It’s Not Rocket Science

I want to give you some more perspective from my trip to Israel; I got home three days ago. Specifically, I have thoughts about the rocket attacks from Islamic Jihad.

I was there for the whole thing, but I don’t mean I was brave. There was nothing to be brave about. While media reports were as usual wildly inaccurate, I had a great trip from start to finish.

Over 1,000 rockets were launched from Gaza. In one interesting conversation I had, I was told that the “lesser” terror group Islamic Jihad doesn’t make a move without Hamas’s greenlight. So in effect, it was a Hamas operation. And does it really matter? The effect was the same. A couple people were killed and a lot of damage happened. Because all Palestinian terror groups can do is destroy.

I don’t believe, I never believe, that Israel is in existential danger because God said He would preserve them. That is a foundational truth.

Sderot had the most damage, but here is my point this week: I was actually there and if I hadn’t been reading news reports, I wouldn’t have known anything was going on. Seriously. Yes, those rockets were fired. Yes, some landed in Israel proper. But Israel is very good at protecting itself. Iron Dome did its job.

On Saturday the 13^th, I had a Shabbat lunch with friends in Modi’in (hometown of the Maccabees!). During the meal, we heard a whoomph! The husband looked at the wife and said, “Iron Dome doing its job!” No panic, not even an interruption of the meal. I never felt in danger once.

I was staying Tel Aviv for a couple nights, on the beach. I looked at Facebook and someone had posted a graphic of numerous red dots all over Tel Aviv, as if the whole city was on fire. I looked down from my balcony and the beach was full of swimmers, bikers, picnics. Not a single piece of evidence that anything was going on.

This is Israel.

Now, I don’t want to misrepresent things. People checked apps on their phones warning of rocket attacks. A guy on a hotel elevator showed me a piece of paper on the wall indicating what to do in case of attack. But it was all matter-of-fact.

I drove all over the country by myself. Not one incident. Just fun and a great trip. I was all over the country and everything looked normal. This is a people that dwells alone, but their God is with them.

Someday there will be a serious threat of rockets from Gaza, Syria, and Lebanon, all at once. This is the big fear scenario. But I do not believe Israel will be harmed beyond repair. God is preparing to fight for them as He did in the days of old.

You can take that to the bank.

I’m fighting jet lag and sinus stuff so will stop for this week. I just wanted to let you know that the Fake News operates globally. Rockets yes, dire threat to Israel?

No.

Jim1fletcher@yahoo.com

Jimfletcher761@gmail.com

Yes, the Internal Struggle is Real

Some of you know I am in Israel this week. It has been a spectacular solo trip, and I’ve learned a lot. I wanted to clue you in to an interesting conversation I had yesterday.

I met a longtime friend for lunch not far from the Old City of Jerusalem. A pristine neighborhood with birdsong, lush gardens, and clean air was just one of the thrills of being there.

I was most interested in finding out, on the ground, if media reports of internal dissension in Israeli politics and society was real, or just another Fake News boondoggle.

Unfortunately, it’s real. There are certain foundational elements in any society that must remain in place for stability to exist. One of those is that those tasked with defending the nation remain totally committed. We are even seeing cracks in this in our own military, but more in the realm of “diversity” weakening our defense infrastructure.

In Israel, I was told, there are a certain number of Air Force personnel that say they will refuse to fly in case conditions for war come into focus. I must say, I never thought I would hear such a thing, at least not from Israel. Can you imagine?? As I’ve written recently, Yair Lapid’s 10 minutes as prime minister gave way to a sort of anarchy as he was on his way out the door; Lapid encouraged widespread protests of Netanyahu’s incoming government…before it began governing. This was unprecedented and represents a very dangerous escalation in the ongoing war against the Jewish state. It was one thing to face the Jordanians or the Syrians, or even Saddam Hussein’s nuclear reactor in the Iraqi desert. Those were external enemies and Israel dispatched each of them with stunning focus.

But this is different. Intelligence services are on high alert.

(On a personal level, I’ve never felt unsafe in Israel, and this trip is no different. I sense no tension, and recent flareups by the Palestinians have subsided.)

I’ll cut this short for this week, but just know that Israel is facing a new enemy and that enemy is very, very familiar. Having said that, we know that even when things get dire for Israel, Scripture tells us they will be preserved, and for all time. So while it is easy for me to say that from my safe perch in the U.S., there is an excitement that grows for us Bible prophecy students as we watch serious signs emerging that the Day of the Lord approaching rapidly isn’t so far-fetched. I still preach caution on date-setting and such, but one can at least see now that when Israel’s strength takes any kind of hit, there is only One source of protection for them.

And we know Who that is!

Let me know if you’re interested in traveling to Israel with a tour group I’m part of for next spring. Message me either at jim1fletcher@yahoo.com or jimfletcher761@gmail.com