Ministry Newsletter

Dear Friends of the Mordecai Project:

I know so many of you were praying for me these past few weeks when I was hosting two men’s Bold Venture events. Thank you! There is so much planning, fund-raising and prayer that precedes these events, I can get worn out! But I have felt sustained and strengthened throughout this past month. I’m so grateful for your prayer support.

October began with a trip to Chicago, where I spoke at a large Hispanic women’s conference in Chicago hosted by my friends Enir and Brenda Bravatty (in the photo below). This precious couple, originally from Guatemala, has been empowering women from the Latino community for 12 years. I am so blessed to work alongside them.

You might be surprised to see that my translator in the photo below is my friend Nori Menendez, who directs The Mordecai Project’s work in Colombia. Nori decided to attend the Chicago conference, so we put her to work translating for me! After all, she is the best Spanish translator I have ever worked with. We saw incredible breakthroughs in the women. In the last service, when I preached about how the Holy Spirit heals the heart of an abused person, hundreds of women stormed the altar and received miraculous healing. It was a moment I will never forget.

The following weekend I hosted the first of two men’s Bold Venture events. This one was at The Springs Church in Jacksonville, Florida. We had 145 men for the three days, and they came from a variety of racial and cultural backgrounds. In fact there were 16 languages represented! In the photo below you can see the men as they gathered around the altar to worship. It was a life-changing time for so many of the guys.

Our theme in Jacksonville was “Be Strong,” and you can see this from our group photo below. We had eight amazing speakers. But the men also met in small groups four times and spent lots of time fellowshipping over our shared meals. As a result many men built lifelong friendships during our time together.

After my friend Matt Judd spoke on “Strong in Humility,” the men spontaneously went to the altar simply to kneel and pray. It was a holy moment I will never forget. I believe it touched the heart of God. There is something profound when men let go of their pride and humble themselves like this.

I was amazed by what God did in Jacksonville, so I wasn’t sure how God could do anything more incredible in Maryland the next weekend. But Jesus showed up again in power and did it again! Below you can see the diversity of speakers we had at our event there. I was especially glad that I could bring my friend Robert Kaahwa all the way from Uganda to speak at both the Florida and Maryland retreats.

Our event in Maryland was held at a beautiful camp, so we were surrounded by the beauty of nature and we were able to connect at an even deeper level since we were sleeping in cabins on the property. You can see in our group photo below that we had 105 guys for the three days, and 15 languages were represented. We had men from Ethiopian, Slavic, Indian, Ugandan, Eritrean, and Hispanic backgrounds. And a large segment of the men were in their 20s.

I love investing in these young leaders and encouraging them to grow in Christ. This year I spoke on sexual purity, and we saw many guys set free from addictions and shame. Because all of our speakers were transparent in their messages, this encouraged all the men to be transparent and to confess their weaknesses to each other.

Below you can see my ministry assistant, Paul Muzichuk, as he prays for a brother at the altar on Friday night of the Maryland event. I could not have done these two retreats without Paul’s tireless help. He has been an amazing support to me and Deborah.

When the second Bold Venture was over, Paul and I went to Washington D.C., where I spoke at an Ethiopian church in the city. While there, Paul and I passed by the building you see below. It caught my eye because it has the name “Lee” on it. I jokingly told Paul that I wished I owned this building so that I could sell it and use the money to build our women’s shelters and girls’ homes all over the world!

I doubt I will ever own that building in suburban Washington. But would you please agree with me that the Lord will release the funds we need to fulfill this dream? Somewhere there may be a businessman who would be willing to sell a property to help us. I know God has more than enough wealth to carry out this project. I will not stop hoping. I know the Lord has called me to address the pain of gender-based violence in other countries including Pakistan, Bolivia, Congo, Malawi, Ethiopia and beyond.

Please pray with us for the following:

** We only need $10,000 to complete our shelter for women in Peru.

** We only need $15,000 to finish the women’s shelter in Guatemala.

** I need about $2,000 for my upcoming trip to Uganda. I will be there from November 8-21. I will be speaking in events for both men and women, and I will be discussing our proposed projects with our Ugandan directors, Robert and Doreen Kaahwa and Medad and Connie Birungi. I will also be meeting with the director of our Kenya project, Elijah Wafula. If you would like to give toward any of these projects just click on the Donate button below.

** Thank you for also keeping my father in your prayers. He is getting weaker physically, and his cognitive abilities are getting worse, but he is still the happiest guy in the nursing home! I love visiting with him daily when I am home.

Thank you for believing in our work. Deborah and I love you very much!

Lee and Deborah Grady

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