Reporting From Israel

Yes, that?s right? I went to the border of Gaza last night! Now that you all have had a heart attack, allow me to explain as you pick yourselves up off of the floor. Julie and her children invited Mandy and I to go to the beach with them. We of course accepted the invitation and drove all the way to Ashqelon near the border of Gaza. It was absolutely amazing. In fact, we even passed by the temporary housing of the recently evacuated Jewish Settlers and took a picture. See below:

The beach was a healing experience for me. We had an amazing full moon and beautiful skyline. Before sunset, I took the three girls into the Mediterranean and we jumped and threw ourselves into the huge waves! We were giggling, laughing and having a great time as we washed up on shore. The water was like a bathtub and it was so beautiful. I found it to be so good for my heart. We then had a nice picnic dinner as we watched the sunset and feasted on hummus, pita, watermelon and veggies. Julie confided in me about some things and she said that she really could use a friend and she?s glad I am here. Considering how tough Julie can be sometimes, this was huge. After our dinner we relaxed more and then got some ice cream before the long ride home.

Today was also an incredibly encouraging experience? after searching we finally were able to attend The JAMM, a ministry to youth and young adults in Jerusalem. Website: www.heartrock.org We were welcomed by about twelve twenty-somethings that have a heart for Yeshua. This is a Messianic Ministry and we were impressed by the location and the ministry itself. They were so friendly and so kind, we fit right in and were having conversations like old friends. They even asked me to lead praise and worship but I politely declined and said, ?Next week!? I needed to at least see what it was about first! I am glad though that they are so open. Usually, in the States, newcomers get tolerant looks from the regular attendees and have to pass tests and go before the board before you?re allowed to pray or say Amen. (note the sarcasm there!) So we had a wonderful message in Hebrew, some sharing time, communion and then fellowship with coffee, tea and pie. I think it was so cool that it was all people in my age group. It is so important that we can fellowship among believers our age and find that common ground. We had native Israelis, Ethiopian Jews, Ashkenazi and Sephardic Jews, American Jews, etc. All of them were spiritually mature and the non-competitive type. What a breath of fresh air! The director, Richard and his wife live near where Mandy and I work so they are willing to pick us up even! Hallelujah! Many thanks to all of you who have been praying for this type of fellowship for us. Next we are visiting some more Messianic Congregations to see which one suits our needs to be fed as well as allows us to be involved.

Work is going well? so well, in fact, that Mandy and I feel like we are regular staffers and that they would definitely feel the loss without us there. Our responsibilities grow and our work becomes more challenging. But we are here to serve and the smiles on our precious patient?s faces are proof that we are making a difference.

The unique thing about being a missionary in a country like Israel is that you must establish trust among the people before you can share with them all of the wonderful truths of Yeshua. This happens faster than you would think and I have had such intense discussions about Yeshua already. Now we just need prayer to continue feeding these hungry people. Jesus said to Peter, ?Feed my sheep.? Those three words are so much more simplistic than what we make them out to be. We assume you need to have a certain education, financial status and background to feed sheep? but in reality, all you need is a handful of truth gently fed to the mouths of the hungry. Can it be any more simplistic, can it be any more rewarding? If it was so complicated Yeshua would have said, ?Go get a degree, have ten years of experience and then apply to go feed my sheep.? So now that we know how easy it really is, go out and feed some sheep today.