News Letter August 2016
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EDITOR NOTE
I greet you all in the name of my Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. The Lord is good all the time. O give thanks to the Lord for He is good, His mercy endures forever. I thank my Lord for giving me one more year to serve Him. I thank my children for celebrating my birthday according to our Lord’s wish, by having a special worship and prayer service.
When Lord selected Moses to lead His people, Moses spoke to the Lord of his weakness. Exodus 4:10 “And Moses said unto the LORD, O my Lord, I am not eloquent, neither heretofore, nor since thou hast spoken unto thy servant: but I am slow of speech, and of a slow tongue.”In spite of this, the Lord used Moses to bring His people out of Pharaoh’s bondage in Egypt. When the Lord called prophet Jeremiah, he replied that he could not speak for he was still a child. Jeremiah 1:6 “Then said I, Ah, Lord GOD! behold, I cannot speak: for I am a child.” In spite of this the Lord put His words in Jeremiah’s mouth, made him a great prophet and used him mightily.
Our Lord called Peter who was catching fish. Peter replied saying that he was a sinful man and begged Jesus tokeep away from him.In spite of this the Lord Jesus chose him as His disciple and filled him with His spiritual power, makingPeter a great Apostle.
My dearly beloved if there is some weakness in your life, you feel you are not qualified, or if there is some hindrance in your life, do not be discouraged. To put the wise to shame, the Lord has chosen the foolish. You will not be the tail but the head. Deuteronomy 28:13 “And the LORD shall make thee the head, and not the tail; and thou shalt be above only, and thou shalt not be beneath; if that thou hearken unto the commandments of the LORD thy God, which I command thee this day, to observe and to do them.”
So be strong and faithful.
The Lord has placed two groups of people before you. One, the wise and the educated. Secondly, the foolish and unqualified people. Of these two groups the Lord has selected the foolish people. Is it not surprising? Romans 8:20 “For the creature was made subject to vanity, not willingly, but by reason of Him who hath subjected the same in hope.” But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise; and God has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things which are mighty.To do great jobs, people are searching for great people. But the Lord is searching for weak people to do great work.
Apostle Paul had a lot of weaknesses in his body and he writes about it again and again. 2 Corinthians 12:5 “Of such an one will I glory: 
yet of myself I will not glory, but in mine infirmities.”
But our Lord gives power to the weak and to those who have no might He increases strength. The Lord can give you strength. On the cross, our Lord has not only taken your sickness, but also your weakness.Zechariah 4:6 “Then he answered and spake unto me, saying, this is the word of the LORD unto Zerubbabel, saying, Not by might, nor by power, but by My Spirit, saith the LORD of hosts.”
May God Bless You All.
Yours in His Service,
Pastor Saroja M
Praise the Lord. Few days ago my left leg was swollen up. I applied the blessed prayer oil. Thereafter my swelling subsided and I was completely healed. I thank my Lord Jesus Christ for healing me through the prayer oil. I also thank Pastor Saroja for praying over the prayer oil and always keeping us in prayer. Thank you Jesus!
*Bro. Dinesh Patel, Mira Road.
Praise the Lord. I thank my Lord Jesus Christ for giving me the opportunity to testify His wondrous work done in my son’s life. A few months ago, my son had met with an accident in which his right hand was fractured and the Doctor had advised him to take rest for a month. We requested Pastor Saroja to pray for him. Pastor prayed and his hand started improving. But after a few months he had to return to Dubai for his work. After knowing about this, his manager told him not to work with his right hand for at least a year, due to which his work and earnings would be affected. Again we requested Pastor Saroja to pray that his hand get completely fine and that his manager should allow him to work with his right hand. By Lord’s grace and Pastor Saroja’s fervent prayers, within 6 months my son was healed and able to work with his right hand and his manager permitted him to work. We give lots of thanks to Pastor Saroja for praying for my son and always praying for me and my family whenever we need it; and give millions of thanks to our dear Lord Almighty for hearing Pastor Saroja’s prayers and healing my son.
* Bro. Subramani Pilley, Jogeshwari
Praise the Lord. I thank my Lord for giving me an opportunity to share this testimony for His glory. Early in the morning at about 5am, my son’s mobile which was kept for charging on the shelf slipped from my husband’s hand and fell on my head. I was awakened by this impact and found that my head was bleeding. Immediately I put ice and kept holding it for some time till the bleeding stopped. My husband then informed Pastor Saroja about this incident and requested for her prayers. He took me to a nearby hospital for a checkup. The doctor checked and found that it was not a deep wound but just a minor injury. I thank my Lord Jesus for saving me from a serious injury and I sincerely thank my Pastor for praying for me and keeping my family always in her prayers.
*Sis. Savitha Roberts,Vakola
Praise the Lord. Last month my husband and I along with our two children were having dinner when suddenly the fan fell from the ceiling above and bruised my neck slightly. Immediately I applied the prayer oil and called Pastor Saroja who prayed for me. After two days my neck was completely alright. I thank my Lord Jesus Christ a million times for saving us from any big accident which could have taken place and thank Pastor for always keeping us in her prayers.
*Sis.Lalita Francis, Goregaon.
Praise the Lord. The Lord has been gracious to me one more time and I am really really not worthy of His love but only because He is a merciful God that I have survived yet again. I was in search of a new job for quite some time but nothing was working out as my years of experience and salary was high for all the places I applied for. When I had lost all hope I received a call from a placement for a job opportunity. Everything was perfect the post was for the Managing Director and also work place close to home and a wonderful company too. I was quite worried and requested Pastor Saroja for prayers. She assured me of her prayers and I went ahead for my interview. Everything finished so fast and I was informed that I got the job at my expected salary. I just could not believe my eyes and ears but I only give glory to my Lord Jesus for this wonderful miracle in my life as I know for sure it was only my Lord’s doing. I also thank Pastor Saroja for her continuous support, love and patience with me during this most difficult time in my life. Thank you Jesus for this wonderful blessing in my life. *Sis. Padma Jaykanth
On the OTHER side
A sick man turned to his doctor, as he was leaving the room after paying a visit, and said, “Doctor, I am afraid to die. Tell me what lies on the other side.” Very quietly the doctor said, “I don’t know.” “You don’t know?” the man said.
“You, a Christian man, do not know what is on the other side?”
The doctor was holding the handle of the door, on the other side of which came a sound of scratching and whining. As he opened the door, a dog sprang into the room and leaped on him with an eager show of gladness.
Turning to the patient, the doctor said, “Did you notice my dog? He’s never been in this room before. He didn’t know what was inside. He knew nothing except that his master was here, and when the door opened, he sprang in without fear.”
“I know little of what is on the other side of death,” the doctor continued, “but I do know one thing: I know my Master is there, and that is enough. And when the door opens, I shall pass through with no fear, but with gladness.
Blessed is the man that trusts in God!
Deuteronomy 2:7 “For the LORD thy God hath blessed thee in all the works of thy hand: he knoweth thy walking through this great wilderness: these forty years the LORD thy God hath been with thee; thou hast lacked nothing.” When Moses grew old, he gathered all the Israelites and God’s people, to testify about God’s mighty and marvelous works in their lives. He told the people how God was with them in the form of a cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night. He also told them how God made a way for them every day in the wilderness. God has not changed, even today He is the same God with us. Jacob also testified in Genesis 35:3 “And let us arise, and go up to Bethel; and I will make there an altar unto God, who answered me in the day of my distress, and was with me in the way which I went.” God is always walking with His people, whether the road is well travelled or new and unknown. When Joshua accompanied the Israelites on the way to Canaan, he said to the Israelites Joshua 3:4 “Yet there shall be a space between you and it, about two thousand cubits by measure: come not near unto it, that ye may know the way by which ye must go: for ye have not passed this way heretofore.” Joshua’s faith was in God, hence even if the road was new and they were treading it for the first time, still God was their companion along the way. Later, when Joshua grew old, he too called all the Israelites and God’s people, to testify about God’s mighty and marvelous works in their lives. Joshua 24:17 “For the LORD our God, he it is that brought us up and our fathers out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage, and which did those great signs in our sight, and preserved us in all the way wherein we went, and among all the people through whom we passed:” We have seen so far that God was with the Israelites in different forms and at different times He helped them differently. We have seen how Moses, Jacob and Joshua testified of God’s marvelous works to the Israelites. Even though the road was new and never tread before, God was mightily with them through their journey in the wilderness.
Moses spoke about this long before with the Israelites. Deuteronomy 1:31-33 “And in the wilderness, where thou hast seen how that the LORD thy God bare thee, as a man doth bear his son, in all the way that ye went, until ye came into this place. Yet in this thing ye did not believe the LORD your God, Who went in the way before you, to search you out a place to pitch your tents in, in fire by night, to shew you by what way ye should go, and in a cloud by day.” Similarly, even today, however narrow and difficult be the road for us, God will help us on our way. It may be new and unknown too, but it is our God alone who will help us on this way. We have heard the testimonies of both Moses and Joshua. In every situation of their lives, through trials and tribulations, hardships and sorrows, it was God alone who made the way in their lives and walked with them successfully. Thus, it is through their experience that they testified to the Israelites, about God’s works. We must believe that God alone will walk with us even today in all our unknown roads, in accordance to the promise He has given us. Isaiah 54:10 “For the mountains shall depart, and the hills be removed; but my kindness shall not depart from thee, neither shall the covenant of my peace be removed, saith the LORD that hath mercy on thee.” Our God’s promise is that His mercy, grace and love will never separate from us. Hence David says in different places: ‘Blessed is the man who believes in God, he will never be dismayed’. Prophet Jeremiah also says in Jeremiah 17:7 “Blessed is the man that trusteth in the LORD, and whose hope the LORD is.” Jeremiah says that those who put their faith and trust in God are ‘blessed’. From the beginning times we have seen God’s hand of grace upon the Israelites. He is the same God even today and His promises do not change ever. 2 Corinthians 1:4 “Who comforteth us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God.” What has our God given us when we believe in Him? He has given us ‘Peace’. There is no man on this earth whose life is without sorrow or pain, trials or tribulations. The people who do not have sufferings in their lives are not God’s people, for it is Jesus who said “If they have done this to me, then they will do it to you too”. God has told us in many ways that the people of this world will humiliate us, give us sorrow and pain in our lives; but just how much we can bear, that much will be our humiliation in life. We must however be of good cheer, for our God has overcome all this for our sakes. The evil one will try all means to burden us and keep us under duress, so that we deny God. But if we are steady with God and hold fast unto Him, we will have victory in Him. The word says ‘God will deliver us from all our troubles and tribulations’. God will give us peace through all our trials.
Isaiah 49:13 “Sing, O heavens; and be joyful, O earth; and break forth into singing, O mountains: for the LORD hath comforted his people, and will have mercy upon his afflicted.” This is God’s love and mercy for us. Just because we are facing problems in our lives, we must not go away from God, rather we must walk even more closely with Him. We should praise and glorify His Holy name even louder. God blesses those with a contrite heart but resists the proud. In the Holy Scriptures, we have seen that in the life of Elisha, he received the blessed shawl twice from Elijah. What is the reason that Elijah’s shawl fell twice upon him? 1 Kings 19:19 “So he departed thence, and found Elisha the son of Shaphat, who was plowing with twelve yoke of oxen before him, and he with the twelfth: and Elijah passed by him, and cast his mantle upon him.” We see here that Elisha was not satisfied on receiving Elijah’s shawl once in his life. He desired for Elijah’s shawl once again. We see that God eventually blessed and anointed Elisha twice as much. We know how much trouble Elisha faced in his life time just to receive the shawl the second time. His faith and trust was completely in God. 
He loved God very much and worked for His kingdom. Elisha did not keep quiet when he received the shawl once, he wanted it the second time too. He worked diligently for God’s kingdom, strove hard behind God’s people and worked relentlessly for them. For many years he worked and strove for this shawl. Finally, the shawl fell upon him from heaven the second time, and he received a double portion of anointing upon himself. Even in our lives, we are all different people from different walks of life. God has blessed each one of us differently; He has brought us out of darkness to take us towards the Promised Land i.e. Canaan. Just as Moses and Joshua testified the marvelous works of God that they both had experienced in their lives, likewise even today God keeps giving us testimonies of His love towards us. What should we do after listening to these testimonies? We should not listen and forget it. Rather, like Elisha, we should not be satisfied receiving the shawl only once, we should strive for it again and again. By his constant striving, Elisha received a double portion of anointing. 2 Kings 2: 9-14 “And he came thither unto a cave, and lodged there; and, behold, the word of the LORD came to him, and he said unto him, What doest thou here, Elijah? And he said, I have been very jealous for the LORD God of hosts: for the children of Israel have forsaken thy covenant, thrown down thine altars, and slain thy prophets with the sword; and I, even I only, am left; and they seek my life, to take it away. And he said, Go forth, and stand upon the mount before the LORD. And, behold, the LORD passed by, and a great and strong wind rent the mountains, and brake in pieces the rocks before the LORD; but the LORD was not in the wind: and after the wind an earthquake; but the LORD was not in the earthquake: And after the earthquake a fire; but the LORD was not in the fire: and after the fire a still small voice. And it was so, when Elijah heard it, that he wrapped his face in his mantle, and went out, and stood in the entering in of the cave. And, behold, there came a voice unto him, and said, What doest thou here, Elijah? And he said, I have been very jealous for the LORD God of hosts: because the children of Israel have forsaken thy covenant, thrown down thine altars, and slain thy prophets with the sword; and I, even I only, am left; and they seek my life, to take it away.” Here we must note that the second time when Elisha received the shawl, it was not from Elijah; rather it was thrown upon him from heaven by God. It was a divine gift to him.
We also know in the Holy Scriptures, that the Holy Spirit fell as a gift from God upon people who were assembled in the upper room; there came a strong wind and along with that they received their anointing. Acts 2:1-21 “And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance. And there were dwelling at Jerusalem Jews, devout men, out of every nation under heaven. Now when this was noised abroad, the multitude came together, and were confounded, because that every man heard them speak in his own language. And they were all amazed and marvelled, saying one to another, Behold, are not all these which speak Galilaeans? And how hear we every man in our own tongue, wherein we were born? Parthians, and Medes, and Elamites, and the dwellers in Mesopotamia, and in Judaea, and Cappadocia, in Pontus, and Asia, Phrygia, and Pamphylia, in Egypt, and in the parts of Libya about Cyrene, and strangers of Rome, Jews and proselytes, Cretes and Arabians, we do hear them speak in our tongues the wonderful works of God. And they were all amazed, and were in doubt, saying one to another, What meaneth this? Others mocking said, These men are full of new wine. But Peter, standing up with the eleven, lifted up his voice, and said unto them, Ye men of Judaea, and all ye that dwell at Jerusalem, be this known unto you, and hearken to my words: For these are not drunken, as ye suppose, seeing it is but the third hour of the day. But this is that which was spoken by the prophet Joel; And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh: and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams:
And on my servants and on my handmaidens I will pour out in those days of my Spirit; and they shall prophesy: And I will shew wonders in heaven above, and signs in the earth beneath; blood, and fire, and vapour of smoke: The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before that great and notable day of the Lord come: And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved.” Similarly, we see how Elisha yearned for the shawl twice, and he received God’s mighty anointing the second time through the shawl dropped from heaven directly. It is thus important in our lives too, to receive the Holy Spirit rain twice, for when we received it for the first time we would have become believers and become worthy to be called His sons and daughters. But the latter rain brings anointing from heaven into our lives. Acts 2:7-9 “And they were all amazed and marvelled, saying one to another, Behold, are not all these which speak Galilaeans? And how hear we every man in our own tongue, wherein we were born? Parthians, and Medes, and Elamites, and the dwellers in Mesopotamia, and in Judaea, and Cappadocia, in Pontus, and Asia.” It was in the language of their birth that they began speaking in tongues. Who made languages in this world? God made the different languages. Who changed the languages in this world? God changed the languages. Thus God gave languages and changed languages too. After receiving the anointing of God, people assembled in the upper room and started speaking in tongues in different languages of their birth. Acts 2: 12-13 “And they were all amazed, and were in doubt, saying one to another, What meaneth this? Others mocking said, These men are full of new wine.” One group feared and said ‘these people are Galileans but speak the language of their birth,’ while another group said ‘they have drunk new wine and are intoxicated, hence speak our language in tongues.’ Peter stood up and testified to the people and said to them in Acts 2:14-17 “But Peter, standing up with the eleven, lifted up his voice, and said unto them, Ye men of Judaea, and all ye that dwell at Jerusalem, be this known unto you, and hearken to my words: For these are not drunken, as ye suppose, 
seeing it is but the third hour of the day. But this is that which was spoken by the prophet Joel; And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh: and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams:” This is the gift of the latter rain. We must thus be thirsty for this latter rain as Elisha was when he ran behind the chariot which took Elijah into the whirlwind, crying out with a loud voice and renting his clothes. God saw his struggle and suffering that very moment and sent His strong Spirit with a double anointing upon Elisha and Elijah’s shawl fell from above upon him. In our lives too, if we ask God in faith, He is just to fulfill our every desires. Even in our lives, He has shown us His love in different ways, but to fulfill the promise He has given us, we have to be thirsty for His Word. Elisha wanted Elijah’s shawl twice; he was not satisfied with it once in his life, and he yelled and screamed for it. It took no time for God to throw down Elijah’s shawl upon him the second time. In our life too, if we have the similar spirit which desires the same, it is our God who will fulfill our desire in our lives. Joel 2:28-29 “And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions: And also upon the servants and upon the handmaids in those days will I pour out my spirit.” Our God’s promise will be fulfilled in our lives too, for that we must have the same thirst like Elisha.
Our God is alive and when we know the truth, the truth will set us free in life. He will separate us from every sin, He will remove every veil from between us and Him. God alone knows what the hindrance is in our lives to receive the shawl twice; He will remove it and bless us with the latter rain and make us a channel of blessing for others, like Elisha. Jesus said in John 8:32 “And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” It is important for us to recognize the truth of God’s presence in our lives. God was with Moses, Joshua, the prophets Elijah and Elisha, His twelve disciples; similarly today God is with us all the time.
Romans 10:17 “So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.” Faith increases by hearing the Word of God. If we do not hear the Word of God, our faith cannot increase in Him. Once we know the truth, the truth will set us free. We know the story of the Centurion who came before Jesus in Mathew 8:5-10 “And when Jesus was entered into Capernaum, there came unto him a centurion, beseeching him, And saying, Lord, my servant lieth at home sick of the palsy, grievously tormented. And Jesus saith unto him, I will come and heal him. The centurion answered and said, Lord, I am not worthy that thou shouldest come under my roof: but speak the word only, and my servant shall be healed. For I am a man under authority, having soldiers under me: and I say to this man, Go, and he goeth; and to another, Come, and he cometh; and to my servant, Do this, and he doeth it. When Jesus heard it, he marvelled, and said to them that followed, Verily I say unto you, I have not found so great faith, no, not in Israel.” This was the great faith of the Centurion. He said to Jesus ‘only a Word will heal my servant.’ The Israelites from the beginning saw God’s marvelous works through their journey in the wilderness, yet disbelieved and murmured all the way. We saw how Moses and Joshua both testified of God’s miracles and works amongst them, but still the Israelites did not believe and they perished before reaching the Promised Land. But here we see the Centurion’s faith in Jesus’ Word. He said to Jesus ‘there is no need of you to come to my house, just speak a Word and my servant will be healed’. This was his great faith in Jesus’ Word. Yes, every Word of God has power to heal and to give us victory in everything we do. But we 
must have faith in Him. Mathew 8:10 “When Jesus heard it, he marvelled, and said to them that followed, Verily I say unto you, I have not found so great faith, no, not in Israel.” Jesus gave the testimony of the Centurion to his disciples and said ‘I have not seen such great faith in entire Israel’. We know the strength of the Word. John 1:1 “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” Imagine how much his servant may have been suffering and the Centurion could not bear to see him suffer, and so he came to Jesus not to ask anything for himself, but to ask for healing for his servant. 
Mathew 11:13 “For all the prophets and the law prophesied until John.” However much are our sins, if we come to God in faith, He will touch us and heal us with His divine touch. Jesus does not cover our sins, rather He exposes them, heals and forgives us. Our life today is the same, God does not cover our sins rather He exposes and delivers us out from them. This world can give us nothing, and Jesus says: “Like I am not of this world, so also my people are not of this world.” From time to time God fulfills all our desires and wants, when we believe in Him unconditionally. In the Holy Scriptures we know that ‘Jesus is the true vine.’ He pruned the vine so that it became more fruitful. John 15:1-10 “I am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman. Every branch in me that beareth not fruit he taketh away: and every branch that beareth fruit, he purgeth it, that it may bring forth more fruit. Now ye are clean through the word which I have spoken unto you. Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me. I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing. If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered; and men gather 
them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned. If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you. Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; so shall ye be my disciples. As the Father hath loved me, so have I loved you: continue ye in my love. If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love; even as I have kept my Father’s commandments, and abide in his love.”
How mighty is our God Jesus! He says ‘I abide in my Father and He with me’. Just like we have seen how Moses was entwined with God, Joshua was entwined with God, the prophets Elijah and Elisha were both entwined with God, and the disciples were entwined with Jesus. Similarly, we also need to be entwined with God. Without God our life is futile, it cannot become a life of testimony to others. In every situation of our life, we must never forget that God alone is with us. It is God’s love alone that will help us tide the storms of life successfully. Jesus himself testified to His disciples about the life of the Centurion. We should not perish in the darkness of this world. Our God is not a partial God, He will bless us, each one according to our works done for His Kingdom.
Let this message be a blessing in our lives.
Praise the Lord.
Pastor Saroja M
Rose of Sharon Old Aged Home
I praise God for our Old aged home. This month we had the privilege of hosting the members of the Bethany Tamil Church, Mira Road.
We thank the Lord for the Sunday school children, the Sunday school teachers, the youth, the elders and other members of the Bethany Church for visiting our old aged home.
The Sunday school children sang some action songs, the youth also sang some songs. One of the brothers of the Church cut a cake, it being his birthday. All our inmates were very happy and for that moment forgot all their pain and sorrow. As they requested me to speak for the youth, I spoke some encouraging words for the youth and Sunday school children. All the children met each one of our inmates. May the Lord bless the youth and Sunday 
school children for coming to visit the Rose of Sharon Old aged home. I also thank them for all the groceries they gifted to the Old age home.
May God bless them so that they may continue in doing their good works.of Sharon Old aged home. I also thank them for all the groceries they gifted to the Old age home.
Pastor Saroja M
