Israel Prayer Journal #21

Shalom Friends,

I honestly cannot believe how quickly the time is going by.  In just a few days it will be Christmas.  It is such an enormous privilege to be here in this precious Land at this time of the year.  I haven’t really gotten the Christmas “feeling” here as I would if I were in the States.  There are no Christmas carols playing on the radio, no Christmas trees in windows, no houses decorated with lights, no snow, and no mad holiday-shopper traffic in the streets.  In fact, it doesn’t even really feel too much like winter.  Because so many of the trees here are evergreens, I have seen very few trees change their colors and lose their leaves.  It certainly has gotten colder, but most days are blue skies and pleasant.  Yet time marches on.  Besides the mild weather, one other funny thing is that locally-grown strawberries are currently available in the markets!  Because the southern desert and Jordan Valley are so low and warm, many crops can grow there almost year round.  So, I’ve been enjoying strawberries.  Speaking of which, I am always amazed at how low fresh produce prices are here.  I can consistently buy fresh, locally-grown avocadoes and nearly any other vegetable or fruit I need for less than $0.25 each! 

God continues to surprise me with His Providence.  In the past few weeks I have discovered quite a few other believers in my classes who I didn’t know were believers beforehand.  If you remember, early on I commented on how few believers I knew here and how I thought few people in my classes would be interesting.  As is typical of God, He proved me wrong (again, you were right, Lorrie!).  It has been really neat to get to know some of these believers.  If you can believe it, I discovered that I actually had an outside connection with one of these believers.  She had gone on one of my college professor’s Israel trips with a southern California seminary, so she knew not only my professor and friend, Todd, but she also knew another student on that trip, a dear friend of mine from college, Kyle!  Kyle had told her about me studying here also and told her to look me up.  So, it turns out that the world is incredibly small after all!  One other new friend told me that her dad is interested in starting an extension program here in Israel from the college where he works.  That would be so neat.  That’s how I got started here, after all!

God’s Providence in timing has also been quite amazing lately.  A few different times He has orchestrated things amazingly so that I had a chance to support friends who had a need of spiritual encouragement at that very moment.  It never ceases to amaze me how large the fields of harvest are here.

I’m not yet entirely sure what all I’ll be doing for Christmas.  This Saturday I’m attending a concert in the Old City.  I’ve been looking forward to hearing the music at this particular 100-year-old church for quite some time, so that will be exciting.  I do hope to make it to Bethlehem during some point in the next week also.  After all, what would Christmas in the “Holy Land” be without a trip to Bethlehem?!  I’ll be enjoying a Christmas/Hanukkah party with friends on Christmas Eve, and I hope to do other things with friends on Christmas Day as well. 

I’d like to get out and experience Hanukkah a little, too.  Hanukkah starts the 20th.  Hanukkah, called the Feast of Dedication, is a Jewish holiday that celebrates a miracle when, after the evil king Antiochus Epiphanes set up an idol in the Temple during the Inter-Testament times, Jewish leaders from the Maccabee family drove him out and cleansed and rededicated the Temple.  However, they only had enough oil for the menorah of the Temple to last one day.  Providentially, though, it lasted eight days.  Thus, Hanukkah lasts for eight days and remembers God’s providence in helping the people of Israel cleanse the Temple and break free from an evil despot.

In the past few weeks I’ve enjoyed a classical Arabic music concert performed by some extremely talented young people; a few classical mini-concerts by guests and music teachers at the Music Department of our university; and lectures by both the German and US ambassadors to Israel.  The German ambassador was much warmer and friendlier than the US ambassador.  The US ambassador also arrived with a Secret Service escort, whereas the German was alone.  The US ambassador basically had nothing of substance to say, but it was interesting getting a chance to see him. 

In the news lately a few interesting things have happened.  The ramp leading up to the Temple Mount has been deemed a safety hazard.  The authorities are still debating whether to close the Temple Mount to build a new ramp or to continue using the ramp with minor improvements for safety.  It has been quite an issue: Muslims are claiming the Jews are trying to harm their holy place; the Jews are complaining that they might not have access to the Mount if the ramp is closed.  Also, a few letters ago I mentioned a former Hamas man who became a believer and turned into an Israel spy.  He made the news again recently, as the PLO is subpoenaing his records about his spying activities for Israel.  If you think of it, please continue to pray for him: for wisdom and protection for him and for the salvation of his family.  And don’t forget to read Son of Hamas.  Also, stats were released recently saying that in 2010 there were 19,531 legal abortions performed in Israel.  So sad…

In preparation for any upcoming potential emergencies (Iran, eg) the authorities in Israel have been systematically conducing drills and tests of their emergency preparedness.  Last week they tested the emergency, city-wide siren in Jerusalem.  I found out about it ahead of time and was prepared with my camera to record it.  You can watch my clip of a few minutes in Jerusalem.  It was a little sobering to realize that if I heard that ominous noise again, it would probably indicate something very bad was happening to this tiny country.  May God protect the people here.

I also mentioned a while ago about my trip to Samaria where I helped a group of believers harvest grapes for Jewish farmers.  One of the founders of that ministry has released a music video ahead of a US tour to raise support for Israel. 

Many friends and family members have sent me Christmas cards.  I was completely taken by surprise by that, and I want to thank all those who were so thoughtful.  That was such a delightful surprise to receive warm thoughts from friends and family back home.  Thank you!

I am very pleased to announce that I have updated the layout of my website about Israel.  Please feel free to peruse it and learn more about this amazing country.

Lastly, I took a Hebrew midterm exam this week.  I got an A, though it wasn’t as good as I would have liked.  It was quite a difficult test, but it was encouraging to see my progress.  This week I was able to purchase stamps at the post office, entirely in Hebrew.  That was encouraging.  It’s also been nice to become familiar with some of the workers at stores I frequent by using basic Hebrew.  The doorman at the local grocery store now recognizes me and greets me warmly.  The meat store clerk recognizes me and starts preparing my usual order before I even order.  And the maintenance man at the dorms always greets me warmly.  It’s nice to be able to build basic relationships with people through kindness.