 
| Franklin Graham Crusade Hits Uruguay: 8000 Receive Christ |
Missions News: Outreaches  (Montevideo, Uruguay)  Inspired by the Gospel's message of hope and forgiveness, 8,249 people responded to the invitation to commit their lives to Jesus Christ during Franklin Graham's Festival of Hope this past weekend in Uruguay.  "Since coming here I have learned that while this is a wonderful country, there are some problems," said Graham. "About 81 percent believe in God but they don't trust God to solve problems. One out of four people in Uruguay suffer from depression and many turn to drugs to solve their problems. But I want to tell you tonight that God has the solution to your problems."  On Saturday morning, 25,000 filled Charrua Stadium for "Festiniños," a program of fun drama and music that teaches kids about God's love, where 4,835 children and parents responded to the invitation to follow Jesus Christ.  "This is historic. We've never seen anything like this and the church here is excited," said Ernesto Dueck, a missionary who was born and raised in Uruguay, helped lead the My Hope project in Uruguay and also served on the Festival's local executive committee. "Now it's time to follow up. This week, every church in every neighborhood in Montevideo and surrounding towns and cities of Uruguay will make contact with the people who were saved at the Festival. As we follow up, these people will be connected to the local churches and the church will continue to grow and work together more and more in a united way, and we will see Uruguay come to know Jesus."  The Billy Graham Evangelistic Association began efforts to reach the hearts of people in Uruguay two years ago with the My Hope television broadcasts, which were aimed at evangelizing South America's most secular nation. My Hope aired in more than 14,000 homes from Sept. 27-29, 2007, leading more than 33,000 people to commit their lives to Jesus Christ.  A highlight of this evangelistic outreach came over the weekend with 700 churches and 64 denominations participating in the Festival of Hope with Franklin Graham, which drew 71,000 people - a number unprecedented for a Christian event in Uruguay. The Billy Graham Evangelistic Association reports that it will continue to work with local churches to follow up with the thousands of new believers who came forward during Festival of Hope.  ______________________________________________________________________________ The International Faith Telegraph |