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Showing posts from September, 2016

Elementary School Update

It has been on our hearts to open a Messianic/Christian elementary school in the Tel Aviv area for some time. To achieve this goal, Jason was able to open a non-profit and establish a working board of directors. All of the steps involved were complicated and it took a long time.  But everything is in place. Recently, interest in the school has started to pick up among local Israelis. Of course dozens have asked us when we will open the school, but the level of interest now is much more than in the past. It seems like every time we run into someone with young kids, it's their first question. In the last week alone, Jason was probably asked this question a half a dozen times from parents in Tel Aviv alone. We are in the process of creating a professional promotional video for the school.  Our school in Tel Aviv is being modeled after an existing school in Jerusalem. As part of this video production, Jason took the cameraman to the school in Jerusalem. The cameraman was so amaz

Progress Continues at our Greater Tel Aviv Messianic Center

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Finding the right look We have been putting in some long days making decisions and finding solutions in order to create a space that will be both inviting and practical. Some of our Tel Aviv team members are much more gifted in design and aesthetics then others of us. Two people have really been key in finding the right look and feel for our new facility. We want it to feel like a place where people can learn and grow both practically and spiritually. We also want it to be a place where people want to sit, talk and stay a while.  By God's grace, my family was able to purchase a seven passenger car about a year ago. So, it was my privilege to be the chauffeur for two of our other team members as they looked for the right materials. They really are of one mind.  It is fun to see how both of them zero in on the same item in a store with thousands of things to offer!  Finding the right style, colors and furnishings is supposed to be a long and difficult process, but

Family Update

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Homeschooling Yonatan and Shimon both started their homeschooling early and as a result they are currently a year ahead.  We did not give the kids a summer break, though they did have a more relaxed schedule, due to the pregnancy and birth of Gideon.  So, they have continued in their regular routine, which has helped make the transition back to a more academic schedule very easy. Yonatan (7 years old) Yonatan really loves reading and writing. We are increasing his Hebrew language tutoring to three days a week, in addition to his daily Hebrew lessons. This year, he will be studying together with with two other native Hebrew speakers, for a 3rd grade level native speakers Hebrew reading a writing curriculum. This is a challenge for him, since he still has a small vocabulary. However, he has made huge improvements in the last year from not speaking at all, to communicating well with his friends in Hebrew. Shimon (6 years old) Shimon continues his love of mathematics.

Kehila News ISRAEL

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A few years ago, a friend of mine created an amazing website that takes news, updates and articles from most of the evangelical believers in Israel, and publishes them in one place. Many of these ministries provide very high quality content and this website connects you with all of them. It gives you the pulse of the believing community in Israel. Which I think it's a good blessing to us all.  I highly recommend you sign up for yourselves and get their weekly email like I do. It is worth it. Below is one a received recently.  From: Kehila News Israel < admin@kehilanews.com > Kehila News > Sept 8, 2016 : Maoz Israel Celebrates 40 Years of Ministry, and more from Kehila News   September 8, 2016   MAOZ

In the News: war on the horizon... or not.

There has been a lot of talk in the news lately about Israel's army and our neighbors. The articles vary a lot in their focus. Some speculate that war is on the horizon. Others speculate that war isn't on the horizon at all. Yet, what all of them have in common are these three points: First, Israel is prepared for any attack coming from the terrorists in Lebanon, Syria, Gaza or Egypt's Sinai. There is a great deal of emphasis on Israel's preparation for tunnel warfare, the use of Israel's future weapons. These future weapons, including the F35 (which is due to arrive in December, 2016, but won't be operational for a couple of years) and David's sling (a medium range missile defense system). Israel has created a new battalion to defend against ISIS in Egypt's Sinai and has created totally new training programs to combat Hezbollah and Hamas terror tunnel infiltrations. The assessment is that Israel is well prepared. Second, the articles focus on