Israelis from every stream of Judaism are so thankful for the recent rain and snow in Israel.

The first song the above Israeli video plays is the traditional song “MAYIM, MAYIM Ushavtem Mayim (Besason)”

Ushavtem mayim b’sason mimainei hayeshua .
Ushavtem mayim b’sason mimainei hayeshua

Chorus:
Mayim – Mayim – Mayim – Mayim Hey, mayim b’sason
Mayim – Mayim – Mayim – Mayim Hey, mayim b’sason
Hey, hey, hey, hey Mayim – Mayim Mayim – Mayim Mayim – Mayim – b’sason
Mayim – Mayim Mayim – Mayim Mayim – Mayim – b’sason

The song comes from Isaiah 12: 2-4

Complete Jewish Bible (CJB)

2 “See! God is my salvation.
I am confident and unafraid;
for Yah Adonai is my strength and my song,
and He has become my salvation!” (my Yeshua)
3 Then you will joyfully draw water
from the springs of salvation. (of Yeshua)
4 On that day you will say,
“Give thanks to Adonai! Call on His name!
Make His deeds known among the peoples,
declare how exalted is His name.”

א וְאָמַרְתָּ, בַּיּוֹם הַהוּא, אוֹדְךָ יְהוָה, כִּי אָנַפְתָּ בִּי; יָשֹׁב אַפְּךָ, וּתְנַחֲמֵנִי. 1 And in that day thou shalt say: ‘I will give thanks unto Thee, O LORD; for though Thou was angry with me, Thine anger is turned away, and Thou comfortest me.
ב הִנֵּה אֵל יְשׁוּעָתִי אֶבְטַח, וְלֹא אֶפְחָד: כִּי-עָזִּי וְזִמְרָת יָהּ יְהוָה, וַיְהִי-לִי לִישׁוּעָה. 2 Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust, and will not be afraid; for GOD the LORD is my strength and song; and He is become my salvation.’
ג וּשְׁאַבְתֶּם-מַיִם, בְּשָׂשׂוֹן, מִמַּעַיְנֵי, הַיְשׁוּעָה. 3 Therefore with joy shall ye draw water out of the wells of salvation.
ד וַאֲמַרְתֶּם בַּיּוֹם הַהוּא, הוֹדוּ לַיהוָה קִרְאוּ בִשְׁמוֹ, הוֹדִיעוּ בָעַמִּים, עֲלִילֹתָיו; הַזְכִּירוּ, כִּי נִשְׂגָּב שְׁמוֹ. 4 And in that day shall ye say: ‘Give thanks unto the LORD, proclaim His name, declare His doings among the peoples, make mention that His name is exalted.
ה זַמְּרוּ יְהוָה, כִּי גֵאוּת עָשָׂה; מידעת (מוּדַעַת) זֹאת, בְּכָל-הָאָרֶץ. 5 Sing unto the LORD; for He hath done gloriously; this is made known in all the earth.
ו צַהֲלִי וָרֹנִּי, יוֹשֶׁבֶת צִיּוֹן: כִּי-גָדוֹל בְּקִרְבֵּךְ, קְדוֹשׁ יִשְׂרָאֵל. {ס} 6 Cry aloud and shout, thou inhabitant of Zion, for great is the Holy One of Israel in the midst of thee.’

Isaiah 55 says:
6 Seek Ad-nai while He is available,
call on him while He is still nearby.
7 Let the wicked person abandon his way
and the evil person his thoughts;
let him return to Adonai,
and He will have mercy on him;
let him return to our G-d,
for He will freely forgive.
8 “For my thoughts are not your thoughts,
and your ways are not my ways,” says Adonai.
9 “As high as the sky is above the earth
are My ways higher than your ways,
and My thoughts than your thoughts.
10 For just as rain and snow fall from the sky
and do not return there, but water the earth,
causing it to bud and produce,
giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater;
11 so is My word that goes out from My mouth —
it will not return to Me unfulfilled;
but it will accomplish what I intend,
and cause to succeed what I sent it to do.”

Through your generous support, IBF is happy to be helping supply food, medical help, and warm quilts (over 200 so far this year) to Israelis in need.   Messiah Yeshua said it was more blessed to give than to receive, and we are daily witnesses of that fact.

Our Messianic  Jewish brother and disciple of Yeshua named Yaakov (known to most of the Western world as James) wrote, “ Every good act of giving and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father who made the heavenly lights; with Him there is neither variation nor darkness caused by turning.”

Abba, how grateful we are for Your provision of life-giving water– physical and spiritual– to bless Your people Israel.

Let the Word of G*d prosper in our world and our lives and  hearts, bringing truth,  freedom, and new relationship with Him  for all who are dehydrated in a dry and thirsty world. Amein.

Palestinian rocket and mortar attacks have been launched from at Israeli civilians primarily living in  southern Israel for more than ten years, and the people living there have suffered.   Most of the time civilians living in Sderot have had only 15 seconds, day or night,  to get into a shelter before the Qassam rockets landed.   Recently, the Israeli government stood up against the constant rocket barrage on their civilian population– which was now including longer-range missiles smuggled in from Iran which could reach further into Israel– including Tel Aviv and Jerusalem.   Israel has the right and responsibility to protect her citizens from rocket attacks by neighboring terrorist states.   Until the Palestinians  and other neighboring countries have better leadership that is willing to coexist with Israel and stops the endemic child abuse inherent in the brainwashing their children receive, Israel will have to remain vigilant and defend herself and stand up against Islamist terror.

Meanwhile, there are very human costs associated with the continual persecution the Israelis have faced.   Besides praying for Israel, IBF has been busy behind the scenes helping.  We have had a  part of sending seven shipping  containers filled with soup and dried fruit  in the last 12 months to aid in hunger among the poor of Israel.

Dried Soup Given by Those Who Care

One of the shipping containers filled with food being unpacked

Along with the food,  IBF has sent some homemade 200 quilts to help keep warm the suffering in the winter months.

‘ “Comfort and keep comforting My people”  says your G-d.’ Isaiah 40:1 (CJB)

²⁹ But as for me, afflicted and in pain—
may your salvation, God, protect me.

Thank you for helping Israel Benevolence Fund reach out to Israelis to meet their needs in such a practical way.  May the Holy One of Israel bless you and yours.  Please continue to pray for Israel as she recovers and rebuilds– speaking life and revelation over our people.   Pray for Israel’s enemies that they will repent and share G-d’s heart because He has said about Israel, “His love endures forever.”

“

Unfortun

Fall  2012

Shalom (Peace) Mighty Defenders,

Thank you for your prayers and support to IBF. As you may or may not know, in the past 6 months we were able to send another three containers with a total of 43,000 pounds of food to Israel. That equates to one million meals! As the threat of war from Iran is escalating, hundreds of rockets explode every day along the Gaza. We were able to send over 40 barrels of soup mix to this area alone just last month.

As summer is ending, so are our  orphan camps, so it’s time to concentrate on school supplies and clothing for our children. With 1/3 of the population in poverty, it’s hard for many families to keep up. But with your help, we are making a definite difference. With winter rapidly approaching, IBF will be working to get warm clothing, coats and supplies to our Israeli  elderly as well as our children. Testimonies from Israel of hope and salvation, with a tear and a smile of gratitude, come to me each month. To quote one Holocaust survivor, “I never knew people still cared for us.”

Your gifts and compassion ARE making a difference. They are touching the lives of many individuals, old and young, every month. And their Father smiles as He sees His generosity and compassion being reflected in your heart as you give.

You can learn more by visiting the cbmhouston.org website and then clicking on IBF.

Baruch ha-ba b’shem Adonai – Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! (Matt. 23:39). That’s you, joining hands with IBF. Thank you, Mighty Defenders.

Thank you for giving and creating such joy!

Israel Benevolence Fund works together in Israel with the Jerusalem Institute of Justice.  Your gifts make a difference for Israelis every day. Showing practical love to Israelis and being willing to answer questions gently when adults ask about us– that is love in action that plants seeds for eternity.

We are happy to report that JIJ’s annual Back to School backpack distribution for needy children in Israel was a great success! This past Monday, over 2,000 needy children from 42 cities and towns throughout Israel participated in a day of fun including a tour through the Ramat Gan Safari Zoo and an outdoor musical featuring Israeli television stars. Each child received a brand new backpack with school supplies, books and magazines.

Many children and parents touched our hearts by thanking us through teary eyes for giving them a boost of encouragement as they prepare for this next school year.

This year’s special project was made possible through the hard work of over 500 volunteers and a matching grant from the Ministry of Education. For every $1.00 that you donated to this project, the government of Israel gave approximately $2.00.

JIJ was honored that three Members of Knesset, four mayors from various cities, and the Minister of Education’s Chief of Staff in addition to the Prime Minister’s Advisor on Ethiopian Affairs attended the distribution to encourage the children and to publicly thank us.

It is an incredible privilege to bring a ray of hope to children from families who are struggling to make ends meet. With your help, we are making a real difference in their lives. Please consider supporting us again as we prepare for our Lone Soldiers Rosh HaShana Project.

Thank you from the bottom of our hearts!

Click here to see photos of the distribution you helped make possible.