Dear Supporters of my work, your sacrificial giving in this time of soaring costs and financial hardship, has enabled a powerful event to take place in Batumi on the Black Sea coast of Georgia in the Caucasus, where we are working together with a missionary church of Moslem converts, Adjarians who themselves all came to Christ through powerful miracles of healing or deliverance from drugs and alcohol.
In a vision 18 years ago, Pastor Elguja saw Jesus, walking alone towards the Adjarian mountains and Turkey. Elguja asked, “Why are You alone? Why is no one with you?” Jesus answered, “Where I am going is wild, hard and difficult – no one wants to come with Me.” Pained that no one dared risk all to go into these closed traditional communities and bring the Gospel to them, Elguja replied, “Jesus, I'll go with You!”
From that time, he and his church have worked patiently to win the trust and friendship of their own Adjarian people group, bringing aid packages to the mountain villages, running summer camps for the kids, praying with the sick and seeing healings, so that one family tells another what their Isa, our living Jesus, has done for them.
Today you and I are part of this ministry challenge. Last year 1000 Adjarians came down from the mountains to attend our 3-day event. This year 1500 came! The large number of participants reduces social barriers – especially for people from a traditional background, who find it easier to come to such a public event with their own community.
Our conferences, where we provide both food and accommodation free of charge, are held in a prestigious – and absolutely massive – seafront hotel. The participation of respected Georgian musicians, cultural representatives, even from the mountain regions themselves, significantly strengthens public recognition and trust in the church in Batumi. Evangelical churches are often viewed with distrust in the local context, but our large-scale and well-organised events are changing this perception by showing openness, seriousness, and respect.
Elguja writes: “David Hathaway's involvement plays a catalytic role in the breakthrough. His reputation as a courageous preacher of the Gospel and a minister who sees powerful healings, together with his respected age, gives confidence and courage to many of the participants, especially to adults from a traditional Muslim context. David’s ministry is a vital element in the work of the local church to bring in the harvest at a specific moment in God’s timing. This path of joined service shows how years of faithful sowing, building relationships, and practical ministry have led to a powerful spiritual breakthrough. We see the confirmation of God's work through the many who come forward for salvation and counselling, through the many healing testimonies, and through the growth of public trust. We believe that this is the beginning of a new season of fruitfulness.”
