A Wind of His Blessings

Next, we met a man who opened his door while still on the phone . He kept the person on hold while telling us that after having gone through the Holocaust, and now at 86 years old, he didn’t need what we were offering. Catherine told him about a life of blessing attainable through the Hebrew Scriptures and offered the prophecy bookmark as well. The gentleman ended up taking the full set. Praise Yeshua!

At another door, a woman listened but said she couldn’t take it; she told us to come back later when her husband would be home. Catherine then said she would come back in a couple of days with a Bible. At another door, we heard loud music from inside yet no one opened. After trying several other doors without an answer, Danielle and Catherine went back to the apartment with the loud music and this time a man in his fifties opened up! He shared how since his mother passed away (she was 72), everything seemed to have gone wrong. And now he even lost his job. His name is Abraham and a good conversation took place concerning the blessings and hope in the Scriptures. We assured him that we would pray that he find a new job. He took a set and a bookmark, the latter being strategically placed right at the 53rd chapter of Isaiah. Let us pray that he reads it. “Who’s there?” came the voice from behind the door through which Catherine gave her usual intro: “We have a gift for you from the Society for the Publication of the Hebrew Scriptures”… Silence. We knocked again. Nothing. We left, and a wave of sadness washed over the three of us.

At another door, a lady opened and asked Danielle and Catherine in French if they were Jewish. They discussed how one can determine who is Jewish. While the woman was holding the 2 books (the Old and New Covenant) with a bookmark (purposefully placed again at the 53rd chapter of Isaiah), a loud voice came from down the corridor, from the lady of the very first door we knocked on who had boldly refused the set. She shouted, “Rachel … don’t take anything from them, they are Jews for Jesus!” And talking directly to us she shouted again, “You are not allowed to do this… I’m going to call the police!” Rachel, still holding onto the set in her hands, closed her door. We thank the Lord that she did not refuse the Bible set, but rather took it into her home. Let’s pray that she keeps the Word of God despite her neighbor’s influence. May the shouting neighbor one day even covet what Rachel has, and herself shout praises to the Lord most high. After this incident, we chose to calmly take the stairs in order to avoid confronting this woman again.

We went down to 5th floor and there, while knocking on doors, had the opportunity to meet some others who were either walking down the corridor or getting off the elevator. Were these chance meetings or God’s perfect timing? While my 2 sisters were preparing to knock on yet another door, I was leaning up against the wall taking notes. Just then, a lady came out of the elevator to go towards the laundry room. Being in her way, I moved back, smiled and offered her the Bible set which she cheerfully accepted. God had us move down a floor for such a time as this. After a few more refusals on the 5th floor, we decided to go back up to the 6th and finish those doors which we had not yet approached. No police, thank God!

Just across from where Rachel had previously received the Bible set, a lady opened up and said, “Thank you for this precious gift!” And while Catherine and Danielle were knocking on one door without success, another door opened. A lady who hadn’t replied earlier because she was asleep, then came to answer her door. She refused the set but took the bookmark! Yet another example of great timing. Then while Danielle and Catherine were knocking on someone’s door, a lady came out of the elevator and pointed out her apartment which was behind us, one which we had already knocked on with no answer. We offered her the set and she gladly took it! For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven. Another lady also took a set, saying maybe one day she would read it. Let’s pray she does!

Finally, we met a man wearing a kippah, who just came out of an apartment (it was his mother’s, he told us later), and while waiting for the elevator he started to talk with us. He was telling us many things about his traditions, religion, religious customs, and Israel. He didn’t seem to listen to us much when we tried to talk about Isaiah 53 and Daniel 12. Finally, we assured him that we were not trying to convince him of anything, we just wanted to offer him a gift. He accepted to take the Tanach and amazingly — after many questions — he also took the Brit Hadashah! Even though he is French speaking, he took the English set because he reads Hebrew! And again we saw God’s perfect timing because the reason he left his mother’s apartment just then was because he had forgotten something in his car!

For us older folks, forgetting comes naturally. But we are encouraged because Scripture instructs us to forget… to forget our former ways, freeing us from dwelling on our past and enabling us to forgive and forget. If God is willing to forget our past sins, so should we. But God is not willing that any should perish. This too we must choose to remember.

We praise God that we have not forgotten how to count. In this apartment building alone, in the last 3 visits, we have handed out 30 sets of Bibles, ten of them this past Monday evening. Counting the cost of being a disciple of Yeshua will pay tremendous dividends when we factor in the blessing of persecution. Counting the cost includes counting the lost,so please continue to pray for the countless souls who need Yeshua.

Blessings