Monday, May 04, 2020

Can't meet? No problem.

Recently, Denmark has made headlines for their approach to combatting the corona-virus. What has not made the headlines is how Danish Christians have weathered the storm—and even thrived, despite the challenges.

One example: After more than a year without a lead pastor, believers in Ølgod Valgmenighed (church) finally hired Jón Poulsen to fill their pulpit. The only problem was, his hiring still needed ratification by the church membership, which numbers close to 400. And under strict stay-at-home regulations, they were prevented from meeting… at least face-to-face.

So in typical Danish fashion, they came up with a creative solution—drive-in voting. Members responded by the dozens, driving through a neatly arranged course next to a church house to approve Poulsen’s hiring in just a couple of hours.

Pastor Poulsen is now scheduled to begin at his new church in a few weeks. He and his wife Laila have already bought a home in the area, and are ready to move to southwest Jylland with their four children.

“I’m looking forward to making Ølgod Valgmenighed known locally,” he said. “I was converted when I was 17, and I’ve always been driven to see people experience the same thing—to come to faith in Jesus.”

Ølgod Valgmenighed was founded in 2001 by people with a connection to the Indre Mission renewal movement and the Lutheran Mission. The “Valgmenighed” part of their name means “(Free) choice fellowship,” and it represents a growing alternative arm of the Lutheran church.


PRAY for the church at Ølgod, that they would grow in grace and in numbers with the arrival of Jón Poulsen and his family in June.

PRAY for the Poulsens as they settle into their new home and church, that they would connect quickly with both church members and those outside the fellowship.

PRAY that others in the church at Ølgod would catch Pastor Poulsen’s vision to reach the lost.

PRAY for the church in Denmark, that they would thrive and reach even more people during this time of pandemic.

PRAY that God’s Holy Spirit would inspire Danish believers to tackle challenges in new and creative ways.

PRAY for revival in Denmark, that believers there would see and respond to God’s priorities in a whole new light.

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