Shashamane Gospel Crusade, Ethiopia DAY 1:
Our crusade has kicked-off to a heaven-filling start! We have faced some opposition from religious groups during our preparation phase, many of our posters being torn down and our team being harassed in the streets. Still, thousands joined us for the first service and our wonderful Jesus poured out gifts upon those gathered: gifts of salvation, healing and deliverance. I preached on Luke 15 and the three back-to-back stories of the lost sheep, coin and son. What a response to the Gospel message! Hands were raised heavenward and the Great Shepherd, Jesus the King was invited to become the overseer of our souls. It was – as always – a majestic moment. Prayer for the sick produced fantastic testimonies. Alefe is a young man of 19. He was visiting a friend when that friend started leaving for the crusade field. Curious, he tagged along. Tonight, he first received Jesus as Saviour and then, his newfound Saviour healed him physically as well. His stomach had been paining him constantly for two years. He could neither work nor play sports. “I am very happy,” he voiced. Running back and forth on stage, he showed off his pain-free state. Paulos is 35 years old. Excruciating nerve pains had tormented him for the past seven months. “My body felt hot, like it was burning, non-stop,” he explained. During prayer for the sick, he felt electricity moving through his body and then heard a voice from heaven telling him that he is healed. And, healed he was! Thrilled, Paulos rejoiced. Even more wonderfully, he also received Jesus as Saviour. Bontu is a beautiful, 33-year-old woman who was diagnosed with a tumour in her womb many years ago. Over the last year, the pain had become so intense and the tumour so large, the doctors wanted to remove her womb. She received both Jesus as Lord tonight and her healing as well. “The pain is gone!” she expressed, elated. “I cannot feel the pain anymore! I can feel the tumour no longer!” What a night, what a start. Thank you for your prayers, precious friend. Shashamane is being saved!
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Shashamane Gospel Crusade, Ethiopia DAY 2:
We are swimming in His power and presence here! Tonight, our crowd doubled in size and the hunger with which those gathered clung to every word of the Gospel message was tangible. I preached from John 3, telling the story of Nicodemus and making clear why we need to be born again. Our spirits are filthy with sin, I explained and the soap of heaven is the only substance that can wash us clean. What is this soap? The blood of Jesus! The response was heartfelt. The entire crowd it seemed leapt into the arms of our risen Lord. These moments are precious beyond measure! Our ushers worked fervently to collect the details of the new converts and distribute follow-up material. Then, we prayed for the sick. Testimonies were heard not only of miracles that took place this evening but also, yesterday. One 12-year-old girl named Sintayew had been vomiting blood on a daily basis for the past two months. The pain in her belly was acute. “I could not play with my friends,” she voiced. Last night, she attended our first service and since then, the vomiting and pain has completely stopped. Beaming with joy, she smiled from ear to ear as she shared how well she felt after those two horrible months of fear and torment. Tadese is 56 years old. He had been anguishing for months with debilitating back and legs pains. The agony was so great that the misery threw him into a deep depression. Tonight, the physical pains left him and the mental distress along with them. Jumping up and down on stage, he rejoiced and the crowd with him. Hallellujah! Two more days of meetings lie before us. Your continued prayers are keenly felt and deeply appreciated.
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Shashamane Gospel Crusade, Ethiopia DAY 3:
The Spirit is hard at work. What wonders we are witnessing! Thousands are flooding into the outstretched arms of our Jesus and He is saving, healing and setting free. I preached on Isaiah 55 and the urging of the Prophet Isaiah to call upon the Lord and repent. I explained why God can only forgive those who believe that Jesus died on the cross for their sins. The voices that called on the Almighty and confessed faith in His Son, were thunderous in volume. They shouted their belief in the only name under heaven by which we can be saved. It was glorious! I taught on the Holy Spirit thereafter, preparing the people for tomorrow night when we will pray for the Holy Spirit baptism. All listened with great attentiveness, eager to be used by God for His glory. Prayer for the sick yielded many testimonies, men and women being liberated from typhoid, blindness, nerve ailments and the like. One testimony stood out on account of its intensity. Medina is 30 years old. For the past two years, an onslaught of ailments had plagued her, including a tumour in her stomach, a never-ceasing migraine headache and paralysis in her right arm. Like the woman with the issue of blood in Scripture, she had been from doctor to doctor, spent all she had and was no better. She had been so frail and in such pain for the past few weeks that she could no longer walk or even stand by herself. Her brother brought her to our crusade and laid her at the back of the field, where she slept through the entire meeting, waking – clearly by the hand of the Lord – while we were praying for the sick. What happened? The power of the Most High descended upon Medina and suddenly, instantaneously, every ailment vanished. She walked all the way to the front of the field and our stage without any assistance and testified with awestruck glee. Every pain has gone. Her arm is perfectly mobile. Her strength has returned. Impacted by this show of God’s love for her, Medina also received Jesus as Saviour. How fantastic! Tomorrow morning, a mass church service will be held with all cooperating churches. Everyone is looking forward to this immensely. Then, tomorrow evening, we hold our final crusade service. Shashamane is being saved!
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Shashamane Gospel Crusade, Ethiopia FINAL DAY:
The past few days have been a rollercoaster of emotion for our team. Two people very dear to us went home to be with the Lord: first, a dear ministry partner and then, Ev. Reinhard Bonnke. Their passing spurs us on, both being committed to the vision of a blood-washed Africa. We cannot let them down. We will never shrink back. The Gospel must be preached. Africa shall be saved! Today, our crowd exploded with growth. Our mass church service this morning was spectacular. Tens of thousands huddled under a sea of umbrellas. I taught on the Holy Spirit, equipping the people to be used by God, laying layer upon layer. I ended my sermon with a short salvation message and the response was stunning. Tonight, the glory of the Lord descended upon us. First, Ev. Samuel Murrombe preached the red-hot Gospel and a sea of humanity was swept into the Kingdom. Then, I continued teaching on the Holy Spirit before we prayed for the fire to fall. Our Jesus, the Great Baptiser, did not disappoint. He came eagerly to His children, saturating them with His Spirit, empowering them for service. An army of power-packed soul-winners has been born. Ethiopia for Jesus! We prayed for healing and miracles popped up like popcorn. What testimonies were heard. Moses has been deaf since childhood. He is now 46 years old. Tonight, his ears popped open. “I can hear!” he professed. Nigist had been suffering from horrendous stomach pains for the past year. The pain was unbearable and constant. “It felt like a wound was open on the inside of me,” she shared. “Now, I am free!” She rejoiced, liberated. Hallelujah! We also declared a blessing over the crowd before saying our goodbyes. Now, the important work of following up the new converts begins. Please keep both these fledgling believers and pastors in your prayers. When the chairman of the local fraternal thanked our team this evening from stage, he said something that deeply moved me. “This is the first time that a woman has held a crusade in Shashamane. You have removed the curse of the woman. The women of Shashamane must be evangelists, prophets, apostles, pastors and teachers!” Yes indeed, both men and women must labour side-by-side. If we work together, Africa – and the world – will be saved!
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