In November David made his first ever visit to Uzbekistan. This was the first step for evangelism of Central Asia. Because Uzbekistan is open to all religions and the churches are being registered legally, the local pastors want us to make this nation the centre for reaching the entire region. David preached to hundreds of leaders from Uzbekistan and surrounding nations, and to one thousand members in one church alone. In these meetings many were miraculously healed, and many received Christ. Their desire is to rent a stadium in 2020 for David to bring Christ and a spiritual revolution to Central Asia - which has never happened before! Truly a pioneer step in Christian history!
Islam is the primary religion in Uzbekistan, observed by an estimated 90% of the population. Many traditions descend from the Zoroastrian era, before the introduction of Islam to the country. Christianity returned to the region after the Russian conquest in 1867, when Orthodox churches were built in large cities, to serve Russian and European settlers. Today most of the Christians in Uzbekistan are ethnic Russians who practice Orthodox Christianity. Protestants are less than one percent of the population. A 2015 study suggests that many of the new believers who belong to evangelical or charismatic churches are converts from Islam.
On the opening night of David’s ministry there, the pastor said, “This is an historic day! Only 3 years ago, it would have been impossible for David to come, but the father of the Missions Movement in the former Soviet Union countries is here! God has opened a door no one can close! When the Man of God crosses the border and steps on the ground, it’s a proclamation to the spirit world that the Kingdom of God has come! We are on the threshold of what God is about to do in Uzbekistan!
The first church we visited was called ‘New Way’ - Yangiyul. Because of their good works for the town, also called Yangiyul, the local mayor visited them unexpectedly: “Is there anything we can do for you?!” They produced the architect’s drawings for a large church building the Holy Spirit had told them to prepare. “I will sign all the permits, when will you start?!” Ten days later, the mayor was there to break ground with them for the foundations: “If you will finish by the end of 2020, the President himself will visit your church when he comes to see all the new works we have begun in the town!” This is a miracle, unprecedented! Having begun the work by a miracle with only $40, when we visited, the external structure was already complete! But it will need another great financial miracle to bring it to completion in time. But God is faithful, He does not abandon the works of His Hands.
In the last meeting of our visit, the pastor who had invited David to Tashkent, said to his church, “These four meetings have been like the water Ezekiel wrote of, flowing from the Temple. The first meeting, the anointing was up to our ankles, the second up to our knees, then to our thighs, now we can only swim in it… Things changed wherever Moses’ feet stepped - and a man like Moses has come to Uzbekistan!” To David he said, “You have hundreds of powerful evangelists in front of you, pray for them!” David did so, saying, “You must start, and I will come back and do it with you. The Kingdom of God is not in empty words, but in power. 1 Corinthians 4:20. I am ready to come with the Word of God and in the Power of the Holy Spirit. The time has come, God will visit Central Asia.”
