I am high from the meeting of last night. We got back after midnight but I was energized by what the Spi___ did.
It was Sunday and after p____hing into the afternoon, we caught a 30 minute nap then headed to smaller city (only 5 million) two hours away. I have pre__hed there twice before in past years.
In the lesson we asked ourselves 7 questions posed by the book of Jam__.
1. Do you seek more of Jes__ during trials?
2. Do you praise Go_ instead of people?
3. Do you accept others?
4. Do your good works come from your fai__?
5. Do you speak only positive of others?
6. Do you focus on the eternal over the temporal?
7. Do you pra_ for others?
Each questions was worth 3 points and we had a great time with the challenge. Afterward, two sisters came to inquire about bapt____ and two brothers came to commit themselves to a closer walk with the L___.
A wife brought her husband for pr____. She was elated that he made a new commitment. “His fai__ has not been what it should be,” she informed me.
The man was less enthusiastic, nevertheless, he said, “I learned so much tonight. I feel like a new man.”
What makes me so high in this work is we are meeting with cell groups of 20-40 hungry bele____s meeting in sec__t, and this is the tip of the iceberg. Thousands of similar groups also meet behind closed doors and pulled drapes. All simple in their fa___, but hungry for more of J____.
In the car on the way and back, 4 hours of driving, the leaders fired questions. Should we have an elder structure instead of the single pas___ model? What do we do when we have disagreements? What do you think of the gifts of the Sp____? Is it okay for members to move around between ch______? How do we determine Go_’s will? The translator was mumbling incoherently by the end.
The generosity is amazing. They provide meals, accommodations, AND give gifts of money for t__ching. Several ch____es and individuals also gave for the work in India. All this from those who shiver in their coats because they cannot afford heating in their meeting places.
Today is Tuesday and we had more training with about 20 pa____s and leaders. The venue was not soundproof and prevented wor____ singing. A leader announced a well-known hymn, counted down the beats, and led as all silently mouthed the words in unison. It was a hol_ time, but made for a funny video.
On Thursday I spent several hours with six leaders from a congregation of 200 but decentralized over seven locations. The Chi_ese are creative by necessity. Each had an area of responsibility; each had unique problems. The pas___ struggled because of low tithing; the youth pas___ could not get his students together because they work long hours in the fields; the teaching pas___, the ev_____list, and the p_____ coordinator shared similar issues.
On top of all that, each was under some kind of personal attack. The pas___’s wife was malicious, the ev___list’s daughter screamed and fought, the teacher’s family abandoned him. By Go_’s grace I was able to give each one advice and encouragement to keep on keeping on. P___ for the Gra_e Spring C_____. They are fighting the fight, but need some p_____s.
I will end this entry with a copy of the email I received from Rufus after he left Ch___ and arrived back in India:
Dear James,
Greetings. I am very thankful and it was such a great time and I have been touched. My heart breaks and I have become too emotional and could not eat anything until I came home. I was just p___ing and have felt the touch. I am very very grateful for this wonderful relationship. I have no words to express except to thank the alm____y. I would like to extend my love and greetings to all our friends. Please tell them that I have made a commitment with the L__d and its to uphold them every day. I am doing it ever since I have begun to travel back.
Thanking you and my wishes to Dani and all our friends,
Brother,
Rufus
PS No new pictures. Next time there should be some good ones, but I can’t talk about that yet.
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