Shanxi Church Holds Memorial Service for 87-Y-O Believer

 Translated By Richard Zou

A farewell service at a church in Shanxi province in northern China was for a lady believer who passed away at the age of 87.

In a memorial service held at the Christian Church of Linfen Yaodu District on October 14, the choir sang "Song of Remembrance" and "Sleeping in the Lord's Arms" to remember Li Funv who died on October 10.

In his sermon, Deacon Liu Xiaochun read several passages from Genesis, John, and Revelation about God's creation, death, and the origin of sin, as well as the salvation, resurrection, and love of Jesus Christ.

Following his sermon, Pastor Wang Shuai addressed Christians' attitudes toward death, destiny, and eternal life. He believes that death is not an end but a beginning, not silence but waiting, not relief but triumph, nor a departure but a destination. It was reminded to the congregation that death is the end for all humans, and that judgment will follow. Those who believe in the Lord do not die, but sleep, and look forward to their resurrection.

Elder Zhang Xiaohua then recalled the life of Li Funv. Li was born in a poor peasant family and raised a son and three daughters. Her whole life was filled with hard work and thrift, and she was always obedient to her husband. Even if she was aggrieved, she never bothered others about it, and she always tried to help others whenever she could.

When she was 74, she was baptized and received the gospel. God healed her leg burns and many illnesses. As soon as her husband came to follow Jesus, their temperament and character changed, and they began respecting and loving one another. When her husband turned 84, the Lord took him back to his heavenly home. Because she could not go outside due to her old age, she used to preach the gospel in front of her house, showing the gospel leaflets to her neighbors.

Wang Tao, her third daughter, was also chosen and used by God. She led many seekers to the name of the Lord and dedicated her home as a gathering and reception place. She also keeps taking care of the paralyzed 80-year-old mother-in-law for more than ten years. In addition, she is a member of the church choir.

- Translated by Richard Zou

In nearly two decades, the Lord has strengthened our family to host small-group meetings

Translated By Richard Zou

In my hometown, meetings are often held in small-group meeting places that are convenient for the elderly, the sick, and the disabled.  For small gatherings, we meet at my home. More than 20 years ago, my family became a host family. Initially, I didn't realize that my family was a host family and I was serving the Lord. As I knew it was only for my convenience, we gathered at my house.  

At that time, we were lacking both confidence and understanding. On Saturday nights, my husband usually goes to Xinzhuang, which is one or two miles away, and sometimes they meet at my home.  

Having no foundation in our faith, Satan often takes advantage of it-I don't know why my husband refuses to attend meetings, and others don't either. At the time, we didn't realize it was Satan's disturbance.  

With the guidance of the Holy Spirit, we realized it was Satan and the devil who frightened and disturbed us. As a result of that disturbance, we hadn't met for more than three years. A young brother gave me a Bible as a gift, and I read it when I have the time. The Holy Spirit illuminated me and made me realize my sins and know the Lord who loved us to the end did not give up on us. 

In the winter of 1999, some people who were refining small pots of oil came to the empty place by our house yard to refine oil. There were two young workers working for them, and one of them was a believer named Guilin, and he came to our house when he had time to preach the gospel and ask me to believe in Jesus. I said I believed in Jesus before, but not in the last three years. I wanted to believe in Jesus, but I couldn't go to church ......  

He said, "Is it okay to have a meeting in your house?” I said, "Yes”. He said, "I'll ask them to meet at your house.". I said, "OK.". 

 Then my husband and I started to host the meetings and serve the Lord again and met in our house. We realized in the past ten years that we were serving the Lord and hosting meetings for the Lord. Being a host and serving the Lord is not easy, especially since the devil and the enemy often attack and disrupt the ministry of hosting and serving.  

For the first two or three years, there were rumors about us believing in "heresy" and people insulted us. I felt bad for this, so I began reading the Bible (I didn't like reading previously), and God enlightened me with these verses. 

Matthew 5:10-12  

Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for, in the same way, they persecuted the prophets who were before you. 

My faith in God comforts and encourages me so much that I don't mind what others say, slander, or insult me. As a result, Satan used the members to slander me and create conflict at my house, saying that they were no longer welcome. A few members refused to attend meetings because of the rumors. Suddenly that Wednesday afternoon, the Lord sent his workers back to ask, "Where should we meet this afternoon?" They replied, "It's time to meet at LiuZhuang.". ...... This is why they attended our meeting. 

After some time, the Heresy Eastern Lightning also came to disturb us, at first we didn't know they were from Eastern Lightning, because they said they were believers ...... Many members were deceived by Satan, slandering us as traitors, and suggesting moving the meeting place to somewhere else, and when I held the meeting at my home, they didn't come.  I was surprised to see a servant of God appear at my house for a meeting on Wednesday night (meeting time), and they joined him. 

“Anyone who welcomes you welcomes me, and anyone who welcomes me welcomes the one who sent me. Whoever welcomes a prophet as a prophet will receive a prophet’s reward, and whoever welcomes a righteous person as a righteous person will receive a righteous person’s reward. And if anyone gives even a cup of cold water to one of these little ones who is my disciple, truly I tell you, that person will certainly not lose their reward.” (Matthew 10:40-42) 

How to Host Virtual Church Meetings

 Translated By Richard Zou

In order to host a virtual church meeting, you need to research your options before deciding on the technology. You can use your smartphone to film a sermon, but if your congregation is larger, you’ll need high-quality equipment. Moreover, filming sermons from a pastor’s point of view can help create a personal connection between him and his congregation. However, the technology used should be suitable for your church.

Online bible studies

With the growth of virtual church meetings, Bible study groups are finding new ways to engage people. These virtual meetings don’t require you to attend a physical church meeting; you can participate in a Bible study from the comfort of your home. You can participate in these meetings whenever you want, and there’s no need to coordinate childcare. You can do the study at your own pace, without worrying about your kids’ schedule.

o attract new members to a virtual church meeting, make sure you advertise the event in your church’s bulletin and on your website. In addition to the church website, consider advertising online Bible studies at virtual church meetings in social media. This way, interested people can connect with the group leaders and acclimate to it. If you can’t find a group that’s already started, consider announcing the study and asking church members to share the news with others.

Group chat option

You may be wondering if a group chat is an effective option for your virtual church meetings. This technology allows you to send a group text message to several people with specific instructions or an announcement. You can even attach files relevant to the meeting. You can set up notifications for each group member so that they will receive them before the meeting begins. With this application, you can also see who has received the message and what time it was read. It also offers safety for your personal information.

You can also consider Zoom. Although the pricing for churches is a little high, it has all the features you need for your virtual church meetings. It connects from any device and includes dial-in numbers. You can also use Smart Meeting in-app intelligence to capture the main points of the discussion and assign action items. You can also get a free trial of this software and sign up for its basic plan. You can have up to 100 participants and enjoy high-quality video and screen sharing.

Congregational meeting under the guidance of the Holy Spirit

The convocation of congregational meetings is the most important meeting of the church. Congregational meetings are held only when there is a crisis or a need for information. Though the meetings are not formally called by the congregation, they are often held with the congregational leaders’ approval. The relationship between the convocation and the consistory must be clarified. The elders must bring definite proposals to the meeting and the members must adhere to them.

In the 20th century, the trend toward congregationalism among the Brethren led to the development of a paper on the authority of the Bible and Biblical inspiration. This paper acknowledges the varying views and practices among Brethren. Regardless of the differences, congregational meetings must be held with the highest level of integrity and reverence. Consequently, congregational meetings should be free from controversy and should follow the leading of the Holy Spirit.

Zoom platform

If you’re looking for a simple and cost-effective way to host virtual church meetings, consider the Zoom platform. Unlike other solutions, Zoom is completely cloud-based, which means no special equipment is required for setup. Additionally, it’s easy to set up multiple hosts and promote others as hosts. If your church doesn’t have a dedicated streaming room, Zoom offers a free trial version so you can try it out for free.

A Zoom meeting can be password-protected or open to everyone. Then, the Zoom audience can participate or not. Zoom has a limit of 100 people, but you can limit this number to just a few. Once inside the meeting, all participants must mute their microphones. Similarly, it’s easy to share meeting details with the other participants. You can even send out an e-mail invitation to the whole congregation.