My name is Emily Wilson, and I am the newest member of the Heart of the Father team. After serving on our local ministry team in Ardmore for a year, I joined HOFM as the Coordinator of Resources and Sales in August 2024. Matt asked me to share a little bit about our Freedom in Christ conference in California at the end of May. It was a special treat for me to travel for this conference because I am from the San Francisco Bay Area and got to preach the gospel in my native land. Thanks be to God they didn’t try to throw me off a cliff (Lk 4:29)!
We had a packed two-day schedule. On Friday, local Unbound teams from San Francisco, San Jose, Dublin, Stockton, and Sacramento gathered for a day of retreat and equipping. There was Spirit-filled enthusiasm in the room as these 50 leaders and intercessors soaked in our teachings, asked many questions, and engaged in fellowship and prayer. Our Regional Coordinator, Lorelei Low, and Unbound San Jose leader and conference coordinator, Patty McDonald, were a dynamic duo to make this day (and the whole weekend) a success.
Our Freedom in Christ conference ran Friday evening through Saturday evening. Pastor Fr. Joe Kim and the entire team at St. John Vianney Parish gave a joyful welcome to over 200 participants. The Bay Area is richly multicultural and the conference drew participants from diverse backgrounds, all hungry to experience the freedom Jesus won for us. Due to simultaneous translation in Spanish via headsets and many Spanish-speaking prayer teams, we were able to minister to many English and Spanish speakers. The attendees were clearly hungry for freedom and responded enthusiastically to the talks and opportunities for prayer. I was grateful for the opportunity to present at an Unbound Conference for the first time with the Forgiveness talk.
In many ways, this weekend is a sign of how we would like to see Unbound Ministry continue to grow. Regional Coordinators who unite their local teams are key to expanding our reach. We would love to see regions gather for prayer, training, and fellowship like this once a year. Since so many teams gathered for the retreat, we had over 20 prayer teams available and were able to offer prayer ministry to many people. Those who weren’t able to receive ministry at the conference will easily be able to connect to one of the local teams for prayer. It is our dream that all believers would be able to find an Unbound team in a place close to home. The generosity of our donors and the power of the Holy Spirit are making this happen in California and beyond.
“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,
because he has anointed me
to bring good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives
and recovery of sight to the blind,
to set free those who are oppressed,
to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”
