Dear Friends and Family,

Behold, how good and pleasant it is when brothers dwell in unity! One of God’s great gifts to his people is the fellowship and the unity we experience in our daily lives as the children of God. All of us who claim Christ as our Lord and Savior, and the Father as our father are one. What a great joy it is to be part of such an amazing body. This kind of unity was experienced recently in a vivid way by Eti.

The Jewish Palestinian fellowship

From May 1-4, Eti traveled to Cyprus for a women’s meeting. The purpose of the meeting was for Jewish, Arab Israeli and Palestinian women to meet and fellowship together, and to get to know each other. Since the Palestinian women cannot enter Israel these meetings take place in Cyprus or Jordan. All participants are Christian (or messianic). The purpose is to bring about reconciliation through the common faith in Christ and to provide an opportunity to establish deep and lasting friendships. No politics were discussed at this early stage of the group being together. Eti had a wonderful time, as she was asked to lead one of the devotions and became the unofficial tour guide of the group. She was blessed to get to know the Palestinian Christian women and got very close to the Israeli Arab ladies. It was a time of relaxation and enjoying new friendships. There are plans for future gatherings, and if all works well it will be an active group that will meet regularly. Please pray for this ministry of reconciliation, that the Lord will use these meetings to focus on him and his peace. Nothing makes a stronger statement on the work and unity of Christ than seeing Jews and Arabs singing and praising the triune God together.

Work of Evangelism

Just before David headed out for the UK, Canada and USA, our Russian evangelistic book was printed and ready for the start of the campaign. This book was produced for a Finnish organization that is involved in media evangelism, in cooperation with several congregations, including Grace and Truth. Five thousand copies of the book were printed in full colour and many of these have already been distributed – in the first week of the campaign over 200 copies were mailed or given by hand to those who called in to the call-center (based in HaGefen offices) and requested one. We are now beginning work on a Hebrew book that will also include testimonies of Israelis who have found their true Messiah. HaGefen is coordinating the Hebrew campaign in cooperation with three congregations in different parts of the country.

Second editions

One of the joys we have in our work is the fact that books published in the past have run out of print. This is certainly a sign of growth of the body. Last month HaGefen produced the second edition of a classic children’s Bible storybook that was first published over 15 years ago! This is a 534 page book with stories from the Old and New Testaments in chronological order, with questions at the end of each chapter, and colourfully illustrated. Many Christian young adults in Israel have grown up on this classic. In addition, a second edition of Knowing God by J. I. Packer is in the printers hands. This is a classic book that was first published many years ago! Now it will again be available for a new generation that will be able to read and gain a greater understanding of who our majestic God is.

Deputation

David’s agenda was full in his recent visit to the UK, Canada and the USA. Many new organizations and churches invited him to teach, preach and present the work of CWI Israel, HaGefen Publishing as well as talk about Israel. Many new contacts were made and we are thankful for all those of you who made the visit a joy and a blessing.

A week after his return to Israel David flew to Marseilles in France to attend the Lausanne consultation on Jewish Evangelism (LCJE- www.lcje.net) CEO meeting. David is the LCJE Israel coordinator. Jewish Mission organizations from various parts of the world gathered for a week of seminars, discussion and networking. David presented two papers, one on theological issues in Israel and the other on evangelism and available literature. He has been nominated by both the LCJE and the World Reformed Fellowship (www.wrfnet.org) to attend the Lausanne consultation on world evangelism in South Africa in October 2010.

On May 31st David will be leaving home for three weeks deputation to the USA, this time both the west coast and the PCA General Assembly in Florida, with a visit to some churches in the east as well. Part of this trip is dedicated to the work of Grace and Truth congregation and he will be speaking on behalf of the church in a few congregations.

Home Front

The night before David left for France, after family worship at home, he went to kiss the kids good night. Hadas was crying in her bed. David asked her why she was crying and she said: “Because I will miss you, and why do you have to go away so much?” That night we had read from the new Bible storybook mentioned earlier. David told her that one reason for his trips was so that one day she would also read books in Hebrew to her children and they would read them to her grandchildren. Then a big smile broke on her face together with the tears. As you can imagine David’s absences are not easy for the family, but at this stage are very much needed.

Eti is about to complete her second year of studies and then has one more year before graduation. This has been a very challenging year with much reading and research and many papers to submit. As always we have had many guests, some from the USA and others from Switzerland and Canada, as well as friends at home.

Maayan will be finishing her elementary school this year, and begins middle school in September. It is amazing how time flies! Both she and Hadas are doing well in school and it is a joy to see them grow. Meidan is becoming more and more of a young boy, though he is only four and a half years old.

Praise God for:

1. His faithfulness in bringing the Jewish people to faith in Jesus the Messiah
2. His protection of our staff and families
3. The many ministries that are being carried out in the land of Israel

Pray for:

1. The success of the evangelistic campaigns in Russian and Hebrew.
2. The spiritual and physical healing of David’s brother who has a brain tumor
3. Travelling mercies for David for his upcoming trip to the USA