Multitudes are expected to gather at Miracle Centre Cathedral – Rubaga on Friday night for a thanksgiving aimed at celebrating 10 solid years since Christian Television Channel 44 was founded.
Uganda Christian News today brings you a testimony the TV founder, Pastor Robert Kayanja shared about how the gospel channel was birthed, named and ushered to millions of people across the world.
Pastor Robert Kayanja says Channel 44 TV has become a “holy instrument of God’s power, channeling healing, miracles and deliverance.”
In the year Channel 44 television was being installed, a renown international evangelist Benny Hinn was visiting Miracle Centre Cathedral.
In that meeting Matthew Crouch, now president of Trinity Broadcasting Network (TBN) and his wife Laurie, were present at the dinner which was held in the church lounge where Pastor Benny Hinn prophesied that we were going to start a television station.
He went on to say, turning to Matthew Crouch that, ‘as TBN has been and is to United States and around the world, so shall Channel 44 become.’ That was in 2009.
He did not know we had flown in Italian engineers to install television equipment upstairs. Later on I told him and he prayed for some of the young people who were our cameramen at the time.
When Channel 44 went on the air, it was faced with challenges. The enemy begun to hit us hard; our towers, connectors and links were destroyed, occasionally interrupting our transmission. We struggled with attracting business (advertisers) even though we had the best signal and more viewers in the Christian scope. We had less viewership nationwide. It was frustrating because we had to struggle to pay our bills day after day.
God then spoke to Steve Thompson, former Engineering Manager at CNN, Atlanta, who came with Chris Hufton, son to Pastor Mirek Hufton, to come all the way to Uganda and train Channel 44 television crew. He also brought some television equipment which was needed by the station. To us, it was a sign that God was interested in Channel 44 television despite the fact that business at Channel 44 was not picking up in the manner that we had anticipated.
But now I understand why in spite of the aggressive search for business partners, they never came. If we had signed contracts with them lasting two or three years, we would not have been able to turn Channel 44 to the Holy Spirit to broadcast the gospel for over ten hours and the subsequent daily replays.
I believe the Holy Spirit had taken over Channel 44 although we knew it not. We had wanted it to run like any other television station in the country, while He had other plans. Throughout our 49 crusades, we broadcast everything we saw on Channel 44. We did live music recordings, nights of prayer and we shared about the power of God on the station.
Then came the 77Days Of Glory (77D.O.Gs) making Channel 44 a darling in the hearts of the people around the world. (At first publication) over 12 million people had been reached making it the largest viewed station in the country which reminded me of the prophecy Pastor Benny Hinn gave.
Just like TBN was during the revivals in America between 1983 and 1986, Channel 44 is privileged to be a courier of this revival all over Uganda through the airwaves and farthest parts of the world through the internet. The revivals hosted by Paul and Jan Crouch in Cincinnati, Seattle, Phoenix-Arizona, Dallas, are the reason why most of today’s preachers rose up and began to spread the gospel.
There is a pride that has come in the body of Christ; a godly pride. A pride of belonging; people from diverse denominations and walks of life have watched Channel 44 and have been re-energized in their spirit. We have heard stories of people as far as America, Australia, Angola share amazing testimonies of the miracles they have received while watching channel 44 in their countries.
So Channel 44 has become a holy instrument of God’s power, channeling healing, miracles and deliverance.
Surprisingly it is no coincidence that the station name was orchestrated by the Holy Spirit even though we had no idea from the start. We didn’t name it Channel 44. By the time we got the license, all channels had been taken.
The Lord had to cause us to buy a combiner so that it could carry our signal on the national tower and the channel we were given was 44. But in Isaiah 44, it brings a very powerful revelation about Channel 44 television. This is a chapter where God gave us the name of our music production company-Sho’em.
The Lord said you must show them the ancient things the Lord has done.
When you read the whole 44th chapter you realise that this is exactly what the Lord is doing on Channel 44.
When the government gave us Channel 44, I knew it was not them because I would not have called it Channel 44 television. I would have called it healing television or something else. But then I saw scripture and the Lord pointed me to it and said He was going to pour out His spirit. Chapter 44 of Isaiah is what Channel 44 is all about.
Now Channel 44 is bringing salvation to many, publishing what God is doing without gimmicks or ‘alterations and special effects.’ God knows how to choose His instruments.
So I thank God for the people who launched us out into the media business. including but not limited to; TBN which gave us the starter pack of brand new top-notch television equipment, Brother Marty and Sister Debbie Martinez and their entire family. If they have ever done an investment in the kingdom of God which they should be proud of, then Channel 44 is it.
Message Extract From Pastor Robert Kayanja’s Book, The Anointing Of The Holy Spirit. Get your copy Here
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