Mombasa Crusade March 10-13, 2005

A big Hallelujah from Mombasa, Kenya!

The open-air Glory Backman meetings organized by Hope for Tomorrow for the slum around Chaani were a success. We arrived here to Mombasa with Glory on Wednesday. Ten local pastors and Mikko welcomed us at the airport. That night I went to sleep in the hotel thinking about the situation and thought why in the world are we the ones organizing such big meetings. God spoke to me that night in a peculiar way: I woke up at 4 am and was led to do something I very rarely do - to see what's on TV! Billy Graham was on, and it was from a large open-air meeting in the United States. In the very beginning of the program the organizers of the campaign were interviewed. The reporter asked them: WHY THIS LARGE EVANGELISTIC MEETING? The unanimous response from the team was this, so that they could bring all the believers from that area into one place and shake the place with the Gospel! Hallelujah! God answered my question in a peculiar way and confirmed that we are at the right place at the right time.

In a remarkable way God had helped Mikko and the pastors of Chaani to act with speed and precision. All the arrangements for the meetings held in a big field near the slum went beyond everyone's expectation. Before the first service held on Friday night we went along with the pastors over to the grounds to claim it for the meetings. Even at that time there were children from the slum, about a hundred, who joined in with us and enthusiastically called for the Lord Jesus to manifest Himself in that area. The inhabitants of the slums came and the field was packed with big crowds on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Kids by the hundreds always came. Little bare feet, big bare feet, they all danced and praised the Lord so as that the place got dusty. I will never forget that sight! Each night there were over a thousand people, maybe two and each night at least two hundred people or more came forth to pray the prayer of salvation. On the last night God prepared for us a banquet: many came forth to receive the infilling of the Holy Spirit and were set free from demons. On the first night the Holy Spirit assured through Glory that many were healed from blood diseases, and received new white blood cells. (The Spirit of God is very sensitive! Compare to HIV/AIDS.) Glory's powerful testimony of her own conversion to Christ made an impact, and last night a group of young men came forth to give their hearts to Jesus and be delivered from drug addictions. A little girl named Emma got free from demons and immediately testified on the platform, saying, "Something came out of me."

THANK YOU JESUS FOR CONTINUING YOUR AWESOME WORK IN THE LIVES OF EACH WORKER AND PARTICIPANT OF THE MEETING SO THAT THEIR FRUIT WILL CONTINUE.

During the last service 34 pastors from that area were called to the platform. For the week of Easter we are planning a corporate service for the pastors, counselors and those who were born again. Please pray for that.

From Mombasa Outi Välimaa

Pictures from the Mombasa Crusade