2020 has been an unusual year, as people immersed themselves in the joys of the New Year, the COVID-19 suddenly ruined the joy of people, and a war without smoke began. Many Christians have also been affected, and the church has been affected most of all.
During the outbreak, Christians were unable to worship God together, only using the Internet, which greatly diminished the effectiveness of gathering together and prevented the work of the Holy Spirit. This resulted in difficulty for many Christians as they struggled spiritually. As time has passed, things have not necessarily improved as brothers and sisters are still experiencing the challenges and difficulties and the outlook for the church is still grim.
1. No one cares about the church.
The first problem is that too few people care about the church. When I read the first chapter of Nehemiah, I was very moved. Nehemiah saw the plight of Jerusalem: those who had returned were subjected to great suffering and humiliation in the province of Judah, and the walls of Jerusalem were torn down and the gates were set on fire. Nehemiah’s emotions were deeply affected because of what had been done in Jerusalem, so he sat down and wept for a few days.
Although Nehemiah worked in front of the Persian King Artaxerxes, he cared about the people of Jerusalem. Nehemiah was a man who cared about God’s church, and although he was in a foreign country, his heart was mindful of God's people. Today many people are thinking about their own family situation, are planning their own development and future, but few care about the revival of the church and the spiritual life of brothers and sisters.
2.No one puts effort into serving God.
The second difficulty facing God's home is that no one is willing to put forth an effort. The spiritual road and the path of the world are very different.
In Romans, Paul spoke of dedicating himself as a living sacrifice to God. This is a sacred pursuit that too many take for granted. Today many Christians are struggling for their own cause, putting a lot of thought, energy, and time into their work, having no intention of doing God's things, and not having the extra energy to devote to the church. So there are a lot of people who attend church, but many people are not involved in service, they don't know how to serve.
There are also Christians who serve the church, but their service is mostly superficial. It doesn’t come from the heart, so the spirit of the Christians remains weak. Many Christians are not willing to make the effort, are afraid of trouble, afraid of giving up, unwilling to carry their own cross to follow the Lord.
3.No one prays for the church
The third difficulty for the church is that there are not enough people who feel the burden of praying for others. A common phenomenon in the church today is the lack of prayer, and many Christians have no prayer connection with the Lord in their lives. They only seek God's help when they encounter difficulties, and only to solve their own problems. There is a real lack of people in the church who are praying only for the sake of others and for the church of God.
When Nehemiah heard the people of Jerusalem, he not only sat down and wept, but for days he fasted and prayed before God. Many people pray for their own business and do not pray for God's churches.
They often pray just in their minds, and not in the Holy Spirit. Sincere prayer is in the Holy Spirit, that is, praying with a burden that comes from God, praying for the church and for God's will to be done.
We must know about the difficulties of the church today, and pray for God's grace to revive and restore the church after the outbreak.
- Translated by Heirs Han
基层传道人谈：疫情中教会的三大难处
2020年是不同寻常的一年，正当人们沉浸在新年的欢乐当中时，突如其来的新冠状病毒打破了人们的喜悦，一场没有硝烟的战争正在打响。很多的基督徒，也被卷入其中，而影响最大的还是神的家，基督的教会。
疫情期间，弟兄姊妹们不能在一起敬拜神，只能通过网络听道敬拜，这使得聚会的效果大打折扣，使圣灵的工作受到拦阻，因此很多基督徒落在属灵软弱和难处当中。然而，神的家却依然落在一种荒凉的情行，弟兄姊妹们仍在软弱的经历里面，今天神家面对的挑战和难处依然是严峻的。
一、神家无人关心
教会当中所面临的首要问题是关心神家的人太少。当我读到尼希米记第一章时，我的里面很有感动。尼希米听见耶路撒冷的光景：那些被掳归回剩下的人在犹大省遭大难，受凌辱，并且耶路撒冷的城墙拆毁，城门被火焚烧。尼希米心里对神家有感觉，对神的家有负担，于是他就坐下哭泣，悲哀几日。
虽然尼希米在异国亚达薛西王面前作酒政的工作，但他却在打听耶路撒冷神百姓的光景。尼希米是一个关心神家的人，他虽然在被掳的异国他乡，但他的心却挂念神家的百姓。今天很多人都在挂念自己家里的情况，都在计划自己的发展和前途，却很少有人关心神家的复兴和弟兄姊妹属灵的光景。
二、神家无人付出
神的家面临第二个难处是没有人愿意付出代价。属灵的道路与属世的道路是截然不同的，要想在属灵上有长进、要想让神家在得到复兴，必须得有人投入在其中，需要有人为神家奉献摆上自己。
保罗在罗马书12章第一节所说的，要将自己当做活祭献给神。这样的事奉是圣洁的，也是讨神喜悦的，也是理所当然的。然而今天许多基督徒都在为着自己的事业来奋斗，将很多的心思、精力和时间投入在工作之中，已经无心在神家的事情上，也没有额外的体力再投入到神家里。所以表面上教会的人数很多，但在服事方面很多人都没有参与进来，他们根本不知道怎样来服事神的家，许多神家的工作也不知道怎么去做。
还有的就是已经进入服事的肢体，他们在服事的过程中多数是表面的服事，并没有真正的服事到人的内心深处，使软弱的基督徒灵里得到刚强。甚至在自己所当尽的本分和责任上也是一种亏欠和失职的表现，因为现在很多的基督徒不愿意付代价，怕麻烦，怕舍己，不愿意背起自己的十字架来跟随主。
三、神家无人祈祷
神家第三个难处是缺少有负担祷告的人。今天教会的一个普遍现象就是缺乏祷告，很多基督徒在生活当中跟主根本就没有建立起祷告的联系，只有在遇到困难时才会来求告神，还只是为着解决自己的事。教会当中真的缺乏那些只是出于负担、且是为着神的教会来祷告的人。
当尼希米听见耶路撒冷百姓的情况，他不仅坐下哭泣，悲哀几日他还在神面前禁食祈祷。很多人的祷告都是为解决自己的事，并没有为神家的事祈求。
基督徒就算有祷告，很多时候也是在人的思想当中，并没有在圣灵里来祷告。真正在圣灵里面的祷告，也就是在负担里面祷告，这负担是从神而来，是为着神的家也是为着神的旨意。
我们要看见现今教会的难处，借着祷告求神赐下恩典，使疫情之后的教会得着属灵的复兴。
2020 has been an unusual year, as people immersed themselves in the joys of the New Year, the COVID-19 suddenly ruined the joy of people, and a war without smoke began. Many Christians have also been affected, and the church has been affected most of all.
During the outbreak, Christians were unable to worship God together, only using the Internet, which greatly diminished the effectiveness of gathering together and prevented the work of the Holy Spirit. This resulted in difficulty for many Christians as they struggled spiritually. As time has passed, things have not necessarily improved as brothers and sisters are still experiencing the challenges and difficulties and the outlook for the church is still grim.
1. No one cares about the church.
The first problem is that too few people care about the church. When I read the first chapter of Nehemiah, I was very moved. Nehemiah saw the plight of Jerusalem: those who had returned were subjected to great suffering and humiliation in the province of Judah, and the walls of Jerusalem were torn down and the gates were set on fire. Nehemiah’s emotions were deeply affected because of what had been done in Jerusalem, so he sat down and wept for a few days.
Although Nehemiah worked in front of the Persian King Artaxerxes, he cared about the people of Jerusalem. Nehemiah was a man who cared about God’s church, and although he was in a foreign country, his heart was mindful of God's people. Today many people are thinking about their own family situation, are planning their own development and future, but few care about the revival of the church and the spiritual life of brothers and sisters.
2.No one puts effort into serving God.
The second difficulty facing God's home is that no one is willing to put forth an effort. The spiritual road and the path of the world are very different.
In Romans, Paul spoke of dedicating himself as a living sacrifice to God. This is a sacred pursuit that too many take for granted. Today many Christians are struggling for their own cause, putting a lot of thought, energy, and time into their work, having no intention of doing God's things, and not having the extra energy to devote to the church. So there are a lot of people who attend church, but many people are not involved in service, they don't know how to serve.
There are also Christians who serve the church, but their service is mostly superficial. It doesn’t come from the heart, so the spirit of the Christians remains weak. Many Christians are not willing to make the effort, are afraid of trouble, afraid of giving up, unwilling to carry their own cross to follow the Lord.
3.No one prays for the church
The third difficulty for the church is that there are not enough people who feel the burden of praying for others. A common phenomenon in the church today is the lack of prayer, and many Christians have no prayer connection with the Lord in their lives. They only seek God's help when they encounter difficulties, and only to solve their own problems. There is a real lack of people in the church who are praying only for the sake of others and for the church of God.
When Nehemiah heard the people of Jerusalem, he not only sat down and wept, but for days he fasted and prayed before God. Many people pray for their own business and do not pray for God's churches.
They often pray just in their minds, and not in the Holy Spirit. Sincere prayer is in the Holy Spirit, that is, praying with a burden that comes from God, praying for the church and for God's will to be done.
We must know about the difficulties of the church today, and pray for God's grace to revive and restore the church after the outbreak.
- Translated by Heirs Han
Grassroots Pastor Talks about Church Difficulties during COVID-19
