Quick update. As you may have read in the news, there is much craziness in Leh right now because of a “cloudburst”. We didn’t have a team in Leh at the time, we are all fine, and God’s grace has continually been shown to us in our travels. Everyone on Massah is doing great! Thanks for your prayers.

Aaron

The team has arrived! The 12 “Massah-ers” of 2010, Melissa, and I landed on Shabbat after 2 long plane flights. We were a bit exhausted, a tad jet lagged, and VERY excited. We have only been here a short while, but even so have been very productive! The first day or so was devoted to tricking our bodies into believing that day was night and night was day. The team adjusted fairly quickly and we were able to have a service together on the second day to “consecrate” our time together and focus our minds on the work ahead this summer. It was a sweet time of worship, reflection, and prayer together as a team.

This first week has been devoted to a time of training and prep for our time on the streets talking to Israelis. Jhan has been great about focusing the team and giving them a mini training of what goes on in NY over the summer on Jews for Jesus’ annual summer campaigns. We went out for the first time today to talk to the Israelis and to have a “learning” day for the team. It was a really good way to start the evangelism of the trip and to get accustomed to what we will be doing a lot of this summer.

Joel and Israelis

Jhan giving instruction

The pics above are just some moments from the evangelism we did today. It was really awesome to see this years team get into the groove and to begin our Massah (journey) together!

More soon!
Abz

The entire aleph team has officially arrived home. Being here has been great time to reflect on everything that’s happened this summer.

I’m so excited to report that I’ve made incredible friends. We had such a tightly knit group that it was such a difficult goodbye. The 5 girls were AMAZING. They each had something so unique to bring to the table in their encouragment with each other and evangelism with the Israelis. We all really got along and had an excellent time together.

One of the things that I think about most from our trip is the time in India together. Being in a small group with 4 or 5 other members of our team made us really close. We thrived together to brainstorm ideas for talking to Israelis. It was fun to hike, play scrabble with, catchphrase with, and just chill out with the other backpackers. It really helped us to develope a community with each other alongside the new friends we were making.

I’m so excited for the beit team to still be out doing what they’re doing. I think so highly of them and am so excited to see how the Lord continues to work through them all the was across the world!

We leave for NY early tomorrow morning.

Let me start with an update from last week when I had no access to internet.

Last week we had interactions with people who were to busy doing drugs to care about anything we had to say.

However that being said the L-rd made us available to a few key people who really had questions about what we believed, and we ended up giving out multiple new testaments.

This last week we were on an All guys team. Hiking all around, it was a really great growing experience as well as a very difficult and dark time for us as I mentioned the people who didn’t want anything to do with us.

I will try to give more details in a different blog post, right now I want to talk about how amazing this trip has been after I tell you about this morning;

This morning we arrived in Delhi and I went to bed around 6am because our bus had just dropped us off. When I woke up I felt really Ill and cold, even though Delhi is a extremely humid and hot place. Thankfully I went back to bed, turned off our AC and Fans and put on really warm cloths and got up around 3ish, being all sweaty, and no longer being cold, but needing to put something in my body to give me energy because I felt very weak. So Praise Y’sh’a that this illness hasn’t been a very long ordeal (I think) I still feel a bit ill.

Now onto the partial unpacking of what happened on this trip.

This 10 week Journey has been a wonderful and great ride and I am really appreciative of the fact that it exists, and all the people who have helped it become what it is right now, I also look forward to where this trip will go in the future…

Many difficult and wonderful things have taken place on this trip, and through it all the L_RD has provided for me in each and everyone.

From the long grueling hikes we were on last week, to the adventures we had in Israel and the people we met and friends we’ve made both on this trip with me and the people we encountered along the way. I am truly glad that Y’sh’a called me to this trip this summer.

Although this trip is over, The season that follows when I arrive home will be another journey that I am excited and ready for, and I know it too has hardships along the path but I look forward to tackling them as they appear.

I am sad to be leaving the people who have become such an amazing family to me in these past 10 weeks but also and happy to part ways from them that I might see how this trip will allow their changed lives to bear fruit in the different paths all of us are about to go on.

I am happy that we are going back to the states but saddened by knowing that I will be leaving 6 wonderful friends I have made behind. As they continue on with the call that G-D placed on their lives for these next 4 months.

This trip has really opened my eyes and helped me gain a new perspective on evangelism, life, living a life of evangelism, and also shown me what I need to work on next in my LIFE LONG journey to knowing and growing closer to Y’sh’a.

It gives me great joy to know I have such an encouraging community behind me. And as hard as this trip has been looking back on all the things that have been accomplished for “The Kingdom” and in my life, make all the hardships that my community and I have been through, worth it.

Before coming on this trip I knew that I would be changed when I went home but I didn’t know that it would be so drastic, the next issue on this journey will be not falling into the boxes and routine things that I used to do.

I want to thank all of our Supporters who have been praying for us and helped us come on such an amazing Massah Trip.

I pray that all of you will be blessed imensely for all the support you’ve given us.

This post seems very unorgainized but I hope that joy I have from this trip and appreciation I have for you helping us on this trip comes across.

In HIS Divine and Perfect Mercy

~Jonathan

Closing out our time in Israel was a really neat experience. To get to spend the last few day just enjoying the land was really fun. Alef met up as a group to spend one of the last few nights encouraging one another. We went around the room and spoke words of life to each person; lifting them up and letting them each know how gifted they are and how vital they are to our group. It was really neat to be able to share our fears and pray over each member of the team. SUCH an encouragement to all of us. I think it brought the team closer together to know that we are all in support of each person and to see how much we have grown to love each other through the thck and thin these past 7 weeks.

We arrived in India exactly 12 hours ago. Being back is so unreal. It’s exciting to experience it with a whole new group of people and to see the looks on everyones faces. I think thats my favorite part.

We all split up tomorrow and begin to travel as teams. It is awesome to get to know 5 other people from Massah in such a close way. Its unlike any other experience. You hike together, eat together, ride 16 hour buses together, and sometimes even get sick together. Best kind on bonding

India is a constant reminder of how to RELAX for me. Not relax like just lying around, but relax as in giving up the control that we hold on to so tightly in life. The biggest thing for me I think is letting go of all the worries that I decide to let overcome me. The feeling of needing to be in control of every situation and make sure that the result is what I intened it to be. But that’s not how it works here in India. The buses are not always on time, the food takes a while to come out, and the water is no bueno! It just happens when it happens. It’s a good reminder for me to remember how this whole trip has been blessed by God and that he is in control of every situation here. He cares about us so much that even with all the chaos on India, we’re still soooooo important to him. Give it up, and relax!

Please continue to pray for the  teams as we split up! It can be a bit scary venturing off from the rest of the team. The group is so pumped to be here and to start meeting Israelis and I can’t wait to see how God uses the gifts of each and every one of us.

Today we went out on a sortie in the morning, and ended up meeting some people while we were passing broadsides out. Then at one point a young man who knew our team leader (Peter) drove by and noticed us, proceeded to park and start taking pictures of us. Well it was interesting, I didn’t think much of it he was just one young boy no big deal. However the place we were at they had security guards to check your bags and keep the peace, so the security guard mentioned to me, “if they give you any problems I am here”. I was like wow, thats nice. A side note that he has a pistol ready to go at his side. So I was quite pleased at that. Come to find out later when we were finished that he is a Jewish Believer. (he told us while he served us nice cold water at the end of our time there)

We went out for a sortie later, where we had some good conversations, and interactions with people. We took a break between for dinner then continued on with the sortie. While we were going back the way we came, we encountered the same young boy who had been taking pictures of us earlier. While this time he called his friends, and 15 or more showed up, some adults some young men others boys.

On this sortie there were 6 of us (peter, abbie, talia, rachel, sean, and myself) Peter, Talia, and I were in the group that was farther down the sidewalk then the others, but just slightly.

Meanwhile I am still talking with a man and trying to explain to him that Y’sh’a came for more then just the jews because he thought Y’sh’a was only for the jews. Well needless to say. He didn’t fully understand what I was trying to say, when I noticed there was a large group of these religious jews to my left, when I saw them I was a little concerned because I hadn’t dealt with them before and looked around for peter and talia, but they were no where to be found. At that moment I, was a little disheartened but only for a moment and I decided oh well I will keep talking with this man and try to help him understand.

What I didn’t know was that Peter and Talia were in the middle of all these religious jews.

As I continued talking with this man one of them comes up and started yelling at me in hebrew, well I of course am not fluent in the language yet. so I say “Englit? Englit?”, “LO ENGLIT!” he responded so fervently when of course he knew how to speak english, or at least his face didn’t match his words with the smirk that I saw.

As he continued to yell, I told the man I would pray for him and decided to approach this very large, ominous group of jews, who didn’t really create any fear in me, I had this peace throughout the whole situation which I can only attribute to Y’sh’a.

Once I got there most hadn’t quite noticed me yet, but one did, and gave me a very angry look as I smiled back at him he approached me, and he too said something in eevret (Hebrew) but then he started counting in english I wasn’t sure what he was going to do but the look on his face and the fist in his hand didn’t seem very welcoming so I walked a few steps away. When I thought he was done with me he came back and grabbed all the broadsides I was holding and tried to rip them from my hand so I kept a nice grip on them but then he started to yell and create a fist again so I let him have them. Next he tried to rip them in half with his bare hands (about 40 total), and it didn’t work out very well for him.

Well this was going on Peter was yelling and arguing with the jews in hebrew. Well the younger boys started to circle us with singing and dancing which could have been very disorienting, scary, and frustrating if Y’sh’a hadn’t given me a peace in the situation.

soon after we started making our way back again, and trying to keep moving while these guys were harassing us, peter called the police, and it took them about 5 mins to show up, but while peter was talking with the police, the rest of our team were all in conversations about Y’sh’a with people who came up and wanted to know what was going on, and what the commotion was all about. I think each of us spoke with people who gave us their contact information which was really good.

After the police told the Jews to leave us alone, we started to walk away, and our good friend who originally called them was following us again. Then we tried to take a taxi closer to our residency and grabbing a taxi is not as easy as it would be in NY. After we finally get a taxi only 4 of us can fit, so Abbie, Talia, Rachel and I get in. and ride off. We sit in silence during the trip each dwelling on their on thoughts of what happened. (I think, or at least I was) As we are getting out the Cab driver notices the broadsides in abbies’ hand and asks her about them, come to find out He too was a Jewish Believer.

During this event that happened yesterday it reminded me of the thorn that was in Pauls side, that he asked G-d to take away but, was left there, because this same young boy, “benny” i think his name is. kept showing up to cause us problems. But as we could see by our great interactions after the police got there all things worked out for the good.

2 Cor 12:9-10

9But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. 10That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

So I ask that you would please do as paul said to the colossians

Col 4:2-4
2Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful. 3And pray for us, too, that God may open a door for our message, so that we may proclaim the mystery of Christ, for which I am in chains. 4Pray that I may proclaim it clearly, as I should.

Not that I am in chains in a literal sense but it seems like that with the opposition we are receiving when we go out.

Todah Rabah for taking the time to read this and May you be blessed by the Holy Spirit with strong faith and a boldness in words during times of opposition.

Hey everyone! First blog of the new summer. I’m so excited to be back on Massah. For those of you who are wondering what I’m doing back here, I’m actually back as the Massah alef intern helping Aaron and Rachelle with the team this year. It’s been a real blessing so far to be working with the new team. It’s an exciting group and I can’t wait to see how God will use all of us this year. Today was our first day of evangelism on the streets of Tel Aviv. It’s always a little nerve racking to go out again after being away from Israel for a year, but it all comes back so fast. Something that really made me think today as we trained, was just that the idea of evangelism is nothing to stress over. When we all go out, it should just be about being ourselves. If the gospel is as much a part of our lives as we say it is, it should show shouldn’t it? Today started our intensive week of evangelism. We began with a visibility sortie where we put on Jews for Jesus shirts and walk around the streets getting into conversations with Israelis. It is definately a challenge without pamphlets to at least give someone. It really puts the focus on conversing with people and getting out of your comfort zone. During our personal devotion time this morning, I read 1 Corinthians 15:58 and it was such an encouragement. I know that God is wanting to use me and the rest of the team this week and this summer. My team today was Sarah M and Josh N. The 3 of us walked up and down the street getting into conversations with Israelis who were willing to talk to us. One conversation was really exciting. It was our third and last conversation of the afternoon with a man born and raised in Israel. He had heard of Jewish people who believed in Y’shua before, in fact he had a friend who believed! We talked with him about our faith and shared the ENTIRE gospel with him. He totally understood the desire to have a relationship with God and gladly accepted the book of John from us in Hebrew. It was so amazing to talk to a young Israeli guy and have him ask you flat out what you believe in. Such an awesome opportunity, and it’s just day one. Please pray that God continues to keep us sharp and to continue to use this new team to spread the truth to the people of Israel!

Abbie