Shalom in the name of the Prince of Peace,

We have returned from an anointed, amazing, blessed, successful, rich, and thrilling mission of mercy to the Land of Israel thanks to the love, support and prayers of YOU, the Jewish Jewels mishpochah (family). From start to finish we sensed the hand of the Lord upon our tiny group of consecrated believers, gathered from across the United States and united in a common desire to minister the Love of God to the hurting people of Israel. Twelve of us met at the Continental terminal in Newark, N.J. and prayed that God would grant us supernatural harmony and love as we ventured forth in His name. Patti, from San Francisco, brought a loaf of sourdough bread for us to share before we boarded the plane. Jamie read a poem to the group which expressed that we are people of another Kingdom, serving a Heavenly King (thanks, Gary Bertnick). Neil prayed for divine protection over our entire journey. We spoke with one of the Israeli stewardesses who was shocked and blessed that an American group was going to her country. When we explained our mission to her, she said: "Nothing is going to happen to your group in Israel because you are SENT FROM HEAVEN." That is how we were perceived in many, many places throughout the Promised Land.

Our group was met at the airport by Dr. Randy Smith, our teacher in the Land, who introduced us to our precious Israeli bus driver, Eli (Hebrew for "my God"), and gave each one of us a complimentary bottle of water. Randy briefed us as we went up to Zion to our hotel. When dinner time arrived and we entered the dining room of the hotel, we were taken back by a sight that was to be repeated, many times in our seven days in Israel: We were the only ones in the dining room. NO OTHER TOURISTS. Compared with former years of hustling, bustling throngs of pilgrims, Jerusalem was a ghost town. Randy explained to us that only 30% of the hotels are currently functioning due to the decrease in tourism. The ones that are open have few visitors.

Our first day in the country began as every day that followed – with PRAYER. Our mission for the first morning was to blanket Ben Yehuda Street, the main outdoor shopping mall in downtown Jerusalem with prayer and "Love Baskets." The "Love Baskets" that we handed out in Israel, which YOU so generously supplied, consisted primarily of $100 worth of coupons to the most popular supermarkets in Israel. When the stores could no longer supply us with coupons (we exhausted their supply), we gave out $100 bills in special envelopes with Jer. 31:3, Ruth 1:16, Jer. 29:11-14 and the words "With Much Love from American Believers in Yeshua (Jesus), the Messiah." The wonderful divine encounters on Ben Yehuda Street happened between 2:30 and 6:00 A.M. EDT (9:30 A.M. to 1:00 P.M. in Israel). Each of the three groups (led by Neil, Chris and Dan) returned with tales of thankful shopkeepers, overwhelmed security guards, astonished street sweepers, and tearful Israelis trying to make a living in a very economically depressed country.

How can we adequately express to you our divine appointment with two shopkeepers (Moshe and Yosef) who asked us to sit down in their shop and discuss the Bible with them? How can we describe a scenario in which Jamie went over verses in a Hebrew Bible (previously marked in four colors for easy reference) with a receptive Moshe, while Neil was engaged in an incredible discussion with an enraged Yosef who hates the Prophet Jeremiah and was loudly expressing his views while Diane, our precious sister with the gift of mercy, was weeping, and Maggie was interceding? You had to be there to really get the picture! (Moshe kept saying about Jeremiah 29:11 - "very nice lines, VERY nice lines...") 4:30 A.M. EDT in the U.S.

One of the most moving encounters happened to Dan’s group who ministered the love of God to Yani, a street musician from the Ukraine. Yani was accustomed to the few coins people threw into his violin case, helping to put some food on his table. He was not expecting the envelope that was handed to him by our group. When he opened it, and saw a $100 dollar bill. He threw a kiss to God and began to weep. Of course, the entire group began to cry also, and Ben Yehuda Street experienced one more time the goodness of our God. Then Yani began to play a special song for the group, "Hatikvah," the national anthem of Israel. Carolyn told us that she has never heard a more magnificent rendition on the violin. Thank you for helping to put a song of praise in Yani’s heart. You helped lift a spirit of heaviness. Love never fails! (This happened at approximately 5:00 A.M. EDT for those of you who were praying.)

We spent the afternoon at Joseph’s Storehouse which is part of a ministry directed by Barry and Batya Segal. We helped pack medical supplies, sort shoes, clothing and canned goods which were to be distributed to the poor, to new immigrants, and to terrorist victims and their families. We were able to bless all the volunteers and regular workers of this ministry with "Love Baskets." The hands-on experience was a blessing to our group. We returned to our hotel for dinner and fellowship with our friends of many years who have made aliyah and have been living in Israel for quite a while. We were able to treat Shimshon, Heather, Lesly, Irene, Shoshana and Karen to dinner and give them all "Love Baskets" at the end of the evening. It was so great to be able to give, give, give. (This trip was a dream come true for a person with the gift of giving!!)

Friday, May l0th began with prayer, followed by a visit to Yad Vashem, the memorial to the Holocaust. As you can see in the photo, we were the only ones there. So poignant. Israel alone in her suffering. Neil felt led to bless many of the workers at Yad Vashem with "Love Baskets."

At noon (5:00 A.M. EDT in the U.S.) we went to a local Israeli restaurant to host a luncheon for tour guides who were either out of work or having very little work. The group that came were very blessed as we expressed YOUR LOVE to them and read some of YOUR LETTERS showing your support for the nation of Israel. Dan and Carolyn Hinton of Bradenton, Fl. ministered in the dance at the restaurant. Seeing tour guides with tears in their eyes was very moving. We gave each one a "Love Basket" and additional "Baskets" to distribute to their friends in the industry who could not attend the luncheon. We were seated opposite a fascinating man who has been a liason between Christians and Jews in Israel for over 20 years. General Zvi told us that he would use the gift we had given him for the handicapped children’s home named after his deceased son who was very involved with handicapped children. We gave him an additional $1,000 for the children. This occurred at about 7:00 A.M. U.S. time. YOU blessed these handicapped children.

From the luncheon we traveled to the overlook of the city of Jerusalem called the Tayellet, the site of our 25th anniversary celebration, and found that the local Israelis were having a music festival before the beginning of Shabbat. Jamie and others in our group were able to bless soldiers at this event with food coupons which were MUCH APPRECIATED. Our next stop was the Western Wall for prayer. Diane’s dream of coming to Israel was fulfilled at this sacred site. "I had a time of great release – SADNESS and intercession for the Jewish people. While I was leaving, my friend wanted me to take her picture, so I did. Then a young woman stopped and offered to take our picture together. When she thanked us for coming, there was an immediate connection. We hugged, and I started crying. She said, ‘Don’t do that!’ Then she started to cry and say over and over, ‘Thank you for coming. Thank you for coming.’ We hugged again, this time for a long time. I remembered at that moment that before I came to Israel, I said to my family and friends, ‘If I could just hold one Jewish person while they cried, it would be worth it.’ At that moment it all became clear: to offer LOVE – that cool drink, that warm touch – when someone is suffering – is making Yeshua known to them’."

It kept getting better. We left the Wall, (after giving out "Love Baskets" to a man collecting money for a bride who had no mother or father, another raising six children alone, and many more,) and went to join Roy and Mary Kendall for Shabbat dinner and a time of fellowship and praise at their School of Worship. Students attend this anointed school from all over the world, then return to their own countries with a vision for Israel and an ability to lead others into the presence of God. Each Sabbath a different student is responsible for preparing the meal. A student from Taiwan with a burden for China prepared our dinner that evening. Delicious! We found out that she was trusting the Lord for her scholarship tuition ($6,000). Neil was led of the Lord to give the school $1,800 of this amount on her behalf. Now YOU have invested in the Word of the Lord going back to China from Jerusalem! Jamie had a word for this group about receiving from the Lord, which Roy confirmed as very timely; this was followed by a spontaneous few moments at the piano with both of us sharing The Valentine Song that God sang to Jamie many years ago. Patti said that moment was one of the most moving of the trip for her ( about 2:00 P.M. U.S. time). We blessed each of the students with "Love Baskets" filled with supermarket coupons, and left the School of Worship praising the Lord for His goodness and unfailing love.

Saturday was a bright, warm, sunny day In Jerusalem. We attended a Messianic Shabbat service in which the pastor alternated between Hebrew and English in an amazingly smooth manner. We left the service and took the Jericho road to below sea level, in the wilderness area of Al Moog. Randy’s wife Dotti graciously provided us with a picnic lunch (which we ate in a Bedouin tent). After lunch, we experienced the fierce heat of the desert as we visited a lifesize replica of theTabernacle of Moses in a very authentic setting. Then on to the Dead Sea for a refreshing float. A number of us covered ourselves with the thick, mineral-laden black mud (famous throughout the world for healing all manner of skin conditions) before entering the water. Some of our group members were able to share with secular Israelis at this spot, since many of them go to the Dead Sea on Shabbat.

That evening, back at our hotel, two friends from America who now live in Jerusalem joined us for dinner. We were able to bless them with a "Love Basket" and entrusted them with $1,000 to distribute to a large group of Ethiopian immigrants who live across the street from their home. We also gave "Love Baskets" to our waiters and waitresses at the hotel (some from Russia) and, of course, a seashell in Hebrew for each one.

Sunday, the first day of the week, is a business day in Israel. At 9:00 A.M. in the morning (2:00 A.M. U.S. time) we went to the International Christian Embassy in Jerusalem (ICEJ) to meet with the director of charitable giving. We had arranged to meet an Israeli woman there who had a great need. Freida has had a hard life. Her husband committed suicide, her family has abandoned her, she has had cancer, and her only son (whom she adores) is serving in the army. Since the cancer episode, she has been unable to lift her arm and therefore is not able to pick up the children she used to work with. So now Freida is out of work, owes $2,700 in back rent and has turned to the Christian Embassy for help. We prayed after hearing Freida’s story, and felt that God would be pleased if we paid her back rent. She was overwhelmed, and began to cry. We hugged, gave her a message about God’s love on a seashell and told her that we would continue to pray. Frieda wants to go back to school to study child psychology. She is a determined lady. We think she will make it with God’s help. Please pray for Freida.

We joined the rest of the group and went by bus to the luncheon that we hosted for senior citizens and holocaust survivors. When we arrived at 11:00 A.M. (4:00 A.M. U.S. time) we were greeted by music and exuberant clapping and singing. These elderly Israelis were thrilled to see us. We were about fifty people all together. YOU treated these precious elderly Israelis to a special time of food, fellowship, music, and joy in the midst of some very dark days. A few of the women got up to dance with our ladies. The men held hands and danced around another table. All clapped. It was a "simcha."

After the luncheon, a representative of the Jerusalem Social Welfare Department and the local social worker asked us to meet with them in a separate room to discuss the needs of this community. We were told that a German group which had been augmenting the food budget for these seniors, had recently decided to withdraw their support because they did not agree with certain of Israel’s actions. This amounted to $2,500. We decided that in accordance with James 1:26 concerning pure religion, we should make up the deficit (and also to cover what the other believers had done). We also gave money to help feed and clothe children living below the poverty line, both Arab and Jewish. In addition, we provided funds for an air-conditioner so that orthodox mothers can come for much needed fellowship and time away from their homes.

Before leaving the City of the Great King, we stopped at the overlook on the Mount of Olives so that our group could see the Eastern Gate. Then it was off to the Galilee in the north where we stayed at a beautiful kibbutz right on the shore of the Sea. After dinner, our group sat in chairs on the beach and prayed and worshipped the Lord until bed time. (We were the only group there. 1:00 P.M. EDT)

Monday, our fifth full day in the Land was a glorious day. We awoke at 6:30 A.M. and after prayer, went by bus a short distance to where the boats greet the tourists. We were the only boat on the Sea of Galilee. The sea was calm, our hearts were at total peace, we worshipped, meditated on the verses in the New Covenant about Yeshua and His disciples on the Sea, and were awed at the depth of peace that each of us felt being in the Land of Israel.

The three Israelis who manned the boat that morning all spoke English. Jamie gave each a shell and a Bible that we had marked up into four categories of Scripture: l) Why our group was in Israel, 2) God’s everlasting love for Israel, 3) God’s protection over Israel and 4) What God is expecting from His people Israel. They eagerly read a blue verse, then a pink one etc. The shells were also a big hit. Following an interesting discussion about God and His desires for Israel, the boat docked and our group prayed for the three sailors and gave a "Love Basket" to each one. Before we pulled out of the parking lot, one of them ran up to the bus to thank us again for the generous gift. SOME DO COME BACK TO SAY THANK YOU!

Our lunch in Katzrin was superb. The jewelry shop across from the restaurant is owned by a man who just lost his wife to cancer. His daughter works with him. His son is in the army. Our bus driver told us this as we were about to leave the shop and encouraged us to go back to minister to these precious people. (The bus driver, although not a believer, really got into ministering!) We prayed for the father, gave everyone in the shop a seashell, bought silver stars of David to offer with this newsletter (see top of front page), prayed for the brother in the army, and gave the workers all "Love Baskets" as we left. Meanwhile, some in the group had been ministering to a soldier who showed them the goosebumps on his arms when our group told him that we had come to Israel to bless them. Over and over, we disarmed people with the love and graciousness of God! The Jewish jeweler and a number of soldiers were all blessed from about 7:00 to 8:00 A.M. U.S. time.

Following a fascinating tour of the ruins of an ancient Biblical village ruin near Katzrin, and a thought provoking discussion in a wine press about anti-semitism, we returned to our kibbutz on the Sea of Galilee. En route, our driver stopped to pick up a female soldier (a Russian immigrant from Siberia) and encouraged us to speak with her (He wanted us to "bless" her! Of course we did. She left us with $100 in food coupons and a big smile.)

It was 5:30 P.M. (10:30 AM. U.S. time) when we arrived at the kibbutz and the group decided to sit on the beach again and receive more teaching from Dr. Smith. All throughout the trip, the teaching was rich and anointed. Twelve of us sat there by the seashore, asking questions and soaking up words of life, reminiscent of twelve others years ago. At 7:30 P.M. we sang our way back to our rooms to get ready for dinner. That night we went to a fish restaurant by the Sea which normally holds hundreds of people. We were the only group there. The St. Peter’s fish is as good as ever! We asked our bus driver to say the blessing after the meal. He happily obliged. Pray for Eli, his wife from Uruguay and their three daughters.

Our last day in Israel arrived too soon! At breakfast we were able to bless the staff of the kibbutz who were all very touched by YOUR LOVE AND GENEROSITY. They were also fascinated by the shells in Hebrew. We just kept saying the Hebrew word matanah (gift). We found that the Israelis thought we wanted money from them for the shells. They are obviously not used to receiving gifts from tourists.

By 8:30 A.M. (1:30 A.M.U.S. time) we were in Capernaum which was empty, except for us. How strange to be able to hear Randy’s explanations without having to dodge other tour groups. Strange, and sad. As tourists, we were experiencing the isolation of the people we had come to comfort.

From Capernaum we went to the Mount of the Beatitudes, the site of the Sermon on the Mount, and took one last look at the beautiful Sea of Galilee. Then we headed to Tel Aviv. A short stop for a snack at a mall in Natanya gave us another opportunity to distribute "Love Baskets." One in particular stands out: a young woman from Cuba who recently made aliyah along with her husband. She was a pharmacist in Cuba, but now sells ice cream at the mall. They are in Israel because her husband’s grandmother is Jewish. She is pregnant with her first child, misses her parents in Cuba terribly, and finds herself very much alone in Israel. We prayed for this pretty young woman with very sad eyes, and gave her a shell and a "Love Basket" before we left. This happened at about noon (5:00 AM. U.S. time). (After our group had left the country, there was a bombing in her city.)

In Tel Aviv we visited two Messianic ministries, Emmaus Way and Dugit and were amazed at the potential in that city for outreach to the very secular, often hedonistic community. We blessed both ministries with funds for evangelism and outreach to the poor and needy. We also blessed the volunteers and workers at Dugit and left the remainder of the Bibles with Avi Mizrachi to use in the Land. Finally, we blessed Eli, our driver, Randy, our guide, and gave away the last of the shells at the fantastic restaurant in Tel Aviv where we ate dinner before heading for the airport.

At the airport the workers kept speaking to us in Hebrew, assuming that we were not American tourists. When we corrected them, they asked us why we had come. One of the security agents asked Jamie how and why she began to study the Bible (a loaded question). The same stewardess was on the return flight and greeted us with a big hello. She wanted a report of our trip. The flight returning was almost full (many more leaving Israel than going to Israel), but it was equally as comfortable, quiet, clean and peaceful. We left at 11:00 P.M. (4:00 P.M. U.S. time) and arrived home eleven hours later. We slept most of the way home, but at least one member of our group had an anointed time of sharing the Messiah with a Hungarian Jewish lady on the airplane from 1:00 A.M. until 2:00 A.M. (6:00-7:00 P.M. U.S. time.)

Ironically, when we landed at the airport in Fort Lauderdale (from Newark) and left the baggage claim area, the first thing we saw was a van labeled "Sheriff-Bomb Squad." In Israel, we never saw anything that would indicate danger. THANK YOU FOR YOU PRAYERS AND GIVING IN YESHUA’S NAME. You stayed home, but you also went with us. We were partners in a mercy mission that will have a ripple effect until the Messiah returns. MANY, MANY LIVES WERE TOUCHED WITH THE LOVE AND MERCY OF GOD. We invested in Israel and in people. We blessed Israel according to Genesis 12:3. Expect a blessing in return! We believe with all our hearts that God is well pleased.

Testaments of Israel – Words of Yesterday, Images of Today is a high quality coffee table book which presents a collection of photographs of Israel from some of the world’s best photographers. Each photograph is accompanied by a Biblical quotation demonstrating how the Israel of today relates to the ancient text of the Bible. A book you’ll treasure!