Sunday, February 23rd
3 gift sets, 1 Tanakh and 2 Bibles were given (all in English)
On this sunny and mild day, a team of two ladies were at a local mall. The first set was given to a Jewish man who was surprised by the beautiful gift. After taking the Tanakh, they offered him the Brit Chadashah and showed him where he could see the prophecies about Yeshua, the Messiah. They could see that he was very happy to receive the set and thanked them.
They next met a religious, French speaking man who was wearing a kippa. They had a conversation with him for about 20 minutes opening up with current events in Israel and the global anti-Semitism. He mentioned the Amalekites and how God commanded Israel to eliminate them, and the team brought in how this enemy would be destroyed when Yeshua, the Messiah would return and bring peace. They told him that this hatred is called an everlasting hatred in the scriptures and said that when the enemy attacks Israel, they are attacking God. They reminded him that Israel is the apple of God’s eye. Amazingly, they agreed on everything said. They offered him a Tanakh and he almost took it for someone else but changed his mind saying he had many. They offered him the bookmark stating that it had a list of the prophecies concerning the coming Messiah in the Tanakh and handed him a leaflet on Isaiah 53. This leaflet, they told him, showed the two comings of the Messiah. He took the literature and was encouraged to read it in Hebrew. This passage, they said, speaks about the Messiah being able to make a man tsadik (righteous). They stressed that no good works would make man righteous but that only God could remove sin. Handing him the leaflet they pointed to the backside where it mentions some important comments from ancient rabbis who believed that the Messiah would suffer. With that, he began to look at it and so they offered him a Brit Chadashah, but he declined saying he believed only in the Torah. At this response, the team told him it was important to stay in the whole Tanakh and read about the Prophets as well as the Writings. He took the Beth Ariel contact card and was shown where he could go to listen to the messages. They stated that he was a very kind and gentle man who was open to listen.
A set was given to a man who took everything offered to him and as they spoke about the Messiah, he joked saying, “Are you trying to convert me?” They replied that they cannot convert as only God could do that and show him the truth. He shared that he was not religious so they told him that God wanted to have a relationship with him and that man has to be reconciled to God because of sin and only the Messiah could make one righteous. It was a touching conversation.
They met a mother with her 18+ year-old son. She was walking quickly but the team caught up to her at her car. She was already sitting inside as they approached but the son was still standing outside as he was holding a bagel and a pastry in his hand. They offered him the anti-Semitism pamphlet, but the mother intervened saying, “Can’t you see his hands are full!”. They then told her that they had a gift for her, a French Tanakh. Taking it and looking it over, they were very surprised and happy. One of the team members was able to tell this mother that she too was from Morocco and that she had the same last name as her own mother. They were very touched, smiled and thanked the team.
As they continued their walk, they encountered the same man they had met earlier on. The man was now in his car with his wife, and he stopped and rolled his window down. While doing so, he told his wife that the two ladies were the ones who gave him the gift set. Now the team handed him the anti-Semitism pamphlet. The wife said she wanted one as well. The man told them that he did not believe in God to which they replied, “How can you not?” They encouraged him to read but he said he had macular degeneration starting and was not able to read but that his wife could read to him. Giving him the contact card, they told the husband and wife that they could find the website and listen to the messages there or on Radio Shalom. The team said it was a comfort to them to see their smiles and how he was willing to have his wife read to him. The couple was very thankful and grateful.
A woman from Chabad was offered a Tanakh and she wondered if she should take it. They told her that the scriptures were where she would find that God was speaking to her through the word and so she gladly took it and then they presented the Brit to her and told her that it was written by Jewish men in the first century who believed Yeshua was the Messiah. She had said that she was Ashkenazi and spoke Yiddish and so they offered her a Tanakh in Yiddish and Hebrew but she said she preferred English. They gave her the Beth Ariel contact card, hugged her and left.
A Gentile man received an anti-Semitism pamphlet and so the friend that was with him wanted one as well. They kindly offered a donation but were informed that this was a gift that they needed to read. The man said he was Catholic, so the team asked him if he had a bible. As he did not have one, they offered one to him. He could not believe he had received this bible as he was intending to buy one from a nearby store. When he received this bible, his friend stated that he wanted one as well, so the team was double blessed. They took these bibles with joy and were then invited to visit Beth Ariel congregation where Jews and Gentiles worship Yeshua together. They were also given contact cards so they could go online and listen to the messages.
An anti-Semitism pamphlet was offered to a woman who would not accept it but told the team that she appreciated what they were doing. As the team was finishing off the outing, they noticed a security car parked close by and decided to leave right away.
The team was filled with joy at the results of their outing and gave praise to God for such a blessing and for the beautiful weather as well. They thank everyone who prayed for them and give God all the glory and praise.