Leah and David Ortiz are friends of ours who live in Ariel, Israel (east of Tel Aviv). Ariel is one of those oft-complained-about Israeli settlements in the West Bank. It's an oasis of prosperity in that area--and many Palestinians are gainfully employed or otherwise blessed because it's there. That's why you won't find many Palestinians complaining about Ariel, even though the Quartet says Israeli settlements in the West Bank are a major obstacle to peace. Never mind that many Arab settlements exist in Israel--it's just unthinkable (to them) for Israeli settlements to exist in the West Bank. I have never been able to figure that out. It's such a double standard! But hey, what else is new in discussions about Mideast peace? Leah and David's son, Ami, was the victim of a horrible terrorist attack in 2008. A crazy, anti-Messianic man left a Purim basket on their doorstep (a common event in Israel at that time of year) and Ami, who was 15 years old at the time, picked it up and took it inside the house. When he set it down on a table, it exploded, shooting shrapnel all over the room. They had been specifically targeted because of their Messianic faith (that is, believing in Yeshua). Ami was critically injured but miraculously survived. He has had 14 surgeries over these past four and a half years and you can read more about his amazing story by clicking here. A couple of years ago, Gideon and I were in the Ortiz's home and had the privilege of meeting Ami. Later that afternoon, David offered to drive Gideon and me to Mount Gerazim, which was the center of worship for the ancient Samaritans (and still is, by the way). He even drove us up the mountain and when the road ended, led us on foot up to the remains of the ancient Crusader citadel that was situated on the site of the ancient Samaritan temple. It was a remarkable experience. Here's a photo of David gazing down from Mount Gerazim: Before we returned to Jerusalem, here's Gideon chatting with the Samaritan man who oversees the sacrifices that his community still performs on the mountain. You can see that this gentleman works out of a small, no-frills office! Here Gideon is asking him to write down his contact information so we can be in touch with him. I guess I'm going "the long way around" to tell you that David and Leah have issued an update on the current situation in Israel (see below). There have been some violations of the cease-fire, but the Israelis have gone the second mile and have been very patient. And as of Friday night (11/23), it's holding. That's actually longer than many observers expected! I trust we're all continuing to pray for the shalom of Yerushalyim!

AMI UPDATE LEAH AND DAVID ORTIZ NOVEMBER, 2012  Dear Gary, David and I arrived back in Israel four days ago from the U.S. where we participated in two conferences in NYC. We also had the chance to visit Ami at school and see the first two basketball games of the season.  More about that later - as we were writing this update yesterday,  the news flashed on in the media that a bomb had blown up on a city bus in Tel Aviv.  This time it was not a suicide bomber, but a package that was left on the bus and detonated from outside.  All in all, 28 people were wounded, three seriously.  Thank God no one was killed but we personally know what havoc is wreaked by the explosion of a bomb on the human frame.  It is still not clear which terror organization carried this out, and the one who left the bomb and detonated it is still at large. This incident took place in the context of the Pillar of Defense Operation that Israel was waging against the launching of over 1,500  missiles into Israel from Gaza in the past week alone.  The offensive was carried out by air power up to this point but we learned last night that a cease fire had been agreed on between Israel and Hamas, and so the ground incursion that was planned as the next step has been averted.  News of the cease fire comes with mixed reaction, a feeling that this is again just a temporary measure and not  all of Israel's objectives were obtained,  and knowing the same scenario will certainly repeat itself in the future, but also relief that the ground offensive is cancelled and soldiers lives will be spared this time. Soldiers who include our sons -and the sons of thousands and thousands of Israelis who lose sleep and pray nonstop for their children, and also their husbands, brothers, cousins, uncles, nephews, fiancées, and friends. FROM DAVID Amos 3:6 6 If a trumpet (siren) is blown in a city, will not the people be afraid?
If there is calamity in a city, will not the Lord have done it?7 Surely the LordGod does nothing,Unless He reveals His secret to His servants the prophets. (cf. Psalms 25:14) These verses describe very much what is happening here in Israel when the sirens sound, and the panic starts.  But as it says, God is on the throne and He uses everything to get Israel's attention.  He does it first by revealing it to his close friends. This was the home front commands instructions for a rocket attack in English from You Tube which was broadcast on TV for English speakers. As we mentioned we were in the States at two conferences and visiting Ami, and while waiting for our flight back to Israel, we thought we had plenty of time so we decided to have something to eat before boarding.   Suddenly we heard an announcement over the loud speaker that our f light was leaving earlier before its' scheduled departure time and that we had to get to the gate right away.  We hurried to our gate, and as we went through security and boarding, we noticed that it was being done in a very rushed manner, and before people were even completely settled on the plane, they announced that the door was shut and we should sit down as quickly as possible as take off was going to commence. I was speaking to a passenger seated in the row in back of me and he asked me, "do you notice that take off is being rushed?  Do you know why?"  I told him that I did notice - he said that before boarding he and others read on line on their laptops that flights coming into Ben Gurion Airport would be using alternate routes to avoid any danger of rocket fire.  He said this is why the boarding was being done very quickly because already many passengers had cancelled upon hearing this.  Because of this we had a very comfortable flight as we all had extra seats next to us to stretch out onto. Here is one of the articles about flights be rerouted - Planes 'slightly rerouted' to avoid being hit http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4308171,00.html I told my fellow passenger that I happened to have the best life insurance possible that has already been paid for by the Lord God Himself. That's when he identified himself as a believer.  He said he also felt good as he had the same policy from the same Person. We definitely find that the best time to be in Israel is at times like these. Even before the missiles began falling before we left, there were rumours of war already and people's hearts were beginning to soften and open up.  We thank God for this.  We also thank God for believers who have put words into action by not only assisting in caring for believers during this difficult time but who have reached out their hands to the people of the land. As soon as we hit the ground, we started being involved in trying to assist people in the South.  With the little resources we have, and with the help of the international Body of Messiah, we will continue. During this time Deut. 20 rings very clear in our hearts. "When you go out to battle against your enemies, and see horses and chariots and people more numerous than you, do not be afraid of them; for the Lord your God is with you, who brought you up from the land of Egypt. ² So it shall be, when you are on the verge of battle, that the priest shall approach and speak to the people. ³ And he shall say to them, 'Hear, O Israel: Today you are on the verge of battle with your enemies. Do not let your heart faint, do not be afraid, and do not tremble or be terrified because of them; ⁴ for the Lord your God is He who goes with you, to fight for you against your enemies, to save you.' The phrase "Fear not" appears 380 times in the Bible.  Within all those times, it never says to be afraid of man, or of demons, but it specifically says to let the Lord be our fear and Him only.  (Isaiah 8:13NLT) Make the LORD of Heaven's Armies holy in your life. He is the one you should fear. He is the one who should make you tremble. This was the home front commands instructions for a rocket attack in English from You Tube which was broadcast on TV for English speakers. Israel Home Front Command instructions on protecting yourself during rocket and mortar attacks http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iiKipcrUXpg It seems like there is an app for everything - Subject: App helps Israelis track missile fire http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8-_5E2a8aSY We have lived in Israel for 27 years, and the modern technology of internet, cell phones, Skype etc. have made it easier for us to keep in touch with family as we are able to speak to them and see them as if they are in our living room.  But we had a very pleasant treat when my 80 year old mother came to visit us for an extended stay in which she not only ministered to us and to our children, but also to those in the community of believers and unbelievers, Jews and Arabs.  Sometimes family is something we take for granted especially if they live near to us, but one of the sacrifices that sometimes goes unnoticed is that years pass by and especially the children lack  personal contact with their  extended families that have been left behind. Like Yeshua said in  Matthew 19:29   -  And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or wife or children or lands, for My name's sake, shall receive a hundredfold, and inherit eternal life. DAVID AND LEAH Our daughter lives in Tel Aviv which has been targeted several times by new, longer range missiles than have never been used before.  However, her husband's family lives in Kiryat Malachi,  ( like the book and prophet Malachi -http://en.Wikipedia.org/wiki/Kiryat_Malakhi) which is a town that was  relentlessly shelled and is about 20 miles from Sderot and the Gaza Border. Kiryat Malachi was the first town in which an apartment sustained a direct hit a week ago in which 3 people were killed and several were wounded, including infants. (http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4305658,00.HTML) Two of her husbands' siblings and their families (10 people in all) ran to Tel Aviv and stayed with her over the weekend to get some relief from the constant sirens and running into the shelters which was traumatizing especially their children. By the grace of Almighty God many doors have been opened to us but we aren't free to share it with you in this update because of the Anti-Freedom of Religion organizations who monitor believers' websites.  We are happy for the fruit we are seeing and the opportunities we have to share the Good News with the people of this land. AMI NEWS In the meantime, we did have 3 wonderful days to be with Ami.  He is doing very well in school, he's getting the knack of what is expected from him scholastically and his grades are improving.  Basketball American style has been a challenge also.  He showed us the notebook full of plays he needs to learn, and warned us he wouldn't be playing much in the games we were about to see-  this from a young man who in high school played the whole game from start to finish and scored high.  But the pace is faster and level of the game is higher in college, and the rules and even mentality of the game and team dynamics are different.  So Ami played only a few minutes of the first game we saw, and sat on the bench for the whole second game!!  It was hard, but we know the Lord is doing something new in his life, and we continue to pray. However we have a great miracle to report.  We wrote about the laser surgery for scars that we found out about, and how we found a surgeon the States who is an expert in her field and came highly recommended from the developer of the surgery.  We received word from her office that Ami will be put on their VIP pro bono list!!  We are so blessed, and the next step will be for Ami to to meet the surgeon and have a check up!!  Hallelujah! Remember to check out www.amiortiz.com for all up to date articles, information, pictures and videos. Thank you for your continuing prayers and love for Israel, our family and the Body of Messiah here. Leah and David Ortiz