OPERATION MOBILISATION MAGAZINE no.2 2018
“ The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, for he has anointed me to bring Good News to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim that captives will be released, that the blind will see, that the oppressed will be set free.” LUKE 4:18 (NLT)
Planting the seeds of God’s Kingdom among the least reached
OM SHIPS
by Julie Knox
TEACHING AT SEA Each child in Amelia Vine’s schoolroom represents a leader who has been enabled to serve on board Logos Hope.
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he nine three to fiveyear-olds she teaches have parents fulfilling key roles on OM’s ship: including Bookfair Manager, Chief Engineer and Doctor. Children up to age 12 attend the onboard school, which follows the UK curriculum and is always on the lookout for teaching staff. With a total of 30 children living on the ship, class sizes are small with some year groups combining together. While English is the operational language on the vessel, youngsters may not speak it at all when they first embark. That didn’t faze Amelia when she arrived in 2016. Having switched track from a career in property law and retrained as a nursery teacher, she had worked in multicultural southeast London. “In my last job, the children spoke 18 different languages and I had to remember 100 names,” she recalls, “Teaching children who don’t speak English as their
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have the same access to resources, but I think any teacher has to be creative. I make things with whatever I can find and we go on outings to the bridge or the engine room.”
“ I’M USING MY SKILLS IN MISSION, TO ENABLE OTHERS TO BE HERE!” first language is perfectly normal for me!” In the floating community of more than 60 different nationalities, Amelia’s proud to be the sole crewmember representing Wales, where she grew up. She raised the necessary financial support to join Logos Hope in the space of just six weeks: confirmation
that God was directing her steps. “Putting my trust in God and listening to Him, it was wonderful to see everything getting sorted out smoothly and I felt very calm making such a big change,” she says. Of course, teaching on an ocean-going vessel isn’t all plain sailing. “I don’t get seasick but I do get very tired when we’re at sea,” says Amelia. “You can’t get away from your pupils since we all live on board, but that develops special bonds. Our limited internet presents some challenges in that you don’t
There are also opportunities to learn on shore in the ports Logos Hope visits. From West Africa to the Caribbean and Latin America, Amelia and her class have explored rainforests, tropical beaches, volcanoes and ancient ruins. “I really would recommend it to missionminded teachers in the UK,” Amelia says. “It’s a familiar curriculum, in a smaller setting. You just need to be adaptable.” And the teacher has learnt much herself; sharing knowledge, help and hope on various outreaches. “I don’t feel I’m a natural evangelist, but I’ve shared my faith in a Colombian detention centre and had the privilege of encouraging churches in every port we’ve visited. You just have to be willing: God will use you and your story to impact others.”
If you’re a teacher interested in serving on board Logos Hope visit www.uk.om.org/go
WORLD NEWS
by Karin Fendrick
WORLD NEWS Let there be light OM Malawi
In Malawi, the radio is used by 90% of the population. People are used to turning on the radio, tuning in and listening to the airwaves. Radio can bring people more information, discovery, teaching, pleasure and comfort in one year than most rural people normally receive in a lifetime. OM Malawi had a vision to establish and maintain a local FM radio station, proclaiming the Word of God, 24/7. This was not to be typical ‘Christian’ radio. Instead, the team aimed to creatively
address all sorts of life issues, with uncompromising faithfulness to the values and message of the Bible. Unstable electricity and frequent black outs provide frequent issues for the region, but the station’s solar powered equipment saves a lot of trouble and money. This means that when other stations are off the air, Radio Lilanguka can still broadcast.
OFFICIAL GRAND OPENING
On 2 March 2018, Radio Lilanguka celebrated its official grand opening. The celebration included worship and praise led by the station choir as well as prayers and speeches offered by clergy and government officials who had all worked hard to see this vision come
NEW RECORD SET IN VERACRUZ! Logos Hope’s visitor count in Veracruz, Mexico has broken the Ship Ministry’s all-time record for a single port. A total of 226,554 members of the public climbed the ship’s gangways to browse the bookfair, visit the International Café or attend an onboard event during the six weeks the vessel was open. The figure represents only the second time any of the organisation’s four ships has surpassed the 200,000 visitor tally. The previous record was set 30 years ago; when 201,710 people stepped on board Doulos in Taichung, Taiwan, during a 19-day port call in September 1988.
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to life. At various times during the ceremony, joyful prompts from the programme host of, “Lilanguka!” (Light) drew an instant response of, “Kulangwiche!” (Let there be light) from the gathered crowd. That happy cry of “Kulangwiche” lingered long after the station opened and continues to drive OM’s prayers for the country: “Let there be light!’’ Please pray that God will provide creativity, workers and funds to expand the effectiveness of this new venture.
OM Ships
Seelan Govender, CEO of OM Ships International, welcomed the exciting news. “We are constantly asking, ‘Is the Ship Ministry still relevant? Are we still accomplishing what we believe God has called us to do?’ I believe these numbers certainly reinforce the sense that there is a strong appeal for the ministry we have been given.” “More than that,” Seelan continues, “What excites me is the opportunity this gives us, with a reach that is far beyond what we could do without a ship: in challenging people, in motivating people, in moving them one step further in their
Pray for the gospel to spread widely among the least reached.
understanding of the Kingdom of God, who God is and what God has done for them.” It’s not statistics that matter to the CEO, though. Whilst figures like these are encouraging to partners all around the world and useful to inform how Logos Hope prepares for future ports, Seelan’s drive is that each individual leaves the ship having been impacted in a personal way. “My hope is that we will see lasting impact that goes on to bear much good fruit in people’s lives – not only in Mexico, but to the ends of the earth.”
OM ANGOLA
By Andrew Fendrich
MINISTRY MADE OF RELATIONSHIPS Joao, a native Angolan and a gang leader in the town of Menongue, Angola, was eight years old when Wessel and Joan moved to Angola to pursue fulltime mission work. In a country of millions, the odds of the three running into each other were small. But God does not deal in chances.
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“It was difficult to try to figure out who the Angolan people are. But that was the right thing to do. We’re picking the fruit of that today.”
“We worked a long time on the culture,” Wessel says.
The fruit Wessel refers to is not only connections with high-end government officials and other legal and corporate relationships, but it is also found on a day-to-day level in the innumerable friendships both of them enjoy, from shop owners and bakers to local teachers and pastors.
s Joao grew into adulthood, Wessel and Joan were hard at work, though not by traditional missionary definitions. As ESL (English as Second Language) teachers for the first several years of their ministry in Angola, the couple built relationships and made connections, navigating around various cultural blocks that many find in Angolan life.
“Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding.” Proverbs 3:5
“It took us almost 10 years to get through this. We needed to get it perfect,” Wessel explains, and Joan adds that the challenge of taking time with the Angolan people has meant a lot to her. “I like the challenge of working cross culturally; it’s an enriching life experience for me personally,” she says. “You have to find your relationship with God in a completely new setting.” When Wessel and Joan began their missions training programme in 2013, they had only one student, but beneath the ministry itself, a foundation supported their work. In 2016, the programme welcomed Joao. After coming to Christ in 2014, he became a faithful attendee in Joan’s discipleship group, and eventually he committed to missions training with his parents’ blessing. Now Joao has planted a church in Menongue, where Wessel and Joan continue to help guide and support him. In 2017, the OM Angola missions training programme, in its fifth year, welcomed 17 full
time students. The programme is one year long, followed by six months of practical work, after which the students receive a diploma of graduation. While other missions programmes in OM Africa are three to six months, Wessel has found a longer programme to be beneficial in the cultural context of Angola. “Angolans are zealous: they want to start new churches,” he says. “But it is important to have a programme that takes time to invest in students.”
“ IT WAS DIFFICULT TO TRY TO FIGURE OUT WHO THE ANGOLAN PEOPLE ARE. BUT THAT WAS THE RIGHT THING TO DO. WE’RE PICKING THE FRUIT OF THAT TODAY.” Just as the foundation of their ministry in Angola is made of relationships, so the missions training is not so much a programme as a community. And in turn, that community lays a foundation for effective Kingdom work. “Here, discipleship turns into church planting,” Wessel says. “We want to see young people planting churches and not only among the unreached. Our focus is on the unreached, but here in Angola we don’t have a lot of spiritual influences; it’s very weak. So we also focus on that.” The missions training programme spends a week with the bushmen of Angola near the end of the year, adding practical missions experience to the theological training. As a result, the
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students are better equipped to take practical steps when they head back home for the final six months of the programme. But even as they begin to reap the benefits of their labour, Wessel and Joan are thinking about what kind of legacy they will leave. “It will give me great joy,” Joan says of the young OM Angola missionaries, “to sit one day on the balcony and watch the next generation coordinating everything.” Wessel agrees. “If we need to leave now, I will leave with great joy,” he says. “The Father has allowed us to accomplish something through this training that brings great joy to my heart: to see these guys move on and do a great service in Angola.”
JOIN US IN PRAYER Over the next 10 years OM Africa are trusting God to help recruit, train and send several thousand African missionaries to bring the Gospel to 350 of the least reached communities throughout the African continent. Join us in praying for this vision.
Be equipped. Join one of Mission Discipleship Training programmes around the world. Continue to give thanks forOM’s 60 years of OM’s global ministry
OM UNITED KINGDOM
by Sara Butler
PLANTING THE SEEDS OF GOD’S KINGDOM Jesus described the Kingdom of God as “a grain of mustard seed, which, when sown on the ground, is the smallest of all the seeds on earth, yet when it is sown it grows up and becomes larger than all the garden plants and puts out large branches, so that the birds of the air can make nests in its shade.” Mark 4:30-32 (ESV)
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he image of something small growing into something that is able to provide structure and sustainability for others, is the inspiration for OM UK’s Mustard Fund, launched last November. Our vision is that something as small and simple as some business training, a micro loan, or a course of vocational training, would result in long lasting and eternal transformation. Our prayer is
that the lost are empowered to escape poverty and will find freedom in Christ. Gifts given to our Christmas Appeal, have helped kick start the fund and are already being put to good use across Africa and Central Asia. This includes the development of Self Help Groups in Malawi and one of the ‘Stans’, and the start of a micro-enterprise programme for Muslim background believers in a hard to reach African people
Glory to God for what he did in that village and especially through the business training.
group. We have also been able to sponsor the development of small business and discipleship training in several African countries, and are delighted to share some encouraging testimony from this ministry with you. In some contexts, Mustard funds will be used to launch local programmes that combine business training and discipleship. Previous programmes run by one of OM’s training teams have seen businesses growing, a reduction in poverty and more people coming to faith. Feedback from programme ‘graduates’ includes one who is leading a regular prayer meeting, another who is praying for her business competitors, and many who have testified to how they are applying God’s Word to their business decisions. Many of the graduates from these programmes are using their businesses and profits to impact their communities
– through giving regularly to the church, generating employment for others, and sharing God’s Word with their customers. “Before the training I was just spending money, had no idea how much,” shares Cale*, a former trainee. “But now I know expenses and the profit. Learning about how the Bible teaches about business and money has impacted me personally but it has also shown me I can share God’s Word with the customers and I am encouraged to use the business for the glory of God.” “Two things I could learn and practice since I did the training: you need to be faithful and do an excellent job. I want to be a living testimony,” enthuses Akili*, another graduate. “I want my deeds to fit with my words.” OM teams have found using
business as a catalytic ministry is especially powerful in closed communities where Christians find it difficult to access and share the gospel. During a village outreach, one of the business trainers, Ehi*, met a group of young men who were running their small businesses. The boys were Muslim and didn’t want to hear anything about the gospel. Ehi explained he was a business trainer, and asked them what challenges their businesses faced. After some conversation, the boys asked him to train them. Through the business training, Ehi had the opportunity to build a good relationship with them and was able to share the Word of God with them through that week. Finally, at the end of the week, one boy became a follower of
Jesus. Ehi maintains contact with him, and continues to communicate and share the gospel with the other three boys. “Glory to God for what he did in that village and especially through the business training, the life of people are transformed spiritually and economically,” declares Ehi. “It’s a good testimony now in that village about how those boys are running their business in a profitable way, and they are good ambassadors of our training. They also told other villagers that Christianity is not a bad thing – that they are good people who want to help others.” Thank you for your partnership in these life changing ministries through your gifts to Mustard.
sowing the seeds of change The Mustard Fund is a OM initiative designed to help our teams plant the seeds of God’s Kingdom through business. To give a gift to the Mustard Fund please visit www.uk.om.org/mustard , or call us on 01691 776 711. *Names changed
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Give thanks for communities transformed through OM’s business training programmes
OM SWEDEN
By Nicole James
BOLD, SOMALI BELIEVERS
In the Scandinavian country where they are growing up, many young Somalis encounter Jesus through their classmates and friends, according to long-term OM worker Bertil, who facilitates a global network of Somali believers. “We see some young people who are really coming up strong in the Lord,” he declared.
Manaar*, a 21-year-old Somali woman, first heard about Jesus from a classmate. Wanting to know more, she read the Bible, comparing it with the Qur’an. “In the Qur’an there is no love. In the Bible there is the love of Christ,” she concluded. When Manaar became a believer, word quickly spread among her family and fundamentalist Islamic neighbourhood. Even an aunt living in the States got involved. “You’re a shame to the family. You must come back to Islam,” she wrote her niece. Despite the pressure, Manaar didn’t budge. “Have you even read the Bible?” she challenged her family members. “Do you even know what you’re talking about? Have you read the Qur’an?” In fact, they had not read either book, so Manaar sent them
electronic copies of both to study for themselves before chastising her. Her mother, however, would not give up pressuring Manaar to return to Islam. She arranged for three men to speak to her daughter: a 25-year old Somali Muslim, a former Hindu-turnedMuslim, and a Swedish theologian who had also converted to Islam.
“ YOU DON’T KNOW THE QUR’AN AND YOU DON’T KNOW THE BIBLE. WHAT ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT?” Manaar agreed to speak with the men on one condition – that her mother come with her to church. The mother
accompanied her daughter to a service, but she was not impressed with the African congregation. Likewise, Manaar was not swayed by the arguments the three men proffered. “You don’t know the Qur’an and you don’t know the Bible. What are you talking about?” she argued. Later, she overhead one of the men in the kitchen telling her mother, “This will be a hard nut to crack.” Following the failed attempt with the three men, Manaar’s mother also asked the local Imam to speak to her daughter. Again, Manaar agreed with a condition: that the Imam join her at church. “I think that’s exciting,” Bertil exclaimed. “She’s 21 years old and a really bold witness. God is doing great things.”
“Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes has eternal life.” John 6:47
“ FOR A WHILE, HE KEPT HIS FAITH HIDDEN FROM HIS FAMILY. NONETHELESS, RUMOURS SPREAD THROUGH THE COMMUNITY.”
Ali*, a 21-year-old Somali man, met Jesus while trying to persuade other young people to follow Islam. When he was younger, Ali’s family – all practicing Muslims – immigrated to Scandinavia. In the small town where they settled, Ali discovered there were no Qur’anic classes, so he started a group, beginning with a few children and reaching up to 30 individuals. “He was quite well known, and he was eager,” Bertil recounted. “He wanted to get people to understand who God is.” Ali attended a local school and learnt the language, “but he tried to get his friends to understand Islam, to become Muslims,” Bertil said. One day, Ali decided to visit the church down the street from his house. “This would be a good place to go and speak because
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they already believe in God,” he reasoned. So he went to the church and began having long discussions with people he met. Because he was extremely social, Bertil noted, he also made many friends. Ali attended youth meetings with his new friends, and, one night, found himself with raised hands during worship. Although he pulled his hands down as soon as he realised his posture, Ali continued listening to the speakers and started to believe in Jesus. Soon, some of the Christian youth invited Ali to join them at a retreat over Easter weekend. Ali agreed and “started to grow more and more in his faith and belief,” Bertil described. When people at the camp asked Ali if he would like to accept the Lord, he said, “Yes.” Ali returned from the
camp as a believer, but for a while, he kept his faith hidden from his family. Nonetheless, rumours spread through the community that something had happened to him. After meeting with a different group of young believers, including another Somali, Ali felt challenged to witness to his family. The next morning, he asked his father if they could talk. “You know, I’ve actually become a Christian,” he said. Ali has since enrolled in a Bible school where he also studies leadership. In addition to the three languages he already spoke, Ali has begun learning Dari and Farsi to reach out to other immigrants. “He is mightily used by God, especially among immigrants,” Bertil said. “God is taking [him] and using him in his context.”
We are witnessing hundreds of Somalis seeking hope in Jesus. Praise God.
*Names changed
OM UNITED KINGDOM
By Maria Smith
PERMANENT HOPE FOR THE KURDS There are 35 million Kurds in the world, and Joshua Project statistics show that just 0.1% of their population identify as Christians. These people are among the least reached, and more than 26,000 of them are living right here in the UK. “They come here to find a better job, a better life,” explains Jack*, an OM worker among Kurdish people in the UK. While some Kurdish people learn English and find a well-paid job, Jack says that many will get stuck in a ‘Kurdish bubble’, working for friends or family members in car washes, pizza shops, or barbers. They can be quite nomadic in that there is a European-wide network which enables them to remain in this new safe continent. “I know someone who’s been here for 15 years and barely speaks any English,” says Jack. Jack and his wife share their lives with Kurdish friends, and distribute Christian literature at Kurdish-run shops, restaurants, and car washes. Although he had been expecting hostility, Jack finds that the biggest challenge he faces in this ministry is apathy. “I’m just trying to get people to care,” he says. All the same, God has been working among the Kurdish people in the UK in different ways. This year, OM had the privilege of hosting a conference for Kurdish believers from all over the country. It was a weekend of training, fellowship,
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“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” John 3:16
and encouragement – and it was the first gathering of Kurdish believers from different cities that we know of. As Jack says: “It’s quite a new community – they have a need for solid teaching.” Recently, Jack and his wife were invited to visit Rona*, a Kurdish lady who had been forced to marry at 14 years old to a wealthy but very aggressive man. They arrived in the UK three years ago with their three children, but the husband has since left her. Remarkably another Kurdish lady had introduced Rona to Jesus – remarkable as Jack estimates the vast majority of Kurdish background believers to be single men. During their visit with Rona, they downloaded the Kurdish Sorani Bible app, Pertukekem, an OM project to make the Scriptures easily available in Kurdish. Two days after their first meeting, Jack’s wife took Rona to a local church. With tears in her eyes, she was amazed that Jesus gave sight to a man born blind yet still they crucified him. Jack has been encouraged to see many fellowships from around the UK with Kurdish leadership. His prayer is for a Kurdish fellowship
“ THEY CAN BE QUITE NOMADIC IN THAT THERE IS A EUROPEANWIDE NETWORK WHICH ENABLES THEM TO REMAIN IN THIS NEW SAFE CONTINENT.”
to meet in Birmingham, and for God to raise up Kurdish people to lead it. The Kurdish people have a long and turbulent history, which Jack describes as a series of ‘false dawns’. For the Kurdish people, the future is uncertain. But the gospel message that we want to share with them is one of overwhelming hope: a message of belonging to God’s family, and a permanent hope for the future. *Names changed
Pray that God would bring together a fellowship of Kurdish believers in Birmingham. Pray for Jack and our other workers as they witness to people from a Kurdish background. Pray for God to strengthen existing Kurdish fellowships across the country, and that they would be mobilised to reach their own people. Pray for Rona, that she will grow in her faith and understanding of the gospel, that her love for Jesus would never fade. Pray for her family who are no longer speaking to her because of her love for Jesus.
Discover more about OM’s ministry among the least reached in the UK www.uk.om.org
OM BLOG
“Be strong and of good courage; be not frightened, neither be dismayed; for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.” Joshua 1:9
by Michelle
BLOG.OM.ORG An excerpt from our OM International blog, written by OM workers describing mission from their perspective. Visit blog.om.org to read more.
UNIQUELY, BEAUTIFULLY, COMPLEX I
am a surfer who loves the Lord Jesus and as a child dedicated my life to living among the persecuted Church. I devoted many years to studying the Bible and learning, by experience, how to love people with God’s love. Three years ago my husband, four children and I moved to Portugal to surf among the surfers. Just the other day I was sitting by the beach and observing all the surfers. There were young surfers, old surfers, male surfers and female surfers. First timers and pro’s, tourists and locals. After a few minutes of taking inventory I began praising the Lord for taking something so simple as surfing among the surfers and making it so uniquely, beautifully, complex.
Surfing is simply fun but when you add evangelism to your surfing ventures it becomes uniquely, beautifully, complex! It becomes about the person in the wet suit. What does he or she think about the life they walk through? It becomes not only about catching the next wave but about catching a glimpse into who this person is that shares the same passion as you. Surfing became this way to me because it became a church. A body of believers. Surf Church. I asked Sara a few questions about surfing and this is what she had to say: Q: How has surfing impacted your life? Sara: “I had always wanted to try [surfing]. When I moved to
Porto I had the opportunity to try it through Surf Church. Surfing was my turning point in life. It’s such a liberating sport – much like God’s love – and it pushes me to improve. Entering that surf culture also changed a big part of my life in making me a more relaxed person. Through surfing I discovered how to turn to God when everything is suffocating me.” Q: What has God done in your life through surfing? Sara: “Surfing is the way I came to know God for one. And the other is like it; through surfing, and since becoming a part of Surf Church, there have been endless opportunities to share God here in Portugal and in many other countries. Surfing is also one way I express worship to My God, Saviour and creator of this world.”
“ IT BECOMES NOT ONLY ABOUT CATCHING THE NEXT WAVE BUT ABOUT CATCHING A GLIMPSE INTO WHO THIS PERSON IS THAT SHARES THE SAME PASSION.”
YOUR LIFE What simple things has the Lord used in your life to reach people and make them uniquely, beautifully, complex?
OM EUROPE
by OM International
“For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.” Jeremiah 29:11
INAUGURAL VOYAGE COMPLETE E
arlier this year, from January through March 2018, an international crew of 80 people successfully completed the three-month test phase of pioneering ministry, OM Riverboats. Andante, a chartered vessel, has been sailing along the Rhine, allowing crew to share the gospel and mobilise Christians to live a missional life. In total, over 8,000 visitors came onboard during this test phase. In seven ports across the Netherlands, Germany and France, the Andante provided a unique venue for local churches to use. However, the main attraction sat on top of the vessel in the form of The Agency, a variation of OM’s Global Village, designed
to mobilise the local church in each port into missions. Inspired by ideas from a popular real-life game known as an escape room, The Agency was a simulation where participants raced against time to break out of locked rooms by gathering clues and solving puzzles. Through the experience, participants discover a secret that can’t be kept. “This experience was the focus of the Riverboat,” explained David from Sweden, who led the artistic direction of The Agency. “It’s telling a story about the gospel which then motivates and mobilises people to share it with the least reached.” “We have found it can be a powerful ministry tool that
can empower youths and serve churches,” added Team Leader, Samuel. OM volunteer, Sandra thoroughly enjoyed her job as a debriefer. “It’s the best job,” she said excitedly. “The debriefer has the chance to clarify things about the experience; we can help give meaning to it and guide participants to understand the point of it.” Part of the experience is going onshore to share the gospel with others. For many of the participants, it’s something they have never dared to do. “It was the first time I have ever explained the gospel to someone,” a 14-yearold shared. “I’m surprised I could do it and, actually, I think I did pretty well!” Before leaving, participants are given an interactive booklet containing the Gospel of John, where they can scan the pages and watch related videos on a mobile app. Some youths decided to take an extra one to give to a friend, motivated by their new-found courage to share the gospel. One boy even asked, “Is there an escape room for nonChristians on board, too?”
“ WE HAVE FOUND IT CAN BE A POWERFUL MINISTRY TOOL THAT CAN EMPOWER YOUTHS AND SERVE CHURCHES”
NEXT STEPS Since the end of the OM Riverboats test phase, OM Europe are now prayerfully considering, ‘what next?’ Join us in giving thanks for three fruitful months of ministry, but pray too for wisdom in the next steps for this ministry.
Get involved in local and global mission. Why only hear or read about world needs and God’s mission when you can experience them for yourself? Discover, Encounter and Explore OM’s Global Village, a 1-hour interactive simulation experience at the Keswick Convention 2018.
KESWICK CONVENTION 2018
Opening times
Sunday 2:00 - 4:00pm Mon – Fri 9:00 - 10:00am
Weeks 2 & 3
2:00 - 4:00pm 7:00 - 9:30pm
LOCATION
Keswick Convention 2018
BOOK TODAY
Book your free space online at www.uk.om.org/globalvillage