October 2005
Sometimes we whisper
something quickly to God and, before we realize it, He answers.
This recently happened to me.
I spend a lot of
time talking to God and have been amazed over the years to see how
often He has heard me and has answered in wonderful and unexpected
ways. One day, I told God that I wanted to be a part of a
modern day miracle of Biblical proportions. He heard me.
I grew up with the understanding that we were Jews and the gentiles
fit into the category of “them and us.” I knew that we were
hated, but never really understood why. During the years of my
own search for the meaning of life, I had a supernatural experience
with the God of Israel. I began to read our Hebrew Scriptures.
I also began to meet a different type of gentile -- the kind that
love our people. Last summer, I was blessed to meet a woman
whose love for our people goes so deep that it manifested itself in
a selfless action of the kind one rarely sees in these days.
Meet Neriyah
Several years ago, a
young Jewish boy, Neriyah Arabov, immigrated from Bukhara to Israel
with his family. After a friend challenged him to start
reading the Scriptures, Neriyah did so and soon had a life-changing
experience. Since that day, he has had a tremendous zeal to
tell everyone about God.
Due to a misfortunate incident, the same
condition that took the life of his older brother, struck Neriyah;
he lost the use of his kidneys. In 2004, Neriyah's health
began to rapidly deteriorate. A couple of years earlier, his
name had been placed on a waiting list for a new kidney, but no one
had come forward.
In spite of his poor health, Neriyah had
married a sweet girl named Anna. They had first a son, Baruch,
and then a daughter, Sarah. At the time of this story, both
children were under two years of age.
Somewhere in the US Midwest
On the other side of
the world, circumstances were unfolding that would change the
lives of two very special people.
Cyndi is the mother of six and the wife of
Pastor Louie Barnett. She read an article describing Neriyah’s
precarious situation. The president of the organization Neriyah and
I both work for wrote a personal letter to friends and supporters
all over the world asking for prayer. In his letter, he
included a statement from Neriyah which said,
“Please, do not to
feel sorry for me; I trust that Ha Shem will take care of me.”
Cyndi and her husband decided to donate to a fund which had been set
up for Neriyah's health expenses. She began to pray for Neriyah.
A year passed and
Cyndi received an update -- now Neriyah was in a desperate
situation. He was on dialysis nine hours a day, every day.
Cyndi read this letter and with tears in her eyes, cried out “O
Lord, this young man is out there serving you.” Suddenly,
something went through her like a rushing wind and God broke into
her thoughts,
“Why
don't you donate your kidney to him?”
“You are asking
me to do this?” Could God be asking her to do this? She was
bewildered! She had never considered donating any organ before, but
her heart joyfully answered, “YES!" She danced around the
kitchen filled with the joy that comes from being obedient to God.
Cyndi’s family and friends, of course, had mixed feelings, but they
knew she was determined and that something special had definitely
happened to her. If her blood type matched Neriyah's, she would
know that this was from God.
Thus began an
adventure that would touch the lives of so many, including mine.
Let Me Give You My Kidney
After investigating kidney transplant information on the Internet
and finding out her own blood type,
Cyndi phoned the New York City head office of our organization,
inquiring about Neriyah’s blood type. She asked to speak to the
president and was told he wasn't available. Cyndi emailed him,
letting him know her desire. He responded, “We are taking you
seriously and will be in touch with you.” He and Percy, who is
my supervisor and my Rabbi, were with Neriyah in Jerusalem at that
very moment spending the day fasting and praying for someone
to donate a kidney to Neriyah!
Percy was given the
responsibility of coordinating the cross match testing that would
have to be done in the US before Cyndi could travel to Israel for
any surgery. He returned to Montreal and asked me if I would be
willing to handle the details of the transplant coordination. I
immediately agreed. I had known Neriyah for many years and I also
had previous experience working in haematology. During the
lengthy and at times frustrating process, Cyndi and I became close
friends.
Without any
foreknowledge of what she might be called to do, the previous year
Cyndi had started to get herself into excellent physical condition.
She began exercising daily and taking a food supplement called
Reliv -- resulting in a perfect blood test.
The doctors were amazed at the excellent condition she was in.
Aaron & Moses
As we drew closer to
the date when she would be leaving for Israel, Cyndi said to me,
“I’d love it if you could come with me.” Cyndi is shy and had
never travelled abroad. She thought I could be to her what
Aaron was to Moses.
My own “Yes”
rang in my head! Two years before, I had started to pray that God
would take me to Israel. I never really cared about going to
Israel before that time but, as I read the Scriptures and felt a
growing connection with my own Jewish heritage, I began to want to
visit the land where it all started. I wanted to go for at least
three weeks, but that would have required more resources than I had
at that time.
I immediately ran to Percy to volunteer to accompany her. He
thought it was an excellent idea. We emailed the president,
who said that he already had someone else in mind to take care of
Cyndi there. When I relayed this to Cyndi, she was
disappointed but only said, “Let’s pray.” The next day, we
received word that the other person was unavailable. Cyndi and
I rejoiced as our prayer was answered. Together, the two of us
ventured out for the first time to the Holy Land. We were on a
mission that only God could have orchestrated.
A Modern Miracle
Everyone who has
listened to the story of this special gentile woman who donated a
kidney to a Jewish man she had never met was awe-struck. They said
that they were listening to a modern-day miracle. (Remember my
prayer?)
The God Who created
Adam and Eve, Who parted the Red Sea and Who has saved us for over
3500 years was now performing a miracle for this young man, Neriyah,
and his family.
Cyndi, a gentile
believer, demonstrated her faith in the God of Israel to the
Orthodox Rabbi, the lawyer and psychologists at Israel's Ministry of
Health who all wanted to know more. Social workers,
psychiatrists, doctors and nurses, taxi drivers, family and friends
-- all were stunned by the story.
Surgery
At one point, the
surgery was postponed because Neriyah’s shunt became infected and he
was very ill. We were afraid that it would be cancelled.
It did however give Cyndi and me some time to visit Jerusalem and
the holy sites that we wouldn't have been able to see otherwise.
God even worked this out.
Finally, the day of
surgery arrived. Everyone was awaiting the result. Cyndi
was taken in first. Her surgery lasted for more than three
hours; the doctors announced that it was literally "by the book."
Then, it was Neriyah’s turn.
He was in surgery for five hours and, when the doctors finally
emerged at the end of the day announcing that it had been a success,
Neriyah’s mother and I hugged each other and wept for joy.
It is impossible to
describe the look on this mother's face as she quietly walked into
Cyndi’s room after the surgery and looked upon the woman who had
just saved her son’s life. She just stood there shaking her
head in wonderment. This strange woman had just risked her own
life for another woman's son. Neriyah's mother had lost her
firstborn son, but God had given her back her second son. She said,
“If he lives, I will believe!”
The very next day,
Neriyah was sitting up, feeling no pain and looking like a new man.
Postscript
Cyndi has returned
home to her family and her life in Michigan. At times, it may
seem as if nothing happened, but something deep in her being has
changed.
Cyndi
was deeply moved by Israel and our people. Her love for us has
grown, as has our love for her. The doctors and nurses were
all amazed, because the odds of this being a success were so slim.
Neriyah himself now
has a new life and has boundless energy, overflowing with
enthusiasm. All those around him have been touched by this
incident, as has been everyone who has heard about it.
This
story
is testament to
God’s power. At a time when the world seems to be going mad, these
two simple and humble people heard and responded to the call of the
God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. And I thank God for allowing me to
witness this wonderful miracle of Biblical proportions. |
