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News From Jerusalem
May 29, 2005
God – our Savior – wants every person to be saved! 1 Timothy 2:3-4
This report is quite lengthy, but God has been opening many doors, and I want to share how He’s been hearing our prayers and using us together for His glory!
Last Sunday (the 22nd) was a rather interesting day, to say the least! Yuhanna and I had plans to go to the Arab church in the Old City, but he didn’t show up at the nearby taxi stand (I later found out that his parents had refused to let him go.) After waiting for him for about an hour, I decided to just go to the Old city myself, and first went up and spent some time on the Mt. of Olives, as well as in some of the Arab area behind the eastern side of the mountain (Jerusalem is to the west). I later went to the post office in the New City area to pick up a package that my parents had sent, but found out I arrived to late – they had closed at 2:30, it was about 2:45. So, I headed back to the Old City area, and spent some time in The Word close to the Damascus Gate. When I got up to leave, some young Arab guys that were sitting nearby asked me a question and so we started to talk. I sat down with them, and to make a long story short – one of them stole about $40 from me. After realizing what happened, I was really, really angry and sad. Angry because I think I love the Arabs and stick up for them more than most, and sad because it’s God’s money that was stolen; doing missionary work keeps you trusting in God for your provision, and $40 isn’t just pocket change… plus people gave it for missionary work. Anyways, I prayed and thought, ‘I’m going to go and see if I can find them,’ and off I went. With God’s help, I located one of the young men and asked him, ‘Where’s the money?’ We went round and round about things, and his basic story was that he didn’t know the guy that stole the money, and so I would just have to find him. I didn’t believe him, and also tried to get him to help me by mentioning the Quran (which he allegedly holds to be true) and some things about helping foreigners. No success. So after calling him a liar and a thief, I said, ‘May God judge between you and me.’ (In retrospect, I realized he could have honestly not known the other guy, but I really doubt it because of his attitude and refusal to try and help.) He became angrier, and though I couldn’t understand all he was saying, I distinctly heard him say ‘money’ and ‘knife.’ And since I had earlier seen that he had two pocket knives on him, God helped me to realize that I should just walk away – which I did. Already feeling hurt and betrayed by those I have such a love for, I called Yuhanna as I walked back to For Zion’s Sake (FZS). He told me that he had a friend that wanted to meet me, and that he was a sheikh, and asked if I was cool with meeting him. My thoughts started to run haywire, as many of the sheikhs aren’t really known for tolerance. I asked Yuhanna if he was old, and he told me that his friend was only around 20 or so. I felt more relieved, but Yuhanna then said we couldn’t meet at Kaan Zemaan (the local coffee/pastry place), and he asked if we could go to his friend’s house. I started thinking, ‘I just got robbed, and now I might be going somewhere to get killed. Wow!’ I thought about and prayed, and I went and met with Yuhanna and his friend, Muhammed. Praise be to God, it was a great meeting! Muhammad is really nice, and came out and denounced using violence, and The Lord allowed me to ask a few questions; he’s been studying in an Islamic school for three years, has one more to go, and wants to maybe teach as a professor in Islamic studies. Pray for Muhammad – we were both very happy to meet one another, and I have a lot of respect for him… I don’t agree with his beliefs, but I know how difficult it can be for a young person to try and follow God. My God is not his god, but I still know the many sacrifices he makes to pursue what he thinks is right. God blessed me to share one of the biggest differences between Yesua (Jesus) and Muhammad, and that being the certainty of eternal life. I shared with him what God’s Word says: ‘If you believe in Jesus, He promises eternal life.’
On Monday, God blessed me to start reaching out here in Jerusalem more in my service here at FZS; I was serving mostly in the office, but with the arrival of the Hanson family, I’ve been able to step out and do more of what my heart loves – interact with the people, and try to share Jesus. I spent some time by the Western Wall in the Old City, reading Isaiah 40-43 in Hebrew. I placed a Hebrew tract in the Western Wall, and also left one nearby. I was also able to secretly leave an Arabic/English Gospel of Luke booklet with an Arab shop, and also to leave one on the front window of an Arab guy’s parked car. The day was much slower than I thought, and I was kind of discouraged that nothing ‘big’ happened, but The Lord has helped me to again remember that reaching out is not something that just goes like clockwork… sometimes the days are jam-packed with opportunities, and other days can almost feel ‘wasted.’ But I realize that God calls us to go, and to make the effort – beyond that, what can we do? On Monday night, as I was walking to meet with Yuhanna, I saw Hamid – a young Arab kid that works at Kaan Zemaan (the local coffee/pastry place), and really seems to like me. He had earlier asked for my card with my email and other info on it, and so I gave him one that night. I met up with Yuhanna, and he explained that though he’s been allowed to sleep at home some nights, his parents are becoming more angry with him. They’re still not talking with him, and he only eats after they’ve left the house. He thinks they could kill him, and is looking for another place to be. Another place in Israel might be best for him, though he really wants to leave the country and try to go to America. (We have no idea of what freedom we truly have in the States.) He is reading the Injeel (New Testament), but says his father’s really angry when he sees him doing so. Yuhanna and I are trying to meet in different places, so as to not cause too much attention to be drawn to our friendship. Beit Zafafa is a small community, and word travels very fast; few people know he now believes in Jesus, and he’s really wanting to keep it a secret for fear of what retribution might come.
On Tuesday morning, I taught two private English lessons to 2 of the Russian congregants here – our text was John 1:1-18, along with conversational questions related to The Scripture. The first session was with Andrew, and he had many questions to ask beyond just ones of language; he was very concerned about how to end our prayers… if we need to say, ‘In Jesus’ Name,’ and so on. He speaks English very well, and he’s very open and desiring to learn more about God. The second session was with Aksana, and tami (one of the new volunteers here) helped out during the class. Pray for Aksana – she is dealing with a lot of very, very serious spiritual warfare (possession or oppression) in her life, but she also appears to be very open to learn and grow more. She wanted homework, and so I asked her to think about 2 questions she could speak about in our session next week – one of them was, ‘Think about what God is teaching you at this time.’ In the afternoon, I helped Yoseph in getting the sound system back in order (there was an electrical problem), and also helped out a bit for the Olim that were picking out needed things.
On Wednesday, I went down to the Arab village of Silwan, where Hezekiah’s tunnel is. The Lord blessed me to talk with a few younger kids in a small falafel shop there – and one of them in particular, Namir, seemed very happy to meet me and talk with me. He helped show me around some places in Silwan, and was just a really nice kid around 11 or so. Pray for him, and the other kid, Muhannad. I also talked a bit with a man who appeared to be drunk, named Naim. Afterwards, I went by the shop that sells entrance tickets to Hezekiah’s Tunnel, and talked to the younger Arab guy that works there. Shaadi is probably around 20, and God blessed us to hang out and talk for about an hour. His father’s working in America right now, and he’ll be going there in a few months. He’s Muslim, but says he doesn’t go the Mosque or pray 5 times a day; he shared that most of the people there don’t go to the mosques. He also mentioned how he’s noticed that the Christians don’t lie, and that they try and do the things that are good. Shaadi wants to perhaps stay in America after going there… he said many of the people in Silwan die at 50 or 60 years of age – some even at 40. He wants to be a doctor, and I know The Lord loves him very much. I also gave him my info card. Please pray that God will open his eyes to believe in Yesua (Jesus). As I was leaving, I walked through the Kidron Valley which leads out of Silwan, and I saw a young Arab shepherd boy, and started to talk with him. The Lord opened the door to also hang out and talk with him for about an hour, and his name is Khalil, and he’s 14. He explained that shepherding is boring, and that he hopes to be involved with building when he’s older (construction or something… my Arabic is far from perfect!). We talked about lots of different things, and God blessed me to give him an Arabic/English Gospel of Luke; I asked if he had a New Testament, and he said ‘No,’ and then asked if I did. I said, ‘Yes,’ and showed him my English pocket Bible, and then showed him the bilingual Gospel booklet I had, and asked if he wanted it. He did, and he thanked me. The Lord opened the door to share with him how before I believed in Yesua, I didn’t love Arabs or Jews… I just loved myself. But yesua has changed my heart. And that when I feel sad in life, I read what Yesua said. I also said, ‘I think God loves you and He’ll bless you, and you can be anything you want to be.’ God also enabled me to share with him that though a lot of Arabs think that most American hate all Arabs, that’s not true. Pray for young Khalil – I shared with him how his work is similar to the prophet David’s (King David)… pray that God will mold his heart to also be like David’s!
I then went to enter the Old City area through the Lion’s Gate, which is close to the Eastern Gate (Golden Gate) that is now sealed up. I noticed a door that lead through the cemetery now outside the Eastern Gate, and after I asked the Israeli authority if it was okay, I entered. I was able to come up close to this beautiful gate and take a photo. Jesus entered through this gate, and Muslims have since sealed it up and placed a cemetery outside, thinking to prevent The Messiah from entering the gate because they believe a holy man can’t enter through a graveyard. ! As I went to leave the Old City, I was by the Damascus Gate, and a little Arab boy ran up to me and was crying. He said something to me, but I couldn’t make out what he was saying. He went to someone else, and I kept walking in the direction he had come from. I then saw what he had been trying to tell me about – there was an older Arab kid, maybe around 9, hitting a younger Arab child (perhaps only 4 or 5) repeatedly with something like a belt with no buckle. Strangely enough, the younger child just remained seated, crying and receiving the blows. I asked the older kid, ‘What are you doing?,’ and he told me to just go back to my home. I again asked him, and so he stopped and tried to explain more about why he was doing what he was doing, but again, my language skills are far from perfect! Anyways, I asked them, ‘Does God want peace?,’ and they said, ‘Yes.’ And I said, ‘Ok – no war?,’ and they said, ‘No.’ By this time, they were all grinning, and I praise God that He caused the older boy to stop. One of the other kids asked for the grape juice I had in my hand, and I said he could have it, but it wasn’t just for him – they’d have to share. He said, ‘Ok,’ and I gave it to him and headed home. Not many boring days in and around the Old City!
On Thursday, I prayed and headed into the Arab neighborhood here to try and find an opportunity to share. God answered right away! I stopped into one of the small Arab grocery shops, and the guy started talking with me. He was preparing to eat, and he invited me to sit down with him behind the counter and eat, and he prepared some more food. We ate and talked, and he also made me some great and strong Arabic coffee. His name is Mahmoud, and he’s 22; he was very nice and hospitable. The Lord blessed us to hang out and talk for about 3 hours, and we talked about lots of different things. He told me that he had been studying computer networking in Jordan, and that Jordan isn’t such a beautiful place. I asked him if he thought there’s peace here now, and he said that peace here is impossible because of the different groups that lay claim to the land. I shared with him that though I want peace, I don’t believe there will be any until The Messiah returns. I asked him if he went to the mosque or prayed, and he said ‘no’ – he explained that most people here are Muslim by name and tradition. God blessed me to share that though I didn’t love Arabs or Jews before, Jesus has changed my heart, and now most/many of my friends aren’t American (don’t worry, of course I still love my people)! He also told me how he’s usually only able to sleep 3 hours a night because he’s always thinking/worrying… about the shop, about getting married, etc. Pray for Mahmoud, that God will convict his heart and help him open his eyes to Yesua – and that The Lord will grant me more opportunities to share The Good News with him, and be able to give him his own copy of God’s Word.
I went down to the Old city again on Friday, and took an acoustic guitar with the hopes of using that as a tool to share. I spoke a bit with an Arab man named Ismael (Ishmael), and he invited me to sit and talk with him and his friends. He gave me a copy of a poem he had written about Jerusalem, and he said he’s a worker for peace. I also talked some with a friend of his, Zahava, a Jewish believer that originally from California. Pray for her – she’s currently in a mental health residence, but is really wanting to be out. I went and sat by Zion Gate and started to play, and a man wearing a kipa sat down nearby and we started to talk. It turns out that he also is a Jewish believer, and his name was Ronny. He’s going through difficult times and trying to work as a tour guide; his wife left him, and he shared that he only trusts God. Ask God to comfort, bless, and help him. I later went and sat outside the Damascus Gate and started to play and rap along to some stuff I’d written, and a small group of younger Arab teens came by and listened, saying it was good. I had several short talks with some of the youth and adults there, and the Arabs as a whole are usually very interested when they hear people trying to speak their language. I’m convinced that next to The Gospel and a heart after God, one of the most important things in life is to be able to speak other languages. In my opinion, missionary and Bible schools should have mandatory and comprehensive language courses – I can’t tell you how many of the Arabs here really show their joy, appreciation, and respect to those that try to speak their language. After coming back to FZS, one of the Arab families across the street invited me to come to their house for coffee. There’s an older man who is usually always sitting on the roof with his son (who has some sort of mental difficulty), and I sat with them and with the mother and a grandson around 14, and enjoyed some Coke and some Arabic coffee (talk about having two drinks for a jolt of energy)!
The Friday evening service went very well, and Brad and family said goodbye as they left yesterday (Saturday) for the States. Keep them in your prayers as he speaks at the CC Sr. Pastor’s Conference and at other places, and as their family has some well-deserved ‘down-time.’ They’ll also spend some time in Switzerland to get a better feel for how to use the house there that the ministry has acquired; Brad senses it will be used to help Jews fleeing persecution in the future, as well as to serve as a kind of retreat place.
Yesterday (Sat.) a group of us drove to Bethlehem, and we had a good time there. It was quite a shame to see all the religious garbage that’s there, but still really neat to know that Jesus was born there somewhere. We went through part of the market, and had some good street snacks and experiences in shopping. Bethlehem is an Arab area, and I believe it’s now totally governed by the Palestinian Authority; you have to go through a security checkpoint to enter Bethlehem, and also to re-enter Jerusalem. But even in Bethlehem, many of the people there had less opposition to us because I could communicate basic things in their language. One of the shop owners, Nathir, was really pleased about that, and as I mentioned – many of the Arab people seem to be very happy and open when you show them the respect of trying to communicate in their language. I’m not writing this to say ‘Look at what Jason can do!’ – if you only knew how stupid a lot of my Arabic probably sounds! I just hope to convey what doors languages can open. We spent some time witnessing to Hammit, a Muslim man working as a tour guide; please keep him in your prayers. We tried to find Shepherd’s Field, a place that some believe to be where the angels appeared to the shepherds and announced Jesus’ birth, but we had no success in finding it. In the process, we stopped at a little roadside shop to get some cold drinks and directions, and I enjoyed a gulp of fermented peach juice from the drink I bought (it wasn’t supposed to be fermented). I took a swig, and – WOW… it was SO terrible. Ruth, Brad’s secretary, also tried it, and came to the same conclusion; we quickly realized, ‘This is fermented!’ I went back into the store and they gave me another drink, which was much, much better. It took us quite a long time to find the right way out of Bethlehem… misleading street signs and so forth, but God blessed us and we made it back safely. We didn’t really want to get stuck there after the sun went down; it’s not the worst place in the world, but not the best place to be either.
Bradley and I received our invitations to Russia so that we can return to Beslan; next, I have to go to the Russian Consulate in Tel Aviv to get approved for my actual visa. Please pray that if God is willing, He’ll grant me favor to get the visa, and that He’ll provide for going and laboring there. I’m hoping, Lord willing, to try and go in a week or so, and would like to be there for about 5 weeks - helping serve the church and reaching out there. Thanks be to our great God again, and thanks also to you for our co-laboring here in His land. GLORY TO GOD!
He is Kind,
jason
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God's love is eternal
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