Written by: Pastor Miki Hardy
Article source: Church Team Ministries International

Across the world today, many believers sense that something vital has been lost in the Church. While activity, programmes, and conferences are increasing, the ministry of the Spirit has slowly disappeared. Spiritual revival needs to happen in the Church instead of seeking after power, manifestations and entertainment with worldly music and dancing. We need to produce spiritual people.

Founded in Mauritius in 2001, CTMI’s vision and call is to equip and strengthen Christian leaders across Africa and beyond, so that the Church may be built up, believers may grow in maturity and be conformed to the image of Jesus Christ. CTMI also seeks to call the Church back to the heart of the gospel: the Cross for the Christian.

Outward Success, Inward Struggle

Long before CTMI existed, I had already spent many years ministering across French and English-speaking Africa. After graduating from Christian Bible College in Durban under Pastor Fred Roberts, my wife, Audrey, and I returned to Mauritius in the early 1980s with our two daughters, Frédérique and Carole, determined to serve God faithfully.

Over time, I witnessed church growth, effective organisation, and demonstrations of God’s power. Yet beneath this outward success, troubling realities emerged: conflict among leaders, competition between ministries, and a lack of genuine relationships. While the church appeared strong, its spiritual life was weakening, which affected both the ministry and my marriage, even bringing me to consider leaving the ministry.

A Revelation That Changed Everything

By God’s grace, instead of walking away, I sought the Lord. His response was simple yet deeply confronting: come back to the Cross—not just as the message of salvation, but the cross for the believer. The Lord showed me clearly that if the church was to change, it had to start with me.

I repented to my wife, my fellow pastors, and the congregation, which marked a turning point for restoration in my marriage, family, church, and ministry.

During this time, the words of Jesus in Luke 14:25–27 and Matthew 16:24–25 became crystal clear: that being a true disciple meant losing my life and identifying with Him in His suffering, death, and resurrection—the very foundation of Christianity. When I began to live and preach this message, I witnessed genuine change in my personal life and within the church.

“If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me.” —Matthew 16:24

The Rise of the Prosperity Message

As we travelled throughout Africa, we noticed that the Church had shifted: the joy of contentment was fading, replaced by a message linking faith to material prosperity, largely coming from the first world. Through media, missionary movements, and modern communication, this teaching had spread rapidly, even to remote regions.

Despite clear biblical warnings against covetousness and the love of money (Colossians 3:5, 1 Timothy 6:6; Hebrews 13:5), the Church increasingly focused on personal gain and drifted from the foundational truths of the gospel.

The Cost of Deviating from Sound Doctrine

As a result, many believers grew weary and confused, to the point of leaving their congregations. Preaching once marked by conviction and power became shallow and Paul’s warning in 2 Timothy 4:3–5—that people would turn away from sound doctrine—became a lived reality.

Instead of calling believers to repentance, holiness, and identification with Christ, preaching focused on success and material gain.

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Standing Firm at All Costs

Sadly, as we preached the message of the Cross for Christians, we faced resistance and persecution from church leaders accusing us of preaching false doctrine. Yet we stood firm, convinced that this is the foundational truth that brings Christians to maturity, the very heart of Jesus for His Church. Over time, perseverance bore fruit. Many church leaders, particularly in the Developing World, began to recognise that the prosperity message had failed, often leading to frustration and disappointment. More and more pastors began to say, “Enough is enough!”

A Genuine Work of Renewal

Through CTMI, notably the BUILD Leaders Conferences, churches are rediscovering the simplicity and depth of the message of the Cross for the Christian. By God’s grace, doors are opening to share this message with pastors—even recently in Muslim nations—who, unlike the proud and arrogant preachers we often see today, are willing to be broken and transformed to serve Jesus as true servants.

A Call for Our Time

Christ is calling His people to return to the true gospel: to leave behind faith focused on personal gain and embrace faith that seeks to accomplish the will of God as demonstrated by Noah, Abraham, Moses, and the great cloud of witnesses mentioned in Hebrews 11.

The same can be said of the apostles – Paul, Peter, James – and the Early Church, as well as faithful men and women of God throughout history who preached the true gospel of Jesus Christ in order to build a strong and spiritually grounded Church.

Glory to Jesus – He is building His Church, His way.

This article is featured in the February/March 2026 issue of JOY! Magazine. Read a digital version of this magazine here: joygifts.co.za

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Date published: 23/02/2026
Feature images sourced from article

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