Last Monday morning I had the opportunity to talk with an amazing man of God–Honza Kuklinek–who is being used by God to spread the Gospel throughout the Czech Republic—folks, that isn’t an exaggeration. Honza was in town as part of our church’s upcoming Global Impact Celebration. He was able to present at five different events during his weekend here about the efforts that he and others are passionately involved with in the Czech Republic. After all of those events, he graciously gave me about an hour before he left to head back to the airport. Because of snowy roads here in Central Illinois, we talked by phone. What follows is part one of a summary of our conversation.

I first asked Honza about the history of Christianity in the Czech Republic. He talked about the nearly 300 years under German rule where the Catholic Church was the state church—and thereby the only legal option. The Moravian Brethren were persecuted in the 1720’s in Bohemia—today a part of the Czech Republic—and were forced into exile because of their Protestant views. The Moravian’s story is an interesting and inspiring story—but that is for another day!

The last century saw 40 years of Communist rule under the Soviet Union. These 40 years were absolutely devastating to the faith in the Czech Republic. The Soviet’s were brutally efficient at rooting out any sign of Christianity. Any semblance of the true faith was forced to exist “underground”.

Honza said after the Communists lost power in 1989, there were less than 1% of the people who were Christians. What took its place? Atheism. That’s right. It only took 40 years for the faith to be almost completely wiped out in an entire country. But, a faithful remnant remained! Now that remnant is laying the foundation for a new awakening in perhaps the most secular nation in the world.

Next week, I will continue with my conversation with Honza. We will talk about his current work for the Kingdom—you won’t believe what God is doing in public schools in the Czech Republic!! Then, in my last part of this series, you will get to know the man behind the ministries! He has incredible stories to share!

The challenge this week is for us to pray for your country. Wherever you are reading this, your country needs prayer! Pray for the Holy Spirit to bring revival to your country. Prepare yourself to be used in that revival!

More to come…
Jeremy