Editor’s Note

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

In every situation, when we understand God’s truth our life will be blessed. Many know the situation but do not know the truth within.

They know about Noah’s story. They know Jacob’s story. They know Abraham’s story. They know about David’s story. But they do not know the word or the power of the word.

The Lord 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 that are mighty.

When Gideon thought he was impoverished and was fearful, the Lord called out to him in Judges 6:12, “And the angel of the LORD appeared unto him, and said unto him, The LORD is with thee, thou mighty man of valour.” When the Lord called him a mighty man of valour, Gideon was looking here and there. The Lord told him ‘you are the one.’

In the Bible we see each of the various chosen persons were not great mighty men, not wise, not intelligent. The Lord, after meeting them touched their lives and gave them faith, belief and wisdom and made them new persons.

The Lord also met and changed the lives of many people who had bad qualities. What was Saul doing? Acts 9:1-2 “And Saul, yet breathing out threatenings and slaughter against the disciples of the Lord, went unto the high priest, And desired of him letters to Damascus to the synagogues, that if he found any of this way, whether they were men or women, he might bring them bound unto Jerusalem.” Saul was threatening to murder the disciples and thus break congregations. At that time the Lord met him and changed him from a breaker of congregations to a maker of congregations. He converted Saul into Paul. Now Paul is saying 1 Timothy 6:5-11 “Perverse disputings of men of corrupt minds, and destitute of the truth, supposing that gain is godliness: from such withdraw thyself. But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out. And having food and raiment, let us be therewith content. But they that will be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition. For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred  from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows. But thou, O man of God, flee these things; and follow after righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, meekness.”

When the Lord changes a person we will not recognise him. If the word of God comes into you, He will make you a new person. Keep your mind on the word of God. Joshua 1:8 “This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success.”

May God bless you all till we meet again.

Yours in our Lord’s service,

Pastor Saroja M.

 

Praise the Lord. I am Shirin Naag from Gumla, Jharkhand. I had called twice for prayer. Few months ago I had pain in my chest and stomach and had asked the prayer warrior for prayer over the Rose of Sharon prayer line, for which I got healed from all my chest and stomach pain. Few day ago my back and whole body was in pain again and I called the Rose of Sharon prayer line. The prayer warrior on the call prayed for me in Jesus’ name. I thank Lord Jesus for giving me relief from all my pain.

*Bro. Shirin Naag, Jharkhand (ROS TV Program Viewer)

Praise the Lord. As every year, this year also I had to organize the Annual Conference for our Supply Chain group. As soon as the dates and venue were declared, I informed Pastor Saroja about the same. Now, I have just returned from a great conference which was a ‘Thumping success only by God’s grace and Pastor Saroja’s prayers. The conference was a great achievement and appreciated by all! The Lord God took complete charge of my health too, and my knees did not hurt at all. My good Lord also enabled me to finish the conference and attend the Saturday service in time. I give all glory and praise to our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ for this success and thank Pastor Saroja for her encouragement, love and fervent prayers for me always. Thank you Jesus!

*Sis. June Anchan, Mira Road.

Praise the Lord. I make sweets and sell them in my locality. I had a desire to start a business on my own making sweets in large quantities and catering to various parties and functions. So I kept a prayer request at the ROS helpline. After the prayers, soon I started getting orders from big parties and my business started to grow. Now I have purchased and started one more big shop at my place. I give heartfelt thanks to our Lord Jesus Christ and thank ROS Ministry for their prayers.

*Bro. Subhash Kumar Singh, Punjab (ROS TV Program Viewer)

Praise the Lord. I had misplaced my mobile in my company’s transport service. I realised this when I entered the office premises. I tried to call the bus driver but he was not responding. Through God’s grace alone I was able to get my mobile back later. It was there in the bus only. I praise and glorify Lord who even takes care of each of my single belongings. I also thank Pastor Saroja who always remembers me in her prayers.

*Bro. Hardik Patel, Mira Road.

Praise the Lord. I am a regular caller of the ROS helpline. Whenever I am in need I call and ask them for prayers for me and my family members. I used to experience heavy bleeding during my periods; my doctor had advised me to get operated for removal of my uterus. I gave my request on the ROS Women’s prayer helpline and the prayer warrior prayed for me. The next day my operation went smoothly without any complications. After three days I was discharged and back home I started experiencing problems in passing motions due to severe constipation. I couldn’t sit in the toilet and if I sat longer, the stitches on the operated part would swell and give me unbearable pain. I contacted the ROS prayer helpline again and asked for prayers. Within a few days my condition improved and now I am totally healed. All glory, honour and praise be to our Lord Jesus Christ. I also sincerely thank the Rose of Sharon Ministry for their constant prayers for me. Thank You Jesus.

*Sis. Gayatri, Rajasthan (ROS TV Program Viewer)

Praise the Lord.  I suddenly started experiencing severe tooth pain and was quite scared to go to a dentist. In faith I applied the prayer oil to my gums and tooth and by God’s grace the pain vanished the next day and till date I do not have tooth pain. I would like to thank Jesus Christ who healed me through the prayer oil and thank Pastor Saroja who prays for the prayer oil every fasting prayer. Thank you Jesus.

*Sis. Padma Jaykanth, Kalina

An old farmer sat on the steps of his small shack chewing on a piece of straw. He was approached by a passing stranger who was looking for a cool drink of water. Wishing to start a conversation with the farmer, the stranger asked, “How is your cotton crop coming this year?”

“I ain’t got none”, replied the farmer.

“Didn’t you plant any?” asked the stranger.

“Nope,” said the farmer, “I was afraid the boll weevils would get it.”

“Well,” asked the stranger, “how is your corn?”

“Didn’t plant any corn either,” replied the man, “I was afraid there wasn’t going to be any rain.”

“If you didn’t plant any cotton or corn, what did you plant?’ asked the man.

“Nothing,” said the farmer. “I just played it safe!”

Well, I guess if you don’t plant anything, it makes the harvest a lot easier, doesn’t it?

In our Bible reading today, Jesus sent out people to bring in the harvest. The harvest Jesus was talking about was not cotton, fruit or vegetables. He was sending out workers to bring people into the kingdom of God. He said that there were many souls who were ready to be harvested, but there were not enough workers. One reason it was hard to find workers was that it was very difficult work. Jesus warned that the workers in his kingdom would often be treated very unkindly.

Jesus is still looking for people who will work for him and bring people into his kingdom. That is what the church is supposed to do. It won’t always be easy. In fact, it will be hard. Many people in the church are like the farmer in our story — they are “just playing it safe.” It has been said that eight out of ten church members have never invited anyone to church and that nine out of ten church members have never won anyone to Christ.

How about you? Are you willing to work for Jesus and invite people to come to church? Will you go and tell people about Jesus’ love and that he died on the cross so that they could have everlasting life? There are many souls who are need to be brought into God’s kingdom, but there just aren’t enough workers.

Pastor Saroja M

 The Keeper of Israel neither sleeps nor slumbers

Isaiah 40:27 “Why sayest thou, O Jacob, and speakest, O Israel, My way is hid from the LORD, and my judgment is passed over from my God?” One day when Jacob was grumbling, God heard his murmur and his prayers. What was his murmurings? His murmuring was that God does not hear his prayers… God is not answering his prayers. Many of us too feel the same, we feel that God does not hear or answer our prayers. But our God hears and He is a prayer answering God. God heard and answered Jacob’s prayer too. It is important for us to know one truth i.e. Our God neither slumbers nor sleeps. Also, He will not leave his children alone. Psalm 121:4 “Behold, he that keepeth Israel shall neither slumber nor sleep.” There is also one more truth about our God: Isaiah 40:29 “He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might he increaseth strength.” He strengthens the weak, when we fall upon Him. We must always wait upon the Lord God. When we wait upon the Lord, we will not be weakened but rather He will renew our strength to fly like an eagle. Isaiah 40:31 “But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.”

Isaiah 40:5 “And the glory of the LORD shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together: for the mouth of the LORD hath spoken it.”

Isaiah 40:11 “He shall feed his flock like a shepherd: he shall gather the lambs with his arm, and carry them in his bosom, and shall gently lead those that are with young.” Yes, when we put our faith and trust in Him alone, he will lead His flock like a shepherd and carry us in His bosom.

In David’s life, he experienced weakness once. In Psalm 121:4 “Behold, he that keepeth Israel shall neither slumber nor sleep” God speaks to his soul and David knew that our Lord God does not sleep nor slumber, thus he believed that God would see his weakness and strengthen him. When David was sorrowful and weak, he spoke to his own soul asking ‘Why are you weary? Why are you weak?  Our God is alive, He is a God who will strengthen the weak and weary, hence we must rejoice in the Lord God. We know that all the mighty men whose names appear in the Holy Scriptures were once weak and weary themselves. They too experienced the hand of God upon them. We must remember that our God will not forsake us ever. We know that the evil one will bring weakness in our physical bodies – mentally, emotionally and in our thoughts too. But we must remember that our God knows our ways and He will strengthen us. Psalm 68:9 says “Thou, O God, didst send a plentiful rain, whereby thou didst confirm thine inheritance, when it was weary.” God has given life to our life which was a wilderness. Similarly, if we are tired in our faith today, God will never fail us. His eyes are upon those who are weak and weary.

Isaiah 49:14 “But Zion said, The LORD hath forsaken me, and my Lord hath forgotten me.” Here we see the story of a woman whose is faithless, who cries out to God, but God does not hear and answer her prayers. Just like Jacob, she too cries out to God ‘Why have you forsaken me?’ But God’s answer to her in Isaiah 49:15-16 is “Can a woman forget her sucking child, that she should not have compassion on the son of her womb? yea, they may forget, yet will I not forget thee. Behold, I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands; thy walls are continually before me.” A mother may forget her nursing child, but God will never forget us, for our names are inscribed on His palms. The devil planned a nefarious plan: he nailed Jesus on the Cross and nailed those very hands. Jesus accepted the nails, so that we may live in peace, in love of God, and in good health with His grace alone. Jesus died on the Cross to give us freedom from our sins and evil ways. He willingly took the nails pierced into His hands because our face is always before Him. Yes, many of us when we are angry and weary, say what we feel like. We think our God does not listen to or hear our prayers. Psalm 27:10 “When my father and my mother forsake me, then the LORD will take me up.” The word says that even if our parents forsake us, God will never leave or forsake us. We know that He was sent into this world for our sakes. He completed the work He was sent for, by going on the Cross willingly. Nobody would die for us, but Jesus died for us. Remember that God did not punish us according to our sins, rather He died for our sins. Ezekiel 20:44 “And ye shall know that I am the LORD, when I have wrought with you for my name’s sake, not according to your wicked ways, nor according to your corrupt doings, O ye house of Israel, saith the Lord GOD.” There are many people to stand as witness for the rich, but where the poor are concerned they will have no one. But it is only our God, who knowing our sins and weaknesses, chose to die for us on the Cross and deliver us from our sins. It is not our righteousness or goodness for which Jesus died on the Cross. Jesus’ death on the Cross changed our destiny. His kindness and mercy are new each day in our lives. Hence it is important for us to know that we should never grumble or murmur against our God. We must know this truth in our life. He will never let us get weary and tired.

Hebrews 12:1 “Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us.” Many of us must remember that not all are privileged, many of us even do not have a little money and hence cannot travel to church during the last week of the month. We should think about this and thank God for His blessings in our lives. This is a small example, but there are many things in this life that we need to thank God for. Till there is a sea, there will be storms and waves on the sea; likewise till we live on this earth there will be trials and tribulations, and the devil will not stay away from our lives, rather he will constantly test our faith. Isaiah 57:20-21 “But the wicked are like the troubled sea, when it cannot rest, whose waters cast up mire and dirt. There is no peace, saith my God, to the wicked.” The wicked will never cease from casting allegations at God’s people. As the sea keeps throwing it’s dirt on to the shore, till the earth exists so will our problems exists. Hence we must never grumble and murmur against God. We must thank God for hearing our prayers, answering our prayers, for keeping us in good health always. Every small work of our hand HE will bless and we must always be thankful to HIM. When Jacob was complaining to God, thinking that God had forsaken him, God said to Him ‘Behold, he that keepeth Israel shall neither slumber nor sleep.’ We are His children and should believe in His great works in our lives. Isaiah 52:2-1 “Shake thyself from the dust; arise, and sit down, O Jerusalem: loose thyself from the bands of thy neck, O captive daughter of Zion. Awake, awake; put on thy strength, O Zion; put on thy beautiful garments, O Jerusalem, the holy city: for henceforth there shall no more come into thee the uncircumcised and the unclean.” Once when we know of this truth, we will never pursue our old behaviour again. In the Holy Scriptures, we know that Esau went hunting one day where he became very weary and tired; and his brother Jacob took advantage of this tiredness.

On the Mount, when Jesus was fasting for forty days and night, He became physically weak. At that time Satan came before Him and tempted Him to turn the stones into bread and eat the same. Mathew 4:2-3 “And when he had fasted forty days and forty nights, he was afterward an hungred. And when the tempter came to him, he said, If thou be the Son of God, command that these stones be made bread.” Jesus drove off the devil with the ‘Word’ alone. So what are we mortals? We are nothing – for if Jesus was weak and weary and He could be tempted, will the evil one leave us? It is at our weakest time that the devil will make us falter further. As Esau was tired, his brother Jacob cheated on him and took away his birthright for a morsel of food. Genesis 25:29-32 “And Jacob sod pottage: and Esau came from the field, and he was faint: And Esau said to Jacob, Feed me, I pray thee, with that same red pottage; for I am faint: therefore was his name called Edom. And Jacob said, Sell me this day thy birthright. And Esau said, Behold, I am at the point to die: and what profit shall this birthright do to me?” Here we see how due to Esau’s tiredness, Jacob cheated him and took Esau’s birthright from him and Esau easily surrendered himself into his brother’s hands. Genesis 25:33-34 “And Jacob said, Swear to me this day; and he sware unto him: and he sold his birthright unto Jacob. Then Jacob gave Esau bread and pottage of lentiles; and he did eat and drink, and rose up, and went his way: thus Esau despised his birthright.” The moment we are tired, we become weary and start murmuring. As Esau and Jacob, we also may fight with our siblings and we may be ready to part with our birthright. In our lives too, we may face tiredness and weariness, like Zion in Isaiah 49 who lost her faith and also like Esau who sold his birthright to Jacob. We are not super humans and we will also feel tired and be weary, but at that time we must know who we should grumble and murmur to. We must speak with wisdom and never be foolish. We know that in the end Esau realized his mistake, but could not reverse his decision and take back his birthright from Jacob. The evil one brings temptation upon us when we are weakest physically and emotionally. When we are tired we must realize that God alone can help us, because His Grace alone is good for us.

We know that Jesus experienced a lot of shame, humiliation in His life. God knows our every humiliation in life for He too faced the same. When the world did not leave Jesus, will they ever leave us alone? Never! The devil will never have rest if he leaves us alone. There is nothing that our Lord God has hidden from us. He is neither blind nor dumb nor deaf. He can hear and He will answer our every petition in His time. Mathew 15:32 “Then Jesus called his disciples unto him, and said, I have compassion on the multitude, because they continue with me now three days, and have nothing to eat: and I will not send them away fasting, lest they faint in the way.” When Jesus finished preaching on the Mount after three days and nights, He realized how tired, hungry and weary the people would be. He did not want to send them away hungry and tired. God is always worried about His children. He knows what will happen in our lives tomorrow. He knows each one’s income and expenses. He cares for us. In the crowd there was one boy who had a few fish and seven loaves of bread. Jesus took it, broke it before the Father God and fed the hungry people gathered. How much He loves His people! He knows us and cares for us. He is a God who neither sleeps nor slumbers.

It is written in the Word that those who stand before God will never be put to shame. Ephesians 1:18 “The eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that ye may know what is the hope of his calling, and what the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints.” When we are tired in our physical body, our spiritual eyes must not shut down.

2 Corinthians 4:16 “For which cause we faint not; but though our outward man perish, yet the inward man is renewed day by day.” Our external man must die and our internal man must rise up! We must remember how the goldsmith does not put stone into the furnace for purifying, rather he puts gold into the furnace for purifying it further to convert it to its purest form. Hence we must ensure that our outward qualities must die for good but our inner person must be renewed day by day.

Let this message bring blessings in our lives!  Praise the Lord.

Pastor Saroja M.

Praise the Lord. Greetings to all our dear readers in the most Holy name of Jesus Christ . Wishing all you readers a very Happy Harvest from all the residents of the Rose of Sharon Old Aged home.

In this month’s edition we would like to introduce our new Uncle Edwin Tellis who is 64 yrs old . Uncle Edwin is suffering from high Diabetes and he is on insulin . Uncle Edwin came to our home with his left leg half amputated because of diabetes . Inspite of this illness Uncle Edwin is very patient and kind in his behavior. He also likes the food served in the home.

We pray to Jesus Christ for his healing and to bring his diabetes to normal.

Do continue to pray for all the residents of our Rose of Sharon Old Aged home.

Happy Harvest !!

Praise the Lord. Harvest is festival of celebration of the food grown in the land, it’s a ceremony of celebrations of a successful harvest reaped in the year. A festival of thanksgiving and praise for what the Lord has done for us throughout the year. An offering of thanksgiving for all the good things received.

As the kids enjoy celebrating the festival of harvest. They are preparing for their Sunday School examination, the excitement for the preparation for the Christmas programs too kicks in.

The kids have enjoyed learning from the various books and characters from the bible this year. While the junior kids continued to explore the new parables, the senior kids learnt from the book of Genesis. They learnt from the life of Abraham to Jacob of the blessing that has been passed on to generations and of the promise of the rainbow to Noah.

As the kids continue their learning in Sunday School. Do uplift our little ones in your prayers.

Wish you all a blessed harvest, as we all celebrate the festival with great joy and gladness for the abundant blessings we receive throughout the year.