Preview - Nsukka

Nigeria
Nigeria, the “African giant”, as this country is often called, is 2.5 times the size of Germany, twice the size of France and, according to the latest estimates, has a population of more than 150 million. That makes it by far the most densely populated country on the African continent. Owing to its geographical position, the country has a tropical climate with only two seasons – the rainy season during the six months of summer and the dry season during the winter. Nigeria has a large number of different cultures and ethnic groups, which have been unified since the colonial period; there are more than 250 different ethnic groups with various languages.

Nsukka
Nsukka is a university town and a government district in south-eastern Nigeria in the federal state of Enugu. Today, the town, which was fiercely contested during the Biafra war and suffered great deprivation, has a population of around 120,000, lies in a densely populated region and is surrounded by a number of smaller towns. Most of the people belong to the Igbo tribe, one of the three largest ethnic groups in Nigeria. The federal state is primarily agricultural but there is also a significant mineral resource mining sector. Coal and iron ore are mined and oil and natural gas are extracted, and there are consequently many industrial companies.

Nsukka is known for its many traditional festivals, which include African masked festivals and others in honour of the people’s ancestors. As in many parts of Africa which have had a superficial Christian culture since the colonial period, one of the problems is that of mixed religious belief and practice. The cult of the ancestors, fetishism and the continuation of old, heathen traditions have been mixed into the Christian message, which is why it is important for the people in those regions to hear a clear, uncompromising proclamation of the message of salvation. Many spiritual leaders need encouragement, fresh fire and a new enthusiasm for Jesus. We are sure that our evangelistic campaign comes at the right time for them and that the fields are ripe for harvesting.

As you can see, in the season ahead we are expecting a might harvest of souls – several million people – for Jesus, the “Lord of the harvest” (Matthew 9:38; Luke 10:2). That is utterly impossible by human means! We know that we have to rely totally on the Lord. On his behalf we want to plunder hell and populate heaven!

Arrival - Tuesday, 7 October 2008

Dear Mission-Partners,

We arrived in the city of Nsukka today and the people were on their feet! What a welcome, what rejoicing! All signs point to a great and fruitful Gospel Crusade. Representatives of all churches greeted us joyfully ….”We’ve been waiting for you so long…”...but now no more. We have come…in the name of the Lord!  The king of Nsukka Land received us with great honor and clad me in royal garments. The secular media surrounded us for interviews, etc. All in all it was truly wonderful. We can’t wait till tomorrow. Glory to God. Please keep praying for us.

Tomorrow the crusade starts and I will send you the first report.

Yours in His love and service,

Evangelist Reinhard Bonnke
and the CfaN-Team.

Day 1 - Wednesday, 8 October 2008

Dear Mission-Partners,

We just returned from the first crusade-meeting here at Nsukka. 125,000 attended on the university-field. God’s power simply came down. It was such an honor and also pleasure to preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ. A huge number of people received salvation and many notable miracles happened: cripples walked and blind eyes opened! Have a look at the attached pictures – you will be blessed!
The gospel is a message of miracles but the real priority, the great purpose of God, is salvation. The glory and joy of God is salvation. Jesus works in material fashion but his real commission is as the Saviour of the world. Jesus said that it is better to “enter life maimed” than to die unsaved (Mark 9:43). To deliver all who were oppressed by the devil, Jesus “went around doing good” (Acts 10:38), but to save us he went to the Cross and to hell and back.
Tomorrow morning the Fire Conference begins, followed by the second big meeting on the crusade field of the University of Nsukka, the oldest university of Nigeria.
Wonderful news is also that next month’s crusade will go ahead at Ikot Ekpenne/Nigeria. Some of you have responded so well, that we now have the money to meet the on-field-cost, but trust the Lord for the rest. THANK YOU SO VERY MUCH IN THE NAME OF JESUS. The Lord will be you shelter in the time of storm in the world of finance – that is my prayer.

Yours in His love and service,

Evangelist Reinhard Bonnke
and the CfaN-Team here at Nsukka.

Day 2 - Thursday, 9 October 2008

Dear Mission-Partners,

Tonight the crowd grew to 280,000 people, which is more than double last night’s. Evangelist Daniel Kolenda ministered the gospel with great authority and fantastic results! I am proud of my young colleague. But something happened the night before I have never seen in my entire ministry: Mrs. Regina Attah came with her 3 children Umeka (12), Chinwendu (10) and their brother Chukwudi (7) to the meeting – all three children totally blind; Umeka for 8 years,Chinwendu for 2 years and litte Chukwudi for 1 year. When I prayed for blind eyes to open in the name of Jesus, all three children received perfect sight at the same moment, “at the twinkling of an eye”, so to speak! It is almost not to be believed, but everything was checked out with great care. Please have a look at the attached picture taken by Oleksandr Volyk. The crowd went wild for joy. We will report more details of this glorious miracle later. Faith is the link with God, not aesthetics. And faith does not end in faith but in tangible blessings. Faith is not fantasy - it is the end of fantasy! As for preaching an emotional Gospel, it cannot be avoided! If the Gospel is not emotional, then nothing ever was. Sensationalize the Gospel? There is no need! God made it sensational! This is what we see and experience. THANK YOU LORD JESUS - and thank you, our precious partners, for your prayers and your sacrificial giving to keep this harvest of souls going.

Yours for a Blood-washed Africa

Evangelist Reinhard Bonnke
and the whole CfaN Team.

Day 3 - Friday, 10 October 2008

Dear Mission-Partners,

It rained tonight, but the crowd still grew to 300,000. The Gospel was boldly proclaimed and a rich harvest of souls reaped! Since so many sinners find salvation, there must be great joy in heaven. Many miracles followed the prayer for healing for the sick, like a little boy of 7 years old, deaf and dumb from birth, completely healed. Remember last night’s testimony of the Attah-family with three totally blind children who all received perfect sight at the same moment? We followed this story up and went to their village… It is absolutely true and glorious what Jesus has done and everything is completely confirmed.
Jesus “was moved with compassion when He saw the multitude…” the Bible says, and He still is until today. What an expression of love. Mount Calvary was the volcano-heart of God. I thank the Lord that He is not an extinct volcano and did not burn out there and exhaust His love in one supreme effort. Calvary fire is still as fresh as ever, eternal and inexhaustible. In our eyes, Calvary was the high peak of Divine love; we cannot point to any greater act. “Greater love has no man than this.”
The Fire Conference attendance by church-workers reached 35,000 and had tremendous impact today. It will be concluded tomorrow. We believe in a mighty outpouring of the Holy Spirit, as the Lord has promised.

Yours for Africa to be saved,

Evangelists Reinhard Bonnke and Daniel Kolenda,
together with the whole CfaN Team.

Day 4 - Saturday, 11 October 2008

Dear Mission-Partners,

Today 400,000 gathered on the University Ground at Nsukka/Nigeria for the CfaN Gospel Crusade (see attached picture). I really wonder myself were they all came from, because Nsukka is a relatively small town. Daniel Kolenda preached again and did very well. The love and grace of God for the salvation of the lost was overwhelming. We truly serve a mighty God. We are evangelists and want to be true to this calling and the Lord of the Harvest. Christ died for us. That event was a cosmic explosion of love and goodness, shattering the rock-solid walls and iron gates of every bondage that ever tyrannized humankind. A check for a billion dollars would seem nothing when crammed into a pocket, but it opens vast possibilities to the payee. That Good Friday-act of redemption in the darkness of the Cross changed everything: Jesus the Carpenter from Nazareth turned the wood of his cross into the door of heaven. Only Jesus saves because only Jesus died to be able to offer what he offers. Nobody else stands where he stands – glory to God! Speaking again of tonight, a flood of miracles moved in, confirming the preached Word of God mightily.

This morning the Fire Conference had its climax in a massive Outpouring of the Holy Spirit. 45,000 delegates crammed into that small stadium (see attached picture). Wow, it was awesome! I am absolutely sure that God laid the foundation for very many future-ministers and future-Gospel-ministries.

Tomorrow is the last day, and we expect even greater things. Please continue to pray for us – and especially for the finances so that we can continue with this glorious harvest of souls.

Yours forever in Jesus,

Evangelists Reinhard Bonnke and Daniel Kolenda,
together with the whole CfaN Team.

Day 5 - Sunday, 12 October 2008

Dear Mission-Partners,

Nsukka: We just returned from the final meeting, where 425,000 people had tonight gathered to hear the Word of God. It is amazing, that during this whole event over 1,500,000 people attended. Our counselors are still counting the completed Decision Cards, but it will be a terrific number. The churches have braced themselves for the influx of new converts – we are sure that nothing will be the same as it was in Nsukka-Land. Have a look at the crowd-picture of tonight. I am sending only one photo today so that you may see the “full blast” of what the Lord has done. We truly serve a mighty God. We also prayed for the Baptism in the Holy Spirit tonight, and the fire of God fell wholesale. Then followed the prayer for the sick and miracles upon miracles took place. Healing proves that long ago the work was done, by the mighty act of God in Christ. To give us his Son was greater than making the stars. It was the greatest act of a God who performs the impossible. To suggest that he could not or would not heal a sickness is ludicrous. A mountain in labor does not bring forth a mouse, and Mount Calvary did not bring forth a minor effect; God’s labor produces more than words, or a text book doctrine; it produces power, hope, forgiveness, and healing. Thank you again for all your prayer and help to bring about this event. The harvest shall continue next month in Ikot Ekpenne/Nigeria – please help us to pray for the rest of the needed finance.

Yours for hell to be empty and heaven full,

Evangelists Reinhard Bonnke and Daniel Kolenda,
together with the whole CfaN Team.

The Gospel Rings Out

As Reinhard Bonnke and the team arrived in the city of Nsukka, Nigeria at the start of the crusade week, the people were on their feet! What a welcome, what rejoicing! All signs pointed to a great and fruitful Gospel Crusade as representatives of all churches greeted the new arrivals joyfully. One leading minister was heard to say, “We’ve been waiting for you so long… but now no more.” Reinhard Bonnke replied, “We have come in the Name of the Lord!” The king of Nsukka Land received Bonnke with great honor and literally ‘clad him in royal garments’ while the secular media pressed around for interviews. All in all it was a truly wonderful welcome.

The Gospel Rings Out
By the second night, the crowd had grown to two hundred and eighty thousand people, which was more than double the first night’s attendance. Evangelist Daniel Kolenda ministered the Gospel with great authority and fantastic results, leading Reinhard Bonnke to say, “I am proud of my young colleague.”

Many fantastic miracles of healing occurred during the crusade meeting. Bonnke commented that, “Something happened the night before that I have never seen in my entire ministry: Mrs. Regina Attah came with her three children Umeka (12), Chinwendu (10), and their brother Chukwudi (7) to the meeting – all three children totally blind; Umeka for eight years, Chinwendu for two years and little Chukwudi for one year. When I prayed for blind eyes to open in the Name of Jesus, all three children received perfect sight at the same moment, ‘in the twinkling of an eye,’ so to speak. It is almost not to be believed, but everything was checked out with great care. The crowd went wild for joy.”

He went on to say that, “Faith is the link with God, not aesthetics. And faith does not end in faith but in tangible blessings. Faith is not fantasy – it is the end of fantasy! As for preaching an emotional Gospel, it cannot be avoided! If the Gospel is not emotional, then nothing ever was. Sensationalize the Gospel? There is no need! God made it sensational! This is what we see and experience.”

On the Saturday evening, four hundred thousand people gathered on the university ground for the evening crusade meeting and the team were heard wondering where they had all come from, because Nsukka is a relatively small town. Daniel Kolenda preached again that evening and did very well, prompting the comment from Reinhard that, “The love and grace of God for the salvation of the lost was overwhelming. We truly serve a mighty God. We are evangelists and want to be true to this calling and the Lord of the Harvest. Christ died for us. That event was a cosmic explosion of love and goodness, shattering the rock-solid walls and iron gates of every bondage that ever tyrannized humankind. A check for a billion dollars would seem nothing when crammed into a pocket, but it opens vast possibilities to the payee. That Good Friday act of redemption in the darkness of the Cross changed everything: Jesus the Carpenter from Nazareth turned the wood of his cross into the door of heaven. Only Jesus saves because only Jesus died to be able to offer what he offers. Nobody else stands where he stands – glory to God!”

Reinhard Bonnke took the platform on the final night to preach a powerful and direct Gospel message to over four hundred thousand people and then to pray for the baptism of the Holy Spirit. The resulting outpouring of the power of God over the vast gathering echoed for miles around as the air shook with waves of sound reminiscent of thunder as hundreds of thousand of voices burst out in spontaneous praise to the Lord. You can get some idea of the magnitude of this by looking at the accompanying photograph of that historic meeting.

Fire Conference
The Fire Conference took place each morning with Reinhard Bonnke, Daniel Kolenda and Peter van den Berg ministering to the forty-five thousand registered delegates. Such was the hunger for the Word of God that the conference venue, an open field in the town, was already packed to capacity by 7:30 in the morning. The Fire Conference had its climax in a massive outpouring of the Holy Spirit during the final session on Saturday morning as spiritual foundations were laid for future ministers and future ministries.

Shaken to the Core
The whole community for miles around was shaken by the happenings at the crusade, and by the end of the week numerous stories were flooding in of miracles taking place in and around the town after each meeting. One such story was told us by the Anglican Bishop who late on Saturday night responded to a call to accommodate a disabled man who had been separated from his friends after the crusade and was left lying helplessly on the crusade field after everyone had left. Pastors found a vehicle and transported him to the Bishop’s church asking him to take the man in until morning when his relatives could be found. The Bishop did this and set the man up in a small room at the back of the church. He told us that upon entering the man’s room in the morning he found him walking around unaided. When asked what had happened, the man simply said that when he woke up he found that he was healed and that he could now go home on his own.

The overriding impression left in all the team and visitors who were present at this amazing event, was that the entire region had been shaken by the power of God in salvation, healing and deliverance, a truly epic event in the lives of hundreds of thousands of people and whole communities.

Peter van den Berg

Dear Mission-Partners,

Jesus “was moved with compassion when He saw the multitude…” the Bible says, and He still is today! His passion to rescue the lost was on full display at our crusade meeting in Nsukka, Nigeria. There on a university field, God’s power simply came down. A huge number of people received salvation and many notable miracles happened, including one that I have never seen before in my entire fifty years of ministry!

Three Blind Children Receive Their Sight
Mrs. Regina Attah came to the meeting with her three children: Umeka, Chinwendu, and their brother Chukwudi – all three children totally blind. Umeka had been blind for eight years, Chinwendu for two years, and little Chukwudi for one year.
When I prayed for blind eyes to open in the Name of Jesus, all three children received perfect sight at the same moment! It is almost unbelievable, but my team checked out the details with great care. We followed-up this story and went to their village…the miracle is absolutely true. To God be the glory!

The Great Purpose
The Gospel is a message of miracles but the real priority, the great purpose of God, is salvation! The glory and joy of God is salvation. Jesus works in material fashion, but His real commission is as the Savior of the world. To save us, He went to the Cross and to hell and back.

His purpose is our purpose as well. Our Ambition, the Great Commission! In the final meeting in Nsukka, 425,000 people gathered to hear the Word of God. It is amazing, that over 1,500,000 people attended during the five nights of the event. Our counselors counted an astounding 1,109,900 completed decision cards signifying a positive decision for Jesus Christ! Praise the Lord! The churches have braced themselves for the influx of new converts – we are sure that nothing will be the same as it was in Nsukka-Land. We truly serve a mighty God!

Yours for Africa to be saved,

Evangelists Reinhard Bonnke and Daniel Kolenda,
together with the whole CfaN Team.

PS: Four more crusades are ahead of us before the end of March 2009. We are facing big financial struggles with paying for these crusades. We cannot go if the Lord does not help us right now. May I please personally ask you for an unplanned, special gift to bring this harvest about? Jesus said “the Gospel MUST be preached.” Please help us to fulfill this “MUST”! Salvation-willing souls desperately need to hear the Gospel.