News
Pakistan Festivals Recap and Announcement of Missouri Festival
LifeLight Communications Reveals Outcome of First International Festival in Pakistan, Announces One-Day Festival in Missouri
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. - (May 20, 2010) – Whether it’s a bomb scare in Times Square, a story on 60-Minutes, missile testing or skirmishes with the Taliban, Pakistan seems to be in the news constantly. But the constant churn of bad press out of Pakistan didn’t stop LifeLight Communications from holding their first international festival in this volatile part of the world.
On Thursday, May 20th at 5:30 PM, members of the team that participated in the Pakistan LifeLight Festival revealed what happened when they took this popular event overseas. The event for ministry supporters at the LIfeLight office in Sioux Falls also included an announcement that LifeLight will take its festival on the road again to Bethany, MO on September 25th. This new, one-day event will be held at Miracle Hills Ranch, 90 miles north of Kansas City on I-35 and will feature Lincoln Brewster, Vota, Remedy Drive and Rachelle Hope.
Most of the evening was spent recapping the amazing experiences from Pakistan.
With the ink barely dry on their visas, a team of evangelists, musicians and missionaries left from Sioux Falls for Karachi, Pakistan on April 15th. While South Dakota’s Senators made last minute appeals with the Pakistani Embassy to allow the LifeLight team into their country, Alan Greene and his team packed as much literature, medicine and food as they could carry – 20 bags total – all for the purpose of giving it away during five days of festivals and conferences in Karachi and Hyderabad, Pakistan.
“The challenges were big and real,” said Greene. “But the purpose was bigger and more real to each of us who went. If you’ve ever felt like you were the right person at the right time in the right place, that was us,” added Greene. Night after night, thousands of people would come to hear the music and messages that are common to every LifeLight festival.
“As Americans, it’s hard for us to find something in common with them,” said Bret Merkle, a Sioux Falls attorney and evangelist on the LifeLight team. “But God loves the Pakistani people as much as He loves Americans. And we got to celebrate that fact through some truly amazing circumstances,” added Merkle.
Armed guards accompanied the team nearly everywhere, but the Pakistani people were friendly, open and accommodating. Pakistani TV broadcast the festival over the airwaves and the web while Facebook kept family and friends back home in constant contact with each day’s events. While only 1.6% of the population of Pakistan is Christian, thousands who attended the LifeLight festivals were bold in acknowledging their desire to follow Jesus Christ.
One night in Hyderabad as Merkle was sharing his life story on stage, loud popping sounds could be heard outside the stadium. While the translator reassured the crowd that these were simply fireworks or a wedding celebration, authorities later confirmed that gunshots were fired as a warning to those inside the stadium. Local officials then insisted that the LifeLight team leave Hyderabad and cancel the following day’s events.
In addition, team members struggled with illness and fatigue. But Greene points out that, “what we saw happening at the festivals kept us going and affirmed our calling there.” “We’ll go back tomorrow if God opens the door”, states Greene.
When the festivals were over, 20,000 had attended and more than 6,000 acknowledged their decision to become followers of Jesus Christ. In addition, 250 pounds of food and medicine were given away in remote villages and hundreds of evangelical soccer balls were distributed.
LifeLight’s next international outreach will be in Port Au Prince, Haiti on May 27th thru June 3rd as a team of 27 people will go to serve and assist those impacted by the earthquake of January 12, 2010. This outreach is in partnership with Life 96.5 radio.
Founded in 1998, LifeLight Communications is a faith-based, non-profit organization that facilitates numerous concerts, mission trips, tours, student clubs and other events by partnering with churches, businesses and other ministries. The LifeLight Festival, held annually on Labor Day weekend, is their largest event, drawing 320,000 people over three days last year. For more information, please visit http://www.lifelight.org
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. - (May 20, 2010) – Whether it’s a bomb scare in Times Square, a story on 60-Minutes, missile testing or skirmishes with the Taliban, Pakistan seems to be in the news constantly. But the constant churn of bad press out of Pakistan didn’t stop LifeLight Communications from holding their first international festival in this volatile part of the world.
On Thursday, May 20th at 5:30 PM, members of the team that participated in the Pakistan LifeLight Festival revealed what happened when they took this popular event overseas. The event for ministry supporters at the LIfeLight office in Sioux Falls also included an announcement that LifeLight will take its festival on the road again to Bethany, MO on September 25th. This new, one-day event will be held at Miracle Hills Ranch, 90 miles north of Kansas City on I-35 and will feature Lincoln Brewster, Vota, Remedy Drive and Rachelle Hope.
Most of the evening was spent recapping the amazing experiences from Pakistan.
With the ink barely dry on their visas, a team of evangelists, musicians and missionaries left from Sioux Falls for Karachi, Pakistan on April 15th. While South Dakota’s Senators made last minute appeals with the Pakistani Embassy to allow the LifeLight team into their country, Alan Greene and his team packed as much literature, medicine and food as they could carry – 20 bags total – all for the purpose of giving it away during five days of festivals and conferences in Karachi and Hyderabad, Pakistan.
“The challenges were big and real,” said Greene. “But the purpose was bigger and more real to each of us who went. If you’ve ever felt like you were the right person at the right time in the right place, that was us,” added Greene. Night after night, thousands of people would come to hear the music and messages that are common to every LifeLight festival.
“As Americans, it’s hard for us to find something in common with them,” said Bret Merkle, a Sioux Falls attorney and evangelist on the LifeLight team. “But God loves the Pakistani people as much as He loves Americans. And we got to celebrate that fact through some truly amazing circumstances,” added Merkle.
Armed guards accompanied the team nearly everywhere, but the Pakistani people were friendly, open and accommodating. Pakistani TV broadcast the festival over the airwaves and the web while Facebook kept family and friends back home in constant contact with each day’s events. While only 1.6% of the population of Pakistan is Christian, thousands who attended the LifeLight festivals were bold in acknowledging their desire to follow Jesus Christ.
One night in Hyderabad as Merkle was sharing his life story on stage, loud popping sounds could be heard outside the stadium. While the translator reassured the crowd that these were simply fireworks or a wedding celebration, authorities later confirmed that gunshots were fired as a warning to those inside the stadium. Local officials then insisted that the LifeLight team leave Hyderabad and cancel the following day’s events.
In addition, team members struggled with illness and fatigue. But Greene points out that, “what we saw happening at the festivals kept us going and affirmed our calling there.” “We’ll go back tomorrow if God opens the door”, states Greene.
When the festivals were over, 20,000 had attended and more than 6,000 acknowledged their decision to become followers of Jesus Christ. In addition, 250 pounds of food and medicine were given away in remote villages and hundreds of evangelical soccer balls were distributed.
LifeLight’s next international outreach will be in Port Au Prince, Haiti on May 27th thru June 3rd as a team of 27 people will go to serve and assist those impacted by the earthquake of January 12, 2010. This outreach is in partnership with Life 96.5 radio.
Founded in 1998, LifeLight Communications is a faith-based, non-profit organization that facilitates numerous concerts, mission trips, tours, student clubs and other events by partnering with churches, businesses and other ministries. The LifeLight Festival, held annually on Labor Day weekend, is their largest event, drawing 320,000 people over three days last year. For more information, please visit http://www.lifelight.org
