One of the organizations that we support for ministry in Israel is Aviv Ministry. Led by Dov and Olga Bikas, the organization ministers to the practical needs of Israelis. They serve the homeless, the drug addicted, the hungry, and the hurting. This month, their ministry newsletter tells a powerful story, and I’ve asked their permission to share it with you.
From Dov and Olga:
Dear Praying Friends, shalom! Many of you have been asking how we are doing and what life looks like here right now.
At first, the Iranian attacks were very intense across the whole country, and we had to run to the shelter on our floor quite often – both during the day and at night.
In recent days, however, it has been somewhat quieter here in the south (Beersheva and surrounding areas), while the attacks on the north and center of the country remain intense.
I have to admit that in the past I treated rocket attacks somewhat casually. Living in a large city, it felt a bit like winning the lottery: what are the chances that a rocket would hit exactly where I am?
But when an explosion happened near my mother’s empty apartment, and all the windows were blown out, it definitely woke me up.
These days, I have been reading the Psalms a lot and have noticed how many of David’s songs speak about enemies and ask for God’s justice. At first, this may feel quite strange, because when we sing, most of us prefer to focus on love and peace rather than confrontation.
But when you consider the long history of Israel, it becomes easier to understand. For centuries, there have been nations and regimes that sought to destroy the Jewish people – from ancient empires to the Nazis, and today groups like Hamas and Hezbollah and the Iranian leadership.
So I asked myself: What is the real reason for such hatred? What conflict do we actually have with Iran, for example? Why is the destruction of Israel one of their central goals? What have we taken from them? It is something completely irrational.
Because of this, it seems to me that the roots of this hostility are spiritual, and therefore, these conflicts will not simply disappear through political solutions or even military operations.
While reflecting on this, I came to Psalm 67, where David shifts from speaking about enemies to praying that the nations would come to know God. And this struck me as the real answer.
Instead of endless wars, the true hope is that the nations would come to know God and turn to Him. Only when hearts truly change, real peace becomes possible.
So please pray for this with me: that the nations, including those ruled by totalitarian or terrorist regimes, would come to know the Lord and step out of darkness into His light!
And of course, please continue praying for our safety and for a quick end to this war.
Thank you so much, and may God bless you all,
Dov and Olga
