Aalborg: What's Going On?

Why is the church growing in Aalborg, Denmark’s fourth largest city? For a clue, look at who’s praying. And one of the key factors may be an ongoing spirit of cooperation among leaders from several different Bible-believing denominations throughout the city.

Lee Hanson

Lee Hanson, who serves as a pastor for the English-speaking International Christian Fellowship in Aalborg’s Baptistkirken Bethel, says church leaders have been meeting every Friday morning for several years to pray and encourage each other. For two hours each week, they gather around the four B’s -- Brødre, Bibel, Bøn, and By (Brothers, Bible, Prayer, City). Together they’ll read a chapter of Scripture and share in small groups before praying for each other, their churches, and for their city of 107,000 residents.

Despite the variety of denominational backgrounds -- or perhaps because of it -- these believers in Aalborg agree that Christ has only one church.

“The desire is to experience in our working together that unity in Christ,” explains Hanson, “and as Christ is proclaimed, many in Aalborg will hear, believe, and confess Jesus is Lord.”

A key verse for these pastors is 2 Chronicles 7:14, “If my people… will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land.”

In Aalborg they’re taking that promise seriously, so keep your eye on what’s happening there. In the year to come, these pastors will all encourage their members to join in 40 days of prayer and Bible reading, leading up to a community-wide Easter celebration at Aalborg’s striking new concert hall, the House of Music.

With that kind of unity, and with that kind of prayer, what could happen next?

PRAY for continued and growing unity among Christians in Aalborg.

PRAY that believers in the city will learn to work together even more, reaching out to win their neighbors to Christ.

PRAY that the 40 days of prayer and Bible reading in the spring may spark revival in the city and draw an overflow crowd to the city-wide Easter celebration.

PRAY for Aalborg!