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October 2004
Dear Friends,
Greetings in the love of Jesus! God is moving in powerful ways to open new doors in the Middle East.
As I began ministry in a Leadership Conference followed by outre3aches with all the local churches cooperating in one nation, it was a prophetic moment. These services were being held during the Feast of Tabernacles. This Feast prophetically speaks of the gospel gaining access into the unreached people groups of the world. At the same time, this is a Year of Release, held every 7 years. Thank God for this precious moment when He is opening the Gospel to the Muslim world!
In several Gulf States the government has started to open the doors for greater access from the expatriate community. For the first time they will be able to own land in designated areas.
I had the opportunity to meet with a number of Sheiks (a member of the royal family) and the head of the Ministry of Islamic Affairs in the Kingdom of Bahrain. This country will house the first office for the Islamic movement that is developing a dialogue for Christian and Islamic affairs. They are seeking to counter the militant branch of Islam and build a more moderate approach that will have peaceful relationships with non-Islamic peoples.
This is a movement that has involved Islamic leaders from all over the world - the Middle East, Europe, North Africa, and Asia. What is developing from this movement is a greater access for the Christian to give witness to the gospel in many ways.
Of course the community stigma is a challenge for all that turn to Christ.
As I ministered in the Gulf States I found many in the expatriate church that are hungry to become effective in touching their generation. There is a new openness amongst them for the moving of the Holy Spirit and the Word of God. Those that have been shut up in their church cultures are finding a new generation that has spent some years growing up among the local people and they do not want the barriers of the past.
God met the Leadership in our Conferences with His power and revelation. The Lord touched many of them so that about 70% were slain in the Spirit. This happened with a people that have not been exposed to this manifestation of the Spirit and without and reference to it.
Fresh commitments were made to break out of the boundaries of their various church cultures and to touch the local Arabian people.
In the meetings with the full Body of Christ the Lord was faithful to touch and heal many with clear-cut healings in every service. Faith is rising with the church to see God pour out of His Holy Spirit.
In one country I met a young person that God began to use with his Arab friends that were won to Christ. God began to manifest Himself and there were healings, salvations, baptisms in the Holy Spirit, and other expressions of the Lord. However, lack of guidance and jealousy seemed to put a damper on the move.
Now there is an effort to reorganize this ministry with appropriate oversight and counsel to touch the youth.
ARABIC CHURCH
In a meeting with the Arabic church many were touched by the power of the Holy Spirit without a word being mentioned about it. As I prayed with those that had needs God began to touch them, some dramatically.
God moved powerfully on a medical doctor that was afflicted with cancer. He went down in the Holy Spirit, and he was in and out of full awareness for some time.
He was speaking in tongues, not knowing about it. Actually he was out in the Spirit in some measure all night. During the night God gave him a vision about a ministry among young people for the nation. I know that God is in this.
I had the privilege in one nation to pray with the pastor of the only Arabic church in the country to receive the baptism in the Holy Spirit.
He received and carries a great vision for all of the Islamic nations. People from Saudi Arabia come to him in his country and get saved. Now he will bring them to the baptism of the Holy Spirit and reach for the power of God in their lives.
In one nation in the first session of the Leadership Conference I was introduced by a white lady, Verna, who is married to an Arabian. She has a ministry with the Arabs. She got saved in Canada at age 14 in 1974 during my ministry.
Her sister brought her to a service, got her to the altar where they all were going down under the power. Verna went down in the Spirit and got saved. She has never been the same again. Now I met her in one of the Gulf States where she has been doing ministry.
In one Gulf State I met a man who was a boy in my Pondicherry, India crusade meeting. He got saved in the crusade and is going on with the Lord.
Also, I met a pastor who attended the crusade in Ludhiana, India. He got touched by the power of the Holy Spirit. For three days he shut himself in and prayed only in tongues. The next Sunday in his church he went to pray and the whole church was slain in the Spirit. He is pastoring in India and building a church in one of the Gulf States.
A PRECIOUS ENCOUNTER
In one gulf State I had the privilege to meet with a Sheik who will be the next Prime Minister of his nation. He is the cousin to the King. This man traces his ancestry back to Ishmael and Abraham.
Our conversation lasted 3 ½ hours and became rather deep in many ways. I was amazed as he shared about the political positions of various Arab nations, family challenges, etc.
I was able to share about the Healing power of Jesus, personal testimonies and many gospel truths.
For example, I was able to tell the Sheik that my task was to bring a demonstration of the goodness of God to the people. Many believe in God but do not know Him.
In our meetings I pray for the sick and we see the hand of the Lord Jesus Christ extended to heal the blind, the deaf, the mute, crippled, and all manner of disease.
Whenever God heals like this everyone knows that God is present because man cannot make the blind eye see, of the deaf ear hear, or the cripple be free.
Along with this awareness that God is present and working there is an immediate awareness that God cares about our lives and our needs.
In addition it is clear that God is willing to intervene in such a way as to go beyond the limits of the creation to help us in our need.
And, whenever God uses me like this it lets people know that man can have an interactive relationship with God. This creates a hunger to search for relationship with God and to know Him.
I was able to share that God appointed Jesus as the one mediator between man and God. His mission was to bring an answer to the sin problem with man that has separated him for God.
Throughout this conversation the Sheik was quite attentive. When I had to leave he asked me four times to be sure to come and meet with him again we I return to his nation in January.
I cannot share too much publicly out of respect for his delicate position.
Please be praying for this man, his salvation and leadership in his nation.
PAKISTAN
It was a joy for me to stay with the Fazal family throughout the week. Our ministry in Delhi was a breakthrough moment for them and now God has given them a great beachhead for the Gospel.
The evening service was wonderful. There is a revival spirit working amongst the people. There were about 20,000 plus whatever was in the street where the people watched on big screens.
This gathering of people is the largest Christian weekly meeting among Muslim people anywhere in the Islamic world.
God is releasing a great harvest with a fresh presence of His Holy Spirit in these meetings. I believe it will sweep the nation. What is happening here has the potential to change Pakistan.
During my service the head Mullah for all of Pakistan came with some friends.
He remained for 5-10 minutes before going on to another meeting. Just his coming to such a gathering is greatly significant. God is building bridges and opening the hearts of many to come to Christ.
In this meeting there were many salvations and some great healings. I will list a few:
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A lady totally blind for 6 years
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A lady deaf in one ear for many years
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A man totally deaf for some years
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A boy with a crippled right arm
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A lady with hands twisted in and frozen and crippled feet
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A man with paralyzed back and feet
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A little girl who was mute
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A boy with 2 tumors on his neck that were quite visible, totally disappeared
During my time in Pakistan I was in the State of Punjab. In the week I was present there were 3 different bombings that killed many people.
The nation was put on high alert and all public meetings were cancelled throughout the nation.
This included a number of conventions hosted by various Christian church organizations, crusades, and Conferences.
Fortunately we were given permission to continue in all of our meetings.
However, outside the home where I was staying were a number of security guards continually. Whenever we traveled we has a security car in front and one in back. This was not for me, but for the ministry that was hosting me due to the impact they are having in the nation.
WE CAN CHANGE A NATION
The work in Pakistan is operating on a rented ground. With the volatility of the nation in the midst of weekly bombings from the Islamic militants, the freedom to use this ground is at risk.
In order to keep this ministry operating and to give it room to grow we need to have our own land. Because this is a weekly meeting, if it is held on our own land it will be the same as a normal church service or service in a Mosque. This means that the government cannot shut it down without shutting down all the mosques in the city as well.
The present ground to much too small. This is why at least 5,000 people are sitting in the street each week. If we are able to purchase our own land where there is room enough for the people the crowd will easily grow to 40,000 people or more each week in two or three months.
This is an unprecedented move of God among Islamic people. Now is the time to make every effort to support this beachhead for the Kingdom of God.
Now is the time that God has given to reach this nation. We will not be able to make up for missed opportunity.
We need to raise $200,000 to match the efforts of this group to purchase this land. Please pray about doing something significant at this time to change a nation. If you would like to offer support now, please click here.
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