It's been a while since I was inspired to write a blog and I apologize to my regular readers who might have had some abandonment issues because of that.
The fact is, brothers and sisters, these last few weeks have been very chaotic for Israel and for me personally and I have often been unsure how I felt about a lot of things. The opening sentence of Charles Dickens "A Tale of Two Cities" has been running through my mind almost constantly.
Here it is, to lay the basis for this blog.
"It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, we had everything before us, we had nothing before us, we were all going direct to Heaven, we were all going direct the other way—in short, the period was so far like the present period, that some of its noisiest authorities insisted on its being received, for good or for evil, in the superlative degree of comparison only."
Watching Iran's evil regime get the beating of a lifetime that it deserves at the hands of the IDF and the US military over the past few weeks has been cathartic, making this the best of times. But watching it still manage to survive and somehow emerge with a pathway to claiming victory in this war makes it the worst of times.
Hearing some of the most brilliant geostrategic thinkers on earth talking endlessly about this conflict from the convenience of my phone makes me feel like I'm living in the "age of Wisdom" but so much of what they say is so catastrophically stupid and absurd makes me feel like I'm living in the "age of foolishness" as well as the "epoch of incredulity".
You see where I'm going with this brothers and sisters?
I'm sure you could all give your own examples of how this period of history we're living through seems so surreal and ridiculous.
I am quite certain there are spiritual reasons for it all.
For instance, I was talking about it with someone at my fellowship this week and she mentioned the possibility that there can't be regime change in Iran yet, because "Persia" is prophesied to be part of the coalition that comes against Israel in Ezekiel 38-39, along with Turkey, which has been building relationships with Muslim Brotherhood franchises all over Africa and the Middle East, including the other countries that are mentioned in that passage.
I am among those who believe we're very close to the Ezekiel 38-39 prophecy coming to pass, so what my friend said about Iran needing to remain in the camp that is hostile to Israel for awhile longer makes more sense, when viewed in this light.
I am also reminded of the passage in Daniel 10 about the demonic "Prince of Persia" who had his act together so well that he was able to delay an angelic messenger sent from God Himself for 21 days. That demonic "Prince of Persia" is no doubt still on the job, and he's no doubt pulling every string and every lever he can to sew confusion and deceit in the minds of those "experts" who get invited to talk about Iran by think tanks and media networks. Sometimes that's the reason WHY we find ourselves in a season of foolishness and incredulity.
Here in Israel, we just enjoyed Independence Day without having to worry about incoming Iranian missiles, thanks to President Trump extending the ceasefire, which was supposed to expire at midnight on Tuesday. It was also my father-in-law's birthday, and we had big plans for a family get together so I was personally grateful that we were able to celebrate together without having to worry about that.
But in a more general sense, even if there are no Iranian missiles headed towards us at the moment, we have to worry about other things heading our way. His includes some good things, like a large number of Jewish people who are in the process of making Aliyah because of a bad thing, namely the rising wave of anti-Semitism all over the world. How are we going to house, employ, educate, etc. this large number of new immigrants we know are coming? There has been a housing shortage in Israel for years as it is. Construction crews are working hard all over the country, renovating older buildings and raising up new ones, but they can never get ahead of demand. This is a good problem to have, but it's still a problem.
Then there's our relations with our traditional friends and allies.
The highly problematic Victor Orban recently lost the election to continue as Hungary's President. He was probably our best friend in the EU, and now he's gone, replaced by a guy who is ideologically similar to him in most respects but who has already said he'll honor an ICC warrant to arrest our Prime Minister if he lands in Hungary, which is something Orban refused to do.
Many other countries in Europe, including Ireland and Spain, have become deeply hostile to Israel in recent years, while others, including France and Great Britain, are becoming considerably less friendly than they used to be.
At the same time, the UAE, Bahrain, and even more so India, are standing by us like never before and a US War Department memo described the IDF as the "model ally" even as popular right-wing influencers have called us the exact opposite.
In the US Congress, Israel is becoming a deeply controversial issue in both major political parties and also in the media, both traditional and alternative media.
Hanging over everything is the fact that we're just two years shy of 80 years, which makes some people nervous because King David's reign lasted 40 years,, and then Solomon's reign lasted another 40 years and after that the kingdom was split and things never really got back on track. So there's something about the approach of modern Israel's 80th year on the map that makes people nervous.
I don't know what else to tell you this week, brothers and sisters. I don't have a summation of all these thoughts, or even a conclusion. I can only tell you that in many ways, Israel is in good shape, and there are many more good things coming into view on the horizon. There is a revival of the Gospel going on in this country that is unlike anything since the First Century. But there is also a strong pushback against the Gospel, and there are also many false teachers, false doctrines and lies from the Pit of Hell that are becoming very popular here, both in the Household of Faith and among the general public.
There are also many other ways in which this country is in very poor shape, politically and culturally divided, heading for some deeply problematic and uncharted demographic waters, and facing some very serious economic headwinds.
It truly is the best of times, and also the worst of times.
There's never been a bad time to pray for Israel, and there's never been a bad time to send practical support to this country if you can spare some. But this season of history seems to me to be unique in this regard.
That's what I've got for you this week, brothers and sisters. I hope it blesses someone.