| How do you tell if a movement is succeeding or not? Simple numbers do not always tell the story; it's possible to have more participants and less impact, more statistics and less spiritual vibrancy. But one measure for a spiritual movement has got to be the number of young people who are part of it, especially today when both the Jewish and Christian communities are struggling to create a new generation.
Accordingly, a primary goal in the UMJC is to raise up a new, under-40 generation that is larger than the current over-40 generation. One of our strategies in meeting this goal is to sponsor Kabbetz HaEsrim (Gathering the 20s)—small, accessible, and intimate regional gatherings for young adults. These events are adding new young Messianic Jews to our community, and encouraging other younger members to stay connected. I’d like to share two reports with you, for your encouragement and prayer.
First, from our current newsletter, which will be posted here at www.umjc.org shortly:
"Redemption’s Song, named after the Torah portion for the weekend, Beshalach, was the theme for the UMJC’s second annual west coast 20s conference, Kabbetz HaEsrim West. A fantastic crowd of young people attended the conference, held in Beverly Hills, California.
"The weekend long mini-conference was an inspiring time of music, activities, and speakers. From the inspirational Kabbalat Shabbat service and dinner on Friday night, to the challenging and uplifting message on Sunday morning, Conference attendees have shared that they have felt refreshed, strengthened, and spiritually empowered by the event. Conference speakers included Rabbi Jason Sobel, Joshua Brumbach, Robert Bloch, and Dr. Stuart Dauermann.
"Kabbetz HaEsrim conferences are an initiative of the UMJC’s 20’s Committee to connect, strengthen, and invigorate Messianic young adults. Recognizing the need to carry the Messianic vision into the future, the UMJC has placed great emphasis on building the future through the next generation.
"The Kabbetz HaEsrim MidWest conference, in Chicago, is scheduled for Feb. 22 – 24, 2008. Speakers will include Kirk Gliebe, Rhena Klayman, Rabbi Jason Sobel, and Dr. Jeffrey Feinberg. The theme for the weekend is 'Three Strands,' and you will not want to miss it."
Second, here is an email report from the conference coordinator:
"We had anywhere from 25 - 40 people throughout the weekend. Some came for Saturday night only, others came for the entire weekend, some for Friday night only, etc.
"It was fantastic! Roman and Jon were excellent with the music and they really enjoyed the different type of beat they had. It was just FANTASTIC. Friday night flowed so well, that I didn't even have the "teaching" portion, which was when I was going to teach. It was just going so well, I didn't want to hurt the flow. People were totally enjoying the service! Dinner, Friday night, was also excellent. We had a wonderful meal, and the elements of Shabbat Dinner were great as people were really engaging. We had all kinds of fun singing and toasting to one another.
"Overall, people really got into the theme, 'Redemption's Song.' The teaching was great and I think even our last-minute idea of going to the local congregation was a great idea. It was encouraging to the congregation who sponsored us for the weekend and also it was a different type of service for many people who hadn't experienced a service like it. Also, we were able to integrate some of the music from our musicians and have some of our conference people participate as readers in the service. I think it went really well.
"Sunday morning, Jason tied together the whole weekend so well! His talk was really encouraging! I heard great feedback about the whole conference and especially how it all came together in the end. People really got to know one another, and they connected with one another."
I believe that this sense of connection is one of the main things that younger adults are looking for—connection with each other and with community as well as with Yeshua. These conference are designed to help all that to happen and are meeting younger Messianic Jews right where they live. Please pray for the Midwest conference coming in a couple of weeks, and the East Coast conference next month.
RR
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