AOJ NEWS

Rom 4:17 “I have made you a father of many nations”) in the sight of Him in whom he believed, that is, God who gives life to the dead and calls into being that which does not exist.

 Abraham was childless and was called Father of many nations. Abraham was confident of his calling. He knew whom he believed. God was well able to give life to dead situations and call forth things that don’t exist as if they do. This cannot be comprehended with intellectual knowledge.

The first thing Abraham had to do was “to believe”, which is very difficult when things and situations are contrary to what we believe.

Rom 4:17 in NET  version,  – the word “summons” is used.Summon means, command, call into action.

Gen17:5 -God says, your name shall be Abraham; for I have made you a father of  many nations. 

God called something that did not exist.  I am sure the whole town must have laughed at him when he introduced himself as “Father of many nations”. This was an impossible thing. But, God always operates in such a manner.  He looks, speaks and it comes to existence. Abraham knew this.  God had called forth the heaven and earth when the earth was without form and was void.

Gen 1:3 ( KJV) And God said, Let there be light: and there was light.God’s creative power is manifested by words.

Proverbs 18:21 says the tongue has the power of life and death.

Rom 4:18  Are we speaking to plant seeds of hope over our situations and yourself no matter how the situation looks?

We were told during Shekinah and by another Pastor, that my younger son should take steps towards moving to Canada and God will start using him there.  He will also study there. I had lost my job and it seemed like walking on water to take such a huge step, but we stepped out prayerfully. We faced many challenges that we almost gave up. But, God’s grace saw us through. Now a certain amount has to be paid for getting a GIC certificate which is mandatory for filing for student visa.The bank had sent it at the last minute and the Canadian Bank would take 5 days to issue the GIC certificate, but the same day, 8/3/22 we were notified by the college in Canada that Ashok would lose his seat if the visa was not filed within those 3 days, which was next to impossible. The student counsellor asked us to defer the admission, but the Holy Spirit whispered that my God is a God who calls forth things as if they exist. We contacted the Canadian Bank and told them about the gravity of the situation, they also said,” it’s impossible”. I kept declaring Rom 4:17, we found favor in the eyes of the officials in Canada and the Bank released the GIC certificate on 10/3/22 at 3 pm into my mail box ( as promised by the Holy Spirit ) at the 11^th hour, where we had just enough time to file the visa. The student counsellor was astounded.She said in this entire admission process history was created.

Prayer:

Loving Heavenly Father, let all those who read this be touched by your words, let it sink into their being that You are a Great God who alone does wonders. Increase their faith Lord, may they not look at their situations or the world for answers but, look unto Your word for their self, life, situations and their families for You are sufficient in all this. All this I pray in the matchless name of Jesus Christ. Amen!!

              Sol.Lalitha Menon

“That was the true Light which gives light to every man coming into the world.” John 1:9

When there is no electricity, one needs to live in darkness. Even Sun will become dark one day. But Jesus is our everlasting light for our life. Where Jesus is there, no place for darkness.

“I have come as a light into the world, that whoever believes in Me should not abide in darkness.” John 12:46

When Jesus enters your life, poverty, sickness, brokenness, curse, any hopeless situation, depression, anxiety and all negative situations  will be expelled  from your life steadily.

A boy named Bala was born in a small village in Tamil Nadu in the year 1991. Because of poverty, his parents  left him with his aunt at the age of 5. Looking for some job  opportunities they went  to Delhi along with his other 2 siblings.  Bala spent most of his childhood days in taking care of the animals like cows  and visiting school only to have free mid-day meal. Tears  and sorrow used to be his childhood experience. After few years, he also moved to Delhi and became a garbage collector along with his parents and siblings.

When our Lord Jesus stepped into His life, the Lord transformed his brokenness and helpless situation. He has now become a Worship song writer, and a Pastor and is doing the  Lord’s ministry among the broken people transforming their lives.  

When Elohim stepped into this formless, void and dark Earth,  He transformed the formless earth into a beautiful living place. Life has come into existence and started to be fruitful in this earth.

The  same Lord can also transform your hopeless  dark situation and change you into a  light emitting blessed person. When  you  accept  Jesus as your personal Lord and Saviour, , He is  enough to change your helpless situation and you will become a blessing to many people  even to   your family, friends and others.

Prayer:

Dear Father, I am committing my life into your hands.  Accept  me as I am and work in me so that I will be able to emit your light and spread fragrance of your love among the lost people and bring them into your kingdom. Amen.

              Sol. Stella Das AOJ

Ezr 5:1  At that time, the prophets Haggai and Iddo's son Zechariah prophesied specifically to the Jews in Judah and Jerusalem in the name of the God of Israel. 

While the captives of Babylon returned to their country, Israelites started constructing the temple of God with the command and permission of king Cyrus. But the enemies reported it to king Darius who in turn by an order, stopped the work of the Temple.

It is said,

Ezr 4:24  As a result, work on the Temple of God in Jerusalem ceased and did not begin again until the second year of the reign of King Darius of Persia. 

It is very interesting to note how the work started again.

Two prophets, Haggai and Zechariah prophesied specifically to the Jews in the name of the God of Israel regarding this.

When the prophets prophesied, the people started building the temple. And the prophets of God were there supporting them. 

Even then, the enemies came to stop the work of the temple. But how the prophesy worked! How they used their wisdom and prudence in replying is shown in the following verses.

They replied to the king, “………..Since that time until now the Temple has been under construction and is not yet completed.” 

The king verified, found it correct and allowed them to continue the work.

In Old Testament, we see, only fewprophets,  perhaps one in a generation,  to prophesy in the name of the Lord God of Israel. But in new Testament, all the believers can prophesy.

Act 2:17,18  'In the last days, God says, I will pour out my Spirit on everyone. Your sons and your daughters will prophesy, your young men will see visions, and your old men will dream dreams.   In those days I will even pour out my Spirit on my slaves, men and women alike, and they will prophesy. 

Let us prophesy in the name of Jesus Christ, specifically over this  situation of the Church,:

‘Let the real Church of Jesus be built in this land! Let the  powers of hell never conquer it. 

Let the believers continue  to devote themselves to what the apostles were teaching, in  fellowship, to the breaking of bread, and to prayer. 

Let a sense of fear come over everyone, and many wonders and signs be done by the believers. 

Let all  the believers be united and share everything with one another. 

Let they make it their practice to sell their possessions and goods and to distribute the proceeds to anyone who is in need. 

Let them be united in purpose, go to each other’s homes, and share their food with gladness and humble hearts. 

Let they be praising God and enjoying the good will of all the people.

Let the  Lord add to their number those who are being saved. (Acts 2:42-47)

Let  all the believers be  one in heart and soul, and nobody call any of his possessions his own. Instead, let them share everything they own. 

Let the believers, with great power continue to testify to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and let abundant grace be on them all. (Acts 4:32,33)

May the Lord build His original Church in our Nation and all over the world.  May the Troop Church soldiers be used to build  the real Church of Jesus Christ!

                   Sr. Leema Rose AOJ

John 7:38
"He that believeth on me, as the scripture had said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water".

This verse reminds us all of the love of Mother Theresa that flows out of her heart.  It was pure and unadulterated love,  not mixed with selfish motives. It is the Agape love of Jesus.

  The source of a river determines  the size, course  and nature of the river whether it is constant  or temporary which dries up in summer. Zechariah 14:8 says ‘in summer and in winter it remains the same’. It won’ t dry up.

Jesus is the Author and finisher of our  faith and our lives.

John 4:14
"But whosoever drinks  of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst......."

           Our living  rivers that sustain us start and finish in Jesus.  These rivers that flow from the heart of a believer in Jesus are rivers of love, Joy, hope, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, humility and self control. These  are   the nine rivers that Jesus said flows from our hearts  and souls.

Galatians 5:22, 23

"But the fruit of the spirit is love, Joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness ,temperance".

 These rivers will never stop its flow  or  retreat when difficulties, challenges hardships like rock ,mountains etc. come  on its way They produce manifold grace of Jesus in our lives.  No rocks can stop the flow of the soft water. similarly we need to flow through or around the hard rocks of our lives.

 There are no impurities in this  living water. If love it is the Agape love of Jesus, not mixed with selfish motives. If it is Joy, it needs to be the Joy of the Lord, that is eternal and stable. If it is hope, it is the eternal  assurance  of living for ever and deliverance from all afflictions  in this world. If peace it is the peace that passes human understanding. If patience, we must  wait and know that it will happen in God, in its own time. If it is kindness,   it is kindness to all people and creatures. If it is goodness, it should not be motivated by the thought of personal fame or good name but for the glory of the Father in Heaven. If it is humility, it must be like Jesus submitting to the will of God. Self control needs to be evidence in the way we submit our tongues ,talent, time, temperament,   to the leading of the Holy Spirit.

  Our lives should  flow, continually producing fruits. A river is life giving and  life enhancing. Our actions and reactions  should be life giving and life enhancing.  We should carry the living waters of the nine rivers and give hope and power to the  hopeless and powerless. A river brings moisture  and healing to a land of drought.

Isaiah44:3 
 "I will pour water upon him that is thirsty, and floods upon the dry ground".

                Sol. Gigi  Jacob AOJ

Luke 21:8

" And he said, Take heed that you are not deceived, for many shall come in my name saying, I am !"

Jesus said, Take heed that you are not deceived (believe in something that is not true) .

 In the beginning itself the book of Genesis introduces to us the deceiver in chapter 3 who deceived Eve and Adam very cunningly that made them to believe in whatever the serpent said.

GOD who loved man that he wanted to see him have a fulfilled life with goodness that He

1. Sprang up every tree – good for food
2. Brought a helper fit for him

In between came the serpent with the device which deceived them that they acted against the command of GOD , which led them to hide themselves from the presence the God.

Result of it was shame, fear, death and was driven out of Eden.

Even now the time is  at hand for God’s coming .Jesus says, the same. Take heed  that , you are not deceived.

Its necessary to identify  the devices that the deceiver (satan) uses to deceive us

“Many are the plans in the mind of a man but it is the purpose of the LORD will stand“

On that day Eve passed the fruit to Adam Now it is  our turn.

In today’s world, the deceiver comes with the devices to deceive our minds with many  thoughts which seem to be delight to the eyes, and  desirable to make one wise  which is against God’s Plan and  will.

Moses chose

 Heb : 11:25 : "Choosing rather to be mistreated with the people of GOD, than to Enjoy the fleeting pleasures of Sin".

 Prov: 31:30 "Charm is deceitful and  beauty is vain but the woman who fears the LORD to be praised".

1.Pleasures of Sin – fleeting 

2. charm and  beauty – deceitful and  vain.

 But seems to be good and  makes us feel that they are wiser plans, but the plans of GOD always wiser So it is better to fear GOD and  to listen to His word that gives Eternal life than to listen to satan and  be driven from the Eternal life and  miss the beauty of life with GOD

Prayer:

Loving Father we believe that your plans are always  above our imaginations and help us to win the deceiver by your grace and help us to have  relationship with you forever . Amen.

               Sol. Pinta Eunice, AOJ

Eze 11:19 Then I'll give them a united heart, placing a new spirit within them. I'll remove their stubborn heart and give them a heart that's sensitive to me. 

The Lord promises to give  a united heart. What is a united heart?

Man has three faculties. Body soul and spirit. Taking a decision unitedly with these three faculties is the toughest work in man. Paul said,

Gal 5:17  For what the flesh wants is opposed to the Spirit, and what the Spirit wants is opposed to the flesh. They are opposed to each other, and so you do not do what you want to do. 

When a man takes a decision unitedly bringing all these three faculties together, it will be executed. Bringing all these three in the same scale, is a  war.  Taking every thought captive and  bringing it under the obedience of Jesus Christ is the victory. 

In order to win this victory, a new spirit is needed. Only God can give us this new spirit. God promises today to give you this new spirit.

Until  we receive this new spirit, we will be rock hearted, insensitive to God and to people.

Eze 36:26  "I'm going to give you a new heart, and I'm going to give you a new spirit within all of your deepest parts. I'll remove that rock-hard heart of yours and replace it with one that's sensitive to me.

An insensitive heart cannot humble itself before God and people. Only after getting a sensitive heart  we can do that. Until one humbles oneself before God, He cannot bless him or  make him hear His voice

2Ch 34:27  "Because your heart was sensitive, and you humbled yourself before God when you heard what he had to say about this place and its inhabitants—indeed, because you humbled yourself before me, tore your clothes, and cried out to me, I have heard you," declares the LORD. 

In the beginning days of our ministry, once we were invited to pray in a house. Without telling the problems they are facing,  they asked us to pray. We were praying with them. The Lord revealed their problem through one verse Ezek 11:18

When we finished the prayer, the wife came to me and told me, “We are running a theatre. Mostly blue films are shown there. This is our family property. Father in law and all the sons are sharing the income of it.”

The Lord warned them to give away that income and come out of that business.

After a few months the same family invited us, took us for a prayer in their house. By that time, one sad incident had happened in that house. His brother’s  wife burned herself and committed suicide. Only father and 2 small innocent children were there. In order to learn more about the commandments and ways of the Lord, the eldest  brother and his wife attended one training. After that, they broke off, told their father boldly,

“We are going away, we do not want any income from this profession”. They left the big house which father had built for them and started living in a rented house. They renounced all the income that come from the theatre.

The Lord fulfilled His promise. When they cast away all the detestable practices  from their life, the Lord gave them a united heart, placed a new spirit within them.

May God bless you.

Sr. Anitta  AOJ

John 12:50 “And I know that his commandment is eternal life. What I say, therefore, I say as the Father has told me.”

Jesus says,  His commandment is “Eternal Life”.

What are the commandment? The Lord gave the ten  commandments to Moses. Jesus Christ has upgraded  the 10 commandments and made it into two in  a compressed form.

Mar 12:30  "And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength."

Mar 12:31  "The second is this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself."

He also added, “There is no other commandment greater than these.” 

The ten  commandments have so much of in depth meaning in it. It comprises the whole life of man. His individual, family, social, political, intellectual, spiritual life, all are  included in this.

Take the case of Russian Ukranian war, ecological problems, or any lawsuit  filed in the courts . The root cause will be violation of any one or more of the ten commandments.  

Take any crime committed in the society today, it is either violation or negligence of a commandment. 

The proper teaching of the ten Commandments and its after effects SHOULD BE  AN INDISPENSABLE FACTOR OF THE SOCIETY.

And I know that his commandment is eternal life

Jesus said, ‘The commandment  given by the Father are “Eternal Life”.

Every human being, whichever religion he belongs to, has a conscience which makes him believe in life after death or “Eternal life”. The beliefs in various religions may be different but almost all, even atheists believe in  life after death.

During Jesus Christ’s earthly life various types of people  were anxious to know  about Eternal life and how they can  attain it. 

We see ordinary people  coming to Jesus with queries about “Eternal Life”.

Mat 19:16  And behold, a man came up to him, saying, “Teacher, what good deed must I do to have eternal life?”

Lawyers   came and asked Jesus  about  Eternal Life.

Luke  10:25  And behold, a lawyer stood up to put him to the test, saying, “Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?”

Rulers also came to Jesus and asked about Eternal Life.

Luke 18:18  And a ruler asked him, “Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?”

In answer  Jesus said,

“His commandments are Eternal Life”. “His” here is The heavenly Father’s..

When we study  human history, it gives a lot pleasant surprises to know how God,  the Father, Son Jesus Christ, and Holy Spirit  interfere  with individuals. 

Let’s  note the word  here “His Commandments”.

Once in my mission trip, when I stayed in a house, I saw first time an  electronic device connected to drive mosquitoes. (Mosquito bats, mats, “All outs” all came later). In the morning, out of curiosity I asked them, “This looks cute.  Where did you buy this? Immediately that sister plugged it off,  packed it and brought it to me. I felt so bad. I realized my mistake of showing interest in that object which belonged to them. I asked sorry but she was adamant in inserting that package in my suitcase.

I learned a lesson.

Exodus 20:17  “You shall not covet ……..anything that is your neighbor's.”

Whether you covet or not you  should not even show a sign of coveting. That also is wrong.

                           Sr. Roger AOJ

“And you shall be betrayed also by parents and brothers and kinsmen and friends”.

Luke : 21 : 16

We are living in trying times. This chapter is like a revelation as what is likely to happen in the coming days and how we can be rescued from the various forms of troubles which are likely to hit us from inside and outside. We are likely to be even betrayed by our own kith and kin in the coming days, Lord says we are likely to be deceived even by people who come to us and preach us about Lord or use Lord’s name to get our attention. It is essential that we stay vigilant and hold on to Lord our God and pray and get His guidance in every situation. Just like mentioned in this chapter we are witnessing the Russia- Ukraine war which seems to have no end or we are not able to get into some mediation to get the war to an end. We are also witnessing the various pandemics, economic downturns in various countries including our own neighbor Sri Lanka. We are likely to get scared and worry about what is likely to happen to us in this current scenario.

As believers of Lord Jesus Christ, we should not and need not worry about anything but just hold on to His words and keep believing in Him. Believing and having faith in Him will not push us into any danger as He is our refuge and fortress.

As per Psalm 91:2

“I will say of the Lord He is my refuge and my fortress. My God in him I will trust”.

When we walk in the path of Jesus, we are likely to face lot of obstacles.  But just believing that it is He who is guiding us and he who will carry us, should give us lot of remorse and help us face all the adversities in life. Just repeating the verses below has helped me sail through the toughest moments in my life and made people wonder how strongly I handled the situations. Those who know me will believe that it is the Lord in me who helped me and made me strong in front of others.

Psalm 138: 8

"The Lord will perfect that which concernth me, thy mercy, O Lord, endureth for ever, forsake not the works of thine own hands".

Trusting in the Lord, having the utmost faith that He will guide us and surrendering everything to Him, will help us overcome the dangers from within the family and outside. He who created us will protect and guide us in his paths.

Proverbs 3: 5-6

"Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him and he shall direct your paths."

Even when the world is against you, if God is with you nothing can harm you.

“Sol. Geraldine Viji Cruz Xavio

“Where there is no vision, the people perish”

(Proverbs 29:18 ).

The wise king of Israel, Solomon, stated in his book of Proverbs,

These words have been quoted and repeated by millions of people over the years because they capture the significant role vision has in our individual, corporate, and national lives.

The full essence of his statement implies that where there is no revelation of the future, people throw off self-control, personal discipline, and restraint.

Simply put, vision is the source of personal and corporate discipline.

And while most humans have 20/20 vision, eagles are blessed with an astounding 20/5 vision. That means that what looks sharp and clear to us at 5 feet is just as clear to an eagle from 20 feet away. No wonder we use the term “eagle eyes” to describe superb vision.

Vision sets you free from the limitations of what the eyes can see and allows you to enter into the liberty of what the heart can feel. It is vision that makes the unseen visible and the unknown possible.

Vision Is The Foundation Of Courage And The Fuel Of Persistence.

It was the vision of flight that inspired the Wright brothers to invent the
aeroplane. It was the vision of light that possessed Thomas Edison to invent the light bulb. It was the vision of a desk-sized computer that motivated Stephen Jobs to invent the desktop computer. It was the vision of giving every person access to people-friendly software that inspired Bill Gates to develop and invent the Microsoft global empire.

Hagar named God, “God of vision”
Gen 16:13  And she called the name of Jehovah who had spoken to her, You are a God of vision! For she said, Even here have I looked after Him that sees me?

Visions should be clearly written down on tablets so that all could read and understand.
Hab 2:2  And Jehovah answered me and said, Write the vision, and make it plain on the tablets, that he who reads it may run.

Child Samuel was raised at a time when there were no visions at all in Israel.
1Sa 3:1  And the child Samuel served Jehovah before Eli. And the Word of Jehovah was rare in those days. There was no open vision.Sol.

SOL. BINESH,AOJ

“Settle it therefore in your minds not to meditate beforehand how to answer.”

Luke 21:14

Exodus 4:12- ” Now go. I will help you as you speak, and I will teach you what you say.”

We should not forget to preach gospel and testimonies among nations having faith in Lord. During this, if people charge or tease us, we need not worry about what to say or how to defend ourselves. Lord Jesus will give us words and wisdom. So, all this will be for God’s glory also.

We have to still stand as a witness to our faith. Holy Spirit, our master will answer them. So, we have to be comforted during the ups and downs and severe trials of our life. Our faith in Lord should not shake.

There is a testimony regarding this verse. In Punjab two Soldiers Hardeep and Sandeep, used to go to the Pastors and church in their area. After some time they joined AOJ. When their pastors came to know about this, they became rivals to them and never allowed to enter the church.

They defamed brothers among villagers and asked them not to speak with both of them. But they had faith in Lord and did not utter anything before them. After one year, in the same church one Pastor’s nephew(also pastor) quarreled with those Pastors on some issue and terminated them from that church and he occupied that place. So the same happened with them. Lord answered them.

Luke 12:12 – “For the Holy Spirit will teach you in that very hour what you ought to say.”
We should settle our hearts and dedicate ourselves to the Lord, so that, whatever comes, we will be ready, and confident that God will be there to meet all our needs.

And if we are not confident then let’s work with God and tell him what we want, he will help us.

Mathew10:19- “When they deliver you over, do not be anxious how you are to speak or what you are to say, for what you are to say will be given to you in that hour.”

Lord Jesus promises to be with us always to the very end of the age (Mathew 28:20) That means even in the darkest moment of our life, He will be with us always and forever.

Sol. Poonam Batra, AOJ