KKNK Festival Outreach

We are so very thankful for those of you who helped sponsor our outreach trip to the KKNK last week. We have God’s promise that you will share in the rewards and blessings of this time. Thank you for all your faithful support and prayers for us; they worked miracles! God bless you!

We just spent a wonderful week in Oudtshoorn, preaching the Good news of Jesus’ salvation, sharing God’s Word, and praying with the many visitors at the KKNK festival. We pitched our tent in the local high-school’s rugby field, just a two-minute walk from the main festival area. Each day we met with people, sharing God’s message, and many lives were touched and changed. Just over 3,500 Gospel Pamphlets and nearly a thousand Activated magazines and Gospels of John were distributed
during this week. We prayed with hundreds of people for specific prayer requests and 69 people gave their hearts to Jesus.
In the Epistles, Paul compares our Christian lives to a race that must be run with patience -as we keep our eyes on Jesus- and some of us had the opportunity to join in an early morning race while there.

Below, some testimonies from our team members:

I spoke to a young man by the side of a quiet street. After chatting for a few minutes I asked him if he was sure he was going to Heaven, to which he replied “No, I don’t know if I am or not. I’ve heard parts of the Bible, but no…I don’t know.” I explained to him how he could accept Jesus’ gift of salvation and be sure that he has an eternal home in Heaven.
I emphasized Jesus’ great love and acceptance of anyone who will take that step and receive Him,
(John 6:37, Romans 5:8, Luke 5:32, Rom 6:23) and also His miracle working power to change lives! (Colossians 3:10, 2 Corinthians 5:17)
After some time, I saw tears in his eyes, and when I asked if he would like to accept Jesus right then, he said yes! We prayed there on the street, and I know the angels in Heaven rejoiced! When we finished praying, he looked up at me and said “I…I feel different!” Wow! I said “Do you feel that peace in your heart that you will go to Heaven one day?” and he said “Yes! I do!” Praise God! We exchanged details and I will continue to follow up on him and pray for his new life in Jesus!

While giving out the Gospel tracts in the busy main festival area, I noticed a large policeman (from a squad patrolling the festival grounds) coming towards me. For a moment I thought “Oh no, he’s going to tell me we can’t distribute Gospel literature here.”
When he got to me, he put his hand on my shoulder and said, “You know, I have to thank you for coming here and doing this. I got one of these (pointing to the pamphlets) yesterday, and I enjoyed it so much! Keep it up!”
Amazing! Not what I was expecting at all, but a wonderful example of how the message is for everyone!

I was walking towards a group of people to talk with them, but before I even opened my mouth one man looked at me and said “I know you! I met you in Cape Town about 2 years ago! You told me something that I’ll never forget; something I use all the time when I’m talking to people; “Jesus, Others, then You – that’s how you spell JOY.” Put Jesus first, then others, and yourself last. It works! I love that so much!”

I struck up a conversation with a man who had been in prison and was only released the beginning of the week. He told me how he had changed his life and accepted salvation while in prison, but now with a criminal record, work would be very hard to come by. I prayed together with him for guidance and provision, and also for him to be reunited with his family, who he said he misses very much. Please join us in praying for this dear man and his family.

While out one morning, I stopped and took out my phone to read an sms that came in, when suddenly I felt a tap on my back. I turned and it was a woman who asked “What is it you’re doing? What do you have there?” (looking at the inspirational Activated magazines) I explained to her that we are sent by Jesus to share the Good News to all at the festival and that the magazines are feeding and inspirational reading. Then, just like that, she subscribed for a year to the Activated magazine! Praise the Lord!

I spoke to a man sitting behind the festival stalls, and after telling him about Jesus’ love for him he got saved! After our prayer together, he said, “You know, I was just sitting here thinking over my issues, and then you showed up. Please continue to tell everyone about this! Don’t quit because of how people look or what they say. Thank you!”

I met a young man who said that he was just passing through town quickly, and as we talked more he said he is Hindu but married to a Christian South African woman. He had a lot of questions about our faith and said he has been thinking about converting but wants to do it for the right reasons and really understand it. I encouraged him that taking Jesus into his life is the first step, and he said he would think about it. The Lord has people at different levels of acceptance when we meet them, but as we each do our part, one planting, another watering, we believe He will bring in the harvest. (1 Cor.3:7-8)

I bumped into some young girls and guys who had found a crumpled-up tract on the ground and were trying to read it when they saw me with the tracts and eagerly asked if they could have some. I gave them each one and they excitedly started looking through them.

We don’t always see the effects of our witness. Much of it is ‘by faith’ as we obey Jesus’ command to “Go into all the world and preach the Gospel to every creature,. (Mark 16:15) But, one day, after a long day of handing out Gospel tracts and witnessing to all kinds of people, I walked by a sitting area on one of the main streets when-out of the corner of my eye- I saw three young people (sitting at one of the tables) join hands together and bow their heads in prayer. I curiously stepped closer to them and was amazed to see one of our Gospel pamphlets on the table, and hear them all praying the salvation prayer at the end of the pamphlet! What an encouragement to keep on, even when it gets tough! The written word is incredibly powerful! “The words that I speak unto you, they are Spirit and they are Life.” (John 6:63)