By Michael Freund, Jerusalem Post
Yesterday at 11 a.m., air raid sirens sounded across the country. Emergency crews went into position, security forces entered a heightened state of readiness and thousands of people made their way to public shelters.
It was a chilling scene, as schoolchildren were shepherded to safety, and the innocence of our nation’s youth was disrupted by the din of the alarm. Thankfully, it was only a drill.
As Col. Chilik Soffer of the IDF Home Front Command bluntly noted: “Every country trains for emergency scenarios like earthquakes and fires. Here in Israel we train for those as well as for enemy attacks.”
Living in the Middle East, it would appear, like any tough neighborhood, requires taking all sorts of precautions, however unpleasant .
And while the government tried to calm the country’s nerves, assuring us that this exercise was routine and bore no relation to the dire state of the region, it was hard to escape the feeling that something ominous is in the air. Indeed, the headlines of late have been filled with all sorts of warnings and threats, as our foes dispatch daily reminders that their intentions are anything but peaceful.
In the past few days, Syrian dictator Bashar Assad spoke openly of war and embracing the “resistance option,” while Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad reasserted his determination to bring about Israel’s demise. To our north, Hizbullah is busy rearming, and its thug-in-chief Hassan Nasrallah boldly declared that Israeli commercial and civilian shipping could come under attack.
Meanwhile, to the south, rocket-fire emanating from Gaza resumed, and Palestinian terrorists sought to attack soldiers guarding the frontier. In every direction, it seems, our enemies are gearing up for a war of extermination, each one trying to outdo the other in a frenzy of blood-curdling intimidation.
The arc of iniquity that stretches from Beirut to Damascus, and from there to Teheran and all the way back to Gaza, is not just rattling its saber, but may be getting ready to unsheathe it.
IN THE meantime, our closest ally, the United States, has increasingly turned hostile to us and our interests, badgering us to make still more concessions to the enemies gathering at the gate.
Like it or not, we are very much a nation that is dwelling alone.
In the face of all this, there is a knife-like question piercing through the fog of fear: Where is God?
Some might take this as a challenge to divine justice, but that is not what I intend. I am a man of faith, and I believe our deliverance will assuredly come.
What I mean to say is: Where is God in our public discourse? Why aren’t we turning to Him in this hour of need?
Sure, diplomacy and military readiness are crucial, and we must continue to invest our efforts in these areas, even as we hope for the best. But the piercing siren sounded yesterday brought to mind the wailing of the shofar on Yom Kippur, penetrating the serene obliviousness that characterizes much of our daily lives. This was a spiritual wake-up call, sounding to arouse us and jolt us into action. We can choose to ignore it, but we do so at our peril.
Each night, our generals and defense officials grace the television screens, insisting that “Israel is strong” and “we are ready.”
I’m glad to hear it and hope it’s true. But as we have seen in the past, overconfidence can breed arrogance, which is a recipe for disaster.
A dash of humility and a healthy dose of faith are just as critical to ensuring success. That’s why I’d like to see our leaders projecting a little less conceit and a lot more conviction.
How refreshing it would be to hear them invoking some reliance on the Almighty and putting God back into the national conversation, injecting the sacred into their public discourse – and ours.
This is more than just semantics; it goes to the very heart of the challenges we face. Belief in a higher power and in the justness of our cause is our spiritual ammunition, giving us the strength and determination to turn back any foe.
The great hassidic leader, Rabbi Menachem Mendel of Kotzk, once asked a student where God could be found. The surprised young scholar offered the seemingly obvious answer: Rabbi, He is surely everywhere! “No!” said the Kotzker, with fiery certitude. “God is only where we let Him in!”
Now, more than ever, would be the perfect time to do so.
GOD IS IN the midst of Israel, but HIS People doesn’t see HIM. And yet HE HAS WARNED them Of This Hour. Fortunately HE IS MORE TRUSTWORTHY than we who claim to have faith IN HIM.Remember late May’67 ? The enemy encompassed you,their geographers were busy wiping you of the map,
your PM kept appeasing the murderers and their sponsor,your CoS nervously broke down.
And in 6 days everything was over.For your enemies,that’s. Now they are at it again and they expect it to be for the last time. How right they’re ! For they keep looking at your erstwhile-trustworthy-ally- now-turned-betrayer. And dear Jacob,you’re doing exactly the same.
Well the Good News this time Is that you Jacob,will be the savior of your unfaithful ally,and of the cowardly world too. They’re expecting to gloatingly see you dead and you turn out to be their rescuer.But Then It Is GOD’S WAY TO DRESS UP A BANQUET TABLE For you before your implacable but apoplectically powerless enemies. Rejoice Israel ! GOD IS APPRISING the heathen world OF HIS LOVE For you.
Right on!
WELL DONE MICHAEL! I THINK AND PRAY ALONG THESE LINES DAILY. IF WE TRULY BELIEVE WE ARE WHO WE SAY WE ARE AND WE ARE IN A LAND WE TRULY BELIEVE WAS GOD GIVEN…THEN IT ONLY MAKES COMMON SENSE AS WELL AS SPIRITUAL SENSE TO DEPEND OPENLY ON THE GOD WHO PROMISES OUR EXISTENCE AND VITALITY. THANK YOU FOR YOUR WORDS. MAY OUR LEADERS OF ISRAEL TAKE NOTE AND SPEAK BOLDLY ABOUT OUR GOD WITH THE HUMILITY NEEDED!
Without faith, the Bible teaches, it is impossible to please God. Faith is the evidence of things not seen and the power of things not revealed. Forgive us, O Lord, for our failing to give You glory!
I as a christian firmly believe that God WILL intervene when the time comes ,when the enemy of Israel wants to come against Israel . SHALOM to ISRAEL . Annie
Michael what a really wonderful article and thank you so very much. How Jehovah has longed for His People to call upon His Holy Name and be the nation above all nations that G-D has called to teach the world of Him. Ask yourself why G-D had to disperse the nation in the first place and it was because they worshiped strange gods, baked cakes to the queen of heaven and ate meat sacrificed to Molech. Israel will not every be defeated if she will turn to the One who created her and loves her and does not rely upon “chariots and horses”. How did Joshua win??? Not by might and not by power but by the grace of the Almighty God. Bless you and keep up the good work calling Israel to her true calling and her only salvation. Joanne
Young man, God is exactly where he has always been and waiting for you to come back to Him…(2Chronicles 4:17 )He is the faithful one and He says- seek me and you will find Me. ( Proverbs 8:17-John14:21).
Just believe His promises stand assured.
My country-the USA is not only a trader to the
cause of Israel and – I am afraid are not as
prepared as you are or willing to see our common enemy.
Be of good courage.
It looks to me that you are seeing the build up for Psalms 83 to be fulfulled, the Lord is with Israel, Israel’s ememy’s will be brought to shame
Do not magnify your problems; let God be exalted over all the earth. Do not let your unbelieving words deplete your soul of life, for the more you talk, the more peace you lose. Be slow to speak. Before you can learn to speak for God, you must learn what NOT to speak. This battle is not about overcoming difficult circumstances around you; it is about listening to the Lord, hearing what He intends to do, then following Him to victory.
Remember, dear friend, the words of Paul: “Be anxious for nothing.” The true battle you are facing is not one of action, but direction: you must ascend vertically to be successful horizontally. Secure your soul in God and you will secure victory in your life. In the presence of God, the porous nature of the human soul is a great advantage. We can escape the stresses of life. We can actually be saturated with the life-restoring substance of God!
Psalm 46
God is our refuge and strength,
A very present help in trouble.
Therefore we will not fear, though the earth should change
And though the mountains slip into the heart of the sea;
Though its waters roar and foam,
Though the mountains quake at its swelling pride. Selah.
There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God,
The holy dwelling places of the Most High.
God is in the midst of her, she will not be moved;
God will help her when morning dawns.
The nations made an uproar, the kingdoms tottered;
He raised His voice, the earth melted.
The LORD of hosts is with us;
The God of Jacob is our stronghold. Selah.
Come, behold the works of the LORD,
Who has wrought desolations in the earth.
He makes wars to cease to the end of the earth;
He breaks the bow and cuts the spear in two;
He burns the chariots with fire.
“Cease striving and know that I am God;
I will be exalted among the nations,
I will be exalted in the earth.”
The LORD of hosts is with us;
The God of Jacob is our stronghold. Selah.
Francis Frangipane
Ministries of Francis Frangipane
GOD IS IN the midst of Israel, but HIS People doesn’t see HIM. And yet HE HAS WARNED them Of This Hour. Fortunately HE IS MORE TRUSTWORTHY than we who claim to have faith IN HIM.Remember late May’67 ? The enemy encompassed you,their geographers were busy wiping you of the map,your PM kept appeasing the murderers and their sponsor,your CoS nervously broke down.And in 6 days everything was over.For your enemies,that’s. Now they are at it again and they expect it to be for the last time. How right they’re ! For they keep looking at your erstwhile-trustworthy-ally- now-turned-betrayer. And dear Jacob,you’re doing exactly the same.Well the Good News this time Is that you Jacob,will be the savior of your unfaithful ally,and of the cowardly world too. They’re expecting to gloatingly see you dead and you turn out to be their rescuer.But Then It Is GOD’S WAY TO DRESS UP A BANQUET TABLE For you before your implacable but apoplectically powerless enemies. Rejoice Israel ! GOD IS APPRISING the heathen world OF HIS LOVE For you.
+1
God is going to deal with the enemies of Israel. See Isaiah 17 and Psalm 83.
It’s wonderful to see all the “faith in God”! However, I am a realist and being alert 24/7 against “Molach”..ASS ad of Syria, MachMAD Ahmadinjihad (that clone of Hitler) and Hamas and the Hezbullah crocodiles! “Faith and belief in God”..fine, but I’ll take tanks and infantry and bombers that are Hiroshima loaded! Jews have Six
Million reasons! NEVER AGAIN! It’s nice to see the support in here from non Jews ..bless you!
The Creator-God, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, at the point of creation, gave man the gift of “willful choice”. So, in Deuteronomy 28/29 the God of Israel instructed Moses to tell the people “choose blessing, choose life”.
The issue is choice.
We must choose to believe we are exactly who the God of Israel says we are — His firstborn children in the family. The gentiles are adoptees in His family.
We must choose to believe we are in a land that was given in covenant to the seed of Abraham, through Isaac and Jacob — that we are exactly where we are supposed to be at this point in the temporal history of mankind.
The nonstate tribal arabs are claiming “squatters rights” to gaza, judea and samaria. These nonstate tribal arabs are registering their claim to this covenant land, by conducting assymetric warfare against a state, which is all about which side can claim the highest civilian casualty numbers. States are usually held to the proportionality measure, of the “rules of war” under Just Wars notions.
We attended a lecture given by Freund on archeology in Jerusalem. At the end of the lecture, a member of the audience asked him if he had found any evidence of Jesus. Freund’s answer was, “he had found as much evidence that Jesus was, as he had found that Jesus was not”. The person who asked the question was not satisfied. However, we took away, once more, that it was a matter of “choice”. We could choose to believe that Jesus was/is. We could then look at the evidence as confirming that belief. OR, we could choose to believe that Jesus was not. It was “our choice”.
The issue boils down to “choose you this day Whom you will serve” — CHOICE!