Factoids!!!

When the Boogeyman goes to sleep every night, he checks his closet for Chuck Norris.

Chuck Norris doesn't read books. He stares them down until he gets the information he wants.

There is no theory of evolution. Just a list of creatures Chuck Norris has allowed to live.

Outer space exists because it's afraid to be on the same planet with Chuck Norris.

Chuck Norris does not sleep. He waits.

Chuck Norris is currently suing NBC, claiming Law and Order are trademarked names for his left and right legs.

Chuck Norris is the reason why Waldo is hiding.

Chuck Norris counted to infinity - twice.

There is no chin behind Chuck Norris’ beard. There is only another fist.

When Chuck Norris does a pushup, he isn’t lifting himself up, he’s pushing the Earth down.

Chuck Norris is so fast, he can run around the world and punch himself in the back of the head.

Chuck Norris’ hand is the only hand that can beat a Royal Flush.

There is no such thing as global warming. Chuck Norris was cold, so he turned the sun up.

Chuck Norris can lead a horse to water AND make it drink.

Chuck Norris doesn’t wear a watch, HE decides what time it is.

Chuck Norris can slam a revolving door.

Remember the Soviet Union? They decided to quit after watching a DeltaForce marathon on Satellite TV.

Contrary to popular belief, America is not a democracy, it is a Chucktatorship.

Sadness and Peace

So I won't be going to Peru next week after all. When I first found out, I was so sad. Even though I kind of expected it. My doctor said he would give his "cautious consent" for me to go.. IF... I could guarantee all sorts of medical stuff that just couldn't be guaranteed. ALSO, the medical insurance we bought for the team was purchased before I had the old appendix out (well actually on the same day) - so really any complications arising post surgery wouldn't be covered because it wasn't listed. So SIM requested that I don't join the team. As soon as I was told I ALSO had peace that it was right. I, to be honest wasn't sure in the beginning it was God's will I go, so I thought I will lead the team for as long as God wants, and then I'll let go. But as the time grew closer it really seemed like it was alright. Well... right up until I got admitted to hospital anyway. Even then I thought I would probably be fully healed and doing fine before we go. But I was wrong. I know if I was supposed to go, God could have healed me. I could be so healed there wouldn't even be any scars from the surgery. I think, as it's happened - it was God's will I lead this team, and then release it and let Him do as He wills using all the gifted people He's preordained should go. I have such peace about it, I'm pretty amazed myself. Sadness and peace. Praise God for the peace. I think it would be pretty devestating to have immense sadness without the hope that Peace brings with it. Hope because I know God is in control. And no matter what He chooses, I need to choose to say "Blessed be Your name."
P.S. The little boy in the picture with me IS going to Peru with the team. He will definitely be an asset.

a season for everything...

I think it's kind of amazing that within a day there can be several seasons of life.
One thing I didn't post from my friends last email, is about their sons upcoming bar mitzvah. A time for a huge party, family coming from all over the place to celebrate this rite of passage. I think it's lovely that despite outside circumstances God can still bless us with so much joy.
I remember when the intifadah had just started, I had only been in Israel for about 6 months by then, and I was consumed with a desire to know everything that was happening politically (etc) within the country and the city I was living in (Haifa), so we would listen for hours to the radio... and every so often I would look outside and be surprised to see people walking their dog, or returning from the market with bags of groceries, or washing their car. I thought how can they carry on?? We're in the midst of all this turmoil. But that's life isn't it. It doesn't stop, it will continue on and it's right and good to be able to go ahead and count the blessings around you, rather than dwell on the negative miserable things that are also going on all around. Not that we block out the negative, and pretend it's not there. But there is a time to mourn it then hand the situation over to God and move forward into blessing.
It's like those times for laughter with friends and family you meet at a funeral. This confliction. Mourning and laughter in the same breath, residing in the same heart... Life. Real life. Won't it be great when the time for mourning is over? When we are together in heaven enjoy the riches of God's kingdom with no more mourning, no more sadness, no more hurt. Experiencing love the way it was designed.... Someday, maybe soon :D

Please Pray

<-this is Charlie and Nathaniel outside the teams bomb shelter. That thin little door is by no means the main front door... the main door is massive and heavy and just inside... a little further in there is another massive safe like door, and just beyond that another. If it was a safe it would take theives hours to get through I'm sure. It has to be like that... it's protecting something much more precious than money or gold.- Grace

Boker Tov or Good Morning from the north of Israel,

It's 07:45 The sirens in our area and Haifa just sounded - almost like a morning wake-up alarm (Wilma phoned to say she heard 3 rockets explode). Faith and the boys are still asleep in our house bomb shelter - no need to run anywhere. I was awake at 05:45 the F16's taking off and landing woke me up and I found hard getting back to sleep. We live about 6 kilometres from Ramat-David, one of Israel's airforce bases. Actually, on a perfectly normal day, we may hear F16's flying around for exercise - so we're really quite used to it. The day is already hot and sweaty

I want to thank you for your prayers and many encouraging e-mails.

War is not nice, uncertain, unpredictable, frightening, chaotic and violent. War is full of sadness and anger. War is tiring physically and emotionally - adrenalin works overtime - after a while it is exhausting. We are now almost a week into the war with the Hizbullah and Lebanon. Israel counts about 13 civilian casualties and 12 soldiers. Lebanon - over 250 - still not sure how many Hizbullah, Lebanese Army or civilian.

The north of Israel is split into three regions:
Cities, towns and villages right on the northern border - Nahariah, Tsfat, Kiriat-Shmona, etc. These places are hit every day with rockets - everyone is required to be in their bomb shelters at all times.
A little further south is the next region - Acco, Krayot, Haifa, Tiberius, etc. In this area everyone must be about half a minute away from their bomb shelters - life is fairly normal. Several times a day the sirens will go off and people run for shelter - the rockets do come crashing in - it is scary.
The third region is the region where we live - we are about half an hour outside of Haifa - south east. There have been a few rockets that hit some place in this area during the days of the war - so we are told, we only heard faint explosions. The sirens do go off -when we hear them, we always make our way to our safe room. --
This is part of an update I got today from my friend Jonathan... there is more I may post later... please do Pray with me for them.

Update from a friend in Israel

We want to thank you all for your prayers and encouraging e-mails and phone calls.
Yes, as hard as it is to admit, in the past few days we are feeling the war. In my last report I mentioned our Israel Challenge team joining team-members Bob* and Viv* for ministry in Tiberius. Yesterday they were able to perform a drama at a Congregation in Tiberius - the meeting was short and people dispersed home as Katyushas began falling in Tiberius. The team managed to get some lunch before driving up to Jerusalem - they are now doing ministry on the beach in Tel-Aviv - they are moving about and ministering freely. Soon after they left some 3-5 rockets fell quite close to Bob* and Viv's* house - everyone is well.
Plans regarding the Israel Challenge team - to stay in the Jerusalem, Tel-Aviv area until the end of the summer campaign - this Wednesday and Thursday when they will be returning home.
Also several rockets fell in the Kraiyot suburbs of Haifa where James* and Molly* and their family live. They are safe in their bomb shelter with all their neighbours. They have been offered the choice to relocate south to Modiin, near Tel-Aviv - so far they are staying.
I recently returned from visiting team-members at the base in Haifa - they were all safe in the bomb shelter on the base - they all seemed encouraged. This morning at about 09:30 a barrage of rockets hit Haifa - one hit a busy train dock killing 8 and injuring many. They have been offered the choice to relocate south to Modiin, near Tel-Aviv - so far they are staying.
We have been in touch by phone with all personnel on the field - at this point everyone seems encouraged.
So far there are no plans for a general evacuation although it has been made clear to all our team here that those wishing to take an early summer leave can do so freely - finances are readily available for this.
As a nation we definitely feel we are at war - we and our children hear the exploding rockets and this does have an effect. BUT the ministry opportunities these days are amazing - not necessarily in the distribution of tracts and books, but as followers of the Messiah Yeshua, in the quiet and peaceful support and solidarity with the people. - JG July 16th
*names changed

Jerusalem's the Safe Spot??

I just randomly stumbled onto a blog, by someone thinking through and around what's going on in the middle east right now... I felt inclined to comment even though I didn't know the guy or anything.... and anyway, I got to thinking maybe I would just post that here too, seeing it's so much on my mind right now. I lived in Israel for a while and have friends there right now, whose lives are being turned upside down. Sadly the news we get here (namely CTV) is doing a very sloppy job of reporting. You're right, at the moment no sides are winners. But if you'd like to be a little more informed read on :D
The reason Israel has been taking out roads and airports etc.. is self defense. They generally try very hard not to take out civilians in fact it's been found that some "civilian deaths" were actually those that volunteered their lives for the cause - suicide casualties, in a way in order to win support. Not always the case of course, but Israel is very careful to warn civilains where they are planning to strike. In fact recently they dropped leaflets warning civilians to get out of the areas they were planning to strike. Some of the footage of "bloodshed in Lebanon" that ctv news showed was actually from the Haifa train station in Israel. A station I used many times while I lived there, and the "Lebanese" people it showed being loaded into ambulances were actually Israeli, you could see the Hebrew writing on the side of the Ambulance "M'gen David Adom" a red star of david, not a red crescent like they would have in Lebanon. HOWEVER, my heart aches for the innocent Lebanese whose homes and cities have been taken over by the Hezbollah. It's an old trick - use cilvilian homes, or even schools to fire from, and store your arms so that when there is retaliation, those will be the places destroyed. Some Arab friends of mine living in Bethlehem and Beit Jala, were forced from their homes because they were Christian, and their homes were turned into places to store armaments etc... as well as housed terrorists etc. Sometimes these families were allowed to stay, with the knowledge that these men would come and go as they please. My friends said they were so impressed though, that the Israeli army warned them ahead of time that their apartments were to be destroyed allowing eveyone to get out safely. A friend of mine in the Israeli army is a sniper for them and a Christian - for the first time in his military career he was called on to take out a couple of terrorists. The had gotten through the fence in Gaza, and opened fire on people in a mall. My friend saw these men kill soldiers on either side of him, and managed to save a little girl that they had shot... he and two others gave chase, cornered the terrorists in someones house and then "took them out". He cried over these men that wouldn't know Christ. The Israeli army questioned him and the others that survived that had taken part... not just questioned - interrogated for about 26 hours... The Israeli army is so careful, well aware it rarely has the full support of governments around the world. It had to make sure his actions were a trained response to the situation and not born out of hate or revenge, or a dislike of arabs. If that had factored into the equation at all he would have been absolutely reassigned and/or released of his duties. It makes me so frustrated when the news is reporting with such bias, and so sloppily. Oh if only the Lebanese government would stand against the Hezbollah. If only they wouldn't allow these terrorists to run their country into the ground. It is a sad state of affairs right now, for Israel and Lebanon. And sadly so little truth filters through on the news. At least not on our local news...

Ai yi yi yi!!!

Man... I am so easily talked into things....
"Sure okay, you can operate and figure out what's up, no problem... you wanna take my appendix? Okay... I don't think I really use it that much anyway"
Horrible!!!
Anyway, it's done now, and I'm recovering. I managed a few stairs all by myself yesterday. AND I'm walking less and less like a crippled old woman and more and more like a crippled young woman. And my fever is starting to stay down, for the first time in weeks!! So thanks those of you that prayed about that. I think that was one of the bigger worries - having a fever for so long and not being able to keep it down. I really didn't want to have to go back into hospital and go on and I.V. again. I think I officially hate intrevenous anything.
Phew - so enough about that...
Let me just say... I've had so much time to pray and think and read, and all those good things - but to be honest, instead I've just watched T.V. and watched T.V. and watched T.V. and... well you get the pictures. What a waste. I was too miserable and frustrated to do all those good things, and to be honest I think it was my little rebellion. God took my summer dreams away, so I'm not going to talk to him except when absolutely necessary... which for a bed ridden person turns out to be fairly often - but anyway... I realize I'm so sure sometimes that I've really handed God control over my life.. and then something like this disturbs the natural order of things and I get so angry things haven't turned out as I planned... ridiculous I know... I am ridiculous - and I know God uses all sorts of opportunities to show me where I still need to get to in my relationship with him. So now I am at even more loose ends than before - I have absolutely no idea what will happen this summer, this fall... and I want to say that's okay... God's in control - but to be honest I really want to know, I really do want to plan... I really do want to control... and let God assist... so I'm back to that... Praying that God gently and softly shows me how to trust in Him and His good, pleasing and perfect will.