God's Presence in Unexpected Places

One of our prayer requests has always been for "Divine Appointments", so thank you to all who have been praying specifically for that, because that's exactly what we've gotten!

When we first began to plan and think about coming to Israel, we thought how great it would be to feel the Lord's presence as we experienced all the places that Jesus walked so very long ago . . . the Sea of Galilee, where He calmed the storm; the Garden of Gethsemane, where He prayed to the Father to take the cup of sacrifice from Him; and the Via Dolorosa, as He carried His cross.

The first night we were in Jerusalem we were able to go to the Western Wall,or Kotel, as the locals call it. We totally expected to feel God's presence there, but we really didn't. We did, however, notice as we approached the Wall, that there was a quietness, maybe a peacefulness, amidst all the noise of the city and with hundreds of people praying there.

After several days at the Hostel, trying to learn our way around the city and figure out the money and the cabs, buses, etc, we began feeling a little like we were missing something . . . like we were having too much fun. We were doing a lot of learning, but nothing very spiritual was happening. So we began to pray that God would show us what we were really here for and that He would provide divine appointments.

Becky: One of my divine appointments came on my first full day of work -Wednesday, October 3rd. Going back to when I first got my work assignment several months ago, I have to admit that I was not too happy. I wasn't looking  forward to sitting at a desk doing office work for two months. So, about 20 minutes after I received the e-mail with our job assignments, I resigned myself to the fact that God was in control, and that was the way I wanted it, so I chose to be obedient to whatever He asked me to do.

Raine (pronounced Rain), is my immediate supervisor. She's a Native American,Spirit-filled believer. At first she was a little intimidating, but one of the first things she said was that everything that has ever happened in my life and all that I've ever done has led me to this one moment in time, and that I was brought here for God's purpose. (That's exactly what I put in one of my journal entries when we first knew we were going to Israel.) She prayed that I would not just see in the natural, but that God would empower me to see things in the supernatural. She prayed that my mouth would be used only for His glory and that I would never say that I can't do something, but that I can do all things thru Christ who strengthens me. I'm so thankful to God for helping me to be obedient.

My job in the Adoption (sponsorship) Program has been pretty interesting so far. Most of what I do is on the computer working on spreadsheets, but everyday there's something new I get to do. One day I was asked to sit in and take notes on an adoption meeting between sponsors – a husband and wife from Japan and a recipient family with seven children who recently made Aliyah from America.(Aliyah is the returning of the Jewish people back to their homeland.) My work also includes editing letters that have been roughly translated into English. Most of the letters are from Jewish immigrants from the Ukraine, thanking their sponsors for their help. We are hoping we can adopt a family for our church with any extra money we might have left before we leave Israel.

Chuck: My job is in the Food Distribution Center, just downstairs from where Becky works. The Food Bank gathers food from many different sources, and we repackage those items into smaller bags or pallets for distribution to the new immigrants and other Israeli poor. Once in a while, I get to meet some of our clients when I load their cars with food, and that has been a blessing for me. The leaders mentioned that because I'm a truck driver, sometime in the future I might get to go out on deliveries around the city - don't know if I'm looking forward to that or not - the driving here is crazy!

Our boss, who is in charge of the entire Distribution Center, has asked us to consider staying longer - they desperately need help right now. We told them we would pray about it, but we really want to get back to the States before our grandson, Declan is born.

Dalia

Seven of us were allowed to leave early from work Thursday, because of the Parade of Nations. This is a parade in Jerusalem during the Feast of Tabernacles, or Sukkot, where Christians from all around the world come and show their support for Israel. The parade started at 3pm from the King David Hotel, and they let us go at 2:30 – not really enough time to take buses to get to the start, but we thought we would try anyway. Many of the main thoroughfares were closed because of the parade, so we ended up off our projected route. We got off one bus, and after a long wait, got on another. We ended up sitting by a young Jewish woman from America, named Dalia. She has dual citizenship and works in Israel several months out of the year. She asked us a lot of questions about where we’re from and why we’re here. We got a chance to tell her about BFP, and that there were many of us from all over the world who feel that the Lord sent us here just to serve the Jewish people and to bless them. She was so touched by our commitment and sacrifice, that it brought tears to her eyes. She offered to ride with us to the City Center where the parade most likely would end. After the buses, we stood in line for the light rail to Jaffa (Yaffo) Road in City Center. The train cars were so packed, that only a few people could get on. When we finally got up to the doors of the second train, we had to push, along with everyone else, to get on. Chuck was right behind me, pushing, but once I got on, I looked back and he was still standing outside. I knew the doors were going to close soon, because it was so packed in there, so I yelled back for him to get on. We kept getting pushed back in the car, so I didn’t know if Chuck got on until someone else saw him and said he made it. Once we got to Jaffa Road, we got out, and Dalia said she had to go the other way, so we thanked her and hugged her, and Chuck said we’re like parents to her now, so he asked me to say the Aaronic Blessing over her in Hebrew. When I did,she said, “That’s the blessing!”, and she almost cried again. We said, “Yes, that’s why we came to Israel – to bless you and all the Jewish people.” This was another one of God's divine appointments where we felt His presence and His touch on this young lady. We really hope we see her again - and the way God has been working, I believe we will!

Well, now you’re probably wondering if we ever made it to the parade. Let me tell you about another of God’s blessings. There were thousands of people everywhere in City Center, but there was no sign of the parade. People were just everywhere, going every which way. So we prayed and began walking toward the Old City. It was very loud with so many people, so we couldn’t even listen for it. As we got near the Jaffa Gate, there was no traffic at all, so we looked down a long hill to our right, and there were thousands more people, many waving flags. We hurried down the hill, and sure enough, it was the Parade of Nations . . . what a sight to behold! People from every nation, as far as you could see in both directions, wearing their national colors and carrying their flags, showing their support for Israel. We made it! Even though this was our goal and destination, it was never God's plan at all, but once we accomplished His desire for us to meet this young woman, He gave us our desire as well. I love that about God!

Another fun God moment was when we were at Masada and we met a couple of sisters from South Africa. I was sitting on a bench after several hours in the hot sun, and I offered a seat to one of the ladies. She laughed and said she was big and sweaty, but she squeezed in anyway. We hit it off right away. Her name was Jenny, and she introduced us to her sister, Priscilla. Somehow we all knew the others were Christians. We talked and laughed all the way to the visitors center, taking pictures, exchanging e-mails and inviting each other to our homes. We said goodbye, and figured we probably would never see each other again, but we would try to e-mail once we got home.

Four days later, we had a meeting at Headquarters, which is right next to our apartment. When we got there, there was a large group of people in our yard - they were on a tour of BFP. One of the ladies was yelling, "Jenny, Jenny!" in a South African accent. I knew that voice . . . it was Priscilla! I grabbed her, and we hugged, then Jenny came over and we hugged, then Chuck came back from the house and said, "I can't believe it!" In all of Israel, and even in Jerusalem, with over 700,000 people and thousands more visiting because of the Feast, we never thought we would see them here again. We know that God ordained these meetings, and we're excited to see what significance we will have in each other's lives in the future.

There are several people we have met through Bridges for Peace - James and Mary - the couple who came all the way across town after working all day and took us to dinner and to the Western Wall on our first night in Jerusalem. They will be leaving just a short while before we do, but they're not going to America right away. They'll be stopping at their daughter's home in Zurich, Switzerland. Amazingly, we have a 17-hour layover in Zurich on our way home, and we were wishing we knew someone there who could show us around for a few hours.

Another couple from BFP - Steve and Arlene - from Idaho, are the only ones who live on our side of the city. They arrived just 2 weeks before we did. They're a little older than us, but we're great friends already - just like we have always know them. We've gone to the City Center with them several nights this week for the celebrations; they invited us for breakfast last Shabbat; and we had them over today for lunch in the Sukkah - the temporary shelter built for the Feast of Tabernacles. They have been a great blessing to us, and they invited us to stay with them at their apartment the last 8 days we're here in Israel (after we're done working and have to move out of the BFP apartment). God is so good! He has all things covered even before we ask. Why do we ever worry?

We really haven't been to many of the Holy sites yet, but we have felt God's presence in so many situations. In Old Testament times, His presence was usually found in physical places or things - the Temple or the Ark of the Covenant, but now, we're finding that His presence is found in relationships and the connecting of hearts and minds and spirits. 

We rejoice in the fact that God has brought us here for such a time as this . . . that we are connecting to believers from all around the world and that we can be a blessing to the Israeli people . . . even if it's just one person at a time.

"Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth. This is then how we know that we belong to the truth, and how we set our hearts at rest in His presence." - 1 John 3:18-19 

Please Pray:

• that He'll open the doors He wants us to go through, and shut doors we're not to go through;
• continue praying for favor and divine appointments - your prayers are working!;
• also, one final prayer - for safety and the peace of Jerusalem. Israel is on the highest alert status right now, because an unmanned Iraqi drone was shot down over Israeli airspace recently. We heard many fighter jets flying over yesterday morning. No worries though, as Emmy, our young co-worker from England, would say. (smile)