Too many Christian are suffering because of a negative and very pessimistic view of the end-times. I believe in an eschatology of victory because that is the teaching of the Bible! The entire Bible brings a very encouraging, positive and optimistic message centred in the truth that God is the Sovereign Lord of his world. He who began a good work will surely complete it for his own glory.

Jesus died to bring many sons and daughters to glory. Actually he will bring the entire creation to glory. Everything in heaven and earth will be brought to harmony and unity under his Lordship. Jesus Christ has already defeated the devil and all his hosts. The victory of Christ on the cross is the turning point of history. Now we are his agents of bringing the effects of his victory into all areas of our world. The Kingdom of God will penetrate and change every society for the better.

There is too much doom and gloom mentality among believers. Too many are on the defensive, trying to hold on or just survive to the end. An eschatology of victory will create a different attitude. An eschatology of victory will foster a people determined to overcome and bring change to society. Jesus is the Saviour of the world, not only of a few. The Bible says that kings and kingdoms will bow down for him and serve him. 

An eschatology of victory gives hope and courage. It will produce bold believers and many martyrs. It will help us to forget about ourselves and to focus on him who sits on the throne. Gladly we will serve him to see the world saved and society changed, at any cost.

I am proud of belonging to the Lord Jeus Christ who is the King of kings and Lord of lords. I have given my life to see his victory worked out in life, in the earth, in my lifetime.

We have entered 2012 with great expectations and strong confindence since we know this is the Year of the Lord. Jesus Christ is in charge. He has been seated on the Throne of Heaven and is ruling the entire universe. He will be ruling until all his enemies have been made subject to him. He is waiting for us to work with the Father to make all his enemies his footstool. There is a war going in in the invisible world, but we know the final outcome will be glorious for the Kingdom of God as the enemy already has been defeated on the cross. This coming year we will see more of the outworking of the victory in many areas of our lives.

I expect the people of God to enjoy fresh anointing day by day in this year of the Lord. This is the only way that we may overcome the obstacles and be able to finish the race well. Fresh anointing every day. Fresh power. Fresh joy. Fresh peace. Fresh hope. Fresh guidance, step by step.

I expect the people of God to enjoy new revelation day by day in this year of the Lord. The Spirit is always bringing fresh revelation of Christ to his people. The fresh revelation of the Lord Jesus Christ will keep us on track and make us strong. A new revelation of Christ will make our hearts burn and cause us to serve his purpose in our generation with great zeal.

I expect the people of Gud to come into a deeper insight of the things of God day by day in this year of the Lord. God will bring a deeper insight of our own shortcomings that will enable us to change to become even more fruitful for the Lord. God will give us a deeper understanding of our brothers and sisters, their struggles and longings, that will enable us to come alongside and be of true help and support for them. God will give a deeper insight to his prophetic work in this generation and enable us to be seeers that can address the root issues and not only the symptoms.

I expect many dreams to come true in this new year of the Lord. I expect prophetic words spoken to us by His prophets to be fulfilled in this year of the Lord. I expect to be carried along by the fresh move of the Spirit and to see the realization of the promises of God day by day.

We have had a wonderful time together with our friends in the Prabhuko Mandeli in Itahari today. They have their annual conference and we have been sharing the Word of God in four sessions. The people of God is receiving the Word with great joy.

The Word of is indeed very fruitful. The entire conference is an evidence of the fruitful Word of God. Pastor Reuben has been ministering the Word in this place for 18 years and it is great to see the outcome: changed lives! A student at a theological seminary in Kathmandu, who is from this area, told me that he was studying theology because of me. I didn't understand because I never gave him any advice. Then he told me that when he heard me minister the Word of God two years ago in Kathmandu, Gud put a desire in his heart to study his Word and he enlisted at the theological seminary. I only came to know today. And I am happy that the Word is fruitful!

We are on a friendship trip celebrating 40 years of friendship and involvement in the work of God in Nepal. On a mission to India a Bible College teacher gave me the name and address, of a former student of the college that came from Nepal, and urged me to visit him. After prayer I felt led by the Spirit of God to change my program in India to make room for a visit to Kathmandu, Nepal. I met with Gopaljee Adhikari in October 1971 and now we are celebrating 40 years of friendship and advance of the Kingdom of God in Nepal.

This morning we met with the Lord’s Assembly in Itahari. We were the first to contribute to the church in this town. When we were visiting this place first time there was no church in the town. Our brother Gopaljee had a burden for the town and we made the first financial contribution to the work. I was moved in my heart when I met with the church this morning. I have met pastor Reuben and his family who pioneered the church several times in Kathmandu, but I have never been with the church before. About 125 people were worshiping together this morning. I thank God that I have had a small part in this work. This place has been in my prayers for years, and today I could see with my own eyes the answer to prayer and hard work of our faithful friends. Change is indeed coming to Nepal. A place with no church, now have several churches!

From Itahari we were taken to village we had visited 19 years ago. At that time we came by car from Kathmandu on terrible roads for 11 hours. After that tiring journey we had to walk for another 2 hours to reach this village. Today we could go by car all the way to the village. Big changes had taken place in the entire area. The wooden church building had been replaced by a nice concrete building with sound system and everything else needed.

Barnabas who pastured the church on our first visit had moved on to another place, but came to see us. His son Matthew interpreted my preaching this evening. I only had a very simple message of change, but I was told that this was what they needed to hear as there was a tension between the older and younger generation. But change is definitely coming. The young people even had the Bible in their cell phone.

There is a fresh move of the Spirit taking place among the young people especially, but it will eventually refresh the entire community of God’s people in this nation. I see signs of a new move of the Spirit everywhere, but I also see old and empty forms still stifling the fresh expression of the Spirit.

Om my first visit to Nepal I was told that there was only 500 born again believers in the entire nation. Today I am told that the number of believers are about one million! Nepal is no longer a Hindu Kingdom, but a secular state. Change is taking place. But there is more to come.

We have just been with the Covenant Friends Fellowship of Nepal. It is always good to be with this group of faithful followers of Christ. This time we heard a wonderful testimony of one of our friends.

He was sent home from the hospital to die. He was suffering from tuberculosis and had come to this late stage when the doctors could not do anything more for him. He was caughing and spitting blood all day. He was the youngest child in the family. Now he was in the twenties and dying. But his parents interceeded for him and had their friends to come and lay hand on him.

God intervened and healed him. He was a prodigal son, but came to the Lord because of the miracle that happened to him. And now he is a servant of God. The doctors had given up on him. Humanly speaking there was no hope. But the parents didn't give up on him. Most important God didn't give up on him. In the darkest hour God performed a miracle.

Our covenant friend is alive and serving God with a bright future and hope!

I am still in shock after the terrible act killing nearly 100 people in Oslo and Utøya. I don't find words to express the feelings of my heart. Tears and prayers have been poured out. My heart is aching. I can't comprehend how people can be so full of hate and act in such an evil way. But I agree with the Norwegian MP Stine Renate Håheim: If one man can show so much hate, think of how much love we can show together.

Love is stronger than hate. Love overwins hate. Love is even able to forgive and change any person in spite of evil acts. Love is never giving in to revenge. Love is overcoming hate by acts of kindness and goodness. Love is expressed in justice and mercy. Love is stronger than any evilness. Love finds a way forward. Love is faith and hope in action. Love is stronger than death itself.

Today we are all AUFarar (members of the Labour Youth Society). We assosiate with them. When they were attacked at Utøya, we were all attacked. We want to stand up for justice and mercy, love and kindness. We want to see the Kingdom of God come to Norway. Through the love of God this nation will be healed.

One of the first things I discovered when I took to searching the scriptures again was that honour and glory are closely interrelated, are often two sides of the same coin and very often connected to God. The Psalmist says that honour belongs to God and everything within his temple says, "Glory! (Psa.29, 3.9); Jesus Christ is the King of glory and the King of honour (Psa.24 0.7 to 10) and the Lord of glory (Jak.2, 2); God is the God of glory, and also Father (Apgj.7, 2; Ephesians 1, 17); the Holy Spirit is the Spirit of glory (1.Pet.4, 14); Jesus is the very emanation of God's glory (Hebrews 1, 3); the apostles saw His glory, a glory that the only-begotten Son has from the Father, full of grace and truth (Joh.1, 14).

There are a number of Bible passages dealing with the glory and honour of God and of Jesus Christ. The triune Deity is that glorious and honourable God. Therefore all God makes bears the mark of His glory and honour. The expression “the glory of God” is often used in the Old Testament as a technical theological term for God's visible presence and the radiance of his honourable and glorious nature.

Explaining some words

The Hebrew word “kabod” is translated “honour” and “glory” more or less interchangeably in the Bible, the basic meaning being “weight” and “gravity”; another sense is “sheen”. It is the “weight” or “heaviness” of a person that makes up his honour, i.e their personal characteristics, position in society or their wealth.

The Hebrew word “hadar” is translated “splendour”, “glory” and “honour” and “showing honour” or “honouring”. The Hebrew word tifæræt / tifara comes from pa'ar (meaning beautification or glorifying) and translated “decoration”, “splendour”, “glory” and “honour”.

In the New Testament we find the Greek words timé / timan meaning “glory” and “honour” and “to honour” or “pay respect to”. We also find doxa / doxazein which is translated “honour”, “sheen”, “splendour” glory, and “to praise”, “laud”, “to honour” and “glorify”.

On the basis of these and other words from the Hebrew and Greek texts we may say that honour is what gives a person weight, clout and status. It can be associated with external criteria such as position in society and wealth, but also with inner qualities. It has something to do with the nature and being of Man. It is something one has received and owned and that radiates out through an inbuilt dignity and healthy self-respect arising from a person’s grasp of who they are, and is acknowledged by the people around them. So where there is a culture of honour and a climate of appreciation, glory and respect are qualities that exude from us and yet something people give to us.

The greatest joy is only found in making other people happy! The greatest joy is the joy of giving! Giving is living a happy life of seeing other being blessed by your gifts. Real Christians are never stingy, but always giving generously. The live by the saying, "Give and spend and God will send" as they enjoy giving away things and trust God to take care of all their needs. Christians know that it is possible to give without loving, but that is impossible to love without giving.

My friends in Norway have been giving generously this year to the Chenchu tribe in India. We have taken on a project to build houses and a school to 30 families with 74 children out of which only two or three have attended any school for two years. We have bought the building land and during this Christmas they started to clear the ground to make it ready for building. Our friends at FACT distributed food for Christmas and sent this report:

One of the elder said with eyes full of tears, "I am more than 70 years of age, but this is the 1^st time to celebrate this festival without begging from any one. Previously when the Christmas came we way-cup in early morning and visit Churches to beg Money. I saw more than 60 Christmases in my life time, but I don’t have any experiences to eat good food without begging. Thanks to God.  He send His Children to help us.

One Older lady said, still I can’t believe this, miracle, I begged many local people to hear my cry, our sufferings, our problems, but for the past 30 years they have been treating us like Animals, we suffered everyday without shelter my son’s daughters and grand Children are suffering from deep cold, very hot and heavy rain. You are aware in the summer the heat reaches 50 degrees. But the God heard our prayers and He saw our sufferings. This is the real Christmas in our life. Thanks to God and His Children.

When I read testimonies like this I am filled with joy. Then I experience the joyful fruit of giving. I share this that all my friends may know the joy of giving.

I have just arrived home from a very exciting World Watch conference in Cardiff, Wales. We have had inspiring reports from many parts of the world of what God is doing. But to me the welcome session and concluding session by my longstanding friend Keri Jones, who is also an outstanding apostle of Jesus Christ, were the most important. His words inspired me to write this entry on my blog. I trust God will use these words to stir you in your spirit and provoke you to creative acts of love!

The whole world is speaking of the change of climate that is taking place before our eyes. We may differ on how much of the change is caused by humans or the sun or other natural forces out of human control, but we are all aware of that a change is taking place. The future of this earth depends on the change of climate. Some of the scenarios we are presented with by some scientists are not very encouraging, but some other scenarios are not that bad. However we are all dependent on the climate.

The climate is vital for growth and development. The climate is very important for the entire life on this earth. This is a fact that we all know. But a change is taking place and we don’t fully know what the future will bring.

But there is another climate change taking place in the world today. There is also a spiritual climate that is undergoing a thorough change that eventually will affect the entire world. When I look back to the spiritual climate dominating the time of my youth and compare it with today, I realize that I have witnessed a vast change. In fact, as a young believer I would not have believed that this change that has taken place could be possible. But I am a witness to a great transformation of the spiritual climate in the world caused by an unprecedented   outpouring of the Holy Spirit.

In the present time there is a new change of the spiritual climate taking place. I am so excited to be alive, not only to witness this change take place, but to actively take part in the change myself. During the years I have walked with God, from 1957 onwards, God has taken me through many life changing encounters with the Holy Spirit. I sense I am in the midst of a new move of the Spirit to change the face of the earth as the Psalmist is saying is happening when the Spirit is poured out (Ps 104:30). The Spirit is creating a climate that causes life to spring forth for the whole world to bloom and blossom. The Spirit renews the face of the earth.

But let us bring it down to earth. Let us see what it means in our lives. As there is a spiritual climate in the world, there is also a spiritual climate in every nation, city and village. In fact, there is a climate in every church and in every gathering of people. The fact is that each and every one of us is carrying a climate with us. By our attitudes and behaviour we are bringing an atmosphere with us. We are all contributing to the spiritual climate in our churches and gatherings.

Some churches have a climate of love, joy, freedom and grace. Other churches have a climate of legalism, heavy authority, restrictions, rules and set forms of doing things. Some churches are growing because their climate releases life, growth, progress, development and positive changes. Some churches are not growing but decreasing in numbers because of the bad climate of legalism or heavy authority.

The Bible is saying that the Spirit is life and freedom. The letter of the Word kills, but the Spirit gives life. Even spiritual life principles can be thwarted into rules killing our spirit. Legalism and heavy authority always bring condemnation and restriction. The Spirit of God produces and fosters righteous and joyful living. Focusing on the letter of laws and regulations bring people into bondage, but the Spirit liberates people, bringing emancipation from bondage. Legalism creates a stifled life and religion, but the Spirit of God brings complete freedom.

When God is a living, personal presence among us and not a book with a set of rules, his Spirit will bring a climate of liberty, joy and love. In this climate of the personal presence of the living Spirit people’s faces will shine with the brightness of his face, and they will gradually become brighter, freer, and more beautiful as God enters their lives.

We need to take a good look at the climate we are in, asking the Holy Spirit to show us the true situation.  We need to dare to ask the question if what we are in is producing life. If the climate we are in, does not promotes growth, development and freedom, we need to change the climate by the help of the grace of God.

Every human being has the natural tendency of being legalistic. Legalism is the child of the flesh, the natural man. This tendency in natural man will turn the life principles of the Bible into restricting rules and regulations. This legalistic tendency will turn the God given structures of leadership into harsh authority and subduing hierarchies.

We can counteract this natural tendency towards legalism by a God-centred life in the Holy Spirit. We must help people to take their attention away from themselves and other people to focus on Jesus Christ and his liberating message. The key to achieve what God wants and to see his purpose being accomplished is to empower people.

Jesus Christ came to set people free from all kinds of human bondages. In the climate of the Spirit we will allow people to live a free life. We have been called to freedom and must not allow any bondage to be put on the people of God. We are called to be liberators of people. We are called to bring the good and liberating news of the Kingdom of God to the people. The Spirit enables people to be creative and full of initiatives. We must not allow anything to dampen that creative freedom of the Spirit among the people of God.

In some churches there is a climate of fear or mistrust. Therefore every initiative must be checked with the Pastor or be approved by the collective board of elders. In the meetings all the expressions of gifts of the Spirit must be tested and approved before the people are allowed to bring it in the gathering. That practice need to stop. We must learn to obey the Spirit only. The Bible is saying that we must not become the slaves of men, but only be the slaves of Jesus Christ. It is time for the people of God to mature, to be able to hear from God, act in obedience to him, and live in the holy freedom of the Spirit.

Leaders need to trust God to trust people and encourage them to listen to the Spirit, follow him and bring whatever he gives them. The Church belongs to God. The people belong to God. The task of leaders is to equip and empower people. The Kingdom of God is taken away from the legalistic people and given to those who have faith. When the Kingdom of God is among us we will rid ourselves from everything legalistic and abandon every structure that is hindering the free expression of life of the Spirit among us.

There is a grand change of the spiritual climate taken place in the world in our time. The Spirit of God is being poured out upon all people all over the world, as the prophets said it would be. This move of the Spirit is bringing a new identity to the people of God. The Spirit of God takes the believers out of sin-consciousness to a righteousness-consciousness. The people of God are throwing of the old identity as a sinner and replace it with a new identity in Christ as a saint and a new creation.

The move of the Spirit is removing the old notions of clergy and laity, ministries and believers, master and disciple, bringing to focus the priesthood of all the people of God. Thus the Spirit is bringing a liberating kind of empowerment that supersedes the old restrictions of limited delegated authority. The gifts of the Spirit belong to the Spirit who freely distributes them to whoever he wants. Under the anointing of the Holy Spirit, there are no human limitations, only the supernatural gifts and abilities leading to creative freedom in serving God and our neighbour.

The spiritual climate change that is taking place removes blame-shifting as the Spirit is making each and every one responsible to hear and obey his voice. There is a new sense of responsibility rising among the people of God today, and a new ownership mentality causing people to work side by side. Freedom always brings responsibility and blaming others for our situation is no longer an option. The responsible freedom of the Spirit liberates people from their past and the false burdens of legalism, restrictive rules and customs. The freedom of the Spirit is not license or disorder, but is peace and harmony in the midst of a great variety of expression of the grace of God.

The Spirit is bringing a new focus on the gospel of the Kingdom of God in these days, taking us beyond personal forgiveness of our sins and the assurance that heaven waits. The old climate of escapism is giving away to a climate of changing the world by the power and grace of God. It is a climate of expectation and not of despair. God wants us to be agents of the Kingdom bringing heaven to earth. He wants us to be partners with him in creating a climate for miracles to happen every day to meet the need of the hurting people in this fallen world.

There is a huge change of climate taking place for the good among the people of God these days. The Holy Spirit is the agent of change and of creating life. The Spirit gives life! He brings the climate of joy, love, freedom, healing, forgiveness, acceptance and reconciliation. Today he is challenging us to take a radical look at the climate of our churches and small groups to see if it measure up to his climate of life and growth. He is challenging us to take responsibility, to listen to his voice and to obey the promptings of the Spirit to be those who create a climate for miracles to take place.

Live free! Take initiative! Trust the Holy Spirit! Listen to his voice and obey him! Be a climate changer!

Our friend Sushikant is a living miracle. We met him a few years ago at the Covenant School. A former student had been instrumental in bringing him to Christ, as he was sent to Surat to die. His father could not stand seeing his son suffer a slow death as the doctors had given up on him. Therefore he was sent away to Surat to some relatives to die there. The former student of Covenant School met him one day and gave him the gospel promising him that if he received Jesus Christ as his Lord and Saviour, he would be healed! Sushikant believed in Jesus and was baptized immediately. As the former student laid hands on him and prayed for him he was instantly healed!

After finishing the Covenant School Sushikant returned to Mumbai with the good news of the Kingdom of God. He has seen many people come to Christ. 110 people have been baptized and about the same numbers come to his weekly prayer meeting. Last year he baptized only 12 new believers and 8 were baptized in the Spirit. But he is seeing many people being healed by the power of God and many starts believing in Christ. The follow up of those people is the big challenge. Here are some of the healings he reported:

A woman who had been suffering from a bleeding problem for many years was completely healed after prayer. As a result her husband also came to Christ.

A six years old boy was suffering with boils all over the body. His parents took him to many doctors with no results. They also visited many temples and brought many sacrifices at no benefit for the boy. He suffered a lot from the boils that were covering the entire body. The parents came to Sushikant after some friends told them about the young man of God. Sushikant shared the gospel with the parents. They repented and he prayed for total healing for the boy. Within one week the boy was completely healed! The entire family has now become believers in Jesus Christ.

A married woman who had been childless for twelve years became pregnant after Sushikant’s prayer. She gave birth to a daughter. But unfortunately the girl was blind and deaf. She brought the blind and deaf daughter to Shushikant who took the little girl in his hands and gave thanks for her as a gift from God and asked God to heal her. God instantly opened her eyes and ears. Instantly she could hear and see! The mother took the daughter back to the doctor at the hospital to show him what God had done for her daughter. Many people came to Christ because of this miracle.

Near Agra Sushikant brought deliverance to a demon possessed woman and the entire family received Jesus Christ as their Lord and Saviour. His brother moved to that place near Agra.  17 people have been baptized in that place and 50 people come to the weekly prayer meeting.

A lady had a big stone (2,5kg) in her stomach. People thought she was pregnant. The doctor said that she would die. After prayer the stone was dissolved and came out in pieces. The lay was completely healed and is now testifying of how God did what the doctors could not do!

Sushikant also prayed for a lady that had lost a lot of blood due to giving birth to twins. The doctor said she would not survive but would die. The lay is now well and strong by the grace of God only and the doctor can’t understand what has taken place!

Sushikant even prayed over the mobile phone for a sick buffalo and the buffalo was instantly healed!

We have been traveling in Asia the last few weeks. At the moment we are in Sri Lanka enjoying a very good Internet connection. During the four weeks we have been away from home we have been able to log on to Internet most of the time, except for the four last days in India. However, our experience with the Internet connections have been kind of frustrating.

I have been connected in the sense that I have been able to surf the Web, at least for some periods almost every day. I have been reading news which I enjoy very much, but I have not been able to read my Hotmail account. I have not been able to log on to Facebook. And I have not been able to post any entries on my blog. A few times I was able to log on to Facebook to publish a few updates, but when I tried to read the messages my friends had sent to me my system got stuck.

I have been connected but disconnected. That is a big frustration for a social person like me. Most of the time I have been able to connect to the Web, but not been able to connect to or communicate with my friends. Well, that is not the full truth, as my Gmail account has been operative all the time! Thank God for Gmail! But I have not been able to reach all those I wanted to reach through that service.

I have not been able to explain what has been going on. I have never had this strange thing happen to be before. But when I arrived in Sri Lanka everything seems to back to normal again. Now I am connected again and can enjoy full connectivity on Internet.

I don't like being disconnected. We are created for fellowship and open communication - with God and with one another. Through Jesus we can stay connected all the time with no limits. What a blessing! He has opened a living way into the presence of God and he is uniting us with believers all over the world. In this sense we never need to experience being disconnected! What a blessing! Thank you Lord!

Rajinder and Madhu are some wonderful friends me met several years ago in Rajasthan. They came to Christ through some of our friends who introduced them to us. They have seen the power of God at work in their lives in many ways. Madhu was illiterate when she came to Christ, but she had a strong desire to be able to read the Bible. She asked God to open the Book to her. Instantly she could read and understand the Bible.

After finishing the Bible School they were sent by their church to pioneer a new work in the Desert City. They have gone through many trials and difficulties in this dry place of the desert city. Patiently they have been enduring many hardships and worked faithfully to bring the good news of the Kingdom to the people of the desert city.

At last they are seeing fruit from the work. They have now started five house-churches which they are following up. Last year they baptized 11 new believers. Five of these new believers have been baptized in the Spirit and are prophesying and functioning in the gifts of the Spirit.

Rajinder got a phone call from a man that had been suffering from cancer for ten years. Now his situation had become very serious. The doctors had told him that he was dying, and he called because he wanted Rajinder to pray for him. Rajinder first shared the Gospel of the Kingdom with him and asked him to repent and receive Jesus Christ as his Lord, which he did. Then he prayed for him over the phone. Because of the cancer this man could not even go to the toilet, since every function had stopped. Ten minutes after prayer everything functioned normally!

The man called him back to tell the good news of the healing that had taken place and he asked Rajinder to come to see him in the hospital in the neighbouring town. When Rajinder reached the hospital he also came to know that the man had some tumours in the body. Once more he prayed for him, this time with the laying on of hands. Then the doctors came to examine the one once more. They could find no tumours! He had another scan and the doctors confirmed that the tumours had disappeared! They had no explanation to what had taken place!

Rajinder told us of many people being healed by the power of the risen Christ. It seemed to be the order of the day to see the power of God working wonders.

Even when he could not pay the school fee for his children God helped him. The Principal agreed to reduce the school fee by fifty percent when he heard of what God was doing through him!

Our covenant friend Jyoti gave a wonderful report today as we met with covenant friends from many parts of India. He had been invited to share about Christianity at a University. Many Buddists and Hindu students came to listen to him. He started quoting som of the Hindu scriptures talking about the sacrifice of God. Since the Hindu scripture does not explain what the sacrifice of God is, he used the Bible to prove that Christ is the sacrifice of God. As a result 45 students received Christ as their Lord and Saviour!

Jyoti and his team is currently looking after more than ten churches and three new house-churches in the district of Darjeeling. His team is very excited to see the Spirit of God at work in the hills of Darjeeling. Two completely paralyzed women have been fully healed and can walk and work to the glory of God.

The team working together is the main reason for the advance of the Kingdom of God in the hill areas, according to Jyoti.

Seven years ago I met Kul Bahadur at a seminar we held in Darjeeling, India. After six years I met him again last year at a gathering in Kathmandu. He had been blessed by our teaching and put it into practice. During those six years he had been instrumental in starting six churches. Three of them were quite big and the others quite small, he told us.

Today we met him again. He has brought with him a group of six men that are working with him. They call themselves Covenant Friends. The seven men in this group of covenant friends are living in a very remote area of Nepal. They work as wood cutters to support themselves, but use as much time as possible to evangelize and to bring the good news of the Kingdom of God to new villages and unreached people groups.

Since we met last year the seven covenant friends have started a new church in a neighbouring village, only two hours walk from where they live. When they go to a new village they proclaim the good news of the Kingdom, heal the sick and casts out demons. As the people see the miracles that happen in the name of Jesus Christ they believe and repent. They prayed for a man with one blind eye. Immediately he could see a little bit and within seven days he could see perfectly! One lady whose body was full of wounds got completely healed within a short time after prayer, but had tried many thing in vain before she heard the good news of the Kingdom. Thirty people have come to Christ so far in this village. They have all been baptised and being joined together as a living church in their remote village. Our covenant friends are visiting them regularly to teach, train and encourage them in the Lord.

This group of seven covenant friends are following up all the churches they have started, and they help the believers to make new disciples. Since our last visit they have baptised seventy people.

Our friends also told us of some of the difficulties they are facing. Witchdoctors are working against them with occult powers and evil ways, causing many problems for our friends. They are also facing many challenges from their natural environment in the remote area where they work.  During the monsoon they face many dangerous landslides. Several of the believers have lost everything due to some large landslides recently, but God saved their lives!

Greetings in the name of our lord Jesus Christ, thank you for praying for our mission trip. We spent one month in the different remote places. God helped us in many ways. Every day we have to walk 9 to 12 hours , and many days we were struggling with drinking water. Some of the our friends got dehydration. Some friends had ankle problem by the walk, it was too much walking for them. Some friends couldn’t walk any further and wanted to give up, but we finished our goal. We visited 20 unreached villages. Each village distance was 6 to 10 hours walking away from each others. 

We ate simple village food and slept on the floor. Some time we could not sleep during the whole night because of bed insect bites us. In the morning when I saw in my t shirt and my body, I could count thirty six places where I had bites by flea and lice. It was so amazing to experience this in the journey for the Kingdom of God. Many villages had no toilet at all, not even a single toilet, but outside, in the way, and front of the house, people were doing toilet everywhere doing. By the way many people became sick.
Two paralyze people were healed and many other sick people were healed by the power of God through prayer. 60 people accepted Christ as their Savior and we prayed hundreds of people for different kind of diseases. People were very happy to hear the word of God and very interested to know about Jesus. We gave bibles to them. Many young people were very interested to do Bible school. We saw many opportunities to do the ministry among children.

There were no help posts for people, no Health Clinique. It was difficult to get medicine and they have to go for treatment by walk 8 hours far. We saw many people are sick and not in good health. We did many works and taught them about health and Kingdom of God and people became very happy. We find out some places for water project, which is very important and needed for this community people. This village is very remote far and lost village. We prayed to God for the water project in this village, and he showed us the right place. We believe and we trust in him that he will do a great work in this village.
Thank you so much for your prayers. Through your prayers we did good work and evangelism in the unreached places and people got blessing from God !
Thank you
Your covenant friend Henry, Pabitra and Savika
Katmandu Nepal

Daljinder, our beloved son in law, gave a most wonderful testimony at the Sunday service at the King's Church. The speaker had been speaking on Love in Action and at the end she brought out many practical suggestions and a the address to a website Acts of Kindness, and as a response to that several people came to give suggestions and testimonies. I was very much touched by the testimony of our son in law for it showed the enduring power of prophetic encouragements.

Daljinder, who is a teacher, told us how God spoke to him to prophecy to his students and not only give them his autograph at the end of the course. He obeyed the Lord and wrote some encouraging words from the Lord to his students. He is doing it in a wise and discreet way and it has caused many students to ask questions and led to many deep conversations. He has been faithfully practising this for many years.

Not long ago a pastor phoned him to tell him about a new convert in his church. When he asked the new convert what had caused him to begin to seek God, he answered that ten years ago his teacher had written some encouraging words to him that triggered his search for God. After ten years he finally came to the Lord Jesus Christ and became a Christian.

After ten years he still remembered the encouraging prophetic words that our son in law had written to him. I think it is wonderful to know that the prophetic seed is powerful and can yield fruit several years after it has been sown. God is so good to us. His word will never return empty but happily perform what it is sent to do!

We are enjoying our stay at the Refresh Bible Week at the Staffordshire Show ground. About 2000 people are gathered together to seek God, worship and listen to the Word of God. During the evening meetings we have seen a lot of people being healed. People have been called for prayer and all the elders and their wives have been laying hands on the sick. The power of God has been present.

I prayed for one of the stewards. She suffered from pain in her hip. She was instantly healed. I also prayed for a man with a stiff knee and pain in the other knee. The stiff knee was instantly healed. I prayed one more time for the other knee and the pain disappeared. I also prayed for a young man with heavy pain in his shoulders. After prayer he had no more pain! Solveig prayed for a lady that was almost entirely blind. After prayer she could see much better, but her sight was not fully restored. But she rejoiced that she could see much better.

A lot of people came to the front to give their testimony of healing. We are so excited that the Lord is working powerful among us. God is so good!

Yesterday we arrived home after attending the Bible Week at Stokke in the eastern part of Norway. We have been around 700 people gathered to fellowship, to worship and to hear the Word of God. It has been a most wonderful Bible week with a very clear direction from beginning to end. It has been a natural follow up after the Easter Conference and the clear prophetic word brought to us by our friend and apostle Keri Jones.

All the people I spoke with were excited about the direction God is taking us. The worship has been great and the ministry of the Word has been excellent. The presence of God has been powerfully with us in the gatherings. Many people have had powerful encounters with the Lord.

God is really good to his covenant people!

Our holiday in Finland and our time with Jakob, a grandson, have been good preparation for the Bible Week that starts tomorrow. Vacation, work and fun with grandchildren are excellent ways of preparing for a Bible Week. In these different settings I am still in communion with God. The different settings in fact enable me to hear fresh from God in different ways.

Off cause every morning starts the same way, wherever I am and whatever I have to do. I always start each day with time with God in the Word and prayer. As I read and meditate on the Word of God, I am refreshed and strengthened to meet all the challenges the day will bring. The Word follows me during the day and enfolds new light and understanding, even to everyday events and happenings. God is always near. He is part of my everyday life. Therefore, preparing for ministry at a Bible Week is part of my daily walk with God. Ministry is just an extension of the life I live with God.

We have returned home after a very successful vacation in Helsinki Finland. One of the highlights was the time we spent with our friends Toni and Tuulia. But last night we returned home. What a joy to return home to the house in the forest. I could not go to bed before I had inspected the growing potatoes and the vegetables I had sown earlier before we went on a holiday. The light summer nights are so beautiful! At midnight I could walk in the garden, take in the smell, enjoy the silence and the peace. It was like every flower, every bush and every tree welcomed us home!

When I woke up this morning the sun was shining and our lake was like a mirror reflecting the blue sky. I felt so happy, I was filled with thankfulness to God for blessing us with a place like this.

We have this saying: East or West, home is best! But there is no joy like the joy of returning home!

We are on the way to Finland. I am writing this entry from the Copenhagen Airport. We are enjoying the luxury of having a vacation. I am thankful to God for the blessing of being able to go on a holiday together with my dear wife. This time we will only be away for a few days. We will be staying in a hotel in Helsinki. That is the best vacation for my wife. There is no food to prepare or any work to do. Now we can only relax together and enjoy the blessings of God.

One of the great blessings of going to Helsinki is meeting our friends Toni and Tuulia. Toni will meet us at the airport and take us to the hotel and then we will spend more time with them later on our stay in Helsinki. I even guess that they will give us some ideas of what to see or experience while we are in the capital of Finland. We have no idea of what to do other than to relax and enjoy company with one another! This is the luxury of vacation. Just being together, with no program what so ever!

Last weekend we spent time with our long standing friend Jan Sigve and his wonderful family and the covenant community he leads at Stord. I am always excited when I have been with the covenant community at Stord. It is really a living fellowship where the disciples are living fellowship every day of the week.

Jan Sigve and Astrid Elin have an open home. They are given to hospitality. They are caring for others and truly generous. It is a great blessing to stay with them and take part in the vibrant life of fellowship of the genuine covenant community.

At the weekend we participated in a birthday part, as well as a relaxed evening with our friends. We travelled with Jan Sigve to visit a new group of people reaching out to them on Saturday to return to an evening with a good meal of Chicken Tikka Masala together with more friends. It was a special joy to become more acquainted with Sindre, as his grandfather was my youth leader and his great grandfather was my Sunday School teacher who was radiant because of his love for Jesus.

Sunday we met with the entire covenant community at a public school building. We had a good time in the presence of God. I shared the Word of God and we had a big meal together. Again we have a wonderful time of fellowship. 

I am so thankful to God for allowing me to be part of covenant community where we are living what we believe. I thank God for my brothers and sister at Stord who are living fellowship. I am convinced they will bring many new people to Christ in days to come in all the villages on the island and the surrounding area.

We are visiting the covenant community in Harstad in the north of Norway this week and we are having a very good time. We have been meeting with several house churches and a group of leaders of the church. We have been blessed by our fellowship with the saints in Harstad. It is very clear to us that God is at work among his people in this place.

Yesterday a couple told us that they had kind of adopted some young adult students as their sons and daughters. They had opened their home to them and included them as family members. Once they had made a birthday party for a student from Ghana. As they were celebrating the birthday, the students phoned his family in Ghana. With tear running down his cheeks he told them that his Norwegian parents held a birthday party for him. It was not a big thing for the Norwegian couple to make a party, but it was a very big thing to the foreign young student to have people in this distant land arranging a birthday party for him.

My friends only did what was natural to them. They cared for the student. They loved him as a son. Therefore, they naturally celebrated his birthday with a party. By their action they showed that they were spiritual parents taking interest in others, loving and caring for them, without even thinking they had done something great.

One small action of love from spiritual parents can be a big miracle for people who have left their natural home and are trying to cope by their own.

There is a great need in the world today for spiritual parents to care for people who are struggling to manage their life on their own. There are so many lonely people hurting and suffering from lack of love. They need to be seen and taken notice of. They need to be loved as they are and appreciated for what they are. They need someone to come alongside them to bring out the best in them. They need some caring persons to bring them to maturity, so they themselves can show interest in others and become spiritual parents themselves.

We arrived in Tromsø yesterday and will stay over the weekend. The sun is shining from a cloudless sky. The beautiful mountain tops are still covered by snow, but the spring has arrived even here in the north of Norway. The threes are budding, the fresh green colour of the spring season can be seen everywhere. I love this green freshness. God has really created a most beautiful world!

Kristina, our first grandchild, is having a confirmation celebration this weekend. We are here to take part in the joyful party and celebrate that she has come of age religiously. We are so thankful to God that she has committed her life to Jesus Christ and is a strong believer and disciple of the Lord.

The confirmation worship service will be hold in the Baptist Church and it will be a joint celebration for all the free churches in Tromsø. The young people have been taken through a full year of teaching of the basic Christian belief to make them secure and established in the foundational truth of the Bible.

I love the view from our bedroom where we are staying at our son Karl Enok's house. I love this place chosen by God to display his glory. And I love to share the view with all my friends!

It is spring time in Norway. It is late this year because of a cold and very long winter season. But now flowers are springing forth everywhere. It is like a resurrection of life from the dead ground. Restoration is taking place in front of our eyes. We can see the glory of God covering the ground everywhere!

Leave a comment on what prophetic message you hear from God when you look on these pictures!

At the gathering of the local covenant community on Sunday morning we had a very good report from some of the young people who had been evangelizing at the local shopping centre. As the spoke with some other young people, God gave them words of knowledge about some physical problems the people they spoke with had. This led to laying on of hands and prayer with the result that the two persons prayed for were instantly healed. They were totally taken aback and were overwhelmed by the power of God. Both of them came to Christ and committed their lives to the Lord.

Later the same day people who did evangelize had a telephone call from a friend of the two who came to Christ. This friend wondered if it was possible for as well to come to Christ! Shortly after the girlfriend of one of the young men that came to Christ also phoned and wanted to meet with the believers to receive Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour!

I was so happy to hear this exciting report. It confirmed to me that the prophetic words spoken over our area is coming true. This is a harvest season. It is a season to see the power of God at work. All because God is pouring out his Spirit in these days upon all people. The Spirit is drawing people to Christ. There is a longing and a seeking for realities. Jesus is the ultimate reality! I am so happy that people are coming to Him!

I have been reading in the Gospel of Matthew recently and have been struck by the Jesus lived and interacted with people. He seemed to be fully awake, alert and present in every situation. He saw people and he was hearing from God. He could see through the external to the innermost thoughts of people, but I have the sense that if he had not noticed and observed the external situation, he would not have noticed what was going on inside people!

When I read the record of how Jesus saw people and interacted with them in a strange but wonderful combination of natural and supernatural seeing and hearing, I am challenged to be alert and awake in my heart and spirit during the course of the day, that I may be used by God to bless people in one way or another.

When I was a boy I was in and out of the hospital. In the hospital not a single nurse or doctor made a lasting impression on me. I remember a doctor because of his strange spectacles, but I don't remember his name. But I remember Borghild. She was cleaning the floors in the rooms and the corridors. Still I can see her outlook with her beautiful long and blond hair before me when I close my eyes. Still after nearly sixty years I have fond memories of her. Why? She saw me. She took interest in me. She spoke to me. I am forever grateful to her for the care and love she showed me in the hospital. She was not a doctor, nor a nurse, but only a floor cleaner, but she was the greatest of them all because of her love and care for a little boy in the hospital.

When we see people for what they are, we may be able to hear from God for them and have a lasting influence on their lives.

God, open my eyes to see people around me. Fill me with your love and teach me to care for them in practical ways. Open the ears of my heart that I might hear what you want to tell them. Teach me to be present in my world that I may bring your presence and make your love felt wherever I go.

This morning when I looked out the window I saw that the ice on our lake had disappeared. It had melted during the night. Only a few nights ago we had minus degrees ans the ice had increased on the lake. But today is a day of joy. Now spring has finally arrived. The ice has gone. Now we are waiting for the sun to heat the water that we may take a bath and nice swim in the lake. I think it will take nearly two months for the water to get the right temperature for bathing.

But today all the ice on the lake had melted. I have been working outside all day. The sun has been shining all day and we had 15 degrees in the middle of the day. I have been cutting more woods and splitting logs. And I spent a long time to cleanse my large terrace. I even had time for some garden work. My day has been full.

As I enjoyed that the ice had melted and the lake was totally free from ice, I was reminded of a prophetic word that came to us ahead of the Easter Conference. God spoke of ice melting and a cleansing to take place to bring release to new life and expansion among us. This "spiritual" ice that God is melting in our nation and his purging work among his people is a work of the Spirit of God that takes place just now. We are in the midst of a spiritual spring time in Norway. We are seeing new expression of life springing forth many places already and more will come. I am so excited to be alive and being able to serve God in a time like this.