A Tale of Two Rallies

This past October I had the opportunity to attend the LWMS Freedom Circuit Rally at Sure Foundation Lutheran Church in Queens, New York. Two years earlier I attended a women’s Mission Festival in Malawi at Fisi Lutheran Church. These two rallies on two different continents couldn’t be more different.

The rally in New York was in a store front church next to the elevated subway tracks that rumbled by. The rally in Malawi was outside in an open field under the hot African sun. Women drove all the way from Canada to attend the one-day rally in Queens. Women in Malawi walked for miles to attend the three-day rally and camped in the church.

I sampled local cuisine at both rallies.  At Sure Foundation the ladies prepared delicious Latin American dishes. In Malawi, the women lovingly prepared local food on campfires. In Malawi, six women’s choirs joyfully danced and sang in Chichewa during the worship service. In Queens we sang hymns in both English and in Spanish, as Sure Foundation is reaching out to both English and Spanish speakers in the community.

These were two very different rallies, but both of them had the same purpose. At both rallies God’s people raised their voices in worship and praise, pastors preached sermons and shared Bible studies, with the goal of strengthening our faith and reminding everyone that now is the time to share the love of our Savior with a dying world! That is the purpose of the Lutheran Women’s Mission Society in churches everywhere, both in Africa and in the United States.  It is also the mission of every Christian to share the Gospel with their families, neighbors, and the world.  Every day is a mission rally as we wait on this side of heaven. Look for the people God is placing in your path and tell them of the sure hope you have in your Savior!

Teacher Hank Hoenecke lives in Ft. Myers, FL and serves on the Administrative Committee for Africa

Please pray for those working in fields that are ripe for harvest. Share their story, engage with future news and receive updates. Go to this link to learn more about our mission fields in Africa and how the Holy Spirit is working faith in people’s hearts  https://wels.net/serving-others/missions/africa