Catching up on Taiwan-Japan - March 2024 Trip - God is so good!

This report is a little late in posting (apologies - it's taken longer than usual to get over our jet lag!) What a trip it was. As you'll see, we could only have been sustained by prayer. During the Japan portion of our trip, I was so exhausted I asked the Pastor if maybe the people would want a day off? "No," he replied, "the people want to keep going!" Not the answer I wanted to hear. But onward it was, and the Holy Spirit wonderfully blessed in our weakness. See stats below to catch a bit of what happened.

Taiwan (Taichung) - Nine hours of teaching was shared over three days to the core leadership staff on passing the baton to the next generation. The entire nationwide staff of approx. 200 leaders from 20 plus city sites participated in person or over broadcast. Many leaders were encouraged. It was the first time I taught this material. (By the way, the prep for these meetings are intense - requiring 70-80 hours of work when sharing original material for such a series; prayer is needed just as much prior to our ministry times as during them).

Here is a short clip after one of our teaching sessions where the spirit of joy broke out.

These teaching sessions were followed by three consecutive evenings of healing crusades. This continues to be a highlight at Banner Church, and a first for them (running three consecutive nights in the middle of the week). Over 2000 people attended the meetings with another 1000 online. Many were healed; one man suffering a stroke could walk again and a lady that suffered Parkinson's was able to show complete freedom of movement. God be glorified. The capstone, as always, was the salvations as more than 50 people committed their lives to Christ. This is always the greatest and most important miracle in a crusade. Below is a small photo album of the evening meetings.

A behind the scenes look at the fervent preparation of the healing teams prior to the meetings -- some 150 people (turquoise vests) getting ready to minister.

Afterglow pics from the various services.

Toyko (Japan) -- We were invited to give a five-day seminar on Five Stones Impact's church planting strategy. Originally intended to reach 50 leaders, it was expanded to nearly 300 leaders with viewership from around the country via broadcast. We were so surprised and encouraged by the interest. In Japan where less than 1% of the population is Christian, this hunger for church planting is an indicator that God is stirring. We ended up ministering 17 times in six days. It was exhausting (coma-inducing - haha), but amazing as many people responded with enthusiasm and excitement. Over a dozen testimonies of being set free came in after the Sunday service without there even being a focus on healing. The Spirit of God was sovereignly touching people.

Keep praying for Japan that the spirit of church planting would spread across the nation. Tokyo is the largest city in the world (37M). If this city is touched, it would have a great impact on the nation and across Asia.