Each time we go to a home meeting, we must have the definite goal of supplying truth and life to others. On the one hand, we need to encourage the new ones to ask questions in the home meetings, while on the other hand, we should not expect to deal too much with their problems. This is not to say that we will not solve their problems but that we should not intend to solve their problems. We should know that the One who can truly benefit others is the Lord Himself. Where is the Lord? The Lord, in one aspect, is in His life and in another aspect, He is in His truth. Every time we go to perfect a home meeting, we must have a definite goal: to give a particular spiritual truth to others and to supply life to them. However, while we are working, we cannot refuse to accommodate them, but neither should we be too accommodating. If we do not accommodate them, we will kill them, but if we do accommodate them, there must be a limit to how much we are prepared to do. We have to adhere to this limit and stay within it. Then we can supply life and truth to them in a definite way.
We may use as an example our current burden to help the new ones understand the breaking of bread and to help them become ones who love the Lord, desire Him, and seek Him. Our goal is to help them in such a way that they will have a turning point in life. We want them to see that we break the bread not because we have been admitted into a religion or that we follow a religious ceremony, but that breaking the bread will help them to have a turning point in their life and become ones who love the Lord and desire Him. For the first twenty-five minutes of a forty-minute meeting, the new ones may still be asking various kinds of questions. This is all right, because they are still spiritual children, but we ourselves need to hold firm to our goal and the timing of the meeting. In the remaining fifteen minutes, we need to give them a “shot” to inject them with the burden that we have brought with us. It is probably the case that by this time we have not resolved their problems and have not finished answering their questions, but those matters are secondary. The purpose of our visit is not to answer questions or solve their problems but to inject the truth concerning the breaking of bread into them. In this way, they can gain help regarding the breaking of bread, receive light from the truth, and receive the life supply. If we work in this way every week for the fifty-two weeks in a year, in the long run much life supply and enlightenment of the truth will be wrought into them. In not more than a year we will see that they have had a turn in life, growth in truth, and more knowledge of the Lord and the spiritual matters.
When we perfect the home meetings, we need to have a burden and a long-term view. Otherwise, we are merely carrying out a meeting, which is not very meaningful. We can compare our work to that of a teacher. We need to teach our “students” definite items in each lesson and not be ambivalent, considering that it does not matter what we do. If a teacher does not teach well, the students will have no improvement in the long run.
Because among us the truth is rich and the supply of life is readily available, we do not lack the proper materials. Thus, we should all the more go to perfect the home meetings step by step, the same way we take care of our own children, carefully considering what food to give them each day, whether meat, fish, vegetables, or perhaps all three. All the foregoing items need our consideration.
Whenever we participate in a home meeting, we need to bring our publications with us. Since we now have fifteen thousand people who are newly baptized, there may not be enough manpower to take care of each family. Therefore, we should put out a small publication once every month and send it to the new ones. Through this publication we will be able to maintain our contact with them. In it there will be some correspondence, some life supply, some unveiling of the truth, a word concerning the gospel, and so on. We can also use this publication to announce certain activities of the church. I believe this will be a great help to them. However, this requires many prayers from all of us.
Since many of the newly baptized ones are educated people, they like to read something during their leisure. If we can give them some publications to keep in their homes, they will benefit from whatever they read, regardless of which item or page they turn to. The members of their family who read it will also gain the benefit. In this world today we need to rely on teaching through literature in whatever we do. The medium of literature is a truly powerful force. We need to use it wisely for our practical needs.
(A message given on March 5, 1987 in Taipei, Taiwan)