June 2011 Newsletter

Greetings in the name of Yeshua! This has certainly been an exciting month for us as God is widening and expanding our ministry and network. First, we want to commend our staff members, Roman and Nicole Clark, for the excellent job they did in leading the Holocaust Memorial Center tour. Following is their report.

This year’s visit to the Holocaust Memorial Center in Farmington Hills on May 22 was an incredible experience. To say that it was an honor and a privilege to be a part of this event is an understatement. We had about 50 to 60 Messianic and Orthodox Jews. We were guided through the tour by two docents who gave us personal insight into the Holocaust. One of the docents carried a picture of his mother that was taken right as she was taken off of one of the “cattle cars” at a concentration camp.

After the tour, we moved into a conference room and listened to Michael Weiss as he elaborated on his experiences in the concentration camp. His presentation was heartbreaking and emotional. Michael talked about losing family members at the hands of the Nazis and highlighted the fact that their captors were especially cruel. Yet even in the midst of all this terror and loss, he could still feel the presence of God. He closed by saying that 2000 years ago, Adonai sent Moses to deliver the Jewish people from Pharaoh and he felt that in 1944, Adonai sent Dwight D. Eisenhower to liberate the Jews once more.

Following Michael’s presentation, Nicole Clark presented him with an original painting of “Father Abraham” painted by Shalom Ministry’s own Donna Denson. Roman Clark then prayed for the peace of Jerusalem and the peace and well being of all Jewish people around the world. We then sang the Shema and gave the Aaronic Benediction in Hebrew. Michael was overcome with emotion seeing these Christian people singing something so dear to him as the Shema and was pleasantly surprised by our use of Hebrew. In addition, the Jewish members of the audience and the two docents themselves were elated to see this group affirming their love and support for Israel and the Jewish nation. I believe the heart of God Himself was blessed by this event.

Isn’t this a wonderful report! We certainly want to remember our new friend Michael, who is 87 years old and not far from the kingdom. Please pray zealously for his salvation. It is thrilling to know that we can go to the HMC and pray in the name of Yeshua and share the Gospel. What a great God we serve!

Upcoming events:

Partnership with Westside Christian Academy: We are planning to partner with Westside Christian Academy to develop a course in Jewish studies for the school’s fall curriculum. Westside is the only Christian School in Detroit, and the student body is primarily African American.

Messianic dinner: Shalom Ministry, along with other Messianic Jewish ministries, is planning to co-sponsor a dinner for Messianic Jews and their families. This will be the first gathering of its kind in Metro Detroit and we are delighted to take part in facilitating this! This will be a night to get the Jewish believers in Jesus to unite and be encouraged.

Pro-Israel rally: We’re also working on a pro-Israel rally that we want to hold at the Jewish Community Center in West Bloomfield, Michigan. This will be a special rally open to everyone, especially Gentile Christians who love and support Israel. So watch for the date.

Michigan Messianic Ministers Alliance: This is something that will be open to ministers who want to come together and discuss timely topics as related to Israel, Jewish evangelism and ongoing issues that affect both Messianic and Gentile believers.

Annual Shalom Banquet: Our annual Shalom Ministry banquet will take place October 27; and our keynote speaker will be Jhan Moskowitz, North American Director of Jews for Jesus.

Ministry Outreach: Our current and upcoming ministry outreach efforts include supporting Ethiopian Jews; supporting Israel College of the Bible, a Bible school in Israel that equips Jewish believers for the ministry; expanding our jail ministry; teaching special Thursday night Bible studies beginning in June; and developing unique and challenging Messianic seminars, beginning with “For Women Only” in June at Bloomfield Hills Baptist Church. Additionally, we are starting the second term of the Hebrew Christian Messianic Institute this fall. These are just a few of the endeavors that we are implementing by faith. Now is the time for you to step up prayerfully and financially to help us reach our goals.

As always, please continue to pray for salvation for our Jewish friends Coby, Mr. Borenstein, Mrs. Goldstein, Barry, Paula (a Holocaust survivor), Gary and Paula, Moe and Diana, Mrs. Cohen, Michelle, Alana, Liz and Stella, Rebecca and Ross, Jonathan, Liz and Brian, and Bella. Please join us in fervent prayer for the Holy Spirit’s intervention in their lives and that they will receive Messiah as Savior and Lord. And finally, please pray for the special needs of Rachel Denson and Donna’s mother, Ann Saunders.

Also, be sure to visit our website at www.ShalomMinistry.com. I’m sure you will enjoy the many audio sermons and videos that are offered, as well as Donna’s artwork. For those of you who missed the roast, watch for an edited version of the event to be posted on the website soon.

With all of these new challenges, we want to be sure to be good stewards of all that God has entrusted to us; so, we are going to electronic mail, and we want to update our e-mail lists. Please let us know if you want to be included in the e-mailings by writing to us at ShalomMinistry77@aol.com. Also, please let us know if you want to continue to receive our regular mail, as well.

Finally, we want to thank the roast committee for a great job!

Until the nets are full,

John and Donna