Maridi South Sudan 23rd to 27th June
Dear friends,
Sudan is indeed a ripe harvest field and a fertile ground. I believe the answer is for men and women, boys and girls to hold fast to The Word of God and not let go; to do and to practise what they know and have heard. Since our last visit to Maridi in 2002, only one other gospel meeting has taken place, but there has been much development in the town – piped water to distribution points of rows and rows of water taps are dotted all over the town; by December there will also be electricity, and mobile phone networks are in operation. The greatest need remains for the BREAD OF LIFE TO BE BROKEN among the people.
We had a small taste of the effect that the Gospel can have on a people. I was told that in the Dinka culture, it is very much an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth, forgiveness is considered a weakness. So usually, when someone is harmed or wrongly treated, strong revenge is planned. As God’s Holy Spirit moved in saving and touching lives, a man came up onto the stage to testify how he had surrendered to Jesus. At home, the Lord then convicted him about a severe disagreement that he had had with someone, which caused great bitterness in his life as the two parties had not talked in years. And so he began to reason, “Why should I not forgive that man who did me great harm”. He realised that he was truly forgiven and now he wanted to forgive in return, so he said, “I now release this person”.
On Sunday, the crowd swelled to close to 10,000, and at least three quarters of the people indicated that they were sick when we asked, “Who needs prayer?” As Robin Aim, the Cathedral Bishops, and myself moved among the thousands of sick, laying hands on them, our hearts were moved with compassion at the dreadful state of some of the people. There were literally hundreds of blind people, and oh so many sick children.
On one of the days, during ministry, the Lord instantly opened the eyes of three women standing together. The deaf also heard as Jesus truly moved. One moving testimony concerns a lady who travelled 65 miles to the crusade. She had heard that God was healing and she came in great faith. Her hands were so weak that she could not feed herself and she could not even take a bath! The Lord rewarded her faith, and she went home strong. She was able to feed herself and also carry a basin of water for a bath! The Lord had completely healed her.
As I gave the call for salvation, it was wonderful to see how the Lord touched hearts. Almost the whole crowd responded. There were multitudes of salvations, healings and deliverances. The Holy Spirit ministered and filled many.
Daily Leaders Seminars
I shared the daily teaching seminars with a missionary friend, Robin Aim, who heads up AfriLift here in Kenya. Robin taught and ministered on “How to hear the voice of God”, which caused the leaders to hunger and desire more and more to hear the voice of the Lord.
Fruit that remains
In 2002, we had a notorious man get up and testify how he had been addicted to alcohol. I remember him saying the taste had gone and that he did not want it anymore. I wondered if this was still true. As I walked into the Church on Sunday, there he was, still faithful, and still serving the Lord. This was a true salvation.
Bishop Justin Badi writes.
Dear brother in Christ Evangelist Roger West
Grace and peace of God to you.
On behalf of the churches in Maridi and the entire people of Maridi, I would like to convey our words of thanks and appreciation for your ministry and especially the work done in Maridi. We have seen that the Lord has really used you to revive the church in Maridi. The situation in Sudan has made many people to stay with bitterness in their hearts and always planning for revenge. But I am glad that, through your ministry in Maridi, the Spirit of God has cleared this evil spirit of revenge and violence from the hearts of many people. I personally received two people who came to confess that they had forgiven those who offended them. There many other stories of people who have come to our pastors in different churches. We really thank God for such healing and the physical healings that many people received. The power of the devil and his kingdom was brought lower and lower as people surrender their charms, and those bewitched were released and healed from their troubles. The Gospel message is being uplifted higher and higher. People now have a fresh interest to listen to the local evangelists and preachers. Thank you, and may God continue to work through you for the expansion and advancement of His kingdom in the world.
We are in a critical moment in Sudan. We very much need your prayers and presence in Sudan to encourage and mobilise the churches to God in prayers and confession. We look forward to receive you again this year and next year in 2011. Greetings to your wife and may God bless all your ways.
Once again thank you
Yours in Christ
+ Justin Badi
Bishop of Maridi
Yei Meetings – 26th July to 1st August
Our truck and team is travelling today (1st July) through a very difficult piece of terrain, please remember them in prayer. Also for safety for Benson and Mogga, as last week the LRA (Lord’s Resistance Army) attacked a vehicle on the road between Maridi and Yambio.
We will have visitors with us in Yei – Pastors Jack Haynes and Don Matheney.
Also, we are now planning to return to Sibiti in the Republic of Congo in late August or early September. Please stand with us in prayer as we reach out to these cities with the Love of God.
Yours in Christ Roger & Shireen West.
Posted by Roger West on 07.02.2010 at 9:19 pm// Tagged: Field Updates //
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Yambio South Sudan. 26th – 30th May 2010
Oh to be back in Sudan and see some of the folk we had met during our 2002 meetings. “Do you remember me? I was just a young boy when you came with the tent, I am now serving God”. Or the lady who was totally mad and roaming around the town of Yambio naked, and living off the very limited garbage people would throw out. What a burden she was to her children; what a nuisance she was in the town, but back in 2002, the Lord touched her in the tent meeting, and she was totally restored of madness of mind. Now, years later, she is still praising God for the wonderful miracle.
The first day’s meeting coincided with the inauguration of the new governor. We started soon after these celebrations had finished, which resulted in many of the crowd just coming over to attend the Gospel meeting. All was going well, when suddenly, what seemed to be out of nowhere, a cool wind began to blow and heavy black clouds seeped over the whole area. Then it poured with rain, just as I took the microphone! People scattered and took cover in every possible place while Charles, my interpreter, and myself just stood on the stage with an umbrella for 30 minutes or so until it passed. To my surprise, very few people had left – the crowd had even grown. I preached a very clear Gospel message, which touched many hearts. The Lord had given us a huge harvest of Kingdom souls, many of them hearing the Gospel for the first time and many also re?dedicating their lives to the Lord.
Have you ever witnessed to a friend or a relative, and they just resist and refuse to surrender to the Lord’s calling? Have you ever thought how God reaches the lost? We know that God never does His saving work alone, but gives man the privilege to be involved. Our involvement includes being an example of grace alongside a person. It includes intercession and representing the person before the throne of God, and then it includes pleading with the person on behalf of God to be reconciled to Him. But after we have done our part, then it is up to God to do the actual saving.
Throughout the ages, there have been hot debates on the subject of regeneration; how much of the new birth of a soul is God’s work, and how much is man himself involved. I asked one person how he came to know Jesus, then came this wonderful answer. “I fought against God with all my strength and He won!” Well in Yambio, the Lord moved in a wonderful way and won. There was a tremendous openness to the Gospel and a resounding YES at every alter call. When God touches a heart with His Love, it is impossible to resist. It was refreshing to see the Lord at work bringing in the harvest. What a joy to have been involved in what He is doing.
Every night, the crowd seemed to grow and grow. It is hard to get a clear figure of the new state of Yambio Headquarters, but we estimate the town population to be approximately 20 to 30 thousand people. What was remarkable was that the Lord drew most of the population to the meeting on Sunday. After an hour or so of jubilant praise and singing, I took the microphone and started to preach the Gospel, when suddenly, the crowd began to scatter. Another fierce storm was rapidly approaching! We prayed, asking the Lord to hold back the rain – and the Lord stopped the rain in its tracks! This was a real sign to the people that Jesus is alive. Most of the crowd returned and the Lord moved in power, seeking and saving the Lost.
Another touching miracle concerned a man who was partially blind. He could not see more than a metre or so, but, as he sat in the crowd, the Lord touched him, and his eyesight was completely restored. He was amazed to see! What was also remarkable was that he could read from a Bible with such tiny print that even I could not read it! Later, we discovered that this man was a prisoner and had somehow been loosed from prison to attend the meeting.
Shireen went into the prison Sunday morning and gave a strong appeal to the 70 or so prisoners to surrender their lives to the Lord. Shireen writes, I sensed the Lord’s love and compassion for them as they repented of their sin. Most came forward and knelt down some of them were in chains hand and foot. I pray the Holy Spirit will work deeply in their hearts breaking every spiritual chain. I told them that I had come to speak to them so the Lord would see the reward of His suffering on the cross. I knew I was there for Jesus, it was a great Sunday morning church service, I would rather have been there than anywhere else in the world.
We had a lovely visitor from England Jenny Bell who helped with prayer and counselling for the many people that came to us each day. Also she spoke on forgiveness at the morning seminar and Muraguri our sound technician gave His testimony on how he had met his wife and what it means to marry as a Christian. This is such a problem in Sudan because nobody really gets married.
We lived on beans and rice, survived the scorching heat, sat hours under a mango tree interceding for Sudan, rode around on motor bikes, preached to 10,000, and as we took off in the small MAF plane the Lord said to me “My Spirit remains”
The Lord also helped us in a marvellous way with a driver and already the truck and Benson are in Maridi. Please remember us in prayer for the Maridi meetings 23rd -27th June. The message of the Cross changes lives forever. The Gospel is eternal, but we do not have eternity to preach it. Now is Sudan’s time.
Yours in Christ Jesus
Roger and Shireen West.
Posted by Roger West on 06.03.2010 at 5:07 pm// Tagged: Field Updates //
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Southern Sudan Western Equatoria
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Posted by Roger West on 06.02.2010 at 7:25 pm// Tagged: Field Updates //
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Isaiah 53:11 He shall see the labor of His soul, and be satisfied. By His knowledge My righteous Servant shall justify many, For He shall bear their iniquities.
Posted by Roger West on 05.25.2010 at 6:23 am// Tagged: Field Updates //
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