who wants to know more about Jews and evangelism

S R jESUS.rArr;xshed 33

to determine whom to support in fields likeours puts people in a position to compete,when we really need to cooperate, andul.kngwlngly tem,pts people to e-raggerateand make unsubstantiated claims. (Forthe lighter side of the latter, see the backpage for, "lt really happened.")

As the leader of Jews for Jesus, l'mresponsible to evaluate our ministry'seffectiveness. We want to do the very bestwe can for the Lord. Our core valuesinclude accountability to Him and to thosewho support or might support our ministry.That's why we keep records, not only ofour efforts, but also of any tangible resultswe have the privilege to see.

Even so, when I evaluate our ministry I

look for evidence of sound doctrine, goodstewardship, a bold and creative witness,and just plain faithfulness in doing theday-in, day-out work of evangelists (1Corinthians 4:1-2). That is how I measuresuccess because, after all, we can't takeany real credit when we see people wonto Him. All the honour and glory belong toGod as His Word teaches: "So thenneither he who plants is anything, nor hewho waters, but God who gives theincrease" (1 Corinthians 3:7).

l'm so thankful for brothers and sisters inMessiah who encourage and support ourefforts to be faithful to our calling, trustingGod to bring the increase. l'm grateful for

&u*u$ gEv* #a teE<e e }r*er

churches that see their prayers, gifts andinvitations to have us speak in their pulpitas an important component to fulfilling theGreat Corrrmission. Togethenwe arepartners in caring for those God caresabout, reaching out to those whom manyhave dismissed as unreachable.

It is humbling to partner with the Creatorof the universe as He draws people toHimself. lt's also humbling to reitiz-e tnatwe are partnering with others who arepartnering with God, even when wehaven't met them. Most salvation storiesreveal a combination of people andcircumstances, seemingly random, yetorchestrated by God. More than once l'vethought God used me to lead someone tofaith, only to discover that I was only onepart of their journey, and not the mostsignificant part at that! Most of ourmissionaries can tell stories of years spentwitnessing to someone, seemingly to no

esta b ti

The inCfeaSe by David Brickner, executive director

All the fruit is handpicked in the field ofJewish evangelism, in other words, youdon't see droves of Jewish people pouringforward at an altar call. Most come to faithone by one, and usually afier muchdiligence, patience and a lot of follow-up.I'm so thankful for friends in the body ofChrist who rejoice over the slow butsteady stream of Jewish people who arecontinually coming to faith. l'm especiallythankful for you in light of a growing trendl've been seeing.

It seems like more and more missionscommittees and Christian foundations areapplying the ROI (return on investment)business principle to ministry. ln manycases, the more tangible results anorganization reports, the more likely theyare to receive support.

I will never forget receiving a letter from aChristian foundation that had encouraged

-.--errt s'fc,rieEs to request their support.When we did, they declined the request.They explained, "Jews for Jesus reportshundreds of people saved per yealwhereas we are able to support ministriesreporting conversions in the tens ofthousands per year."

l'm sure that God does move tens ofthousands of people per year to receivethe gospel in some fields. But I know of noJewish ministry that can accurately reportthat kind of response. Using proof of ROI

@2015 Jews f4r Jesus continued on the nexl page

DonationsPlease be reminded that you maydonate to Jews for Jesus in severalways:

Securely online throughCa*adaHelps.org

Through regular lY!€iE. Please mailus your cheque or money order withyour complete address. lf youwould like to donate using your

' - eredft bard;pleaee,indicate yourcredit card details. Mail to: Jews forJesus, 10 Huntingdale Blvd, TorontoON, MlW 2S5

You may also donate over theph0ne using your VISA,MasterCard, or American Express.Please call our branch at(416) 444-7O2O.

And atso oy Link CharityCanada lnc. we are now asponsoring member of Link CharityCanada lnc. a non-share, federallyincorporated organization directedand managed by member charities.Link Charity Canada is empoweredto issue charitable gift annuities,facilitate gifts of appreciatedsecurities, hold insurance policies,manage endowmehts, and distributebenefits of RRSP and RRIFcontracts on behalf of Jews forJesus. For more information aboutgift annuities and other servicesoffered by Link Charity Canada,please visit their website atwwwlinkcharity.ca

avail . . . only to find out later that all they"invested" did bear fruit as someone elseprayed with that person to receive the Lord.

These spontaneous, often unknownpartnerships are part of the beauty of thebody of Christ, how we work together andhow we learn to give God all the glory. So,why not be more intentional aboutpartnerships that could lead to an evengreater increase? With that in mind, wehave been focusing a lot more onpartnerships these days at Jews for Jesus.

One such partnership has been with myfi"iend ionathan Bernis, n,ho leads a

ministry called Jewish Voice lnternational.One aspect of Jonathan's ministry is his"Messianic festivals," a series of largeevangelistic meetings with music, danceand preaching in places such as Russia,Ukraine and Germany. Almost since hebegan these festivals, we have beenpartnering with Jonathan, especially in thearea of follow-up. Jewish Voice lnternationalturns over any Jewish contacts they receiveat these festivals to our missionaries inthose countries. We contact them all one byone, seeking to continue ministry to them inperson.

And speaking of follow-up, it sometimesworks the other way around. Sergio Danonleads our Jews for Jesus work in Brazil.Once a year he and his family do a week-long marathon outreach for the crowds atCarnaval, where many people they talk toare drunk or high. Even when he prays withpeople to receive the Lord, it's hard forSergio to know if they will remember whathappened the next day. He's had to pushthrough feelings of discouragement to

remain faithful. Then last year, a weekbefore the outreach, Sergio attended apastors' brunch. The chairman introducedhim to speak to seventeen pastors, saying,with tears in his eyes, that five members ofhis church had become believers throughihe ministry of Jews for Jesus duringCarnaval. He then said, "Sergio, we haveno idea how many other churches havebeen receiving people that you have beenwitnessing to throughout these years. Onlythe Lord knows." Thank God for thesechurches, who were able to encourageSergio about "the increase."

As we continue to forge new partnerships,l'm excited to tell you that we're in theprocess of working with an organizationcalled Delta. Together we're layinggroundwork to make all kinds of ministryopportunities in the land of lsrael availableto Christians in North America. This is along-term project, and we will keep youposted about our progress.

Who can place a value on the life of oneperson? Thankfully, whether it is one or tenthousand and one, all who love the Lordhave the privilege of partnering togetherwith others-not so that we, or they, areconsidered "anything"-but so that theincrease comes from Him. I think it is all sovery worth it, don't you? Thank you, dearJews for Jesus partner, for your part in thisincrease. May all praise and glory go toGod!

David Brickner r's a/so an author, publicspeaker and avid hiker. For more aboutDavid and his writings, please visit ouri nte rn ati o n a I site www.j ewsfo rj e s u s. o rg

Ii We exist to make the messiahship of Jesus ani Jewish people worldwide.

unavoidable issue to our -"---t{, I)Jews for Jesus: 10 Huntingdale Blvd, Toronto, ON M1W 2S5; Tel: (416) 444-7020; E-mail toronto@ewsforjesus.ca,

Homepage: www.jewsforjesus.ca; ALSO WORKING lN:Australia, Brazil, France, Germany, lsrael, Russia, SouthAfrica, Ukraine, The United Kingdom and The United States of America; EDITORS: Enid Kang and Laura Barron;VOLUME 3:5775, Spring 2015; O20'15 JEWS F+RJESUS

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I

Updates from the BranchHere are some updates on what's happening with our missionaries:

Our first new year here in Paris began with the tragic terrorist attacksat Charlie Hebdo and the deadly hostage taking at a nearby JewishsupermarKet. Much of the country waE proolaiming "Je ouis Charlie"

("1 am Charlie"), a slogan which came to represent "l am for freedomof expression" and also negatively, "l am against religious extremismthat limits liberty." Our branch took a different approach by pointingthe people to Jesus who said "l am the Way, the Truth, and the Life"and the Light of the World" and his words for true shalom. We sharedthis Good News with many on the street - Jewish people, Muslims,atheists, and agnostics. Our Facebook page went from 2,000 visitorsin one week to 112,000 visitors.

I have had some good encounters while doing street evangelism.While handing out tracts with Charles (a local Jewish believer) near a

Jewish neighbourhood, several Jewish people noticed the Hebrewand French on our sweaters about Jesus the Messiah. Michelle (anolder Jewish woman) believed that her "Jewish religion" was sufficientfor her to believe. I shared the gospel with her and she was open totake a booklet on lsaiah 53 when she left.

We also visited a caf6 with our sweaters on and caught the attentionof all who saw us! Shmuel (the owner) asked us about them and weopenly shared our testimonies and faith in Yeshua. Emmanuel (ayoung Jewish man) opposed the idea that Jesus was the Messiah butour conversation was friendly. Please pray with me that those whoheard about Yeshua that day at the caf6 would come to accept himas Messiah.

I am also discipling a Jewish believer G6rald and meeting a Jewishseeker named Avi who is genuinely searching for answers andhealing from past experiences. Please pray for them and wisdom forme as I minister to them.

From mid to end of March, I will be back in Canada and the US onmy Christ in the Passover tour. I will return to Montrdal to lead amodel Passover seder and explain how the celebration points us tothe person and work of Messiah Jesus as God's ultimate Passoverlamb. Please pray for traveling mercies and for my family who willremain in France. Occasionally I meet unbelievers including Jewishpeople who are invited by their Christian friends. Please pray foropen hearts for those who will attend. Visithttp://jewsforjesus.org/events to see my schedule. lf you are in thearea and are available to attend, I would be happy to see you!

*l{art deSouza {cu{ 'iviafiYeal-naseci rtissicnary) rs c)/r ; tit,le-,,/t,tr

=s-ritir,,merrr ir; Pa,"rs. f rarice

"l am the Light. I am the Way I am the Truth.I am Jesus."

Fn*m taura BarrcnI ventured downtown to the Eaton Centre onBoxing Day with my friend Jenya from CJFministries to give away free cups of hot chocolatealong with broadsides (our gospel tracts). We areexperimenting with doing outreach this way herein Toronto! ln the midst of the busy mall scene, wetried to offer people the best deal that money can'tbuy - a relationship with their Creator. Shoppersstopped to take a drink and we had several gospelconversations. One Jewish man even gave me hiscontact information for follow up and Andrew hasbeen in touch with him since. Please pray that wewill find more 6ppoft unitiesloEV6ngelEe in*--creative ways!

Updates from the Branch continued

Like us onand stay updated with our happenings.www.facebook.com/jewsforjes uscanada

Follow us onand never miss a tweet.www.twitter.com/jewsforjesusCAN

Find us onby connecting with our Canadian Director,Andrew Barron.

Our Canadian has arrived.

ln January, I had the privilege of participating in Missions Fesf inVancouver. lt was exciting to get a glimpse of God's work aroundthe worldl There were hundreds of booths displaying ministriesfrom Africa to Asia to the Americas and beyond. I wasencouraged by the special emphases ranging from ministering tothose struck by Ebola to those engaged in the Hip Hop culture;fellow servants were reaching out with the gospel through alltypes of media to all ages. I was glad to teach a seminar onJewish Evangelism to dozens who were interested in sharing theGood News of our Messiah with Jewish people in their spheresof influence. I was honored to emphasize the uniqueness ofJews for Jesus in our priority of making the messiahship of Jesusan unavoidable issue to our Jewish people worldwide. We love totalk to our Jewish people about Jesus!

The highlight of my weekend at the conference was a divineappointment with a young Jewish man who was not a follower ofJesus. Our booth was directly across from a display showing aliteracy ministry in Rwanda; they had documentary footage oftheir mission playing on a large television. Joshua* was adoctoral student who traveled to Rwanda to film their work forthem. He just "happened to be" hanging around our Jews forJesus table. I started a conversation with him by saying, "l thinkit's interesting that you've been looking at our sign that says'Jewish people still need Jesus' all weekend but you haven'tasked me about it." That began 45 minutes of interaction withhim about the Gospel! Joshua said he had never been to anevent like Missionsfest before; he noticed that people werenetworking instead of competing with one another and theyseemed to be so open about their faith. He said it was acompletely new experience. After the conference, I sent him acopy of our documenlary Farbidden Peace which beautifutlyrecounts what God is doing in lsrael between Palestinian andlsraeli believers. Please pray for Joshua that he would also cometo know peace through Yeshua.

l'm grateful for the many new friends we made in Vancouver. I

met several Jewish believers in Jesus who were new to ourministry and more than 100 Christians who wanted to receive ournewsletter to learn more about the Jewish roots of the Christianfaith and the work of Jewish evangelism. I was also blessed tobe accompanied by Margot, one of our co-labourers in Messiahfrom Calgary who helped me in every detail and effectivelyshared our ministry with those who came to our table. lt is suchan encouragement to share the work of the gospel with so manyfellow servants.

Laura and Margot, our co-laborer, af Misslons Fest Vancouver in Janua4r.

Check it out today at store.jewsforjesus.ca

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