Two years ago, we were beginning to ride the waves of revival. It’s full blown now…
As we traveled through South Asia, I reconnected with pastor friends who reported their ministries doubling in the last year or two–many families coming to Christ, and even new churches forming!
In fact, two years ago I stopped at a tribal village and “randomly” preached the Gospel. Three people believed that day. We showed up again this week–and it turns out ALL the rest of the village now believes in Christ! Wow!!
Everywhere we went people were giving their lives to Jesus or committing themselves to live lives of impact as everyday, everywhere laborers!
In addition to “one-life-at-a-time-along-the-way” ministry moments, this trip was packed FULL with:
- The first ever national residential youth camp in this region
- 3 evangelistic outreaches
- 3 Life on Purpose Laborership trainings
- 2 church services
Joshua and I preached daily for about 25 total messages and traveled all over the nation, driving hours every day or two. We are physically tired but FIRED UP with all Jesus is up to!
The local Forge partner’s wife is now a well know district leader for the government, appointed by the President himself. She is the first-ever Christian to hold such a position in their primarily Buddhist and Hindu nation, and is having great influence, helping many Christians, churches, and establishing prayer rooms.
In one tribal outreach where we returned to partner alongside a chief who came to Christ several years ago, 150 people showed up! I was able to share the Gospel and 20 responded to receive Christ this week! Then the chief said “This coming summer I have meetings with every tribal leader for our entire people group. I want you to return and do this type of outreach again but for every person in our tribe. I’m going to tell all the other tribal leaders that we must do this. Because I want every person in our tribe to hear about the way of Jesus Christ!!”
This all began 9 years ago with “seeing, stopping, spending time, and sharing God stories” with this chief! Now his one life is multiplying and opening up incredible doors of opportunity in this revival season!
After one of the trainings, a farmer texted and sent a testimony video to our partners stating how the time was very impactful and he would have never expected it would be as useful as it was to him. As an actual agricultural laborer himself, now he is a Kingdom Laborer too! Of all people, he of course deeply connected with Jesus’ vision in Matthew 9:37-38 for every ordinary person to engage their harvest fields!
Then He said to His disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.”
One laborer brought a group of students to the youth camp and said “In 2019 when you came and preached in my area, my life was completely changed. I was not on a good path, but during those messages, the Lord turned my life around, and now I am discipling 15-20 guys a year!”
There was a college student who was introduced to us, as a friend of local contacts. He was packed full of all sorts of questions about Christianity related to apologetics, Scripture, and how Jesus could be the only way. After several conversations at meal tables, he declared that our willingness to spend time with him and discuss the evidence for the resurrection of Jesus (specifically that people would not die for a lie they created) really challenged him, compelled him, and made him want to study the Bible for himself! He then went and read through several of the gospels in their entirety.
Overall, we witnessed at least 64 people give their lives to Christ, 449 commit to share Jesus as everyday, everywhere laborers, and many others re-surrendering to Jesus as first love and sharing how transformed they were.
Much is ahead. Many are strongly urging us to return to provide more equipping and outreaches in varying regions . . . and as we speak, the movement is multiplying . . . our main partner just traveled to preach in several other nations in Asia where ministry leaders are gathering. He declared “I challenged them with these same messages that every christian must be a laborer in their harvest fields, and many of those ministry leaders were compelled to go back to their ministries and implement this!”
May Jesus continue to amaze all of us in this season of history as we continue to do everything we can, everywhere we can, to engage everyone we can for Jesus and His mission!
