The Blessing of Rain

Israel is always thirsty for rain. The Kinneret is our only source of “sweet” water – there are desalination plants that process some of the water from the Mediterranean Sea, but we are mainly dependent on the Kinneret and the underground reserves.

The heavy winter rains both last year and this have added precious centimeters to the level of the Kinneret – so much so that it is at its highest level in more than seven years. Most predict that it will reach its full capacity by the end of the winter.

Another blessing that the rain has given Israel is the fact that Hamas has ordered the closing of the  smuggling tunnels (from Egypt to Gaza), since the rain has caused more than one to collapse. These tunnels are used to smuggle in drugs and weapons used against Israel.

The blessings of rain.

What Do YOU Wish for Your Children – Compare and Contrast

I came across this article quoting the wife of a Hamas operative saying that the Palestinian mother  “instills in her children the love of Jihad and martyrdom for the sake of Allah,” – and “I am constantly praying: ‘Allah, make the end of our days be in martyrdom.”

In other words, she prays that her her husband and children will kill themselves in order to kill others (Jews, in her case). This is her greatest goal.

I don’t know about you, but I pray for other things for my husband and children. I pray for them every day using my own words, and on Friday afternoon right after lighting the Sabbath candles I use the text in my siddur (Jewish prayerbook).

Here is this prayer in part:

“May it be your will Hashem, my G-d and G-d of my forefathers, that You show favor to me [my husband, my sons....] and all my relatives; and that You grant us and all Israel a good and long life:….Privilege me to raise children and grandchildren, who are wise and understanding, who love Hashem and fear G-d, people of truth, holy offspring, attached to Hashem, who illuminate the world with Torah and good deeds and with every labor in the service of the Creator…..” (taken from the Complet Artscroll Siddur)

I thank G-d every day that he made me a Jew, and I am profoundly grateful that the spiritual goals that we strive for are achieved by living a good life – illuminating the world with Torah and good deeds….

Hamas Calls for Terror Attacks Against Israelis

A senior Hamas leader, Ahmed Halabiyeh has called for terror attacks against Israelis, including suicide bombers in the “heart of Israel”.

This means of course that he wants other people to go out and throw stones and Molotov cocktails at innocent civilians on the roads where I live, and other people to strap on bombs and try to blow themselves up on buses and in cafes in Tel Aviv and Jerusalem. He wants other people to die in order to murder innocent Jews.

Very brave of him.

Not to worry though. It also means that he has put himself on a list. This list is one that the IDF keeps of what I call “VIT’s” Very Important Targets. The IDF will track him down, and if he is truly responsible for terorrist attacks, he will be taken care of.

In the meantime the IDF will also be doing what they do all of the time – far from the limelight – patrolling, gathering information, arresting suspected terorrists, and keeping an eye on us here in Israel.