After Escaping Communism, Georgian Banov Became ‘The Apostle of Joy”

They don’t call Georgian Banov “the apostle of joy” for nothing.

Banov escaped the tyranny of communism in Bulgaria in the 1970s to find glorious freedom in Christ in the U.S. Since then, he has been helping fill the earth with supernatural joy in places where most people would not dare to minister, such as the slums of Southeast Asia and the garbage dumps of Leon, Nicaragua.

Banov has put together a radical team with a powerful message at Global Celebration, boldly declaring the finished work of the cross around the world. The team is dedicated to rescuing and caring for trafficked and at-risk children, as well as helping marginalized, impoverished communities and training ministers and leaders with the incredible anointing of Christ.

Banov and his wife, Winnie, spread the joy of Jesus wherever they go. They led more than a million people to the Lord in their years of ministry, helping them move them to a place of godly joy after finding that fruit of the Spirit for themselves many years ago.

“The main thing when we started ministering was evangelism,” Banov told Dr. Steve Greene on a recent episode of Greenelines on the Charisma Podcast Network. “With the fruits of the Spirit, [joy] is the second fruit mentioned after the love of God. I discover how much He loves me. He kept increasing my revelation of His love, and that love makes you happy.

“Without love, there is no joy. Love is the base for joy. It is the revelation of the joy of the presence of God. When I read it, Psalm 16, ‘in Your presence is the fullness of joy,’ I saw that, I witnessed that. Then you start realizing what helped Jesus endure the cross—the joy set ahead. He endured the cross. So, God began to equip me for the hard times ahead as an immigrant. But that joy that helped Him endure was in me. It is Christ Himself where that joy comes from.”

Hear more of Banov’s compelling story of surviving the tyranny of communism and taking his message of freedom and joy to the world on this episode of Greenelines on the Charisma Podcast Network. {eoa}