Roger and a team in New Zealand have recently been blown away by the reception they have received when connecting into a new town called Harrow*. Many know this place as one the worst areas to live in the country, yet the team felt God highlight it to them after praying across the majority of the towns in their region.
However, Roger says, “We have never known such as welcome. It was like the red carpet had been rolled out. We didn’t go in with any strategy apart from seeking to pray, hear from God and talk to anyone we might bang into who God might be leading us to.”
“We soon met a lady who ran a business in town and she started sharing her passion for Harrow. She was expressing her heart for some of the local ladies living on social welfare. She told us how she has helped these women access funding to have their teeth done so they could be more employable. This woman isn’t following Jesus. In fact, she has been put off by religion. Yet she carries a deep burden for her town.”
The team are continuing to revisit Harrow, connecting further with the locals. Every time they go, they find themselves meeting people like like this woman. This hasn’t happened in every town the team have gone into. They are seeing that ‘something is up’ in this town! Roger reflects, “Before we went into Harrow, the original word God gave us about the place was the ‘treasures were not buried deep’. We can now see what God was saying and are wondering how many of these treasures might be People of Peace.”
Roger says, “As you seek God as a team, he will speak specific words for specific places. Getting God’s word and owning it as a team is vital. Harrow is an example of us seeking and now trying to catch up to God. We want to be obedient and join him in what he is doing.”
* Name of town changed