| August 7, 2020 Good afternoon, ” When Rehoboam came to Jerusalem , he assembled all the house of Judah and the tribe of Benjamin, 180,000 chosen troops to fight against the house of Israel, to restore the kingdom to Rehoboam, the son of Solomon. [ they ended up not fighting this time ] I Kings 12:21 Pray for Lebanon. It was a political and economic disaster before this week’s explosion. After the explosion the country is in deep peril. It is supposed to be ruled by religious factions, but it has been foiled by differences and violence for many years. The price of food has doubled during the pandemic. The population is angry at the leadership, and are not looking to them for relief following the explosion. Someone interviewed on CBC this morning wants to kill them( the politicians) all. Three hospitals were destroyed by the explosion, and so how are they going to treat people with Covid, and all the rest of the injured. It is horrible. Pray for Lebanon The other political players in the area have exasperated the problem by not helping with the politics. They have sold small arms to everyone. Canada is not excluded. Israel, Syria, Saudi Arabia and the United States have all been instrumental in bringing more suffering to the people of Lebanon. We do not care. Lebanon has always been caught in between the major powers that have colonized the Middle East. Pray for Lebanon Mennonite Central Committee has begun a fund for relief. They have worked there since the Civil War ( 1975-1990 ). Their refugee work in Lebanon among the Syrians there, and it is also where the work inside Syria is administered. Our son Caleb lived in Beirut for a year with the MCC SALT program. The blast was about a kilometer away from the place where he had lived, the Near East School of Theology. So, we have a personal connection, although we did not visit him there. Pray for Lebanon. The people of God were a divided kingdom. It was called Judah and Israel. It separated after the death of Solomon. He was only their third king, after Saul and David. You can find the story of the break-up in I Kings. It was like the civil war in Lebanon, with different faith traditions fighting with each other. They were a divided people for a long time, the kingdoms of Judah and Israel. If you are moved to do something, other than praying, you can donate the work of MCC on their website, mcccanda.ca , 1-888-622-6337 Prayer We pray for Beirut, Its injured, its hungry, its new homeless. Bring more hope, to a place that seems hopeless. We remember the people who work there for peace, non-violence and justice. May the world stop, and see, and hear what is going on in Lebanon. Help us to notice this place, everyday. AMEN. Fred Tread on bold new paths! Fireflies flash the direction Hope springs eternal Monica Pieper Landoni 2020 Fred Redekop Pastor Poole Mennonite Church  |
