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11. Testimony of Esther, God's Handmaiden:
⑴. I Heard God's Call to Go to Israel
Once, I heard a pastor quoting the Bible: You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you so that you might go and bear fruit—fruit that will last (NIV, John 15:16). I was deeply moved and cried for an hour. I returned to my dormitory and prayed to God:
"Lord! You love us and chose us to bear fruit. I love you too. If I had a thousand lives, I would not withhold one from you. I want to go and bear fruit, but I don't know how. Please help my fruit to remain." God gently replied:
"Esther, since you love me so much, then come to Jerusalem." I was a fellow student at the time and had no money, so I immediately responded, "That's expensive!" , it will cost a fortune!" God replied, "You just said you'd give me a thousand lives, and now you think it's too much!" Embarrassed, I said, "Of course, the gold and silver are all yours. As long as I'm sure it's what you said, I'll go; but you pay."

Afterward, I returned to the church building. As I walked upstairs and entered, my pastor said, "Esther, save your time; you're going to Jerusalem!"
(2) God Officially Sent Me to Israel
i. God Wanted Me to Come to Israel Empty-Handed
“We have left everything to follow you!” (NIV, Mark 10:2
When I was about 40 years old, God wanted me to come to Israel empty-handed, by faith, without taking anything with me. Because my faith was insufficient, I struggled for another two years. One day, a servant of God in the Lord invited me to go with her to a play called "The Phantom of the Opera." Throughout the two-hour play, God spoke to me, "I am in darkness; will you come?"

I cried from beginning to end, tears streaming down my face. Even when I got home, my eyes were still watering. I knew God was calling me. My heart ached for the Lord, and I decided not to delay. I resolved to go to Israel. Finally, I fulfilled my mission and willingly worked for the Lord in a foreign land.

ii. Nine Months of Spiritual Warfare
For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. (NIV, Ephesians 6:12).

After arriving in Israel, I endured nine months of spiritual warfare. I felt like I couldn't find the Lord Jesus, and I was terrified. No matter how much I prayed, God didn't respond. It was as if the Lord had disappeared. I felt completely oppressed by the power of darkness, unable to leave the house. Whenever I left home, I immediately wanted to return. When I returned to pray, I couldn't find God. In short, I just couldn't leave the house.
iii. Celebrating My Birthday in Israel
but God has surely listened
and has heard my prayer. (NIV, Psalm 66:19)
My first year in Israel, I was utterly lonely. On my birthday, I was alone. I prayed to the Lord Jesus, "I don't care; You must celebrate my birthday." It was truly amazing! Early in the morning of my birthday, a servant of God called me and said, "Pastor Esther, God kept me awake all night and told me to come to you. I must treat you to a meal and buy you a gift. What's going on?"
I replied, "Yes! Today is my birthday. I didn't know who would celebrate it for me, so I cried out to the Lord Jesus. Now I know God has heard me. Blessed be He!"
iv. The Lord Sent Angels to Serve Me
So, this servant of God celebrated my birthday for me. We went to a restaurant, a barbecue place I'd been to before, to enjoy a meal. We were surprised to see a tall waitress we had never seen before. Because she was so tall, she had to kneel down to take our order. The biggest surprise! The chicken cutlet she brought us was so huge it covered the entire plate. It was so delicious, we both enjoyed our meal and were overwhelmed with praise! Some time later, still craving it, we returned to the restaurant. But the chicken cutlet had shrunk. We asked where the tall waitress was. The staff replied, "There's no such person here, and all the waiters who take our orders are men."

Afterward, I kept thinking about this incident. Clearly, there was a tall waitress, so how could she have been missing? Suddenly, God enlightened me, and I instantly understood in my spirit: "That waitress was an angel, a messenger sent by the Lord Jesus to celebrate my birthday. She came to serve me, allowing me to enjoy a barbecue feast and celebrate my birthday with joy."

v. God! Why did you bring me to Israel? I asked God, "Why did you bring me to Israel?" The Lord replied, "Go read the book of Ruth."

We are Gentiles, like Ruth the Moabite, cursed to never enter the assembly of God.
No Ammonite or Moabite or any of their descendants may enter the assembly of the Lord, not even in the tenth generation. (NIV, Deuteronomy 23:3).
But because her mother-in-law, Naomi, was Jewish (spiritually, Israelite), I preached the gospel to her, and she came to know Jehovah, the one true God, and so followed her to Bethlehem. Ruth was blessed by her mother-in-law. A cursed Gentile, she found her way to God's promised land and even found her place in the genealogy of Jesus Christ.

Ruth was a filial daughter-in-law. Upon arriving in Bethlehem, she volunteered to glean wheat in the fields to serve her mother-in-law and provide for both of them. Her filial piety and loyalty to her mother-in-law also touched Boaz's heart, and he became even more generous to Ruth, giving her even more wheat. Ruth received a blessing from Boaz and brought it back to Naomi. Naomi, mindful of her daughter-in-law, instructed her that Boaz was legally required to marry her. Naomi, in the Lord's counsel, urged her to initiate the proposal, a more beautiful approach than requiring Boaz to fulfill his obligation.

This is a virtuous cycle of blessing. Israel (Boaz) blessed Ruth, and Ruth, in turn, blessed Israel (Naomi), multiplying the blessing. Ruth represents the last-day Gentile church. Having received the gospel from Israel, she owed something in return to the Jews: she conveyed the abundant grace and compassion she had received from Israel back to them, bringing them the gospel and allowing them to recognize Jesus as the long-awaited Messiah, so that both could share in the heavenly blessing.

vi. God's Commission
For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do. (NIV, Ephesians 2:10).
At first, I had no idea what God wanted me to do in Israel. I simply followed the Holy Spirit's leading, learning Hebrew and working for a travel agency, leading tours to the Holy Land. Gradually, I came to understand God's commission: to be a watchman for Jerusalem, constantly interceding for her and calling on God's children everywhere to seek the good of Israel. God wants me to preach the truth globally, urging the Jews to return to their own country.

On the other hand, God wants me to preach in Gentile churches, especially in this era of rising anti-Semitism, reminding Gentile Christians not to be ambiguous but to clearly express their support for God's chosen people, to pray for Israel and blessings, and to pray for the peace of Jerusalem.
vii. Gentile Churches Must Love the Israelites
We Gentile churches must spiritually recognize that we owe a huge debt to the Jews. Without them, we would not be where we are today, nor would we have such great blessings in Christ. God has entrusted the Gentile church with an unshirkable responsibility: to bless Israel, to love her with pure love, to pray for her, to seek temporal peace and spiritual salvation, and to respect the spiritual roots of our faith.
I will do my utmost to tell the Israelites that Jesus is a member of their own family, a Jew, and their Messiah. And, in accordance with God's will, I will lead tour groups from the Gentile church to the roots of their faith, to revisit the sites of biblical stories and to tread in the footsteps of the Lord Jesus.
Dear Lord Jesus (Yeshua), please remember your offering. Below is the donation account information for our ministry:
Post Office Code: 700
Savings Account Number:
00414890318107
Account Name: TSENG
HSUEH-CHENG
Post Office: Kaohsiung Minzu
Community Post Office

(For locations outside
Taiwan, the SWIFT Code is as follows):
Account with Bank: Chunghwa
Post Co., Ltd.
SWIFT Code: CHPYTWTP
Bank Address: No.55, Sec. 2,
Jinshan S. Rd., Da-an Dist., Taipei City, Taiwan, R.O.C.
Recipient's English Name:
TSENG, HSUEH-CHENG
Recipient's Account Number:
00414890318107
Recipient's Contact Phone
and Address: 5F., No. 38, Ln. 122, Sec. 1, Shuiyuan St., Tamsui Dist., New
Taipei City 251006, Taiwan (R.O.C.)