Looking for a Breakthrough

Hans Mannegen and Joe Mott hope that multitudes of Christians throughout Malawi will follow in the footsteps of the Apostle Matthew.

Earlier this year, thousands of trained churches across Malawi launched the My Hope project, as many of the pastors preached the sermon from Matthew 9, where Matthew introduced friends to Jesus. “We are challenging people in these congregations to become ‘Matthews,’ opening their homes, providing food, and using radios or televisions to introduce their friends and family to Christ,” said Mott, of BGEA International Ministries.

“A lot of people will hear the Gospel for the first time, and others will need renewal,” said Mannegren, Director of International Ministries.

Launched in 2002, My Hope World Evangelism Through Television uses tried and true methods of evangelism and discipleship proven by 60 years of ministry to train believers around the world to open their homes and share their faith with friends, family and neighbors through BGEA TV broadcasts and videos.

Malawian People

While some of the Malawi population is made up of professing Christians, Mannegren and Mott say there is an abundance of syncretism (combining different beliefs and or religions) and witchcraft, pockets of Muslims and even ancestor worship in this small country. “It feels like they want to blend the African culture with Christianity. This has also been a challenge in Asian countries,” explained Mannegren.

80 percent of Malawi is rural but has three major cities. The two main ones are the capital, Lilongwe, and Blantyre, the commercial center. Additionally there is Mzuzu in the northern part of the country. In the rural parts, poverty runs rampant, as many of the people live in huts. “We are actually trying to reach out to them by radio and sending projection teams in those poor areas where no electricity is available,” explained Mannegren. “The equipment is run by solar power, which enables us to project these programs in remote villages.”

In the cities, the spectrum from wealthy to poor is quite large. “Our goal is to reach out to all classes and challenging the denominational leaders to be the first ones to be Matthews so they will be good examples.” said Mannegren.

Testimonies of the Work of the Gospel

Mannegren tells the story about one person involved in witchcraft. On of the Matthews went out and witnessed to this person, who had put spells and curses on people. The man made a preliminary commitment to Christ, but only burned part of his witchcraft-related paraphernalia (such as masks). He came under conviction and realized he needed to be fully committed to Christ and Christ alone. Then, he burned all of his gear – masks, etc. He then confessed some of the disturbing things he had done, as he was dealing with the guilt of having placed cursed on someone who died.

Mott describes the testimony of a well known Malawian – the coach of the national soccer team, Kinnah Phiri.

“He explained that many of the players use witchcraft to try to assure their success on the field. Phiri speaks adamantly against that, which is powerful because of the widespread nature of witchcraft in this country,” said Mott. “He tells people that he does not believe in witchcraft, and that he believes in Christ instead. He also explains to viewers that they don’t need this to succeed, and that only Jesus will bring them peace.”

One pastor even decided to introduce My Hope to some churches in Mozambique, right across the border. Since then, over 60 churches there have become involved. “We have to pray for the Matthews. When the moment comes after the program has been aired and after the Matthew has given a testimony and asks, ‘What about you? Will you follow him?’ all spiritual power is unleashed, and resistance will come against what they are doing,” said Mannegren.

Pray for My Hope Malawi

Here are a few ways you can invest in My Hope Malawi through prayer:

• Pray that the invitations given to the guests in the Matthew homes are clear.
• Pray that people will respond to the Gospel.
• Pray for more church participation. There are thousands involved, but there is always room for more.
• Pray that more Matthews will step up and open their homes for the programming and for guests.
• Pray for technical and electrical stability in the rural areas, where the equipment will be operated by generators and solar power.

“Pray for our brothers and sisters there. Pray they will grow and see this is something they can use after we close out the office in February of next year,” urges Mannegren. “Pray for a great renewal, revival and breakthrough in the church. They want to see a breakthrough of spiritual fruit in their nation.”

Follow Joe Mott and his wife Melissa as they get ready for the My Hope project and live among the Malawian people. Read the blog »