Beloved, as you know, I usually like to write an article in our "Oil of Anointing" newsletter. But at times I receive some word from a brother or sister in Israel that I believe in so strongly, that I think stands alone. This article by my friend Asher Intrater, is just such an article. God is moving; ever shaking everything that is shakable. And when all is said and done, He will be glorified in the midst of His people Israel, when the shout of the King will be in their midst. Shalom, Pastor Rick

Sharon, Abu Mazen, and the Disengagement Plan

100 days. For the first time since the turn of the Millennium 2000, we have seen even a few months of relative quiet, even a ray of hope, in the Middle East. That quiet ended last night at 11:20 pm at the "Stage" disco on Jonah the Prophet Street. Two suicide terrorists from Tul Karem (seemingly directed by the Islamic Jihad office in Damascus) tried to enter the disco, where a large birthday party was planned for 12:00 midnight. The security guard spotted them on the street and tried to stop them. One ran away, and the other set off the bomb. Due to this brave action of the guard, dozens of lives were saved. Still, 4 were killed on the spot; another seems to be dying in the hospital, and another 35 hospitalized with injuries.

This represents a major test for Abu Mazen. It shows that simply reconciling language is not enough. Law must be enforced. Abu Mazen has promised to find and prosecute those responsible. Let us pray that he will, for if not, stability for Israeli and Palestinian society is in jeopardy. Nonetheless, the attitude among Israelis and Palestinians is one of cautious optimism on both sides. There is no euphoria - just a sober sense of determination to try to make a horrible situation somewhat better.

This positive turn has been by the grace of God, and in some sense by the courage and integrity demonstrated by three leaders: George Bush, Ariel Sharon, and Abu Mazen. One is a Christian, one a Jew; and one a Muslim. It can also be attributed to the fall of three evil men: Yassir Arafat, Sadam Hussein, and Osama Bin Laden.

As we have had 4 1/2 years of terrorism and warfare, I believe it is God's will for us to have a period of 4 1/2 years of quiet and stability, so that the gospel can be shared with both Israelis and Arabs. Let's look again for some guideline in I Timothy 2:1-4 (our primary mandate for praying for the political situation). “First of all that ... prayers be offered up ... for all who are in governing authority, so that we may lead a quiet and peaceful life. For God ... desires all men to be saved.”

Our prayers follow this simple three-step procedure:
1. for government leaders
2. for social stability
3. for evangelism to all racial groups.

Please pray this way for the Middle East. We need to pray for the government leaders; sometimes I think some of our dear friends are praying against them instead of for them. There is a difference, a difference in attitude and faith. Despite what you hear on the news, Bush's destruction of the Taliban regime in Afghanistan and Saddam's regime in Iraq, and the beginnings of democracy in those countries, has shaken the paradigm of Islamic tyrant dictatorships in the Middle East.

Sharon described his decision to initiate the disengagement in Gaza as the most difficult one he has ever made. Although fraught with difficulties, it is a brave decision. Some have accused Sharon of caving in to political party pressure. The opposite is true - he has stood up against underhanded political maneuvering in his party. He has been accused of causing division in the nation. Again, that is not true. Israelis are almost 70% in favor of getting out of Gaza. It is the extremist groups attacking him that are causing division. It has been said against Sharon that he is giving back to the Palestinians land that God promised to the Jewish people. There is a good point here, but it is taken out of proportion. In Gaza there are over a million Palestinians and about 7,600 Israelis. We don't "have" that land now. We have a few settlements that require us to militarily patrol a huge area and population that we do not really "have" at all. The absurdity of it is this: if we really wanted to conquer Gaza, we would have to pull out all the settlers and launch a massive attack to drive out a million Palestinians. Even in that bizarre scenario, the settlers would have to be removed. To think that we "own" an area by patrolling it is a religious spirit, not based on faith or reality.