My Fifty Years of Spiritual Growth in the Local Church with the Ministry of Watchman Nee & Witness Lee, Frances Lee

I grew up in a minister's home. I was saved in my early years, and I determined to serve the Lord all my life. It was around the summer of 1950 while I was attending the university in the southern part of China that I began meeting with some people in the local church in a Bible study group. From thereon, my Christian life began to have a revolutionary change. Prior to knowing them and attending the local church meetings, I only dreamed about serving the Lord as a career. I did not have much experience of the speaking from the Lord. After attending a church that is living, I came to know the inner life and the inner anointing (1 John 2:27). On account of this inner anointing, I was brought into many dealings with the Lord. As a result, my relationship with the Lord grew.

Leaving China in 1951, I continued for two years to meet with the local church in Hong Kong. Here I must point out the reason that I was attracted to the church to the degree of leaving my denomination despite my father's association with it. It is because I feel the local church abides in the word of the Lord, the oneness of the Spirit (Ephesians 4:3) and has the commanded blessing of life (Psalm 133:1, 3). At that time, many Bible truths which I was ignorant of were, one by one, brought home to me in my spiritual experience¯such as Christ's headship, the Body of Christ, the way of the cross, and the breaking of the outer man for the release of the inner man (2 Corinthians 4:16; Hebrews 4:12).

I took great delight also in the books and hymns written by Watchman Nee, because they were a collection of great spiritual wealth from our Christian forefathers plus the up-to-date light that he received while walking with and serving the Lord. These riches have become a real supply to me. I also received much benefit from the local church meetings, because all the attendants, as members of the Body of Christ, were encouraged to take part in each meeting. They shared their spiritual learning with the accompanied experiences that in turn became a spiritual feeding time for all who were present in the meeting.

My Christian life was then further advanced by my hearing the ministry of Witness Lee in the USA since 1962. His first burden in this Christian country was to show the all-inclusiveness of Christ (Colossians 3:11) and our appropriation of it through our knowing the human spirit, calling on the Lord's name (Romans 10:13), and reading the Word prayerfully (Ephesians 6:17-18). Witness Lee's ministry had never deviated from the goal of God's eternal administrative plan which is that God desires to dispense Himself into man through man's receiving Christ (John 20:22). In so doing God gains many sons who contain His life and nature (Romans 8:29). These many sons are the many brothers of Christ and the many members in the Body of Christ (Romans 12:5). I never had the privilege to hear the ministry of Watchman Nee, but praise God that I had the full opportunity to hear the ministry of Witness Lee. I owe him all my spiritual training. May glory be to the Triune God.