By Sophia Gliwa —
If you happen to be a Christian youth in Israel, you’re probably the only Jesus follower at your school. So Netivah offers camps and conferences to encourage.
“We’re walking them through a very lonely stage of wanting to belong and yet being rejected from their faith,” says founder Yoel Goldberg, who came to faith in Yeshua when he was 17. “We need to encourage, mobilize and duplicate youth leaders. These teenagers need someone that has grown up here, that is mature in their faith, that is walking in faith, that has served in the military and can come back and encourage them and strengthen them.”
Founded 20 years ago, Netivah Ministries empowers Christian Israelis through mentoring, counseling and Bible study. They take kids out into the wilds of Israel for overnight camping and physical fitness training.
Their pre-Israel Defense Forces camp (all high schooler grads must serve in the IDF 24-32 months) gets the soft kids ready for the rigors while also steeling their hearts to remain firm in their faith.
“Jay” wasn’t a believer, even though he had grown up in a Messianic household. At the urging of his sister, he signed up for the intense training they call Netzur (guarded). On Day 10 while everyone sat around the fire pit, Jay stood up and said: “I’ve never been a believer. I’ve never known Jesus. What do I need to do?”
It finally clicked.
Jay accepted Yeshua. Not only did he discover the faith of his parents, he was strengthened and joined a commando unit in the Nahal Brigade.
“This boy didn’t know anything, didn’t want to do anything. He wanted to do the minimum in the military,” Yoel relates. “When God changes your heart and your life, minimum is not an option.”
“Many have given their lives to Jesus during the Netzur program,” Yoel says. “They’ve been challenged deeply and seriously for the first time in their lives about what they truly believe and what they’re going to stand for.”
A lot of the Netzur graduates wear the fish on their IDF uniform.
After the 10-day Netzur program, they offer a 3-month “Arrows” program.
Another youth — called “S” — was not a Christian and dragged through the Netzur program. So organizers were surprised he signed up for the Arrows.
At month 2-and-a-half, he finally understood the Gospel, accepted Jesus and got baptized.
Another youth suffered panic attacks and doubted her sexual identity got saved in the Netzur program. Today she is a leader bringing youth to the camps from her Messianic congregation.
Netivah have a young women’s conference.
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