Comforting Those Who Mourn - December 2007

Shalom!

Warm greetings from Jerusalem, the city of God!

I just wanted to write and send a short update on the labor here, and also to thank you for your prayers and support in sharing in this work. It’s been a great blessing getting to see old friends again, make new ones, and spend time in Jerusalem’s Old City – by far, my favorite place here. You can check out this link to see photos and info on the Old City section if you’re interested: http://www.bibleplaces.com/oldcitygates.htm

Last week, The Lord blessed us with a really amazing opportunity – we were able to go to an Israeli military base which is the sole training base for those who serve in the Israeli Forces’ medic branches. It was a really special time, and I attached a photo of a young soldier a met, named Yonni – pray that he opens his heart to Yeshua!

Also attached is a photo of some of the guys from the drug rehab program Calvary Chapel/For Zion’s Sake helps support, as well as a few brothers from a CC in California – in the middle with the cross on is ‘Dub,’ or Steve, who does Christian rap and performed a few songs as well as shared some of his testimony with the church here.  

Please keep me and the labor here in your prayers, and for safe and on-time flights as I’m due to leave Israel next Monday, and be back in Pittsburgh on Tuesday the 20th. There are several connections, totaling four flights, so I’d really appreciate you prayers for good weather, good flights, good connections, and so I don’t get sick through all the lack of sleep and everything. Thanks so much!

Shalom all!

I just wanted to send a short email letting you all know that I arrived safely back in Pittsburgh to God’s praise! Thank you all so very much for your prayers, and the time in Jerusa_lem went very well, glory to God. I hope to have a report done soon, which I’ll email out to you.

In the meantime, I’d like to give a small homework assignment to any of you who may be interested. I found several videos up on youtube which show a lot about the Bes_lan school massacre. They are very, very moving; some of them are graphic, because the nature of what happened there was brutal and mindless.

But in particular, here is the homework – go to this site from the BBC and read about two young survivors of the Bes_lan terrorist attack: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/4187924.stm  

The article will pierce your heart as you see how these kids were so mentally impacted by what they lived through during those three days in the gym.

After you read that, go to http://youtube.com/watch?v=cp0b5YYg9-0  and you will see a very moving film with them being interviewed. It’s about 10 minutes, and the film will stir your spirit… it’s hard for me to watch it without tears. In particular, the little boy that they show at the ninth minute of the film and what he says… that is the same Chermen from the BBC article.

If you’d like more homework, just go to youtube.com and type in Bes_lan (without the underscore). As the old saying goes, a picture speaks a thousand words…

May The Lord continue to use us to bring comfort to the broken hearts of Bes_lan!

jason