By Ariella Casey

Last week, Hezbollah started fires in the North of Israel with suicide drones. It seems they want to burn our fields and destroy our crops. An entire wheat crop was burned. I guess that symbolically strikes against Shavuot and the wheat harvest. 

Is this change a new strategy to intimidate us? Before there were bombs that landed in fields but never did much. So now they are hitting the fields and setting them on fire. The government threatens to evacuate the small towns, again! I say where will they put all the people with over 60,000 already without homes? Will we all go to hotels at the government’s expense? How would we live? What about our pets? 

On this past Shabbat, four of our hostages were rescued miraculously through the skill and maneuvering of the IDF who had the challenge to distract the captors while they delivered the hostages who were held in two different buildings. They succeeded but lost one hero–a Special Forces officer. May his memory be for a blessing!  

The country and many around the world rejoiced at the news of the rescue. But within hours, several high ranking government officers resigned from the government of Israel, leaving us wide open to disunity and apparent doom. The stated intention is to force Israel into a 2-state solution and allow Biden and Blinken to control the country through the manipulation of these traitors. This is cause for worry, and if it is not for the Hand of Hashem leading and pushing forward, there will be no victory, and we will be back farther behind than when we first opened our ears to the news of October 7! 

I read Psalm 57 this morning, where David cries out to YHWH for help to protect and lead him against his enemies, be it those from within or without. David ran to and fro, hiding in different places. He gathers wannabee warriors to help him in his fight against the armies that come against him. It seems, that by all this, he is tested for the job of leading the country. It seems that everything, even saving his own life, is his responsibility–that no one is watching from above. At least it seems so.  

My mind scrolls over to the Biblical story of the three valiant Hebrews who were cast into the Fiery Furnace in Babylon. Was there Anyone with them? They did not know about it at the time, but there was Someone there and they walked out unscathed!

Even now we are in a similar obscure situation. Will we succeed? Will Hashem put down our enemies, even if they be those among us who hate the land of Israel enough to make an alliance with our enemies? Any right-minded person knows that we have much to lose if we accept the “deals” put forth by the Biden administration. It seems that the God we serve is somehow cheering us on at times, but has very little to do with the war. But then, when we think back, there have been definite miracles, like when 350 bombs hit the North of Israel and nothing was destroyed other than a solar panel on a roof and a hole in the ground. Then there was the helicopter crash that took out the president of Iran. Last week a fire started from the bombs near our town, it came right up to the edge of town but did not cross the road to where the homes are! And now, the rescue of four of our hostages. Sometimes the Eternal seems very much present in this war, but then something happens, and we see we are doomed if something isn’t done. May it be that now, the great God of Heaven will see and will foil their plans to divide this country. I await the news of what will happen in the next few hours or days. 

Emotionally, I have been swinging in and out between hope and panic, resignation and depression. I try to understand the will of the Almighty in all of this, that He is more interested in the future of Israel than any of us are–and I admit that it helps to remember that His Hand is there–underneath, directing and working things out to fulfill His Divine Plan. But where do I fit in all of this? Where do any of us fit? We need a magnifying glass to see the real game plan. 

Perhaps the only thing left is prayer, sincere heartfelt prayer–Not the pre-programmed prayers that we are all tired of! What do we think?–that the Almighty is a computer and the input (prayer) has to be said at specified times and in a specified way for the computer to recognize the preprogrammed input? Do we not serve a personal God who cares more about His people and His land than any of us do? 

The other day, I actually heard someone say they anxiously await the day when prayers will be done with. I was shocked to hear her say this, but as I think about it, I understand. So why do they pray these specified prayers? If they don’t come from the heart, then their subservient prayers become tasteless to YHWH. Where is the sincere prayer of the humble and contrite heart? Why mutter off a bunch of memorized words in a tongue that the human heart does not understand to a god that you do not know? Sounds very much like slavery. Are we indeed slaves? Again? Do we still need to be taken out of Egypt? Out of Babylon? Where and when did this all start? 

I certainly don’t claim to have the answers, but I feel we all need to draw closer to the God of Heaven who has a covenant with the people and land of Israel. And whether we see Him working or not, we must trust that He is there, behind the scenes, working out what needs to happen to separate those who are not united with the Divine purpose, or at least spur them to get on board!

May we all hang on with a bit more trust for a while longer, regardless of those naysayers who call “Wolf!”

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