Tens of thousands get touch of Jesus in Bensa Daye, Ethiopia

South African evangelism ministry In His Name Ministries recently completed their final Ethiopian crusade of the year. Below, we publish, in full, a report on the campaign, published this week in the ministry’s latest newsletter

Training
Our last crusade for 2022 was held in the rural, Ethiopian community of Bensa Daye. This town
is located over 400km south of the capital city of Addis Ababa. The Sidama people inhabit the
location, whose lives centre around agriculture, including the farming of coffee and false banana.
The build-up to our crusade was fantastic in its own right. We have always trained local believers for
soul-winning and conducted street evangelism in the preparation phase. However, in Bensa Daye,
we employed two Ethiopian evangelists — Samuel Desalegn and Chaltu Godana — solely for that
purpose. What training they conducted, what one-on-one soul-winning and mini-outreaches they
led! The churches in Bensa Daye are not in the habit of doing street evangelism. Now, we believe
that this shall change. Our team will stay connected with those locals who have been trained and
they will continue to initiate evangelistic activities in their community.

Testing
Our Gospel Crusades are always trying. Why? We are preaching Jesus in areas plagued by unrest.
Security-related challenges prevented us from holding our service in the local stadium, as planned
and advertised. However, we never cancel services at In His Name so we shifted the meeting to a
church compound that is located — conveniently — alongside the stadium. By the second day however,
we were in the stadium with no restrictions being imposed on our services and our meetings hit the
next level of impact. Over four days and six services, tens of thousands called upon the name of the
Lord and more than 25 000 pieces of follow-up material were distributed. Please keep the pastors in
your prayers as they connect with every new convert. May each fledgling believer become a mighty
man or woman of God in their community!

Testimonies
Prayer for the sick was followed by some tremendous testimonies. Among them was 20-year-old
Habtamu who had fallen from a tree over a month ago. His right arm had been badly injured and
his right hand, broken. Limited access to medical care made giving that arm and hand the needed
attention, impossible. The arm remained in agony and the hand, immobile. A day labourer, Habtamu
could no longer perform his duties. He was frustrated, out of pocket and in pain. During prayer, Jesus
touched this young man in a powerful way. His hand is now perfect and his arm, strong. Ecstatic,
Habtamu showed off his newfound mobility. “I thank my Lord!” he expressed. “He is my only Saviour
forever. My life has completely changed!”

Roda is a 47-year-old farmer and father of five. He had been mad for 15 long years, his mind
utterly tormented and confused. He was unable to think lucidly and his family suffered terribly as a
result of his mental distress. During our crusade, he received Jesus as Saviour and with his salvation,
came his deliverance. “You all know me,” Roda shared from stage. “You know how mad I was.
Now, my mind is clear. I am completely changed! I am free!” Raising his hands and rejoicing, this
precious man glorified his Saviour and the crowd shared in his ecstatic praise. Hallelujah! Mesifin is
a 20-year-old motorbike driver, a vehicle used in Bensa Daye — as in many towns across Africa — for
quick and affordable transport. Five months ago, he had broken his right leg in an accident and that
leg had not healed properly. Its range of movement was limited and it was very painful. Naturally,
this disability impacted the ability of this young man to do his work. Wonderfully, Jesus has done
what the doctors were not able to do! Mesifin is healed. He jumped up and down on stage, leaping
on his right leg and kicking it with glee. Buzuna is 35 years old. He works in education. For the
past five years, this dear gentleman had struggled with terrible depression. “I could not sleep,” he
shared, “the depression was so great.” During prayer, that blanket of hopelessness lifted from his
mind, leaving him completely liberated. “I am so peaceful! I praise my Lord because He has healed
me without any payment!” Yes, indeed. Our Jesus gives freely to all those who call upon His name!

Buja is a 60-year-old grandmother. A year ago, a tumour started to develop in her lower abdomen.
It had grown so large that she could easily feel the mass and her doctor had told her that she
would need to be operated on very soon. During one of our services, Dr Jesus performed His own
procedure and Buja could not contain her excitement as she testified. “I do not need an operation
any longer!” she announced. “The tumour is gone! I can no longer feel it in my body!” The crowd
celebrated with her. Degu is a young man of 18 and a day labourer by profession. Three years ago,
he had started to drink and very soon, alcohol controlled his life. “I was addicted,” he confessed.
Degu attended one of our first services and received Jesus as his Saviour. Since this encounter with
the Lord, he has had no desire for alcohol whatsoever—and no withdrawal symptoms either! He
testified in our final meeting: “I was sick with sin, but now, I am free!” Hallelujah and amen!

Transformation
The Sunday of our crusade week was fire-filled and Spirit-saturated from beginning to end. We
began the day with a mass church service on our crusade field, the evangelical congregations all
closing their doors and uniting as the Body of Christ, regardless of denomination. We handed out
certificates to lead pastors and volunteers, thanking them for their support, together with 100 copies
of the Amharic version of my book, “Spirit of Fire” which teaches on evangelism. Come evening and
our final service, Tamryn preached one last message on the Holy Spirit after the Gospel had been
shared, before we prayed for Jesus to baptise His children with His Spirit. What holy chaos erupted!
Believers were filled to overflowing with the presence and power of God. May they go forth into the
highways and byways as His witnesses, with signs and wonders following! We prayed for all the
prayer requests that had been submitted over the crusade period and also, the nation of Ethiopia.

Thanksgiving
Thank you very much for your unwavering support. Such has resulted in yet another remote,
Ethiopian community being eternally impacted by our Jesus. He bids that we go into all the world
and we are going very eagerly. Thank you for sending us!

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