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Weekly Prayer Points,
5 July 2010. G'Day from Steve
The Gospel of Christ is a message for the multitudes. For every Tribe, every Nation.
I'm writing from the highlands of Papua New Guinea. Internet is extremely hard to find and very slow and expensive. But here's a few pictures and stories of the past week.
The apostle Paul was an amazing man. He was despised by the church in some sectors for taking the Gospel to the gentiles. He was criticised by many for his missionary journeys. He lived knowing he had committed many atrocities against followers of Christ in earlier years. His former religious zeal for the law caused him to persecute Christians and send many to their deaths. Yet he lived and breathed the amazing grace of a forgiving God through knowing Christ. He knew he could not serve God in his own strength... it was in his weakness that he would have to face every day. Some days I know that feeling.... just running on pure hope filled exhaustion and believing the Lord will meet me there. He always does.
But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness. Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me". 2 Corinthians 12: 9
We have been doing evangelistic concerts every day since arriving in Mt Hagen, PNG. The roads are rough and we use whatever equipment we can borrow to make up a PA system. Our concert in Mendi from the back of a flat bed truck attracted a few thousand people last Friday. We intentionally set up the truck / stage on a field beside the local prison so that all the prisoners and guards could also hear the Gospel. It is a humbling feeling standing before a multitude, knowing that it is only Christ who can save us from ourselves and from sin.
As a man who has made plenty of mistakes my prayer is always that the Lord will speak through me and transform hearts. Not the music or the songs.. just the work of the Holy Spirit drawing people to salvation and freedom, even for those locked in the prison next door. The concert lasted 4 hours and many responded to the invitation to put Christ first in their lives. It was a fantastic day of ministry.
Thanks for praying for the work we are doing in PNG.
Godspeed
Pictured: A large crowd in the Southern Highlands - Mendi concert
Shaking hands with the future
Pictured: Steve with a little boy who plucked up the courage to come and shake hands.
I just love this picture. The little boy's name was Winston and he had the most beautiful big smile after he finally made his way forward from the crowd to simply say hello to a white man with a cowboy hat. I believe we are doing these concerts for kid's just like Winston.
Encouraging them to live for Jesus and believe for big dreams in their lives. Thanks again for your support of our work in developing nations like PNG.
PNG Music Workshops and Concerts
Pictured: A welcome meal of sweet potato, rice, chicken and cooked banana for the guys on arrival in Mt. Hagen.
Ryan, Trentan and Jordan arrived in Mt Hagen PNG yesterday despite delayed flights and the usual chaos of Port Moresby International airport.
This will be an amazing opportunity for the guys to impart their knowledge and music experience into the lives of hundreds of young people from all over the PNG Highlands.
The guys will be working with the P2UIF band members for 3 days straight then performing with Steve in some major outdoor concerts on Thursday and Friday.
We appreciate your prayers and support for the guys. They have all taken a step of faith to serve in this campaign which we will then repeat in Port Moresby next week.
The local church in PNG, Highlands
Pictured: Steve with the local COC Pastor Joe Bokil and the church he built in Jiwaka
One of the great joys of visiting isolated regions is meeting local Pastors and taking the time to encourage them in their work.
Pastor Joe was so excited about the concert we were doing in his community, knowing that many would be wanting to learn more after hearing the Gospel.
A large crowd gathered in the town centre for our 3 hour event. It was the first time an event like this had taken place in Jiwaka, a beautiful part of the Southern Highlands.
PNG Evangelism off the back of a truck
Pictured: Steve with the P2UIF Band and local team in Jiwaka
A local businessman in Mt Hagen has loaned the team an Isuzu Truck which has been used all week for our concerts. The roads in the highlands are always hard going. Apart from the ever present threat of being held up at gun point by rascal gangs the average speed to any destination is about 30km per hour (18mph). But the efforts in getting to these remote regions are rewarded with great appreciation from the local communities who turn up in the thousands to hear the Gospel and the message of hope through the concerts. We dream of doing more of this work in every province of PNG, believing we can reach 6 million people in the coming years and help save this little nation from following in the devastation that has taken place due to HIV AIDS in so many poor countries.
Dobro playing and digital photography
Pictured: Ian Bail at work
It has been wonderful to have Ian Bail of Portland traveling with me on this missions trip. His love of photography and passion for the people of PNG has kept him busy every day. But it has been his Dobro playing during a few songs in the concerts that has really won the crowds. Most have never seen a chrome plated slide guitar made of brass before.
Heritage Tour - Outback Skies TV Vision
Pictured: Taken from the website
Richard Attieh, a TV production manager with Pineapple Media in Sydney has a big vision for the Heritage National Tour. He is a Christian producer who works mainly in the mainstream media industry and sees a great need for quality Christian based programs that connect with people who would never go to church. Please check out the following website and get an understanding of Richard's dream for the Heritage National Tour and the potential it has for television.
We want to thank Richard for his enthusiasm and professional approach to this venture. More details to follow.
Go to www.outbackskies.com
The Road ahead for the Heritage Tour
Thanks so much for taking a genuine interest in the vision we have to reach Australian's for Christ and encourage churches in remote regions. We are making some serious decisions at the moment as to the best way to accomplish the task ahead. The team, the vehicles, accommodation, budget expenses, fuel costs etc. To be honest we know we have taken on a huge challenge that is impossible to do in our own strength. More than ever... your prayers and support are a vital component in the success of this 4 month mission. We expect to reach over 50,000 people with the Gospel and excite thousands to opportunities to serve in mission via the Missions Expo. We are looking to the Lord to provide every step of the way and our hope is in Him. In this final month of preparation we welcome your prayers and financial partnership.
Yes!! We are believing for miracles every mile of the journey!!! Thanks.
Heritage Promo Video
Watch the New promo video online:
http://www.theheritagetour.com/media/downloads/video/
Heritage Tour 2010
Official Website: www.theheritagetour.com
Can you pray with us as we continue planning this tour, that later in the year, will be traveling to every State in Australia. We have been encouraged to pursue this venture through last years concerts in the country towns. The Heritage Hymns CD seems to be establishing a wonderful foundation on which to grow this vision. Many church leaders are responding to the vision of "honouring the past to inspire the future". What an honour to see and hear God being praised through these hymns once again.
Three simple ways you can be involved:
- Pray - Stand with us in prayer weekly as we seek to serve Christ and proclaim the Gospel.
- Give - There will be many financial needs small and large as we develop the tour and team.
- Go - Pray about being involved and serving on the tour for some of the schedule. More details on this soon.
We are still finalising sponsorships with various organizations so appreciate your prayers on this as well.
Testimonies
We are constantly encouraged by some amazing letters in the mail from people who have been blessed by the ministry. As many of you pray regularly for our work we wanted you to also partner in the blessing of these letters. Thank you to each of you who take the time to communicate with us about what God is doing in your life. We really are encouraged by your words.
You can check out the new testimonies page by Clicking Here
Prayer Requests
- Ongoing financial support for all the projects and missions planned for this year.
- National Heritage Tour, and all that needs to be done before we leave on the 4th August.
- For 'grace' magazine as it is being put together at the moment.
- For Steve's Devotional book as it is in the stages of design.
- For the team serving in the Steve Grace Office as they continue co-ordinating and communicating with Churches across Australia.
- For Cheyne as he is in California and working on Heritage.
- For Chase Merrell and Steven Kent coming from California to serve on the Heritage Tour
Until next week,
Steve & Kerrie Grace
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