Ministry Newsletter

From Lee Grady / Praise Reports and Prayer Requests

Dear Friends of the Mordecai Project:

Jesus said the gospel is like a tiny seed that produces a big harvest. The farmer “goes to bed at night and gets up by day, and the seed sprouts and grows—how, he does not know” (Mark 4:27). I have been very aware that the seed is producing a harvest even in this pandemic time. The COVID-19 virus has not stopped crops from growing, nor has it stopped the gospel from spreading!

In 2020 we were able to get the roof on the girl’s dorm in Moi’s Bridge, Kenya. The girls moved into the building, but they have been using a ladder to get to the second floor. This past month, one of our partners, Impact Church in Concord, North Carolina, raised the $3,500 needed to build a staircase with railings for the balcony! The construction will be completed this month, and we are so thankful for this provision. Below you can see Pastor Elijah Wafula with the unfinished building.

We are also grateful for two ministry partners who are helping us in Pakistan. Kitchen Search, a business in Philadelphia, and Overflow City Church in Silver Spring, Maryland, sent us the funds needed to buy sewing machines for our women’s empowerment center there. The women will be going to the center to learn tailoring and other skills so they can start their own businesses. We also got enough funds to do another food outreach for the women and their community during pandemic shortages.

In February I had the honor to share a stage with my mentor of 47 years, Barry St. Clair. We spoke at a discipleship summit at Crossroads Church in Newnan, Georgia—and we told the story of how Barry discipled me when I was a teenager and how his example inspired me to do the same with many young people. After the first night, a group of students from the University of Florida (below) asked if they could ask some questions. We went in a private room and spent two hours encouraging them and praying for them! The large meetings were great but we especially loved this personal time with these young leaders.

A few years ago I met a young Indian-American minister named Michael Matthew. He and his wife, Liz, then decided to plant a church in the Houston, Texas, area—and they invited me to celebrate the first anniversary of Eternal Rock Church on Feb. 7. Even with all the restrictions of the pandemic, the church has grown and I loved doing some special services with them that weekend. Their church is reaching people from many diverse backgrounds.

Another weekend in February I traveled to Lucedale, Mississippi, to preach at Family Life Fellowship. The pastor, Tyler White, has become a good friend, and he will be a speaker at our men’s Bold Venture event in Mobile, Alabama, this fall. That Sunday we had a powerful time in God’s presence and there was some special prophetic ministry.

When I was in Lucedale, my friends Hao and Lily Xu drove over from their home in Hattiesburg, Mississippi. I met Hao several years ago when I was teaching at Randy Clark’s ministry school in Pennsylvania. Hao loves to pray for healing, so I invited him to come to the front after the service to pray for anyone who needed a touch from God. We later learned that a lady who received prayer that morning was healed of a serious digestive ailment that required a lot of expensive medications. God broke the power of that sickness! Hao will also be giving his testimony at the men’s Bold Venture in Mobile. He was an atheist when he grew up in China, but he found Jesus after he came to the United States to study.

During the Mississippi trip I also preached at an ordination service for about a dozen young leaders who are stepping into ministry. They were ordained through International Gospel Outreach, a missions organization led by my good friend James Graham. Below you can see these young leaders. It is such a blessing to see so many young people answering the call to serve Jesus in this season.

In late February I preached four times at Holmes Bible College in Greenville, South Carolina. The Lord connected me with more young leaders who are preparing to either plant churches in the U.S. or go overseas as missionaries. It was a special time of impartation as I focused my message on Isaiah 6 and the profound experience he had when God called him to be His messenger.

After the Greenville meetings I drove to Camden, South Carolina, near Columbia, to speak for the weekend at Bethel Worship Center. I did a women’s event, two Sunday services and a youth service—where I preached about the prodigal son and his merciful, forgiving father. Five young people gave their lives to Jesus in that last meeting (see below) when I invited prodigals to return home. It was a special way to end February!

It’s nice to be able to travel more, although I have not resumed overseas trips yet. Please pray about this with me. We need God’s wisdom about how to navigate the issue of vaccines and overseas pandemic rules. Meanwhile, I’m still doing a lot of virtual discipleship training. I started a weekly Zoom discipleship class with some of the people I mentor, and we normally have around 40 in each session. One night we had people from nine countries, and the guys from Africa and Europe get up at crazy hours of the night to attend. I am so blessed to see their spiritual hunger.

Some of you have asked about my mother. I was able to see her last week through the glass door at her nursing home, but they are not allowing in-person visits. It was a bit sad because she didn’t seem to recognize me because of her dementia. Also last month I lost a dear friend, Robert Walter, who died from leukemia on Feb. 4. The photo below was our last FaceTime meeting on January 28. He looked so happy that day, and he encouraged me as he always did. But we lost him a week later. Robert traveled often to China to train pastors and church leaders. I know he is enjoying being in the presence of Jesus now. Please pray for his wife, Vilia.

Thanks so much for your prayers and financial support. This month I will be preaching in Washington, D.C.; Frankfurt, Kentucky; and Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. Please pray for God’s anointing on these services. We are asking the Lord to provide $8,000 needed to run our women’s empowerment center in Masindi, Uganda. We are also very close to getting all the funds needed to put the roof on our women’s shelter in Guatemala!

To give to our overseas work, just hit the “Donate” button below and follow the prompts. To give by check, mail it to The Mordecai Project, P.O. Box 2781, LaGrange, GA 30241.

Lee and Deborah Grady

The Mordecai Project
P.O. Box 2781
LaGrange, GA 30241

ABOUT US


The Mordecai Project is a Christian ministry devoted to empowering women, confronting abuse and transforming nations through the power of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

 

DONATIONS


All gifts are tax-deductible. Secure online donations can be made at our website themordecaiproject.org/donate
Checks can be made out to The Mordecai Project and mailed to:
The Mordecai Project / Bold Venture Ministries
P.O. Box 2781
LaGrange, GA 30241:

 

BOARD OF DIRECTORS


Rev. Matt Judd
Good News Church
Augusta, Georgia
Chris Revells
Pickens, South Carolina
Rev. Luis Roig
Casa del Padre
Trujillo Alto, Puerto Rico
Rev. Eddie Taylor
Rev. Beth Taylor
Taylor Ministry Group
Deland, Florida
Re. James Graham
International Gospel Outreach
Semmes, Alabama
Rev. Dee Mueller
The Hearth Ministries
Blairsville, Georgia

 

OTHER ADVISERS


Rev. Barry St. Clair
East West Ministries
Lilburn, Georgia
Rev. Doug Beacham
Bishop, International Pentecostal Holiness Church
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Rev. Chris Maxwell
Campus Pastor
Emmanuel College
Franklin Springs, Georgia
Rev. David and Angela Munizzi
Catalyst Church
Orlando, Florida
Barry and Myra Goldfarb
Deland, Florida
Mimi Haddad
President, Christians for Biblical Equality
Minneapolis, Minnesota 
Rev. Quentin Beard
Sioux Falls First Assembly
Sioux Falls, South Dakota  
The Mordecai Project / Bold Venture Ministries, P.O. Box 2781, LaGrange, GA 30241, United States