IN
UNDERSTANDING BE MEN!
Brethren,
be not children in understanding: however in malice be you children, but in
understanding be men.
I Cor. 14:20
Shepherded
72
Years
Laymen’s
Evangelical Fellowship International
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PREFACE
Why … perceive you not yet,
neither understand? Have you your heart yet hardened?
Having eyes, see you not? and having ears, hear you
not? and do you not remember? Mark 8:17
What a strong rebuke the Lord had to administer to His disciples, "Have you your heart yet hardened?" We do not relish things that are hard to chew or swallow. We say, "This potato is not cooked, this rice is too hard." But when our hearts get hard, we rarely notice it. But the Lord takes note and it is very painful to our Saviour to see the lack of faith and hardness of heart which prevent people from even remembering what the Lord has done for them.
Remembering the works of the Living God and talking about them and daily adding to their number such that the ‘live evidences’ of God’s workings and dealings are all the time palpably present with us, keep us praising, singing and leaping with joy. It gives a spring in your steps even in spite of deformed feet.
Now seventy-two years is a critical milestone which should not pass without honest and deep introspection and spiritual stock-taking. Our advances in terms of some of God’s works amongst us, the increasing numbers at our services and particularly at our prayer meetings and the extensive and remote areas covered by our efforts to reach people with the Word of God etc., etc., appear to be impressive on the surface. But the only questions that we should ask ourselves are—"Does Heaven rejoice? Is the Lord Jesus really glorified? Are His works so manifest that men tremble and turn from their wicked ways?"
When the ignorant and gullible hear of new halls built and nautical miles travelled and huge sums of money spent for TV, radio and reaching out to new areas, they are impressed and elated. But these are purely unspiritual yardsticks. The only yardsticks which we need are the yardsticks which Jesus applied to His disciples—"Do you not understand? Have you your hearts yet hardened?" Growing in understanding, brokenness and new faith is what we need and what God particularly looks for.
The miracle wrought when Jesus took the five loaves—which in Palestine translates to small flat baked buns—blessed and multiplied them and fed the five thousand men, apart from women and children and the sheer wonder of it all did not register abidingly in the understanding of His disciples, the Lord was grieved. We too are seeing several works of God—reports of AIDS patients healed at our centres, the small gifts which we put in the Saviour’s hands multiplied and made a blessing to many, bribe-takers, thieves and terrorists transformed, etc., etc.; and we do not adequately praise our wonderful Jesus. Of course, this speaks of hardness and lack of understanding and we deserve the rebuke of the Master. What business have we to take His mercies for granted and even feel that we deserve them?
Whenever the Spirit of God touches us, there is in us a trembling and a shamefacedness over the many lost opportunities to glorify the Almighty Saviour and Lord, Jesus. When a carnal mind takes over and when the spirit becomes dull and sleepy, there will only be a casual, indifferent attitude.
This day is a day of tremendous opportunities. We dare not sit static or hardened. Darker the night, the farther a little lamp is seen. The Lord Jesus quickens us with His just rebukes and well-deserved chastenings.
Having seen the works of God over these many years, how we need to be sharp spiritual deliverers, for love seeks, lifts and liberates millions. We need to make sure at every turn, and especially as we flash past the 72nd milestone, that our faith is functioning well and is moving into a higher gear and the Multiplier of every blessing, the Lord Jesus, is dwelling in our midst.
Let every individual present amongst us and every reader turn from all hardness of heart which grieves God, foolish words and thoughts of unfaith, by humbling himself or herself and let us reach out for the "greater things" which the Living God and Saviour Jesus has for us! -- Joshua Daniel
NEW
CENTRES AND ADVANCES
Our First Telecast in the
The local public television in
With both equipment and expertise continually increasing in the field of
television in the
Entering A New Country—
In 2005 when Bro. Joe went to
Right from the beginning there were a lot of hurdles to be overcome. After many hours of waiting in the small private airport, at last when Bro. Joe and Sister Lily reached their destination and the hotel where they had been booked to stay, at 2 am, they found that their room had been given away to someone else. Providentially God provided a quiet room for them at another hotel at another end of town.
Their first meeting was scheduled to be at 10 am. Thus with hardly a few hours of rest, Bro. Joe had to preach to a well-filled hall. Though Bro. Joe felt that the message that the Lord gave him to preach was far from a penetrating or powerful Word, yet the response was amazing. Many were touched and broken.
Saturday evening and Sunday’s ministry were also owned of the Lord. The message was interpreted in three of these meetings into the local dialect which is a mixture of Dutch with some English words thrown in.
The interior of the country which is thick equatorial forest has not been penetrated to any appreciable degree. In almost every place Bro. Joe was asked, "When are you going to come back again? We want you to be back in our midst." So he feels that he needs his youth back so that he can continue to labour incessantly in some of these remote corners of the world!
A New Centre in
Seeking to reach and win the students of the
A lady doctor who was sitting in the first row was deeply touched by the message. Soon after the message, she came to Dr. Danny and said, "Ask Bro. Joe to stay here and let him preach to us every day!" The hunger for God’s word in the hearts of many people always moves Bro. Joe very much.
New Halls
Bro. Joe always finds particular delight in dedicating partially completed halls with most of the refinements missing. Probably it reminds him of the simple temporary structures and pandals in which he had always preached his heart out, in earlier times. Unfinished or earthen floors on which we worshipped with leaking roofs remind us of the great times which God gave us, at His Feet and our very humble beginnings.
Modern roofs may keep the rain and inclement weather out, which of course is a definite advantage, but that simplicity of mind, which is inextricably bound to the bare manger of our Saviour’s birth, is somehow hard to find or obtain in one of our well-appointed modern halls.
Bro. Joe says, "I want a situation where Christ only is seen as the total object of one’s absorption. Alas, what can we say of our spirituality when men and women look only at the marble or floor tiles and other creature comforts and find their delight in external things!"
The New Hall in
Our new hall in
When Mr. and Mrs. Daniel (Senior) conducted revival meetings in the
As for the new hall, we already notice the need to extend this hall and provide more accommodation for the increasing congregation. However, the deepest cry of our hearts is for depth in the lives of individuals and families.
The New Hall in
Though the construction of the new hall in
Our labours in Kerala have been small, poor and insignificant. We have not succeeded in bringing new life and new thinking into the ancient Christianity of Kerala. It is easy to dismiss the old Christian traditions of the churches here as fossilized and as being quite out of touch with life as it is today. But our business is not to criticize but to bring the new life which emanates continually from our resurrected Lord.
For years now, we have operated in hired halls and at last, the Lord has given to us a location where quite a sizeable group of people can hear God’s word. We need a living work which will function as a dynamic of spiritual change in this whole region. A great vision is totally incomplete without the inputs of discipline, dedication and steady advance in obedience to God’s word.
There is significant response to our weekly English/Malayalam telecast. The plain and hard-hitting message is touching hearts.
The New Hall in Bhimavaram,
Andhra Pradesh
Bhimavaram, which is a busy commercial town with its disproportion-ately high educational institutions, has at last got a large-sized prayer hall. We have had to build it due to sheer necessity, although we were in the midst of heavy undertakings and commitments elsewhere.
From the days of Bro. Daniel (senior), revival meetings have been held in this city, which largely affected people who came in from the outlying villages. After Bro. Joe moved these meetings away from the Christian locality of Bethanypet to the commercial heart of the city, steady progress has ensued.
But anyone who saw the disintegrating, tumbledown thatched shed where some 500 to 600 people have been worshipping during the last three years, would readily grant that there is some spiritual mystique here which draws the people. No normal college student or person of any standing would want to sit under such a poor miserable-looking bamboo structure. Yet they came and overflowed the place!
This new hall was dedicated at 7.30 am on the 3rd of July, 2006. Of course, even this hall could not contain the people and many sat outside. Unfortunately even at our usual Sunday services, many are having to sit under the shade of the trees around the prayer hall.
There are no cheap means by which revival can spread or be promoted. It takes unblameable conduct and example in the local preachers and a true life of sacrifice, which they themselves will never call sacrifice. Yes, it is but our reasonable service to give to the Lord all that we have!
It thrilled the heart of Bro. Joe to see the largest crowd which he ever
addressed in
The crowd kept growing during those three days which was all the time which could be allocated, as the Word of God went out with great power. Had the meetings continued or been extended, there would have been no room in our grounds for the people.
It appears that a policeman was sent to enquire what our meetings were all
about. It is really uncalled for that the police should want to question what
is happening in a Christian church premises. Anyway,
another member of the police force who attends our meetings,
was able to give the right answer such that we did not have to face any more
needless interference from the police. But this is symptomatic of
Anyone who knows history knows that persecution, intemperate vitriol and even legislation to ban the preaching of God’s word have notoriously failed. Disciples have only multiplied thereby. No wonder the Bible says, "Why do the heathen rage and the people imagine a vain thing?" (Ps. 2:1)
Reaching the Poor of
Our sister started a Sunday School ministry amongst the children here. Many children began to gather and listen to God’s word with rapt attention. They are taught basic cleanliness and hygiene also.
Seeing more than 200 children gathering for this Sunday class, the local
leaders of a fundamentalist group in
Our labours here are beginning to bear fruit, as the Lord is touching and changing the lives of these children and others. After seeing the real good which was being done to these hapless children, one of the leading opposers is now sending his own children to our Sunday school.
A boy who was about to commit suicide happened to come to this Sunday afternoon meeting. The Lord touched him and he confessed his sins and turned to the Lord and he is proving to be a blessing to others.
Another man who with utmost violence disrobed a girl and was on the point of assaulting and raping her, was suddenly struck down when the girl cried out to Jesus. Another boy who was struck severely by a vehicle and was bleeding, refused treatment but rather requested that he be taken to a church. He said, "I will pray to Jesus who is the Healer." To the amazement of all those who gathered around him, the Lord touched him and he was healed completely. Thus the Lord is working and proving the truth of His Word.
After witnessing some of these supernatural interventions, some of the leaders of this fanatical group even came to our revival meetings to see for themselves what was being said and done.
Despite our many projects, Bro. Joe feels the need for a home for these precious street children.
At
The
One of our brothers who worked as a Bank executive in this city began to so labour in this city to which he was recently posted that those people began to desire true revival. Hence they chose special meetings to this end rather than mere celebrations around the centenary of their central church.
So many people were drawn to these meetings that it was right away known as the greatest congregation which every assembled for any reason in and around this church building. Among these vast crowds were many non-Christians.
On the second morning of the meetings, Bro. Joe addressed a group of
Christian leaders and pastors of various denominations working in and around
this third city of
It is unfortunate that our brothers from
Ministry in the Sundarbans,
Sundarbans is a group of fifty islands of
marshlands, which is scarcely thirty kilometres away
from
Our brothers have recently commenced a medical work and are preaching the Word besides rendering medical help. These medical camps are held twice monthly. One of the patients who came for treatment, said, "I have gone to many doctors but I was not healed. But when I came to your clinic, I was healed." Hence the poor are being touched. Inasmuch as most of these underprivileged people have television sets, our telecast is reaching them.
Yet it is so tragic to see numerous people widowed by the depredation of the
clever tigers of this region. The crocodiles too drag many unwary fishermen and
others to their death. Bro. Joe was thrilled to see a group of people from this
much neglected crocodile and tiger-infested marshlands of the Sundarbans at our meetings in
The Expansion of our Ooty
Bookstall
Our bookstall in Ooty is visited by many tourists and others every day. In order to make our bookstall more attractive and spacious, Bro. Joe stirred up our bookstall team to go forward in faith and expand our bookstall so that we can display a lot more Bibles and books which will bring a blessing to the many tourists who pass by our bookstall.
Thousands of tourists visit this picturesque hill station of Ooty, which is at 7000 feet elevation. every
day. When our young man at the bookstall talked about Jesus to one of the
tourists from
Free Medical Camps around
Being burdened to reach the poor and needy in the outskirts of
A large number of people flock to our medical camps to get free treatment. Our medical team takes this opportunity to declare to them the love of Jesus and the redemption which is in Jesus. Many of them receive their testimonies and the brief messages with earnest hearts and later share their problems and burdens with our team members. So we have to spend much time counselling and praying with these people in every place. Thus these medical camps not only help the poor bodily but give them an opportunity to open their hearts to the Living God.
Though they have their very busy rounds of work and duty in their respective hospitals and clinics, some of our doctors and nurses and others come forward willingly and help at these camps. We have to pray much for this ministry that the Lord may touch these people not only in their bodies but also in their spirit and give us a rich harvest of souls. We must also see a continuance of God’s miracle-working power in our medical work. Hence by sowing seeds of love, we will surely reap a rich harvest.
WORLDWIDE
LABOURS
In
the
The Summer Retreat in
The Retreat Centre at Sebring can be described as simplicity itself. The dorms and structures are quite antiquated by modern standards. Those accustomed to the usual comforts of these days might even find themselves a little incommoded. But the camp situated in the outskirts of a tiny country place is excellently suited for people who really seek the Face of God. It is understandable however if older people would feel the need for accommodation which affords them a little more comfort.
From the East and West coasts, Florida in the South and New York state in the North-East and Canada, some more people than were present last year came in for the Summer Retreat of 2006, from Aug. 8 to 13, with more expectation and hunger than is usual.
Although, normally, all inter-continental travellers find that their bodies demand some time to be set apart for rest, after crossing seven or eight time zones, Bro. Joe and sister Lilly had no time to give themselves any such luxury after their hectic labours in India and Europe. Sister Lily had to plunge right away into the task of feeding the people and Bro. Joe into preaching. How good the Lord is to us!
The important thing is that the Word of God went forth in power. The two fasting prayer sessions were blessed of the Lord.
Now we should be careful to pray that the blessing will continue and that we as a Fellowship will be lifted into a higher league where we are found to be sharper and stronger in accomplishing the goals which the Lord has set before us.
There are too many drifters and blessing-seekers who
come to the
It is with great sorrow we report the death of Bro. Homer Kandel who for years came and shared in the ministry. Homer
was one of the early men awakened and set on fire during Bro. Joe’s early
visits to
In
On Saturday the 11th November, 2006, Bro. Joe spoke at a meeting 60 miles
north of
Now Bro. Joe waited for the meeting to get started and at the appointed hour no one started the meeting. He arose and was soon preaching with all his heart to the people. He did not know if some of them had only expected a nice formal gathering and were surprised at his down-to-earth frankness and plain speaking. After the meeting, Bro. Joe politely excused himself from the dinner and got back to his hotel room to spend some time in fasting prayer.
On Sunday, to a medium-sized congregation the Word of God was given in another location. We found the pastor who was also a professor in a university here to be willing and ready to take in the challenge of God’s Word. The local inhabitants generally take a pretty long time to first size up the preacher before they even consider responding to the Word preached. This kind of thinking has come into them largely because of seeing gross inconsistencies, to say the least, in many preachers.
Bro. Joe tells people to subject him to any kind of scrutiny and they soon see and sense that it is no new kind of mantra or fraud being practised on them. Then they get serious.
The Easter Retreat at
During the days, when we had the Easter Retreat at
The dear Lord however caused everything to move forward without a hitch and He caused His Word to go forth with power. There are still those who come with hunger in their hearts to our retreats.
On Easter morning the whole retreat was switched to our church on Ten Mile Road, Novi, Michigan, around 70 miles south of the camp grounds.
As Bridget Daniel, John’s wife, was travelling
south with their children from the Retreat on Saturday evening, she suddenly
saw that the cars in front of her had hit a patch of ice and thirty-five cars
had piled up just ahead of her. The police had only then reached that accident
spot and just managed to stop the traffic. Some hours after when Bro. Joe,
Sister Lily and
Thus our retreats continue to take place in all kinds of weather. If comforts, safety issues and weather conditions were allowed to dictate, we fear there would hardly be any retreats!!
In
the
The British Summer Retreat was conducted in July 2006 in a retreat centre
which was located out in the country around 350 km from
Speaking in England and addressing messages which are later programmed into our telecasts in UK and beamed on other countries besides, is a very demanding order! The two afternoons which were spent in fasting prayer were the real high points of this retreat. Prayer flowed freely and people unburdened their souls. They wanted more such sessions of prayer.
At the meetings in Clapham,
In
Summer Retreat at Dassel,
The Lord did bring in many people for the Summer Retreat, from Aug. 2 to 6.
As the news of "a Word from the Lord" is spreading, total
strangers are also seeking to come to our retreats. Whereas many people used to
be touched at Bro. Joe’s evangelistic meetings in several places in
Some of our older people, disabled through old age and physical infirmity and other reasons, have been gradually dropping out. Others amongst our faithful retreat attendees have been promoted to higher service in heaven.
"I can do all things through Christ who strengthenth
me" is an attitude which only comes to those who have the Spirit of prayer
and look at Jesus alone. The best organisations can
become static and sterile. What we need today is young men and women in
During his short stay at the Retreat, John Daniel also helped by preaching at two of the meetings.
Some of our young men are preaching at our various meetings and Bro. Joe desires to see them glorifying God with power from on High.
Winter Retreat in
The retreat centres in
Though the Winter Retreat was only for a duration of three and half days, from Dec. 28 to Jan. 1, the Lord helped Bro. Joe to convey much truth to the people and the Lord gave us His presence. On the 1st of January 2007, the retreat closed with the morning service.
In
When Bro. Joe first began to labour in France, nearly everyone in the audience used to be mostly French people with a few English folk being present. Lately, as we are largely using French churches for our meetings, the owners of the buildings do not want us to preach in French. Obviously they do not want their congregations to attend and thus get drawn to us.
Then also there are so many Sri Lankan refugees who have fled to
Our meetings in
Just lately French translation has been introduced into our services here. But as we hire Roman Catholic premises, we find it hard to bring in the locals. The French man in general is totally indifferent to religion. We need the interventions and the outworkings of the Spirit as in the Book of Acts.
Right after the Winter Retreat closed in
The good Lord helped Bro. Joe to preach His Word to quite a number of people
who had gathered. In fact some of them had been at the watch-night service till
2 or 3 am. It was amazing that in the busy city of
In
In
From Tuesday the 14th evening to the 16th,
November, 2006, the Lord enabled Bro. Joe to address three public meetings. At
last our broadcast and telecast is beginning to dent some of the hardness which
we have always experienced in
It was simply amazing for Bro. Joe to see and realize that he was being
recognized by strangers and officials, even in the airport. One official in the
airport came up to him and warmly thanked him for the message. He always tells
such people, "I am at best doing a very poor job. If I were all that I am
meant to be as a preacher of righteousness, there would not be bandits on the
streets in
Sister Lily had to address the nurses under training in
In
Meetings in
Catching the plane at 11 pm in
The same evening, Bro. Joe had to preach at the evening meeting. This meeting was attended by several people and the Word of the Lord went forth with power. Though both of them were quite tired after a sleepless night, the Lord helped them to give themselves fully to ministering and helping those who desired special prayer.
In the morning of the 14th, there was a special meeting at which some were present and the evening’s meeting also drew some new people.
Liang who seeks to help the downtrodden as a legislator and Ong who made himself available for the meetings must continue to be used of the Lord.
Meeting in
In the morning of the
Bro. Joe was told how James his youngest son used to come every week-end and
preach to some of them in this place, when he worked in
In the evening, the church which was quite a sizeable building, was well-filled and the Word of the Lord went out with power. We found the people to be very warm and receptive. We could sense hunger for the Word of God.
Meetings in
Quite a number of people gathered at the first meeting at 7.30 in the evening on Feb. 16.
Praying with Singaporeans and then with Indians working there in
It is very sad to note that most of the Fellowship boys and girls who go to
work here are so shallow they cannot even strengthen the hands of our brothers,
Dr. Rajadorai and Bro. Enoch, as they labour there. Definitely those who do not live by the light
which they received and put the
Those families who have produced dollar-chasers must repent. And we must all repent that young people in our midst are managing to pass through our ranks and slip through our worship-centres, without catching a heavenly vision.
All-Asia
Students’ Camp
There were 5200 students resident in camp and so our accommodation at
Most importantly the fire of the Lord is still burning in our midst. There was conviction of sin and repentance towards God expressed with deep sorrow in loud, articulate cries to God. Hundreds of boys and girls were found praying earnestly between the sessions and especially in the vast grounds at night.
Many people would find it hard to imagine that our huge church building in
Each day the great number resident in the campus was augmented by those
students and others who came in from the city. Somewhere around six to seven
thousand voices raised in praise to God. You can well imagine how glorious was
the sound and how the scene thrilled our hearts! Oh that the vast potential
behind the sea of faces of these young people may be spent for the extension
and spread of the
Bro. Joe gave the Word with great authority and power and the young people drank it in with much hunger. The Lord used Bro. John Branch and John Daniel also mightily.
It must be noted that some of these young people from distant places like the borders of China and from Burma spent nearly three and half days in one-way travel to get to the retreat. They are by no means rich young people. Yet they came in great numbers, paying enormous train fares. Now we must pray that these young men and women may proclaim the Word of God to many around them in the tough and remote areas where there is little preaching of the liberating Truth of God.
LABOURS
IN FAR-FLUNG REGIONS OF
The three days allocated to
The great missionaries, William Carey and others,
did their bit by securing the abolition of Sati and the practice of throwing
innumerable babies into Ganga Sagar.
After their noble and Herculean efforts to rouse the social conscience of
Bengal and of
Our own prayer for
Our prayer hall too has to be brought down to street-level. Perched above the din of the city on the twelfth floor of a big apartment building, it has served its purpose during these last few years and now we must seek a needful expansion of our facilities, to receive the harvest of souls which the Lord will give us.
Itanagar, Arunachal Pradesh
Itanagar is the capital of Arunachal Pradesh,
which is the North-Easterlymost state of
Some students of the university here are being touched by the Lord by the meetings which we hold regularly. Our bookstall too is fulfilling an important function. Bro. Joe was thrilled to see its centrally-placed location and the orderly display of good Christian literature and Bibles.
The commodious hall in which the two nights of meetings took place was well-filled on the first night and on the second night it was hard to find a seat. All classes of people including native animists heard the Word of God. Bro. Joe found it very hard to leave this needy area after this final meeting, seeing that so little of the need of the people was met by the work done.
It is very incongruous that even an Indian cannot enter this Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh without a special permit from the Government.
Dimapur, Nagaland
The evening’s meeting in Dimapur was in a big hall which was once a movie-theatre. The free flow of drugs, the high incidence of HIV and AIDS and the mounting oppression of extortionists who slap citizens with enormous demands for money, have made Dimapur a place of real danger with numerous killings and tribal clashes.
Our message addresses all these needs inasmuch as we want these men to be transformed. Our small team here is steadily reaching out to needy young people.
During his visit, Bro. Joe went to the District Commissioner’s Office, as he had to sign a few papers relating to the purchase of a small ground. On scrutinizing our registration papers, the officials philosophically observed, "This is the first time in the history of this office when the exact figure of the purchase and the correct sum of money owing to the Government by way of registration was put down duly on the stamp papers." Now the Lord must help us to build a centre here wherein various branches of our work can function and rescue a lot of young people given to drugs, extortion and killing. THE SAVIOUR OF ALL MEN, JESUS, CAME TO SAVE THE LOST. And if we are not winning the lost, it is a sure indication that we are far removed from Jesus.
It did grieve Bro. Joe’s heart that several years had elapsed since he last preached here. Many came in from distant places and the dear Lord caused His Word to go forth with power. Several scholars from some of the prestigious National Institutes of Medicine and Specialized Learning were also present.
There is so much need here and much more prayer, ploughing and sowing of the Word of God need to be applied to this strategic place.
A knowledgeable professor who has the good of the
Our meetings took place in the wide school grounds of the school where Sundar Singh, the great man of God, once studied. Now it is to be observed that wherever hoary Christian institutions are to be found, there is sadly evident a very noticeable and profound indifference to the Gospel. Very often Christian leaders have shown so little evidence of the reality of Christ in their lives that they have turned off many from paying heed to the glorious message of the Cross. In such places, we that preach must humble ourselves greatly and show forth Christ in our daily walk.
More people than ever attended the two meetings. Many more of our young people must gird up their loins, and obey the call of God to go to this needy state where so little of the majesty and power of our Lord has been manifest.
There has been a continuing burden on Bro. Joe’s heart for the national capital of this country of over a billion inhabitants and he has been consistently trying to communicate this burden to the readers of our magazines. On this occasion, it was just a single meeting which he addressed in the Gandhi auditorium. Quite a number of people were present.
Currently most of our congregation consists of people from the south who
largely hail from small villages. The village-mind is hard to discard. Whereas
A new feature of the law and order scene is that the police are observed and even photographed standing or walking around, with the utmost indifference, when innocent people are being attacked and killed. The barbarism which characterizes the Sepoy Revolt of 1857 when innumerable women and children were slaughtered in cold blood simply because they happened to be white and were known as Christians, is still very much alive. When a narrow, selfish, caste-ridden heart plagues this nation, there is no possibility of real, substantial or permanent progress.
In
The two evening meetings which were arranged in the commodious grounds of a Christian hospital here, drew many people. To strangers, however, the message of purity of heart and uprightness of conduct which we preach might have sounded rather extraordinary or even academic, seeing that the Christian church here has by and large gained great notoriety through illegal transactions involving mission property etc.
As for the Fellowship, our work is small. But Bro. Inbaraj, our worker here, carries the Word even to college students who neither know Christ nor are well-disposed towards the presentation of God’s Truth. Though our work here is still quite insignificant, steadily the fire is touching lives. Many souls all around this big city are still waiting for the Word of God to be brought to them.
This is a time when some of you who are brought up in the Fellowship should shake off all spiritual sloth and repent of all selfishness and throw your full weight into reaching souls and bringing them to the Feet of the Living Saviour Jesus.
At
The
One of our brothers who worked as a Bank executive in this city began to so labour in this city to which he was recently posted that those people began to desire true revival. Hence they chose special meetings to this end rather than mere celebrations around the centenary of their central church.
So many people were drawn to these meetings that it was right away known as the greatest congregation which every assembled for any reason in and around this church building. Among these vast crowds were many non-Christians.
On the second morning of the meetings, Bro. Joe addressed a group of
Christian leaders and pastors of various denominations working in and around
this third city of
It is unfortunate that our brothers from
Dr. Samraj opened these meetings giving the first address. From the second day, Bro. Joe took over. The morning meeting of the third day was also well attended. There were besides special sessions for the many people from outlying villages and places who had gathered at our centre.
Some of our team members led the special sessions for the people from the rural areas around this city, who had come in.
The record of the people of
The University Town of
This sub-continent is seeing a phenomenal rise of new universities and centres of higher learning. Though peanut-brained politicians have greatly undermined the quality of education in general by throwing away the great legacy of a high level of proficiency in English in some of the southern states, yet the desire for higher education and to compete at a global level has remained in some of these universities.
Annamalainagar, with its 25,000 students has been sending out a stream of highly trained men and women into the workforce. When the Lord first revealed to Bro. Joe the exact spot where He wanted our prayer hall built, we found the vacant land in the exact spot where God had shown it. Now all these years the work of the Lord has been going on in that hall which had been built in that location.
Seeing that a certain stalemate had set in, in the work in this area, Bro. Joe called for revival meetings. Dr. Jesudas was used of the Lord in the first two days of the meetings. Bro. Joe could only address the last meeting, on Sunday evening. On this last night, the whole area around the hall was packed with people who had come from numerous outlying places. After the message, many came forward, seeking prayer. It is at times like this, that unseen by the human eye God does great things for many needy and helpless people including the sick, by causing His virtue to flow into them.
The spiritual need around this small centre is so great that the Lord alone
must empower Bro. Philip and his small family, who have just been posted here
less than a month ago to this place after several years of training in our
Bible school in
Seeing that too many years have passed since Bro. Joe conducted revival
meetings in
This did not appear to be opportune time though, as after the strenuous labours of ten days at the Annual Retreat which closed on the 20th, of May, Bro. Joe was left weary in body. But the Lord wanted this special time of ploughing the hard soil afresh and sowing the seed. There is renewal and strength in the Lord’s presence and Bro. Joe puts it this way, "At such times when there is work to be done for Jesus, my tiredness vanishes and the good Lord causes His Word to go forth with power."
Both the auditorium and the open ground before it were filled by a very mixed crowd of earnest listeners. Some of these people had come from far off villages and towns. Quite a number actually travelled over 200 km to be present at the meetings.
John Daniel too was used of the Lord on the first two evenings, as he had to
leave early on Sunday morning, to address the evening’s opening meeting of the
campaign in
Dr. Jesu, who was kept busy with many arrangements including taking care of many who had come from outstations, was strengthened to give the Bible classes besides.
Just before the revival meetings in October 2006,
The Lord enabled a growing number of people to come and receive God’s Word
day after day for the four days of meetings. There is so much to be done that
we need much for prayer for
Right after the meetings in
Though the weather forecast warned us that the monsoon was imminent, how wonderfully the Lord controlled the wind and the weather! The Lord answered our prayers and drove away the dark moisture-laden clouds and enabled us to have the meetings without any hindrance.
To achieve any concrete and longstanding advance in a place like Bangalore, where people are pushed and battered on all sides by a frenetic economic boom and money rush, requires immense faith and a true working of God’s Spirit. When money multiplies, how hard it gets for young people to hear the command of Jesus to go forth and win souls!
HEADQUARTERS
Our worldwide field of operations keeps Bro. Joe away from the headquarters
for long periods. Yet whenever he is in
Bro. Joe says, "Sunday ministry at our Central Hall in the headquarters is never taken lightly by me. The large number of people must be fed with the Word of God. Hence my soul is greatly cast upon God, as I pour myself out to them." As the Spirit of God moves upon the hearts, people lift up their voices and many cry to the Lord with tears after the message.
The number keeps increasing every week. Hence accommodation at the headquarters for all the people and parking room for the vehicles is becoming extremely difficult. We are having to demolish some of the old structures which are no more useful to provide adequate room for the growing number of vehicles.
The Wednesday evening prayer meeting at 6 pm continues to grow, though most offices close only after five or even six. As to how the people get through the heavy evening traffic in order to be present at the prayer meeting, we can hardly guess, as most of them use public transport.
So much work keeps being done at the headquarters which most people would fail to notice. Coordinating and regulating the various needs of the growing number of centres is a work which has to be carefully and prayerfully done.
Urgent calls of various kinds keep coming in night and day. More of you, should pray with spiritual understanding for the small team.
THE
BIG CAMPAIGNS IN ANDHRA PRADESH
Stuartpuram
This year, notwithstanding all our efforts to provide much more room for the people both for living accommodation and at the meeting hall, it was still inadequate.
Words fail us to describe the hunger of the people. They came from all directions. Our campus of ten acres was too small. The Lord gave us abundantly of His Word.
Returning to
Although Bro Joe was quite spent after his strenuous labours
in
With each campaign practically overlapping the next, we could scarcely find four days for this continually expanding capital of Andhra Pradesh. Despite the wide gallery, which has been built into the hall, the people could hardly be contained. With this recurring problem of overflowing congregations, a building programme in which we seek to give just the basic shelter from the tropical sun and monsoon rains, is proving to be a real test of faith and spiritual resourcefulness.
Now when souls are thus added to the Lord by repenting and turning to Him, building them up in faith is a far greater and more demanding test.
Any mother knows that it is not the sweet delicacies which the growing children need, but the right nutritious food which will build their bones and muscles. We certainly do not want huge congregations which cannot bring to spiritual warfare the right kind of strength, stamina and winning vitality.
Hence how much prayer should go up for our preachers who are set this big
task of spiritually feeding both young and old! Bro. Gnanakalanjium,
who has been posted to
After praying with souls until very late at night, Bro. Joe and Sister Lily
were on the road to
Addressing the huge congregation which occupied our football-ground-sized campus the same evening, required much grace and power from on High. Inasmuch as Bro. Joe does not repeat his messages, he has to wait much upon the Lord to get a Word which exactly fits the need of the congregation which is before him. That is why he seeks a completely uninterrupted time with God before he appears on the platform.
On this particular occasion, his prayer has been that the Word of God preached should not be like a passing shower which scarcely waters or produces a harvest. With every passing day, the crowd got larger.
We just marvel at the mercy of God who gave us these premises just before land prices shot through the roof. After the campaign closed, our Sunday services always receive many that are awakened and those who had turned to the Lord at the meetings.
Simultaneously meetings took place at
Amalapuram
It was in this place that Bro Joe’s grandfather laboured over a century ago. Turning from his leadership position in Hindu worship, he became a poor man, renouncing everything and embraced the Lord Jesus with all his heart.
Practically all the people at our centre here are men who have turned to the Lord from their idolatry. The big evening meeting, which was arranged in the local college grounds, had to face the gauntlet of severe opposition from even political men. But when the Word of the Lord went out with power, the control of the Holy Spirit over the huge congregation was quite evident. Upon enquiry Bro. Joe was told that 98% of the crowd were men and women of other religions.
Vishakapatnam
The three days given to Vizag were, of course, totally inadequate. This port-city with its burgeoning industries has a huge urban sprawl. Thus one views the teeming masses with much sorrow, seeing that we are not really reaching so many.
In these few years since our prayer shed was put up, the number of worshippers has doubled. Thus many in the crowd were at a considerable distance from the platform.
During the three nights and the Sunday morning service, the Word of the Lord
went forth with great power. On the penultimate day of the meetings here, at 8
in the morning, Bro. Joe addressed a meeting for students in a hall next to the
big campus of the
This is the very first time for Bro. Joe to preach here. But the people kept coming in into the vast grounds, even as the message proceeded.
It was hard for Bro. Joe to leave the people after the second night. What a terrible crime it is when we fail to give the Living Bread to those who are dying of hunger! There are whole areas in these poor, backward districts which are without the Word of God, yet we seem to be so slow to send forth the light. May the Lord of the harvest forgive us!
Tenali
When Bro. Joe arrived for the first of the two nights assigned to this place, the place was packed. This very large hall which was built only about four years ago was so densely packed with people that it was with great difficulty that Bro. Joe could make his way from the platform to the entrance and from there to the gate. The second day saw an even greater crowd and it was not till after midnight that Bro. Joe got back to his room after praying with many people.
One of the chief reasons why Bro. Joe desired so much to preach here was due to the understanding given him that God was going to call Bro. Asirvatham Home shortly. For many long years, Bro. Asirvatham laboured in and around Tenali faithfully. His Home-call came on May 13.
Our
Television and Radio Ministries
More and more people hear the Word of God and respond to our Television
broadcasts in
The messages which Bro. Joe gives at our retreat in
Bro. Joe prefers these popular channels to religious ones, chiefly because
he wants to reach those who are not interested at all in the Gospel, blindly
ignoring the grave peril of losing their eternal souls. If all of you would
make a special effort to introduce these two telecasts out of
The small nation of
People always ask Dr. Danny, "Who is going to pay the bills?" But his reply is: "I do not know. The Lord will take care of that." Dr. Danny says, "Every year when Bro. Joe comes, he prays this prayer, ‘Lord, bless thou the barrel of meal and the cruse of oil and multiply it.’ So the Lord is doing the same thing and He is meeting all our needs." Yes, Jehovah-Jireh has been helping us to pay the huge bills of the television ministry all over the world.
In
We constantly hear of people who were saved from committing suicide as they
providentially heard our message on television at the right time. Recently a
gentleman from
In Andhra Pradesh, after listening to our message on the television, so many new people are turning up at our Sunday services in many centres. The Lord has touched and healed many of them even as they were listening to the message.
We must pray that the Lord Himself must speak to these millions of viewers
in
Our broadcasts and telecasts have no publicity-seeking or popularity-hunting gimmicks.
The constant increase in our coverage all over the world involves harder and more painstaking work. It goes without saying of course, that it is nothing short of a miracle that without asking anyone for a penny, and with no regular contributors to the television ministry, the work of the Lord goes steadily forward.
In
A true understanding of the purpose of our television and radio broadcasts and the wide scope of their blessing and a live expectation that God will touch the hearts of millions must grip our hearts.
Literature
Ministry
As a result of our television ministry, the demand for our books has increased. Many Christian bookstores have started ordering more of our books in the recent past. Hence our stock of books are getting exhausted rapidly, thus necessitating frequent reprints of our titles.
Bro. Joe worked hard and revised "Another Daniel" and this book has been reprinted in a new format. Our book "Faith is the Victory" which has short messages of Mr. N. Daniel and Bro. Joe for daily reading, had to be reprinted again. Many people read this book every day for their spiritual nourishment and are blessed much.
The Telugu version of "Faith is the Victory" was released at Stuartpuram convention. This book with daily reading is used regularly in many family altars, in several homes. For the Andhra campaigns we had to reprint as many as 12 Telugu titles.
The testimony of Gulshan Esther, "The Torn Veil", was reprinted in Hindi and Tamil.
We had a stall in 10-day long secular book fairs in Neyveli,
Tamilnadu, in July, in
Our
Schools
While many start and run their schools as some sort of business enterprise, we run our schools to build the lives of the little ones and young people in the fear of God and in the knowledge of Jesus Christ.
No school which is really run for the good of the children can be made viable easily, as constantly the capital expenditure on the purchase of land, construction of buildings, purchase of equipment and the continual adding of more accommodation make it extremely expensive. As to when the school will become viable it is hard to say.
A little sacrifice on the part of our teachers and staff who make do with small salaries and a continuing effort to keep the fees in our schools at a moderate level, are significant facets in the functioning of our schools.
Our school in Bansi, not far from the
Our schools in
Four of our other schools are elementary schools. How well will our pupils fare in the severe tests of character which await them out in the world, is the real test which our schools must pass!
Promoted
to Glory
Now that the Fellowship is 72 years old, some of our early converts and workers are being elevated to higher service. Now they are fine and joyfully beholding the Face of the Saviour; but we who are left behind find some of these gaps created by their Home-call to be very hard to fill.
Most faithful men become so unique in their lives and service that it is simply impossible to find men of like graces.
Bro. K. Asirvatham,
Tenali
Coming from humble beginnings, he loved the work of God and was faithful to the last. He leaves behind his dear wife, who, though she herself was weak, nursed him tenderly. His sons and sons-in-law are amongst our workers and we must pray for them.
Bro. Samuel Chokiah
Bro. Daniel (senior) and Mrs. Daniel (senior) prayed much for Samuel Chokiah, when he first came to the Fellowship. It was Dr. Jayasingh who after treating him for his stomach trouble, brought him to the headquarters to hear the Word of God. After his healing from severe asthma and following his turning to the Lord, he became an invaluable worker.
Bro. Samuel would keep a watch over many things. He was known as a faithful and tireless man when it came to handling huge purchases for the Fellowship or serving the people in their various needs. In many ways, Samuel was meek and as he hailed from a business background, he saw carefully that God’s money was not wasted. We must pray for his wife and two children.
ANNUAL
RETREAT 2007
For thou art great and doest
wondrous things: thou art God alone. Psalm 86:10
In several ways the Annual Retreat just concluded, which is the 64th Annual Retreat, is unique, in terms of the presence of God and the power of His Word. The corrective and cleansing quality of this Retreat was significant. The vast assembly that filled our huge hall represented many geographic areas of the globe.
While all the new regions being penetrated could not be put before the people for prayer, yet some of the most needy areas as Myanmar (Burma) in Asia and Surinam in South America, the needy cities of the Punjab and the neglected people of the marsh lands of the Sundarbans were placed before us with short reports of evangelistic forays and advance.
As it is well known that
While it was clearly notified that this Retreat was solely for those who intended to be soul-winners and missionaries, yet the numbers this year peaked at over 8500. This of course does not include the day visitors and those who attended the open meetings of the evening. The residents in the camp in the closing days of the Retreat were close to 6000 people.
The morning sessions began at 8.15 normally and Bro. John Branch gave the first Bible class of the day. His theme was: "Stay on course and endure to the finish line." Following some heartfelt singing, Bro. Joe would take over and pour his heart out to the people with a message clothed in words of fire. This was followed by a short season of prayer. Then came a brief interval of thirty minutes. When we met again, there was a short Bible class or message.
Dr. Job and Bro. Whitson were given this responsibility on several days. This was followed by testimonies of what the Lord is doing in distant and difficult centres and regions. James Daniel preached twice and many enjoyed his messages.
The Spirit of God was powerfully present and moving upon many hearts during the three nights of fasting prayer. One evening, hardly had Bro. Joe closed the message, before a mighty wave of the Spirit of God made many to cry and lift up their voices in prayer. It is during these seasons of prayer that the Lord’s touch comes upon many lives. Many of the people also dispersed into the vast grounds of the camp to pray individually and in small groups. It is the anointing with the Spirit of prayer, leading men and women to take hold of God and His promises individually and in corporate prayer, which keeps this Fellowship going.
The open meetings of the evening brought many people from distant places. On some nights, John Daniel preached the first message and was followed by his dad.
The teams which worked incessantly in the reception and registration, the kitchen staff that spent such long hours cooking for such a vast number, those in charge of the water supply, others entrusted with the big job of keeping everything spic and span in the campus and those in the ‘tuck’ shop who laboured hard to meet special demands and needs of ‘snackers’ and those who sought their ‘elevenses’ in the interval, all meshed in and worked with untiring fervour and zeal and kept the whole Retreat moving forward smoothly.
If the Lord were not in the midst, it would be almost impossible to run
these Retreats. The ten days of the Retreat sped by so fast that our souls were
loath to leave the presence of God and
CONCLUSION
While God is setting before us another year of service, let us make sure that we really advance in Christ-like living, thinking and working.
Mother Daniel’s words come to us with added force—"Learn Christ, Live Christ and Glorify Christ!"
Consolidation must follow conquest. Nowhere should our work produce ‘half-baked cakes’. Alas, when are we going to produce men and women of the first water—jewels fit for the crown of the King of kings, the Lord Jesus?
Let Christ be seen in our homes and let us not slip up in this vital matter. Then will our children also learn to overcome the world.
LEF DOCUMENATARY DVD
This is but a very brief digest of some of
the main events. Now there are many significant wonders and works which several
of our brothers witnessed which are not reported here.
A partial supplement to this report would be
our LEF Documenatary DVD which shows a little more of
the action.
Some of you, I trust, will view it and show
it to praying friends that they you all will be able to pray with greater
vision.
—JOSHUA DANIEL