The OBT Upskilling Workshop!
This week, I have been staying in Los Angeles, CA with my team, learning from our partners and leaders of the OBT movement about all aspects of the ministry that we are a part of, and building vision for the future of our ministry as we endeavor to see the Word of God translated into every mother tongue on earth! We have been getting “up-skilled” in so many areas: from the process of internalizing the Scriptures to the project management systems that have been designed for Bible translation teams, we have been very busy with our workshop. Working together with our global partners and international teams has been a joy, and I have learned so much from them!
I have also made lots of new friends. We have people from many different countries, including Brazil, Australia, South Africa, Papua New Guinea, Canada, Chile, Fiji, Samoa, New Zealand, India, Togo, Mozambique, Madagascar, Germany, Bolivia, Burkina Faso, South Korea, Malaysia, Colombia, and Angola! It has been so much fun getting to know some people and building more understanding of OBT through the diversity of perspectives being shared. Jesus is so good, and He is meeting with us and bringing us together for the united mission that we have in front of us, it requires teamwork, and a lot of faith!
Today we have been learning a lot about what it means to be true Christians, and how to live out the values that we have as missionaries in YWAM through teamwork, and partnering with other Bible translation organizations to finish the task in unity with the Body of Christ. We have had guest speakers from two different Bible translation orgs, one from SIL and another from Seed Company, and they have been sharing with us about new technologies that have been developed for the sake of the ministry that we do. I am so excited to share what I have been learning with the other members of our team back in South Africa, and see how we can really work together with other organizations to see the task of Bible translation completed across the continent of Africa!
Testimonies from, “California Will Be Saved!”
Over this past weekend, my team and I went to Hollywood to pray over the streets and prepare the ground for the time of evangelism and worship on Sunday. We were able to pray over so many different buildings and parts of Hollywood Boulevard, and even for the next Summer Olympics that are going to be held in LA. Although it wasn’t easy at times because of the many distractions, and spiritual forces of darkness that are so prevalent in that place, we knew that God was with us, and we felt His presence and love strengthening us as we prayed…
On Sunday, the event called, “California Will Be Saved!” was happening, so we joined in for the street evangelism and for the worship in the middle of Hollywood Boulevard, it was amazing! God was so with us, and we saw so many people come to the front of the stage to make a public declaration of faith in one of the most spiritually dark places in our country, to take a stand against the darkness in that place! We also saw many people receive miraculous healing by the power of the Holy Spirit as we all prayed for one another, and declared the powerful name of Jesus over the land. It was so clear that God was moving in that place, and it was actually so funny to me just how quickly the spiritual atmosphere shifted as so many people came together to pray and worship the Lord in that place!
…The truth is, when God manifests His presence in a place of darkness, His light always wins, and the darkness is put to shame every time! I believe that there is a legacy that God wants to leave in this city, and that in the next four years preparing for the Summer Olympics in LA, our prayers are going to make a huge difference. This is a call to prayer and evangelism for all of us, we must take a stand against the darkness that is spreading throughout our cities, and bring the true light to those places that are so desperately in need of the Gospel! Please pray for LA, and let’s believe together that “California Will Be Saved!”
Prayer
I will be sharing much more on this gathering once it is over, but for now I want to invite you to pray with me for this event!
- Pray for those who are suffering from sickness at the conference to fully recover, and quickly!
- Pray for God to send the Holy Spirit to dwell here in LA, and to meet with us during this powerful time together!
- Pray for Bibleless languages everywhere to be translated, and for open doors and divine strategies to be released from heaven!
- Pray for protection and covering over our ministers, and over our families, that God would keep us safe from spiritual attacks, and also attacks on our health and wellbeing.
- Pray for God to break through in Los Angeles, and that He would prepare the ground for the upcoming 2028 Summer Olympics in LA, where we believe that so many people will be saved!
Thank you and God bless you all for your commitment to the Holy Word of God! We need your prayer covering, and all the encouragements that you feel to share to keep our spirits strong when we face challenges of various kinds. Thank you!
Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles of any kind come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing.
If you need wisdom, ask our generous God, and he will give it to you. He will not rebuke you for asking. But when you ask him, be sure that your faith is in God alone. Do not waver, for a person with divided loyalty is as unsettled as a wave of the sea that is blown and tossed by the wind.”
– James 1:2-6 (NLT)
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