Shalom Friends:
Thank you all for your prayers for Pastor Rashid yesterday. He called this morning to let me know he came through the surgery well. The surgery only took 1 ¼ – 1 ½ hours and the doctors removed several small cancerous masses. He of course needs to recover but said all seems to be going well. Omar and about 40 of the HOB missionaries stayed outside of the hospital during the surgery and spent the time in intercession, and God answered.
I have another very urgent request to share. Pastor Rashid told me that one of HOB’s women helping to care for the widows of Youssef and Rahdi, named Soad, was near the tent that had been supplied and set up for their widows and children. As she heard loud, frantic screaming, she looked up and saw about 20-30 Hezbollah militants grabbing both widows, Nevean and Sherin, and all five of their children by force. No one could do anything to help as the militants were armed with machine guns. Sister Nevean, Rahdi’s widow was taken with her three children, ages 1,3, and 4 1/2. Sister Sherin, Youssef’s widow was taken with her two children, ages 2 and 4. Four of the children are girls and the other a boy.
The entire camp where they were has been searched and they have not been found, nor does anyone have any idea where they were taken. This is one of the harsh realities of being a follower of Jesus in a culture where radical terrorists are allowed to rule by violence. This is nothing more than anarchy. It is one thing to have murdered their husbands for their belief in Jesus, but to now kidnap their widows and little children, is evil on another level.
Please pray earnestly for the Lord to intervene. Imagine they were your own children or grandchildren! We know God was not caught off guard, but prayer is something He has charged us with for one another. It is an awesome privilege to go to Him in prayer, and prayer is a tool He has given us to use. Over the years, we have seen many who have lived the life of terror come to a knowledge of the Truth and bend the knee before Messiah Jesus, people like Suleiman and a whole mosque full of terrorists brought into the Kingdom of God recently. We don’t know what God will do because we don’t know the details of His masterplan but we must PRAY.
The House of Blessing continues the work of the ministry all across the Mideast. The missionaries know that time is running out and the work of evangelism is going full speed ahead sharing the message of the Good News of the Gospel with as many people as possible. This of course continues to produce greater needs for Bibles and truckloads of wheat, lintels, beans, etc. for the new converts. We pray that the Lord of the Harvest will bring in what is needed for this great last hour’s work!
Thank You from all of the House of Blessing.
Forever in His Service,
Jake
Praying for all and that Jesus is being a Father to the widows and children and He is caring for them wherever they are. Praying for all the HOB missionaries and the ministry they are doing. May He protect and encourage.
Sorry Linda that I’ve not caught your comments lately. Not sure how but happened to be looking at things
‘inside’ the website and found a bunch of comments I had not seen. By the time you get this reply, you will have seen what has happened with the widows and their children. It was a very hard update for me to write, although I’ve had many hard ones to report on in the past 9+ years. I do know that the Lord’s hands has been on those who have endured such terrible things in the past and they found themselves almost as spectators of what was going on, rather than the victims. My prayer before and continued after I heard what happened, is that God’s loving hands covered both widows and their young ones during this terrible time. Thank God they’re all in the presence of Jesus now. No suffering ever again!