Israel's Terrible Fires

Worst Fires in Modern Era

You probably heard about the fires that were raging in the forests of Mt. Carmel in northern Israel earlier this month—the worst in Israel’s modern 62-year history. Forty-two Israelis died, more than 17,000 people from 12 Israelis towns had to be evacuated, and about 45 percent of the Carmel Forest was destroyed.

No doubt the reason I am still thinking about the fires is because in a few weeks I will travel through the Carmel Mountains with 31 others from the Puget Sound region. Mount Carmel is where the prophet Elijah squared up against 450 prophets of Baal.

Anyway, on December 6, we were asked by a devout Jewish lady we know in “Samaria,” to pray for “G-d” to spare Israel further carnage. So we prayed, as many did, and the next day the fires were out.

Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu learned of the Carmel fires late on December 2nd. Since Israel does not own any fire suppression planes, he called several foreign leaders for help. “Within 24 hours, said Netanyahu, “we had 10 planes in the air from many countries.” More planes came within 48 hours, including the American ‘supertanker’ that can drop 80,000 gallons of water in a matter of minutes.

“We have to face the possibility of fires in the future that consume a large part of Israel,” said Mr. Netanyahu, differentiating between ‘mega fires’ and normal home, office or factory fires. “This requires a fundamentally different strategic plan,” he said.

The Joshua Fund’s Joel Rosenberg said he couldn’t help but think of Ezekiel 38-39 which indicates that in the “last days” there will be fire raining down from heaven in the region. “The Lord’s purpose will be, in part, to defeat Israel’s enemies. But there could be collateral damage, and Israel will need to be ready to fight such massive fires to protect their own citizens, as well as to be a blessing to their neighbors,” said Rosenberg.

Meanwhile, our Jewish friend followed up with this email:

(Dec 7)—“…Today it is raining in Israel, for the first time in months. Indeed, since March, it has rained maybe two or three times, and each time not very heavily. I have no idea how long the rain today will last and whether it will mark the beginning, finally, of the winter season in Israel, but it is a great day in any case. A day worthy of praise to G-d who has seen to our needs and opened up the heavens.”

Indeed, God does attend to Israel’s needs—and ours—when we cry out to Him. “Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.” (Heb 4:16)

It Really Hurts to Lose

Election 2010 is already in the rear view mirror and we’re on to other things. But I received an email from a candidate who lost his race and I want to share it with you:

"Dear Rick,"

"As you've probably tracked, our deficit has widened in the latest recount. It isn't possible to make up this difference now. The trend is going the wrong way.

Obviously, I'm disappointed and a little mystified. I'll have to do some more post-election analysis to better understand what went wrong for us.

My wife, family, neighbors, supporters, and … are completely devastated. I have one volunteer who probably door-belled six precincts himself—solo. Many other volunteers and some donors as well. I hate to let people down, but I failed. It isn't as bad as experiencing the loss of a major start-up company and having to lay off 50+ employees who I recruited and worked with for years, but it probably ranks in my top ten un-enjoyable experiences.

I greatly fear that these local election results will embolden the other side. I also worry about the discouragement on our side... However, I have caused great financial hardship to my family which might be difficult to overcome, so I will need to resolve that challenge first. I don't know if this can be done.

We did not enter into this political race lightly. My wife and I prayed about it for months before we jumped in. The Lord seemed to open so many critical doors for us to do this, so as always, I expect that I can only look back from some future date and understand why. Perhaps we will never understand, but it is fulfilling to see a small part of His plan come together and at least understand a small piece of it. I also can't really explain why I felt so moved by God in this process.

Please keep my family in your prayers..."

I think this letter points out what a huge commitment one makes when running for public office. If you get a chance this week, let someone who gave it their best know how much they are valued.