Today

A VISION FOR

AND FOR THE

POST-PANDEMIC WORLD

Ending Gospel Poverty®

ENDING GOSPEL POVERTY

Throughout last year, with grateful hearts we celebrated the
50th anniversary of Haggai International,
and all that God has accomplished.

With that milestone behind us, we gathered at the Haggai

Global Summit and the Ending Gospel Poverty Gala in
February 2020, and turned our attention to our vision for the
next 10 years. We were in a new decade and had a sense of
urgency to get the whole Gospel to the whole world.
The question we asked ourselves was this,

“How can we accelerate the vision and mission of Haggai

International toward ending Gospel poverty in our world?”

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We had no idea how urgent this question was, or how
quickly we would be called upon to answer it.

Having equipped over 123,000 leaders in five decades, we set a goal of

equipping 250,000 in the next decade. Soon after announcing that target
in February 2020, with further discussion and prayer, we sensed that God
was leading us to do even more than we perceived was possible.

Through listening to Him, we knew we must think about and formulate a

strategy of how to accomplish an even greater objective!

Then the world came to a screeching halt. Nation after nation shut their
borders, travel ceased, and an unprecedented public health crisis moved
across the globe. During this time, a poignant editorial from the Wall Street
Journal caught my eye, because it, too, was focusing on the next 10 years.

“There’s so much to say but my mind keeps going back to New

Year’s Eve, when we watched the ball come down and knew
the story of 2020 was the presidential election and whatever
stray harassments history throws our way. No one that night
guessed — no one could have guessed — that in the next
few months we’d have a worldwide pandemic, an economic
catastrophe, and fighting in the streets. The point is not that
life is (a) surprise or history turns on a dime, it’s that we’ve been
battered. We’ve been through a lot. And with economic and
cultural indexes down, with the world turned darker and more
predatory, we will go through more. We thought we’d be telling
our grandchildren about the spring of 2020. Actually, we’ll be
telling them about the coming 10 years, and how we tried to
turn everything around.”

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ENDING GOSPEL POVERTY
GOSPEL ADVANCEMENT IN
A COMPLEX WORLD

Haggai International has been working diligently to turn

everything around since 1969, by equipping leaders who
would reach their own people with the Gospel — reaching
souls, transforming lives, and redeeming nations. In many
ways the world has grown darker, but we have the answer
— the only One who is able to shine light into that darkness.
The only solution to the world’s problems is Jesus.

Through the years, as the world grew in complexity, well-

equipped leaders had to figure out how to navigate the
challenges of getting the Gospel to their people.

Yet, simultaneously, COVID-19 has created an opportunity,

opening hearts and doors to the Gospel.

You have heard and seen the stories of Haggai leaders on

the frontlines meeting significant human needs during the
pandemic and engaging people with the hope of Jesus. Our
Haggai leaders are not unlike special forces in the military.
These soldiers are trained specifically to run toward danger,
running into the line of fire, rather than away from it.

In the midst of a global pandemic, the work of ending

Gospel poverty continued through Haggai leaders in
189 nations. While we could rarely leave our homes, the
investment that the Lord led you to make in equipping
leaders throughout the years was yielding fruit across the
globe. Haggai leaders saw the Kingdom opportunity and
seized it.

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We have done this work throughout the years as global complexity
grew, and with the pandemic, a definitive new layer of intricacy
has been added to a world already full of challenges. COVID-19
has created a profound uncertainty that continues to permeate all
aspects of our daily living.

ENDING GOSPEL POVERTY

ENDING GOSPEL POVERTY
As a ministry, over 51 years ago, God set a race before of us to equip leaders who
make disciples of all nations. The command has not changed, neither has the
race – but the racecourse has been significantly altered.
We were so grateful to see how our leaders
were responding, but the pandemic presented
significant challenges to our ministry, from
immediate operations to our vision for the next
10 years. We were unable to equip leaders in
our Mid-Pacific Equipping Center in Maui, and
likewise our National Ministries were not able
to equip in their own nations.
The strategic plans we had so carefully crafted
were interrupted. We began to understand
that COVID-19 was not going to go away, at
least in the short-term, and we would need to
learn how to embrace the complexities and
quickly determine a path forward.
It was during this season of disruption that God
brought to mind Hebrews 12:1-2:
“Therefore, since we are surrounded by so
great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside
every weight, and sin which clings so closely,
and let us run with endurance the race that
is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder
and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy
that was set before him endured the cross,
despising the shame, and is seated at the right
hand of the throne of God.”
As a ministry, over 51 years ago, God set a
race before of us to equip leaders who make
disciples of all nations. The command has
not changed, neither has the race – but the
racecourse has been significantly altered.
To understand all the changes and the
implications, I turned to sources that were
evaluating daily events and the subsequent
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impact. I began reading articles from those
who had always served me well when I
was a business consultant: McKinsey &
Company, Harvard Business Review, and
Bain and Company. While business impact
was the initial focus, subsequent information
expanded the scope to encompass aspects
that are more vital to our personal day-to-
day lives: the socio-emotional and cultural
impacts of COVID-19, the mental and spiritual
health challenges and the impact on child
development of students being out of school.
But what about global missions? What is
taking place across the world, and what will
the impact be?
Our thinking should be informed by reliable
data as much as possible in this very uncertain
environment and must be coupled with
fervent prayer as we develop next steps for
the ministry.
Thankfully, I came across an article in early
May, Global Transmission, Global Mission –
The Impact and Implications of the COVID-19
Pandemic by Jason Mandryk of Operation
World. Operation World publishes a widely
respective volume each year detailing social,
political, and spiritual conditions for countries
on every continent. For those in the field of
international ministry and development, it is
the go-to resource for reliable statistics and
information.
Mandryk’s work provides a broad and reliable
picture of the current reality that informs
 this time, our identity shrunk from global
citizenship into tribalism and looking after our
own. It’s difficult to think about people on the
other side of the globe, when there is suffering
and dying on our own doorsteps.

In Mandryk’s closing remarks on global

missions he said:

“It is no exaggeration to say that we

may be witnessing the unravelling of
the traditional Western missionary
sending model. If not a collapse, then at
least major decline could well be in the
cards!

“Unsustainable sending models

and inadequate missiologies will be
jettisoned. The future of missions will be
indigenous. Who better to inculturate
the Christian message in the places and
communities that COVID-19 has made
inaccessible, than those who are there
already on the ground?”

His conclusions are a resounding endorsement

of the Haggai model that has proven its
effectiveness for the last 51 years. In the early
days of the ministry, Dr. John Edmund Haggai
said this:
both our thoughts and actions. The first point
“The nations may seal their borders,
Mandryk makes about missions mobilization
close their airports, and jam radio
is this: COVID-19 lockdown becomes mission
signals, but the Haggai alumni –
lockout. Several factors play into this current
thoroughly qualified, occupying
reality. Missionaries who had returned home
leadership positions in their nations,
for annual leave cannot go back, nor can newly
knowing the culture, and self-
trained missionaries get into the areas they
supporting – these men and women are
were planning to serve. In addition, recruiting
‘on the ground’ and are able to function
and equipping of additional missionaries has
no matter what rules the government
come to a halt. Finally, the focus of Churches
may make.”
in our own country became more local. During

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ENDING GOSPEL POVERTY
 The New Vision for
the Next 10 Years

No, he did not know that it would be a tiny
little virus that would blaze across the globe
leaving sickness and death in its wake, but
he did know, even then, that the world was
changing, and would never be the same. He
surmised that world circumstances, not in our
control, would impact the ability of Western
missions to be effective, or perhaps they
would not be possible at all.
What I read in the Mandryk article not
only increased my sense of urgency, but
overwhelmingly persuaded me and our team
that the 10-year goal that we set just before
the pandemic was far too small. Furthermore,
the 2.1 billion living in Gospel poverty had
reached 2.2 billion mark.
Setting our sights to equip even more
leaders and finding innovative ways to
accomplish the goal is imperative. Equipping
only 250,000 in the next ten years is simply
not enough!
The multiplication factor is already explicit
in this ministry; we can no doubt expand the
scope of what we are doing, building on the
foundation of what is already established.
Before going any further, please allow me to
state unequivocally that the mission and vision
of Haggai International remains the same
as that which God gave to Dr. John Edmund
Haggai over 51 years ago. We are committed
to the vision of seeing “Every nation redeemed
and transformed through the Gospel of Jesus
Christ.” Our faithfulness to this vision and the
mission of equipping leaders has not wavered.
This is not a time to stand down, but a time
to step up.
God is surely asking us to do more. We
wholeheartedly believe that once again,
Haggai International must “Attempt something
so great for God that it is doomed to failure
unless God is in it.” Our leaders do it each and
every day, and so must we!

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While traditional Western missions are in a
major holding pattern, the Haggai model of
global missions is flourishing.

In the next 10 years, we will equip 100,000
individuals, annually, to demonstrate
and present the Gospel of Jesus Christ,
resulting in one million equipped to
advance the Gospel.
YES! The goal is 1,000,000 equipped in the
next 10 years! This goal represents more
than a twenty-fold increase in the number of
individuals equipped in the last 10 years.
While that seems like an audacious number
compared to our previous track record of
equipping, new initiatives put in place two
years ago have set the foundation for this
objective. And by God’s grace, the pandemic
has acted as a catalyst for the ministry to
pivot and accelerate execution of several new
models for equipping during the last
five months.
In August 2020, we launched the first-ever
Virtual Haggai Leader Experience (VHLE). A
second launched on September 19th, with
two more before the end of the year. The
HLE is one of many innovative models being
implemented.
The ability to fly leaders all over the world
for the in-person Haggai Leader Experience
is paused due to travel restrictions, but our
ability to virtually equip leaders allows us to
continue to achieve our mission during this
season. Gratefully, our team was already
building a new innovative digital platform,
long before the first case of COVID-19 was
ever reported. While traditional Western
missions are in a major holding pattern,
the Haggai model of global missions is
flourishing.

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ENDING GOSPEL POVERTY
 Every year, we will equip

100,000
strategically positioned leaders, resulting in

1 Million
leaders in the next 10 years who will
demonstrate and present the Gospel of
Jesus Christ all over the world.

We believe that the VHLE is the next
innovation in equipping leaders to end Gospel
poverty. We don’t see this as a replacement
to our in-person equipping, but rather a
pioneering addition to our capabilities. We will
return to equipping leaders in person, as soon
as possible, while continuing to hold VHLE,
allowing us to exponentially equip even
more leaders.
Please pray for us as we diligently work
to accomplish this goal that God is calling
us to embrace. We are looking forward to
partnering with you as we accelerate ending
Gospel poverty across the world. May God
continue to bless you and your family as you
serve Him!

In the near future, I look forward to sharing

the plan we are currently finalizing to
accomplish this goal of equipping 100,000
annually. Not only do we believe it is possible,
we foresee that potentially, we could even
exceed it!

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 For His Glory
If I may, I want to end with this. As an executive leadership team, we meet frequently to
review progress on initiatives in process, but more importantly we meet to think strategically
about the months and years ahead. We also spend time praying and seeking God’s
guidance. As we began preparing for the 2019 celebration of the 50th anniversary, and
looking to the next 50 years, the executives engaged in a three-day retreat focused on
listening to God and discerning His will for the future. I simply cannot express the profound
impact this time had on the team as we spent time listening to what God would tell us about
our journey ahead.

This is a brief excerpt of what we know God conveyed to us during this retreat. It is
written as if God is speaking. I pray it will encourage you, as we partner together for the
cause of the Gospel and look to achieve the goal of equipping one million strategically
positioned leaders in the next 10 years.

“As you faithfully engage in My work, you will bring Me great glory. I will supply
you with all you need to accomplish the goal of making disciples of all nations.
You will enjoy My presence forever. You cannot imagine the celebration in
Eternity that is waiting for you. If you continue to follow where My Spirit leads,
your reward of eternal joy will only increase. As you imagine the one person
you know who met Jesus through Haggai International, and the joy this story
brings to you, try to imagine multiplying this by hundreds of millions. Your
greatest eternal Kingdom impact is still in front of you.”

I have no doubt that God has an amazing journey ahead for all of us, as we seek to do His
will and see every nation redeemed and transformed through the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
May we continue to run the race with endurance in His power, with great joy, so that ALL
may know our Jesus!

For the Gospel,

d r . b e v u p to n w i l l i am s
ce o

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ENDING GOSPEL POVERTY
www.Haggai-International.org