Israel (MNN) — Egypt reopened its border crossing with Gaza on Sunday, allowing much-needed aid to enter and refugees to exit.
Israel urged Gaza residents to evacuate this weekend as it assembled tanks and troops on the border. More than a half million Palestinians heeded the warning, but Israeli officials said poor weather conditions delayed a ground offensive.
Experts hold little hope for a diplomatic resolution as the Israel-Hamas war enters week two.
(Wikimedia Commons/Kobi Gideon)
Analysts say a forecasted Israeli ground invasion could last weeks or even months.
“We would love to see peace, but when your neighbors hate you so much and stop at nothing to destroy you, it puts Israel in a tough spot. In their charter, Hamas says, ‘We believe in the annihilation of Israel’ – [that is] very difficult to negotiate with,” World Mission’s Greg Kelley says.
“There’s no negotiating table big enough to solve the issues there. The only thing that will resolve [the issues] and bring lasting peace is knowledge of the Messiah.”
On Friday, Iran warned that continued attacks on Gaza “could open new fronts against Israel.”
“We need to be praying for our brothers and sisters who love Jesus and are living in Gaza among Hamas and Messianic Jews who live in Israel. We need to be on our knees praying for them,” Kelley says.
“This could explode from just a regional conflict into a world war. And, of course, none of us want that. We need to pray that cooler minds prevail.”
Only the Lord knows what lies ahead. Please continue to pray for peace. Help World Mission distribute solar-powered audio Bibles called Treasures through its local partners.
“Help us send more Bibles into these affected areas because people will be searching. It doesn’t matter what religion you are; in this crisis, people are looking for answers,” Kelley says.
Use this special video from our sister ministry, Prayercast, to guide your intercession.
“As we’re praying for all of the horrors of war going on, we need to pray for a softening of the heart,” Kelley says.
“Whether it’s Hamas, Hezbollah, Iran, or Saudi Arabia – they are without access to the Gospel; they need Jesus. At the end of the day, this is a heart matter. These are hearts that don’t know who the Messiah is. And, by the way, that includes Israel,” he continues.
“Our eyes are fixated on what we see. But we need to recognize that even the Jewish people need to receive Jesus as their Lord and Savior.”
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