**In November, I travelled to Israel for a solidarity trip with several of our Australian staff** **and our US colleagues** **to visit our ministry partners and witness the atrocities of the October 7 attack by Hamas.** It was a confronting experience as I walked through the Nova Festival memorial, visited the stacked burnt out vehicles riddled with bullet holes, and listened to a kibbutz security officer tell his story of losing six members, including his cousin. We also listened to a story of survival as a family escaped the terrorists invading their kibbutz and had now returned to their home with financial assistance from FOI.

Few have done so and many will not because of the painful memories from that day. The trauma Israel experienced that day remains and is felt nation-wide, yet their resilience is also evident.

Many organisations demonstrate Israel’s resilience and we visited a number that the Israel Relief and Stand with Israel Funds support financially. Our first stop was Tsad Kadima, an education centre that focuses on children and adults with cerebral palsy and motor disabilities. The staff and programs are remarkable, continuing through COVID and the war. Next, we visited Beit Halochem (“House of Warriors”), which rehabilitates and supports disabled IDF soldiers and their families. This organisation becomes another family that understands the suffering experienced by injuries sustained in war. Later that day, we visited Leket (“gleaning’), Israel’s national food bank, providing meals for anyone in need, and we packed potatoes and eggplant as volunteers.

The next day, we joined Operation Lifeshield with Rabbi Shmuel Bowman to see the placement of bomb shelters funded by FOI in vulnerable locations, as well as visit the memorial sites of October 7 mentioned earlier. FOI has funded over 15 shelters since the war began and a total of 78 in the past ten years. We had lunch at a kibbutz, enjoying the experience of the community that in so many locations was devastated by October 7. In the evening, we were given a war update by Major Elliott Chodoff, and later met a team providing training and lifesaving medical equipment for frontline medics, doctors and first responders in battlefield conditions.

On day three, we visited an IDF base that focused on search and rescue operations in Judea (part of the West Bank). These young Israeli soldiers also conducted raids to remove weapons and munitions intended for terrorist attacks on Israelis. They were an inspiration in their dedication to saving and protecting lives. Then, we visited the grave site of Michael Levin, killed in the Lebanon War of 2006, and then a lone soldier base started by his friends in fulfilment of his dream to support soldiers without family. FOI recently funded a new vehicle for this centre to enable its transportation of soldiers and resources.

Our fourth day included the dedication of an intensive care ambulance and a tour of the facilities at Megan David Adom, Israel’s ambulance service in Jerusalem. FOI relief fund grants have provided five medicycles, as well as this specialised ambulance this year. One of our group gave blood as we learned how the emergency calls are handled, which on October 7 overwhelmed even this well-equipped centre. The location of every ambulance and even every defibrillator is shown on the computer screens so that medical intervention can be provided as fast as possible. We concluded the day with a visit to the Jewish Agency, which handles immigration to Israel for those making Aliyah. It also supports victims of terror and those displaced from the south and north because of the war, two of whom shared their experience.

Day five began with a visit to the Jerusalem Assembly to meet with Meno Kalisher, its pastor and one of our FOI staff. As he shared the experience of his family and church during the war in Gaza and Lebanon, the emotional toll was evident. Yet, the ministry of the church during this season has expanded in the provision of resources for IDF soldiers in partnership with other churches near to the frontlines. The church supported families of IDF soldiers by assisting with the delivery of groceries so that mothers do not have to shop with children when the possibility of a missile attack would force them to find shelter. We concluded this day with a Shabbat meal in an Israeli home, which was a special experience for us all.

On our last day, we attended the Jerusalem Assembly for the morning worship service, singing in Hebrew and listening to an interpreted sermon from one of the elders. It was a fitting close to our trip as we focused on God’s perspective, rather than the world’s or even our own. The experiences of this week in Israel reminded me that God alone is the source of comfort and peace for a traumatised nation. My prayer is that our presence communicates the love of Messiah Jesus to His chosen people so that many would turn to Him in such troubled times.

Your faithful prayers and financial support make possible our ministry and its impact on Jewish people here in Australia, as well as Israelis in the land. It was an amazing privilege to stand with Israel and receive such consistent gratitude for coming to Israel in war time. Our team of Simon, Kevin and Lorene, alongside me, not only represented FOI Australia, but also all of you.

Thank you for your partnership in ministry (Philippians 1:5).

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