As we were preparing for our first ministry trip to New Zealand, we got discouraging news from three separate local pro-Israel ministries. They all but told me the same story: “We can hardly get into Churches anymore.” “The best we can hope for is a mid week meeting”. It was evident that the ongoing media war against Israel is now bearing fruit even in the pews of Churches across NZ.
These conversations didn’t bode well for our time in your nation. We were stepping out on a limb, travelling from Australia as a family of five, totally dependent on God opening doors for us for ten weeks of ministry.
Would God come through and open the doors for us? I can gladly report that this is exactly what He did. With the help of some amazing local organisers, doors opened up for us to speak at 24 meetings from Dargaville in the North to Invercargill in the south. While there certainly are some closed doors, we can gladly report that there are many who still want to hear about God’s heart for Israel.
Do we need a change of strategy?
In the wake of October 7, it is more important than ever for all of us to influence the wider church in regards to Israel. But how do we overcome the closed doors many of us have encountered? While I am all for ministries proudly waving the Israel flag, in order to get into churches some of us may have to consider a change of strategy. A few years ago we renamed our organisation from “Shalom Israel” to “Olive Tree Ministries”. Our name change reflected a new strategy seeking to connect with churches who may not be open to Israel, but are open to learning about the Jewish background of our faith. We now deliver messages with a clear personal focus, on themes like forgiveness and repentance, while leaving behind nuggets of truth from a Messianic Jewish perspective. Our goal is that people will take these nuggets and pick up our teaching resources and from there discover God’s purposes for Israel in its Biblical context.
This change of strategy can also apply for believers seeking to influence other Christians about Israel. Rather than “Bible bashing” our brothers in the faith, one strategy could be to build friendships with them and share other testimonies from our lives. As they see our genuineness in our personal faith, they may find it easier to receive from us our revelation and excitement concerning Israel.
We look forward to coming back to New Zealand one day, and salute each one of you for the work you are doing. Until next time!
Ps Enoch Lavender was born in Australia, raised in Norway, spent time living in China and is now based on the Gold Coast of Australia. He has been studying Hebrew and the Jewish roots of our faith for the past decade, and has a keen interest in the Middle East from a Bible prophecy perspective.
Contact Enoch and Olive Tree Ministries
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