2024 Stories
There are two things mentioned often throughout these stories that we deeply value, gospel movements and Discovery Bible Study. If you’re interested, we’ve explained a little more what we mean:
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Gospel movements happen when the good news of Jesus spreads contagiously through a network of social relationships whereby many people become committed followers of Jesus and groups of these disciples multiply. Such movements have the potential to radically impact whole towns, cities, and nations.
Learn more about Gospel Movements. -
In a Discovery Bible Study group we see spiritually-interested people read the Bible story together, discover what it says, and then are challenged to immediately live out what they learned and share it with someone else. It’s that simple!
Learn more about DBS.
Austin, Texas | A Church for Special Needs
Gail, who had worked as a special needs educator for her whole life, and Amy, the director of a special needs ministry at their church in Austin, joined Novo on a vision trip to Egypt. They saw 3,000 people in one gathering, and Gail heard God whisper, “You need to have a bigger heart for special needs.”
Uganda | A Different Kind of Soccer Team
AVA Mission Africa, serving Uganda, Tanzania, South Sudan, and Kenya, have a focus on young children up through young adults in the early 30s. They’ve seen amazing growth—342 new DBS groups and 281 new disciple-makers in just one quarter!
Germany | Believers Finding “More” With Jesus Through Making Disciples
Eddy was a church planter with a passion to see the gospel move in Germany, but…these churches weren’t really growing or multiplying, and everyday people weren’t becoming activated to live out their faith. At the same time, Eddy saw a lot of people asking Jesus for “more.” He realized the answer to their desire was for them to become effective disciple makers.
Central Asia | A Foot-Washing Movement Among Unreached Muslims
On a short trip to a mountainous region of South Asia, Novo staff and global partners felt the Holy Spirit leading them to wash the feet of two couples who lead a local ministry to Muslims. God used it powerfully to touch their hearts.
San Juan Capistrano, California | A Prayer-Walking Movement in Orange County’s Largest School District
“Why couldn’t every school in your district be prayer-walked?” This felt crazy to Jonné because her school district was one of the largest in California. But God was big enough.
Kenya | From Activating Prayer to Making Disciples in Kenya
What began as a virtual Activating Prayer Cohort quickly evolved into a powerful movement—activating, training, and mobilizing believers to bring the ministry of Jesus, through the power of the Holy Spirit, to all corners of Nairobi, Kenya.
Dallas, Texas | Young Adults Activated into Prayer and Mission
In Dallas, the Activating Prayer Cohort (previously the Spiritual Authority Cohort) has taken off among young adults. At this point around 300 young adults across Dallas-Fort Worth have participated in the Cohort and been activated into prayer and lives on mission.
Iraq | Bringing Hope to Women Formerly Held Captive by ISIS
The Yazidis are a people group targeted and massacred by ISIS with an estimate of 12,000- 14,000 who died or were captured, and 71% displaced. Many women and young girls were taken and trafficked as sex slaves for ISIS. Some eventually escaped, but because their ordeal is seen as shameful in their culture, they couldn’t go home to their families.
Lancaster, Pennsylvania | God Is Up to Something…Everywhere
As a paramedic, Phill has countless opportunities to meet people in need of both physical and spiritual healing. Whether in the back of an ambulance or on a call, he’s learned to rely on God just as much as his professional training, offering comfort and prayer alongside medical care. Even his “not-yet-following-Jesus” partner has started referring patients for prayer.
Uganda | Supporting Teachers in Hard-to-Reach Places
In northern Uganda, 1.7 million South Sudanese refugees have sought shelter in refugee camps—57% of them children. Advancing Leaders International (ALI), a ministry connected to Novo that trains and empowers teachers in hard-to-reach areas, has been working to support schools in the camps since 2018.
Middle East | A Healed Sheikh Opens Doors to Jesus
God has a remarkable way of opening doors for the good news when people are willing to partner with him. One of these God-moments occurred when one of the church leaders met a Sheikh—a respected elder and leader within the Muslim community.
Scotland | A Community of Prayer and Worship Among an Unreached People
Glasgow’s motto was originally, “Let Glasgow flourish by the preaching of thy word, and the praising of thy name.” In the last decade it was changed to just "Let Glasgow Flourish."
South Africa | Growing Disciples on the Basketball Court
Ruben connected with the Novo InnerCHANGE team as a teenager when they went to his high school to recruit new basketball players. Ruben joined, and the basketball coach poured into Ruben, mentoring and discipling him. When Covid hit, the basketball teams got shut down.
Annapolis, Maryland | Pastoral Prayers Across Racial Divides Bring Change
Pastors around Annapolis, Maryland (near Washington, DC) have been gathering to pray together for years, joined by Novo staff Todd. In 2022, Todd suggested that in addition to praying at church buildings, they also pray in different missional spaces around the area. That same week, one of the black churches was vandalized with racial slurs.
Colombia | Ministering to Victims of Domestic Abuse
This InnerCHANGE ministry is highly relational, connecting with women in a plaza and in a one-room community center surrounded by makeshift homes. They’ve listened to many stories of trauma and struggle, and realized that many families were suffering from violence in their homes.
Russia | Building Relational Foundations for a Gospel Movement
Lyle adapted a curriculum, “Real Talk,” to fit the Russian context. It had a dual focus on communication skills and on the heart—how our relationship with God impacts our relationships with others. Real Talk took people through a process of relational and spiritual “heart surgery.”
Minden, Nevada | Christmas Candy for a Cause
Hallelujah Toffee, based in the small town of Minden, Nevada, has grown over the last 25 years from a small family-run side-hustle dedicated to paying off one family member’s medical student loans, into a volunteer-powered non-profit that contributes all of their profits (an expected 180k this year) to missions.
Lebanon | Serving Those Displaced by War
“Honestly, if you ask me how I’m doing, I would say: 'Physically, I'm fine. But mentally and emotionally, I'm not well.'”
The situation in Lebanon has reached a critical point as the recent violence has displaced over 1.3 million people, destroyed homes, and left communities shattered.
Argentina | Sending Latin Americans to Hard-to-Reach Places
Hannah (name changed) was 17 years old when she learned there were places where people had never heard about Jesus. “How can I reach these people, God? I want to be the person you use where people need you.” Hannah realized she had a calling to those who had never heard and asked God to show her the path to reach them.
Indianapolis, Indiana | A One in a Million Opportunity
Zach and his friends decided to go on a prayer retreat, spending a whole day in listening prayer and asking God to speak into every aspect of their lives. Zach had been trying to “make it” professionally as a soccer player. When it was time to pray about the professional aspect of his life, Zach heard one thing clearly: “Call Reggie”