Christal Cooper – 1,883 Words
THE
NEW
MOON NAILED
ON
THE
PASS
OVER
TREE
Evangelist Rabia Rehmat,
Punjab, Pakistan
Evangelist
Rabia Rehmat, 25, considers every day a new life for her and her Pentecostal church,
Believers of Christ Ministry, with a
membership of 1000 individuals, and where she has been the Women’s Director for
the past five years.
Rabia Rehmat, which means “optical & monarchism”,
was born in January 24, 1989 at Khanewal City, Punjab in Pakistan to converted
Christian parents.
“My childhood was really
very simple. I spent quality time with
my parents and got many things from them for His (Jesus) work because they are
faithful people of God.”
Her father was not only a biological, nurturing
father, but he was a spiritual father, which made her view of God a healthy
view and not one out of fear.
January
26, of 2002 was a cold, sunny Sunday, her favorite day of the week. She and her family attended their local
church where baptisms were taking place, and then had returned home. It was on this day that she, at the age of
12, accepted Jesus Christ as Personal Lord and Savior.
“That day really blessed all my life. I learned Salvation through my father because
one day my father was sharing the message of God in the meeting. I was hearing the message.”
It
was a message on the Ephesians 5:15 to 17:
Be very careful, then how you
live – not as unwise but wise, making the most of every opportunity because the
days are evil. Therefore do not be
foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is.
“When
I hear His words with my heart then my Lord touched my heart and my mind in a
meeting. I did promise with Him that, “I
will serve You and will spread Your Gospel among the people.” Then the Lord touched me very strongly. It was really amazing day in my life when I
accept Him, My Lord and Savior.”
In 2009, at the age of 20, during one of
her prayer times with God, she felt him speaking to her.
“One
day I was praying to my Lord and I feel burden for His work. Then the Lord answer my prayers that I should
work for His kingdom. Then I start my
ministry in women. I’m so glad to serve
the Lord among the people.”
Ever
since that day Rehmat has been committed to prayer, which she considers to be
God’s gift, available to all, the strong and the weak. She also views prayer as a means to fulfill
the human being’s thirst to know God.
“That
thirst is described in the Psalms, “O God, you are my God, for you I long. For
you my soul is thirsting. Like a dry weary land without water... so my soul
longs for you, my God.” Something in us
cannot be satisfied unless we are draw near to God. "Our hearts are
restless," O Lord, open my lips and my mouth shall proclaim your praise.’”
Rehmat gets up at 8 a.m. and prays for
one hour, then she has breakfast, cleans her house, prepares for lunch, and in
the evenings goes to her targeted area of Punjab, Pakistan and throughout the
entire country of Pakistan to visit and direct meetings.
“We help the poor and the widows as God
blesses us. We have freedom for His work so we can spread His Gospel in every
place because He is our Protector and Savior.”
Believers of Church Ministry has thus
far distributed over 1000 Bibles and plans to distribute more once the
necessary finances are obtained.
In Pakistan, it is lawful for individuals
to distribute Bibles throughout the county, and Rehmat is thankful for this, as
well as her Muslim neighbors.
“Some people (are) against
(us) for His work, but we live (peacefully) with Muslims. That's why we don't have any trouble for His
work.”
Believers
Of Christ Ministries
has individuals in its congregation that can testify to God’s healing: the
blind, the dumb, the crippled, and the bad in spirit.
“We have many
testimonies I can’t explain in words, and they all have been delivered.”
Rehmat’s Mini-Sermon On
Easter
“The week before Easter
is known as Holy Week. It is a great time to really start celebrating the real
reason for Easter. Many churches have a service known as Palm Sunday. Many
churches will wave palm branches at the beginning of the service in remembrance
of how Jesus entered Jerusalem with celebration. It was those same people who
later called for his death.
Good Friday is the
Friday before Easter Sunday. This is the day set aside to remember the death of
Jesus. This would be a good day to celebrate the real meaning of Easter by
reading the Bible passages about Jesus’ death. Look at Matthew chapters 26-27,
Mark chapters 14-15, Luke chapters 22-23, or John chapters 17-20.
Celebrate the real
meaning of Easter Sunday not by running first thing to the Easter baskets, but
reading the story about the resurrection. You can find the story in Matthew
chapter 28, Mark chapter 16, Luke chapter 24, John chapters 20-21, and Acts
chapter 1. We distribute some gifts
& sweets between our families & friends. It’s really great time with friends &
family. Easter is supposed to be a day of joy and happiness. Jesus has risen!
Let us all rejoice.”
Dennis Booth
New South Wales,
Australia
Career journalist Dennis Booth, was born
during World War II in Victoria, Australia to an atheist father and a closet
Christian mother. Though the family never attended church, his mother
encouraged him to believe in Christ, and her encouragement continued when Booth
got saved after listening to Billy Graham.
It was around this time that the youngster started attending church by
himself.
It wasn’t until he was a young adult that
Booth realized he wasn’t a born again Christian like he always thought. He always believed in the Lord but he never
had a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.
In 1986, as a young adult, he came into an experience where he did have
that personal relationship with Jesus Christ.
It was upon this day, in 1986, that he laid everything before the Lord,
asking for the forgiveness of his sings, and then he began to weep
profusely. When he stopped sobbing, he
felt a voice telling him to go and lie down.
“When
I did, I felt the bed shake, and I felt like there were stars and beautiful
lights around me. When I awoke I was
speaking in a tongue I knew to be Mandarin Chinese, yet, I did not understand a
word of it. From that point I grew very
close to the Lord and from there I was moved into receiving Words of Knowledge,
Words of Wisdom, Discernment and occasional prophecy.”
Booth, a career journalist and radio
personality, helped establish Christian radio in Australia. He is now retired
and resides lives with his wife, in New South Wales, Australia. The past few years, being retired, he has had
time to reflect and pray, gaining an even more intimate relationship with Jesus
Christ.
“God has done so much it would take many a
book to fill it all suffice to say I believe I have had three miracles in my
life that saved my life. Only angels could have been present at the time.”
The most profound miracle happened in
1993, while he was waiting for the a new job to begin. He spent the day in prayer and Bible reading,
and then he actually heard the audible voice of the Lord
“For five minutes, maybe
longer I just wept as I heard the most amazing voice. I believe it was to give
me strength through the trial of not being the provider at the time and because
I had spent so much time with Him. That moment changed me forever. I know just
how real He is.”
Booth’s Mini-Sermon On
Easter
“Some people view a full moon as a time of weird happenings
but there is a full moon and a new moon and this morning I walked mostly under
a new moon.
And it was a prophetic time because the Lord showed me that
moon as a time of new beginnings and to emphasize the point he showed two more things
on the walk.
Firstly, He focused my attention on the fields in which the
sheep would forage some four to five fields, which normally would be sparsely
dotted with sheep so as not to ruin all the feed at once.
Yet recent rains, the best for years, had given these fields
a covering of small grass that had not been prevalent for a long time. These sheep will live well and will produce
fatted lambs.
Then I was told to look at the new housing subdivision,
which, until about two months ago, had probably three to four homes lived in,
and about another three in the process of being built.
Well, now, within a very short time, they are going up
everywhere so that there will be about ten more (houses) livable in the very
near future.
The Lord
said to me that whilst this is a year of shakings it is also a time of new
beginnings.
I was reminded of Haiti, for so long known as a Bastian of
voodoo, yet recently, proclaimed a day of prayer for the nation about to
rebuild itself.
I am reminded of farmers in the outback of Australia who
have not seen decent rain for years, (and) suddenly, in tears, as they watch waters
come down from North and cover their dust-ridden field and turn them into green
pasture.
The Lord I believe is saying that for many who have labored
long and even queried why the Lord has not taken pity on them that this is
about to change.
That He is about to bring change, in some cases great
change, to those who have waited for a change.
Seemingly stuck in the mud, caught up in circumstances that
has brought depression and forlorn hope, held together only by the belief in
the Lord.
Not for nothing says the Lord are the words: “Never shall I
forsake thee!”
And the Lord reminds me that His people lived for so long in
Egypt under bondage (and) yet were delivered to new beginnings. And many of those exile in Babylon returned
to a life of new beginnings.
Often time it seems is our enemy, it is our bugbear because
we relate so much to time yet to the Lord time is of no consequence. A God who
can be in all places at all times has no need for a stopwatch.
If you have felt subjugated, if you have felt like saying
“when will this ever end?” I believe the Lord is saying that if you will heed
unto His Word and give Him praise, honor and glory amidst all of this, you will
be delivered!
New beginnings are coming folks, be expectant, be joyful,
and if it doesn’t come today or tomorrow then hold fast because it will come!
God is
about to do a sovereign work on this earth never seen before (now I am getting
prophetic because I feel it upon me as I write).”
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