The mission of JVMI’s Congregation and Leadership Development (CLD) department is to plant indigenous Messianic Jewish congregations, develop Messianic Jewish leaders around the world as the Lord directs, and strengthen the work of JVMI in prayer.
International Congregational Work
Over the years, the large-scale outreaches of Hear O’ Israel Ministries and Jewish Voice Ministries International have resulted in hundreds of thousands of new Believers. The ministry has always been committed to those new Believers through ensuring follow-up, congregation planting, and leadership development.
On the international field, CLD follows the work of the medical clinics to open doors for ongoing relationships and discipleship in the name of Yeshua in the communities that we serve. Jewish Voice currently comes alongside 15 congregations among the Beta Israel groups in Ethiopia with three more underway at the time of this writing. Several of these congregations are thriving and multiplying, serving their communities with creative, well-planned outreach and aid to the Beta Israel.
The Lemba of Zimbabwe have clear ties to the Levites, and they are coming to faith in Yeshua in rather astonishing numbers. Over the generations, some of the Lemba had heard the Gospel before, and those that accepted Yeshua as the Messiah found they did not fit in Christian churches or Jewish synagogues. When Jewish Voice reached out to the Lemba in 2012 with the first medical clinic, not only did thousands come to faith in Yeshua, but those who already believed in Him found a form of worship that honored both the practice of their Jewish heritage and their New Covenant faith in Yeshua. Since that time, 61 congregations have formed among the Lemba. Ten were planted in 2016 alone, and there exists the potential for many more in the future. Also, we are presently laying the foundations for a congregation plant in South Africa among the Lemba there.
Each year Jonathan Bernis and the CLD team meet with over 100 Messianic leaders in Zimbabwe and over 75 in Ethiopia from all levels of congregational ministry to teach, equip, and encourage them in their ministries. Aside from these gatherings, multiple times per year, the Jewish Voice CLD team travels to Ethiopia and Zimbabwe to visit with national, regional, and local congregational leaders. These visits allow us to interact with congregants, assess needs, preach in Shabbat services, and “get on the ground” with the congregations we are serving.
JVMI’s commitment to these Messianic communities goes beyond congregations. Jewish Voice has currently helped establish five early childhood development centers among the people we serve, and there is tremendous potential for many more in the future. Jewish Voice is also involved in establishing micro-businesses to help with economic development. In Zimbabwe, we have initiated ten poultry projects that will benefit the communities with food and provide the opportunity to grow business skills for sustainable incomes. The future holds exciting possibilities for this type of development project, leading to an even deeper positive impact in the communities JVMI serves.
Supporting the Worldwide Messianic Community
Within the United States and around the world, Jewish Voice Ministries serves the Messianic Jewish community through guidance, financial resources, and leadership summits to help develop and deepen Messianic Jewish congregations and ministries.
Jewish Voice hosts an annual gathering of leaders from the international Messianic Jewish community. Some 400 Messianic Jewish leaders from the USA, Israel, and other nations attend the Messianic Leadership Roundtable (MLR). The MLR began in 2007 and hosted its 10th annual conference in 2016.
JVMI also engages in strengthening emerging Messianic leaders. Through both formal and informal gatherings of young Messianic Jewish leaders, JVMI is investing in the next generation of Messianic leadership around the world. The Jewish Voice Congregation and Leadership Development team is also exploring how it can strategically serve ministries that reach out with the truth of Yeshua to Jewish students on college campuses.
Serving JVMI and the Messianic Jewish Community through Prayer
Within Jewish Voice, the CLD team works to develop and strengthen prayer support of JVMI, as well as the ministries we partner with around the world. Knowing prayer is essential to accomplishing God’s work, the CLD team is committed to serving the ministries of JVMI by covering them in prayer from the day-to-day operations to efforts of the Global Outreach department to our own work for His kingdom. We hold daily prayer meetings for staff members and facilitate weekly and monthly prayer meetings that are open to local intercessors.
In addition to praying for the work of JVMI, we are also committed to raising up prayer for the Messianic Jewish community in Israel and around the world, as well as for the nation of Israel. We believe that the best protection of the people of Israel is the confession of Yeshua as Messiah. We pray on a daily basis toward this end, as well as for Israel’s leadership and national safety.
Prayer is such a vital part of serving the Lord, especially in an international ministry the size of Jewish Voice. We are devoted to holding up this ministry in prayer before the Lord to fulfill His purposes and follow His leading in all that we do. Our dream is to develop a fully functioning Prayer Center that combines worship and intercession. The vision for the future is 24/7 prayer! As we continue building into that dream day by day, year by year, Jewish Voice remains committed to pursuing a continually deepening and increasing foundation of prayer.
