The Maple Street McDonald's is open for business Wednesday. The night before, it was a crime scene.

Police say 51 year old Luis Rivera walked in and threatened customers with a hunting knife.

Jose Maldonado was there moments before and saw it all.

"I stopped at McDonald's to get change for offering," he says.

But soon, for the member of Holyoke's La Senda Antigua Church, that stop turned into an opportunity to witness. For some reason, Jose picked Luis.

"I was compelled to give him a tract, a gospel tract," Maldonado says.

After he gave Rivera the pamphlet, he realized Rivera was carrying a hunting knife.

"Actually, I feared for the guy that I gave the gospel tract to, I didn't fear for myself," Maldonado says.

But he should have.

Moments later, police say that blade was out and threats were issued to the 20 people inside the restaurant. Six officers arrived and the moment Rivera lunged at one of them, Holyoke Police Sergeant Daniel Reardon ended all threats by firing one shot, right to the shoulder.

CBS 3 Springfield learned Rivera, whose been living at Park View Rehab in Springfield, is no stranger to Holyoke law. He's had a couple disorderly conduct arrests and three domestic abuse cases in the Paper City alone.

Rivera is still at Baystate getting treated for a variety of other ailments as well as the gunshot wound.

But for the man who saw it all and walked away without a scratch, he knew God was on his side.

"It didn't really matter to me as I read the Bible. If it's for me to go now, I can go now and death is gain, as the Bible says, but He's probably going to keep me here longer, to help people that are not completely saved," Maldonado says.

Holyoke Police say this looks like an open and shut case. State Police and the District Attorney are in the midst of an independent review.

Rivera is lucky to be alive. A Holyoke Police captain told us officers are always trained to aim right at the center of the body, and Sergeant Reardon was the department's firearms instructor.