by Dr. Bruce Hebel

On July 16 I began a journey to Lubumbashi, Democratic Republic of Congo where I participated in the Pan-African International Conference hosted by Bishop Matebwe Lamba Lamba at Come and See Church. Several hundred leaders from 19 different countries, from as far away as Brazil, joined thousands of local congregants at this annual gathering. It was significant to me to see the passion for spreading the message of Jesus to the world from a country in the center of Africa. Faith, hope, and love have no geographical boundaries!

I was invited to the conference to share Forgiving Forward primarily to the leaders gathered. Many of these pastors lead significant ministries and oversee many churches in their respective countries. I was allotted two hours over two days to communicate the Forgiving Forward message. In spite of the cultural and language challenges, God spoke freedom through the message that He gave through me. It’s always exciting to see people grasp the protocols and embrace freedom. Several approached me to tell me their story afterwards.

One young man in particular found me on the last night of the conference. He shared with me that he came to the conference estranged from his wife because of something she had done. As he listened to the message, he realized that the torment he was experiencing was due to his unforgiveness, not his wife’s actions. Immediately after my talk he found his pastor and asked for help forgiving his wife. With tears in his eyes he exclaimed, “My wife and I are now reconciled and I have hope for the future because you taught us how to forgive.”

This trip also afforded me the opportunity to bridge our friend Pastor Jasper Williams III of The Church in Norcross, GA to the ministry in Congo. God used him to deliver two powerful messages that encouraged the people there to be all God has designed them to be. While this is Pastor Jasper’s first ministry trip to Africa, it most definitely will not be his last. It was an honor to watch God work through him and in him.

Through the generosity of supporters, I took 5,000 copies of the protocol bookmarks translated into French, as well as a handful of Forgiving Forward books and DVD sets. Through the guidance of the Holy Spirit, the DVDs are now in the hands of significant overseers in Congo, Tanzania, and South Africa and the books are in several other countries.  Our prayer is that God will use these resources to exponentially expand the Forgiveness Revolution throughout Africa and the world! 

I’m constantly amazed at the places God takes us and what He does when we go with Him. We can only do what we do because of faithful partners who pray for us and generously give to the ministry of Forgiving Forward. We are filled with gratitude for the partners God has given us!

Our next adventure overseas will be September 10-25. We will be teaching at Tyndale Seminary in Holland, a church plant near Amsterdam, a church in Osnabruk, Germany, and a church near Madrid, Spain. The cost of the trip will be covered by Forgiving Forward, as is the case with most of our international travel. Please prayerfully consider investing with us in this assignment as we continue to spread the Forgiveness Revolution to as many people as we can.