Update from Oded Shoshani, Kings of Kings Jerusalem, Hebrew Congregation

Evangelism Training
About two weeks ago we began a long-term evangelism training process together with another local congregation. The purpose is to encourage and train people in practical evangelism. For the last two weekends at the services of both congregations we have taught and shared testimonies. The day before we began this training a pot caught fire in Pastor Oded and Sandy's home. God was gracious to protect our home, yet we see the seriousness of the battle. Please pray for protection over the leadership team of this initiative. Pray for both congregations to have a shift in mindset regarding evangelism as well as wisdom, creativity and boldness to share the Gospel!

Home Groups
"E", a religious woman has been attending one of our new home groups. During the first two meetings she had many questions and much resistance. At the end of each meeting we pray for one another and she refused to do so. On the third meeting however, she wanted to pray with others and by the fourth meeting she was praying in Yeshua's name! Thank you for continuing to pray for "E", a continued softening of her heart and revelation of our Messiah in a deeper way. Please also continue to pray for fruit to come from these home meetings.

Prayer Requests
•Shift in mindset regarding evangelism and spirit of boldness
•Growth and expansion in our leadership team
•Strength and courage to our 16 university students
•Protection for those currently serving in the Army

With much love,
Oded & Sandy

 

Update from BIB co-founder Dov Schwarz

What a special privilege to be alive in this generation! A time where there is a convergence of three powerful concepts: Apostolic, Prophetic, and End Times. This generation is experiencing all three concepts like no other time in history.

It is Apostolic and Prophetic because the words of the apostles are being fulfilled along with the words of the Old Testament prophets-and End Times because it's in conjunction with the return of our great Messiah and Lord Yeshua! That is why the ministry of Blessing Israeli Believers exists and we thank many of you for supporting our work at this time. It is a ministry that fruitfully is sustained and grows in the rich soil of these concepts.

Again, it is worth seeing, hearing, and experiencing this passage of the Apostle Paul inspired by the Holy Spirit, quoting the Prophet Isaiah-in the context of the coming of our Savior Jesus to sit on the throne of David in Jerusalem!

Isaiah also cries out concerning Israel:
"Though the number of the children of Israel be as the sand of the sea,
The remnant will be saved.
For He will finish the work and cut it short in righteousness,
Because the Lord will make a short work upon the earth."
And as Isaiah said before:
"Unless the Lord of Sabaoth had left us a seed,
We would have become like Sodom,
And we would have been made like Gomorrah."
Romans 9:27-29

Do you see it? The never before seen convergence of these concepts is upon us in this generation! And while the Jewish peopleare gathered, and still being gathered back to Israel, there is great sin in the Land. And yet a remnant will be preserved-and what is in place now to preserve such a remnant? Look no further than the final verse mentioned above. The seed of righteousness of Messiah Jesus thriving inside the hearts of approximately 30,000 Israeli Believers-certainly just a seed in the midst of 7,000,000 Jewish people.

So, the great privilege of living in this generation also comes with great responsibility to participate in the Apostolic, Prophetic, End Times plans of our Heavenly Father. That is why we have this ministry called Blessing Israeli Believers! Our Messiah Yeshua (Jesus) will fulfill all of Abba Father's plans. With revelation and anticipation we look to this soon coming fulfillment also revealed in Paul's letter:

For I do not desire, brethren, that you should be ignorant of this mystery, lest you should be wise in your own opinion, that blindness in part has happened to Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in. And so all Israel will be saved, as it is written:
"The Deliverer will come out of Zion, And He will turn away ungodliness from Jacob;
For this is My covenant with them, When I take away their sins." Romans 11:25-27

A special Thank you to all who are prayerfully and financially standing with us each month to meet the needs of our Israeli Believing Partners. We pray for you continually and trust the Lord's blessings will rest upon your lives.

Dov Schwarz

THE FEASTS OF THE LORD AND
BLESSING ISRAELI BELIEVERS

Dov Schwarz, Co-Founder Blessing Israeli Believers

The Fall Feasts are upon us, which gives us an opportunity to remember two very important faith realities:

1. The Spring and Summer Feasts have been fulfilled in Messiah Jesus!
2. He will most certainly fulfill the Fall Feasts as well!

But what does this mean-that He will fulfill the Fall Feasts? It is so important to understand what the Apostle Paul told the predominantly Gentile church in Colossae. He explained to them that the Feasts of the LORD were an important shadow of the One who would come and fulfill them with great significance!

So let no one judge you in food or in drink, or regarding a festival or a new moon or sabbaths, which are a shadow of things to come, but the substance is of Christ.
(Colossians 2:16,17)

The Spring Feasts of Passover, Unleavened Bread, Firstfruits, andShavuot (Pentecost) are fulfilled at the Cross and the Resurrection of our sinless Savior Messiah Yeshua (Jesus). And, then His resurrection and the baptism of the Holy Spirit birthing the New Covenant body of Messiah wrap up the Spring and Summer.

So then, how will He fulfill the Fall Feasts? Traditionally, the Jewish people celebrate Rosh Hashanah-the head of the year. But actually (Biblically) it is "Yom Teruah" the Day of Blowing Trumpets, followed by the Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur) and then Tabernacles (Succot).

The signs are all around us that not only is the season of Fall Feasts upon us like at other times, but that their final fulfillment in Messiah Jesus is upon us at any time! The catching away of the saints, the Lord's return to cleanse Israel of sin and bring national revival to the Land and people, and that King Yeshua will be reigning upon the throne of David in Jerusalem are all upon us as well! Here are some chapters in scripture where you can look into these things for yourself.

Leviticus 23 ~ 1 Thessalonians 4 ~
1 Corinthians 15 ~ Hebrews 7-9 ~ Revelation 19

This actually leads to the second portion of our letter-Blessing Israeli Believers!

The Bible speaks of a time when the prophetic fulfillment of the Covenant promises to Israel will begin to leap off the pages of the Bible into the events of that prophetic generation. Folks that time is NOW! When I learned the Scriptures pertaining to the Israeli Believers in Messiah Jesus I could not watch any longer-I had to move to Israel and be one!

I was so very excited to learn of the revived ministry of the Apostle Paul that was extinct for over 1800 years! In Romans 15 Paul speaks of the responsibility of the churches in the nations to help the poor Israeli Believers in Jerusalem. Since 135AD there was no Israel until 1948. Yet, in 1948 the covenant name "Israel" was restored and once again there are Israeli followers of Messiah Jesus in the Promised Land! Do you see? Paul's ministry is back as there are now Israeli Believers in Messiah Jesus who, like in Paul's day, need and should receive help from churches in the nations. Since the gospel came from Israel (spiritual) it is the duty of those in the nations to help them with material things (physical help).

But now I am going to Jerusalem to minister to the saints. For it pleased those from Macedonia and Achaia to make a certain contribution for the poor among the saints who are in Jerusalem. It pleased them indeed, and they are their debtors. For if the Gentiles have been partakers of their spiritual things, their duty is also to minister to them in material things.
(Romans 15:25-27)

Every month precious saints from the nations, by grace and mercy, help to prayerfully and financially support our BIB partners here in Israel. Our Co-Founder John McTernan and myself, by grace and mercy, fulfill our monthly commitments to help precious Israeli Believers in Messiah Jesus according to this principle given by Apostle Paul.

Here are just some of many examples:

Jerusalem: Israeli ministry couple monthly financial help, poor saints in Messianic Congregation distributed by Pastor Oded Shoshani, financial help to family with nine children.

Haifa: Evangelistic family monthly support,Elderly pensioner in Haifa monthly support to stay in Messianic retirement home.

Netanya: Holocaust survivors and poor and needy food distribution.

Golan Heights: Benevolent giving to the poor and needy and Holocaust survivors.

Galilee: Schwarz family Aliyah and oversight of BIB, financially helping a single mother monthly.

The End Times fulfillment of Israeli Believers is that they/we are a preserving influence until Israel receives Yeshua (Jesus) as Lord! The Lord's prophetic plan is to first physically birth Israel and then in the midst of great sin and lost-ness nationally revive Israel upon His return. Israeli Believers in Messiah Jesus are a "seed" of righteousness preserving the Land and People of Israel during this brief window until the coming of the Lord!

Isaiah also cries out concerning Israel: "Though the number of the children of Israel be as the sand of the sea, The remnant will be saved. For He will finish the work and cut it short in righteousness,
Because the Lord will make a short work upon the earth." And as Isaiah said before:
"Unless the Lord of Sabaoth had left us a seed, We would have become like Sodom,
And we would have been made like Gomorrah."
(Romans 9:27-29)

Thanks to all of you who are participating in this Apostolic, Prophetic, End Times Ministry!
And as we say in Israel...

Hag Sameach!-Happy Holidays!

Summer update from Efraim & Jeannie, Western Galilee

Dear Friends,

Shalom! Blessings and peace to you all this season. Summer in Israel is always hot and hotter. We all make the effort to find ways to get cool; whether it is an air-conditioned room, a cool drink or just walking on the shady side of the street. During the oppressive heat, we are reminded that refreshing others is the calling of the godly.

A person of blessing will be enriched
and he who gives water also will be refreshed. Proverbs 11:25

The ministry of the Good News is refreshing water, a cool breeze to those in need. Here in Israel our teams are spiritually seeking to refresh all we can. During the months of July and August many people in Israel get away for vacation and things shut down. This is especially true for people in the Tel Aviv area.

It is also a good time when those of us with family and school-aged children take vacation. During the summer months, some of our ministry activities are paused or put on hold. That is certainly the situation at the Mercaz (the Center), our Ramat Gan Messianic Center for Bet Sar Shalom. (Ramat Gan is an adjacent suburb of Tel Aviv.) During the year these events include: weekly activities for children, Bible fellowship time, evening worship concerts, music events for the rock'n community, Shabbat dinners and lots of gatherings and seminars. These events are usually well attended and include many seekers.

Even though Jeannie and I are up in Nahariyya working with the community here, we are blessed to be included in the Ramat Gan Mercaz team. Our burden for the area comes from ministering in the Tel Aviv area for more than 15 years among the many young people in that region. In fact, Tel Aviv has the highest percentage of single Israelis than any other city in Israel.

Please pray for all of us ministering in Israel during these summer months.

Thank you so much for your support and concern for our ministry here in the Land of Israel during these days.

Yours in Yeshua,
Efraim & Jeannie

Let the heavens rejoice, let the earth be glad; let them say among the nations, "The LORD reigns!" 1 Chronicles 16:31

Gospel Outreach To The Nations From The Promised Land!

And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, "All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age." Amen.
(Matthew 28:18-20)

Just think of it-certainly our Heavenly Father is pleased! A Jewish follower of Messiah Jesus is taking the gospel from Israel to Africa, according to the Lord's apostolic words through Matthew! Thankfully, I have great relationships with special pastors and leaders in many African countries. I will be leaving Israel in early September to minister the life of the Jewish Messiah Yeshua in Rwanda.

In countries like Israel and the USA it is sometimes very challenging to preach the gospel with visible fruit-not many saved right in front of you. But in sub-Saharan Africa oftentimes many come to Messiah during one short trip! So while we need to use relationship building and have a more challenging field to labor in at home -- when we go to Africa Lord willing, we will see precious souls saved in front of our eyes-Oh please Lord Yeshua!

Along with preaching the gospel I will be leading pastor conferences and making disciples through the teaching of the word of Elohim (God) in churches in Rwanda. This country has experienced tragic circumstances including genocide, poverty, a sea of orphans and widows, diseases, and more. However, we know that our Savior has comfort and hope for these precious souls.

Please prayerfully consider praying and supporting this September 2019 Kingdom of Messiah Yeshua outreach from Israel. There are many expenses such as plane fare, lodging, meals, etc. Lord willing, we will celebrate together as the words of Messiah Yeshua leap off the pages of His mighty word! Hallelujah and Amen!

Dov Schwarz, Co-Founder Blessing Israeli Believers

Opportunity to share the gospel of Messiah Jesus!
Ariel & Shayla Hyde, Haifa Israel

Dear Friends,
Thank you for your prayers for the visit to a Druze man from an influential family. The Lord gave us great favor and opened the door to share the whole Gospel and pray for him.

Amazingly, he had studied different religions on his own and had ready answers for why he would never believe in other religions. But when he studied the New Testament he was captivated by Yeshua.

At the beginning of the conversation he was against the idea that Yeshua could be God, but after we talked about this for a while, at the end he actually called him "God"! He said he'd read more and wants to continue talking with us, but he's also very afraid of what his family and others think about his spiritual search. We have another incredible opportunity tomorrow: We were invited to share who we are and what we believe with an army preparation course!

Please pray for favor, unity, anointing, boldness, open hearts, and signs and wonders to confirm the word of the Gospel. We'd also greatly appreciate your prayers for our whole team and their families, as many of us have been tired recently after various challenges.

Thank you and God bless

Update from Ezra & Shulamite, Golan Heights

It is a privilege to be able to minister to the Holocaust Survivors of our community with half of them in attendance even in the extreme heat of summer. We find it amazing, as the majority who came to hear about Yeshua are those who are seeking to know if He is the Messiah of Israel.

"And the King will answer and say to them, "Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me." Matthew 25:40

"If anyone would be first, he must be last and servant of all" Mark 9:35

Through the generous donations of Blessing Israeli Believers we were able to provide a refrigerator for the Holocaust Survivors small meeting room.

This allows them to meet and have cool refreshments and a bite to eat when they gather throughout the week.

Misha their leader said, "In all the years no one has ever given them such a gift" and has asked us to express their thankfulness.

Pray for the Worship Concert with Baht Rivkah Whitten and her husband George who will be sharing from the Word at our next Holocaust meeting. We are inviting local Israeli artists to come and hold Worship Concerts and share the Word.

Update from Efraim & Jeannie, Western Galilee

Shalom! - !שלום Here in Israel, summer has come down upon us with its scorching heat and intensity. The intensity is not just weather related but includes activities and events. Still, we manage to find those shady places to cool off and those times to relax.

It is in the summer months that we receive a lot of visitors here in Nahariyya.With each team there were some special opportunities for service here in the region. The highlight was handing out gift packages to our soldiers. Each week on Sunday morning, hundreds of soldiers are heading back to their forward bases in Northern Israel. When we have ministry teams available, we want to show these young men and women that their service to Israel as soldiers is appreciated. We prepare gift packages to give away to as many as we can in a couple of hours.

As we think about our soldiers in Israel, our prayer for them is found in Psalm 121:3-5:

He will not let your foot be moved;
He who keeps you will not slumber.
Behold, he who keeps Israel will neither slumber nor sleep.
The Lord is your keeper;
The Lord is your shade on your right hand.

A Special Shavuot/Pentecost Message - begins at sundown June 8th

Shalom Dear Blessing Israeli Believers Friends and Partners,

It is important to remember that the Feasts of the LORD in the Hebrew Scriptures find their fulfillment in Messiah Jesus and His people (Colossians 2:16,17). Just seven weeks ago we were celebrating our Passover Lamb Messiah Yeshua during three Biblical Feasts that take place in the same seven days of Springtime: Passover, Unleavened Bread, First Fruits. First Fruits takes place during the Feast of Unleavened Bread and pictures the resurrection of Messiah Yeshua! (Leviticus 23:1-14, 1 Corinthians 15:20-23)

Now it is time to remember and celebrate what began in the Spring Feasts. The children of Israel were to count seven Sabbaths from First Fruits. Then came the second (or fulfillment of First Fruits) and if this is confusing to you please read until the end and you will be blessed! Your

identity is pictured in this special celebration! I will addresstwo identity fulfillments in this brief letter:

1) We who are born again are a kind of First Fruits!
2) The Two Loaves are One New Man In Messiah Jesus!

Messiah Jesus is not the Easter Bunny, He is the First Fruits of the resurrection!

"But now Christ is risen from the dead, and has become the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. For since by man came death, by Man also came the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ all shall be made alive. But each one in his own order: Christ the firstfruits, afterward those who are Christ's at His coming." (1 Corinthians 15:20-23)

"Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning. Of His own will He brought us forth by the word of truth, that we might be a kind of firstfruits of His creatures." (James 1:17-18)

The children of Israel were to count fifty days from First Fruits and then commanded to do very specific things-one of which is very exciting for you and me!

" 'And you shall count for yourselves from the day after the Sabbath, from the day that you brought the sheaf of the wave offering: seven Sabbaths shall be completed. Count fifty days to the day after the seventh Sabbath; then you shall offer a new grain offering to the Lord. You shall bring from your dwellings two wave loaves of two-tenths of an ephah. They shall be of fine flour; they shall be baked with leaven. They are the firstfruits to the Lord.'" (Leviticus 23:15-17)

Oh please see that the children of Israel were to have nothing to do with leaven during the Passover season. That is because Messiah Jesus is our sinless sacrifice for our sins! Also, it is because we are to be reminded to live a holy life in Messiah Jesus! (1 Corinthians 5:6-8) What great prophetic fulfillment we find in the two loaves with leaven that are to be waved before the LORD at the Second First Fruits also called the Feast of Weeks-Shavuot in Hebrew-better known in our New Covenant faith as Pentecost!

When the Day of Pentecost had fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. And suddenly there came a sound from heaven, as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. Then there appeared to them divided tongues, as of fire, and one sat upon each of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance. (Acts 2:1-4)

This great day of Pentecost birthed something that is beautiful and amazing and it involves the two loaves with leaven. Three thousand Jews and proselytes were saved on that day at Shavuot-but it was just the beginning. The same outpouring of the Holy Spirit living inside sinful (leavened) men and women was not limited to the Jewish people. Jews and Gentiles had been very distinct ~ Jews were those with the Law of Moses and Gentiles were without.

Yet remember what Peter and Paul said regarding the Gentiles coming into the same faith in Messiah Jesus. Peter went to the house of a Gentile and this man, along with his friends and family, experienced what the Jewish believers did at Pentecost. Peter had to defend his actions to his Jewish brethren. Then Paul coined a term for this new kind of faith community.

Then I remembered the word of the Lord, how He said, 'John indeed baptized with water, but you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit.' If therefore God gave them the same gift as He gave us when we believed on the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I that I could withstand God?" When they heard these things they became silent; and they glorified God, saying, "Then God has also granted to the Gentiles repentance to life."(Acts 11:16-18)

"But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ.For He Himself is our peace, who has made both one, and has broken down the middle wall of separation, having abolished in His flesh the enmity, that is, the law of commandments contained in ordinances, so as to create in Himself one new man from the two, thus making peace, and that He might reconcile them both to God in one body through the cross, thereby putting to death the enmity. (Ephesians 2:13-16)

Now, because of Pentecost-the Feast of Weeks, believers in Messiah Yeshua are eternally alive-we are a kind of First Fruits proclaiming to the world that Jew and Gentile who receive Messiah Jesus as Savior and Lord will live forever with Him-because Jesus is alive forever-we are alive forever!

And the two loaves? Jew and Gentile, temporarily in sinful bodies yet forgiven for our sins are the two loaves with leaven-a wave offering before the LORD! We who are one new man in Messiah Yeshua are the two loaves!
Oh Hallelujah for His goodness and mercy!

And having said all that, we at Blessing Israeli Believers here in the Promised Land are so thankful for so many of the two loaves-one new man-in the nations who are standing with us prayerfully and financially. We pray for you by name on a regular basis and we thank you that you stand with us on a regular basis. Truly, we are bringing in the harvest here in Israel-Oh Hallelujah and Happy Shavuot/Pentecost!

Dov Schwarz, Co-Founder, Blessing Israeli Believers

Brother Daniel and his wife Elisabeth from the Galilee
My family story of how the Lord work's in the life of His Jewish people, Part 5:

After months of fighting against the Palestinians in the Land (from November 29, 1947) and from May 14, 1948, the Arab League Armies joined the war against the young Jewish State, a cease-fire was declared in January 1949, by the UN, when the Israel Defense Forces gained the upper hand.

The war ended with a great victory for the people of Israel in the mercy of Adonai, the 'Lord of the Armies of ISRAEL', who fought for them and won the battle after 2,000 years of exile and destruction. It is important also to mention that 1948 was marked as a year of a big move of the Holy Spirit in the body of Christ.

The price of victory in the War of Independence was high for the young Jewish state about 6,000 men and women were killed in battle, of which 2,400 were civilians, out of a Jewish population of 650,000. The second high price which my grandmother, Miriam, remembered and mourned over, like many other Israelis and mainly religious Jews, was the loss of the historical birth places of the Jewish Nation: Judea, Samaria and east Jerusalem (the city was divided by barbed wire fences and mines), those places were ruled by the Jordanians until June 1967, without access for the Jewish people to their holy sites.

From the stories of my father, Abraham, a mass immigration of Jews from all over the world took place immediately after the war; especially from Europe, the Displaced Persons camps of Holocaust survivors and Jews from Arab countries, who began to suffer persecution by the Muslim regime. In 2 years the Jewish population doubled to 1.3 million (1951). Those days were glorious, for my grandmother and her family, seeing the Bible prophecies fulfilled in front of their own eyes, but it was also a time of economical distress.

The majority of the immigrants came with nothing (all their possessions were taken or were left behind). They lived in the new land on food stamps and had to 'make do' with little. For many years they have lived in tents and tin shacks and were laboring in hard physical works such as paving roads, planting trees and drying swamps. My mother's family was among those who came in this big wave of immigration to ISRAEL (1956).
For them it was a worthy calling, paying high prices because they felt privileged coming back home after a long exile, coming back to the Land of their forefather's.

Thus says the Lord, who makes a way in the sea and a path through the mighty waters, Who brings forth the chariot and horse, The army and the power (They shall lie down together, they shall not rise; They are extinguished, they are quenched like a wick): "Do not remember the former things, Nor consider the things of old. Behold, I will do a new thing, Now it shall spring forth; Shall you not know it? I will even make a road in the wilderness And rivers in the desert. The beast of the field will honor Me, The jackals and the ostriches, Because I give waters in the wilderness And rivers in the desert, To give drink to My people, My chosen. This people I have formed for Myself; They shall declare My praise."
Isaiah 43:16-21

Glory be given to God the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit!

Update from Ariel & Shayla
He heard about Yeshua in all the wrong places

A few months ago a man we'll call Ido started coming to our congregation, but the story of how he arrived was quite unusual! Ido was a history teacher in a public school for 15 years, then recently became a mechanic. He was often depressed and turned to marijuana to soothe his soul. Once a drug dealer asked him about his spiritual beliefs and he responded that he didn't really have any. The dealer said, "I find comfort in Yeshua." Not exactly the traditional source for hearing about Yeshua!

He then heard more from some Russian-background Messianic Jews in Oregon on a visit.

Then he visited someone involved in the occult to help him get out of depression and all sorts of negative things happening in his life. After a while, the mystic said he spoke with others in the occult and they all concluded he was beyond their help because he had a generational curse on him from three generations ago. Ido researched generational curses and discovered that Yeshua was the only One who could set people free from them.

So then his friend was invited to Kerem-El, our congregation, and told Ido he didn't want to go. But Ido said, "Give me the information - I want to go!" He came and our pastor Stefan met with him and helped him significantly in understanding more about Yeshua and the faith.

After that, he met with me and we talked about Yeshua's mission to set captives free (Isaiah 61) and the price He paid for it at the cross. He decided to pray to repent of his sins and give his life to Yeshua! We also prayed to break off every curse in Yeshua's name and he said he could actually physically feel a difference, like something had lifted off of him.

Eliel and I met with him to pray again and he shared about many of the spiritual practices he had been involved in, and about all the items in his house related to them. We encouraged him to gather all of them and burn or throw them away, just as the believers in Ephesus did (Acts 19:18-19). Amazingly, the next day our pastor Dani shared in quite a bit of depth exactly about this passage. Ido knew this was a confirmation from the Lord to really do this, so he went back home and threw out all those items, including some that were very expensive - a beautiful sign of true repentance!

Ido's begun discipleship and was just baptized this month. It was a wonderful celebration of new life in Messiah!

The Season of Passover Is Upon Us - Passover/Unleavened Bread - April 19-27

From our co-founder Dov Schwarz,

The first night of this very unique and special holiday is Passover, which then enters into the time of Unleavened Bread. In Exodus 14:1-28, while the wrath of God was sweeping over Egypt, the inhabitants of the house with the blood of the lamb on the doorpost would be spared and God's wrath would pass over them.

The Jewish people then, and many today, remove any food with leaven from their midst, and only eat food with no leaven for seven days. Of course leaven is an Old Testament type or shadow of sin. In this New Covenant with Messiah Jesus we see the fulfillment of these things.

Yeshua is the Passover Lamb and those who have believed in Him spiritually have applied the blood of the Lamb to the doorpost of their hearts. This facilitates His followers to be spared from God's wrath and on the day of judgment, His wrath will "passover" those who have the blood of the Lamb! Now we are to remember that the Passover Lamb is our sinless (unleavened) sacrifice, which should provoke us to live a holy life and maintain a holy faith community in Him.

Let's listen in as Paul the apostle is warning the Corinthian church about the seriousness of allowing sin (leaven) to spread in the church:

Your glorying is not good. Do you not know that a little leaven leavens the whole lump? Therefore purge out the old leaven, that you may be a new lump, since you truly are unleavened. For indeed Christ, our Passover, was sacrificed for us. Therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, nor with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth. (1 Corinthians 5:6-8)

Please pray for our Israeli Believing communities here is Israel. Pray that we may be salt and light, and that we may continually be a faithful witness of the Passover Lamb Yeshua here in the Promised Land!

Update from Efraim & Jeannie in Northern Galilee

Dear Friends,
Shalom -
שלום Blessings and peace to you all.

The Spring season is just days from now and here in Israel we have experienced one of the coldest and wettest winters in many years. In fact, we have had 130% of our annual rainfall so far. This is God's special blessing upon the Land and people of Israel
(Deuteronomy 28:12).

The almond trees put forth their buds and flowers this season; a sign that winter's grip has passed and spring is coming. The almond groves around the Land glisten like an
ocean of white flowers. The fragrance of the almond buds is so soothing and refreshing.

The budding of the almond tree was a sign of change. In Jeremiah 1:11, the appearance of the almond branch was a symbol of the steadfastness of the Lord and His faithfulness to fulfill His word. The faithfulness of the Lord is a truth we live by and need to be deeply rooted in. The Lord is faithful and trustworthy and this is the basis for our enduring faith.

Here at our Light of Galilee Congregation, we are reminded of that faithfulness on a regular basis. We have a small fellowship of Jews and Gentiles. Most of the people are of limited means and have testimonies that speak of hard circumstances. What we do have is faith in the Lord to meet our needs and the testimony of changed lives in Yeshua.

Our Arabic speaking fellowship has been re-launched and we are hoping that this will be a source of encouragement
to the Lebanese brothers and sisters and the other Arabs in Western Galilee. Please pray for these dear people as they serve the Lord. Pray that together we can reach Jews and Arabs for Yeshua here in Galilee.

These are days of uncertainty in Israel. We are in the throes of a contentious election campaign for a new government in Israel. Politics aside, it is my hope that we in Israel do not become even more divided as a result of the campaign. I am comforted by the fact that the Lord, the most High, rules and reigns. He has raised up and brings down kings and dynasties.Pray that all people here might realize that the Lord God is the one who watches over Israel. (Psalm 121:4)

March 21st was the celebration of the festival of Purim and the story from the Book of Esther. It is a fun time for boys and girls in Israel to dress up in costumes according to tradition. On Purim Day, thousands of little girls throughout Israel are dressed up as beautiful Queen Esther; though today you also find as many little girls dressing up like Wonder Woman!

The story of the Book of Esther is how the hidden hand of God reached out to the Jewish people living in exile in the land of Persia and saved them from destruction. When the book was written sometime in the fourth century B.C.E., the ancient nation of Iran was a threat to the existence of Israel. It is almost ironic; Iran stands in the same role as a threat to the land of Israel today.

If the leaders of Iran would read the Book of Esther, perhaps they would stop threatening Israel and be more concerned about their own survival. The warning and words of comfort are given in Psalm 121 that the one who protects Israel is always present. "He that watches over Israel neither slumbers nor sleeps." The Lord has spoken and His word stands true and everlasting.

Yours in Yeshua, Efraim & Jeannie

Introducing Janet S. ~ A New BIB Partner!
Hello to all of you at Blessing Israeli Believers!

I thought it only right that you should know who you are investing your help in, so this is an abridged version of what I have been doing for the last 30 years in Israel.

In 1988 at age 33, while in prayer in Kansas, the Lord asked me "Would you be willing to go to Israel and minister to My Jewish people? 'To minister to' means 'to take care of'. I was really excited about this. My husband David (a non believing Jew) had wanted to make Aliyah to immigrate to Israel and I had not. So when I told him what the Lord had told me he jumped to make arrangements and 7 months later, with 2 huge suitcases, a few boxes of things, $4000 dollars in our wallets, and one way tickets to Israel, we landed in Karmiel a fairly new northern Israel town.

By an absolute divine appointment I found out this town had a 3-month old new congregation, which I too began to attend. It was only 12 people; 8 new immigrant Jewish believers in Yeshua, myself and 3 native Israelis all born again. I became their worship leader for the next 12 years. That congregation 30 years old now is about 250 people, called Kehelat HaDerek, "The Church Of The Way" with the same Israeli Pastor Yossi Ovadia. That's how worship leading began for me in Israel.

All the while David and I have worked God NEVER left us without a way to supply our needs. I worked for Galtronics, an electronics company for Messianic Jews and believers in Yeshua in the land of Israel.
2 years later I was led to work for an Israeli at-home nursing care company that sent people into the homes of Israelis to take care of their elderly. One most wonderful lady was a 95-year old Thessalonian (Greek) Jewish woman who escaped the Nazi devastation of her community during WW2. I cared for her for 2 years till she passed. I had the privilege of working for others as well. Then through this same company, in 1998 I was asked to accompany an emotionally challenged 21-year old Israeli man to his daily program at a village for emotionally and physically handicapped adults. From this position, in 2000, I ended up becoming the manager of their new organic goat milk dairy at this village Kishorit, which they had as animal therapy. It started with 24 goats. Through breeding and purchasing I ended up with over 750 milker goats. (Today this dairy has over 2000 goats, which provides a great amount of organic goat milk for Harduf, the biggest organic foods company in Israel.)

After 3 years on this job, the Lord told me to prepare to leave and 'get to David Davis'. I sort of knew who this Pastor was, that guy on the top of Mt. Carmel. To make the story short, I ended up volunteering for Carmel Assembly and joining Karen Davis's worship team, and serving them in other capacities for several years from 2003 to 2009, all this driving to Haifa every day from Karmiel.

In 2010 we actually moved to Haifa. I felt led of the Lord to join Dani Sayag and his wife to start a new native Israeli congregation Kerem El, down in Haifa Center and play on the worship team, which I am doing to this day. I had been serving, leading worship for various meetings, while volunteering, and then working at Beit Yedidia, the guesthouse where this congregation meets. I stopped the Beit Yedidia work in 2014 to get involved full time with worship leading, intercession and being part of the Out Reach team to Tel Aviv for the drug rehab program of Beit Nitzachon, House of Victory.

Alas, by 2017, I found I needed to stop the Tel Aviv outreach and return to work as my pension does not provide enough for us to live on! My husband is not able to find work. He is diabetic and basically unemployable. So praise God!! He opened a door for me to work at Beit Evenezer, a Christian Nursing Home for elderly Jews and Arabs who spent their lives serving the Lord!! Some of these Jews being amongst the last living Holocaust survivors. So, I get to 'take care of' the Lord's servants!! Unfortunately, even with this job, and my pension, I have not been able to make enough to live on and we have been struggling. When Dov offered your help, I was exceedingly overwhelmed and grateful because I had been begging the Lord to help me some how. I can't work any more hours or I lose my pension.

You have no idea how much your help means to me, and to the Lord, that you are willing to lend us a hand here in the service of the Lord in Israel. The Lord sees you and He knows that you are giving to Him by helping us. I continue to sing on our worship team for congregation and occasional extra meetings. But working now at Beit Evenezer Home is a whole new ministry of loving on the old mover-shakers here in Israel!!
I cannot thank you enough for your extreme generosity!!!

In Yeshua our Messiah,
Janet S

Thank you from Ezra & Shulamite, Golan Heights
Through designated donations from Blessing Israeli Believers we were able to stand along side a believing couple who found themselves unable to pay their rent because of a series of events out of their control. They have asked us to thank you and your gift literally brought tears to their eyes as you touched them with His love.

"Comfort, yes, comfort My people!" Says your God. Isaiah 40:1

It is such a blessing to be a part of what God is doing in the midst of the Holocaust Survivors. A few more have joined our discussion group after attending a different meeting where we are making our way through the Gospel of Mark. The text was about how religion makes the word of God of no effect through the traditions which have been handed down to them. This brought about a great discussion about traditions, religion, and what God reveals to us in His Word.

And the Lord said, "Shall I hide from Abraham what I am doing, since Abraham shall surely become a great and mighty nation, and all the nations of the earth shall be blessed in him? For I have known him, in order that he may command his children and his household after him, that they keep the way of the Lord, to do righteousness and justice, that the Lord may bring to Abraham what He has spoken to him." Genesis 18:17-19

Blessing Israeli Believers would like to introduce a very special family living here in Israel. They are Gentile believers who have sowed their lives into Israel and are raising up a godly seed of Israeli Gentile believing children-many of them! Though not Jewish, they truly are a family of Israeli Believers with a very special and unique calling here in the Promised Land! Be blessed as you read Ryan's testimony.

I come from a large family, relatively speaking, so never imagined being used by the Lord in the way things ultimately turned out. Having a lot of siblings was nice, but I was also aware of the challenges it presented my parents. I was determined to never be so encumbered, especially after coming over to Israel in my early twenties and living so carefree, with the flexibility to study, volunteer and pretty much do just about whatever I felt was the Lord's calling at that given moment.

It was only after getting married and having our first child that I truly realized just how difficult day-to-day life can be in Israel compared to what I was used to from America. Fortunately, my wife, the daughter of Dutch Christians who had come to the land 30 years before me, had grown up Israeli, and was thus intimately familiar with, and largely unfazed by, the particular trials this country presents.

You'd think given the above perspective I'd have been more vigilant about limiting our number of children. But, next thing I knew, we had been married 15 years and were the parents of no fewer than 6 children, with a seventh on the way. And I can now honestly say that I'd have it no other way. My children are a blessing to me. It's their faces that I long to see at the end of a work day. But I now also realize that they are my ministry, God's calling on my life, or at least part of it.

The Lord has blessed both myself and my wife with careers that we love and that afford us ample opportunities to be witnesses to the nation of Israel. I am a writer and editor for the Messianic-run news agency Israel Today, and Naomi works as a midwife at Jerusalem's largest hospital, Hadassah Ein Kerem. But there needs to be a strong body of believers in this land to anchor it until such a time as God's salvation is fully realized. That's where not shying away from having a healthy number of children and raising them to be God-fearing and righteous members of Israeli society comes in.

But, again, this is easier said than done in a country where salaries almost never meet the cost of living, and both parents have no choice but to work full-time jobs, and then some. But the Lord is faithful. Time and again, we have experienced unexpected blessing at the hands of those obeying the Lord's call to support us and other believers like us in the land at the very moment we needed assistance. That's why ministries like Blessing Israeli Believers are so important. They facilitate the Lord's blessings so that those of us living here and bolstering the body of Messiah in Israel can focus on His callings, rather than on the day-to-day difficulties that the enemy tries to use to slow us down.

Thank you from Efraim & Jeannie, Western Galilee

Shalom in the name of our Messiah Jesus - the Prince of Peace!

We are grateful, thankful and so appreciative of your faithful support of our ministry work here in Israel. Your partnership means so much to us.

We are seeing the Lord use us to minister to the believers around us, and open doors to witness to those we encounter. Please pray that we can continue to be His source of encouragement, teaching and light to those around us who are living without the knowledge of Jesus our Messiah.

In His Name,
Efraim and Jeannie