Ministry Newsletter

Dear Friends of the Mordecai Project:

We live in a crazy time when we are told to stay six feet away from each other, wear masks and stay home from church. I’m getting so tired of this coronavirus! Yet regardless of circumstances, God calls us to be thankful and to do all things without grumbling and complaining. Psalm 69:30 says: “I will praise God’s name in song and glorify him with thanksgiving.” His goodness is abundantly evident even in our wilderness seasons.

I am definitely thankful for the prayers and financial support of our partners around the world. Even though I’ve had to limit my travel, the Lord has been helping us. Just last week a pastor from California texted to say he was sending us a personal offering to help us get by during the pandemic. And even though many people are struggling to make ends meet, we have seen God’s generosity on display during this crisis.

A few months ago I felt the Lord prompted me to plan a small men’s retreat in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. It was going to be for a few of my spiritual sons in that region, but other young men heard about it and asked if they could come. Even though I didn’t advertise it, 56 guys signed up to come! There is such hunger out there today for discipleship!

I’ll admit I got a bit nervous knowing we would have such a large group during the pandemic. But we took extra precautions. We took everyone’s temperature each day, asked that they wear masks when they entered the church, and we spaced the chairs apart. The result was amazing. The brothers were so blessed to have this time of discipleship training and personal ministry. Many of them are going through a difficult season, and the Lord met us there in a powerful way for this Bold Venture Intensive Weekend.

The Holy Spirit came in a powerful way in Pittsburgh. We realized after we began that many of the men were new Christians—some as young as two months old in the Lord! On the last night, as you can see above, many guys came to the altar to receive the infilling of the Spirit. We actually had 12 men baptized in the Spirit that night.

Above you can see me with my spiritual son, Dante Grady (left). Four years ago I prayed for Dante and he was saved and filled with the Spirit at the altar of Berean Church in Pittsburgh. On Saturday night, his disciple Philip Harding (right) was filled with the Holy Spirit in almost the same spot at that same altar! This is the power of multiplication through discipleship. Today Dante is teaching Philip how to be a strong man of God.

So many young men today are struggling in their relationship with God because they didn’t know their fathers, or they have a dysfunctional relationship with their fathers. There is a huge hunger for the Father’s love today. You can see above that the Lord poured out the Father’s acceptance and affection, and this resulted in so much healing. The guys also experienced this in their small group times.

My favorite thing about this Bold Venture event was the number of teenage boys who came. All of these boys above are the sons of men I have mentored. Now, the next generation is arising! The boy next to me is Austin Novik, the 11-year-old son of my friend Alex Novik. He was the youngest boy to attend a Bold Venture, and he loved it! There is something powerful that happens when teenage boys hang around with older men of God who can provide an example.

For the past four months we have been sending $1,250 to our ministry director in Pakistan to provide groceries for the women who are a part of our women’s empowerment center. We have given them enough rice for a month, along with spices and other dry goods. Right now they are not allowed to come to work in the sewing center, so they have really struggled financially. We’d like to send another $1,250 in early August to provide food for these precious ladies. If you can help, please go to our website and designate your gift for Pakistan.

Because of the generosity of our partners, we were able to send the funds to double the size of our pig farm in Masindi, Uganda. You can see the progress of the construction in the photo above. Our pigs are multiplying fast, and we ran out of room! We will be giving the women in our empowerment center pigs to raise at home so they can start their own businesses and feed their families. Thank you for your support!

Also last month we sent money to Rev. Elijah Wafula, our ministry partner in Moi’s Bridge, Kenya, so that we could hire two teachers and sponsor health classes for the girls in our school there. Above you can see the girls who attended the first sessions. They are learning about feminine hygiene, sexual purity, and how to avoid being mutilated (a barbaric practice in Western Kenya). The culture of an entire village is changing!

Also last month we sent money to Rev. Elijah Wafula, our ministry partner in Moi’s Bridge, Kenya, so that we could hire two teachers and sponsor health classes for the girls in our school there. Above you can see the girls who attended the first sessions. They are learning about feminine hygiene, sexual purity, and how to avoid being mutilated (a barbaric practice in Western Kenya). The culture of an entire village is changing!

Thank you again for standing with us, even in a time of national crisis. We love you and we are so grateful for your faithful support and prayers.

Lee and Deborah Grady

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