Messianic Jewess Sings for Jesus on Israeli TV

A 22-year-old Messianic Jewess has received overwhelming support in her first audition on route to represent Israel in the 2018 Eurovision Song Contest. Tslil Goldman, whose name in Hebrew means musical note, received one of the highest scores during the live televised program where viewers from across the country vote for who they want to sing for Israel at the international song competition which will be broadcast from Portugal in 2018. Eurovision is one of the longest-running television programs in the world with audience figures in recent years estimated as high as 600 million internationally.

For a Messianic Jew to be considered to represent Israel in the international competition is remarkable, and demonstrates that while most religious Jews, and many of Israel's older generation remain unwilling, the younger generation in Israel have embraced us.

When Tslil was initially contacted to find out if she was interested in participating in the competition, the usual 15 minute interview turned into an hour long discussion about her faith in Yeshua. "The producer was fascinated with my faith in Yeshua," Tslil told me. "She wanted to know more not only for the competition, but because it was a personal interest for her."

During months of interviews leading up to the first live competition,everyone was as interested in Tslil's faith as in her

extraordinary singing abilities. "I was mostly asked about my faith in Yeshua and about God. My life seemed strange to them. We are a Jewish family who believe in Yeshua and we are 13 children in our family. We never had a television and I have never even seen the Eurovision Song Competition," she told me.

When the big night finally arrived, just before Tslil was about to perform, the master of ceremonies asked her father and brothers and sisters who had come with her to talk about their faith in Yeshua on the live broadcast. The family talked openly about Yeshua the Messiah, and that Jewish people who believe in him don't need to become Christians but can live as Jews. Her public expression of faith in Yeshua did not stop hundreds of thousands of viewers from around the country to send in their votes for Tslil to represent Israel at the upcoming Eurovision competition. She scored 88%, one of the highest of all participants ever on the program.

Anyone who knows Tslil would never have imagined that she would be

	Israeli youth look on

able to perform in front of large audiences, let alone on live television. A family crisis had left the young girl without a mother, a confused father and without God in her life. When her childhood friend died in a car crash, Tslil was devastated and overcome regular panic attacks which became a frightening reality in her young life. After years of teenage despondency, Tslil eventually found her way back to faith in God and Yeshua. "Now when I look out over the crowds I am nervous, but not afraid. I see the people, people I love. And I know I have a purpose to be here, for Yeshua," she shared.

Tslil loves Israel and her Jewish identity in Yeshua is important to her. She will not work on the Sabbath, which according to the commandment includes not lighting fire traditionally understood to mean not turning on lights or using electronic devises including telephones. She served in the Israeli Defense Forces where she worked with troubled teenaged girls who live in a government hostel. She still keeps in touch with some of the girls and tries to encourage them.

Since her successful performance, Tslil has been offered numerous contracts to work with Israeli musicians, but she refuses to use her musical talents anywhere that does not honor God.  In the meantime, y oung people from all over Israel are contacting her on Facebook to talk about her Messianic faith. Tslil also travels around the country with a local circus performing on stilts, a skill she learned as a child, and waits for another chance to sing for Yeshua.