Friday, September 2, 2011
Brown's Daily Word 9-2-11
Good morning,
As summer comes to an end with Labor Day approaching, I like to dwell upon summer. During the summer months I think of Jesus our Lord encountering a woman of Samaria on a "dog day afternoon". We read this account in John 4. all starting with a simple request for a drink of water.
Jesus was journeying northward with His disciples from Jerusalem, on His way to the area known as the Galilee. The journey took them through the countryside in an area known as Samaria. It was noon, the hottest part of the day, when they paused along their way near the city of Sychar.
Jesus tarried by the well where the people of Sychar came to get water while His disciples went into the city to pick up some lunch. It was a very famous well, and a landmark in the community. Many years before that land was given by Jacob (later to be known as Israel) to his son Joseph. Jacob, one of the three great patriarchs of the faith, was an important link to these people.
As Jesus gazed in the direction of the city, looking toward the direction that the disciples had gone, he saw a woman approaching, coming to the well to draw water. He asked her to draw Him a drink of water. As the conversation unfolded we perceive that He knew all about her life. He knew her. Jesus can see our deepest shame, but Jesus can also see our deepest pain and our deepest need. He linked immediately with this woman at the point in her life that set her life at odds with the rest of society. He knew this woman!
Jesus knows us too. He knows our need, He knows our pain, and He knows the point at which we need to change. He also knows the greatest potential within us; He knows us better than we know ourselves.
This woman discovered all of this while at the well. She knew that He must be a prophet to see into her heart so deeply. Jesus entered into a very deep conversation with her. She ultimately liked what she heard because it had a ring of truth to it. It liberated her from the smudge of her Samaritan heritage because deep down she had a heart for God.
As the disciples finally returned with lunch they were shocked to see this public display of interaction but they did not say a word about it. The woman then went into the city to spread the word of her encounter. That which ensued was another metaphor (of harvesting) which Jesus used to expound on His point. We don’t know if the disciples understood any better.
Hopefully, we get the point today and see that there are people all around, people we encounter everyday, who are literally starving to be fed spiritually. There are townspeople waiting for us to share our encounter with Jesus with them. They are people we know and with whom we have relationships, who need to hear from us what this woman has learned in her encounter with Jesus... They need to hear and to know how Jesus meets us at the point of struggle in our lives. While we are mulling over our problems, He is listening, and He knows how overwhelming our problems can be. Our physical struggles may not end. Sometimes there are consequences for our actions, but Jesus cares, reaches out to us especially when we feel on the edge, ostracized from society, cut off from life because of our problems.
Jesus makes the initial request. That is, He seeks to enter our lives, to have an encounter with us. Jesus has so much more to offer us than we could ever imagine. It will quench our thirst in a way we can never imagine. Life may still have its problems, but our encounter with Christ provides us away to transcend all of life’s problems, get our priorities straight, and find a way to what is really important, what really matters.
There are townspeople who need to hear this message. It is really amazing that Christ can and chooses to work through people like us - no matter what we might have done or left undone, no matter what we might think of ourselves, or what others might think about us... or even what we think they think about us.
We can be messengers to the townspeople too. We can share about our personal encounters with Jesus.
Next week Monday is Labor Monday. It sends a signal to us that we all will be going back to school, off to college, back to work, and back to church. Who are the townspeople whom you and I need to talk to? Who are the townspeople we need to invite to join us to discover what we have discovered. Let us use every opportunity to do so.
In Christ,
Brown
http://youtu.be/d8lO8c7fypM
Saturday Evening Worship Service
Location: First United Methodist Church
53 McKinley Avenue
Endicott, NY
Sponsored by: Union Center United Methodist Church
Time: 6:00 PM gathering for Coffee Fellowship
6:30 PM Worship Service
Date: Saturday, September 17, 2011
Speaker: Rev. Earle Cowden
Ministers from First Baptist Church in Owego, Crossroads Church in Binghamton, Cornerstone Christian Church in Endicott, and Hawleyton United Methodist Church will be participating in this worship service. Special Music will be led by various praise teams. Information : call 607-748-6329
Come! Share! Rejoice!
Wednesday, August 31, 2011
Brown's Daily Word 8-31-11
Good morning,
Praise the Lord for this new day, the last day of August. Praise the Lord for sweet summer. Alice and I are planning to take our nieces and nephews to the great New York State Fair in Syracuse today. The last time we visited the fair was in 1979.
Alice and I walked under starry sky last night for 4 miles between 8:50 and 10 PM. It is exhilarating to walk, gazing at the "Spacious Firmament on High". King David was probably walking at night and gazing at starry skies as he composed Psalm 8.
Praise the Lord for the way He lavishes us with so much love and so much beauty. He is the Lord whose nature is to perform miracles time after time. I am always intrigued by the miracle the Lord performed in the life of a pagan general called Naaman. The miracle unfolded as three lives were woven together by God’s timely providence. The three people were a young slave, a Syrian general, and a prophet.
The Lord used an ordinary slave girl, whose name we do not know, to be a partner in His miracle. She was a young girl, perhaps a teenager. Taken captive by Syrian raiders, she became a servant in the Syrian commander’s house. We can Imagine what slavery meant to the young girl. The burdens of loneliness, separation, and obedience must have been almost unbearable. Certainly her heart ached to go home, but she knew that she would very likely never see home again.
What is remarkable in this young slave is that she did not succumb to bitterness. She did not let her circumstances control her thoughts or her faith. She rose above and triumphed over circumstances. Not only did she maintain her faith, but she also became a witness for her faith. She told her master about the prophet Elisha and the possibility of healing. If this young slave had not had the right spirit, the miracle never would have occurred. Her master would have remained a leper, and God would have had one less member of His kingdom.
The message rings loud and clear. Our joy in the Christian faith must not be linked to our external circumstances. Our faith does not have to be equal to life’s challenges. It can and should be greater. Then we will seize every opportunity to shed some of our light into the darkness of other lives. Through our triumph, others might win.
Naaman had one flaw — he was a leper. That disease threatened to end his career if not his life. No doubt it had already robbed him of social contacts. In short, Naaman was miserable despite his power, position, and wealth.
We all have such a flaw. We may not have a physical disease, but we certainly have an inner leprosy. This spiritual sickness permeates our lives until it eventually robs us of all we value. We must not be fooled by outward appearances. Beneath the armor of wealth, power, and glory lurks a soul needing the touch of the Physician’s hand.
In this story Elisha’s keen insight into people is evident. Like the slave girl, Elisha’s function was to give the directions which would lead Naaman to God and to healing. Elisha was aware that each person is unique, with a different set of hang-ups. The barriers which keep people from God vary, so Elisha had to understand the individual first and then map out the directions which would lead to God. Notice how Elisha dealt with Naaman.
First, Elisha refused to meet Naaman before the cleansing (vv. 9-10). This struck at Naaman’s sense of power and position. Elisha wanted Naaman to learn that what would happen was not the result of wealth, position, or power. Naaman was important to God but not any more so than the slave girl or any other person.
Second, Elisha refused to perform any elaborate ritual connected with the healing. Through a messenger, Elisha told Naaman to wash in the Jordan seven times. That’s all there was to it. Already angry because of the impersonal nature of the visit, Naaman grew angrier as he considered Elisha’s laziness. He wanted Elisha to earn his pay. All religions have some rituals, and Naaman’s religion was no exception. The simplicity of Elisha’s directions mystified him. They were intended to show Naaman that the ritual was unimportant. The important thing was to follow the directions in giving oneself totally to God.
Third, Elisha told Naaman to wash in the “Big Muddy”, the Jordan River. This was incomprehensible to Naaman. He knew of at least two rivers which offered better prospects of cleansing his disease. The Jordan was a dirty, insignificant little river. How could it possibly help him?
To wash in the Jordan seven times was a totally humiliating, humbling experience. That was precisely Elisha’s point. If Naaman complied, he would be stripped of his pompous, self-centered attitude. After the shock and anger wore off, and after prompting from one of his servants, Naaman complied with Elisha’s directions. He was healed. More importantly, he became a follower of Israel’s God. From Jordan’s murky waters emerged a new person.
God still gives directions today, signposts which point the way toward the ultimate goal. These directions may come through the Bible, preachers, the laity, or the still small voice that calls our names. The directions themselves may vary in detail, because we all have different starting points as we journey toward the ultimate goal. That ultimate goal is fellowship with God. The final direction God gives us it to wash in the blood of the Lamb, and follow Him in service.
In Christ,
Brown
http://youtu.be/iB-yX5p0p4I
Saturday Evening Worship Service
Location: First United Methodist Church
53 McKinley Avenue
Endicott, NY
Sponsored by: Union Center United Methodist Church
Time: 6:00 PM gathering for Coffee Fellowship
6:30 PM Worship Service
Date: Saturday, September 17, 2011
Speaker: Rev. Earle Cowden
Ministers from First Baptist Church in Owego, Crossroads Church in Binghamton, Cornerstone Christian Church in Endicott, and Hawleyton United Methodist Church will be participating in this worship service. Special Music will be led by various praise teams. Information : call 607-748-6329
Come! Share! Rejoice!
Tuesday, August 30, 2011
Brown's Daily Word 8-30-11
Good morning,
As we are all aware by now, Hurricane Irene visited new York and then moved on. Where we are we experienced rain, for the most part, and some wind. The Lord spared us from any flooding or any damage. The Lord gave us the most brilliant and beautiful day yesterday, and it is going to be another gorgeous day here in New York today.
Alice and walked about 4 miles between 8:45 and 10 PM last night. The stars were out in full splendor glorifying the Lord, the maker of Heaven and Earth.
While driving in down town Binghamton yesterday I noticed a sign in front of one of the Oldest Churches in the city. The outdoor sign read, "Five Shining Stones". I read the account of the story of the Five Stones for victory as it is recorded in the Word of God in 1 Samuel 17:34-47.
By any earthly standard, the outcome of this battle would be "sure thing." However, when God enters the picture the entire outcome becomes quite different because of faith. It is interesting that David chose five smooth stones from the brook when only one was needed. Why did David do this? There is no reason given in Scripture. It could have been in case full battle was joined.
The important aspect is that when it came time to fight Goliath, David took just one stone from his shepherd’s bag (1 Samuel 17:49). This action reveals his faith. When it came time to act on his faith, David took only one stone rather than having several in his hand to re-load if he missed. As we read the story, this remarkable event becomes an extraordinary expression of faith in the way that David attacked Goliath. He apparently hurled the stone while at a full run!
Judges 20:16 tells us that Israel slingers were extremely accurate. Think of the logistics of aiming and throwing a stone while both parties are rapidly approaching each other. By faith, David knew one stone was all he needed for Goliath. James tells that "faith without works is dead, being alone" (2:17-18). David showed his faith by using but one stone when he had a bag full of stones.
1 Sam. 17:46-47: "This day the LORD will deliver you up into my hands, and I will strike you down and remove your head from you. And I will give the dead bodies of the army of the Philistines this day to the birds of the sky and the wild beasts of the earth, that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel, *and that all this assembly may know that the LORD does not deliver by sword or by spear; for the battle is the LORD’S and He will give you into our hands."
David may have taken the four extra stones to either attack or defend himself while the Israelite army joined the battle. This is, however, purely conjecture.
We have probably all grown up hearing the story of David and Goliath and how David’s faith allowed him to slay the Philistine giant but there is more to this story than meets the eye. One minor detail is often overlooked. We read in 1 Samuel 17:40 that David picked up and hand chose five smooth stones for his sling to use as ammunition to kill the giant.
One cannot help but wonder what was going through David's mind as he selected those five stones. There is a reason for the other four stones and why David picked five stones specifically. Looking at 2 Samuel 21:16 - 22 we find the armies of Israel, now under King David’s command, battling the Philistines yet again and with other giants involved, including one who had six fingers and six toes! In verse 19, we read that Jaareoregim slew the brother of Goliath. There are four giants mentioned in this passage and the bible lists them by name: Isbibenob (found in verse 16), Saph (in verse 18), the brother of Goliath the Gittite (verse 19), and a giant with six fingers and six toes! (verse 20). Verse 22 concludes with "these four were born to the giant in Gath and fell by the hand of David and by the hand of his servants."
Goliath was not the only giant living in the land of the Philistines. There were four others, perhaps Goliath's brothers. David knew that families stick together and that Goliath’s brothers would either come to Goliath’s aid to avenge him or he knew that he would have to face them in other battles, which he eventually did. Each of those five stones most likely had a name of one of those giants on it. David was ready to defeat his enemy and his whole monstrous family if need be and he had both the faith and the skill to do so.
Whatt are the giants in your life? What is the greatest problem (or problems) facing you that challenges you each day? What is the obstacle that may seem too big and too much for you to conquer that comes and picks a fight with you (like Goliath when he challenged the Israelite army)? Whatever that problem is, rest and stand still, knowing that the battle is not yours, but God’s. The victory is already won. David said it best when he told Goliath, "the battle is the Lord’s".
David was witnessing to Goliath and all of the Philistine army about this point. They could have turned and repented, and walked away at this point, but they didn’t get the message. God used that giant as a huge exclamation point in history to illustrate well the fact that, "the battle belongs to the Lord."
The same is true for each of us and our giants, problems, trials, and difficulties. We must not run from our problems but, instead, stand still, hold our ground, and watch the Lord fight for us and slay our giants. If we run from the giants in life, they will surely defeat us. Walking away in defeat is never a part of God’s plan for us. We must put our trust in God and watch the deliverance of the Lord. Each of us has glimpsed God’s deliverance when we asked Him to be Lord of our life. He has rescued us from our sins and an eternal death in hell.
Now let us stand, wait, and watch Him deliver us yet again from life’s challenges and difficulties. In doing so, our confidence, our faith, and our walk with Him will grow so that we will mature in Christ so that during both good times and bad. Our faith will be unwavering, focused and consistent, and the devil will no longer be able to defeat us, but run from us as we claim the authority of Christ and stand in the victory that is already won.
http://youtu.be/Yk8U58vfOoc
Saturday Evening Worship Service
Location: First United Methodist Church
53 McKinley Avenue
Endicott, NY
Sponsored by: Union Center United Methodist Church
Time: 6:00 PM gathering for Coffee Fellowship
6:30 PM Worship Service
Date: Saturday, September 10, 2011
Speaker: Rev. Earle Cowden
Ministers from First Baptist Church in Owego, Crossroads Church in Binghamton, Cornerstone Christian Church in Endicott, and Hawleyton United Methodist Church will be participating in this worship service. Special Music will be led by various praise teams. Information : call 607-748-6329
Come! Share! Rejoice!
Monday, August 29, 2011
Brown's daily word 8-29-11
Dear friends,
This is the day the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it. I just came back home, arriving on the evening of August 18. The flights totaled 19 hours of flying time. Flying from east to west I experienced an "endless morning". Thank you for remembering me in prayer while I was away. The Lord blessed me, and lavished me with His grace and mercy throughout this trip. In a deeper way, it was not just a trip, but an adventure in faith and in our Lord's faithfulness. He undergirded me both in my going out and in my coming in, and granted me His incomparable favor with people I met, those to whom I ministered, and whom I visited.
Sunita and Andy, Jessica and Tom, and Laureen spent a week together with me in Phulbani (an intense week). Sunita's friends Rob and Jenn, from Washington, DC, also joined us there. It was a great time of family gatherings, preaching, praying, and visiting. I was able to preach twice every Sunday at various churches which had been ravaged by persecution in 2008.
The Lord is doing something marvelous and wonderful, beyond imagination, in restoring His people and His church. I visited various sites where Christians had been martyred. Though the Church has gone through hell in the form of intense persecution, the Lord of the Church has revisited His people, and through His Holy and mighty Spirit has brought about great revival. He is doing something new and powerful to demonstrate that He has built His church upon the Rock, and the gates of hell cannot prevail against it. While In Orissa, I got to preach twice every Sunday in various churches, during both their morning and their afternoon services.
We arrived in Bhubaneswar on Sunday July 17,2011. We stayed in Bhubaneswar, with my mom, my brother, and his two children (Kenny and Lisa). They are renting a house in Bhubaneswar. While there, we met with Bishop Mohanty and his family for an evening dinner gathering. We were briefed regarding the state of the church in Orissa both during the persecution and in the days following the persecution of Christians by the Hindu Extremists. After the dinner meeting we met with a family that driven away from their home and are still living as refugees.
We also met with a group of pastors and other Christian leaders in Bhubaneswar on Monday the 18th of July. The meeting was held at the Bhubaneswar YMCA. Sunita, Andy, Rob, Jenn, Laureen, and I spoke during the session. It was a time of worship and praise. Our prayer and intense desire was to encourage the believers. There was call for prayer after the worship. Many came forward to be anointed and prayed for.
We drove to G. Udayagiri on Tuesday, July 19. We arrived in the afternoon, after traveling for 5 hours. Sunita, Andy, Jessica, Tom, Laureen, Rob, and Jenn stayed at the Bishop's Guest House in Gudripori. This is also known as the Mission Compound , where the former missionaries lived and and served the Lord. Sunita and the compny told me that it was great treat and thrill to have stayed in the Mission Compound, and it is where the missionaries from England lived as they brought the Good News of Jesus to theat area. I stayed in Kanabageri with my Uncle, who is 96 years old. I stayed in that very home as I was growing up with my cousins during my school years.
We visited the mother of the young man named Mathew, who was one of the first Christians to be burned to death in August, 2008. While we were praying the Lord gave a vision to Jenn. In that vision she saw Mathew, all clothed in white robes and standing before Jesus. We shared about the vision with his mother.
We visited the nurses' training School, located at Moorsehead Memorial Christian Hospital on Thursday. Over 300 young women there are being trained as the LPNs. We are supporting the salaries of some of the teaching staff of the School. Laureen and Jenn, the nurses in the group, spoke to the students and the staff, relating that nursing is the extension of the healing ministry of Jesus, our Lord, who used His hands to touch and heal people around Him. In fact, He even touched lepers, bringing healing and wellness to them.
We visited the two homes for children, one at Nanda and the other at Dugudi. Currently there are 144 children at Nanda and 45 at Dugudi.
We spoke during a gathering of pastors and Christian leaders on Friday the 22nd of July. Sunita, Andy, and I preached during the morning worship on Sunday, July 24, 2011. The worship service lasted over two hours. There was altar call after the worship, and many came forward. The prayer time which followed lasted over another hour. The Lord visited His people.
Laureen, Sunita, Andy, Jessica, Tom, Rob, and Jenn left Orissa to fly back to the States, and I stayed for three more weeks, visiting people and praying with them. One Friday we drove to the epicenter where the persecution had broken out so unexpectedly. Christians had been caught complete off-guard. In one village the pastor was asked to deny Christ, and when he refused he was hacked to death. As I stood there, praying, I felt that I was standing on holy Ground. In that village people are returning to their homes.
While visiting a neighburing vllage I heard people praying behind closed doors. On enquiry I found out that they have a fasting and prayer meeting every Friday, praying for the nation, the leaders, and for the people who had persecuted them. They were praying that the Lord would bless people, that the unbelievers would come to know Jesus and receive the new life that He offers.
In one visit to another village I was told that Christians who were driven away by the persecution lived in a camp for 18 months. The people testified that during those 18 months the Lord provided for their every need with much abundance and generosity. They also shared that the government did not provide for their needs. It was the Church of Jesus Christ from all over the world that came together and stood in the gap. I also witnessd every where I went a spirit of grace and triumph. The Lord has been restoring His people with manifold blessings. The houses that were utterly destroyed are now being rebuilt with much beauty and newness. The once thatched-roof houses are now transformed, with aluminum roofs and poured concrete roofs, which are almost fireproof.
Many of the of the young people who were displaced during the persecutions are now living in big cities like Bangalore, Madras, Hyderabad, and Delhi, where they are receiving excellent education and training, including Bible, Theology, and Information technology. People who have been displaced in various parts of India are preaching the Gospel there and starting new churches. Every where I went I saw the Hand of the Lord upon His people, and the way He is restoring them. The Lord is bringing about a great revival and zeal among His people. I witnessed a sense of newness all around among the believers. I witnessed how the Lord has brought about a great blessing to and through His people. During my preaching I used the passage from Joel 2:18-27
18 Then the LORD was jealous for his land
and took pity on his people.
19 The LORD replied to them:
“I am sending you grain, new wine and olive oil,
enough to satisfy you fully;
never again will I make you
an object of scorn to the nations.
20 “I will drive the northern horde far from you,
pushing it into a parched and barren land;
its eastern ranks will drown in the Dead Sea
and its western ranks in the Mediterranean Sea.
And its stench will go up;
its smell will rise.”
Surely he has done great things!
21 Do not be afraid, land of Judah;
be glad and rejoice.
Surely the LORD has done great things!
22 Do not be afraid, you wild animals,
for the pastures in the wilderness are becoming green.
The trees are bearing their fruit;
the fig tree and the vine yield their riches.
23 Be glad, people of Zion,
rejoice in the LORD your God,
for he has given you the autumn rains
because he is faithful.
He sends you abundant showers,
both autumn and spring rains, as before.
24 The threshing floors will be filled with grain;
the vats will overflow with new wine and oil.
25 “I will repay you for the years the locusts have eaten—
the great locust and the young locust,
the other locusts and the locust swarm[b]—
my great army that I sent among you.
26 You will have plenty to eat, until you are full,
and you will praise the name of the LORD your God,
who has worked wonders for you;
never again will my people be shamed.
27 Then you will know that I am in Israel,
that I am the LORD your God,
and that there is no other;
never again will my people be shamed.
I also used the Scriptures from Revelation 12:9-11.
9 And the great dragon was thrown down, that ancient serpent, who is called the devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world—he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him. 10 And I heard a loud voice in heaven, saying, “Now the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God and the authority of his Christ have come, for the accuser of our brothers has been thrown down, who accuses them day and night before our God. 11 And they have conquered him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, for they loved not their lives even unto death.
It was on April 12, 1914, that 5 converts were baptized, the first Christians of that region. We heard with excitement that the number of Christians in this area has tripled over the past 3 years. The church is growing. Indeed, "the blood of the martyrs is the seed of the Church". Every church in which I preached had no room, and people were sitting on the floors. I preached in a House Church on Sunday, August 7, during the morning worship. We were all sitting on the floor. There 10 new members were added to the church that day, as ten young men who were Hindu Converts were baptized the day before.
One Sunday i preached in the village whose church was one of the first be burned and destroyed. The church met in an open field under a tin roof. People all sat on the ground for over two hours. It was indeed Holy Ground, for the Lord was present in a very wonderful way. I had the opportunity to talk with a woman whose husband, another pastor, was burned before her. He was burned alive along with the mom and dad of the other pastor who refused to deny Christ. I visited the site where these Christians were burned alive. I felt humbled and left the place determined to serve Jesus all the days of my life.
In my sojourn, I met with 3 bishops and other Christian leaders, who confirmed that the Christian population in Phulbani district, stands at 30% of the total population of the district., whereas at the national level the number of Christians is about 3%.
Thank you again for praying for me. The Lord kept me strong and vigorous. I didn't have so much as a common cold or upset stomach. Praise the Lord for every one who preached, who taught, who served the Lord back home here in Union Center during my absence. Praise the Lord for all, for their work of faith and labor of love.
Praise the Lord for the favor that He bestowed upon me on the entire journey. Flying to India we had many suitcases, mostly filled with gifts for family, friends, and those in the work of the Lord in India. Nothing was lost or broken, by the grace of God. On my return flight from Bhubaneswar to Delhi I was allowed extra baggage - 3 extra suitcases - and the airline worker smiled and said, "You're in". Then, from Delhi to London, when I asked the British Air agent for a window seat I was upgraded to business class, when no window seat was otherwise available. There I sat beside a tall Texan businessman from Arlington, TX who travels four times a year to Afghanistan, where he is developing a business and equipping Christians. His goal is to help to rebuild the nation of Afghanistan. He was educated at Dartmouth, and related that John Wesley was a great influence on his Christian walk. In Delhi he had met eight Afghan converts (previously Moslem), who had been mentored by members of YWAM (Youth with a Mission).
Throughout our trip I had no fear. The Lord granted me His boldness, grace, and courage.
"O Lord, how manifold are thy works! In wisdom hast thou made them all; the earth is full of thy creatures." (Psalm 104:24) "I will sing to the Lord as long as I live; I will sing praise to my God while I have being. May my meditation be pleasing to him, for I rejoice in the Lord." (Psalm 104:33-34)
Praise the Lord that He is upon the throne, the future belongs to Him, and He is in charge.
In Christ,
Brown
http://youtu.be/twuLr5rQmp0
This is the day the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it. I just came back home, arriving on the evening of August 18. The flights totaled 19 hours of flying time. Flying from east to west I experienced an "endless morning". Thank you for remembering me in prayer while I was away. The Lord blessed me, and lavished me with His grace and mercy throughout this trip. In a deeper way, it was not just a trip, but an adventure in faith and in our Lord's faithfulness. He undergirded me both in my going out and in my coming in, and granted me His incomparable favor with people I met, those to whom I ministered, and whom I visited.
Sunita and Andy, Jessica and Tom, and Laureen spent a week together with me in Phulbani (an intense week). Sunita's friends Rob and Jenn, from Washington, DC, also joined us there. It was a great time of family gatherings, preaching, praying, and visiting. I was able to preach twice every Sunday at various churches which had been ravaged by persecution in 2008.
The Lord is doing something marvelous and wonderful, beyond imagination, in restoring His people and His church. I visited various sites where Christians had been martyred. Though the Church has gone through hell in the form of intense persecution, the Lord of the Church has revisited His people, and through His Holy and mighty Spirit has brought about great revival. He is doing something new and powerful to demonstrate that He has built His church upon the Rock, and the gates of hell cannot prevail against it. While In Orissa, I got to preach twice every Sunday in various churches, during both their morning and their afternoon services.
We arrived in Bhubaneswar on Sunday July 17,2011. We stayed in Bhubaneswar, with my mom, my brother, and his two children (Kenny and Lisa). They are renting a house in Bhubaneswar. While there, we met with Bishop Mohanty and his family for an evening dinner gathering. We were briefed regarding the state of the church in Orissa both during the persecution and in the days following the persecution of Christians by the Hindu Extremists. After the dinner meeting we met with a family that driven away from their home and are still living as refugees.
We also met with a group of pastors and other Christian leaders in Bhubaneswar on Monday the 18th of July. The meeting was held at the Bhubaneswar YMCA. Sunita, Andy, Rob, Jenn, Laureen, and I spoke during the session. It was a time of worship and praise. Our prayer and intense desire was to encourage the believers. There was call for prayer after the worship. Many came forward to be anointed and prayed for.
We drove to G. Udayagiri on Tuesday, July 19. We arrived in the afternoon, after traveling for 5 hours. Sunita, Andy, Jessica, Tom, Laureen, Rob, and Jenn stayed at the Bishop's Guest House in Gudripori. This is also known as the Mission Compound , where the former missionaries lived and and served the Lord. Sunita and the compny told me that it was great treat and thrill to have stayed in the Mission Compound, and it is where the missionaries from England lived as they brought the Good News of Jesus to theat area. I stayed in Kanabageri with my Uncle, who is 96 years old. I stayed in that very home as I was growing up with my cousins during my school years.
We visited the mother of the young man named Mathew, who was one of the first Christians to be burned to death in August, 2008. While we were praying the Lord gave a vision to Jenn. In that vision she saw Mathew, all clothed in white robes and standing before Jesus. We shared about the vision with his mother.
We visited the nurses' training School, located at Moorsehead Memorial Christian Hospital on Thursday. Over 300 young women there are being trained as the LPNs. We are supporting the salaries of some of the teaching staff of the School. Laureen and Jenn, the nurses in the group, spoke to the students and the staff, relating that nursing is the extension of the healing ministry of Jesus, our Lord, who used His hands to touch and heal people around Him. In fact, He even touched lepers, bringing healing and wellness to them.
We visited the two homes for children, one at Nanda and the other at Dugudi. Currently there are 144 children at Nanda and 45 at Dugudi.
We spoke during a gathering of pastors and Christian leaders on Friday the 22nd of July. Sunita, Andy, and I preached during the morning worship on Sunday, July 24, 2011. The worship service lasted over two hours. There was altar call after the worship, and many came forward. The prayer time which followed lasted over another hour. The Lord visited His people.
Laureen, Sunita, Andy, Jessica, Tom, Rob, and Jenn left Orissa to fly back to the States, and I stayed for three more weeks, visiting people and praying with them. One Friday we drove to the epicenter where the persecution had broken out so unexpectedly. Christians had been caught complete off-guard. In one village the pastor was asked to deny Christ, and when he refused he was hacked to death. As I stood there, praying, I felt that I was standing on holy Ground. In that village people are returning to their homes.
While visiting a neighburing vllage I heard people praying behind closed doors. On enquiry I found out that they have a fasting and prayer meeting every Friday, praying for the nation, the leaders, and for the people who had persecuted them. They were praying that the Lord would bless people, that the unbelievers would come to know Jesus and receive the new life that He offers.
In one visit to another village I was told that Christians who were driven away by the persecution lived in a camp for 18 months. The people testified that during those 18 months the Lord provided for their every need with much abundance and generosity. They also shared that the government did not provide for their needs. It was the Church of Jesus Christ from all over the world that came together and stood in the gap. I also witnessd every where I went a spirit of grace and triumph. The Lord has been restoring His people with manifold blessings. The houses that were utterly destroyed are now being rebuilt with much beauty and newness. The once thatched-roof houses are now transformed, with aluminum roofs and poured concrete roofs, which are almost fireproof.
Many of the of the young people who were displaced during the persecutions are now living in big cities like Bangalore, Madras, Hyderabad, and Delhi, where they are receiving excellent education and training, including Bible, Theology, and Information technology. People who have been displaced in various parts of India are preaching the Gospel there and starting new churches. Every where I went I saw the Hand of the Lord upon His people, and the way He is restoring them. The Lord is bringing about a great revival and zeal among His people. I witnessed a sense of newness all around among the believers. I witnessed how the Lord has brought about a great blessing to and through His people. During my preaching I used the passage from Joel 2:18-27
18 Then the LORD was jealous for his land
and took pity on his people.
19 The LORD replied to them:
“I am sending you grain, new wine and olive oil,
enough to satisfy you fully;
never again will I make you
an object of scorn to the nations.
20 “I will drive the northern horde far from you,
pushing it into a parched and barren land;
its eastern ranks will drown in the Dead Sea
and its western ranks in the Mediterranean Sea.
And its stench will go up;
its smell will rise.”
Surely he has done great things!
21 Do not be afraid, land of Judah;
be glad and rejoice.
Surely the LORD has done great things!
22 Do not be afraid, you wild animals,
for the pastures in the wilderness are becoming green.
The trees are bearing their fruit;
the fig tree and the vine yield their riches.
23 Be glad, people of Zion,
rejoice in the LORD your God,
for he has given you the autumn rains
because he is faithful.
He sends you abundant showers,
both autumn and spring rains, as before.
24 The threshing floors will be filled with grain;
the vats will overflow with new wine and oil.
25 “I will repay you for the years the locusts have eaten—
the great locust and the young locust,
the other locusts and the locust swarm[b]—
my great army that I sent among you.
26 You will have plenty to eat, until you are full,
and you will praise the name of the LORD your God,
who has worked wonders for you;
never again will my people be shamed.
27 Then you will know that I am in Israel,
that I am the LORD your God,
and that there is no other;
never again will my people be shamed.
I also used the Scriptures from Revelation 12:9-11.
9 And the great dragon was thrown down, that ancient serpent, who is called the devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world—he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him. 10 And I heard a loud voice in heaven, saying, “Now the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God and the authority of his Christ have come, for the accuser of our brothers has been thrown down, who accuses them day and night before our God. 11 And they have conquered him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, for they loved not their lives even unto death.
It was on April 12, 1914, that 5 converts were baptized, the first Christians of that region. We heard with excitement that the number of Christians in this area has tripled over the past 3 years. The church is growing. Indeed, "the blood of the martyrs is the seed of the Church". Every church in which I preached had no room, and people were sitting on the floors. I preached in a House Church on Sunday, August 7, during the morning worship. We were all sitting on the floor. There 10 new members were added to the church that day, as ten young men who were Hindu Converts were baptized the day before.
One Sunday i preached in the village whose church was one of the first be burned and destroyed. The church met in an open field under a tin roof. People all sat on the ground for over two hours. It was indeed Holy Ground, for the Lord was present in a very wonderful way. I had the opportunity to talk with a woman whose husband, another pastor, was burned before her. He was burned alive along with the mom and dad of the other pastor who refused to deny Christ. I visited the site where these Christians were burned alive. I felt humbled and left the place determined to serve Jesus all the days of my life.
In my sojourn, I met with 3 bishops and other Christian leaders, who confirmed that the Christian population in Phulbani district, stands at 30% of the total population of the district., whereas at the national level the number of Christians is about 3%.
Thank you again for praying for me. The Lord kept me strong and vigorous. I didn't have so much as a common cold or upset stomach. Praise the Lord for every one who preached, who taught, who served the Lord back home here in Union Center during my absence. Praise the Lord for all, for their work of faith and labor of love.
Praise the Lord for the favor that He bestowed upon me on the entire journey. Flying to India we had many suitcases, mostly filled with gifts for family, friends, and those in the work of the Lord in India. Nothing was lost or broken, by the grace of God. On my return flight from Bhubaneswar to Delhi I was allowed extra baggage - 3 extra suitcases - and the airline worker smiled and said, "You're in". Then, from Delhi to London, when I asked the British Air agent for a window seat I was upgraded to business class, when no window seat was otherwise available. There I sat beside a tall Texan businessman from Arlington, TX who travels four times a year to Afghanistan, where he is developing a business and equipping Christians. His goal is to help to rebuild the nation of Afghanistan. He was educated at Dartmouth, and related that John Wesley was a great influence on his Christian walk. In Delhi he had met eight Afghan converts (previously Moslem), who had been mentored by members of YWAM (Youth with a Mission).
Throughout our trip I had no fear. The Lord granted me His boldness, grace, and courage.
"O Lord, how manifold are thy works! In wisdom hast thou made them all; the earth is full of thy creatures." (Psalm 104:24) "I will sing to the Lord as long as I live; I will sing praise to my God while I have being. May my meditation be pleasing to him, for I rejoice in the Lord." (Psalm 104:33-34)
Praise the Lord that He is upon the throne, the future belongs to Him, and He is in charge.
In Christ,
Brown
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