“For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.” — The Apostle Paul (Romans 1:16)

Darkness is falling on the people of the Middle East — war, terrorism, ethnic cleansing, Radical and Apocalyptic Islam and even genocide. More than ever, they need the light of the Gospel and the hope of God’s love, forgiveness and eternal life (especially at Christmas, but every day of the year, as well!)

In 2006, Lynn and I founded The Joshua Fund, a non-profit organization “to bless Israel and her neighbors in the name of Jesus.” Over the past ten years, we and our team have seen and learned a great deal. Here are some of the two most encouraging lessons.

First, I see a tremendous openness to the Gospel message among my people, the Jewish people, in Israel and around the world that may very well be unprecedented since Jesus and the Apostles themselves were preaching and teaching in the First Century.

It’s not that every Jewish person who hears the Gospel is receiving the message and trusting in Jesus as Messiah, but so many more Jewish people are open to listening to the Gospel message. Many are asking questions about Jesus, searching for answers on the Internet, and watching online video testimonies of Jewish people explaining how they came to faith in Jesus. They’re curious about reading the New Testament, and some are stunned to learn that Jesus is Jewish, that His mother and earthly father were Jewish, that He lived and ministered to Jews in Israel, that He came to ‘the lost sheep of the house of Israel.’ And they want to learn more.

That’s why the work of The Joshua Fund is so important at this extraordinary moment in history. Similar to a venture capital fund, we come alongside small but growing and promising congregations and ministries and we invest in them – with encouragement, with prayer, and, when appropriate, with financial resources. Why? So they can sow more seeds, and bear more fruit, and prepare the way for the Lord’s return. That’s why we count it such a joy and honor to invest in these ministries.”

Second, it’s not just Jewish people who are exploring and responding to the Gospel — what also excites me is that amidst the worst persecution in the modern history of the Church, we are seeing the greatest harvest of souls in the Muslim world in the history of the Church.

From 1960 to 2010, the number of Muslims that have converted to faith in Jesus Christ has grown from fewer than 200,000 to some 10 million people. This was the conclusion of a ground-breaking peer-reviewed article published in 2015 by two respected Christian scholars, Dr. Duane Alexander Miller and Patrick Johnstone.

Now, in a world of 1.6 billion Muslims, 10 million conversions may appear to be a small percentage, but remember in nearly fourteen centuries of Islam, there were almost no conversions to Christ – some, but not many. Today, we are seeing unprecedented numbers of Muslims searching for hope via satellite TV, radio and the Internet. Some are reading the Bible and examining the claims of Christ for the first time. Others are seeing dreams and visions of Jesus. And they are coming to faith in numbers we’ve never seen before.

That’s why Lynn and I see it as so important for The Joshua Fund to invest not only in ministries to Jewish people but also in Arab pastors and ministry leaders who are reaching Muslims, to encourage and refresh them, to help them make disciples and train and equip new believers, and develop young leaders.

Here are a few excerpts from our 2016 Donor Report — examples of how your faithful prayer and financial investments are changing lives…..

---

“I am 23 and grew up in a Jewish Orthodox family. My stepfather is part of an extreme religious group in Judaism, and they sent me to an Orthodox boarding school in Israel. I asked once about Yeshua [Jesus] and was told to never ask about Him again. I slowly became secular. Just a year ago, Yeshua came back to my thoughts. I decided to return to a religious seminary and I spoke with the rabbis about Yeshua, and they convinced me that he was not the Messiah. I couldn’t connect with what they were teaching, it did not have the ring of truth, so I left school and became secular once again. Then all of a sudden, Yeshua once again came to mind. I knew that it was not me chasing Yeshua, but Yeshua was pursuing me, wanting me for Himself. Because of all the fears that I grew up with, I was afraid so I decided to ask Him, ‘If you are real, help me.’ Then, I came across videos about Yeshua on the internet and they helped me understand. I started reading the New Testament and found out how godly this book is and how far modern Judaism is from Moses’s Bible. How could they tell me Yeshua was anti-Semitic? My family is religious, so I’m believing in secret.”

– A young woman in Israel

---

“One Syrian refugee family settled in Jordan and we were providing food for their daily needs. This man, Makmoud, was the most intimidating man I have ever met. I was threatened by his very presence each time I visited their home to drop off their food package. I kept thinking that if he had a weapon, I would have been dead. Makmoud would not look at me, but his wife would accept the package. It was the same each time I visited, the same looks and intimidation, but they accepted the food delivery. After three weeks, his wife fell down a flight of stairs and broke her leg. Makmoud called me and said, “You’re my only friend in life.” So a relationship began. We paid for two surgeries for his wife, and when they came to thank us for the funds provided for her medical procedures, we gave them a Bible and shared with them about the Lord. They both gave their hearts to Jesus Christ that day. Later they asked us, “We don’t have any money, but we’re reading in the New Testament about giving. Is Jesus okay with us giving some of the clothes and food we’ve been given?” They went from fearful and intimidating to radiant.”

– A ministry partner serving in Jordan

---

“We have witnessed God’s faithfulness as we pray for new staff – the right people for the right roles. My heart rejoices as I watch the younger members of our team taking responsibility, working on projects and doing it all with joy. This is a sign of God’s faithfulness in causing the body of the Messiah in Israel to grow and mature. It encourages me to see God’s faithfulness as we watch young people who have felt led by God to take important roles in the team.”

– A ministry partner in Israel

---

“Almost eight years ago I started this ministry with one student. Today, we have a team working together and over 90 students. Every month, I am so happy when I see that we can pay the salaries of our team. We have no idea where the money keeps coming from, but God keeps opening up doors for us. I truly believe that when God gives a vision, He will provide the people and the support required. It’s not just the support that amazes us, it’s the people that God continues to bring to us who need Jesus, who need the Gospel to bring healing into their lives.”

– An evangelistic ministry in Israel

---

“How can we come alongside Believers in the Middle East? How can we support and pray for these men and women that are heroes of the faith? Their stories read straight from the book of Hebrews and Acts – to be so joyful in the midst of difficulty that we cannot even imagine. We should not forget how much they suffer. When we go to visit them, we sit at their feet and listen. They all suffer from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) from being around so much suffering and death. One man said 7,000 young men were killed in his city alone. The stories are from the pit of hell, and living through this much death and destruction is so difficult for them. We can encourage them, pray for them and let them know they are not alone. Most people are shocked when they learn that there are Christians still living in Syria, let alone pastors. By caring and encouraging Syrian pastors, it helps keep the light burning in the darkness.”

– A ministry partner serving in Syria

>> Would you like to make a year-end, tax deductible, secure donation to the work of The Joshua Fund? Please click here.

>> Read the 2016 Donor Report online, and watch several short videos about the work of The Joshua Fund.

>> Visit The Joshua Fund website and learn how we are mobilizing Evangelical Christians to bless Israel and her neighbors in the name of Jesus; caring for the poor and needy, Holocaust survivors, and Syrian and Iraqi refugees; preaching the Gospel and strengthening the Church to make disciples in the epicenter by God’s grace and your help.