Day 76 — We must interact with God's word BEFORE the news
It is so important that we interact with the Word of God before we interact with the news. There was a major shift in the world, and in the spirit, on October 7. It is so important that we seek to discern right from wrong, truth from falsehoods, through the Scriptures. We start with what we know.
God made an everlasting covenant with Abraham and his descendants (Gen. 17:7-8).
God will always be faithful to his covenant to Israel (Jer. 33:35-37, Rom. 3:1-4, 11:29).
God called Israel to reach the nations (Ps. 67:1-2, Is. 42:6, 49:6).
God loves Arabs—just as he loves all humanity, which was created in his image (Gen. 1:26, 28).
The nations rage against God (Ps. 2, Is. 17:12-13,).
The nations will hate and attack Israel (Ez. 38-39 [Gog and Magog], Zech. 12:2-3, 14:1-4, Rev. 16:16).
Yeshua returns to defeat the enemies of Israel and sets up his millennial reigns on earth, with its capital in Jerusalem (Zech. 14:3-4, 9, Rev. 11:15, Rev. 19:11ff).
There will be an end-time Jewish revival at some point(s) (Hos. 3:4-5, Ezek. 36:24-28, Matt. 23:37-39, Rom. 11:26).
The nations will come to Jerusalem in the Millennial Age to worship Yeshua and learn his ways (Zech. 14:16, Is. 2:3-4).
We have to keep these truths in mind, as we look at world events. The very fact that these things are coming to pass before our eyes is proof of the authenticity of the prophecies in the Bible. The fact that there is a nation called Israel, whose Jewish citizens have DNA proof connecting them with the Israelites of old is a miracle. Never before in history has a people gone more than two or three generations without a physical homeland before they assimilated into other nations. Israel survived without a land for nearly 2000 years. Without God’s help that would have been impossible.
And for some reason, God has put Israel in an impossible situation with millions of non-Jewish people in the same land. There does not seem to be a political solution. The best thing we can do is to pray the Lord’s prayer, asking God to send his kingdom on earth as it is in heaven. The battle is not only physical, causing death and carnage, but it is also a spiritual battle between God and Satan. And there is a war for the minds of men taking place in the media and on the Internet.
Hamas’s Top Leaders are worth billions!
While Palestinians struggle to find food and shelter, one has to wonder if they realize that the top three leaders of Hamas are all billionaires. They enjoy a life of luxury, living in penthouses and flying on private jets. Much of the money has come from Qatar.
Ismail Haniyah, “a father of 13 who presides over one of the world’s wealthiest terrorist groups, is worth more than $4 billion…Abu Marzuk, 72, a senior Hamas political leader who heads its ‘international relations office, is estimated by the Israeli government to be worth $3 billion.” Khaled Mashal is also worth several billion. Yahya Sinwar, the Hamas leader in Gaza, and mastermind of the October 7 massacre is reportedly worth up to $3 million. They claim to be devoutly religious while running a scam on not only their own poor people but the entire world who funds them.
You can see pictures of Hamas leaders enjoying the good life here.
Shocking Video! Hamas Doctor Turns on Hamas
The Director of Kamal Adwan Hospital in Gaza confessed that Hamas turned the facility into a military base. He was captured by the IDF and interrogated by Israel’s version of the FBI, called the Shin Bet. Watch his confession below.
From the Times of Israel
Asked about Hamas operations inside the hospital complex, Kahlot revealed that one Hamas leader and two senior officials had offices inside the hospital.
“There are places for senior officials. They also brought a kidnapped soldier there,” he said. “There is a designated space for interrogations, internal security, and special security. They all have private phone lines within the hospital…They hide in hospitals because they believe that hospitals are a safe place,” Kahlot told the Shin Bet interrogator. “They will not be harmed if they are inside a hospital.”
In addition to operating out of the hospital, Hamas operates its own private ambulances, which are a different color from those used by medics. According to Kahlot, the ambulances used by Hamas aren’t ever volunteered for medical uses. “Once I begged them to take a wounded man to the Indonesian Hospital or Shifa Hospital for treatment. They refused,” he said. “Their mission was more important.”
Asked what he thinks about Hamas now, after two and a half months of war, Kahlot didn’t spare his criticism.
“The leaders of Hamas are cowards,” he said. “They left us in the field while they’re hiding in concealed places. They destroyed us.”
Winter Clothing for IDF Soldiers
I don’t know if you had time to watch the interview I did with Raz Am Shelem yesterday. If not, we are posting it again. Raz is a university student who jumped into action on October 7 and began to serve IDF soldiers as a civilian. He and his friend Ziv have provided tens of thousands of meals to soldiers and so much more. Tomorrow, Elana and I will go with him to the border of Gaza to deliver meals.
We are believing God for $50,000 to buy tactical winter gear for soldiers. As we have shared before, Israel is a small country that was thrust into a war it did not expect. The truth is, we simply were not ready, and the IDF has been playing catch-up for two months. Private citizens have been assisting any way we can. The last thing we want is for our young men and women to be out in the cold and rain at night without protection. Please help us buy winter jackets, thermal underwear, gloves, sleeping bags, weatherproof shirts and pants and so much more.
Thank you so much for being an encouragement to these young heroes!
Personal Note
For the most part, I try to remain upbeat. But make no mistake, what is happening to both Jews and Arabs is devastating. To be so close geographically to death and carnage is not easy. Every now and then I get emails from people correcting me and our team on minor issues. Honestly, I love to be corrected because I want to be the best I can be as a communicator. But sometimes, people have no idea of the stress that we go through as a team in putting these daily emails together. The overwhelming amount of response we get from you is positive and encouraging. But when someone takes us to task on minor issues, when people are literally dying and risking their lives, it can be discouraging. I hope you don’t mind me sharing this with you.
We never hold grudges, and we walk in forgiveness. The humility of Jesus sent him to the cross, and it was from that humility, he received power (Phil. 2:6-11). We want to remain humble as we serve you by communicating what is going on here in Israel and giving you opportunities to be involved. But it is heavy. The spiritual warfare is the most intense I think I have ever experienced. There are days that we feel hopeless. Hence, the beginning of this email was about staying in the word of God (I am preaching to myself as much as to anyone). It’s one thing to teach on the end times and it’s another thing to be living 10 minutes from it!
I say all that to ask for personal prayer for me, Elana, and our daughters, as well as the MMI team (Lisa, Diego, and Nathalia). Would you please intercede for us? We want to keep the focus on serving soldiers and survivors and praying for revival, but sometimes, we need to humble ourselves and just be honest.
The truth is, we are walking victory, and at the same time, we are completely broken. In many ways, it doesn’t make sense. Each night, we see the funerals of the soldiers who died the day before and see the despair in the eyes of spouses or parents. (I can’t even get through this email without weeping.) Being thousands of miles away in other countries, it can seem almost like a video game, but it is very real and tragic news is daily if not hourly.
And I’m not just speaking about Israelis. While I support with the IDF had to do to get our hostages back, seeing the devastation in Gaza is painful. They are human beings. There is no question that without Hamas they could have been living in peace for decades. But I still have deep empathy for what they’re going through.
So that is just a little personal info about what we are going through. Would you please lift up our hands in the spirit? I’m honored that you are walking through this with us. Thank you for your prayers.
Ron
My grandfather was a prisoner of war, taken from South Africa to Bermuda. My grandmother looked on while their house and furniture were set on fire, after which she and her children were transported to a concentration camp. Her husband was required to swear allegiance to the English crown before he was allowed back in 1902 to her and their surviving children. My mother, born 15 years later, grew up in poverty. Obviously, my mother was not keen on supporting the British against the Germans when WWII broke out. But South Africans, like her brother, who fought the Nazi regime, have been proven to be on the right side of history. My sympathies and prayers are with the IDF, especially…