Loren Cunningham (1935 – 2023)

Who Was He?

Loren Duane Cunningham was born on 30 June 1935 in the oil boom town of Taft, California, into a family with generations of Christian ministers. From early childhood, prayer and faith were woven into the fabric of his life. His parents were Assemblies of God ministers who modelled radical trust in God.

In June 1956, at the age of twenty, Cunningham was kneeling in prayer in a missionary’s home in the Bahamas, asking God for a message to preach that evening, when he received a remarkable vision. He saw a map of the world come alive, with waves crashing on the continents and turning into young people — thousands upon thousands of young men and women from every nation, going to every nation, preaching the Gospel. He had no idea how to interpret it or what to do with it, but he wrote it down.

Four years later, in 1960, Cunningham founded Youth With A Mission (YWAM) in Lausanne, Switzerland, at the age of twenty-four, with his wife Darlene. YWAM broke the mould of 1960s missions by welcoming young people who were not career missionaries to serve short-term, unsalaried, interdenominationally, on any continent. The movement grew with remarkable speed.

In 1978, Cunningham co-founded the University of the Nations in Kailua-Kona, Hawaii. By the time of his death on 6 October 2023 at the age of 88, YWAM had grown to over 20,000 full-time staff from more than 150 nations serving at over 2,000 locations in 191 countries. Cunningham was the first person in history to travel for the sake of the Gospel to every sovereign nation, dependent country, and more than 100 territories on earth.

A Great Answer to Prayer Shortly after founding YWAM, Cunningham needed a farm to serve as the first permanent base for the growing ministry. He had no money, no donor, and no realistic prospects. He did what he always did: he prayed. Then, in an act of bold faith, he went to an auction and bought a barbed wire, a milk can, and a hay wagon — farm items — before the farm existed.

His young students were bewildered. “What are these for?” they asked. “God is going to give us a farm for YWAM,” he replied simply. Shortly after, a man came to Cunningham and said three words: “I want to give you a farm.” It was exactl y the farm they needed. That farm became the mother base of the entire global movement, and it all began in prayer and faith.

But the greatest answered prayer in Cunningham’s life was the fulfilment of the 1956 vision itself. He spent sixty-seven years watching that vision come true — wave after wave of young people from every nation going to every nation with the Gospel of Christ. He saw millions of young people mobilised for missions through YWAM, and he died knowing that the vision was still unfolding.

Key Scriptures Mark 16:15 — “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature.”

John 10:27 — “My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me.”

Acts 13:2 — “While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, “Set apart for Me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.””

His Words on Prayer “Hearing God is not all that difficult. If we know the Lord, we have already heard His voice — after all, it was the inner leading that brought us to Him in the first place. But we can hear His voice and still miss His best if we don't keep on listening.”

“Guidance is first of all a relationship with the Guide.”

“We get caught in our boxes — but when we pray outside of them, ask God, the impossible CAN be d one.”

“We followed the Three Steps to Hearing God: First, we took Christ's authority to silence the enemy. Second, we asked the Lord to clear from our minds any presumptions and preconceived ideas. Third, we waited, believing He would speak in the way and in the time that He chose.”

“The Lord will lead us into victory, but success itself is the most dangerous obstacle to properly hearing the voice of God.”

Prayer and the Word of God “When a critical mass of people have the Bible and apply what it teaches in their lives, a nation is transformed. The Book is the key to everything.”

“This is what hearing God is all about — getting to know Him better. Prayer is not primarily a technique for getting things; it is the language of relationship with the Father.”

Prayer and the Holy Spirit “Every great historical move of the Spirit I had studied began with times of confession and deep repentance. God's power is released after a time of cleansing.”

“Whenever we came to a crossroads in the mission, we prayed until the Holy Spirit spoke. Then we obeyed. That is the only way to build anything that will last.”

“To know God and to make Him known — that is YWAM's call. And to know God, you must pray.”