We are Lydia World Outreach Project
 The rest of the story is still unfolding…
Michael and I first lived in Jerusalem. We later moved near Tiberias, our home overlooking the Sea of Galilee where Messiah walked. We have seen and experienced firsthand the horror and hardship of the terrorism which has plagued the people of Israel for over a hundred years.
Without Yahweh’s divine intervention, I never would have had the opportunity to marry Michael, for just a few inches more, and Michael, too, would have fallen victim to a terrorist bomb. (If you have never heard Michael’s testimony about this incident, I would like to send it to you. Please write to me or call me at 866-918-1360.)
We have had rockets soar over our own home and hit the homes of our neighbors. We have seen the destructive nature of terrorism and Satan’s work up close. Eight out of ten families in Israel have lost loved ones to the acts of terrorists. They have had their homes destroyed, their loved ones maimed or killed, or have themselves been injured or maimed.
We in this wonderful country cannot conceive of what it is like to have one billion people dedicated to driving you into the sea and wiping an entire nation and people from the face of the earth. Yet every year thousands of Jewish people make aliyah to Israel and return to their Land, the Land Yahweh promised Abraham. They work hard to make even the desert bloom, while world leaders – and to our shame, even the leaders of the United States of America – try to force and coerce Israel into giving back their Land to the very terrorists who have never ceased trying to kill them.
There are hundreds of thousands who have come from Russia, Ethiopia, Europe, and from across the globe – HOME to the Land Yahweh promised them. Many arrive with little more than they can carry. In addition, there are the thousands of Jewish orphans which the Government of Israel worked so hard to bring from every part of the world where they were left homeless and fatherless. The plight of many of these orphans is critical. It is a constant struggle to meet the physical, emotional, social, mental, and spiritual needs of these thousands of children and youth, to make a difference in their lives, and to give them a future and a hope.
James 1:27 says:“Pure and undefiled religion before Elohim and the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their trouble, and to keep oneself unspotted from the world.” Our highest calling as servants of the Most High is to help the widows, the orphans, and the poor. Deuteronomy 27:19 says, “Cursed is the one who perverts the justice due the stranger, the fatherless, and widow. And all the people shall say, Amen!”
It grieves me now to have to share with you yet another part of the equation so prevalent in the lives of the Messianic Jewish believers here in Israel. In the Land we have read and learned so much about in His Word over the years, not only do Jewish Messianic new immigrants face physical hardship; they also face prejudice and persecution. One would not expect to hear this, but anti-Semitism it is as alive in Israel as it is in every other part of the world. Yes, many of the very people who have been persecuted so savagely in the past for nothing more than being Jewish are themselves now persecuting fellow Jews for their faith in Yahshua as Messiah.
As I said earlier, I grew up in an Orthodox Jewish world, which included both my family and my community. Orthodox Jews believe very strongly that for a Jew to believe that Yahshua is the Messiah is the worst thing that could ever happen; to many it is tantamount to death. In the eyes of the devoutly observant Orthodox, the only thing that these people are worthy of is to be cut off from the Jewish people and shunned. Many of the Orthodox will sit shivah (the traditional seven-day period of mourning for the dead that is observed in Jewish homes) for a family member who has accepted Yahshua as Messiah. There are many in the Land who persecute both Jews and Gentiles who have come to know Yahshua as their Messiah.
Yes – one can be a Jewish atheist, a Jewish agnostic, a Jewish reprobate, a practicing Jewish Buddhist, or literally anything – except a Jewish believer in Yahshua – and he will be welcomed to make aliyah to Israel with open arms. However, if one is a believer in or becomes a believer in Yahshua as Messiah, he can look forward to persecution, prejudice, and even expulsion from the Land. The very benefits that are afforded to those who hate Yahweh or do not even believe in Him are not available to those who claim Yahshua as their Messiah.
It is for these very grave and serious reasons that I would like to introduce you to the Lydia Project World Outreach, which takes its name from Lydia in Acts 16:14: “And a certain woman named Lydia, a seller of purple, of the city of Thyatira, which worshipped Elohim, heard us: whose heart Yahweh opened, that she attended unto the things which were spoken of Shaul.”
This passage truly describes Lydia as a Proverbs 31 woman. She was not only a mother and a businesswoman; the Word says she also did the things Shaul spoke of.
And then there was Tabitha, in Acts 9:36: “At Joppa there was a certain disciple named Tabitha, which is translated Dorcas. This woman was full of good works and charitable deeds which she did.”
Yahweh has laid it on my heart to call forth the Lydias and Tabithas of this nation to help the poor, the widows, the orphans, and the needy and persecuted Messianic believers in the Land.
In Genesis 12:3, Yahweh promises He will bless those who bless Israel: “And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.”
In the course of teaching the Feasts of Yahweh, Michael has explained that the true purpose of tithes and offerings is not for the building of cathedrals and churches, but for the laying up of provisions in the storehouses so that the needs of the Levites, the widows, the orphans, and the poor can be met.
Some have asked whether we are not just duplicating work that is already being done. No, we are not! In fact, during this trip to Israel I will be visiting with organizations which have already met the legal requirements for operation in Israel.
These projects cannot be seen on television in the United States or anywhere in the world, but the Almighty has opened doors for Michael’s television series to be on 64 stations and five networks. Now these organizations can have exposure for the good work they do. Yahweh has commanded us to give to the widows, the orphans, and the poor; and Michael has designated the week of each Feast to an entire program teaching the correct way to give and distribute tithes and offerings.
The Evangelical community has poured millions of dollars into Israel, and for that Michael and I are very grateful; but due to pressure from the Orthodox Jewish community, Messianic believers have been ignored both by the Evangelicals and the Israeli Government.
Please don’t misunderstand me. I am not saying that Michael and I disapprove of this very generous support of Israel by the Evangelical community, or that we do not recognize and appreciate the many charitable efforts of the Orthodox Jewish community as a whole. No, we welcome and appreciate EVERY effort to help the needy. But Michael and I have seen and heard about great needs that are not being met – the needs of the Jewish believers in the Messiah who have already come and will be coming to live in Israel.
A Rood Awakening Ministries International has set up the Lydia Project World Outreach to help not only these persecuted, forgotten Jewish believers; but also to help the widows, the orphans, and the poor of Israel on a equal basis.
Michael has asked me and has given me his blessing to take this project to the women and men of this nation and to every nation he has reached with his message. Michael and the board of A Rood Awakening Ministries International have asked me to travel to cities across this land and around the world, if necessary, to be an ambassador of ARAMI and to spread the word about the Lydia Project World Outreach. I will be traveling this nation over the next year to establish Lydia Project World Outreach groups in every town and city in the United States.
Over the past years, more ARAMI supporters than Michael and I can count have called and asked us how they can help Israel. They want to know how they can help the widows, the orphans, and the poor in the Land.
The Lydia Project World Outreach has been set up by ARAMI, and all funds raised will be earmarked for Israel for the widows, the orphans, the poor, and the persecuted and forgotten Messianic believers who need financial help so that they won’t be driven from the Land they love. I am asking you for two things: first, to pray about your part in this project; and second, that you pray about what you can pledge either as a one-time gift, or better yet, on a monthly basis to help us with this project.
We have committed ourselves to facilitating a way that you can be sure your money will go where you want it to go. We have contacts in Israel who will direct the funds to the orphanages, the widows, the poor, and those in the Messianic community who so desperately need your help.
This is not a one-time project. You and I have read over and over how the widow of Zarephath was blessed for meeting Elijah’s needs. We have also read of the women who ministered to the day-to-day needs of our Messiah and his talmidim from their own pockets. Luke 8:3: “And Joanna the wife of Chuza, Herod's steward, and Susanna, and many others who provided for him from their substance.”
The Greek word translated as “provided” is diakoneo, Strong’s #1247, which means “to minister, i.e. supply food and necessities of life; to relieve one’s necessities (e.g. by collecting alms); to provide, take care of, or distribute the things necessary to sustain life.”
Are you a Lydia or a Tabitha? Are you a Proverbs 31 woman of the Word? I know you are.
I am only one person, and I can’t carry this burden Yahweh has given me alone. I ask you to pray about your part in the Lydia Project World Outreach. I trust I will hear from you. Please contact our office at 616-583-0200 or 800-550-9028, or return the enclosed card to arrange for me to visit your city to set up a Lydia Project World Outreach resource center.
Thank you again for your love and support for Michael and me. I look forward to hearing from you and meeting you. Together we can be part of the solution and make a real difference by touching the lives of these precious ones in Israel.
Shalom Alechem,
Judith Rood.
National Chairwoman and Spokesperson
The Lydia Project World Outreach
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