"No problem, Mike. Before we get started, I’d1ike to pray, ok?"
"Sure. No problem."
"Lord, we come together today to seek Your face, to lift You up and glorify Your name. We ask for wisdom and direction, and we thank You as we give You all the glory, honor and praise. In Jesus' name, amen.” Ok, Mike, what's so extraordinary? I've known you for almost ten years, and I've never really seen you so shaken, except when Linda died. Is this that bad?" Mike loved his pastor, and trusted him more than any other person on earth. He had been a pillar in Mike's life after Linda died, so the only person he thought of talking to in this case was Pastor Phil Patterson.
"Yeah, this is bad. It started Saturday afternoon when Eric, Micah and I went hiking over near Sisters, on the west side of Three-Finger Jack. Everything was fine until we heard a mountain lion scream. That shook the kids up a little because it was pretty close, but we decided that it would be alright, so we kept going. A little further along, Eric sees this big rock ledge and climbs up for the view. After helping Micah up on the rock, he notices something white that was obviously out of place up there near a tree. They decide to run off and investigate, and a few minutes later, I hear my daughter scream like she's never screamed before. I took off running towards them, and when I arrived at where they were, they were holding a Jewish prayer shawl, soaked in blood." Mike was visibly shaken as he recalled the surrealistic events of that day. Pastor Phil looked about as surprised as if he had just woke up with his head sewn into the carpet.
"Are you sure it was a Jewish prayer shawl, Mike? What did it look like?" Mike described it in perfect detail, adding that he recognized the writing as Hebrew from his World Religions course in college. "It gets worse, Pastor. Not three minutes after Micah screamed, this guy came running as hard and fast as he could right through the brush and trees bleeding with chunks of flesh hanging off his face. As soon as he broke through into our little location, Micah took one good look at him and burst into tears. Eric turned nine shades of white. Phil, this guy's face was mauled by a cougar an hour prior. In fact, that was the mountain lion's scream that we heard.
“Holy Jesus, what did you do then?”
“Well, we walked back to where he was staying and talked for a bit. He was very evasive about why he was there, but I really got the feeling that he was running. He mentioned to me that his father is the Chief Rabbi of B'nai Torah synagogue here in Portland, so I called his father, Rabbi Geller and we met at Noah's Bagels so I could tell him what I know about his son.”
“How did that go?” Pastor Phil was riveted and hanging on his every word.
“Not very well. I prayed on the way over there that God would give me the words to say. I realized that I may only have one opportunity to talk with this Jewish Rabbi, so I decided to make the most of it. I explained that my family is praying for him and his family, and that Jesus can help him through this. I wanted him to know what Jesus could do for him in this situation.”
Pastor Phil was aghast. “Are you serious? You said WHAT? Mike, you know I love you and I have always loved your passion for evangelism, but that was the wrong place, the wrong person, and certainly the wrong time. I'm sure you already know what I’m going to explain to you, but sometimes hearing it from another person can give you a different perspective. Jews have every right to be suspicious and even cynical towards the Christian church. This may shock you, but approaching a Jew with Jesus in the same manner that you would approach a non-Jew is really quite insulting to him. Especially to someone as learned in the scriptures as a rabbi. They aren't interested in hearing about what Saint John, Saint Paul, or Saint Larry has to say about Jesus and His blessed mother, Mary. I don't mean to make light of our Savior and the New Testament, but those things have no validity to a Jew. These people were chosen by God to safeguard His Word, and His plan for the world. He chose to appear to them, to speak to them, and to protect them. They are special, Mike. The promises of God to Israel still apply today. Don't get me wrong, they need Jesus, or 'Yeshua' to them, but they take the Scriptures and the things of God very seriously. That's why we can't just walk up to them on the street and ask them if they want to get 'saved'. That's not fair to them, or us, because we probably won't appreciate the response we get. If you want to approach Rabbi Geller with the gospel, then you do it without words. Develop a relationship with him with no pretensions. Just be a good friend, and study the Torah and Talmud. Take classes at the synagogue and learn Hebrew. Dig into it and be able to talk about it intelligently. When you can sit with him and just talk about the Torah portion of the week, and Rashi's commentary on it, you will earn a great deal of respect from him. Then you can start asking him questions about certain messianic passages, like in Isaiah, or Daniel chapter 9. The bottom line is that your zeal for Jesus compelled you to corner a Jewish Rabbi with the gospel, when he was only meeting with you to find out information concerning his missing son. I would have knocked your head off if you would've said that to me. Did you at least tell him where his son is?”
“Not exactly. I gave him Elijah's bloody prayer shawl and he collapsed on the floor in huge sobs. I felt horrible and ashamed, so I left.”
“You need to call him and apologize and then offer to take him to where you saw his son - no strings attached. You have to do that right away, Mike.”
“Perhaps I'll go to the synagogue to see him.”
“I think that's a bad idea, also. It's too invasive. Just call him and make him understand your heart. This is not about evangelism, Mike. If you want to reach him, do it with love, not words. Take him to his son. No pretenses. No strings attached.”
***
“Shalom! Thank you for calling B'nai Torah, this is Rebekah. How may I help you?”
“Uh, hi. Rabbi Geller, please.”
“May I tell him who's calling?”
“Yes, please tell him Mike Blanchard is calling for him.” Mike was certain he wouldn't take his call.
“Rabbi, Mr. Mike Blanchard is on the phone for you.”
Zvi was deep in thought when the phone rang. He had come back to his office after leaving Noah's Bagels and took a few minutes to wash his face and recollect his thoughts. He was considering what to say to Mike once he finally got the nerve to call him. Just thinking about this man grieved his spirit, so the thought of calling him and seeking him out for more information literally made him nauseous. What kind of a person would prey on a man with a broken heart and a grieving family to promote his religion? "Shalom. This is Rabbi Geller…"
"Rabbi Geller?"
"What do you want with me now, Mr. Blanchard. Would you like to come over and baptize my family?"
"Zvi, I deserve that. I only called to offer my heartfelt apology. What I did was inexcusable and terribly unfair to you. I don't blame you for exploding at me. I would've done the same thing. Zvi, please forgive me. I want to offer you all the information I have about Elijah, no strings attached. If you'd like to go out and look for him, I'd be glad to take you to where I last saw him." There was a long, dramatic pause on the telephone, and if Mike heard correctly, he could hear a man's pride melting away…
"Mike, I forgive you, and I'd like to offer an apology of my own. I am sorry for erupting at you like that. You didn't deserve all that. It was a combination of what you said, plus no sleep or food for the last few days. My family and I have been under a tremendous emotional strain this last week, and you took the brunt of all that. I respect your faith and appreciate your love for God. Let's start all over, Mike."
“Meet me at Shorty's Corner and we'll leave from there. It'll be dark by the time we arrive, but we can set up a campsite and use it for our base camp while we search.”
“Sounds good, Mike. I'll see you there.”
***
“Honey, get Jeremiah ready because Mr. Blanchard is taking us to where he saw Elijah last. I'll be home in 15 minutes, so please be ready to go when I get there. We will need outdoor clothes and be ready to spend a few nights in the wilderness.”
“Ok, we'll be ready. Zvi, did he mention if Elijah is alright? What did he say?”
“I'll tell you everything when I get there. Please be ready to go.”
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