Israel (MNN) — With the Israel-Iran ceasefire a week old, diplomacy returns to the table — though not between those two nations. Instead, Israel is interested in normalizing ties with neighboring Syria and Lebanon.
As international conversations unfold, one thing remains steady in Israel: God’s people press on. Eric Mock with Slavic Gospel Association shares stories about the Russian-speaking, Jewish believers that SGA partners with in Israel.
One church narrowly escaped a direct strike during the 12-day war.
“How would you respond if a ballistic missile was coming and landed 300 feet away?” Mock asks.
The church’s response to the event was simple and resolute:
“We’re going to worship. We’re going to thank God that we’re still here. He’s got us here for a purpose. We’re going to gather together on the Sabbath, and we’re going to worship the Lord.”
When Mock asked if they needed any help from SGA during the conflict, “I could almost see them smiling through each response to me: ‘We’re okay. We’re continuing to do what God has raised us up to do,'” he says.
“They smile in response and say, ‘This is our life. We are pressing on. We are answering the question [of] what God would have us do, and we continue to search out what we can learn through it, [so] that day by day, we may become more vibrant vessels for God’s use.’”
Two stories of faith under fire
One recent training class was meant to equip Russian-speaking churches. They quickly adapted when shelter-in-place orders came.
Their response was, “Oh, that’s okay. We’ll switch over to Zoom, but we’re going to continue the training, everyone in their home, because the government has told us to shelter in place. So we will respect the government and we’ll shelter in place, but we’re going to keep learning.”
Steeple in Jerusalem, Israel. (Photo courtesy of Jonny Gios/Unsplash)
“In the difficulties they are facing, they are undaunted,” says Mock. ” They have not shrunk back. We have seen this not only in this moment, but in the moments prior to that.”
One such story happened during an attack on Israel several years ago.
As the sirens went off and missiles flew past classroom windows, Mock says the professor said this to his students: “The sirens are a nuisance. As for you, God has raised you up to learn and grow. So you sit there until the class is done, and then you can leave.”
That’s exactly what they did.
“There is just this sense in which ‘God is at work, and we are going to trust that God is at work,'” says Mock.
This resilience gives glory to God. “‘I’m reminded of Colossians 1:28-29, that Paul labored with all the power that God had given him to proclaim Christ, to admonish and warn and build up (or counsel) and to train up others,” says Mock. “That’s what these churches are doing. That’s really the story behind the story.”
He observes how easy it is to get caught up in politics, military actions, and opinions. “But what is more profound is the work of God among His people in the middle of broken times, and it is people that are stepping forward with the gospel, courageously and not thinking twice about the missiles that are coming over their heads.”
Find your place in the story
Would you join in prayer with these brothers and sisters?
- Pray that many more people in Israel and around the world heed the call of the gospel before it’s too late.
- Pray for the Western Church. Mock relays a request from Christians in Israel: “[Pray] that the people in America would know that life is fragile and life is momentary, and that we would live every day sold out for Christ, trusting that God’s ways are higher than our ways.”
- Ask God if He’s calling you to partner with SGA. They support the ministries of local pastors across the Slavic world. Learn more about that here.
Header photo is a representative stock photo of Jerusalem, Israel courtesy of Dave Herring via Unsplash.
