Louise's Bio
Early in Louise Newmark's career, an incident occurred which would be prophetic of her ministry. While on an extended visit to a friend in Capetown, South Africa, she and her friend took a walk on a rural path. As they strolled along, Louise noticed a few buttons on the ground. She absentmindedly picked them up and put them in her pocket; then a little later she found more. By the end of the walk she had found ten buttons.

It crossed her mind that she might be able to use them for a cardigan sweater she had been knitting. But that afternoon, when she examined them more closely, she realized that they did not all match. She joked with her friend that they would have to take another walk so she could get more buttons!

The next day they were again walking the rustic path, when Louise noticed more buttons on the ground! Then she found a few more, and then more—white ones, brown ones, and black ones. She found 25 buttons that day! This was certainly unusual, since there were no stores or factories in the vicinity. When they returned to the house, she realized she now had enough to finish her knitting project.

A third time Louise went walking with her friend. Unbelievably, as she walked the path she again noticed buttons on the ground that she had not seen previously. This time she found 85 buttons! She knew in her heart that this was no coincidence, but that God was trying to teach her something.

She asked Him to explain what this meant. Louise felt the Holy Spirit tell her that the white buttons represented those Jewish people to whom God had called her to witness. While these would make up the majority of her work, God would also give her people of all colors--white, brown, and black—to win to the Lord. She also understood that He would lead her to other places to complete other projects—like the cardigan—for Him.

God Leads Louise to Johannesburg Over the years, God has put many "buttons" in Louise's path, and has given her several "cardigans" to complete. When she began in 1960, at age 24, she moved from her parents' home in Capetown to Port Elizabeth to work in the office of the South Africa Jew Society, later called Hope for Israel.

This was a difficult move: "I used to cry my eyes out," she says. As the years passed, she began visiting Jewish people with the regular missionaries. In 1982, though filled with trepidation, she began evangelizing full-time. Eventually, God led her to Johannesburg, South Africa's largest city. She now realizes that God was preparing her in that first move for her current work.



"He's always in the business of freeing us and bringing us to depend totally on Him," she explains. "That's how I see my life—it's exciting. It's not always easy, but it's exciting. And as you get more free from things and people you find you move around much easier. But He takes you step by step."

Louise never married; she feels that it is God's will that she be His alone. She feels great peace about it. "As you move forward in the Lord's will," she says, "it's as if the Lord becomes your foundation."

The Lord in the Hearts of Individuals Each day, she takes the bus to the suburbs of Johannesburg, and walks door-to-door, witnessing and giving out tracts. It takes her a year to cover the whole area, but there are some people she visits regularly.

"It's wonderful when people ask the Lord into their hearts," Louise says, "but it's more wonderful when I see the Holy Spirit operating, and there's growth—then I know it's real."

Danger Threatens—but the Lord Protects On the weekends, Louise continues reaching out to the unsaved. After morning worship services, a group from her church goes to Jeppe Station, a train depot, where there have been muggings and even some murders. For an hour they sing, sometimes in Black languages which they don't understand; then they take turns preaching. Through their efforts, many people have been saved, some of whom are now ministers themselves.

Once, when a man threatened to shoot the missionaries, they left. However, the older man who leads them, who had not been with them that day, declared, "Look, we're going back." The following Sunday, a man entered the circle of people who had gathered to hear the preaching. He tried to disrupt the meeting, but the missionary leader approached him and rebuked him in the name of Jesus. The intruder staggered back as if someone had pushed him, and left.

After the hour at Jeppe Station, the group moves to Louise's neighborhood for more singing and preaching. There is much drug activity in that area, and it is common to see people gambling and selling drugs openly. She lives in a home for older, retired people, although at 63 Louise is not quite old enough to qualify. When asked about retiring, she says, "Since I live in an old age home, I don't want to retire at all."



"I want to work until I drop dead!" she laughs. "I don't want to sit around doing nothing." Because of the political instability in South Africa, many Jews have moved away, but Louise doesn't seem to fear for her own safety.

"It's getting very dangerous. There have been people mugged front, right, and center—even killed! But I will never leave my area while there are still Jewish people there, because I feel they need me. If they can live there, then I can work there."

Contact Louise Newmark
P.O. Box 345
San Antonio, TX 78292

(800) 497-8766

louisen@cjfm.org

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