Three years ago, while I was preaching in Thailand, a delegation from churches in neighbouring Myanmar (Burma) travelled to meet me and deliver a monetary gift to support the proclamation of the Gospel in Thailand.
They took a tremendous risk in doing so and gave sacrificially – I was deeply moved. Christians in Myanmar have endured heavy persecution but remain resolute about sharing the love of Jesus Christ, no matter the cost. I knew at that moment – I must go and preach in their homeland as soon as God opened the door.
God began clearing away many obstacles, and this month, I will preach the Gospel there. Opposition remains strong. We need your prayers.
May God richly bless you,
Planting the Gospel in Myanmar
Myanmar’s dominant religion is Buddhism, and other religions have long been restricted.
Despite persecution, churches in recent years have been growing and multiplying. Changes in government mean that we are now able to partner with Myanmar’s churches for an evangelistic Crusade this November in Yangon, the largest city. God’s blessing has been very evident during preparations. Thousands of Christians boldly turned out for a prayer rally ahead of the Crusade, including 80 students who travelled eight hours each way on the back of flatbed trucks to attend.
Meanwhile, 400 miles north in Mandalay, churches are working hard to bring as many people as possible to hear Franklin Graham in Yangon. They have organised a pre-Crusade rally in their city, to be led by Robert Cunville, this ministry’s associate evangelist based in India.
PLEASE PRAY
For Myanmar’s churches and believers who are determined to see the Gospel proclaimed despite strong opposition – and that many souls will be saved.
New My Hope DVD to launch in November
To date, people in over 18,000 churches—almost 35% of all those in the UK—have used one or both My Hope DVDs released since 2014 to reach out to their communities with the Gospel. Surveys indicate that on average, churches have seen three people choosing to follow Jesus. Glory to God!
So we’re excited to see how God will change lives through the third DVD, ‘The Worth of a Soul’, due for release on 7th November.
29-year-old Damien, from North Wales, became a Christian through watching ‘The Cross’. He says, “My wife’s mum was a Christian and was diagnosed with terminal cancer – she was quite at peace with death and was sure she was going to heaven. That made me think. After she died, my wife, Rhiannon, started going to church, but I wasn’t really interested myself.”
“One week, I decided to go to a church service with Rhiannon. I suppose I was concerned that her growing faith and my lack of it might put a strain on our relationship. Also we’d recently become parents, and I thought church might be a positive influence for my daughter. I’d rarely been to church before in my life, but the people made me feel very welcome.”
“I decided to return the next week – and that’s when they showed ‘The Cross’. Billy Graham spoke with a passion and authority that I’d never heard before. He really impressed me. He explained that the root of problems in society were down to sin – not living God’s way. But he also said nobody’s able to live a right life without God’s help. That was news to me. I’d always assumed you had to be a good person to be a Christian, and knew that I’d never be able to be good enough.”
A week later, back in church, the pastor asked if anyone wanted prayer. Damien says, “With Rhiannon’s encouragement, I stood up and said ‘I want to give my life to Jesus.’”
“Now I give my problems to Jesus instead of carrying them myself. Rhiannon and I pray and study the Bible together – it’s made us really close. And we help with a kids group at church too. Making that decision to follow Jesus has changed my life completely. I’m so grateful to God!”
Church Leader: “The My Hope films are brilliant!”
“The My Hope films are brilliant” says Pastor Derrick Wilks, who leads Leigh Elim Church in Essex. “They’re well produced with a variety of speakers. They’re short enough to show at the end of an outreach event, but long enough to share the Gospel really effectively and hold people’s interest.”
The church’s first My Hope event was around a Thanksgiving meal, followed by a screening of the DVD. The church promoted it using posters, invites on Facebook, local media and direct invites to those they knew. Seventy people came – half of them had never been to church. Pastor Derrick says, “For many of them it was the start of a journey towards faith. We now run three or four events a year – and our church has doubled in size.”
We have a My Hope support package for churches to go with the DVD, including prayer cards, posters to customise, invites and a guide on how to plan a event.
PLEASE PRAY
- For God to open doors for our team to be able to distribute the new My Hope film ‘The Worth of a Soul’ to more churches than ever before.
- That the film will be well received and used by churches.
- For the Holy Spirit to speak powerfully into the hearts and minds of all those who see the film.
- That many thousands more people will be saved through watching it and that God will be glorified!
You can watch, download and order “The Worth of a Soul” completely free-of-charge at MyHopeWithBillyGraham.org.uk