A Father’s Prayer. A Family’s Legacy.

The story begins in a Las Vegas hotel room, late one December night in 1950. Joseph A. Lessin—a 40-year-old Orthodox Jewish businessman from Los Angeles—was on vacation when he came across something unexpected in his room: a Gideon Bible. He had never read the New Testament before. In fact, it was the first Bible he had ever opened. But something stirred in him, and he began to read.

Five months later, through quiet moments with that Bible—asking questions, wrestling with truth—Joe surrendered his heart to Jesus Christ. With no idea where to get another Bible, he took the Gideon Bible home with him, not knowing the eternal story God was unfolding.

In 1960, Joe was invited to share his testimony at the Gideons International Convention in Los Angeles. That night, he stood before a crowd of believers and told how Jesus had found him—an Orthodox Jew—through a hotel Bible in the heart of Las Vegas. And then he did something brave and vulnerable: he asked those gathered to pray for his sons, especially Roy, who happened to be in the audience. Roy wasn’t there to hear a message—he had just stopped by the event on his way to military service. But that night, something eternal was set in motion.

Among the Gideons were a group called the “Burden Bearers”—men and women who committed to intercede for others. Moved by Joe’s plea, they gathered in a room after the session and prayed long into the night for Roy and for the salvation of Joe’s family. Many continued to pray for years.

But Roy’s journey to faith wasn’t simple.

After Joe and his wife divorced, Roy’s mother remained deeply committed to raising her sons in the Jewish faith—and away from the Christian beliefs their father now embraced. Roy attended Hebrew school, prepared for his bar mitzvah, and once asked his rabbi about Jesus. The response was clear: “He was a Jew, but the Gentiles adopted Him as their God. We do not believe in Him.”

God wasn’t real to Roy. Religion felt like rules, not relationship. By age 13, through his older brother’s friends, Roy began drinking. What followed were years of wandering—filled with inner emptiness and spiritual confusion.

Whenever Roy visited his father, Joe would gently speak of Jesus—always hopeful, always planting seeds. But those seeds came at a cost. Roy dreaded the tension at home. His mother would question him after each visit. Caught between two worlds, he tried to quiet the noise with more drinking, more distractions.

After high school, Roy joined the U.S. Army Reserves. Days before he was to report for duty, his father invited him to hear him speak at the same Gideon convention where he had first asked for prayer. Out of curiosity—and maybe obligation—Roy attended. What he didn’t know was that prayer warriors were still lifting him up.

After completing his military service, Roy moved into an apartment with his brother Don. Both were living what Roy described as the "wild college life." As a Jew, Roy thought that if he just kept more commandments than he broke, he’d be okay. But eventually, the weight of his sin caught up to him. He realized he had broken far more than he had kept—and he had no way to fix it. One night, in desperation, he cried out to God: “Show me what to do.”

Shortly after, Joe invited him to dinner.

It was August 15, 1961. Over supper, father and son talked for more than two hours. Joe lovingly shared the Gospel—this time, not just in passing, but in full. Roy felt the truth. He believed Jesus was the Messiah. But he wasn’t ready to act.

“I believe it,” Roy said, “but I want to wait.”

Joe looked at him with urgency and compassion:
"If you were dying of thirst and someone handed you a glass of water, you’d still die unless you drank it. It’s the same with Jesus. Believing isn’t enough. You have to receive Him."

Roy still hesitated. “Can I just pray later? Alone?”

Joe gently opened the Bible and read, “Now is the accepted time. Behold, now is the day of salvation.”
Still, Roy held onto pride. “I want to do this in private.”

Joe answered with another verse: “God resists the proud but gives grace to the humble.”

Every excuse was stripped away. And with a surrendered heart, Roy knelt in prayer. His father led him through Scripture, and that night, Roy received Jesus as his Messiah and Savior.

Instantly, the peace of God flooded Roy’s heart. He said he knew, without question, that his life now belonged to the Lord and was under His direction.

But the story didn’t end there.

Soon after, Roy’s brother Don also came to faith in Christ—and spent the rest of his life as a missionary in Mexico. Joe Lessin continued ministering through Bible teaching and Messianic ministries, including Fair Havens Ministry Center. Roy went on to serve the Lord in Christian publishing, as a co-founder of DaySpring, and now through writing and encouragement at Blessed Day Cards.

One man. One Bible. One prayer. And a legacy of faith that continues to this day.

This Father’s Day, may we remember: A praying parent is a powerful force in the hands of God. Never stop sowing seeds. Never stop praying. You never know what story God is writing.