We have
just finished a most wonderful prophetic gathering of leaders of covenant
communities from all over India, and even from Nepal. From Monday to Friday it
has been as one full week of prophetic movement of the Spirit. The Holy Spirit
has been in control from beginning to end. We have been taught by the Spirit in
a most amazing way. We have been in the presence of God continually. The gift
of prophecy has been operating from morning to evening each day. I think that all the leaders present did
prophesy at one time or another. Several of them had never prophesied before
but after the laying on of hands and being ministered to prophetically they
received the gift of prophecy and began to speak prophetically. We have been
waiting upon God together. We have shared fresh insight in the Word by the
Spirit. We have been praying and interceding for all the areas represented. We
have been given prophetic direction for the work of God in all those places. We
have ministered to one another by the Spirit. We have dialogued and we have
been praying for each other. We have shared meals together and we have had good
time of fellowship – all in the presence of God. Many of my plans were
overruled by the Spirit and I am very happy as everyone else!

I think
this is the best gathering of leaders I have ever been to in India. When we
parted today we felt like we were at a new beginning and not at the end of a
gathering. I am convinced that the prophetic anointing we increase in each and
everyone as we move from here. The prophetic anointing is very contagious and I
expect it to spread to all the communities as the leaders return home refreshed
and on fire for God.

One of the
leaders had a phone call from home asking for prayer for a very seriously ill
lady. She had been taken to the hospital but the doctors said they could do
nothing for her and sent her home to die. When we got the phone call,
immediately we prayed and lifted the lady up to God. Within three hours we had
the report that the lady was totally healed! God is so good!

Yesterday
God gave us a big surprise in a small building. When we came to the Rotary Club
to meet with the covenant community we discovered that the big hall had been
taken over of some business people. Therefore we had to meet in a very small building.
Our first reaction was frustration and anger at the Rotary people for not
letting us know. Our second thought was that God was in control. That turned
out to be true!

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Yesterday I celebrated the birthday of my most wonderful wife. She is my Valentine wife and the love of my life. I thank God that he has given me such an outstanding woman to be my life-companion. We have been married for 43 happy years and look forward for more than that number of years to come!
Solveig was teaching about 70 pregnant women at the maternity clinic on her birthday. She is always serving others! Last night we had a most enjoyable time with our friends Tone and Noralv Askeland at a very good restaurant in one of the nearby towns.
I even got a Valentine card and a love teddy bear from my Valentine Darling. I was able to give her a card and a rose in the morning and also to present her with some small gifts as token of my love during the day. At the restaurant I surprised her with a Valentine heart filled with beautiful jewelery set. Still I felt I had not given justice to what my dear wife deserves on a day like this. However, she seemed to be very happy and enjoyed the day to the full.
During all day she had telephone calls, text messages on her mobile phone and even emails.

We have
just returned from a very fruitful visit to Mindoro, one of the more than seven
thousands islands on the Philippines. It is a beautiful island with even more
beautiful people! We thank God for bringing us there.

Tone and
Noralv Askeland are doing a tremendous work in this island as well as in other
islands on the Philippines. On Mindoro they are running a pre-school as well as
distributing school material to hundreds of young students. They are also
engaged in community transformation programs, especially directed towards the
Manyan tribe. We were able to visit many villages of the Manyan people. At the
village of Kadilavan we were really impressed with what has been achieved. The
entire village was destroyed in a severe typhoon, but has been relocated and
rebuilt, or more exactly a totally new villages has been built with a multi-purpose
hall. The people are being given the word of God and lives are being changed.

When we
visited Kadilavan we took part in a pastor’s seminar on training people to
follow Christ. Seventy men and women were gathered to receive teaching from the
word of God. I brought a mango with me as an illustration. I asked them what
they saw while I held the mango in front of them. They all saw the mango only
and could describe the delicious taste of the mango. I asked them to see beyond
the visible and tell me what they could see. The seed was mentioned. Then I
asked them to see beyond the seed and look prophetically into the future. Then they
could see a tree and eventually they could see a mango forest or a mango
plantation.

This
illustration helped them to see beyond the present situation and look for the
seed and the potential of each new disciple to produce a great harvest of
disciples who make disciples and multiply living churches.

Friday
evening we arrived safely in Manila after about 24 hours journey from home. We
flew with the Star Alliance all the way, and we are very satisfied with the
service they offer. Only Solveig was not fully happy as she got the same gluten
free meals as I had ordered for myself! Both of us were able to sleep a lot so
we were not exhausted after the long journey.

In Manila
our friends Tone and Noralv Askeland waited for us. They took us to the beautiful
base of Ministries Without Borders which they have had built in the county of
Cavite. Here they have a maternity clinic and a training centre. Everything has
been built to glorify God.

This first
has been a day of rest. We have been taken on a guided tour on the base. We are very impressed with what we have seen.
Many children are taken care of and at the moment four ladies are giving birth
to new babies. Solveig has just left me to assist Tone and the other midwives. Before I was able to post this entry she was back to get the camera and reported that a beautiful baby boy was born! 

Today Solveig and I leave for an exciting journey to the Philippines, India and Vietnam. We have never been to the the Philippines or Vietnam before and we are looking forward to these new places. In the Philippines we will spend time with our friends Tone and Noralv Askeland and see the great work they are doing there. Hopefully I will be able to report from our visit while we are there.
At the beginning of this year I had a prophetic word from a man of God from India saying that this year I would be prophesying into many nations. I am so happy that God already has opened the door to two new nations! I am so grateful to God for his faithfulness and kindness towards me.
There is a new prophetic anointing flowing among the people of God in these days and I am excited to be alive!