The story of this ministry is one of dedication, courage, sacrifice, love and miracles. It began in Buenos Aires, Argentina in 1966 when its founder, a missionary with nineteen years of field experience, began to pray the prayer which Jesus told us to pray: "Send labourers into Your harvest, Lord." The multitudes of lost souls had become such a great concern on her heart, and so few had heard the
Gospel, that she began to weep, asking God to send the women into the harvest fields. Sister Gwen, as she is known to thousands, saw that in spite of the great need for preachers of the Gospel in the nations, so few, too few were answering the call. She saw how supernaturally God was using her. If the men would not go, surely there must be women like herself who were willing to dedicate their lives to God and live the life of faith and obedience that souls might be saved. She began to pray as she returned to the Orient, her home base. After four years of prayer, God began to call women to work with the new ministry she had founded, called "End-Time Handmaidens." The name, which one must admit is unique, is a very scriptural one based on Joel 2:28-29 and Acts 2:17-18. At first the vision of the ministry was only to help the women find God's calling upon their lives and their niche in God's plan. But soon the remaining part of the verse also became a reality ("And on my servants and on my handmaidens I will pour out in those days of my Spirit; and they shall prophesy." -Acts 2:18), as God began to bring in His Servants, the men. Then the children also wanted to be included along with Mom or Mom and Dad, and so they also were accepted as Junior members of this family ministry. Today the ministry has grown to include many different facets. Being a ministry which is based on prayer and fasting, it has kept the original vision of its founder, which is "missions." The entire ministry is centered on Christ Jesus, with a missionary vision for the nations of the world. As the ministry continued to expand, the need was felt for fellowship and close coordination among the members in different areas. These groups became known as "Branches." Each local Branch places, after prayer, three to five of their own members in a position of leadership and responsibility. The have become powerful centers of prayer and help to link up one of the most essential aspects of this ministry intercessory prayer.
