Evangelism
With 30 years of African campaigns, evangelist Reinhard Bonnke says “Today is the day of an open door for evangelism in Africa.”
ACTS believes this is the time for the church to use all means to advance the Gospel in the West African country of Burkina Faso. The message of the Gospel coupled with ACTS training programs shows the poor of Burkina Faso how to break the bonds of poverty and gives them hope for the future.
Twenty-five women and children accepted the Lord during a two-day evangelistic campaign at the end of January. Women involved with ACTS and the village church were responsible for inviting others to come to the meetings. The first day, 750 attended and the second day there were 975! The women of Saonré did an amazing job of announcing the meetings.
Meetings included a short spoken message, a film directed towards women’s needs, music and afterward those who wanted to talk with someone were given that opportunity. Women and children came forward during time set aside for prayer. Some of those who attended the meetings had never heard the message of Salvation before. Some of them come from Muslim families.
 |
| Pastor Kaboré at Temple ElRoi at the ACTS Center |
In spring of 2008 ACTS established a church for the orphans and villagers living in the community of Saonré. Pastor Gilbert Kaboré held numerous outreach campaigns during summer months.
Evangelistic films and crusades brought the Gospel message to many who had never heard it previously.
Joanna Ilboudo, ACTS founder and executive director, met with 65 widows who were in desperate need for counseling after she conducted a Bible teaching. Then, Joanna and the medical assistant and psychiatrist, Sally Yaméogo, held individual psychological counseling and prayer sessions for personal needs. Each widow was given 10 kgs of rice to take home.
After the rice distribution, some of the women said, “The time you spent with us to counsel us and pray for us was precious and sufficient for us even if we did not get the rice.”
 Yolande Pamtam, 7 years old, and her mother attended the meeting.
Yolande is paralyzed and
needs a wheel chair as she is getting too heavy for her widowed mother to carry.
Her mother asked if she could be enrolled in the ACTS income-generating activities to earn income for the family. She also asked if Yolande could attend ACTS quick start educational program for orphans.
Yolande's mother said, "I am glad that you are willing to look for solutions for my daughter. She talks and I think she is brilliant, but the biggest problem is that she cannot walk and this is a big burden for me."
"I am also thankful to you for all the counseling we received. We have gained courage because someone thought we have worth and took time to talk and pray for us. This is something of great value that money cannot buy."
Libya and other Muslim countries show the financial wealth and power of Islam in Burkina Faso. A large hotel, bank and a convention center have been built in the capital city of Ouagadougou by Libya.
Even mosques in rural areas have been given finances to entice women to come to the mosque to learn how to read the Koran. Women are given $2 a day to come.
If her children are starving, no mother will let an opportunity like this go by. Her children will remember that the mosque was their source during famine times. ACTS steps in to assist the
poor and brings with the food and other assistance the truth of the Word of God.
A widow whose children are sponsored by ACTS testified: “At the beginning I did not want to attend your meetings because I thought ACTS would be just like others who didn’t give us anything that would really help us. But since I have been coming here I can see that you are building people up spiritually but also materially. So I say thank you to God for the opportunity I have here.”
The training received through ACTS outreach gives rural poor the opportunity to see that Jesus Christ cares for them and will provide for them both today and tomorrow.
Learn to do good. Seek justice. Help the oppressed. Defend the orphan. Fight for the rights of widows.
Isaiah 1:17
<Back to Project List
|
