THE PRESENT SITUATION AND NEEDS OF THE SPREADING OF THE LORD’S RECOVERY
Today the spreading of the Lord’s recovery has reached such an extent that it is simply indescribable. If three thousand co-workers could be found, as long as they can speak English (they do not need to learn to speak Russian immediately), they could immediately go to Russia and spread to three thousand cities there. This is the present situation in Russia, which is incredible.
The Lord’s recovery is spreading not only in Russia but also in the continent of Europe. Recently we received letters from the saints in Poland telling us about the raising up of the testimony there. They are the churches newly raised up with a history of one to two years. The contents of their letters are the main items in the Lord’s recovery today and the vocabulary is of the new way, without any of the old things from the past. They are the new people brought forth by the new way. We need people to go there immediately to help them establish the churches in Poland. Furthermore, some in Romania have come into the Lord’s recovery; some have been gained also in Albania. In addition, the spreading has reached other places in Europe. According to this situation, the Lord’s spreading in Europe is very promising.
In the region of Central America and the Caribbean, including Puerto Rico, Belize, etc., and South America, the door is open everywhere and there is the need for people to go. There are about twenty churches in that region. Concerning New Zealand, the work there has a deep relationship with the churches in Taiwan. The first church in New Zealand started in 1971, and it has been there over twenty years now. Today the church in Auckland, New Zealand, has more than three hundred people; most of them are Chinese who migrated from Taiwan. There are also needs everywhere in Africa. In South Africa, North Africa, East Africa, and West Africa, the saints are on their own. There are not many saints in South Africa; there are more saints in Nigeria and in Ghana, West Africa, and in Kenya, East Africa. All these places need people to go there and help. Hence, the Lord’s recovery is continually spreading throughout the six continents on the whole earth, and the need everywhere is tremendous.
What does the Lord’s recovery need today? Please remember that the Lord’s recovery needs a large number of people. In order to produce a large number of people, we must bring in young students; hence, the campus work is a must. We have to bring in a large number of college students and then give them training. The present training needs to be strengthened. The training facilities in Anaheim can accommodate a maximum of one hundred fifty people. We need to improve our facilities to accommodate more people for the training.
On the one hand, we need to train people, and on the other hand, we need to spread out, especially to Europe. Those who go to Russia and Europe will still consist mainly of Caucasians, particularly Americans. However, the twenty who went from Taiwan to Russia have also been very much welcomed. Now we have over one hundred co-workers in Russia, three-fourths of whom are Americans; one-fourth are Chinese, and some are co-workers who have been raised up locally in these two to three years. I believe from now on the ratio should be that if there are three hundred going from the United States, one hundred should be going from Taiwan. Such a coordination will be more effective than having only Americans going there. Now many cities in Russia are ready and are just waiting for people to go there. At the beginning of next year, those in the two big cities, Moscow and St. Petersburg, will go out in teams for the spreading. Each team will consist of one Russian (raised up in these few years and able to take the lead), one American, and one Chinese.
I am fellowshipping these things with you so that you brothers can realize that the training in Taiwan needs strengthening. You must pick up the talented ones, those who are college graduates and good in English, and bring them in to be properly trained. After two years of training, they can go forth. Likewise, the training in the United States accepts only those who have graduated from college. It is not as easy to gain people in the United States as it is in Taiwan. However, the United States is bigger than Taiwan. Today in the United States there are over two hundred churches scattered in different places; the work at the universities has also spread. Hence, the number of people attending the full-time training has increased steadily. Once they finish their training, some can go to Russia, and some can go to Poland and other places.
(A General Outline of God's Economy and the Proper Living of a God-Man, Chapter 6, by Witness Lee)
