Editor’s Note

Praise the Lord. I greet you all in the matchless name of my Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.

Deuteronomy 30:20 says “That thou mayest love the LORD thy God, and that thou mayest obey His voice, and that thou mayest cleave unto Him: for He is thy life, and the length of thy days: that thou mayest dwell in the land which the LORD sware unto thy fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give them.”

When you love the Lord your God and obey Him and cling to Him, He will give you life – and that too a long life. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow you all the days of your life, and you will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.

When you love the Lord, He gives you a long life – not a life with doctors, medicines and tonic. Exodus 15:26 “And said, If thou wilt diligently hearken to the voice of the LORD thy God, and wilt do that which is right in his sight, and wilt give ear to his commandments, and keep all his statutes, I will put none of these diseases upon thee, which I have brought upon the Egyptians: for I am the LORD that healeth thee.”

Who redeems your life from destruction, who crowns you with loving kindness and tender mercies. Who satisfies your mouth with good things, so that your youth is renewed like the eagles. Look at Job’s life. He lost all his children and cattle, he was covered with sores from head to toe, yet Job did not accuse God. Shall we indeed accept good from God, and shall we not accept adversity. Job 2:10 “But he said unto her, Thou speakest as one of the foolish women speaketh. What? shall we receive good at the hand of God, and shall we not receive evil? In all this did not Job sin with his lips.”

Job also said ‘Naked I came from my mother’s womb and naked shall I return there. The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away.’ Even when he lost everything, Job still loved the Lord.

In the end God blessed Job with a double portion. Job 42:16-17 “After this lived Job an hundred and forty years, and saw his sons, and his sons’ sons, even four generations. So Job died, being old and full of days.”

The Bible says in Psalm 91:16 “With long life will I satisfy him, and shew him my salvation.” By God your days will be multiplied and by Him you will have long life.

The psalmist David who loved the Lord writes in Psalm 21:4 “He asked life of thee, and thou gavest it him, even length of days for ever and ever.”

If you have faith in our Good Shepherd, you will have peace and joy, life and long life. Whoever trusts in Him will not be destroyed.

May our good Lord bless you and keep you under His loving care, till we meet again.

Yours in the service of my Lord Jesus,

Pastor Saroja M.

Praise the Lord. I had a boil on my lips due to which my lips were very swollen. I started applying prayer oil and it started healing. I am fine now. My second testimony is of my mother. She would travel to Gujarat without telling us though she is quite old and does not know much about travelling. This happened nearly three to four times and we once had even gone to the police – but she would return in a day. We were all worried at home due to her strange behaviour. I told Pastor Saroja about it and she assured me of her prayers. I praise and thank God that from that day to date, she has not gone anywhere. Thank You Jesus. Thank You Pastor.

*Sis. Bharti Mohite, Kalina

Praise the Lord. Since three months we were facing acute water problems at home. The water supply was extremely slow and we were receiving it very late everyday. I told this problem to Pastor Saroja and she kept this matter in prayer. Now we get water twice in a day and in full force. I sincerely thank Lord Jesus and also thank Pastor for always praying for all our problems.

*Sis. Lalita Francis, Goregoan

Praise the Lord. I had called the Rose of Sharon prayer helpline number for prayers for me and my sister Sushanti for a disease we both had for a long time wherein the medicines we were both taking were of no effect. After prayers, today we are fully healed. Thank You Jesus. Thank You ROS ministry for praying for us.

*Sis. Pushpa, Maharashtra (ROS TV Program Viewer)

Praise the Lord. Since a long time, I was not getting any increment in my salary. I told this matter to Pastor Saroja and she assured me of her prayers. In this year itself, the Lord Jesus has increased my salary for which I thank my Lord from the bottom of my heart and I also thank Pastor Saroja for her fervent prayers through which God has done this great work in my life.

*Bro. Robert Francis, Goregoan

Praise the Lord. My father had severe pain in his stomach and we were to admit him in the hospital. We contacted the Rose of Sharon prayer helpline for prayers. The prayer warrior prayed and immediately the next day my father was fully healed. Praise God! I was also sick and now I am also healed. Thank You Jesus for answering prayers. Thank You prayer warriors of ROS church.

*Sis. Sushanti, Jharkhand (ROS TV Program Viewer)

A woman once repeated a nasty piece of gossip about a friend. The news travelled, and soon everyone knew the nasty news. The woman’s friend was deeply hurt, not only by the untruths being said about her but by the betrayal of a friend. The woman who had first passed on the gossip was also wounded, wracked with guilt over the pain she had caused her friend.

She approached her grandfather, a man she had always seen as very wise, and asked what she could do to set things right. “Buy a chicken, and have it killed. Then on your way home, pluck its feathers and drop them along the road. When you have done, this come and see me again.”

The woman was somewhat perplexed by this advice but she followed it anyway.

The next day she returned to her grandfather. This time he told her to go and collect all the feathers she had dropped on the road yesterday and bring them to him. “But that’s impossible” she said. “They’ll have all blown away.”

“Exactly” said her grandfather, “it’s easy to drop them, but it’s impossible to get them back. It’s the same with the gossip.” “It doesn’t take much to spread a rumour, but once you do, you can never undo the hurt. But perhaps you can ask forgiveness.” “for it is written in the Bible …

Pastor Saroja M

Sanctify yourselves to be the temple of the Holy Spirit!

Mathew 3:16 “And Jesus, when he was baptized, went up straightway out of the water: and, lo, the heavens were opened unto him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon him:” The dove is one of the most important signs of Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit did not descend from heaven upon this earth in the form of an eagle, crow or peacock, but in the form of a dove. The dove is a very calm bird, and on whomsoever the Holy Spirit descends, they too become calm people. When the dove descended upon Jesus Christ, his nature became very calm and lowly. We have seen how the King of Kings rode on a donkey in a lowly state and entered Jerusalem. Even before the Holy Spirit descended upon Jesus Christ, John the Baptist had prophesied a vision that God the Father had revealed to him. John 1:32 “And John bare record, saying, I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and it abode upon him.” Here we see that God the Father had revealed to John the Baptist this revelation much before the dove descended from heaven and stayed upon Jesus Christ forever. When Jesus Christ was baptized, everyone witnessed the same as prophesied by John, where the heavens opened and the Holy Spirit descended upon Christ in the form of a dove. The revelation prophesied by John was fulfilled. Jesus tells his disciples of the Holy Spirit descending on man in John 14:16 “And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever;” where Jesus told his disciples that He would plead with His Father to send a Comforter for us, who would stay with us forever.

In the Old Testament, we have seen that the Holy Spirit would not stay with the people for long and it would come and go. The Holy Spirit would speak to the Prophets, Kings and Priests for some time and then go away. We have seen how the Holy Spirit worked in Samson’s life mightily but left after sometime. We see in the Old Testament how righteous people pleaded with God that the Holy Spirit would stay with them forever, but it was not to be. David experienced the Holy Spirit for some time but it left him after accomplishing its work. David too willed that the Holy Spirit would stay with him. Psalm 51:10 “Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me.” David prayed to Father God to keep his soul righteous so that the Holy Spirit would stay with him always. It was important for the Holy Spirit that was sent from heaven, to purify our soul and make us righteous in the sight of God. Jesus Christ was sent into this world for our sakes so that the Holy Spirit would remain with us forever thereafter. Jesus was sent into this world to fulfil this promise of God. Jesus willed ‘My life has to be sacrificed on the Cross of Calvary in order that the Holy Spirit will remain in this world. My blood has to be shed on the Cross, so that you are all washed and redeemed by my blood. Only after I sacrifice my life on the Cross will my Father send the Comforter for your sakes in this world to stay with you forever.’ Luke 12:49-50 “I am come to send fire on the earth; and what will I, if it be already kindled?  But I have a baptism to be baptized with; and how am I straitened till it be accomplished!” Jesus says ‘I came into this world so that the fire is kindled, but you will have to wait till the time is right.’ Jesus was sent into this world with the same desire, but before the fire was kindled His body had to be broken for our sakes on the Cross of Calvary. For the Holy Spirit to stay with us eternally, Jesus had to be sacrificed on the Cross so that we would be redeemed and washed by His blood, and our bodies become a temple for the Holy Ghost. 1 Corinthians 3:16 “Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?” Yes, for us to become the temple of the Holy Ghost, Jesus had to be sacrificed on the Cross. Jesus Christ had to shed His blood for our sakes. Only after He washes us with His blood are we cleansed and purified and our bodies become a temple of the Holy Ghost for Him. 1 Corinthians 6:19 “What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own?” Not by our strength, sacrifice or wisdom may we receive the Holy Spirit; it is only because Jesus Christ died for us that we may be redeemed and become a worthy vessel for His glory and become the temple of the Holy Ghost.

We must remember that once we receive the Holy Ghost, we should never sorrow the Spirit anywhere whether within us, our church or within our families. Ephesian 4:30 “And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption.” It is easy to receive the Holy Spirit, but to maintain the Spirit with us forever is very important. It is always important in our lives to keep the Holy Spirit happy. Saul who went hunting after his lost donkeys, was anointed with the Holy Spirit and thereafter crowned as the King of Israel. But Saul did not value the Holy Spirit; he grieved the Lord God and so the Holy Spirit left him. 1 Samuel 15:11 “It repenteth me that I have set up Saul to be king: for he is turned back from following me, and hath not performed my commandments. And it grieved Samuel; and he cried unto the LORD all night.” From the beginning of the creation of this world and everything in it, God created man in His own image, gave him authority over everything and instituted him in the Garden of Eden. God did not let man do any work in the Garden of Eden and He only expected ‘obedience’ from him. Mankind disobeyed God and so lost the joy of living in the Garden of Eden. Adam & Eve were put out of the Garden because of their disobedience. God regretted creating man and was very sorrowful. Even today, we must remember that the Holy Spirit did not come into this world just like that, Jesus Christ had to pay the price for our salvation. Jesus sacrificed His life on the Cross so that His Spirit would dwell within and amongst us in this world forever. We must not be like Saul and Adam and Eve and grieve the Spirit. Genesis 6:5-6 “And GOD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. And it repented the LORD that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart.” In our lives too, the Holy Spirit corrects us and we must stand self-corrected. We must never grieve the Holy Spirit within us, for remember that when we grieve the Holy Spirit, we grieve God Himself.

What is the reason that God loved David more that Saul? Acts 13:22 “And when he had removed him, he raised up unto them David to be their king; to whom also he gave testimony, and said, I have found David the son of Jesse, a man after mine own heart, which shall fulfil all my will.” David always strived to be obedient to God’s Word, hence God loved him very much and said that David was after the Lord’s own heart. Jesus too had to suffer on the Cross before being crucified, yet till His last breath He obeyed His Father’s command and fulfilled it. Hence God made the name of ‘Jesus’ the Highest name on this earth. Because David obeyed every Word of God, God honoured and loved him more than Saul. Even in our lives, if we give God a little place in our hearts He will remain as a guest within us. In turn, when we go to heaven, we will be His guest. So we must remember today that if we give God a little place in our lives, in our families and in our congregation, God will make us His guests in heaven.

When the Holy Spirit came into this world and searched for a place to stay in, it did not find any righteousness on this earth, for no one could become righteous by the sacrifice of an animal and its blood. By the sacrifice of an animal, people’s sins were only temporarily redeemed and they were only temporarily sanctified. The Holy Spirit could not permanently dwell within anyone, for there was nary a righteous soul on this earth. Genesis 8:9 “But the dove found no rest for the sole of her foot, and she returned unto him into the ark, for the waters were on the face of the whole earth: then he put forth his hand, and took her, and pulled her in unto him into the ark.” When God destroyed this world with the rains and Noah’s ark finally anchored on Mount Ararat, Noah sent out a dove to check if the waters had receded; but the dove had no luck, for there was no place for it to perch on, so it returned to the Ark. Once again Noah sent the dove to check if the water had receded; this time the dove returned with an Olive leaf. The Olive Leaf signifies ‘Peace’ and the Dove brought good news that vegetation had begun sprouting on this earth. Noah was very happy to see the Olive Leaf. Similarly, through the shepherds this world got the good news that Jesus Christ was born into the world. Luke 2:10 “And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.” Just as the Dove brought the Olive leaf and gave good news to Noah, similarly the shepherds gave good news to mankind regarding the birth of Jesus Christ. With the birth of Jesus Christ, mankind received the promise of victory from sin. The third time Noah sent out the dove, it did not return, as it obviously got a place in this earth to live on. The third phase when the Holy Spirit came from above has resulted in it dwelling today amongst us on this earth. Hence we must never grieve the Holy Spirit. Money cannot buy this Holy Spirit for it is God’s gift to us mankind. Jesus had to be sent into this world to give His life for us and be sacrificed on the Cross for our sakes. Today the Holy Spirit is amongst us in this world forever to stay with us, like the Dove that was sent the third time and never returned to the Ark, but stayed put in this world.

We know that Jesus had spoken to His disciples about sending a ‘Comforter’ into this world after He had risen. On the Day of Pentecost, while the disciples were all gathered in the upper room praying and fasting, the Holy Spirit descended upon them. Acts 10:44 “While Peter yet spake these words, the Holy Ghost fell on all them which heard the word.” The disciples along with other people were all gathered in the upper room and were praying and remembering what Jesus Christ had told them, when suddenly the Holy Spirit descended from above upon them all and remained with them for good. Where ever the disciples stood to preach the Word, the Holy Spirit descended upon the congregation. Today, the Holy Spirit has filled every corner of this world. We must never sorrow the Spirit of God, for remember when we sorrow the Holy Spirit we are sorrowing God Himself. As God was sorrowful when He saw Saul disobey Him and Adam and Eve disobey Him, we must remember that when we grieve the Spirit, we grieve God. The Truth of the Spirit will not be understood by this world and that is why Jesus said ‘I am not of world, so also you are not of this World.’ The world says that man evolved from the monkeys. But the Holy Scriptures say that Man was created by God in His own image, and this is our faith and belief!

From the beginning, our thoughts and the thoughts of the people of this world are different. Jesus said ‘This world did not receive Me and the Truth; they hated me and so will they hate you and not accept you.’ Jesus also said ‘In this world you will have many trials and tribulations, but be of good cheer for I have overcome this world.’ We should ensure never to grieve the Holy Spirit and we must always fear God where ever in this world we may be. We know that though people from Jerusalem went to Egypt, from there they looked towards the holy temple at Jerusalem and prayed to the Lord God, and their works became victorious for the Lord. Our God will never let our faith fall to the ground. Jesus walked and lived in Jerusalem, He worked His wondrous work amongst the people of Jerusalem, yet He could not fulfil all His works because of their lack of faith in Him. Our life should not be like the Israelites, rather we need to thirst for the faith in which we are rooted. Thereafter, from time to time we will receive the ‘Living Waters’ in this world and we will continually grow in the Lord.

David loved God very much and in everything He did He only believed in the will of God. In all his sufferings, He only blessed the Lord God. 2 Samuel 16:6-10 “And he cast stones at David, and at all the servants of king David: and all the people and all the mighty men were on his right hand and on his left. And thus said Shimei when he cursed, Come out, come out, thou bloody man, and thou man of Belial: The LORD hath returned upon thee all the blood of the house of Saul, in whose stead thou hast reigned; and the LORD hath delivered the kingdom into the hand of Absalom thy son: and, behold, thou art taken in thy mischief, because thou art a bloody man. Then said Abishai the son of Zeruiah unto the king, Why should this dead dog curse my lord the king? let me go over, I pray thee, and take off his head. And the king said, What have I to do with you, ye sons of Zeruiah? so let him curse, because the LORD hath said unto him, Curse David. Who shall then say, Wherefore hast thou done so?” Many a times our Lord God lets our enemy put us through similar shame, abuse and ridicule, even as had been done unto David. David was calm in every situation and he said ‘God allowed it and so be it, I will tolerate all because God has let it be upon me.’ David never cursed God. He never took a step forward without the will of God. When Jesus was taken to be crucified to Calvary, people struck him and spat on His face, but Jesus bore it all silently, for he thought ‘this is my Father’s will – so be it upon me.’ David too bore all sufferings in this world quietly, hence God witnessed about him and said ‘David is after my own heart.’ Once, David did sin before the Lord, but he repented and broke himself before the Lord and so the Lord God lifted him once again for His glory alone and made Him a vessel for Him.

We too may have hurt the Lord God many a time, for we have our own weaknesses too. Yet, Jesus died and took away our every weakness and healed us of our iniquities and sins. Many a time God tests us, and we can overcome the world by God’s grace alone. But if we fight back with people who fight with us and behave like hooligans, then the devil will point us out to God and say ‘The Dove of peace descended with the Holy Spirit for these people and see what your people are doing.’ Read the Word and we will know every cunningness of the devil and his traps and designs upon us. The devil will never rest in peace, but always try to cause the mighty people to fall with his devious plans. It is written in Psalm 1:1-3 “Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful.  But his delight is in the law of the LORD; and in his law doth he meditate day and night.  And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper.” We must meditate in the Word of God and be blessed. In everything we do thereafter, we will have victory through the Holy Spirit. This is the truth that we need to know and accept in this world and so live our lives according His will.

The Dove is a sacred bird and dwells amongst its own. Likewise God too dwells in the midst of His people even as He did in the Garden of Eden, where He came daily to meet Adam and Eve to talk to them and happily spend time with them. God put them out of the Garden only after they sinned due to their disobedience. Even today, God loves us in the same way. He dwells amongst the praises of His children and lives amongst us even as He dwelt amongst the praises of the Israelites.

Let us sing praises for the Lord God and sanctify our bodies and keep it holy so that it becomes a temple for the Holy Ghost. Then God will come and dwell within us forever. Whether we are small or big, remember even from amongst those dead in the deep sea, all of us will one day come before the Lord God and have to stand in judgment before Him. God’s eyes are upon all of us where ever we may be. God’s love is Agape love, when we will love Him, in turn He will love us twice as much.

May God bless this Word and may this Word bring blessings to many lives.

Pastor Saroja M

Praise the Lord. Greetings to all our dear readers in the matchless name of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.

In this month’s edition we introduce our uncle Mr. Cracius D’souza. Uncle is very sweet and polite by nature.

Last month we celebrated his 89^th birthday. His son and daughter-in-law had brought a cake which Uncle cut while everyone sang the happy birthday song. The cake was subsequently distributed to all at the Home.

Uncle likes the evening prayers held and he enjoys singing worship songs. He is never fussy about the food served and he eats whatever is served to him.  Uncle does most of his work on his own, like attending to his needs, eating food, etc.  He likes to read the newspaper and watch TV for entertainment.  While he is currently taking medicines for his heart and weakness, we pray our wonderful Lord will keep him always in good health.

Do continue to keep all at our Home in your prayers.

Praise the Lord.

Praise the Lord! With the arrival of the rains, it is time to take out the umbrellas and rainwear from the cupboards. It’s the best time of the year that the kids enjoy… New raincoats, new gumboots, school bags and a time to head to higher classes.

The kids are overjoyed as they move to higher classes whilst welcoming the rains. This month our kids of both the classes assembled together. We had them recite the memory verses which were taught over the months, be it the smaller or the older kids; except for a few who are still trying to catch up the pace with memorizing the memory verses.

It was a joy to see the little ones being so enthusiastic to recite the verses by heart. While they intently continue to listen to more on the life of the biblical characters, we will get back to you next month on more of our beloved Sunday School children and their learnings.

Praise the Lord. I am from Bidar, Karnataka. Since the time I was three months pregnant, I have been regularly contacting the Rose of Sharon Women’s Prayer helpline and seeking prayers from them.

Even during my delivery time, I had requested for prayers and my Lord Jesus blessed me with a beautiful baby boy with a normal delivery.

However, my child was not crying, due to which he was kept away from me for many days in the ICU. The doctor told me that my baby had accidently swallowed water during the delivery and that his condition was serious and hence had to be kept in the ICU for a few days.

I kept this matter in prayer with the ROS prayer helpline, after which we heard my baby boy’s first cry and thereafter he slowly started recovering. Now my baby is discharged and is completely fine.

I thank my dear Lord Jesus from the bottom of my heart for doing this great work in my life and for saving my child.

I sincerely thank the ROS Ministry for their fervent prayers for us.

Praise the Lord. Thank You Jesus.

*Sis. Sneha, Karnataka (ROS TV Program Viewer)