A few years ago, Nadya and her husband Gerald made aliyah from Ukraine to Israel to the city of Ashkelon.
Like so many other olim, they heard that from Beit Hallel Congregation they can receive humanitarian assistance on a monthly basis and they reached out to us.
We got to know this wonderful couple and saw amazingly open hearts, so we spent time with them sharing about the Lord, helping them through our humanitarian relief projects and also invited them to attend our evangelism event in the Galilee, to which they gladly agreed.
As part of our evangelism follow-up, we also invited them to register for our discipleship course, during which it became evident that the Holy Spirit was working in their hearts in a powerful way, and they ultimately accepted Jesus into their hearts.
Soon after they also started attending one of our local home groups.
During the pandemic, much like other communities around the world, we couldn’t hold meetings due to restrictions and lockdowns, but we were continuously in touch with people online and by phone. When Covid restrictions finally lifted and we were able to gather again, Nadya and Gerald were noticeably absent.
It turned out Gerald was diagnosed with cancer and shortly after he passed away. We reached out to Nadya for comfort and encouragement, and we found that she was not disappointed in God, but actually held on to her faith for strength. Nadya came back to Beit Hallel after Gerald’s passing and wanted to be baptized in water.
It’s been some time now, and she regularly attends our home group and continues to grow in the Word while holding on to Jesus.
Beit Hallel is a Messianic Jewish congregation in Ashdod, led by pastor Israel Pochtar, serving holocaust survivors and the poor and needy locally and throughout the nation of Israel, while building up the body of Messiah in the promised land of Israel.