Aug 31, 2009

Dizzy and Totally Buzzed...

Well – what is there to say after this weekend?! Maria and I along with the pioneer team are dizzy, buzzed, tired or just simply extremely happy – it is hard to put words on feelings after all the celebrations this past weekend... Saturation. The favor of God. The Holy Spirit has given us a wet, passionate kiss. Seems like there is favor from the entire world all at once... We have received our own home. We feel secure and can at last be our selves to the full. Freedom, joy and anointing… Yes, yes, and yes... Hmm :) Wow! Tears of joy.


Maria and I cut the yellow and blue ribbon...


The joy is complete!!!!

Almost 400 happy peoplecame to Nalen on Saturday for our church launch celebration between noon and 2 pm and close to 300 people strolled through our facilities during the open house on Kungsholmen later that same afternoon – wow! Tons of flowers and cards from all over Scandinavia. Around 30 letters from different Swedish churches, that wanted to wish us well, as well as video greetings from around the globe – from India, Ethiopia, Bulgaria, Finland, Thailand and the US... Guests and representatives from several nations were present and a steady stream of text messages like never before...



We honored the extraordinary work effort of Tommy and Ylva Hamrén during the building process...

And then the release concert yesterdayafternoon... Both the girls and the band rocked for Jesus in a way that must have made the angels dance Salsa and God stand next to his throne moving to the rythmn... We sold over 400 CDs after the concert! Several people from Stockholm were saved on this our first Sunday as a church family and many, yes entire families want to come and join us – welcome to be a part of the team and the SOS family!

Mingling during the open house at SOS church...

I do not think that anything can steal my joy at the moment... When I went to get my car last night to drive home, someone had crashed one of my side windows. With crushed glass in my seat I drove home singing along to our new festival CD, exuberant even if it was chilly and I just had to raise the volume on the highway... A car windshield – what is that?! We have launched a church in down town Stockholm. Jesus will build His church now and the devil does not have a chance!

See Ya!

Aug 29, 2009

Everyone Wins One Disciple per Year!

This Thursday Walter and Linda came from SOS Balkan and Bulgaria to be part of the celebrations when we launch our first church in Stockholm! We enjoyed sandwiches on the Sergeltrappan for lunch. We met with Carl-Erik Sahlberg (pastor in Klara Church) on “Plattan”. Carl-Erik and his team served food to the homeless. Warm words of encouragement were exchanged and Carl-Erik Sahlberg welcomed us in a faderly way to the work and fellowship for the Kingdom in Down Town Stockholm – he is a father to so many and a true spiritual Viking, whom we respect so much in SOS. We so treasure the blessing from Carl-Erik. All the Down Town churches that we have met with so far have all been so nice and had such a generous and welcoming attitude, such as the Filadelfia Church, City Church, Södermalm Church, Hillsong, etc – so good that God has given us a blessed entrance to the city.

Linda and Walter...

Later I sat in our new conference room,
going through run-sheets and printed material for this weekend, reading good luck letters, viewing video greetings and receiving flower deliveries – wow – if I new it would be this much fun to plant a church in Sweden, we would have started long ago... I was tired but with a great sense of joy – some sort of euphoric blend of adrenaline, coffee, Red Bull and filled with the Holy Spirit. Everything is on a round the clock schedule at the moment, but what a momentum and go there is! Our new Bible College recruits were at our house for a Bar-b-q on Wednesday night – they represent over ten nationalities. I have bought my first 30-day card for the public transportation system and become a true Stockholmer – from now on I will ride the commuter trains, the metro and Maria can have the car ;). Well, well... my head is full of new changes – both small and big. Yesterday my mom arrived and one of my kid sisters will join us as well for the celebrations this weekend. I am so happy for our graffiti wall and the world map along with our vision statement on another wall in the sanctuary, for all the sound, light and our interpretation system, etc …


Church Launch!

Where: Nalen, Regeringsgatan 74
When: Noon to 2pm

Open House – we invite you for coffee and cake!
Where: Mission SOS new facilities on Warfvinges Väg 26, Kungsholmen
When: 2:30 to 6pm

This fall we will all work under one slogan in the church: Everyone wins one disciple per year. We have printed nice, good looking book marks to all our members and students that we will pass out this weekend – and hopefully they will keep this in their Bibles and the vision will be taken in, both mentally as well as in the heart – everyone wins one disciple per year!

SOS Church Stockholm is born now. For all people to all nations, the Book of Acts in Stockholm and to the ends of the earth. A new life begins. Thank You Jesus for the presence of your Spirit and your wet kiss from heaven! We love you and give you all the glory and worship!

See Ya!

Aug 26, 2009

Leadership Gathering, Church Launch, and Release Concert...

Monday evening both my Pastoral Team and some other key leaders came to our house! What a night! Deer stew (shot by myself), rice, and a salad. A lot of candy, cookies, and coffee. We love to serve these wonderful people, with such great talent – the Gustafssons, Elvelycks, Willkanders, Jensens, Svernedals and Cicki Hamrén. After food, fellowship and victory reports from each department, we continued with our unofficial “school of leadership” part 2. We are studying different mega churches, their senior pastors and their leadership teachings. It was now time for Hillsong Church, Sydney, Australia and some of Pastor Brian Houston's leadership coaching. Sharp, radical, new and trimming for all of us.



After a short break, we continued to set a detailed runsheet for our church launch at Nalen (Regeringsgatan 74) this Saturday at noon. Wow, it will be exciting with guests from so many nations! Video greetings and emails are streaming in – we are thrilled! Hope to see you there to celebrate with us?! All are welcome! At 2:30pm we have an open house and cake party in our newly renovated premises at Warfvinges väg 26 on Kungsholmen – come, hold a speech, prophecy, pray, and worship Jesus with us. We will celebrate from 2:30pm until 6pm and the stage will be open to all out guests!


We also had time to plan the last details for the release concert for SOS festival CD this Sunday at 4pm! We are selling a lot of tickets! Order here and now, e-mail lina.israelsson@missionsos.org! You can also but your ticket at the entrance... It will be packed as it seems today, so be quick and pre-order your tickets... Cost: 100 SEK

This is a fun and full packed week in Mission SOS. Today Wednesday, our Bible College starts for the seventh year as well as out new leadership school! I am so enjoying this! Life is at it's best right now!

See ya!

Aug 22, 2009

The Final Spurt of Building!


We are moving forward. It's going fast now. We are building around the clock. The efforts are outstanding and fantastic. Many of our warriors come directly from their regular jobs with a change of clothes with them, they change behind the platform or behind a few boxes and then build all night long, some until 11 pm... Many have taken a late vacation this year (for example the Almqvist and Amritzer families ;)) and are able to work 10-12 hours straight... Fun, and we are enjoying life, a modern, high tech church is taking form right downtown Stockholm... I am so impressed by all the SOS church planters - wow what commitment and how you are working!

The kids' room is almost done...

This weekend we will work almost 24/7 and that goes from Monday to Friday next week as well. We are hoping that everything will be ready and done next Saturday afternoon (8/29) for the Church Launch and open house... We now need all workers that can come! Handymen from different churches in Sweden and Norway - come and do/give one or two days for a new church's birth in Stockholm! We that are part of the pioneer team now need to invest all extra time we have to build and give more finacial support than just our tithes and some offering - no, it's time to give like the first church! We give aggressively in raw faith and with a conquering spirit! Now is the time! Challenge yourself and stretch your faith alot now! God will give back more than what you can give to His Kingdom anyway... It's really totally impossible to become poor or be without money when you give to God's purposes!

Diego paiting the ceiling of the platform...

Everyone to work! We need you at Kungsholmen, Stockholm! Come with your kids! Come with gradma! Bring your pitbull! It's now or never!

See ya!

Aug 18, 2009

Buck Hunt, Newly Saved, and Church Construction…

This past weekend I made time to go down south to Stengårdshult for a day of hunting… August 16th is a holy date for all the Swedish hunters (opening day for Buck hunting)… Got up at 2 am, and was sitting in my tower in the forest at 3 am. Began to call on the buck with my Buttolo at 6 am and an hour later at 6.58 am a shot went off. With a well placed neck shot I killed a 6 pointer at roughly 40 yards… Glory, the forest is taxed, the answer to prayer is already cut and in the freezer. Last night we ate our first stew with dear meat this year - wow it tasted good!


This morning I had breakfast with a newly saved friend downtown and we had time for a deep Bible study and a lot of Coffee… Then I spent the remainder of the day putting in hard wood floors together with my beloved Maria in our new church Venue on Kungsholmen, Stockholm (SOS Church)… Am having a great vacation this year actually; boat hopping in the archipelago, buck hunt, fellowship with newly saved immigrants downtown and construction work at our church! Tomorrow the kids start school again and their fall semester begins! Great - we are so looking forward as a family to this fall! Why? Here are some reasons:

1) SOS Church launches on August 29th at Nalen! Welcome to celebrate with us from noon to 2 pm!

2) We will inaugurate our new premesis on Kungsholmen with cake and an open house that same afternoon!

3) We will release SOS first musical production - the well longed for festival CD - God of Miracles - on Sunday August 30th at 4 pm at Nalen!

4) We enjoy being pastors here at home in Stockholm this fall (it will be the calmest fall in my life so far).

5) We enjoy our new house and life in Tullinge.

6) A new start for SOS Mission Bible College! (More radical, more on the edge and tougher than before).

7) Services in English and a multi-cultural mega city church.

The list could keep on going…

PS. We need a few financial miracles rights now… We are instapling sound, light, multi media, translation gear etc… Everything is expensive… We are fundraising but need an extra $27,000! Perhaps one of my blog readers out there that believe in church planting, pioneer work in Stockholm wants to be a part and sow in good soil?!

See Ya!

Aug 17, 2009

Vacation...

Vacation... I've just "boat hopped" five days with my wonderful family in Stockholm's archipelago. Lots of islands like Karklö. Gällnö, Finnhamn and Husarö were visited this time... We will come back! Bbq, swimming, fishing and slept in a tent... We've fought mosquitos, played cards, laughed and had fun with both kids and wife... What days! Saturday was my birthday, 36 years old, and the entire family wanted to be home for that day, so we packed our stuff and headed home on Friday... It was great to come home too, since I really wanted to head south to hunt deer on Sunday. August 16th was the opening day for deer hunt...

Check out the pics from our vacation!

See ya!




Aug 9, 2009

Conversations With the Mayor...

I have stayed four nights at the Mayor Marianne Deery's “Bed and Breakfast in Boyertown, PA. What interesting conversations we have had. I have learned so much. Marianne is 67 years old and one of the most warmhearted people with great influence that I have ever met. She does everything with her whole heart. I want to be like her when I grow up.

Yesterday I preached again and about 10 precious Americans wanted to pray the sinners prayer with me – the Holy Spirit moved in, hallelujah! Today I will preach twice at 9am and 11am. Then I will have large steaks before I fly home tonight...


I will also meet a renowned trophy hunter from the church. He has his own place filled with trophies, ie stuffed animals from all over the States and the world as well. Horns all cover the walls and everything else that Vegans hate, you know!?

See ya!

Aug 8, 2009

Wonderful Holy Spirit Night!


Preached a message that I called "Holy Places, the Holy Spirit and You" last night in Bechtelsville, PA... About 20 people ran to the front at the salvation invitation and about 30 were baptized in the Holy Spirit with the sign of speaking in tongues... I love a long time of prayer for people... What a wonderful church Morningstar is! We (the Pastors team) went to Apple Bees afterwards, we compared Europe to the US, talked President Obama, compared health system, talked Islam and at last the leading of the Holy Spirit... A fun mix of conversation topics - so great people! We will do a festival among an unreached people group together next year - awesome!

Namalu Signs & Wonders Festival, Uganda 2007...

See ya!

Aug 7, 2009

Longing for my Kids now...

I'm preparing four services... Preaching all weekend at Morningstar Fellowship, a church a little outside of Philadelphia that I love... Pastor Steve is a really good friend... I believe in a strong Holy Spirit weekend!

Otherwise I am really longing for my kids right now... Next week I start a two week long, very appriciated, vacation... I'll start off by "boat-hopping" in Stockholm's archiplelago with Maria and the kids, then we'll build SOS Church on Kungsholmen! We'll go by boat, do some cycling, stay in a tent, cook out, fish and play around with my kids - oh how I'm longing for them now! Alicia will most likely beat me in cards as usual and Adam make me laugh hard at all his insane stories... Thank you God for my family!


It was my Maria
that came up with the idea to "boat-hop" in Stockholm's archipelago a couple of days this summer... Really a great idea! I'll soon be hugging my entire family in a little tent! Stockholm's archipelago; he we come!

Aug 6, 2009

Apply now - Mission Adventure Awaits You!

I'm back at my good friends in Morningstar Fellowship outside of Philadelphia USA. Staying at the Twin Turrets Inn where the Mayor herself takes care of me... I'm preaching my last weekend now before a very welcome week of vacation! I love the church here and feel sooo at home...

Miracles of Love Festival - Thailand from Mission SOS on Vimeo.



God is calling many people right now to attend SOS Mission Bible College, Stockholm Sweden and MCM Ministry School, Pittsburgh PA this fall! Where is your application? The mission adventure awaits you!

See ya!

Aug 4, 2009

International Mega City Church

Visited a gym here in Vienna today. The same machines, energy drinks, workout clothes, sweat odor as well as the same music squealing out from the speakers in every gym, in every mega city throughout the world... A global mega city culture with the same attributes and style. A young "hot-wired" and multi-ethnical concrete-generation. VCC is so similar to Södermalmskyrkan in Stockholm, etc - the international mega city churches are the future! Soon it is time for the launch of SOS Church in Stockholm! On August 29th you are more than welcome to Nalen at noon for our Church launch! Immediately following the official launch we will have an open house in our new premises on Kungsholm. Welcome to see for yourself and enjoy some cake and coffee! Our prayer is for God to give us Stockholm!


On our first Sunday, after the inauguration ceremony, and all the cake, we will have a release concert for our first music production - Mission SOS Festival CD! SOS festival music will hopefully begin a new Christian music genre; ministering, preaching and anointed Christian performance! Music that gives birth to faith for salvations and miracles! Music that tears down walls between Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists, and Christians! Music as spiritual warfare and weapons on the Christian mission frontiers!


On Sunday August 30th at 4 pm, also at Nalen, the CD will be released and the concert will be a creative bomb with dancers, human video, and illustrations as well as special music compositions! Do not miss it! Order tickets! Buy for friends and relatives as well! Order at lina.isrealsson@missionsos.org!

As pastor, I am so proud of my people! Imagine the talent God has given us in Mission SOS and imagine that we can begin our first Sunday as a church in this grand way - a concert with such quality. Welcome!

See Ya!

Prayer for Austria

It really exploded tonight at Vienna Christian Center! The Spirit of God came so strong! About 10 ran to the front at the salvation invitation - hallelujah! We prayed for Austria after the altar call in a way that I've never experienced before. The spirit of prayer came over all the people - a genuin explosion in prayer... Deafening tongues and worship that almost lifted the roof of the building... Repentance and prayer of forgiveness and cries that the blood of Jesus would flow over the nation!



Austria, my home land is crying for me, I believe... My prayer is; God what do you want? What is the continuation of this, Holy Spirit?

See ya!

Aug 3, 2009

Days in Vienna...


The service at the German speaking part of VCC was sooo good last night! Three Austrians were baptized in the Holy Spirit during the worship, before the message, it's always so strong and wonderful when people begin to speak in tongues for the first time. It's such a priviledge to pray with and guide people to a baptism in the Spirit! I love the baptism in the Holy Spirit and never grow tired of guiding hungry disciples to this experience, even though I've been doing this almost every week for the last 18 years - hallelujah!

We went into the city to eat late after the service... The Austrian kitchen greeted me "welcome home!" My "Jägerpfandl" tasted so good. We sat in a small, nice and cozy restaurant filled with drunk, singing Austrians all around that said; -welcome home Hannes! Imagine that even a gang of drunk, squalling fellow citizens could make me feel sooo at home ;).

I'm soon heading for a gym to workout and tonight I'll preach at VCC again. On Monday and Tuesday night I'll meet the enitire international congregation.

See ya!

Aug 2, 2009

On my way home for a short visit to Austria...

Last night I got home at 230 am... I married a wonderful, relatively newly saved couple (they are members of SOS Church Stockholm), Emma Sunesson and Stefan Blom. I made a "serious" mistake at the church towards the end of the ceremony as I was to introduce the new couple to a full church. The couple at told me several times and made it very clear that they were to take his surname, Blom, as their surname, so there were no doubts about it. I also had it written in ink on my outline... Even though I read Blom, I hear my mouth loud and clear say: and now let me present the newly weds: Mr and Mrs Sunesson (her surname)... I lost it... Total chock for both the newly weds and their families... There simply was no recovery. Well, well... I get ahold of myself, laugh out loud and exclaim: What did I just say?! Mr. and Mrs Blom and nothing else! Two zero to the Bloms! Anyway... the feast was so warm, heart filled and fun, what great families - but it got late as I mentioned... Today I am tired.

I will soon be on my way to the airport again.I will fly to Vienna and Austria tonight. Will be nice to come "home" for a short while... Talk, listen to, and read some German again. Always feels so good and it brings back childhood memories... Everything was bilingual while growing up. I came to Sweden when I was about to turn four... I communted between Austria and Sweden very often and regularly throughout my upbringing. During my parents divorce, again I stayed for some time in Austria as a six year old...


Defining "home" nowadays is not easy... I am still an Austrian citizen but married to a Swede and my kids are totally Swedish... Personally though, I think that I tend to become more and more a foreigner as the years pass... One stops trying to live an act, you know... You relax... You are the one you are... I will never be a "true" Swede or Austrian... Second generation immigrant with constant identity crisi (giggle). I have a too hot temper, to many gestures, and am to loud to be a Swede yet I am not quite accepted down in Austria either cause I speak "highschool" German even though I will soon turn 36... No Swedish accent but I use to few words... That's life... Still I will enjoy three days of preaching at Vienna Christian Center. Thank You Jesus! I have two homes: one in Austria and one in Sweden and a true home in the will of God and in His Kingdom!

See Ya!