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The Living Bread
“Then Mordecai recorded these events, and he sent letters to all the Jews who were in all the provinces of King Ahasuerus, both near and far, obliging them to celebrate the fourteenth day of the month Adar, and the fifteenth day of the same month annually, because on those days the Jews rid themselves of their enemies, and it was a month which was turned for them from sorrow into gladness and from mourning into a holiday; that they should make them days of feasting and rejoicing and sending portions of food to one another and gifts to the poor. Therefore they called these days Purim after the name of Pur. And because of the instructions in this letter, both what they had seen in this regard and what had happened to them, the Jews established and made a custom for themselves, and for their descendants, and for all those who allied themselves with them, so that they should not fail to celebrate these two days according to their regulation, and according to their appointed time annually. So these days were to be remembered and celebrated throughout every generation, every family, every province, and every city; and these days of Purim were not to fail from among the Jews, or their memory fade from their descendants.” Esther 9:20-22, 26-28. We celebrated Purim March 8 and 9 this year, by reading the Book of Esther, and the children and many adults dress in costumes. In the past, most people dressed as Mordecai, Queen Esther, King Ahasuerus, or Haman, but now they dress much like people do for the American Halloween. Many people do give gifts to the poor and to friends. Although it is not a Feast of the Lord, it is a Biblical holiday.
About us
We feel quite at home here in Tiberias and are enjoying our lovely apartment. The weather has been cool and we have had nice rains and several heavy snows on Mount Hermon, so the level of the Sea of Galilee is coming up. We are so grateful to the Lord for this great blessing.
Outreach to Pensioners
Because Pesach (Passover) begins April 6, we delivered April food vouchers to the pensioners, so they could be used for their Pesach celebration. We delivered food vouchers to twenty three pensioners in March. We gave the cash distribution as usual, plus we had designated donations for two more Druz families, and one Messianic family in our congregation. The Beit Ham (Warm House) grief support group continues to meet twice a week. We attended twice this month. We are helping three clubs each month with sport activities and other projects they have. We provided wine for the members of two groups and joined the other group for their Pesach celebration, where a group of high school students presented a program about Pesach and did some fun activities with the ladies. We were invited to the Social Service celebration when the Mayor of Tiberias and his assistants came and wished all the workers Happy Pesach.
Another activity we were invited to participate in was a trip to a nearby community to a camp for chronically ill children and young people. It is new and is one of fifteen in the world. The first ones were founded by Paul Newman and much of the funding was provided from his foundation. It is a beautiful facility able to house fifty campers and will eventually house one hundred campers, with every need and want provided. The campers come for one week free.
Other Assistance
Extra funds for Purim were sent to Sheni and her boys. This was a great blessing since the children were out of school for the holidays, and they need extra food when they don’t eat at school. The boys each picked out an inexpensive toy also. It is a great joy to see this family growing and doing well after their loss.
Druz Believers
Since Fike and Amal have left their house in Mughar, we have seen him only a few times. All of the Druz believers are suffering, but they continue on in the faith. Mahadi testified that he had gotten sick and was in the hospital and God spoke to him in a dream and said “what are you doing here, I have healed you.” Please continue to pray for these believers.
Beit Shalom
We hosted two couples, two single ladies and one single lady, who has been with us last week and will be two weeks after we leave for the States. They are all delightful and we have such wonderful fellowship in the Lord. Thank you Father, your children are a great blessing.
Morning Star
God continues to work in this congregation. He has been speaking to us about unity for the past several months. I said, to our guest Jan, “It is obvious God is speaking to us, but how do we come into unity?” Her reply was, “When we realize how much God loves us, we want to love Him and to love what and who He loves. When we love others, that brings us into unity.”
Thank you for prayers and support. They sustain us and we are so grateful to the Lord for each of you. Please continue to pray for us that we will follow His leadership as we continue to serve the Lord in Israel.
PRAYER NEEDS
The peace of Jerusalem Psalm 122:6
Godly leaders for Israel, America, and the nations 1Timothy 2:1-2
Israel’s Prime Minister and leaders to not give in to ungodly pressure from USA and others 1Cor. 15:58
More rain for this dry and thirsty land Isaiah 41:18
Revelation of Jesus as Savior to our loved ones 2Cor. 3:14-16
God’s anointing and presence at the Center Ex. 33:15
Anointing of the Holy Spirit as we interact with people 1John 4:9,10
Wisdom, direction, perseverance and provision for Druz believers Matthew5:9-13
Continued direction of Beit Shalom Ministries Jeremiah 33:3
Pray for Sheni, a young widow with five small children James 1:27
May God richly bless you,
Earl and Ruth Davis |
