Editor’s Note

I greet my dear readers and my brothers and sisters in Christ in the precious name of my Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. I believe you have had a rich harvest spiritually and materially in your and your family’s lives.

Genesis 41:33 – Now therefore let Pharaoh look out a man discreet and wise, and set him over the land of Egypt. The Bible says that the first wise and discerning man was Joseph. From his young age the Lord was showing Joseph in visions and dreams the future events to come. Not only that, the Lord’s wisdom also was with him. Due to the Lord’s wisdom he used to run away from all sins. Through his divine knowledge he waited on the Lord, knowing that in the Lord’s time He would lift him up. He patiently waited for 13 years in prison.

When Joseph was in jail, the ruler of Egypt saw a dream. Joseph had the gift of revealing the meaning of dreams. This spiritual gift brought Joseph from the jail to the king’s palace. Joseph with great wisdom revealed to the king the meaning of his dream. Not only that, Joseph also counseled the king.

He advised the king to store grain in the first seven years of plentiful harvest, and to keep it for distribution in the subsequent seven years of famine.

So Pharaoh said to Joseph – Genesis 41:39 – And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, Forasmuch as God hath shewed thee all this, there is none so discreet and wise as thou art:

Due to the wisdom given unto Joseph none of the Egyptians went hungry in the time of famine. Due to the wisdom of Joseph, he and his family came together and he could feed his own brothers and sisters.

My beloved brothers and sisters and my dear readers, in your lives also you need wisdom to achieve a small or big thing in your life. Psalms 107:43 – Whoso is wise, and will observe these things, even they shall understand the loving kindness of the LORD.

Secondly, we see in Proverbs 14:1 – Every wise woman buildeth her house: but the foolish plucketh it down with her hands.

To build your house, the Lord alone has to build it.Psalms 127:1 – Except the LORD build the house, they labour in vain that build it: except the LORD keep the city, the watchman waketh but in vain.

A truthful and a wise husband and a wise wife can, along with the Lord, build their family.

One of the Lord’s names is Counselor; It is through the Lord that we have been given wisdom, righteousness, sanctification and redemption.

Romans 11:33 – O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! how unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways past finding out!

Due to lack of wisdom many women doubt their husbands and break families. These women sow bitter seeds between their own husband and mother-in-law and reap a harvest of sorrow in their lives. Even husbands, for the lack of wisdom and for small reasons fight and break their families. My beloved brethren, to keep your families in unity you need the wisdom and knowledge of God so that in your families, the presence of God will remain along with His love, joy and peace.

Isaiah 52:13 – Behold, my servant shall deal prudently, he shall be exalted and extolled, and be very high.

God calls the unwise to His service and makes them wise to do His service.

Lord used an uneducated fisherman like Peter to do His service with great wisdom.

God gave Peter great wisdom to preach His Word through which thousands of souls were saved.

My dearly beloved, let the divine wisdom of God, the counsel of God, the Word of the Lord preached by His servants lead you. By the breaking of bread, you can be in unity with the Lord. When you are one with the Lord, during your problem times the Spirit of God will lead you.

Increase your prayer time. The Lord will make you wise.Matthew 11:25- At that time Jesus answered and said, I thank thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because thou hast hid these things from the wise and prudent, and hast revealed them unto babes.

My dearly beloved, you can watch the Rose of Sharon Church program on Tamilan TV Channel every Thursday from 6.30 – 7.00 pm. Praise the Lord.

May the good Lord bless you and keep you till we meet again.

Pastor Saroja M.

Praise the Lord. I had a severe pain in my left thumb. The pain was such that I could not even bend my finger and if by mistake I bent it, I could not make it straight. I could not hold anything with my left hand. After the healing service I told about my pain to Pastor Saroja. She prayed over me and suggested to apply the prayer oil over my thumb daily. I did as her advice. By Lord’s grace my pain is completely gone and I am totally healed from it. I give all glory to Lord Jesus for healing me through the prayer oil and thank Pastor Saroja for her fervent prayers for me.

Sis. Tara Khushwa, Jogeshwari.

Praise the Lord. I was having no money to pay the fees for my children and it was a very difficult situation for me. I told my problems to Pastor Saroja and she very earnestly prayed for my request. By Lord’s grace, from some source I received money to pay for my children’s fees. I give all glory to Lord Jesus for hearing Pastor Saroja’s prayers and providing me money thus enabling me to pay my children fees. Thank you Pastor Saroja for your prayers always. May the Lord always keep Pastor in good health to pray for our requests.

S is. Jyothi Surti, Vakola

Praise the Lord. I thank my Lord Jesus for giving me an opportunity to testify about His marvelous works in my life. I had appeared for my CPT (CA entrance) examination in the month of December. The papers were very difficult and I had no hope of clearing the exam. But by the grace of Lord Jesus alone and Pastor Saroja’s prayers, I was able to clear this examination and am promoted to the next level.

I thank my Lord Jesus for doing such a mighty work in my life and I sincerely thank Pastor Saroja for praying for me and for always advising me.

Sis. Angel Roberts, Vakola

Praise the Lord. I would like to thank the Almighty Lord Jesus for the wonderful work i n my life. Since the month of October I was not feeling well. From within, my body used to feel very heavy and I was not sure what is going on as I was feeling very restless. Even while praying and Bible reading I would fall asleep and because of this I was not in a condition to attend Church and house meetings. I went to the doctor and took some tests but all my reports came normal. Finally I told Pastor Saroja about what I was going through. She very earnestly prayed for me and from the moment she prayed I started recovering from my problems. Now I am comfortable to come to Church and also pray at home. I give all thanks to my Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ who set me free from this burden of sleep. Thank you dear Pastor Saroja for praying for me today and always.

Sis. Paramjyothi Jayseelan, Jogeshwari

Praise the Lord. Recently I had phoned Pastor Saroja for prayers for my son who for many years had a problem of pus leaking from his ears. I took him to many doctors but he had no relief.

After Pastor Saroja prayed for him, she advised me to say ‘Victory in the blood of Jesus’ in his ears, every day. Now I praise and thank God that my son is totally healed of his ear problem. I thank God for this wonderful miracle and thank Pastor Saroja for her powerful prayer and advice.

Thank you Jesus

Sis. Nandini, Mangalore

Praise the Lord! I had met Pastor on August 2^nd 2015 in Dubai. I requested Pastor for prayers for my job, since there was no future prospect in my job and I was feeling very low. But after Pastor prayed for me, soon I received the news that I was selected for promotion in my job. I praise and thank the Lord for His great work in my life. I also thank Pastor Saroja from the bottom of my heart for her sincere prayers.

Thank you Jesus

Bro. Shekaran, Dubai

Praise the Lord! In the month of Sept 2014 my husband and I had come to the Chennai meeting. Since long, I was trying to build a house, but several hindrances were coming our way.

When Pastor Saroja prayed for me, she prophesied that we would build a house in 2015. I have no words to thank the Lord for His great miracle in my life. On 23^rd Sept 2015 we had our new house opening!

I thank the Lord for His wondrous works in my life and thank Pastor Saroja for her prayers and prophecy for me.

Thank you Jesus!

Sis. Janet, Chennai

 

 

 

GIVING WHEN IT COUNTS

 

Many years ago, when I worked as a volunteer at a hospital, I got to know a little girl named Liz who was suffering from a rare and serious disease. Her only chance of recovery appeared to be a blood transfusion from her 5-year old brother, who had miraculously survived the same disease and had developed the antibodies needed to combat the illness. The doctor explained the situation to her little brother, and asked the little boy if he would be willing to give his blood to his sister. I saw him hesitate for only a moment before taking a deep breath and said, “Yes, I’ll do it if it will save her.” As the transfusion progressed, he lay in bed next to his sister and smiled, as we all did, seeing the color returning to her cheeks. Then his face grew pale and his smile faded. He looked up at the doctor and asked with a trembling voice, “Will I start to die right away? Being young, the little boy had misunderstood the doctor; he thought he was going to have to give his sister all of his blood in order to save her. And in that brief moment, the final decision that he had made was the greatest love of all… The doctor was moved by the little boy’s brave final decision… the unconditional sacrificing love… The Apostle Paul once said “For I could wish that I myself were cursed and cut off from Christ for the sake of my brothers…” (Romans 9:3) It may be difficult for us to understand how Paul could be willing to give up so much, even his own salvation so someone else could be saved. He and this little boy knew the true meaning of giving everything for the sake of another. God Bless.

Pastor Saroja M.

 

Jesus: The Way, The Truth and The Life

 

I saiah 45:6 “That they may know from the rising of the sun, and from the west, that there is none beside me. I am the LORD, and there is none else.”The Lord God had promised the Israelites the land of Canaan. But the Israelites were not truthful towards God: they mingled with the Gentiles and became idol worshippers. Because of this disobedience, God did not allow the Israelites to rule over the land of Israel. God loved the Israelites very much, but when they began idol worshipping, God chose someone to rule over Israel.Isaiah 44:28 “That saith of Cyrus, He is my shepherd, and shall perform all my pleasure: even saying to Jerusalem, Thou shalt be built; and to the temple, Thy foundation shall be laid. ”God chose Cyrus to be ruler over Israel and thus gave him His love and authority to rule over the Israelites.Isaiah 45:1 “Thus saith the LORD to his anointed, to Cyrus, whose right hand I have holden, to subdue nations before him; and I will loose the loins of kings, to open before him the two leaved gates; and the gates shall not be shut;”Now, we see how Cyrus used his authority to restore the Israelites from getting into deeper sins. He called them back, subdued them and taught them God’s truth, with the wisdom and understanding that Lord God had blessed him. It’s written in the Word that God teaches us to ‘gird our loins’ which means to equip ourselves with the Word of God and thus be strengthened by it. When the Word of God is not with us, we will be weak and will not be able to fight the evil. The Word alone is our strength and might for it is the truth. The Word says that when we know the truth, the truth will set us free. The same thing happened to the Israelites; they did not know the truth and they started running helter-skelter and thus they were weakened in their faith. Hence, God chose Cyrus to loosen the loins of Kings, to subdue

nations and to break open every closed door. We read in the book of Daniel that when King Belshazzar sinned, Lord made him weak by loosening the joints of his loins.Daniel 5:1-6 “Belshazzar the king made a great feast to a thousand of his lords, and drank wine before the thousand. Belshazzar, whiles he tasted the wine, commanded to bring the golden and silver vessels which his father Nebuchadnezzar had taken out of the temple which was in Jerusalem; that the king, and his princes, his wives, and his concubines, might drink therein. Then they brought the golden vessels that were taken out of the temple of the house of God which was at Jerusalem; and the king, and his princes, his wives, and his concubines, drank in them. They drank wine, and praised the gods of gold, and of silver, of brass, of iron, of wood, and of stone. In the same hour came forth fingers of a man’s hand, and wrote over against the candlestick upon the plaster of the wall of the king’s palace: and the king saw the part of the hand that wrote. Then the king’s countenance was changed, and his thoughts troubled him, so that the joints of his loins were loosed, and his knees smote one against another. As soon as King Belshazzar drank wine, he began worshipping idols made of gold, silver, iron and wood. The people drank in the vessels that they had robbed from the temple of God and this angered God. Immediately, the same God who wrote the Ten Commandments with His fingers, once again wrote against the candlestick upon the plaster of the wall of the King’s palace. Immediately the King’s countenance changed and fear came upon him, his thoughts were troubled and the joints of his loins were loosened, his knees rubbed against each other and he fell apart.Ephesians 6:14 “Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness; ”Our Lord had given us truthfulness and righteousness. Thus the Word of God must be in our lives to stand in strength and might for the Lord. When we do not have truthfulness and righteousness within us, then we will fall like King Belshazzar.

Our Lord has girded our loins and blessed us so that we can stand for Him in truth and righteousness, with strength and might so that we can take His Word from place to place and teach the Gentiles of His grace and mercy upon them. Thus, God equips His people with truthfulness and righteousness to spread His gospel to every corner of this world.Matthew 24:14 “And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come.”God desires that before His second coming, the gospel should be far-reaching. If God does not gird our loins with truth and righteousness, how can we stand firmly for Him? If truth and righteousness is not within us, we cannot stand and preach the Word; we cannot open the eyes of the blind; and the Gentiles will never know the ‘truth of the Word’. Thus from past times, the Lord has girded the loins of Kings, priests and prophets with truth and righteousness. When we sin, God

loosens the girding of the loins. King Belshazzar did what he should not have done. God had chosen many Kings to rule over His people and had given them a big responsibility; like wise He had also chosen King Belshazzar to take care of His people, but the King hurt God by defiling the vessels taken from the temple of God and by worshipping idols made of gold, silver, stone and wood. In ancient days, when the Kings won wars, they plundered the losing nation’s gold and wealth and brought it back to their own countries and made huge statues in different forms of animals of the gold melted together. Similarly this King also did the same and now he worshipped all these idols. God’s judgment came immediately upon the King and God used His fingers to write the judgment upon the walls of the palace. Till that time, God kept King Belshazzar to rule over His people with truth and righteousness. God’s desire for us is that He girds our loins with truth and righteousness so that the gospel can be preached far and wide. Remember, if God does not gird our loins, we will not be able to stand for the Lord and take His gospel to places before Jesus’ second coming.Matthew 24:14 “And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come.” Is 45:2 “I will go before thee, and make the crooked places straight: I will break in pieces the gates of brass, and cut in sunder the bars of iron:”Though God has girded the King’s loins and equipped Him with strength and might, God says to the King “I will go before you and make every crooked place straight. Exodus 33:14 And he said, My presence shall go with thee, and I will give thee rest.

God promises us that His presence will always go along with us and He will give us rest. Today, if there is any crookedness in our life, we must give it into God’s hands; He will make the crooked places straight for us. God says to the King “I have chosen you to rule over My people, thus do not worry for I will make every crooked place straight”. God also tells Moses “My presence shall go with you and I will give you rest”. When God goes before us we should fear nothing, we will get rest. Thus truth and righteousness in our lives should never be weakened, or else our girded loins will be loosened and we will become weak. In our lives, our thoughts, actions and words are all crooked; who can make it straight? God alone can make every crooked thing straight. Yes, our God calls us once again today to give ourselves in His hands and God challenges the evil one who is ready to topple us and bring sorrow and pain into our lives. God says to the evil one in Zechariah 4:6-7 “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. Who art thou, O great mountain? before Zerubbabel thou shalt become a plain: and he shall bring forth the headstone thereof with shoutings, crying, Grace, grace unto it.” In every word of God, we see that it is God’s promise for us that He has come into this world to deliver us out of the hands of the evil one, from all the bondages of this world, and He will make all crooked ways straight. God tells the evil that the great high mountains will be made plain. Thus, when we give ourselves into God’s hands, however crooked our nature is, God will straighten it.John 8:36, 32 “If the Son therefore shall

make you free, ye shall be free indeed.”By our own wisdom we can never become free; it is God alone who can make us free. It is Jesus’ life on the cross of Calvary alone that can give us freedom. When God makes us free, only then shall we become free indeed.“And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” When we know not only one but many truths together – that indeed will make us free. The value of many truths in our live will set us free. If there is no righteousness and truthfulness, our lives will still be bonded.

We know that when the Israelites were brought out of Egypt into the promised land of Canaan, God provided them with manna (food of the angels) from heaven during their journey in the wilderness. But the moment they stepped into Canaan, they ate the food of the land of Canaan; God immediately stopped pouring down manna from heaven. When they walked a little further, they encountered the wall of Jericho. Until they broke this wall they could not go further. Now, they did not have manna to eat, nor the food of the Land of Canaan. To pass through the Jericho wall, all the Israelites girded up their loins and for seven days and nights they rounded the wall of Jericho and praised God continually, till the wall fell on the seventh day. After this, they embarked on their journey again. When we know the many truths of God, He will certainly make us free. Our faith must be truthful and righteous. If we only believe in the ‘Word of God’ that is not enough; we also must know the truth of praising God as the Israelites did while crossing the wall of Jericho. If someone would stand and preach at the wall of Jericho would it fall? No. This is because it was God’s command for them to praise Him. Thus when all the people praised God in unity and oneness, only then did the wall of Jericho fall.

Remember, God made Solomon a King and after he became a King, Solomon made a sacrifice for the Lord.1 Kings 3:4 “And the king went to Gibeon to sacrifice there; for that was the great high place: a thousand burnt offerings did Solomon offer upon that altar. ”The moment Solomon made a sacrifice to God, God asked him “Ask me what you want, I shall grant it to you”. It is very important to make a sacrifice to God, a sacrifice need not necessarily be in money and kind but the sacrifice of prayer, praise, worship etc. are also important. As soon as Solomon finished his sacrifice, God asked him “Ask me what you want and I will grant it to you” When we whole heartedly praise and worship God, when we whole heartedly live in truthfulness and righteousness, God sees our heart. Nobody needs to tell God what we are doing for Him for His eyes are on each one of us. Thus, remember when we do something for the Lord, He can see our truthfulness and righteousness in it, and He will bless us accordingly. In Mat 20, Jesus spoke of a parable of an owner who employed different employees at different times from morning to evening in the vineyard and paid them all the same amount. The one who came to work in the vineyard in the evening received the same wages as the one who had worked since morning. This he did only to test the first worker who came in the morning. In his heart, the worker who had come in the morning must have said to himself “if Lord has given the one who came in the evening 1 coin, then I must get at least 4 coins since I am

working since morning”. But the worker who came in the morning forgot that He had made an agreement with the Lord that he will work for 1 coin. This is the nature of all mankind, today! God called the first worker and told him that He did not do any wrong with him for He gave him 1 coin as was promised. We must know the many truths and only then we will be made free. Only then will God go before us and make every crooked way straight!

Philippians 2:14, 15 “Do all things without murmurings and disputings: That ye may be blameless and harmless, the sons of God, without rebuke, in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation, among whom ye shine as lights in the world; ”People of this world do not know the truth of God, thus God says to them “those who have eyes are still blind and those who have ears are deaf”. God spoke of them annoyed in the above Word. God says “Do all things without murmurings and disputing. Stay away from this crooked and perverse nation”. We must thus separate ourselves from these kinds of people; they are the ones whom God has loosened their loins from; and they are weak people. We must always safeguard ourselves and keep away from such perverse people of this world. Though fish live in the sea, they do not absorb the salt from the sea, for when we cook the fish we need to add some salt for taste. Likewise, God warns us that we should not mix with the crooked and perverse people of this world and ruin ourselves. We must keep away from these people. We must condemn them immediately, because we have many truths of God within us. God has made us free; hence we must safeguard ourselves from such crooked people. Only then will we be able to do all work without murmurings and disputing. We will never point out a finger on God’s work. When we keep a piece of sandalwood in our cupboard, whenever we open the same we will get the sweet fragrance of sandalwood. Likewise, when we keep neem leaves in our cupboard, whenever we open the same we get a fragrance of neem. In this world there are multitudes of crooked and perverse people, but we must be careful not to mix with them, rather we should stay away from them. They are the types who will murmur and dispute at all times.

Deuteronomy 32:5 “They have corrupted themselves, their spot is not the spot of his children: they are a perverse and crooked generation.”These people have corrupt minds and they are a perverse and crooked generation. We must be wary of such a generation. It is important for us to know that it is God alone who will make every crooked place straight. If God makes the way straight, no man can do anything to stop the Lord. This is the promise God has given to the Kings. We know that God called Abraham and He separated Abraham from all the people in his life (family, friends, relatives etc.). God told Abraham inGenesis 12:1 “Now the LORD had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father’s house, unto a land that I will shew thee:”God commanded Abraham to leave his country, his father’s house and his land. If Abraham had not obeyed God, he would perhaps have become a grumbler like other people. He would not have obeyed

God to sacrifice his only son. Thus God separated Abraham from amongst the perverse and crooked people. It was only because of this separation that Abraham was prepared to obey God and sacrifice his only son; hence God gifted him with a child after a promise of twenty five years. God always tells people who He knows will obey Him and His Word. God knows that unless we separate from our family and friends, we will never be able to serve God freely. What a mighty work God did in Abraham’s life such that He is known as our Father today.Psalms 125:5 “As for such as turn aside unto their crooked ways, the LORD shall lead them forth with the workers of iniquity: but peace shall be upon Israel. ”Who does God give peace to? He gives peace to the Israelites, who are known as God’s chosen people.

The God of peace came into this world for those who believe in Him. He has given us two ways

• The way of Jesus Christ – it is the way to the heavenly kingdom. John 14:6 “Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by meThe Word is clear, Jesus says “I am the way; no one can reach my Father or the home in Zion without Me”.

• The way of the Evil – for the crooked and the workers of iniquity.Psalms 125:5 “As for such as turn aside unto their crooked ways, the LORD shall lead them forth with the workers of iniquity: but peace shall be upon Israel.”The evil one will work in different ways in our life to put us into sins. But when we have God’s wisdom within us, we can discern right from wrong. We only think of big evil works, but remember that our small sins also take us away from God.

Our God’s promise for us today is that He will make our every crooked and perverse ways straight. Or else, during the judgment, God will send such people to burn in hell fire. We were all crooked and perverse long ago, but today we are washed by the blood of Jesus, hence we should not continue as the crooked and perverse generation. Rather, we should change our lives; we should try to win victory through the many truths of God and ready our lives to reach the promised land of Canaan. God has given us His only son Jesus Christ, who alone is the way, the truth and the life for us. Without Him there is no other way in our lives. When we live in truthfulness and righteousness, our loins will always be girded by the Lord and we shall never be weakened. Our hearts shall never fear as our God will go before us and straighten every crooked way. Today, let us examine ourselves and give our little sins into God’s hands. The Word clearly says that It is only when the Son sets us free then we will be free indeed. Let us commit our every iniquity, small or big, into God’s hands and let us be made free today! May this Word bless each one of us.

Pastor Saroja M.

Rose of Sharon Old Age Home

Greetings once again to all our dear readers in the matchless and Holy name of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ of Nazareth.

 Our next oldest tenured resident is Uncle Paul Pereira, aged 65 years, who was brought to the home in August 2010 and has completed a good 5 years with us.

Uncle Paul is paralysed on the right side and has been bedridden since he was 52 years old. Though being bedridden for such a long time, Paul uncle is not at all sorrowful but is always happy and cheerful. He gets along very well with the other residents around him and loves to talk, crack a lot of jokes and laugh a lot. He is very alert too and always informs me if there is something amiss or something missing and who took it etc.

When Uncle Paul was first admitted to the home, God led us to have a complete pathological checkup to be done for him. In the past, we had never done a pathological checkup at the time of entry. But after having done the pathology check, his reports revealed that he had TB (Tuberculosis) and if we would not have done the test, it could have been fatal for him, but after having come here, God has given him a new life. Even after 5 long years, Uncle Paul is hale and healthy and has never fallen ill. This is only God’s immense grace and mercy in Uncle Paul’s life. We thank the Lord that His eyes and concern is for all the residents here in the Rose of Sharon old age home.

 With regards to his food habits, Uncle Paul is not fussy at all and gladly eats all that is served to him. Only thing that he does not like is fish and he prefers a vegetarian fare instead.

Uncle Paul is alert during the prayer time and always makes it a point to wish all the other residents “Praise the Lord.”

We thank the Lord for taking care of this uncle, and pray that the Lord continue to be with him and keep him in good health and peace as long as he stays with us at the Rose of Sharon old age home in Mira Road.

 Thank you Jesus and Praise the Lord!

W e at the Rose of Sharon Church celebrated the Harvest Festival with great joy and zeal! We had a joyous time together as a family, giving thanks to all of God’s blessings. The Harvest celebrations have now made the children very excited about the upcoming Christmas season!!!

The children’s preparations for the Christmas programmes start months in advance. The rehearsals for Christmas have already started in full swing and the children are all super excited. Of course, the programme will be a surprise till the big day.

The children’s school exams are also nigh and they are preparing for it. After the exams, the children will have a mini- vacation. They have a lot of plans for what they will do during their vacation time. Thus the excitement only doubles –up.

Do continue to remember our little children in your daily prayers.

May we all be filled with excitement and joy for the upcoming season of Christmas!

Praise the Lord!