2, II.C.1, D, 4.b-c, E-G)

Southwest College Training Follow-up

Dear saints, thank you for your prayers! Around 50 saints from LA participated in last week’s regional college training at Oak Glen. This five-day training was on “A Vessel Unto Honor,” based on Paul’s epistles to Timothy, and consisted of four lines of fellowship:

  1. Touching the Lord through personal and intimate pray-reading for the daily nourishment of our spirit and soul. (Students had the opportunity to spend personal time with the Lord in the mornings.)
  2. Experiencing life and dealing with the Lord to have a pure heart and a good conscience.
  3. Carrying out one’s ministry of preaching the gospel on the college campuses, especially in the areas of personal and corporate prayer and coordination.
  4. Having a vision of God’s economy. (This was the main burden of the training.)

Special fellowship topics included the history of the Lord’s recovery and an introduction to the FTTA. Students also spent time memorizing Bible verses.

Overall, the training was blessed with the Lord’s fresh burden and speaking. The students were charged as men of God to flee and pursue, to be patterns to the believers, and to be open vessels that cooperate with the Lord to cleanse themselves from dishonorable things. A special commission came at the high point of the training for the students to be the next generation of good ministers, nourished and constituted with the revelation of God’s New Testament economy through the apostles’ teaching. The last day prepared the students for going on after the training as good soldiers fighting the good fight.

Please continue to fight through prayer for the students’ immediate practice of all that they touched during this training, specifically:

  • For the students to rise up regularly in the mornings to inhale God through His word.
  • For their cooperation with the Lord to deal with their conscience and flee from unrighteousness and dishonorable things.
  • For the Lord to impart into them a burden for others’ salvation and gain the prayer for specific names He would put on their heart.
  • For their daily nourishment with the words of the faith and of the good teaching that they may be good ministers of Christ Jesus in God’s economy.

May every one of these young saints become gold and silver vessels in His hands and for His use!

2024 LA Truth School

This year’s LA Truth School will be from July 26 to August 3. As we approach the start date, we ask the whole church to join in prayer. This week, please pray:

  • For the coordination of all the serving ones and service groups planning for the Truth School.
  • For the oneness and one accord among the saints upon which the Lord can pour out His blessing.
  • That the activities and atmosphere during the Truth School would be cherishing and facilitate blending.

North America Chinese-speaking Saints Perfecting Training

This summer’s perfecting training for Chinese-speaking saints in North America will take place in two parts—July 19 to 23 in Cerritos and July 24 to 28 at Camp Penuel, New York. The subject of this year’s training is “Shepherding According to God.” Please pray for the Lord to:

  • Strengthen, protect, and prepare the saints who have registered for this training.
  • Cover all the practical needs of the training so that the burden of the training can be fully released.
  • Encourage and perfect the seeking Chinese-speaking saints in the churches in truth, life, and service.

2024 Paris Olympics Gospel Trips

The quotas for participation in all the gospel trips have been filled. Praise the Lord! The ninth and final Torch Relay trip (TR9) is currently underway from July 11 to 17 in Paris. The first set of trips during the Olympic/Paralympic Games (OL1) will take place July 21 to 30. Please pray:

  • For the Spirit to continue opening the hearts of the people to the gospel and to bring the seekers into contact with the saints.
  • For the Lord to give us more follow-up and shepherding time with the new ones in order to bring them to maturity so they can be rooted and grounded for the building up of the church.
  • For the Lord to strengthen existing churches through the gospel teams and raise up new lampstands in Marseilles, Montpellier, Toulouse, Caen, Nantes, Lille, Rouen, Mertzig, and Geneva.
  • That the Lord would cover and rule over any disturbances or hindrances from the enemy.

A report was given during the July Semiannual Training concerning the present gospel move in France, with a strong call for those burdened by the Lord to migrate there. The presentation slides are at www.lordsmove.org/reports.html and the report video is at www.lsm.org/announcements.

Gospel trip reports and testimonies are compiled for the saints’ awareness and prayer. Subscribe to receive these at courantdevie.myflodesk.com. Archived reports are at tinyurl.com/2024gospeltrips.

Saints in LA burdened to give for the Bible distributions can do so through the Church in Los Angeles designated for “Paris Olympics.”

Nordic-Baltic Conference

This summer’s Nordic-Baltic Conference from July 19 to 22 will be hosted by the church in Stockholm, Sweden. The subject is “Knowing and Doing the Will of God in the Kingdom of God.” Please pray for the Lord’s timely speaking and for the blending of around 160 saints from the Nordic countries, the Baltic States, and other Russian and English-speaking churches for the building up of the Body of Christ. Pray that the word concerning the will of God would be released and received by the saints.

Announcements

  1. Morning Revival: Week 2 of Fighting the Good Fight, Finishing the Course, Keeping the Faith, and Loving the Lord’s Appearing in Order to Receive the Reward of Christ as the Crown of Righteousness.
  2. Bibles for America‘s latest blog post “How Should Christians Respond to the World Situation?” is available to read and share at blog.bfa.org.
  3. Shepherding Words: Seven new articles concerning Israel in God’s economy have been posted to shepherdingwords.com, a helpful resource in ushering the saints into a view of the present situation in the Middle East according to God’s view in His eternal economy.
  4. Ways to Give: Information about the church’s online giving platform, Subsplash, and where to mail checks, are at www.churchinlosangeles.org/members/offerings.