How far would you go to live out your faith? Idan faced threats, fears, and opposition, but what he chose and what God did are truly inspiring.
Sometimes you sow the seed of the Gospel in people's hearts and only much later hear that God actually used it and produced fruit. And that's exactly what happened with a young man named Idan (named changed for sensitivity reasons).
One day, out of the blue, he wrote us: “I’ve been a Messianic Jew for four and a half months now, and it all started with you! Thank you! Keep going!”
It turns out he’d seen our Isaiah 53 video, and God used it to stir him to start seeking the Truth. He started reading the New Testament online, and in the privacy of his home, he gave his life to Jesus, Yeshua.
But this was just the beginning of a spiritual battle in his life.
Intense Opposition
We offered to pick him up from his house and take him to congregation with us, but it didn’t end up being that simple.
We were waiting a long time outside but he still hadn’t come down, so we went up to his door. We were about to knock but suddenly heard his parents yelling at him, “No way! You’re never going with them to that congregation!”
We understood that the house was divided and a serious conflict had broken out. We started praying intensely that he would have peace and a breakthrough. But after a long wait, he never came out.
It seemed like we had lost the battle.
Counting the Cost
But we kept following up with him on the phone, encouraging him in his faith and praying for him.
He said, “I don’t know what to do. I know Yeshua wants me to be a part of a local congregation and grow in my faith. But my parents are insisting that I don’t go.”
We challenged him, “Look, you’re an adult. You need to make your own decision here. Will you choose to follow Yeshua fully, or allow others to dictate what you do?”
“But my parents threatened to kick me out of the house if I go to the congregation!”
“If you put God first, He will take care of you, Idan.” We read him the verse, “When my father and my mother forsake me, then the LORD will take care of me” (Psalm 27:10).
He was still full of fear, facing intense opposition at home on his own. He wanted to come and grow in his faith, but kept giving in to pressure. We started asking for prayer for him through our newsletter and from our “Unconditional Love” evangelism Whatsapp group.
A Courageous Step
And God answered. One day he suddenly showed up at the congregation! “God gave me the courage to simply obey Him, no matter the cost," Idan told us resolutely.
People in the congregation, many of whom had been praying for him, showered him with love and encouragement. Before he left, we prayed together with him.
He left the building, but came back a few minutes later. "When you all prayed for me, I felt God’s presence like never before in my life. Can you pray for me again?!” It was the first time that he’d experienced praying and worshipping together with other believers in person, and he was really blessed by it and wanted more!
When his parents heard that he’d come to the congregation, they demanded that he leave the house. We started looking for places for him to stay.
The Miraculous Change of Heart
But suddenly, God did something totally unexpected: He softened Idan’s parents’ hearts and they agreed to not only allow him to stay, but even brought him in their own car to the congregation! We still don’t understand how this miracle happened!
Idan’s been growing steadily in the Lord since then. He’s serving in the Israel Defense Forces and regularly shares the Gospel with his fellow soldiers.
Idan’s story continues to inspire today. We don’t actually even know how many people the videos have impacted, because there could be many others that have come to faith but we’ll only hear from them much later – maybe even only in heaven!
