At Voice of Judah Israel, one of the greatest privileges of serving is witnessing how God prepares hearts long before we ever meet the people He wants us to reach.
Sometimes those opportunities come during a congregation service or an organized outreach. Other times, they appear in the most ordinary places—like an airport check-in line.
That is exactly what happened to our follow-up team leaders, Haim and Miriam, as they were returning to Israel from Georgia with their family.
Standing in a long baggage check line surrounded by Israeli travelers heading home, they watched as the queue barely moved. Then an open bottle of cola began making its way from the front of the line toward the back. Since liquids couldn’t be taken through security, someone had the practical idea of sharing what remained rather than throwing it away. One disposable cup accompanied the bottle as it passed from person to person.
After taking a sip himself and handing it to his wife, Haim found himself holding the bottle with nowhere to dispose of it. Just then, he noticed a man standing behind him watching with an amused smile. Half joking, Haim offered him a cup of cola, explaining that it had already made its way through quite a few travelers. Smiling, he added that it almost reminded him of Israel in the wilderness, when the people all drank from the water God provided through the rock Moses struck.
To Haim’s surprise, the man laughed, accepted the drink, and introduced himself. His name was Yaakov, though everyone called him Kobi.
What began as light conversation about their recent trips to Georgia soon became something much deeper. Kobi had traveled alone and spent most of his time in Tbilisi, while Haim shared how their own journey had included visits to believing families, meals in Christian homes, and worship with a local congregation.
Curious, Kobi asked whether they had relatives in Tbilisi.
At that moment, Haim sensed the Holy Spirit prompting his response. “No,” he replied, “but we discovered we have many brothers and sisters there.”
Borrowing the words of Yeshua, he explained that those who do the Father’s will become part of God’s family. From there, the conversation naturally opened to the hope found in the Messiah.
Standing in the middle of an airport queue, Haim found himself reading from Isaiah 53, speaking about the promised Messiah’s birth in Bethlehem, and explaining Daniel’s prophecy of the seventy weeks—all pointing to Yeshua.
What made the conversation remarkable wasn’t simply the opportunity to share the Scriptures, but Kobi’s genuine interest. He listened carefully, asked thoughtful questions, and wanted to hear more.
As they moved through airport security, they were separated more than once, yet somehow found themselves together again after each checkpoint. Every unexpected reunion became another opportunity to continue the conversation and to share what Yeshua had done in Haim’s own life and what He continues to do among His people today.
Even after landing in Israel, the story wasn’t over.
Before leaving the airport, Kobi sought Haim out one last time. Rather than trying to force a decision, Haim simply encouraged him to seek the Lord personally, receive Yeshua, and be reconciled to the Father. He left Kobi with his phone number and reminded him that there were believers in Beersheba—his hometown—who would gladly continue the conversation whenever he was ready.
We don’t yet know how Kobi’s story will unfold.
Perhaps this was the first time he had ever heard Isaiah’s prophecy explained through the life of Yeshua. Perhaps the questions that began in an airport queue will lead him to open the Scriptures again once he is home. Those answers belong to the Lord.
But stories like this remind us why personal follow-up remains at the heart of our ministry in Israel. While public meetings and outreach events are important, it is often through ordinary conversations that God begins drawing people to Himself.
A shared bottle of cola. A long airport queue. A simple question about family. None of these seemed significant at first. Yet in God’s hands, they became an opportunity to plant seeds of eternal hope.
Thank you for making moments like these possible through your prayers and faithful partnership with Voice of Judah Israel.
And please join us in praying for Kobi. Pray that the Scriptures he heard will continue speaking to his heart, that the Lord will reveal the Messiah to him, and that one ordinary conversation will become the beginning of a lifelong journey with Yeshua.
Sometimes the most ordinary moments become the very ones God uses in extraordinary ways.