Outreach EXPO 2000, Germany 9/8 - 23/8 2000

This scripture became a challenge and motto to the group that went to the Expo 2000 World’s Fair for a joint outreach project with Musalaha, Life Agape (Campus Crusade), and the Israeli National Evangelism Committee. In the small group of 19 people there were Israelis of Russian, Hispanic, and Ethiopian backgrounds, Palestinians from the West Bank and from Israel, and a German. They were invited to share in the Pavilion of Hope (an outreach exhibition sponsored and built by German churches). After a year of preparation and prayer, support and investment from international organizations, and training from local leaders, the group went to Hannover from August 9 – 23. The following is a report from one of the leaders and some impressions from the participants:

Preparations

Almost one year prior to the trip, the group began meeting for training and team-building. Before our team left to go to Germany, we had arranged several meetings and one whole weekend. This way we had the chance to get to know each other, to prepare ourselves for our ministry abroad, and start the process of teambuilding long before we left the country. We felt that these meetings were of a high importance for the group, as first friendships could be developed differences be discussed, guidelines be given, and ministry training be provided. Initial frustrations about different languages and cultures came up in advance, and we dealt with questions that came from different expectations. As a result, we didn't have to leave to Germany as a group of individual strangers, but as a team, where everybody had already started to find their place.

For some reason I'd had resentment toward Jews, which I couldn't explain. I would feel angry when I heard Hebrew being spoken around me. When I was invited to join the group of Palestinians and Jews going to Germany, I knew inside that this was the chance the Lord was giving me to change; that if I went, He would change me, and if I didn't go, I wouldn't change. So I knew when I made my decision to go, that He had already started His good work in me. God gave me a love I never had for the Jewish believers, and enabled me to develop relationships with them. I even spend time on my own worshiping in Hebrew now! - Palestinian participant

Arrival

A delegation from the Baptist congregation in Springe welcomed us and hosted us in their congregational building for the entire two weeks of our outreach. Staying together in one place gave us the chance to have great times of fellowship together as a team and start the days together in worship, prayer, and devotional times which were prepared by different people from the team.

" Worshiping together was good. We also had a lot of fun in the train stations, on the trains, in the Expo, etc. singing, playing our drums & guitars and clapping. It attracted crowds, of course, and gave us opportunities to share with many local people." I was impressed at the level of maturity this group had. They knew how to have fun, but they also knew how to work together – and yes, we had a lot of work to do, whether in the pavilion, in churches, on the street, and of course – sharing all the chores (including cooking!). - Palestinian participant from Bethlehem

From the first day on some of the German young people started to join our team for times of fellowship and outreach. Some of them said that the time they'd spent with us not only brought them closer to the Lord and revived their commitment to Him as well as their faith, but also challenged them to reach out to people in their own community, sharing the Gospel wherever they are. We had some really blessed times together with them.

I am a Jewish believer who was just released from the Israeli Defense Force. I found it quite easy to really relate to and enjoy the company and friendship of the Palestinians in the group. Looking back, I realize that a lot of God's work was meant from the very beginning, to be done in us. There wasn't as much output as there was input. I learned a lot about what it meant to work together as a body of believers, no matter what the nationality. Much was learned about compromising for the satisfaction of others. It was on the trip that we learned how to appreciate and love each other for who we really were, and share this love with others. But it wasn't until we were in Germany that that actually took place. - Jewish participant

Ministry

*EXPO/Pavilion of Hope: Our main evangelistic project in the EXPO was a program in the Pavilion of Hope Studio, the so-called "Island of Communication." Two MCs guided our team through a series of evangelistic talk shows, where we had the chance to give personal testimonies and share the Gospel. We would start our 20-minute programs with a song in Hebrew or Arabic, followed by an interview. The leading MC asked us questions about life in Israel, the Arab-Israeli conflict, our personal experiences and the faith that unites us in Yeshua, the Messiah. Already after the first day we saw that many visitors of the pavilion were very interested in what we had to say, and the Middle Eastern theme drew a lot of attention. So we were glad to see how our programs opened the door for many good and fruitful conversations with people inside and around the Pavilion of Hope. After a few days the program manager of the pavilion approached us and asked us to also perform in the amphi-theatre (a place outside of the pavilion which has the purpose of drawing people's attention to the pavilion and raising their interest to come in and watch an evangelistic animation movie, to think about the meaning of life, and to see the program on the Island of Communication). Taking it as another opportunity to pass on the message of salvation and reconciliation in public, we followed the invitation, joyfully praising the Lord on the stage of this amphi-theatre with our songs in Arabic and Hebrew.

" It was great to have the group here in the Pavilion of Hope. With their shows on the Communication Island they were a real enrichment to the live program in the Pavilion. Through their statements they broadened the view of German Christians about what it means to live as a believer in Israel and Palestine considering all the problems. Apart from that they made clear, how important and life-changing the love of Jesus is in the issue of reconciliation. Through this they showed us the importance of giving our brothers and sisters spiritual support through prayer. In addition to that they attracted many non-Christian EXPO visitors through their singing and testimonies on the communication-island, and shared with them about their faith. Besides it was much fun for us to spend time with the group and their leaders, with those friendly people, who brought a little sunshine into rainy Germany. I'm very thankful that they were here…" -Rena Sauer, Event Manager, Pavilion of Hope

*Local congregation: Even though our primary outreach goal had been personal evangelism, we ended up doing most of our ministry together as a team. So we spent quite a lot of time preparing for church meetings in addition to our programs in the Pavilion of Hope in the EXPO, travelling, and talking to believers from different congregations before and after the meetings. But although this did not really fit in with our idea of the trip, God used our team a lot to encourage German believers in the whole area around Hanover. According to feedback from different sides believers felt challenged, woken up, and strengthened in their faith through our input into those meetings.

* Personal evangelism: Apart from our "public ministry" we made it a habit to share with people on a personal level whenever we had the opportunity. So we had many good conversations with people during our free time, between our appointments at the Pavilion of Hope in the EXPO, waiting for the train at the train station, on the trains, on our way to go shopping, doing sight seeing in Berlin, etc.

" Evangelism was very good! Maybe the best in my life. There was a true sense of teamwork. I think we did much more than the Lord wanted us to do. Kind of "never stop" rule - but we didn't ever stop anyway, so it didn’t matter. Some moments of talking to people, or just seeing people coming to talk to us - I would never forget! I thank God for showing me how great it could be! " - Jewish Participant

Sometimes while waiting for the train we would take out our guitar and our drums and start singing, which always drew a crowd of people who were either curious to find out what kind of a group of people we are, or who simply liked the rhythm of Middle Eastern music and drums. These times of joyful singing, which sometimes continued even on the bus or on the train, were always followed by some deep conversations with people around.

Personal experiences:

When Suha*, an Arab girl from our team, walked back from town to the congregation, she met two Arab speaking girls on the street. After they had talked shortly, she invited them to come with her and meet some other members of our group. It turned out that these girls were from Kurdistan, and that they were at a stage in their lives where they did not see any meaning to their lives. Nizar and some other people shared with them about the hope we have in Yeshua, and how we can get into a personal relationship with the living God. They continued sharing their hearts for several hours, and when the people from our group prayed with them before they had to leave, one of the girls started to cry. We blessed them and pray that God will reveal Himself to them and let the seed grow that we were able to plant into their hearts. * Name changed

After one of the group's presentations on the Communication Island in the pavilion of hope, a man from Kenya came up to Danny,* a Jewish believer originally from Ethiopia; He asked him if he was Jewish and Danny replied: "Yes." The man then said that he had many questions about the truth: how is one saved? What had God done in the past, and what was He doing now? He had prayed to God to send a Jew to witness to him. He felt that a Jew would be able to answer best the specific questions he had. Danny understood that it was very important that he took the time to speak with this man. He received permission to leave the Communication Island, and had coffee with him. After sharing for a while, the man listening intently, he asked to receive the Lord and Danny prayed with him. They then returned to the group, who prayed with him once more, and rejoiced with him. Esther,* another Ethiopian Jew in the group, shared in the excitement of this appointment that was obviously God's plan. Not only had this man's prayer been answered in meeting a Jewish believer, he was led to a group of them, some of which were even African! Just recently Danny received a letter from him in which he writes about his new life in the Lord and his excitement about the divine appointment that God had set for him in the EXPO in Germany to lead him to The Truth. - Jewish participant

*Names changed

On another occasion we continued singing on the train. The train was packed with hundreds of people who came back from a soccer game in Hanover. As it was already after midnight, we decided to be sensitive to people around us and asked if they preferred us to be quiet, giving them a chance to rest. But they all agreed that we should continue. One guy added that he would never take his car again if there should always be such an atmosphere of contagious joy on the trains. We ended up having a very good conversation with this particular man, listening to his frustrating experiences with the church and explaining how the Bible portrays a very different picture of God than most of the traditional churches do. He was very open to hear our personal testimonies and said in the end that we had caused him to think about things that had never really crossed his mind before.

Another contact we made on the train was a young guy who came from the same small town where we stayed. When we got off the train, we invited him to visit us at the Baptist congregation. He came over that same evening and was befriended by some of the young people of the congregation. They explained more to him about our faith in God, and he was clearly touched. He came again a few days later, and it seems like God is continuing to work in his life through some of the new friendships he has established with people in that congregation.

While we were doing sight seeing in Berlin on our day off, we passed a place where some people were selling small gifts and jewelry on the streets. When Dalia, a Jewish immigrant from Peru, saw a Spanish speaking woman among the people who were selling their items, she started talking to her. Hearing her native language, this lady opened up, and after Dalia had shared the Gospel with her, she prayed right there on the streets of Berlin to accept Yeshua.

Working closely together with people in the Pavilion of Hope, God used us to also touch some of the lives of people there. The main program manager of the pavilion suddenly started crying, when we were closing our time of debriefing on our last day in the EXPO in prayer. She told Juventus and Daniela later on that she had been deeply touched by seeing us living out what we believe in a simple and childlike way. She said that through watching us, talking to us, and working out some struggles with us, God had put a desire into her heart to return to the simplicity of faith, trusting Him and believing in His goodness like a child relates to his father.

This trip has had an enormous impact not only on hundreds of people in Germany, but also on the people in our team. Most of us agree that the trip has been a life changing experience, stretching us sometimes to the limits, but bringing out something absolutely precious and beautiful in and through us.

God's word has gone out from this Land, His name has been proclaimed and exalted among many nations in the EXPO, people have been saved for eternity, believers have renewed their commitments to go out and share the Gospel, hundreds of lives have been touched, and we all have learned a practical lesson on what Yeshua meant when He said: "By this all men will know that you are truly my disciples, if you love one another".

" I realized that the purpose of the trip was to show people that what brought us together (Jews & Arabs) was the love of God…" - participant