OPERATION EPICENTER

May 27, 2008

TO: Pastors, Business Leaders, Political Leaders, and Interested Parties

FROM: Joel C. Rosenberg, Founder of the Joshua Fund

SUBJECT: Launching “Operation Epicenter”

The prospects of a devastating new military confrontation in the Middle East are real and growing. How will we as evangelical Christians respond? Will we help those in harm’s way? Will we do what we can to care for the real and practical needs of millions of innocent people caught in the cross fire? What’s more, will we do so with unconditional love and unwavering support, the kind of generous, gracious love Jesus modeled for us in the Scriptures? Or will we turn a blind eye and a deaf ear?

Israeli political, military, and intelligence leaders tell me they believe Iran, Syria, Hezbollah, and Hamas are preparing for all-out war against the Jewish state. U.S. intelligence officials tell me they fear a catastrophic new conflict in the epicenter may not be far off. No one can be certain when hostilities will begin. But the warning signs are everywhere.

And let’s be clear: the stakes could not be higher.

Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has, of course, vowed to “wipe Israel off the map” and says Israel’s destruction will happen “soon.” If Iranian leaders are able to acquire nuclear warheads, and are able to match those warheads with the high-speed ballistic missiles they already have, they could do in about six minutes what it took Adolf Hitler six years to do—kill six million Jews.

Meanwhile, Israeli intelligence estimates that Iran and Syria have completely rearmed Hezbollah with more than 30,000 rockets and missiles, all aimed at the Jewish state. What’s more, Moscow is selling billions of dollars worth of missiles, fighter jets, and other high-tech armaments to Iran and Syria. North Korea is also working closely with Iran on its long-range ballistic missile program.

Then, of course, there is Iraq. Some important progress has been made in that vital epicenter country. But should the American government precipitously withdraw U.S. military forces from Iraq before Iraqi security forces are fully prepared to make and keep order, many experts fear Sunni and Shiite radicals inside Iraq could be emboldened, leading to a full-blown civil war.

At the same time, death and destruction continue to plague the people of Sudan, who have been suffering genocide in recent years. We also must keep our eye on Lebanon, Jordan, and Egypt, where radical Islamic jihadists are trying to destabilize those governments. The possibility of coups or civil war is particularly acute in Lebanon and Jordan.

THE BIBLICAL COMMAND TO BE READY

The Scriptures command followers of Jesus Christ to love their neighbors and their enemies, bless the poor and needy, and care for victims of war and terrorism, and to do so with unconditional love—that is, with no strings attached. (See Deuteronomy 15:7-11, Leviticus 19:18, Proverbs 25:21-22, Isaiah 58:6-12, Matthew 5:42-44, Matthew 14:16-21, Matthew 15:32-39, Matthew 25:31-46, Luke 4:18-19, Romans 15:25-27, Galatians 2:7-10.)

Severe poverty is rampant in the Arab world. But even in Israel, nearly a quarter of the Israeli population—more than 1.5 million people—lives on less than $800 a month for a family of four. One in five Israelis live on less than $500 a month. When the next war hits, the needs will even be greater.

It is critically important that we be prepared to care for all the people of the region, regardless of race, religion, color, or creed. The Bible says God loves the whole world and cares for all who suffer, Jews and Gentiles alike (John 3:16). The ministry of Jesus was certainly to the children of Israel. But in Matthew 15:21, where was Jesus? He was in southern Lebanon, in the “district of Tyre and Sidon.” Matthew 4:24-25 says the news about Jesus “spread throughout all Syria” and “large crowds followed Him from Galilee and the Decapolis and Jerusalem and Judea and from beyond the Jordan” (NASB). In Acts chapter 2, the followers of Jesus sought to bless everyone they could find. The text says that they reached out to “Medes and Elamites” (Kurds and Iranians), “residents of Mesopotamia” (Iraqis), “Egypt and the districts of Libya,” and “both Jews . . . and Arabs.” This is our mandate too.

The Joshua Fund, therefore, is committed to building a global alliance of evangelical Christians ready, willing, and able to bless Israel and her neighbors in the name of Jesus, according to Genesis 12:1-3. We also believe we must move quickly, because war is coming, and the clock is ticking.

THE OPERATION EPICENTER APPROACH

Operation Epicenter is a Joshua Fund initiative to provide at least $120 million worth of humanitarian relief supplies to the epicenter over the next few years to care for those in need today, as well as to pre-position supplies ahead of future wars.

Here is a quick overview of our goals and objectives:

Operation Epicenter Strategies

The Joshua Fund seeks to build a global alliance of evangelical Christians that will:

Bless the poor and needy in Israel and the Muslim world

Bless victims of war and terrorism in Israel and the Muslim world

Pre-position humanitarian relief supplies ahead of coming wars

Work closely with local and national political leaders to bless those in need

Distribute aid through local believers, congregations, and ministries when possible, as well as through local officials and in cooperation with other aid organizations

Communicate the urgent needs of the epicenter to believers around the world

Build a global movement of believers praying for the people of the epicenter

Assist in the restoration of Israel and reconciliation between Jews and Muslims

Operation Epicenter Projects

Over the next few years, the Joshua Fund and our allies seek to:

Bless Israel with at least $100 million in humanitarian relief
Bless Israel’s neighbors with at least $20 million in humanitarian relief
Invest in projects to expand “pipeline capacity” in the epicenter, enabling local ministries to better receive and distribute humanitarian relief supplies and helping them acquire warehouse space, trucks, forklifts, etc.
Hold Epicenter Conferences around the world to help evangelical Christians understand God’s love for the people of the Middle East, understand the threats facing the people of the region, and learn how they can bless Israel and her neighbors in real and practical ways, showing unconditional love and unwavering support
Recruit at least 100,000 people around the world to pray faithfully for the people of the epicenter

The Joshua Fund’s Accomplishments to Date:

Over the past few years, the Joshua Fund and our allies have—by God’s grace—been able to:

Provide much-needed relief to 3,500 needy residents (including some 700 seniors) of Kiryat Shmona, an Israeli town on the northern border with Lebanon that was hit by more than 1,000 rockets during the Second Lebanon War. These residents—all of whom live below the poverty level—received Hannukah gifts for their children, clothes, diapers, kitchen supplies, warm comforters for the winter, and other essentials.

Provide blankets, heaters, clothing, kitchen supplies, toys, school supplies, and other relief for hundreds of needy residents of Sderot, an Israeli town on the southern border with Gaza that has been hit by thousands of rockets, mortars, and missiles since the Israeli military withdrawal from Gaza in the summer of 2005.

Provide vans to local officials and relief organizations in Israel to help them transport volunteers and relief supplies.

Finance the purchase of hundreds of tons of food in Israel, some of which is provided to the poor and needy in Jerusalem, some of which is provided to those in need in northern Israel, and some of which is being stockpiled for use in the next war.

Finance the purchase of much-needed medical equipment and supplies for the Barzilai Medical Center, the only hospital available to the 500,000 Israelis living on the border with Gaza.

Stock bomb shelters in northern Israel with food, water, and other essential supplies in preparation for the next war.

Provide financial assistance to organizations in Israel that care for needy Holocaust survivors, new immigrants and refugees, homeless men and women, and victims of terrorist attacks.

Provide thousands of new backpacks and school supplies to Israeli schoolchildren who live below the poverty level.

Provide relief packages through trusted evangelical Christian ministry partners for some 6,000 Arab families in Lebanon devastated by the Second Lebanon War. These care packages included nonperishable food items such as beans, rice, pasta, canned meat, processed cheese, oil, and powdered milk. In addition, each package contains basic supplies such as soap, candles, matches, and aspirin, along with a JESUS film DVD in Arabic.

Provide financial assistance to trusted evangelical Christian ministries that distribute food, clothing, Arabic Bibles, and other essential relief supplies to Palestinian Arabs in the West Bank and Gaza.

Finance the establishment of evangelical Christian radio ministries in the West Bank and Iraq.

Finance shipments of humanitarian relief supplies into Iraq and Sudan, working closely with trusted evangelical Christian ministries.

Hold the inaugural Epicenter Conference in Jerusalem in April 2008, attended by some 2,000 Christian leaders from all over the world and webcast to thousands more. (See www.epicenter08.com.)
Speak at pastors’ conferences, retreats, and other assemblies throughout the epicenter—in Israel, Iraq, Jordan, Egypt, Turkey, and elsewhere—to encourage local Christian leaders, pray with them, and find ways to stand with them and support the vital work of building and strengthening the church of Jesus Christ in the lands of its birth.
Sign up more than 50,000 subscribers to “Flash Traffic” to receive geopolitical updates from the epicenter, Joshua Fund project updates, and urgent prayer requests.
Educate more than 30 million people about the work of the Joshua Fund and the threats to Israel and her neighbors through hundreds of radio, television, and print interviews.

This is just a snapshot of what we are doing, but I hope it gives you a sense of where our hearts are and how we are investing the resources you and others are investing in us. There is much more to be done, of course. The good news is that we have been deeply encouraged by the number of Israeli and Arab leaders who have sought the help of the Joshua Fund and by the enthusiastic and generous response of evangelical Christian pastors, businessmen and women, and lay leaders around the world.

One example: When we completed our first project in Kiryat Shmona—in close cooperation with our Jewish and Christian allies in Israel—we had the privilege of meeting with the mayor, a former Israeli defense minister, and other local and national officials to better understand the situation Israelis face in the north. That night, I was asked to address an audience of some 350 Israelis to explain why evangelical Christians want to bless Israel. After a few minutes of speaking by translation, I concluded by saying, “You will soon forget who I am, what organization I represent, and what I’ve said here tonight. That’s fine. But if you happen to remember one thing, I hope it is this: The followers of Sheikh Nasrallah and Hezbollah hate you and want to destroy you. But the followers of Jesus love you and will stand with you.” The audience erupted with applause. Many Israelis came up to us afterward to thank us for caring for them in their time of need.

This is the Operation Epicenter approach—by building strategic alliances between evangelical Christians, Jewish leaders, Arab leaders, local pastors, and local officials in every country in which we work, we believe that together we can leverage limited amounts of financial resources in order to bless the maximum amount of people.

HOW YOU CAN HELP

Interested in joining the Operation Epicenter movement? There are lots of ways to help. Consider this list of 60 ways to bless Israel and her neighbors in the name of Jesus.