Posted: 09/18/2013 at 6:11pm | IP Logged

MANADO, INDONESIA (ANS) -- In Manado, Indonesia, the Christian community is thriving. Yet, like so many other places around the world, young people are turning away from their faith in record numbers. Distracted by secular culture and worldly influences, they have come to be known as the lost generation.

Andrew Palau preaches the message of the Gospel to thousands at MegaMas Field (Luis Palau Association 2013- Photographer Brad Person)

Since that life-changing decision more than 20 years ago, Andrew has devoted his life to sharing the Good News Gospel at every opportunity. Taking the message of Jesus and his own story of redemption to Manado, Andrew had the privilege of joining with hundreds of local believers to accomplish the massive evangelistic festival, August 26-31.

This youth-led campaign took months of planning and prayer. It included the partnership of hundreds of local churches, city officials and thousands of Indonesian believers. It also involved international organizations from the United States and Australia. Compassion First, a non-profit organization with a strong presence in Manado, was instrumental in bringing the campaign to the city and connecting LPA with the right leaders.

All-girl group CherryBelle performs at Manado CityFest (Luis Palau Association 2013- Photographer Brad Person)

The result - a sea of people packed MegaMas Field in the heart of the city each night of the festival as the crowds clamored to hear more about the son of Luis Palau, his years of rebellion, and his unconventional journey to faith.

At the end of the message each night, people of all ages across the crowd eagerly raised their hands in surrender to Christ and met with decision counselors stationed across the venue. On the second night, an elderly man near the back of the crowd wearing a green Manado CityFest volunteer T-shirt looked on with tears in his eyes as a young boy signed a card indicating his decision for Christ.

Youth volunteer counsels a women who made the decision to follow Christ (Luis Palau Association 2013- Photographer Brad Person)

"I was so blessed at the festival to see so many people accept Jesus and respond to the invitation by Andrew," festival volunteer Daniel Sompotan said. "It was truly amazing, and so beautiful. I could not stop crying."

Leading up to the festival included a week of outreach events planned and facilitated by local believers to bring the festival to many levels of society. Festival events began on August 25 with Andrew speaking at a number of church services. Andrew spoke to well over 6,000 people at these services and following one service, a young university student came up to speak to the Palau team. She had no idea why she had decided to come to church that day, but she claimed that Andrew's message spoke directly to her and was thrilled to give her life to Jesus.

The next evening was the official opening ceremony for the festival at MegaMas, in which Harley Mangindaan, officially welcomed the Palau Association to Manado. The opening ceremony kicked off the Manado CityFest Community Exhibition. The exhibition was designed to attract people to the festival venue, with over 70 different Christian and non-Christian service organizations that included biker and skateboard groups, punk communities and Manadonese arts and crafts. The exhibition also featured local artists, 3-on-3 basketball tournaments, traditional flag dancing teams and break dancing competitions.

Throughout the week, events were held at different locations throughout the city, all heavily covered by local media and often featured on the front page of local newspapers. Andrew shared the Gospel with students at 'CampusFest' at Sam Ratulangi University and at a smaller scale version of the festival held at the local prison.

"Even if you spend the rest of your life and die in here, Jesus Christ can revolutionize your life today," Andrew shared at the prison. "He can bring joy to your life daily and give you confidence about eternity!"

As local churches begin the follow-up process, the Palau Association is finalizing preparations for a country-wide campaign in Ethiopia, widely considered the unofficial capital of Africa. Andrew Palau will lead an outreach in the largest city in Ethiopia, Addis Ababa, in November, while five partner evangelists will lead outreaches in five other influential cities in the country.