Missions Update: Tuvya & Ellen Zaretsky January 2019

Shalom and blessings to all at Grace Church Congregational in 2019!  Ellen and I send our  thanks to you for your faithful prayers and generous financial support last year.  I hope you are encouraged by just a few past highlights.

The spiritual apex of 2018 was the Behold Your God Jerusalem outreach.  If you haven’t seen the 2 1/2 minute video recap, here is the link: https://jfj.box.com/s/xint0t3qkgg46ofevdcge5nz830d3pf9 .

Also, great news! My team, the DAPH outreach squad (Drug and Alcohol addicts, Prostitutes & Abused Women, Homeless) was so successful that it has been established as an ongoing ministry based in Tel Aviv.  It is called the Le’re’echa Movement, for “loving your neighbor,” based on Leviticus 19:18 and Jesus words in Matthew 22:36-40. These are familiar to Israels and a way to introduce the message of our Savior Yeshua (Jesus). The team composed from our Israeli staff Igal, Danielle, Bekah and Ma’Ayan. Please pray for their ministry in Jerusalem throughout the winter.

Another high point has been the ministry wide focus now toward Jewish-Gentile couples ministry. The most recent ISSUES vol. 22:8 is wrapped around that subject. You can find it on our website at: https://jewsforjesus.org/publications/issues/issues-v22-n08/spiritual-but-not-religious/

One of the testimonies is written by Phillippe Lewkowicz. I met him and his Gentile wife, while in Paris last month. His is a fantastic story of how Lord is at work reaching Jewish people.

The Lord answered prayer for Alyssa and Tommy, the Jewish-Gentile couple that came to me for help before Thanksgiving.  Alyssa’s Jewish parents are divorced, remarried and her father is an Israeli traditionalist. Neither of them are sympathetic to her faith in Christ.  By God’s grace, she and her fiancé navigated the conversation around announcement of their wedding.  The folks were initially pretty angry about the idea of “Jesus” being mentioned in the ceremony. But they calmed down with the assurance that the wedding would reflect her Jewish heritage as well. Now the Lord is guiding their plans for a thoughtful testimony to her parents in the ceremony later this year.

Over the next two months, I’m training a Jewish-Gentile couples Discipleship Team. They are a specialized group that is crucial for the follow up to our “Search for Yourself” (SFY) social media outreach, during the Passover/Easter season. I’m also working with the Communications Team in San Francisco to create online content for that outreach.  A limited test, during just three days of the Hanukkah festival, produced 84 Jewish-Gentile contacts!  For years, I have anticipated a wonderful Jewish response when we go all out to reach the Jewish-Gentile couples. It is a needy population with significant spiritual interest.  Thanks for your prayers during these first four months of 2019.

And please include prayers for two of our neighbors, who are in Jewish-Gentile relationships with their spouses. Dane is a Gentile from a Christian background who is trying to find his way back to Jesus. His Jewish wife, Pam, is struggling with the whole spiritual search that might bring Jesus into their family. Around the corner is Loren, a Jewish husband and open seeker who is married to a Gentile Christian. He wants to know how to have the peace that Jesus promised in John 14:27. Both men contacted me just this week, leading to lengthy spiritual discussions. I’ve known both couples for several years and they have been aware of our faith and ministry. It is wonderful and encouraging to see them making spiritual inquiry “all of a sudden.” It’s all in the Lord’s timing!

There are so many wonderful stories to tell from 2018 and even more opportunities in the coming year. Thanks for being our partners as we relentlessly pursue God’s plan for the salvation of the Jewish people. Ellen and I pray you will know the Shalom and Blessings of Messiah Yeshua in 2019.

Tuvya Zaretsky

Jews for Jesus