In the first week of December 2025, that “unfinished” stadium became the ground upon which God finished a long-awaited story.
Share
There are places that whisper failure. For years, the half-constructed stadium at Dimapur stood as one such reminder—concrete pillars abandoned mid-dream, gates rusting under the weathered sun, and a ground remembered more for wayward activities than for hope. It was a landmark not of promise, but of postponement; a symbol of what Nagaland had once envisioned but somehow never managed to complete. And yet, in the first week of December 2025, that “unfinished” stadium became the ground upon which God finished a long-awaited story. The silent arena transformed into a living sea of worship, healing, tears, and revival. Tens of thousands poured in each evening—families from nearby colonies, youth groups from distant districts, elders who had long prayed for a move of God, and believers travelling from outside the state. Every night, the sound of prayer and song rose like a tide washing over the stands. By day 2, attendance crossed every expectation. By day 4, more than a lakh hands were raised to heaven, proclaiming that something extraordinary was unfolding in Nagaland. When God desires to move among a people, no circumstance, unfinished work, imperfect place, or even competing mega-events—can interfere with His purpose.
The result was a spiritual awakening that will remain etched in Nagaland’s collective memory. People were healed in ways that defied explanation. People from across Nagaland and beyond worshiped side by side, not as separate communities but as a single redeemed family. The stadium, once known for abandonment, became a sanctuary of unity.
It felt like scripture unfolding before our eyes. Just as Jesus stood before the tomb of Lazarus—dead, decayed, and declared “too late”—He spoke life into what was thought beyond revival. The stadium in Dimapur was our Lazarus. Written off, forgotten, and even joked about, it had become a symbol of delay and disappointment. But God breathed over dry bones once more and proved that His timing is perfect, His plans unshakeable, and His power unthreatened by the decay of our circumstances. The stone rolled away, and what was thought dead stood resurrected.
What deepens this miracle is its timing. Even as the Hornbill Festival celebrated Naga identity at Kisama—our dances, our crafts, our heritage, and the vibrant mosaic of our tribes—the stadium in Dimapur testified to our spiritual hunger and our yearning for renewal. Two major events, running parallel yet speaking different truths: one showcasing who we are as a people, the other revealing who we are called to become. Both mattered. Both reflected the heart of Nagaland. But the healing festival whispered something more intimate and more urgent, “Nagaland is not done. God is not done. Our story is not done.”
To the youths of Nagaland, if your dreams feel stalled like that abandoned stadium once did, listen closely—God still calls your name as Jesus called Lazarus. You are not forgotten. You are not beyond redemption. You are not too late to rise into the fullness of who you are meant to be. The revival you witnessed is also a reminder that purpose delayed is not purpose denied. To our elders, pastors, and intercessors, your years of tears, patience, and steadfast faith have pierced the heavens. Many prayed silently for a move of God in this land. Many cried for their families, their tribes, their youth. The outpouring at the stadium is the fruit of your labour—your unseen prayers that reached God long before a single tent or stage was erected.
To the volunteers, ushers, worship teams, organisers, and the entire Gatekeepers team, Your service, often unnoticed and unthanked, built a bridge between earth and heaven. It is because of your quiet dedication that thousands could experience God’s touch. Nagaland owes you gratitude. To FOLJ, and especially to Apostle Ankit Sajwan, who came despite concerns about timing, despite clashing schedules, despite the enormity of the Hornbill Festival—thank you for obeying the prompting of the spirit. Your ministry has left a fragrance in our land that will linger long after the lights have dimmed and the last chairs have been removed.
Today, the Dimapur stadium is no longer a monument of what Nagaland failed to complete but it has become a monument of what God can complete when we offer Him even our broken spaces. It reminds us that God does not wait for perfection; He works through availability. He takes what the world calls incomplete and finishes a masterpiece upon it. But the revival cannot remain confined to four evenings or a single venue. It is meant to be carried home—to our kitchens, our offices, our schools, our churches, and even into the quiet internal battles no one else sees. Let this be the beginning of a renewed spiritual landscape in Nagaland. Let this be the spark that ignites families. Let this be the turning point for our youth. Let this be the restoration long prayed for by our elders. Because Nagaland’s story of revival has only just begun. And this time, it will not be abandoned. God Bless Nagaland.
KT Konyak