Ken Wilsker Interview

We knew the Wilskers when we lived in NYC.  It was great to reconnect after all these years!

Ken grew up on Long Island, NY in a very Jewish community. In college he discovered eastern philosophy, humanistic psychology, astrology, and all things new age. He was searching, decided to read a New Testament and started attending a Unitarian Church.  He married a Jewish woman and they eventually found themselves at a Messianic congregation where they both felt at home.

After a crisis of faith they moved to Indiana and learned about the Association of Hebrew Catholics (AHC).  They discovered a whole network of Jewish people who practice the Catholic faith but are deeply in love with Yeshua.   Ken still considers himself Jewish and he and his wife observe the Biblical feasts.   This was a most fascinating interview!

Part 2 - Elie Grunhaus 25 Years Later

Continued from last week.   As previously stated, Elie was my very first guest on Bagels and Blessings.  It was August 2, 1997 and little did we know that we were making history!

Today's show continues his story.  Elie grew up in a secular Jewish home in Long Island and when he was in the military he had a supernatural experience where he met Yeshua!

You'll enjoy some great music too!

Elie Grunhaus-25 Years Later!

Elie Grunhaus was my FIRST guest ever on Bagels and Blessings.   It was August 2, 1997.  I had a chance to do a "one time, one hour" show and I thought I might as well pretend to be a real DJ.  The Lord gave me the name "Bagels and Blessings," and I invited Elie to come on the show - I knew he had great diction and a fun story!  Little did I know that the show would become a regular and last for so many years!  God is full of surprises!

Today you will hear part 1 of his story -- stay tuned for part 2 next week!

Here's a little bit about him:

Elie came to trust in Yeshua as his Messiah in 1973, despite being raised in NYC by parents whose experiences during the holocaust left them doubting God was even real or cared about their suffering.  Through a miraculous set of circumstances he found his Messiah..  And that pivotal decision has brought God to the top of his radar in just about every facet of his life: his wife, their two kids, and the many experiences in which he has seen God's reality and care for him in so many ways.  Elie and his wife Sherry reside in Kentucky and are former members of Congregation Shema Yisrael in Rochester, NY.

Jeffrey D. Miller

What a blessing to reconnect with Jeffrey D. Miller!  Here's a little background:

Jeffrey D. Miller was raised in a traditional Jewish home, but spent twenty-four years of his life as an atheist. However, in 1983 he had a miraculous encounter with the living God and committed his life to Yeshua, the Jewish Messiah. For 30 years, Jeffrey D. has traveled the country and overseas ministering in hundreds of churches and Messianic Jewish Congregations about how Jewish it is to believe in Jesus, and bringing reconciliation through the love of the Messiah.

Pastor Matt McKeown Interview

What a fun interview today!  Matt McKeown is the Associate Pastor at the United Brethren in Christ Church (UBIC) in Holly Hill Florida and the Manager of Sound Mind Studios. His music is featured in televised sports games and events for the NFL, NBA, NHL, MLB, and F1 racing. He also has worked in ADR for programs like Hawaii Five 0, Law and Order SVU, and The Man in the High Castle.

In ministry Matt has served on his denomination’s Youth Leadership Team and National Human Sexuality Task Force. Matt has a passion for studying Messianic Judaism and as a Christian Pastor lives a Messianic lifestyle; willingly attending his local Messianic Synagogue, studying at Yeshivat Shuvu, eating Kosher and teaching from a Messianic Jewish perspective. He has also taught on tours in the Holy Land and has provided music for the Bless Israel Network. Matt has done voice over work for FFOZ on their television show and is the voice of Torah Kids audio lessons and their books ‘Tent of David’ and ‘Elementary Principles’. He is currently recording the audio version of the Complete Jewish Bible by David H. Stern.

The call on Pastor Matt’s life is an interesting one. The Lord is using him to be a bridge between the Christian world and the Jewish world. It is his desire to see Jewish people recognize Yeshua (Jesus) as the Jewish Messiah and for Christians to recognize the Jewish foundation of their faith.

Matt, his wife Kara and their three teenage children live in the Daytona Beach area of Florida and in addition to serving at UBIC attend Beth Judah Messianic Synagogue in Ormond Beach.

Avi Abrams Interview

With permission from the Messianic Times (this first appeared in the December, 2022 issue) I am happy to share this pre-recorded interview with Avi Abrams.  Originally from Russia, he came to know the Lord through a bizarre set of circumstances.  Eventually  he moved to Calgary, Aberta, Canada and he led his mother to the Lord.  She also joined him in Calgary.  Together they attend Beth Shechina Messianic Congregation where Avi is the Cantor, Worship Leader and Web Designer.

Rachel Kushner Interview

Thanks to the Messianic Times Newspaper, I became aware of this fascinating lady named Rachel Kushner.  She has a wonderful testimony and an even more amazing ministry called "Links to Messiah!"

Rachel  is a Jewish believer. Her parents were in ministry and felt called to serve the Jewish community.  She and her two younger sisters grew up experiencing the best of both worlds: Passover and Easter, Christmas and Hanukkah, Rosh Hashanah, and Shabbat dinners on Friday evenings.  They learned Hebrew prayers, enjoyed latkes in the winter and seder meals in the spring. Most meaningful was learning the deep connection of how Yeshua fulfilled the prophecies foretold in the Old Testament.

“Links to Messiah" is an online ministry where people can buy a holiday box with instructions on how to celebrate various Jewish holidays.

For more info click here:

Home - Links to Messiah